The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-03-19
FACES In TIE DARK.

paper on The Visions OF Sane Per
sons" contributed By Mr.. Cation. Il
this article that distinguished write
brought forward some cases which b.
seemed to think remarkable; of per
sons who. when they were in she dark
saw strange apparitiona. Not that
these persons imagined that wha
hlled their vision existed auy whert
out OF it. but these Ehantoras haC
all the appearance of external o bject
and were certainly not produced EJ
any effort of memory or imagination
but quite involupsarily. One lady,
told how she used to see in this way
from time to time, showers OF red
roses. which presently turned into a
flight of golden speckles or spaDgles.
the roses being presented to her vision
as distinctly as real flowers in broad
day might be- land not only so. but
the lady says she used 80 smell their
perfume, too; but there's nothing
ike that in my own experience.
And there were stories OF faces seen
in the dark in like manner; not pic
lures in the memory, but seemingly
stAnding of upon the air for the eye
to gaze upon. and coming and going
as With will and purpose OF their
own
What struck me most about all
this when l read it was that Mr.. GAL
ton should think it strange enough to
lay before the world IS q CURIOSITY.
For all my life ! hal myself been ia
miliar with pbRntoms of this kind,
and, without this thought about the
matter. assumed that many, if not
most other people, were equally at
home With them. The golden span
giles too used to see when I was q
child; only instead of turning into
showers of roses. in my vision they
were transformed into focks of sheep
running rapidly down hill, as in a
distant landscape. When the sheep
got TO the bottom of the bill they
faded into the darkness; and then the
tiny bright yellow spangles appeared
at top again to be again transformed.
There was not much interest in that,
however; though dare say, since Mr..
Gallon thinks so, that as visual illu-
sion it was curious. But as to the faces
that appear to my vision in the dark,
that is another matter. After having
been haunted by them in civil. quiet
way for many years, / still find them
very interesting indeed.
These faces are never seen except
when the eyelids are closed, and they
have always an apparent distance of
four or FIVE feet. Though they seem
living enough, and not mere pictures
or reflections, they look through the
darkness ss il traced in chalk on q
black ground. Color sometimes they
have, but the color is very faint.
Nothing more than face is ever
seen; and except for s. fraction of
moment, perhaps, not all the face st
one time. Here and there lines
waver, fade and return. as if drawn
with q pencil OF phosphorus; but
there is no phosphoric appearance
about them; their general aspect is as
II their substance were of pale smoke.
These faces in the dark always con-
front the vision Only one have
ever seen in profile; and this also was
singular in bearing certain resem-
blsnce to some one whom / knew In |
real life. For Ito me) the most re-
marksble thing about these visionary
faGee is that while they are always of |
strikiBgly distinctive character they |
are like none that can ever remem-
Der to have seen in life or in pictures.
Passing through the streets, We see
hundreds of people with unfamiliar
tscep, of whom yet We could net say
that We have beheld nobody like them
before. But occasionally some very
strange or striking, or what is called
original iacr, meets our view and ex-
cites our wonder. Now, my faces In
the dark are all of that character. As
[ lock at them-for there they are,
plain to be leaked st-and ask my
self who Was ever like thst-I find 30
answer except in q fancied resem-
olance to some historical or mytholo-
sical parsonage. Possibly, Biake's
visions were some such faces as these,
presented to his eyes in broad daylight;
am inclined to think it might have
,een 60. because his wonderful and
lreadful drawing. The Ghost OF q
Elea," is precisely such g transcript I
Is | could have made by the score,
lad l possessed the artists skill and
lie memory for transcription. Ny
aces in the dark are much more Of
en- of men than of women; they are
srely quite agreeable, bat thsy are
IL extremely interesting when they
an be endured, because they look
Ike the feeting embodiment OF some
'assion or some mood of mind;ususlly
lot the best of moods. There are
ONE very noble faces among these
rather meau express
Fe of q great nobility; but | have
ever seen among them the mask OF
ity, or love, or of any tender emo
ion. Grief the most despairirg.
corn, pride, hatred, greed. cunning
1quiry enviour or triump hs~t mock
ry-if Blake really did s-e these
aces either in daylight or in darkness.
e must have had more than Iadgi-
alton to draw upou when ne deGlc-