Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1853-01-10
From the Boston Transcript, December 80.
aPIRITnAI,IsTs, CONVENTION.

A convention Of persons disposed to believe in
the spiritual origin Of certain phenJmenGI known
as the "rappings,' - and "movings," commenced
their sittings at the Masonic Temple, in this city,
yesterday, and continue them to-day. II Is now
some three years since the public began to hayere
ports of certain inexpicable sounds and motions,
produced under certain conditions, and exhibiting
intelligence, in Rochester and nther towns in CEN
trail and western New York. The cTyof Hthum-
bug" and "delusion," was at once raised, and
has been repeated, growing fainter and fainter
however, up to tie present time. All sorts OF eX-
plantations of the mysteries we're written. Some
learned physicians Of Buffalo published pamph-
let prove that the traps wste productivity
certain knock OF swapping the toe joint. Other
scientific gentlemen thought there was some cleo
tricsl apparatus concealed in the room, to winch
the phenomena might be traced. Every solution,
however, that has been offered upsto the present
time, has been proved untenable and unsatisfac-
tory. The most earnest and plausible OF the in
veshgators thus lSr, who oppose the spiritual the
DRY, is Dr. Rogers, who is now lecturing in this c-
ty, and who, while he admits the phenomena claim
ed by the theory, undertakes to classify the phe-
nomena among others developed IN somnampu-
lism, epilepsy, &C., anu which are aSslgnaole 10
causes not preternatural.
as soon as we heard of the ttrappings'' and
stmovings'' in Boston, some two years and hall
since, we awaited ourselves of our prerogatve as
public Journalist to investigate them wheneyerthe
opportunity was offered We have frequently wit
messed them during the interval up to the present
time; and, although imposture and collision may
be sometimes pTactised, it has never been our for
tune to detect them. We have occasionally been
aided in our investigation by eminent physicians,
mecL anical men, AID fellow editions; butup to
this time, while we have witnessed the most mex
| pliCeble phenomena, such as movements of furni-
ture, &C., withoutthe application of visible force,
we have been unable to account Tor them under
| any admitted scientific law or theory. Our atten-
ton has been directed to the phenomena them
selves and not to the intelligence they exhibit
We have sci down their own report OF themselves
as inadmiSSible evidence, at the same time that we
have been fully persuaded that the called media
were, in most instances, asigno[ant aswe were
ourselves eS to the moduS operaRdi. But there was
nothing in the intelligence superior to what we had
been familiar with repeatedly in cases OF somnam-
buIiSm. The so-called communications have
always seemed to us tiTesome, frivolous, OF 3elu-
sve; and we would no more pin our faith to them,
were it no bigger than grain of mustard seed,
than we would respect the rawlings of lunatic.
Spite of TidIcule, contempt and opposition, the
'srappers' have increased until they have become
very formidable body, and their raPS are shaking
church doors and calling forth beseeching cry To
'stop that knocking The belief in the RELIABLE
| ity Of the communications attending the phenome
ma has sent many TO the mad house, and produced
all sorts OF mischief Distinguished converts TO the
spiritual belief have appeared in oil parts OF the
country from Maine to California. Judges OF high
| courts in MaSSa chuSetts and New YOrk-distin-
guiGhed physicians and cleTgymen-an ex-senator
| OF the United States-merchants of great wealth
| and Observation-Disclosures and editoTS-have
all frankly avowed belief in the spiritual origin of
| the phenomena. An eminent English traveller,
who visited our country last summer procured from
us our newspaper cutting the subject, and has
put forth book in LondOn (no doubt very able
one) entitled "Sghtsand Sounds, or the Mystery Of
| the Day. Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton has become
much interested in theSubject and promises book.
We saw few weeks since IN Tic York phySl-
clan in most lucrative practice in that dity, who
gr. vely assured us that he, with two Othes wit
neSseS had seen ''medmnf' lifted bodily into the
air by invisible forces and carried througha suite o.
rooms distance ofSeventy feet and bnck
1t cannot bea matter OF surprise that people see
ing, or believing that they see such very queer pro-
ceedings, should CONF to the conclusion that the
devil, or some more respectable spirit, IS IN them.
And yet, although we cannot certainly dogmati-
cally say that there is preternatural agency at
work in them, it is very unsatisfactory mode of
proceeding to base our inquiries and examinations
upon the assumption that the mysteries must be
produced by departed spirits. Nothing could be
more vapid, inconSGquential, and absurd than the
"Spiritual communications" $50 "alled) produced
at the Spiritual Convention in this city. II we
hope to get any nearer to solution Of the mystery,
the subject must be taken up i'll very different
manner, and by very different class of men,
We do not doubt that the gentlemen ~ no think that
John Murray, or some other worthy IS speaking
through their lips; are thoroughly sincere, butthey
must back their claims by some irresistible evil
dence, internal external, before they con expect
to be regarded by the world at large as in their
Virginia, profeSceS to be the channel Of con,muni-
cation from tile Almighty. Theinsanties and evils
which have been produced among the unwary by
belefin the communications are not to be Teck-
oned.
How, then, are we to deal with the subject
Plainly not by ignoring it, pr nouncing the Phe-
nomenA humbug, and pShH!-ing at those who con-
descend 10 look into matter whichis mischiev-
ously affecting so many among their fellow citi-
zens. Neither can we allow those who receive the
communications as authentic and Spiritual"
to impose their rash and pernicious assumption up
on us. The true course is, TO investgnte the phe
nomena without regard TO the spiritual or anti
spiritual theoryr and, if we choose to listen 10 the
communicating 10 accept such only as fully
satisfy reason and accord with its sacred teach
ngs. Let it be either "a spirit of health or goblin
damned" which speaks; are bound to believe
only what reason commends TO faith; althoughrea-
son, on her part. may sometimes commend that
which transceIds her power of vision, looking 10
the future to explain what now may seem inexpG-
cable.