The daily gazette., 1879-05-06
Y{ifRD EDITION
n OeEvEnr TO srIRIrUALlsM.
I Ehe ntlr which school suPerintendl.
'enA Wahdls, Of New York, n Mak.

y CoHvERr 70 sPIRITUALIsM.
4 Fhe ntir which school superintensl.
gs'en1 KAhdls, Of New York, In Mak..
Ing. .igfn
4 Special Correspondence of The Times.
ssil NEW FORK, May, 1.-The talk of the
ltown in educational and literary circles
Is the surprise which Superintendent
4 Kiddle has executed on his friends and
4 the public. Mr.. Henry Kiddle has been
: for about nine years Superintendent of
the Public Schools OF this city. He
grew mp in the profession of teaching, |
d and has for nearly forty years been iden-
! titled In one way or another with the
+ public schools. He is scholarly gentle /
/. tleman, of about fifty five years of age,
exceedingly courtly in manners, and
I most diligent worker. As an organizer
of educational affairs he has probably
q few snperiors. Religiously, his affila-
tions have been with theProtestant Epis-
y copal Church. Mr.. Kiddle now aston
i ishes everybody by proclaiming himself
. a Spiritualist, and by issuing book
about Spiritualism, on which he has for
{ two or three years been laboriously
spending his spare hours. The book
takes the most advanced ground In re-
gard TO the communications of the de-
parted made to dwellers In this world.
1t does not set Spiritualsm up as an an
&, tagonistic to ordinarily received religion;
but takes hold Of 1t as a new phase of
truth, confirming and illustrating Chris
tian belief. Its author does not appear
to be in sympathy with the charlatans
who hold seances for money, or who are
Spirit,lalists for the sake of the advance
ment VI their business'interests. A note
worthy feature of the publication of the
book Is his intention that nobody shall
make any money out of 1t. He saws he
Is going to issue large edition for cheap
or possibly gratuitous circulation among
the public. He announces that the spe-
cial mission of the book is to convert
men to Christianity.
1t is naturally asked how so eminent
and cultured man as Professor Kiddle
ever wandered into such line of Thought
and belief as to lead him to conclusions
. which are excepted by most sound think
ers as being decidedly queer. He claims
iN to have founded his present belief on
protracted series Of personal investiga-
tions, aided by..mediums, chiefly members
a., of his own family. He, cliriously enough,
!, discovered his eldest daughter to be a
medium and it was through her that he
first received a messages from the depart
ed. As to the genuineness of these mes
sages he says lie has entirely satisfied him
self, although he does not offer to describe
to Others the processes by which he ar
rived at his state of satisfaction. He de-
stclares entire confiden e in the mediums
si and his assurance that they would not de
q ceive him. Indeed this assured confidence
would seem to be his main reliauce, fol
he admits that trustworthy proof in such
matters is hard to be obtained. He alsC
4 relies to large extent on what commen.
tators call the "internal evidence" of the
messages he received. Beyond this he
J leaves his readers in doubt. They must
trust to him, and believe him as he has
believed his mediums and the people wht
spoke through them.
p As to the material of Mr.. Riddles book
1t Is very comprehensive. Its chief at
traction is not so much the arguments o
-'a the author as the communications he ha
received from the dicembodied spirits
4 That these spirits have been selected 70
heir eminent responsibility is something
which nobody can deny.
Saints, poets, clergymep, merchant
and statesmen are among the contri bu
tors, and mostremarkable are the coutri
buttons which they send. Shakeapear
sands some verse hardly good enough 70
obituary poetry. Byron's is not quite u
% TO the standard of that which is used TO
clothing-store advertisements. Goot
old Mr.. Bryant inferentially frewn
down all poetry. st. Paul and John tn
baptist utter platitudes. Pho Nom
whacks his old associates over the heat
and seems to have turned Protestant
Moses appears, not as the meeSest man
but as one OF the most stupid, If we ma.
" IN ha xxrrir
has good word to say for himself, an,
wants 1T understood that he is not a
black as people painted him. A. I
Stewart is wandering about in an unhap
py and remorseful state, conscious of nc
fl having lived up to his opportunities
and Knowing nothing Of the whereabout
of his stolen bonos. Pontius Piiate II
pents his iniqui'y. Ben Franklin gives
. little lame poetry, and Theodore Parke
SAYS that lie is now I'll e physician of a
J. souls. The most unhappy on the whol
list Is poor Jim Fisk, who seems to
choking to death, yet unable to die. Bu
@ there Is consolation even for Door jim
~ for at the close of his somewhat length
message he says, "Dear friends, i fe.
better" Hardly any body, either in tbi
world or the next, could get off such
weight OF nonsense as Mr.. Fisk send
without feeling relieved by doing so.
The members of the Board of Educ
tion are to some extent in fermei
about this novel action of their cine
Some say that he is crazy and will ha,
to resign. Others saw that he is atten
Ing to his work with as clear head al
as firm hand rs ever. Some profess
fear that he will introduce spiritualist
teachings in the schools, but this
could not do, If he ever SO greatly d
sired 1t. Meantime he says he will site
III to his work rs of old, smile at all opp
siuon, aud be as good Christian as
NHi KNOWS now to be. SPIKE.
Insurance Suit.
Il. An Interesting insurance case has IL