Marshall County Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1855-1859, 1857-05-14
Modern Spiritualism.

Modern SPiritualism.
A few years ago we were accustomed. on
all festal occasions, to celebrate the intel
lectual glories of the present age. We
have not wholly abandoned the practice
now. We listen with complacency to the
statements annually made by village, town
and city authorities, as to the rapid prog
ress of education in our Commonwealth
We leok back with contempt and pity to
the deiusions under which our less enlight-
ened ancestors labored. Mr.. Upham's ad
mirable book on the witchcraft imposture,
Ellis US with astonishment; and we congrat-
ul;rte ourselves, in our overweening self-es-
nation, that We five in later and better
age In the midst of this self. glori6cation
there springs up in rapid growth new de-
lusion, spreading far and wide, carrying
the most hideous evils in its train, more
extraordinary than ever before appeared in
the worlds history. 1t may seem strong
assertion to make. We make it advisedly.
We say il deliberately, that any man who
should, twenty years ago, have predicted
the present state of things in Massachu-
sets, would have been scUfed at as libel
Ter Of the Old Bay State. Twenty years
hence, if any should describe truihfully
what is now taking place every day and
every night in hundreds of circles, he will
scarcely be believed. The prevalence of
the belief i'm the So called spiritualsm. and
the superstitious performance of its rites,
are certainly among the things that future
generations will find it hardest to credit -
The difficulty attending this new species of
superstition lies not in explaining what is
actually done by the mystagogues, and
Witnessed and testified to by the neophytes
but Il is in comprehending and explaining
how SO many people can be brought
under SO gross and disreputable a delu-
sion.
We assert it as a fact. that the I" Fox
girls, as they are called - and rightly
named they are-who began the imposture,
have been many times detected - twice
within our own knowIedge--in the trick,
by which they nevertheless continue to
cheat SD n~ny willing victims. The same
is true of many others. The female me-
dunn. who SO long astonished the wonder
seekers of Boston, and who made 30 profit
able business for short time BY cheat
! ing the nobility of London, has been ex-
posed again AID again. Mr.. Hume, the
greatest wonder worker of all, who is said
to have lately puzzled the Emperor Of
the French by style of legerdemain su-
perior to his own, could not be induced to
exhibit his performance where it was un-
derstood that "a professor Of the Scientific
School," intended to pierce the spiritual
hand with a dissecting knife, which he
was known to WELD with unerring precis-
ion.
We assert it as an indisputable fact, that,
wherever precautions have been taken,
which exclude the possibility of fraud or
decep ion, the pretended phenomena of
spiritualism hare not taken place. Even the
most common and easily produced result,
such as the moving Of table, has not,
under these circumstances. taken place. We
further assert that, in all cases where the
phen 'mena hare occurred, the conditions
and arrangements have been made by the
medium. o1 exhibitor. which were favora-
BILE TO fraud. Rooms have been darkened
tables covered with tablecioths, and spec
tators not allowed to look under them.
Persons showing disposition to scuruti-
nize have be n denounced as unbelievers.
and politely requested TO leave the circle,
for the alleged reason that the spirits re-
quired their absence as condition prece-
dent to the performances. These are facts
known 10 all who are in the habit of fire.
que ning the spiritual circles. The myst-
a.ogues o the new sect have great advan-
tages allowed them over the jagglers. Hou-
din Of Paris. and Signor Blitz. two Of the
,noss ingenious and entertaining OF their
class. do not think Of asking such privi-
legcs. The works they perform are per-
formed under real difficulties; and how
much su erior are they to the best Of the
performances exhibited by the mediums. Of
whatever sort
We lay down another proposition, which
no one who has looked into the matter i'm
partially will be able or willing to contro-
vert. We affirm that all the mediums who
pretend To carry on what may be designat-
ed the active operations Of the craft-such
as rapping under tables. tipping tables,
RI J>n;,,.. ,,;ao.,oc r;th etort mon o;rt;o ,y,