The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-08-23
The Spirits ON Trial a. Buffalo.

The Spirits on Trial at Buffalo.
A very curious trial is now in progress at
Buffalo One Charles j. Colchester, who claims
to be a spiritual medium, has been required to
take out license as juggler, under the In
ternal Revenue law, and has peremptorily
refused. The consequence is that the commits
sioner who represents the United States govern
ment has brought Mr.. Colchester into court for
an alleged breach of the law, and the issue is
now joined before an intelligent jury. Mr..
Colchester's defence is that he is not juggler;
that spiritualism is not jugglery, and that the
United States government has no more right to
require him to take out lcePse to practice
his religion than it has to Impossible same con-
ditions upon Presbyterian or Roman Catholic,
and, especially that it has no right to force him
to acknowledge his religion all humbug and
deception by obliging him to accept and pay
for license as juggler.
1t twill be seen at once that this defence in
wolves the whole question of spiritualism. The
jury must decide whether there is such thing
as spirit world whether men and women do
exist after death whether, il these facts be
proven, the disemboded spirits can communi-
cate with mortals whether such communica-
tions are made through mediums and by means
of raps and table tippings and whether, if
these points are sustained, Mr.. Colchester is a
genuine medium and his raps and table tip
pings are bona fde The United States, on the
other hand, must show that spiritualism is de-
fusion, and that Mr.. Colchester is merely
slight-ofhand performer, who produces raps
and tippings by purely natural means. To
prove this the government has summoned
crowd Of witnesses, many OF whom are profess
sional magicians, necromancers, wizards and
prestidigitateurs, who are expected to testify
that Colchester is one Of theiv fraternity, and
that they can perform all his wonders and
more besides.
Of course everybody is deeply interested in
having the questions at issue fairly settled, and
the trial attracts considerable attention. The
world will be easier in its mind when an in
telligent jury has solemnly decided whether or
not there is spirit world. No less important
is it to authoritatively announce whether or
not spirits can communicate with mortah.
Mankind have believed in ghost stories for hun
dreds of years without being sure whether
they were sensible or silly in SO doing. The
Buffalo jury will place that matter beyond
doubt Home, the Davenports, Judge Ed
monds, the Fox sisters, Greeley, Colorado
Jcwett, the Thorpe brothers, and spiritualists
generally, will await with intense anxiety
the legal decision as to whether or not
Rochester knockings, table tippings, rope
tricks and floating guitars are legitimate
spiritual manifestations and communications
We think that the occasion is momentous
enough for the spirits themselves to inter-
fere on Colchester's behalf, if he have any
spirits at his back. They are on trial, if
they do but know it. The United States, the
lawyers and the professional prestidigitateurs
have combined to put them down. Let them
come to Colchester's rescue. Let them mani
fest themselves in open court. If the lawyers
tables at signal from Colchester, trip violently
up and down; if the judges inkstand be upset
and his chair dance like mad; if the benches
upon which the government witnesses sit rise
up in judgment against them, and If Colchester
himself float mid-air about the court room and
finally disappear through a keyhole, the jury
will have no hesitation in finding verdict for
the defendant upon all the points involved,
and the United States will license mediums as
dealers in spirits, and not as jugglers, ever
afterwards
The signs of the times convince us that
something extraordinary is going to happen
in the religious world. Perhaps new religion
is to be inaugurated with miracles and won
ders and the opening of the heavens. The
upheavals Of all the old forms and creeds which
usually announce the beginning of a new dis
pensation are not wanting in this generation.
In England we find Bishop Colenso and his
party denying the truth Of the Pentateuch, and
the pious authors Of Essays and Reviews"
ridiculing the Thirty-nine Articles ofthe English
Church. In France Renan argues against the
divinity Of Jesus. In Germany Strauss is the
apostle Of a poetical inndelity. At Rome the
Pope denounces oil other religions as false and
praises his own as perfection, while Protest
ants, In their turn, stgmatize the Pope as an
impostor. In New England the parsons all
differ, each one seeming to consider himself
little Christ. The North american Reoiew calls
Theodore Parker modern Jesus. The Nor
mons have started new church and ore
obtaining thousands Of proselytes. The Univer-
salists, who are convinced that nobody will be
damned, fraternize cordially with the Beecher-
ties, who believe that everybody will be damned
except themselves. The greatest laxity Of
opinion Is almost everywhere allowed. Through
out Christendom 1t is facility conceded that the
Bible must not be believed literally, which is
the next thing to not believing 1t at all. In
the midst Of oil this confusion Of creeds and
breaking up of sects come the phenomena Of
spiritualism. Who can say that there Is not
going to be new revelation, and that 1t will.
not begin at the Court House in Buffaloi Col
chester may be modern st. John the Baptist,