< A Metaphysical Convict. (continued from page 1-28) >
“It is not the whiskey that does the bad deed, |
Reason, being a purely negative faculty of mind, gives us but the negation that Spiritualism is not true. We are ustified in calling it a superstition, not by reason, but by the desire to give a strong practical effect to our negation.
You labour under a serious mistake in supposing that what you can spiritual phenomena can be verified like the so-called truths of physical science. You can verify the existence of phenomena of some kind, but the question whether they are spiritual phenomena or not, is insusceptible of verification by any physical tests. Can yon bag a ghost and carry it to a chemist for analysation? When you do, behold, your ghost is no ghost That which you see with your eyes and weigh upon scales is some form of matter, and not spirit. Spirit, by the very meaning of the term,—and of course reason is superseded and any reason is dethroned when yon begin to compound terms,—mast be invisible and imponderable. We do not know what spirit is, but do know what it is not. It is not matter, not thing, for all our conception of entity or thing is filled by the term matter. Spirit is not the name of anything that is, bat simply the name of what, matter is not. Philosophy, as well as general speech, necessitates the use of names for not-things and things ideal, as antilogues for the name of things real, and their use unfortunately gives rise to superstition. The terms mind and thought, used as the names of entities, are synonyms of spirit. But it is not mind or thought that thinks, any move than it is life that lives, motion that move, or gravity that gravitates.
Although spirit cannot be subjected to any chemical test, certain physical as well as logical tests can be applied to men to prove what manner of spirit they are of. It has been shown that the notion of the full moon looking larger at the horizon than at the zenith, is not an optical illusion, as was supposed, but an error of the imagination. It does not look larger. It is, so with opinion. Men do not err so much in believing things that are incredible, as in imagining that they believe. Even the lunatic is not so big a foul as he pretends to be. Instead of applying a scientific test to the phenomena of Spiritualism, I would apply a scientific test of bread and water to the men who profess to believe in it, and show them that they deceive themselves.
William Clark.
State Prison, March 18th, 1875
Exposure of the Eddys
We see by the New York Sun that one of its correspondents had paid a visit to the Eddys and thoroughly exposed them? Yet we fail to sea how any rational person can take stock in the explanation which he gives. Even allowing that their performances are all the results of trickery, any one who has ever been there can not help but see how this unknown correspondent misrepresented a great many things. His principal object it would seem, was to create a sensation, and in this he has had his ambition gratified, for every paper nearly has had its columns headed in glaring capitals, "Exposure of the Eddys.
Had people manifested the same interest in reading the affirmative side of the question, that they have in the negative, the story of this nameless correspondent would not have crossed such a whirlwind.
There are certain places in this pretended exposure where we know positively that he has not correctly stated. And when we find one portion erroneous it certainly gives us reason to question the reliability of the whole. Ha says in evenings when the “stock” spirits are to appear, (such as Honto, Mrs. Eaton, Witch of the Mountains, etc.) the two sisters are never to the circle room with the audience. Well, when we were present some of the same “stock” spirits appeared, and in every instance, both of the sisters were in the room. Furthermore, he fails to account for the appearance of several spirits at the same time which has been witnessed by myself also. And again we have good authority for stating that many times, William Eddy has been seen seated at the window end of the cabinet, deeply entranced when the spirits were stalking up and down the platform. In these instances the blanket was pushed aside sufficient to allow the light to penetrate and light up the cabinet, so that the medium would be visible to a person sitting on the platform, as was the case. Or at times as my informant stated the cabinet hat been illuminated by a sort of phosphorescent light issuing from the cabinet itself.
Col. Olcott and Dr. Miller, both, good authority on the question, flatly deny the existence of any such passage as this correspondent says the chimney contains. They have examined, so they say, and this is more than he claims to have done, and the same may be said in regard to the trap door in the cabinet. He says the costumes are kept in William’s room, and Col. Olcott says “that not only one but several times he has searched William’s room, and nothing of the kind could be…
Again, this correspondent states that "…
tumes were very poor and common pla…
evinced great lack of theatrical skill”
During the evening of my first visit…
Eddy circles the costumes worn by seve…
cient spirits that appeared, and the gree…
ty of trappings I never saw surpassed in…
any circus or theatre. To say they wer…
nificient, does not half express it. He (…
poser) says they trusted to luck to have…
characters recognized. If this is so, l…
befriended there well, for at our last vi…
white spirits appeared and ten ware in…
ately recognized. Now, had this report…
succeeded in getting so much informat…
doubt luck would still have contin…
crown their efforts. No explanation (I…
en of Horatio’s light and dark circle…
more than all the rest, he also fails to…
what kinds of wardrobe and machine…
used, when the seances are held in the…
room with dark closet for a Cabinet, …
is quite frequently where some of the …
materializations occur.
