The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1886-06-10
THE FOX SISTERS, SPIRIT RAppNe."
Three Rochester Girls Who Became Fa-
roous-Tbe pbeDou,ena of 1sAa


Three Rochester Girls Who Became Fa-
mous-The Phenomena of 1s4s.
To western New York belongs the dis
Hnction of having originated modern
Spiritualism. The initial ~spirit-rapping"
phenomena began in March, 1S4S, in the
family of John d. Fox, in Hydeville,
Wayne county, New York. Besides Mr..
and Mrs. Fox only their two younger
children, Margaretta, 10 years old, and
Kate, 8 years old, were at home when the
family were startled by mysterious rap
pings that were heard nightly upon the
floor of one of the bedrooms, and some
times In other parts Of the house. They
endeavored to trace the sounds to their
cause, but failed. 1t is also alleged that
q patter of footsteps was sometimes
heard, the bed-clothes were pulled off
and Kate felt cold hand passed over
her face. On the night Of March 81,
when the raps occurred, Kate initiated
them by swapping her fingers, and the
raps responded by the same number of
sounds. Kate then said, %Now, do as I
do; count /, 2, 3, 4, 5, g." at the same
time striking her hands together. The
same number of rRps responded, and
at similar intervals. The mother of
the girls then said, "Count ten,"
and ten different raps were heard.
Count fifteen" and that num-
Der or sounds followed. She then said,
@Tell us the age of Cathy (the youngest
daughter) by rapping one for each year,
correctly. In like manner the ages of
each of the four other, and then absent
children, were by request indicated by
this invisible agent. Mrs. Fox asked if
it was a human being making that noise.
There was no sound. She then said, IF
you are a spirit, make two distinct
sounds" Two raps were accordingly
heard.
Three weeks afterward it was made
known by the raps that the body of a
murdered man lay buried in the cellar,
and the exact spot was indicated where
parts of a human skeleton was actually
found. The name of the murdered man
was given, and it was learned that five
years before such a person had visited
the house and had suddenly and myster-
io1sly disappeared.
After awhile the raps occurred only in
the presence of the two sisters, Margaret
and Kate. The family having removed
to Rochester, the raps accompanied
them, and new phenomena, including
clairvoyance and the movement of pom
derable bodies without appreciable
agency, were developed. In November,
1849, the Fox girls appeared in a public
hall, and the phenomena was freely
manifested and subjected to many tests,
and committee, appointed for their in
yestigation, after continuing their exper-
iments there and elsewhere for several
days, reported that they were unable to
trace them to any mundane agency.
Within few months Spiritualism had
thousands of converts and was an estab-
lished faith.
In an extended article in Peck's His
tory of Rochester, from the pen of Mr..
R. D. Jones, it is stated that the sisters
remained in Rochester some months,
and then visited New York, Philadelphia
and many other localities, affording to
the curious the opportunity to hear the
sounds and witness other manifesto
tions. The three sisters are still living.
Leah, now Mrs. Underhill, resides in New
York city; Margaretta (Blrs. Kane) makes
her home in Brooklyn, and the youngest,
Catherine is living in London, England,
and is the widow of an English barrister
by the name of JenIKin. The sounds, as
in 1S4S, are still heard in their presence.
Other and varied manifestations are said
to occur in all parts of the world, having
been developed by what in 1S49 was de-
as Rochester rappings." From
these rappings as a commencement has
modern Spiritualism. -