The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1888-05-16

not an asylum between Bangor and San
Francisco which has not the torn and bleed
| ing victims of this delusion. Go into any
asylum, I care not where it is, and the pre-
siding doctor, after you have asked him:
sWhat is the matter with that manT will
say: "Spiritualism deniented him." or,
s'What is the matter with that woman?, he
will say: "Spiritualism demented her. Ii
has taken down some of the brightest intel.
lects. It swept off into mental midnight
Judges, senator's, governors, ministers OF the
gospel, and one time came near capturing
one of the presidents Of the United States
At Flatbush, near this city, man became
| absorbed with it, forsook his family, took his
only $4,000, surrendered them to spiritual
medium in New York, attempted three times
to put an end to his own life. and then was
inearcerated in the State Lunatic asylum,
where he is to day a raving maniac. Put
your hand in the hand Of this
witch of En-dor and sh9 will lead
you to bottomless perdition, where she
holds her everlasting seance Many years
ago the steamer Atlantic started from europe
for the United States. In midocean the
machinery broke and she tioundered around
day after day and week after week, and for
a whole month after she was due people won
dered and finally gave her up. There was
GREAT anguish in the cities, for there were
many who had friends aboard that vessel
Some of the women, in their distress, went
to the spiritual mediums and inquired as to
the fate of that vessel. The mediums called
up w the spirits, and the rappings on the table
Indicated the steamship lost with all on
board. Women went raving mad, and were
carried to the lunatic asylum. After awhile
one day gun was heard of quarantine.
The flags went up on the shipping. and the
bells of the churches were rung. The boys
ran through the streets. crying: Extra!
The Atlantic is safe!" There was tie en-
bracing as from the dead, when friends came
again to friends; but some Of those .passen-
gers went up to find their wives in
the lunatic asylum, where this cheat OF In.
fernal Spiritualism had put them. A man in
Bellevue hospital, dying from wounds made
by his own hand, was asked why he tried to
commit suicide. and he said: 'The spirits
told me to-" Parents have strangled their
children, and when asked why they did 1T,
replied: '"Spiritualism demanded it.T 1t is
the patronizer and forager for the madhouse.
Judge Edmonds, in Broadway Tabernacle,
New York, delivering a lecture in behalf OF
Spiritualism, admitted, in so many words:
''There is fascination about consultation
with the spirits Of the dead that has ten.
dency to lead people off from their right
Judgment and to 'instl into them fanati-
cism that is revolving to the natural mind"
1t not only ruins its disciples, but it ruins
the mediums also. only give it time. The
Gadarenean swine on the banks OF the lake
| Of Galilee, no sooner became spiritual me-
diums than down they went, in an avalanche
Of pork, to the CONSERVATION Of all the herds
men. The office of q medium is bad for
man, bad for woman, bad for beast.
I bring against this delusion more fearful
Indictment: It ruins the soul immortal.
First, it makes man quarter OF an intdei;
then it makes him half an infdel; then it
makes him whole inidel The whole system,
as / conceive il, is founded on the insuficiency
of the word Of God as a revelation. God
says the Bible is enough for you to know
about the future world. You say 1t is not
enough, and there is where you and the Lord
differ. You clear the table, you shove aside
| the Bible, you put your hand on the table,
and say: "Now let the spirits of the future
world come and tell me something tho Bible
Scriptures say: Add thou not unto his
words lest he reprove thee, and thou be
| found a liar" you risk it, and say: "Come
back, spirit of my departed father; come
back, spirit of my departed mother, Of my
companions, Of my little child, and tell me
some things don't know about you and
about the unseen world" If God Is ever
SlaDDoQ SQu6T0 III tu6 ldCc, ~ ID "uSh q opli
ituaf medium puts down her hand on the
table, invoking spirits departed to make
revelation. God has told you all you ought
to know. and how dare you he prying into
that which is none Of your business. You
cannot keep the Bible in one hand and Spirit
ualism in the other. One or the other will
slip out Of your grasp, depend upon it.
Spiritualism is adverse to the Bible in the
fact that it has in these last days called from
the future world Christian men to taatifV
against Christianity. Its mediums call oac3
Loronzo Dow, the celebrated evangelist, and
, Lorenzo Dow testifes that Christians are
idolators. Spiritualism calls back Tom Payne,
and he testifes that he Is stopping In the
same house in heaven with John bunyan.
They call back John Wesley, and he testlheS
against the Christian religion, which ne all
hfs life qloriously preached. Andrew Jackson
Davis. the greatest of all the Splrltuallsts,
comes to the front and declares that the New
Testament is but 'sthe dismal echo OF bar
baric ape,n and the Bible only ''one Of the
pen and ink relics Of Christianity" Iney
: attempt to submit the writings OF andrew
Jackson Davis and other religious palder.
dash in the place Of this o!d Bible: have
in INV house a book which was used in this
very city in the public service offSpiritualists.
It is well worn with much service. opan
that book, and it says:
"What is our baptism? Answer: Frequent
ablutions Of water. What is our inspiration!
Plenty Of fresh air and sunlight What is
our prayera Abundant physical exercise.
What is our love feast? A clear conscience
and sound Sleep" And find from the same
book that the chief item in their public wor-
ship is gymnastic exercise, and that is when
ever they want to rouse up their souls TO
very high pitch Of devotion they sing,
page IS: 1.-THE night has gathered up her
moonlit fringes;" or page l6: Come to
the woods, heighom You say you are not
such fool as that; but you will be il you
keep on in the track you have started.
''But," says some one, wouldn't it be OF
advantage to hear from the future world|
Don't you think it would strengthen Chris.
tians? There are great many Mater1allsts
who do not believe there are souls, but II
spirits from the future world should knock
and talk over to us they would be persuaded"
To that answer, in the ringing words or the
Son of God: eff they believe not Moses and
the prophets, neither will they be persuaded
though one rose from the dead"
Now believe, under God, that this sermon
will save many from disease, insanity and
perdition. Ibelieve these are the days OF
which the apostle spake when he said: In
the latter times some shall depart from the
faith, giving heed to seducing spirits"
think my audieuce, as we'll as other audiences
in this day, need to have reiterated in their
hearing the passages quoted some minutes
ago: ''There shall not be among you con-
sulter of familiar spirits, or wizard, or nec-
romancer; for they that do these things are
an abomination unto the Lord" and "The
soul that turneth after such as have familiar
spirits, will set myself against them, and
they shall be cut off from their people"
But 1 invite you this morning to Christian