Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1863-1866, 1865-12-28

From the Detroit Free Press. IL
The quiet village of Battle Creek was
thrown into great excitement on Satur-
day last, by the discovery of the dead
bodies of three children under circum-
stances which strongly induced suspi-
cions of foul play. A Coroner's jury
was at once summoned, and thorough
investigation of the affair was commenc-
ed, but was not concluded when our in
formant left. The inquiry has develop
ed a condition of social affairs which is
almost too much for credulity to swal-
low That, in this latter half of the
nineteenth century, in the midst of
Christian community, persons of both
sexes should herd together like cattle,
in furtherance of wild religious fanati-
eism, almost surpasses belief When
they go still further, and add to their
previous CRIMES the most henious one
known to the laws of God and man, the
community in which they live may be
pardoned for exhibiting symptoms of I'M
usual excitement
The circumstances Of the case, so far
as developed, appear to be about as fol
lows: Last spring q MRS. Leonard left
her husband at Ypsilanti and went to
Battle Creek, taking with her five chill
dren, two by Leonard and three by for
mer husband. 1t seems that she was
believerin the doctrines of modern spir-
itualism, and was led to desert her hus-
band through instructions from the
spirit world. She herself possessed the
power of communicating with spirits,
being in the parlance of that sect a
medium. By advice from the same
supernatural source she dropped the
name of Leonard, and being matr mo-
nially Joined, according to the ordinan-
ces in vogue in the spiritual world, to
her first husband, again assumed his
name and called herself Mrs. Haviland.
When she reached Battle Creek with her
children she had $500 in money, and set
up in housekeeping by herself About
this period another character appears
upon the stage in the person of Doctor
Baker from Adrian, who was also
spiritual medium of great repute among
his sect. DIR. Baker boarded with Mrs.
Haviland. The house was a great re-
sort for spirituahsts, there being many
of that sect IN and about Battle
Creek, and "circles" and "seances''
were the principal occupation
of the gifted doctor and his pupils; for
it appears that the Haviland house was
sort of spiritual academy for the |
training up of female mediums through |
the superior knowledge and gifts of the |
doctor. A Miss Merritt, of Iona, me-
dun, was of the household, and a Miss
Hannass, of Battle Greek, young lady |
of seventeen years of age, was a board |
err in the family. She was developing
her gifts, with the help of the other me-
diums, as test medium" that is, the
veracity of spirits in general, and loqua
cious ones in particular, was tested
through her superior gifts. 1t was said
that she developed more rapidly than
any test medium known in these parts,
being quick-witted and shrewd. This
academy went on with swimming sue
cess through the Summer and Fall, and
furnished incontrovertible spiritual evil
dence for the conversion of the unbe.
lieving. ss.e-r-T
About four weeks ago the doctor Dor.
rowed $500 Of Miss Merritt and bought
q lot in the outskirts of the town, upon
which he built his castle, in the shape of
a board shanty with one room. Into
this shanty with one room the doctor
moved the three women above mentioned
and the Eve children, and they all lived |
together, continuing to " develop" the
young lady as test medium. Wonder
full things were related of her powers in
that capacity. She could 60 into a
trance, and when she arrived back again
to this mundane sphere, would relate
wonderful things of what she had seen
and heard. She had seen and talked
with any deceased friend you might
name, and could describe him or her
exactly as he or she appeared in this
life, the dress, size, color of hair and
eyes, s ms1
owl mair o. horrible and awful, %
Which cen TO name wad be unlawful r. Il.
The party were getting ready to travel
and astonish the world by public dis,
play of their intimacy with the spirits.
Mrs. Haviland had procured place for
her two children named Leonard, and
had told the other three that she would
take care of them. On Saturday after
roorsIazt o0rna nhildrnu Evipo in 4ha |