Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-07-20
MODERN MIRACLES.
Rival Pretenders to Marvellous Powers
in London and Their Tests.

Rival Pretenders to Marvellous Powers
in London and Their Tests.
There are now three American thau-
maturgists in London-Col. Olcott, the
theosoph, Irving Bishop, the thought
reader, and Stuart Cumberland, the mus
Gle reader, writes Moncure ID. Conway in
San Francisco Chronicle. Mr.. Bishop at
Westminster Palace Hotel, and Mr..
Cumberland at Charing Cross Hotel, are
glazing at each other, and have made
those neighboring centres of busy life
very lively on successive DAYS OF this
week. Mr.. Bishop was severely punished
in his encounter with Labouchere, and it
was thought had fulfilled his announced
intention of going out to the Indian
theosophists, who are not skeptical about
miracles as are the Londoners. He had
originally claimed only to read peoples
thoughts by their muscular suggestions
of the same, but afterwards began to talk
of his possession of mysterious power
which he could not comprehend, by which
he could read the number of bank note
without muscular guidance. He evaded
the only tests which would have excluded
the possibility of collision, and that end
ed his place in the public interest. Mr..
Cumberland starts where Bishop did, and
more emphatically; he declares that it is
all humbug to say that man can tell am
others abstract thoughts, or even his con-
crete thoughts, except so far as he is
guided by that other, consciously or un-
consciously. 1t has been pretty well
agreed among instructed people that a
man of fine and caretully-trained percep-
ton can gather from the unconscious
movements of a susceptible subject init
nations of an object of such subjects
fixed attention. William Wilde, brother
of Oscar, tells me that he can succeed in
80 per cent. of his experiments of this
kind, and l have seen a daughter of the
late Prof. De Morgan amuse a company
in the same way.
But professionals are subject to severe
temptations. 1t is not true that people
wish to be deceived, but it is true that
they cannot be excited by any scientific
experiment in the same way as by a sup
posed supernatural event. The scientific
men of England have for some time been
making efforts to raise money for marine
biological stations and have obtained
about $500. The other day Gen. Booth
asked subscriptions for a new salvation
station, and in twenty-four hours received
100000. A Thought reader" can collect
tenfold more people to witness a miracle
that he can to witness a natural curlosi- |
yaded the masses more than they know,
and they are hungry for some new reVela-
ton of an unseen world and future exist |
ence. Consequently English science has !
to keep its tOuchstone in good condition.
Under that touchstOne SHADES preten-
sions persisted in the day that he declined
to submit his ''spirits'' to the test of
having to write their messages between
states locked together. Mr.. Bishops dis
comfture followed when he failed to read
the number of bank note known to be
beyond the knowledge of any confederate.
Col. Olcott's claims are of much more
pretentiOus character. He wears ring
evoked out of a flower by Nine. Blavat-
sky; he shows an Oriental turban given
him in New York by the mysterious
Mahatma Koot Hoomi) while he X. II. } !
was physically in Thibet, and he reports
other miracles of equal dimensions as
everyday experiences among theOsO-
phists. In January 1 visited Nine.
Blavatsky and her disciples at their head
quarters near Madras. 1 saw no wonders,
but heard a great deal about wonders
that occurred just before | came. l saw
the cabinet where they occurred and va
rious objects associated with them. These |
reminded me of the man whQ&Old mar
velous story and ended by saying: 'EAnd
there's the very room where it occurred
to prove itp' Col. Olcotts turban and
ring are witnesses of equal validity. He
has recently met with the Society for
Psychical Research, whose members pro- |
pose to test Nine. BIaVatSky's powers to |
have a letter delivered in London by the |
Astral Root Hoomi on the day that it is |
posted in India. They demand, with |
sweet simplicity, that the said letter |
should have the Indian and London post
office marks of the same date stamped on
the envelope. COL Olcott prudentlY said |
that it could be done if the right cOndi-
lions could be secured.
While in India was told by Mr.. Brough- |
ton, Administrator General of India, that |
a letter was published in that country |
purpOrting 20 be written on the same day |
by Mr.. Eglinton, a London medium, on |
the ship Vega, thousand miles away at |
sea. 1t was also stated that the envelope |
Latin crosses Ct -, by this Mr.. |
Broughton's wife, a passenger on the |
same ship. But when tidings returned to /
India from. England it turned out that, /
despite EglintOn's suggestion of three |
crosses, Mrs. BroughtOn had marked the |
envelope with a large asterisk. Poor |
Eglinton had no messenger potent |
enough to carry the tidings to Madame |
Blavatsky that their little arrangement |
had failed through an equally clever |
lady's perVerse objection 10 crosses. The |
facts are not disputed. And yet the |
"psychicals" are taking the theosophs Sc
riOusly.
BY the way, no trick claimed for Nine. /
Blayatsky is more marvellous than one L
saw performed by a conjurer in Calcutta.
Let me premise that Western reporters of |
Oriental iugglery are apt to orientalize |
their statements remarkably. The man.
go growing out Of a floor or deck is apoor |
trick; the rope ladder thrown into the air |
and staying there for people to climb up
is unknown in India, as are some other
marvels. Your readers will be fairly |
justified in suspecting a similar Oriental
largeness in the following: A man |
brought out dozen or more little figures, |
under two inches high-little dOlls-and |
setting them on their straw-like legs on a |
deal table, babe them dance. The man |
stood quite yard of, but whenever ne |
babe the figures move, they moved. He /
ordered two to come out and waltz in the |
centre of the table, and they did So. The |
tiny things trooped up and down the ia
BILE as he commanded in the most amaz- |
ing way. Finally the conjurer invited me |
TO lay penny on the table. l did so and |
the coin instantly galloped across the |
wooden table and pitched itself in a |
money-box. And yet this man was |
neither thought reader nor theosophist, |
but an avowed conjurer, performing in a
tent on the wayside.
Fashion Notes.