Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1878-12-28
CATCHING A SPIRIT
A Trio of Journalists in a Charmed
Circle at the Hub.
The Flow Of Spirits Seriously later
fersd with by a Number Of soep-
ties Present.

The LEDGER sends forth the sub
Joined interesting reading for the
benefit of those in our midst who, in
telligent in almost all other matters,
have gone raying distracted on the
subject of the " ways that are dark of
so-called spiritual mediums, end be-
cause the facts contained therein are
very similar to those which appeared
some years since, in regard to the jug
glery Of the grand high priestess of
Memphis spiritists, Mrs. Miller;
New York Herald.l
Boston, December 18.-Aboutfour
years ago, it will readily be remember
ed, Robert Dale Owen attended sew
eral materializing seances in Phila-
delphia, and so impressed was he with
the strange manifestations then made
that he wrote a long article on the
naturalization of spirits for the At
lantic Monthly. The seances were
conducted by Nelson and Jennie
Holmes, and the exposure of their
tricks soon after the appearance of the
Owen article, was a terrible blow, not
only to the aged philosopher, but to
the honest believers in spiritualism.
The Holmes then slid out of sight
like the spirits they called from the
"vasty deep" and but little was
heard of them. The writer would be
the last to draw them out of their I'M
enviable obscurity had he not learned
that they were lat their old tricks =
that they we're gullingthe good people
of the Hub as they had the pious
people of Quakerdom. This informa-
ton was communicated by a friend
! who suggested that a small party Of
Journalists pay a visit to No. Davis
street, where the veritable Holmes
! could be found. Journalists are in
clined to be sceptical, 5 rule. They
have too much experience with hum
bugs of all sorts, whose exposure forms
a part Of their duty. Consequently,
Of the three scribes who entered No.
s Davis street at a quarter to eight
o'clock last evening and paid their ad-
mission fee-a crisp dollar bill each
there was not a believer. Each went
prepared to And a fraud in every
thing, and his eyes and ears were set
for the detection of humbug.
A CHARMED CIRCLE.
m. ~ oroonl1,I 70 ball oo~,
munion with the spirits and be edited
by the presence of heavenly visitors
numbered in all a dozen. Mrs. Holmes
superintendent the seating of the com
pany in the form Of a circle. The
furniture in the room consisted of a
large collection of chairs, a table, on
which were placed some musical in
struments for the aerial fingers soon
to be applied to them, and a lounge.
The cabinet stood inside of the fold
ing doors, between the two parlors.
nobody was permitted to examine it
and communication with it from the
(, back parlOr was perfectly unimpeded
Thewalls of the cabinet were com.
posed of a black cloth that looked like
buckram but a certain portion, that
shown by f., was black cambria, sim.
ply tackled to the uprights which
formed this chamber Of mystery, and
the taeks which held it were fitted
into holes rather than driven in, SC
that they could be removed quickly
and noiselessly. A heavy curtain and
two green baize doors shuts the cabi.
net out from view, and the medium
within can receive all the assistance
from those secreted in the back parlol
without being seen by the visitors. In
this cabinet Mr.. Holmes, locked il
the little cage, awaits the coming o.
his confederate. who simply unfasteni
the cambria and steps in. The thinl
is SO simple and 50 susceptible oftrauC
that the wonder Is that it has deceived
any one even for a moment. The usua
preliminaries Of fastening hands, dark
ening the room, etc, having been gon,
through with, the medium, Mrs.
Holmes, took her seat and turned OF
the flow Of spirits. A gentleman Will
a very lugubriOus voice, started tn
song. =" There are angels hOverin.
near" They may have been hover
ing near. but it was evident that the
did not ike the music for they refused
70 appear.
MRS. HOLMES AS A SPIRIT.
n The first apparitiOn was a festiv
Indian maiden, who had formerl
chased the deer on the wild hills Q
Michigan. Those who knew Mrs
Holmes could not fail to recognize tn
voice Of the Indian princess as tina
which directed the disposition Of tn
circle. Musical instruments wer
. played indifferent parts Of the room
] the door just by the cabinet was see
20 cautiously open, and a form not {
r spirit came in and evidently had some
thing 10 do with the musical porto
Of the entertainment. A festive spirI
o named Dick was ordered about a
] lively as could be imagined. He wa
told to play here and there, to NOV
. faster and rap people over the hea
with the guitar. One Of our part
:. who had managed TO keep his hand
free, waited till the little delicate al
tentiOn Of applying the instrument {
n his head was conferred, and be reache
out quickly, seized Dick ~ the han
Is and a very substantial hand it was
Ie and a tussle ensued. The spirit
d struggled a little and succeeded
freeing himself before the light coul
be turned up.
sCEPTICs IN THE ROOM.
&c An announcement was made at u
1t close Of this act that there wei
m sceptics in the room" In a fe
moments more Rosie. the Indian il
" FAINT, stepped to the front. In answr
g. TO questions Rosie stated that she W.
le present to convince the public gen
RI rollv that tho dead ooutd rotvrn n