The Waco daily examiner. [volume] (Waco, Tex.) 187?-1888, 1885-10-03
sPIRIrUALusM IN RUSSIA.
Making More Scientific Than Popular
Progress.


From the New York Tribune.
ST.. PETERSBURG, September o.
The eccentric movement termed spir-
itualism, SO widely spread in Europe
and America, has also visited Russia
aud penetrated into even the most
remote of her provinces The Oolus-
us has passed through all the phases
of fable-turning, rappings, spirit ma
FERTILIZATION and similar marvels,
aud bas had by no means scant har-
vests of writing. curing and prophe-
ying mediums" The Russian ame-
diums," however, have never at
tanned the worldwide re-
putation of the Holmes.
Davenports, Katie Kings aud tutti
qunnti. they have been generally of
a familiar domestic description, and
their doings and sayings, however
rem arkable, have been mostly con-
fined to the narrow circle of home
and friends. But strange to say, IL is
in this country that spiritualism, as
the development of the science of
psychology, has found its more ear
nest Interpreters, and Ii is In 81. Pc
tersburg and Moscow that these Gu
rious manifestations have attracted
and interes cd such men as Professor
Doutleref, of European celebrity,
and Professor Wagner. both attached
to the Petersburg University; the
Russian savant, Mr.. Alexander AKA
koff, Professor Tourkevitch, DIR. Ba-
sil Mihailoff and many more disiin-
guished men OF science and letters,
such as Dastoensky, Solovieff and
Dimitri Tsertelefi. Having found
hospitality in such an exalted circle,
spirituaiism ceased 10 be an amuse-
lnent for drawing-roomi dlers and be-
came n problem with pretensions to
scientific solution. The public was
lost in amazement at first TO behold
three scientific stars of capital magni-
tude pay the most concentrated and
serious attention to this question in
lis modern form, to the moving and
rappiDg of to bles, the frances OF SOM
nauIbullsts and the pranks and antics
of 10 called "mcdiums,' which the
conc lave of experimeniers had over
from England, Germany and even
America, regardless of expense. Both
MIR. Boutlereff aud Mr.. Wagner had
previously been declared enemies OF
this movement and the most inveter.
ale materi alisis withai, so that at first
they were supposed by their col
leagues at tho university and by the
students to have gone out of theiI
minds.
Ii may be said here that such col.
lection of chevaliers d'industrie and
bold adyeuturesses as those "medl
ums" proved to be, was rarely mel
with anywhere outside of the fair
The scientific Investigators were al
first, much disconnected at the evi.
dent deception played upon them
but nevertheless persevered and car
ried ON series of the most miuuteiy
aud carefully controlled observations
upon, aud Investigations into, the
more genuine of those phenomena
organizations called mediums" ant
finally came to the positive conclu
sion that there was something in 4
after ali. They then proceeded will
marvellous patience to ferret out thu
small graius of truth i'll the midst o.
deception, bad faith aud greed FOL
/ money. The result OF this mos
tedious task, which lasted fol
years, were as follows: PROBES
sor Boutiercf came to the con
clusion that the manifestations called
, spiritual are founded upon series o
curious facts, having their source il
: some force hitherto unknown, but b,
) no means unknowsble. He admits
, together with the English specials
In chemistry, Mr.. Crookes, the exist
ence of u more subtle and refine,
: state of matter than those hilbert,
known, which eau become percepiibl,
only id certain condition of tn
! body, a condition usually produce,
I by magnetism, and more easily ut
: tanned by so called "mediums," /. e
organizations more than ordinaril
susceptible aud nervous. Prof Bou
: tlereH has given q great deal of tin
and care to the research of this mys
ierious agent, and his experiment
: have confirmed the discovery OF MI
CrOokes.
The Russian spirituslists. who hav
= few adherents among their compa
E triots, and have had 10 put up witt
great deal of annoyance on the par
OF the public as well as on that of tn
5 government, do not seek 10 popular
ize their ideas as yet, but rather I,
consolidate them and gather then
into scientific formula. They con
sequently seek to attract into theil
circle men of science, doctors, mate
rialists; in short, persons deprived o
: romantic seniimentslity and religious
: enthusiasm, SO as fairly TO place tn,
question upon new ground, not let
! ting it degenerate into sectarianism
giving no food Whatever to the imag
: ination, and so rendering IL interest.
: Ing TO positive and serious minds.
Had this programme been perse-
veringly adhered TO, the question
might have made progress; but both
Professors Boutlereff and Wagner
adopted although unwillingly at ffrst)
the hypothesis that these NANTES ia
tions must be produced by the spir-
lis of former inhabitants of this
planet, and this point of view having
been preniaturcly given TO the world,
IL u series of articles principally due
to the pen of Professor Wagner, and
published in one of the hest period
icals, threw great discredit ON tho
cause at the very outset, and made
people open their eyes in ast0nish-
ment at the credulity of the profess
sors. Perceiying their impotence,
and the blows this hypothesis was
goingto strike at the whole strnc-
turc, Messrs. Boutlereif and Wagner
turned abruptly on another track,
and MISREPRESENTATION cndeayOred
TO keep on strictly objective ground
concerning the cause of the manifes.
iations. Russia now possesses con-
siderable literature ON the subject
which totally diiiers from produc-
lions Of the same kind abroad, mas
much a. those articles are stamped
with a spirit of genuine scientific re-
search and present tho subject in
quite a new light.
! The government does all In its pow