Barely the chimney can not serve them …
place. Neither does he mention the …
held at the place known as “Honto’s …
where materializations in great variet …
occurred. Here certainly neither ch…
traps, sisters, or bedrooms can be of the …
est use. And we might still go on, ...
above is deemed sufficient to convince ?…
slble person that was ever in the Eddy …
stead, that this correspondent's statemen…
not at all absolute facts. If they are tri…
(and we do not say they are not), he …
to try some other method to con…
whole public that such is the case.
People that will not investigate are …
the first to tell you how all these wonde…
accomplished, and of course the first to …
low all such exposures.
To them this correspondent’s story ma…
perfectly rational, but to some (if it is t…
seems, and really is more wonderful tha…
materializations themselves.
Yours Truly, W. H. Wild
Felchville, Vt.
Notice
The papers relating to the Russian investigations of the spiritualistic phenomena, comprise and “Appeal to Mediums,” in the French language ; a letter in Russian from Counselor Aksakoff to Madame Blavatsky ; and a joint card by that lady and Col. Olcott to American mediums, stating the terms upon which names will be forwarded to the St. Petersburg Scientific Commission. The letter was handed to the Russian Consul-General, for official comparison, but, owing to his absence from his office, it has not yet been forwarded. We will, therefore, postpone publication of the papers until next week.
Spirit Materialization
On Monday night, the 26th of April, we had the last and most wonderful seance of my singular and remarkable experience at Mrs. Compton’s. Without going into much preliminary description I will say that I was on hand at eight o’clock, the hour of homing together; but the friends I had made in the two sittings had cone to their respective homes, satisfied with what they had seen. There were seven of us at this circle; we had the usual developments and manifestations in the first half hour’s dark circle, but during that I took occasion to ask permission of the managing spirits to go into the cabinet, and see what I might or could see during the time that “Katie” was out and manifesting in the presence of the circle, which would he held in the light. This was granted me provided I did not move the chair in the cabinet from its place. I also asked the spirits “If ‘Katie ’ could not, with a pair of scissors which I had provided, cut out a piece of her dress for me.” I was told that she could do so, but if “Katie” cut the dress she wore as a spirit, the dress of the medium, Mrs. Compton, would be cut in the same way and place, and would so appear. I said, ‘‘Never mind; I will give the medium another new dress,” upon which the spirit assented, and said Katie would do so if I would furnish her the scissors.
The light being turned on, Mrs. Compton, in her black dress, as before, was led by me into the cabinet and seated in the chair, and secured with paper bracelets, and sealing wax stamped so as to render it impossible for her to move without being detected. We then took our places in the circle. I must not forget to mention that I had in my side coat pocket, neatly put up in paper, a small, pretty bouquet of fresh flowers, which I had bought during the day from a gardener, and which I intended to present that evening to the spirit Katie, if she would take it.
We had not been long waiting before the latch went up and the cabinet door opened, and beautiful “Katie” appeared before us adorned in white and blue simplicity, as usual; she advanced toward me, and waving with her hand she indicated to me to enter the cabinet door white she was out. I arose from my seat, passed her, and went into the open cabinet door. I looked all around in the cabinet: I felt all around; the atmosphere seemed heavy—very heavy, indeed, it seemed to me, so thick was it, that I was feeling with my hands moving through flour, or very thick atmosphere. I cane to the cane-seat chair in the cabinet. I saw nothing—literally nothing is the chair. I felt of it. A voice said loudly, “Don't move the chair—the spirit-form of Mrs. Compton still occupies it, although her material form is not there. If you move the chair you will hurt the medium, perhaps kill her.” Of course I did not move the chair, but I felt of it; I placed my hand in and over the seat and back, and there was nothing at all there—no Mrs. Compton, no paper bracelets, no sealing wax—nothing, nothing! What does all this mean? Katie, the spirit, is materialized from the dematerialized form and body of Mrs. <... continues on page 1-32 >
This Mrs. Compton is a real wonderful medium. She is a true electric battery worked by the Elementals.
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