Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1870-06-16

would be a confession OF weakness 10 institute
the comparison.
My opponent tried to saddle polygamy on
TO the church by claiming that the bible sus-
tains it. laid down the following points
LIST. The great basic law Of marriage which
God first gave TO man was mOnOgamic-one
woman for one man. That law has never
been rel called. True. men have often ignored
it: they have refused TO obey II I; and God
has borne with them and spared them. he
does not grab men by the nape OF the neck.
! and shake their sins ont OF them. They are
moral agents; he gives them law /; he de-
mands their obedience he bears with and
disciplines them; and at last, 1t they will not
! do right. he Furnishes them I'd. When God
1 began TO legislate for the IsrRlites. he found
among them polygamy and slavery. There
| were many reasons why these were not de-
| stroyed at once. which have not time now
To give. All the Legislation with reference to
, them was what our politicians have called uD.
friendly legislation, and resulted in the even
tual extinction of the two evils Now l ask
| if the republican party when it first went in
to power. and began TO legislate for the cOnn-
try, could have been accused of favoring and
sustaining slavery. because it did not at once
declare for tie immediate abolition of slavery
In all the states 2 II not. then neither can
the bible be accused of fayoring either sla-
very or polygamy. The two cases are par
ralel. TO this my opponent made no reply.
took up the spiritist idea Of inevitable
progression, showing that it was contraGicted
by all the analOgies of nature. and all human
experience. Man, like every thing else. can
progr SIS only as he Obeys the laws Of his be-
ing. The bible teaches progression, aud all
christians believe in il but it is conditional,
not inevitable. However, l said, there are
two kinds of progression--a progression in
vice, and a progression in virtue. Will my
opponent tell Us which kind spirtists believe
in No reply TO argument or question
After bad gotten through with the theol-
ogy and ethics of spiritism took up the
QUESTION of spirit intercourse. l read from
"a large number OF spiriiist authorities. show
ing The utter unreliability of spirit inter-
course. Mr.. Jameson himself admits NhIt
seuea-tenths OF all the spirit phenomena are
of mundane origin DR.. Potter, admits three
fourths A. j. Davis admits sirty per cent
70 my request that Mr.. Jameson would tell
us how To knew that the remaining three
tenths were spiritual and moi Mundane, he
has given us no answer, and has thus left us
to infer that he d Mt know. | guess he
guesses. We have learned from the admis-
sion of leading spiritists, that Impressions re-
ceived by media from minds In the circle, or
at distance, are = precisely identical with
those which emsnale from mind beyond
the tomb. LII they are precisely identical
how are you going TO distinguish :? We also
learn that media are under an influence to
deceive and cheat, that is almost irresistible !;
that there is no security in asking questions
which relate to our own knowledge or incli-
nation that there are always depraved, gross
spirits around media, tho are ready 10 be
father, mother. brother, sister, friend. to any.
body that strange spirits can read the
mines of inquirers, get their tests, aud pass
themselves OF tor their friends that the
lower spheres, filled with depraved spirits.
envelop the earth In every direction that the
two lowest spheres correspond To the ortho-
dox hell. ana that all messages transmit
ted through them, and that not one per cent
of messages have a higher origin than the
first aud second spheres. All this Spiritual
lists tell US. Is there not great deal of az
traction in spirit intercourse. with all these
repulsive facts staring us in the face 1 also
showed that the communicable ny partake Of
the characteristics OF those who compose the
circle. Orthodox, Infidels, Catholics and
Protestants all get the reflections of their own
views; and, according TO spiritist writers.
there reigns M the spirit land the same con-
fiict of ideas that prevails here. Nothing is
found out, nothing is determined. | also
showed that OIL can get Just as good commu-
hay stacks a. from spirits. Now if a COM
Iuunication from spuit afforded positive
demonstration OF the immortality of the soul,
as my opponent has constantly declared, is
mol coinisunicaiiOn from a haystack n
positive demonstration" of the Immortality
OF haystacks If not, why not? Seriously,
what DO all these fac s prove, ii not that the
communications are The reflections of the
minds in The circle, and are not from depart
ed spirits at all. And even admitting the
hypothesis of spirit intercourse. what relia-
bIlIty or comfort is there in receiving COM
munications from the dead, when you don't
know who is talking to you, and have no
means Of finding out, because for aught you
know the medium may be controlled by the
mind OF some living person, or some strange
and malicious spirit may presently your
friend. and get your test, and wofully deceive
you. i Repeat, where is the comfort W here
Is the consolation To all this no reply !
/ then read from large number of author
tiles. producing vast array OF facts classi-
fed as follows: jugglery. trickery. seif-de.
ceptions. Authorizations, illusions. and animal
magnetism-perfectly matching. in circum-
stances. that preclude the idea OF spirit inter-
course, all the phenomena OF spiritlsm -
Spirit seeing. hearing and feeling. lifting OF
persons, tables and other bodies IN the air
handling OF fire; rope tying; rapping and
other sounds; prophecies cures tossing
about oil wood. plates. glasswaies. furniture,
&c; reading of words sealed in envelopes
or enclosed in boxes descriptions OF per
SONS, houses. and places, unknown 10 The
clarvoyant painting aud all the paraphe-
MALTA of spil iiist wonders There are more
than ten thousand ,ceH authenticated facts Of
this kind, gathered from all periods and
places, which cover the whole range Of spir-
itest phenomena, and furnish us with ra-
tional solution of all the mysteries connected
with this subject, without resorting 10 the no
ton Of spirit.intercOarse. These facts rem.
der il morally certain that all OF the so-called
spirit. are of mundane origin. My
opponent Constantly asserted that Spiritual
ism was positive demonstration of the inn
mortality of the soul. Webster defn!s dem.
ons. ration as an absolute certdiaty-without
the possibility of doubt. Now of course
spirit inter,ourses cannot positively demon
strate the immortality of the soul until spirit
intercourse itself is positively demonstrated
and in view of all the facts have presented,
what becomes of the positive demonstration
should think they were enough to create
one or two little doubts, 10 say the least
How can series of pretended facts demon
strate an uncertain fact, when it is admitted
that seven te,sths of the pretended facts are
fctions Could witness who was known
10 lie, seven out of ten times speaking, Gem
onstrate anything 10 an intelligent jury
Would they not look with suspicion upon all
he said. My opponent said that one incon-
trovertable tact is as good rs a hundi ed
But where il the iacontroveYtible fact All