The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1871-12-12

Mrs. SlOcum's Reply 10 Mrs BhileY'
MEssRs. EDITORS II have been from
home for some titne, and on my return
few days since found my letter in reply
to Mr.. Bailey had been published in your
paper, for which l am much obliged,
though few typographical errors dis
figure it some what. find also that the
same gentleman is out with letter ad-
dressed to myself to which 1 wish to re.
ply if you will grant me the privilege.
To the Req. A. F. Baley:-
see sir, that you have, "amid the
pressure of other cares" taken upon your
self the task of addressing an article to
some one whom you very enormously sup
pose to hold my name. Ifyou know any
person who believes in what you call
"Spiritism, alias, Necromancy, alias.
Sorcery," "who dwells in a refuge Of lies"
"who opens, and sits at the gates Of He'll"
you would do well to inquire more parti-
u,ulan,, ,,. and get the right name. am not
the mstalgRs aiitilR agat gIhat v9at nav vnSfm f' Sou Sou
that am Spiritualist, and Spiritualism
is just the opposite of what you call
Spiritism. And as have Investigated
>piritualism thoroughly, and from your
letter, it is evident you know nothing
about it, and as l understand, and en-
deavor to make practical its holy teach.
ings, and you are either entirely ignorant
or willfully malicious in reference to the
same. will tell you some what Of its
significance.
First, it is knowledge Of immortality.
A surety that "though man die he shall
live again" Second, it brings us the
glad tidiugs OF great joy" that our dear
ones who have passed through the valley
of the shadow of death, have not left us
for some unknown, some far off country,
but are very near us still, permitted by
the Divine Father, to be administering
spirits" to us their mourning friends still
in the flesh, and to give uumistakeable
evidence of their identity. Third, il
reveals to us their real condition whether
Of light or darkness, and shows wha
kind of life here in the body, is essentia
to produce either of those conditions
there. Upon these essential clements
are based the foundations of our Spiritua
philosophy. 1t is not system which
permits OF skeptcism except from thos'
who aro ignorant, being founded upol
facts continually recurring, it inevitabl!
proves itself
1t is liable to have impostors and wick
ed persons in its ranks, and 80 is an,
other society no matter how pure it
E elemental principles may be. The fac
of the past and present show that thes
manifestations Of Spirit power are tn
operations OF principle as old as man
: God does not speak to man with vocu
organs, and in an audible voice, but eve
through some medium Spiritualism
= another word for revelation. All revela
tion from God to man, is from spirit t
spirit. Mans own soul, l. the first grea
medium through which the universe
spirit reaches his understanding and a
the angels eau more fully receive IN
comprehend this divine teaching than ca
man numbered with flesh, so are the
permitted 10 impart Of their wisdom t
us, aud as this communication is by tn
operations of universal law, there ca
be no distinctions, but all spirits are able
under certain conditions to make them
selves manifest to those they have desir
to reach. Just is proportion rs men hee
the voice speaking directly from Go
through their own souls, and permit it
illuminate their understandings. Thu
shutting out deception and impurity froI
themselves just in that proportion al
n they enabled to distinguish between tt
presence of light and dark spirits, ft
they will draw unto themselves such ;
they seek after. Persons entirely unac
quainted with these things, or those VII
wilfully repudiatc them, are for mol
liable to be influenced by ignorant al
discordant spirits, than those who, unde
standing their Importance, shape the
lives accordingly. The fact that Spiri
are surrounding aud influencing all of
more or less, is as thoroughly proven,
that the earth is round; and only tho
need fear TO be harmed thereby, who
perverso ignorance or bigotry preven
4 their living in harmony with the high
- and holier, Of the other life. There we
in the olden time "lying spirits" al
"false prophets" but that did not preclu,
the possibility of pure and truth tellil