The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-04-23
WAS A SPIRIT PAINTER.
SINGULAR CASE OF MRS. LLOYD
HER WONDERFUL PICTURES.

Her Method was ingenious ana her
Dupes umerous-Skeptics Played a
Trick That Caused Her to Leave in a
Hurry.
From the Netc York sun.
PIrTsBuRG, April 12.-The singular case
Of Mrs. Lloyd, spirit painter, has never
been detailed in print. In Chicago, in the
summer Of 1884, a young business man con-
nected with the Stock Exchange came to
me and another friend in great distress Of
mind A short time before one of his little
girls, twins. had died, and the living child,
unable to realize what had happened. wan
dered necessarily about the house searching
and crying for her dead sister. His wife
was delicate and sensitive woman, and,
erief-stricken as she was, this pitiful spec
tacle half distracted her. While in this state
of mind feeling that her Affections were
almost more than she could bear and keep
her reason, an ill-advised friend suggested
that she see a Spiritualist and try to get a
communication She gave her the adj
dress of a Mrs. Robbins. an ''astrologist' on
Clark street, and there this lady went, in an
excellent condition TO be imposed on. Mrs.
Robbins had rooms in the upper story OF
business block, and, after going through
some fantastic thaumaturgy recommended
her to try Mrs Lloyd, former partner OF
hers who then had a place near the West
Side Museum.
Mrs. Lloyd proved to have a rather ex-
tensive establishment, and called herself
spirit painter. she would go into trance
in the dark, paint pictures of the dead in an
incredibly short space of time, and sell ut
so much per capita. She impressed the
heart-brok en- mother at once, and under
the conditions described produced very
good portrait in oil of the dead child. This
was like The confirmation of Holy Writ,
and now comes tue disagreeable part of the
story. The stock brOker was in the habit
of giving his wife blank checks to meet
her current expenses, and one OF these Mrs.
Llovd wheedled out of her on the strength
of putative MESA <e from the little girl.
The next thing the husband knew it had
been cashed at the bank for $500, and the
whole history then coming out, he would
have prosecuted the woman then and there
but for his wife, who had become thor
oughly converted and would not hear Of it.
She threatened 10 leave him If he took such
steps, passed part of each day ut MIS-
Lloyd's house, and her mind seemed to he
on the point of giving way. This was in
brief the story my friend told me, coupled
with an earnest appeal to expose the woman
If possible, satisfied that this was the only
way to bring his wife to reason.
Nv first step was to witness for myself
some of Mrs Lloyds work. Her house
was a very queer-looking place-one of those
bald brick structures flush with the pave
nlent, masked with old green blinds. the
front door always ajar. In short, such
house as is usually tine nest of quack doc
tors. confidence men, and shady people gen
elallv There was a circle every night,
and had no difficulty in ingratiating my
self. But first a word as to Mrs Lloyd her
self. She was fine-looking woman-no
cha k,a u
reached the age when fine-looking women
are at their best, say s., but the peculiar thing
about her was her ewes; large, distracted,
int ospective, and giving an unbsliever a
sense that here was a thing apart, some
thing different from other people, and a
likely worker Of wonders She fitted her
role more nicely and exactly that any
other medium VINO ever posed before the
public.
The circle was formed in her front par
lor, myself and some twenty others seated
around Oh chairs. In the center was Mrs.
Lloyd. an easel before her ana brushes and
a palette, charged with color, in her hand.
On the easel was blank canvas carefully
and privately marked. / noticed that the
circle was formed mainly of believers, and
among them the brokers' wife was readily
discernible, a pale little woman, with a
scared, wrapt look on her face that was pite-
Gus in its intensity.
Inc llEllS were turned OUT auQ Instantly
there was the sound of brushes. When the
gas was relighted, in less than thirty sec
onds, the medium was leaning back in her
chair, staring wildly about as though she
had just emerged from trance, and on the
easel, dripping wet with paint, was beau
tiful and delicately executed head of an old
man. A woman in the circle claimed to
recognize it as a portrait OF her father, and
burst into hystericsl tears Then Mrs
Lloyd, smiling rather wany and with an
utterly exhausted air, dismissed the gather
ing.
This description, while correct enough,
comes very far from expressing the neatness
and apparent trankHess with which the
thing was done Substitution Of the can
vas was out of the question owing to the
private marks put on it by myself and
others before tie lights were extingushed
and it appeared to be an ordinary piece of
cloth tackled to a stretcher, such as painters
use. 1t was PERFECTLY blank before the
manifestation and l could even sec tire
mesh of the threads on il. The painting IT
self was first-cless, bold yet careful, and
satisfied myself that it was fresh by touch
ing it, and carrying away paint smear on
my finger.
Failing utterly to detect any fraud here,
yet satisfied that neither Mrs. Lloyd nor
anybody else, alive or dead, had painted
th Il picture in thirty seconds in the dark, |
endeavorei TO look up her record aid fad
out WHO and what she was. ! first turned
my attention to her former partner. Mrs
Robbins, the pseudo-astrolo@ist. and soon
discovered that the place on Clark street
was o1ly occasionally used for ''sittn ="
its Interior purpose being a rendezvous for
very extraordinary meetings OF very OK
traordinary people. 1t is not necessary to
dwell upon this phase OF the case as il has
nothing 10 do with the narrative, further
than that what l found out of the real
character Of these two She deviis-I can
call them nothing else filled me with
loathing aud inspired me with deter
animation 10 drive them out Of the COM
munity.
Still. could put my finger on nothing
tangible. traced Mrs. Lloyd's past through
"a variety Of singular and deectable adven-
lures, but none of these proved that she did
or did not paint the spirit pictures, and the
dfd5iei'ie Of her circle was practically IN
impeached, for a believer holds invariably,
so far as the outside life of a medium IL
concerned that 1.-THE king can do no
wrong" In the language of Ko-Ko, it has
nothing to do with the ca Il. | was present
at three more circle, ut two of which land
scares, very muoh above the average. were
produced, and the least OF Which was the
occasion Of one of the most curious aud
baffi ne tests ever devised Mrs. LLOYD had