The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1874-12-24
qas sASa om saepal eaaa gle gamsdsg aisn5t ~ 1871
1IlE bUADEko or SrIkiIAoA.
A Strange and Startling Sory-An Ere'-
ming pith the Medium, Home.


The subjoined astonishing narrative
has been communicated to us inreply to
our letter of inquiry by an eminent citi-
zen of New England, a man of clear
head, as little likely to be deluded as
any other. He has consented to its pub
lication on the single condition that his
name and the place of his residence
should not be mentioned:
at was in the month of March in the
year 1855, cold night when we had a
bright coal fire in an open CRATE in the
parlor. Unexpectedly Mr.. Home, who
was not as famous then as he has since
become, came in, and at ny request he
assented to a sitting. We sat at little
card t.. BILE only about eight feet from the
blazing crate of Goals, which made the
room light after all other artificial light
had been shut off. Nobody was present
but myself, my wife, and Mr.. Home, Il
lady visitor who was in the house having
retired to bed in distant room up stairs
He sat opposite me with his right shoul-
der toward the fire, his feet perhaps an
inch from mine, a small card table be-
tween us, and my wife at the further
end. Home soon began to go off into
trance, and, as an experiment, | laid up
Oh the floor quire of foolscap, and put
a lead pencil on it. The quire of paper
was first gently lifted without any appar-
ent agency and placed upon the table
near my hand. The light from the
crate seven or eight feet from the table
enabled me to see everything that was
going on. Home was mOtiOnless as a
log, leaning back in his chair.
"Following the quire of paper came
the pencil. 1t was Tipped up from the
floor without any visible person touch
ing it, and fell upon the paper. Then 1t
slowly lifted itself, the point resting on
the paper. l placed my face within Il
foot of it, but could see no hand, though
the light was-sufficient, if the hand had
been flesh and blood, to have shown it at
a distance of many feet The pencil be-
gan to write slowly, Home being still
perfectly motionless on the other side OF
the table. Having finished its writing
the pencil dropped. Narrowly watching
Home, looked at him from his head to
his feet, and cast my eyes along his legs,
which were under the table, From near
his feet at that instant there came up Il
human hand. 1t moved some distance,
and reached out to me from point too
far away from Home for him to have
reached it without sitting up and bend
ing forward, which he did not do, for he
continued leaning back as inert as dead
man. The hand grasped mine and shook
il as cordially as if it had been moved
by an old friend. Then it sought to
withdraw. Iheld it firmly, but it pulled
with force like that which person
would use who wanted to draw his baud
away. | was thoroughly aroused now,
and resolved tina whatever else occurred
that hand should not get away from me.
| held it with a grip of iron: Finding IT
impossible to get away, 1t then yielded
itself to my inspection. l could see 1t
was woman's hand, almost preter-nat-
urally long, peculiar in shape, but sym
metrical and perfect, and as white as II
it were made of plaster or flour. |
could see that it ended at the wrist; but
wishing to substantiate this astounding
fact by other proof than that of the
ewes. rassed my left hand dup and down
where the arm should be, and there was
nothing there. >,
"Then examined the hand. 1t would
open and shut as it lay in my hand, to
show me. as | suppose, that 1t was gov
erned by an intelligent guiding power;
and it even turned over, as II to afford
me every facility for making the eXami-
nation. 1t had perfect tinger-nails, per-
feet articuations, even the wrinkles on
the middle joints, like any other hand,
but all was dead white. Its feelings
were neither warm nor cold, but soft,
like that of lady's hand enyeloped in
a kid glove. Taking hold of it with my
left hand and holding it firmly, gradu-
ally wormed my right fOreiinger entirely
through the palm, so that 1t stuck out on
the back side of the hand. The resist
ance was about like that of putty-rath-
er soft putty. l pulled out my fling r,
and the wound instantly closed up.
leayinga sort of CicatriX like the hollow
left by an abscess. Then the hand shut
up again and opened, and 10! as it was
doing this once more, it all vanished,
evaporated, disappeared, leaving moth
ing whateverin in my hand.
IL am telling you the sober truth.
These things were written down soon
after they occurred, and l have my own
and my wiie's senses to cOrrOborate the
fact.
Il looked again at the floor near
Homes feet He had sat from the first
in such position that the direct light
from the crate did not strike his feet,
but could see everything that was GO
ing on. There appeared the fore part OF
hand-a hand only half formed. 1t
had fingers and no more. These fingers
would strike forward and peck at Homes
legs, apparently as if to draw from
Home the substance by which the hand |
might again build itself Apparently |
unconscious of outward things, he !
would break out in a querulous way |
with Don't! don't do that at the same |
time feebly kicking at whatever was |
under the table, but without moving his |
body. No attention was paid to this re-
monstrance, but the fingers kept peck
ing and dabbing at his legs till the whole |
hand was again built out to the wrist-a |
matter of perhaps one or two minutes.
Then the hand came up again, and l eS-
pected another greeting, but was sur
prised to see it pass around me, go be- |
hind me, and 90 to my wife, reach out
and shake hands with her, after which |
it disappeared again.
Directly aiterward Homes large gui-
tar-and it was pretty heavy one-that
had been left in corner of the room, |
lifted itself up to the ceiling, and. turn
ing over, went crcling visioly about the |
room, close to the ceiling, often directly |
over our heads; and it was continually |
PLAYED upon by invisible fingers-a very
retty piece Of music. Occasionally it |
would descend and touch each of us on
the head, rising each time to the ceiling |
doing all in perfect time, the touch be-
ing sort of emphasis to particular