New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-01-19
HUXLEY ON SPIRITUALISM.
HIS EXPERIENCE WITH MEDIUMS

HIS EAfEElENCE Will nAi4DAo'
Professor Huxley in The Pail Mall Gazette
The oldest In date of my spihnalistic experiences
goes back about five and thirty years j took pasoS ~
the house Of relative OF mine ano s sns woman
native OF the United States whom wiz eau rc sn and
The chief performance was s "s"S began with
me as scientific witness and doubter general o tadv
and rapdty with which i hSrte qiS might have said
caution. The name OF the dead Irsnu VI Ia = Wa
thinking spelled e out Mrs IN K ioSwsd up her
victory and made one after another OF the contrary
S sase tope plss watched the proceedings
what narrowly i noted that the mediums success ;,
Ss py n1 wbo enoSed wcdeserved reputation
for outward mpassibility, she faed a.ogytn1 steS
soa another trial and this time the failure was totai
and complete. The only difference In me d y
lowever was that on the second occasion hdd ma
and muscles under strict control ana oo ~ b
that my pencil should pass along me stab over
the figures on the dial have doubt that on tne
first trial had quite unwitingy. res res. q, ths name
Witch VIII had in my mind Whatever the nature OF
the distinction. and however slight II may Me-
N was quite enough for the keen eyes OF Mrs' 49,
sharpened as they by incessant trainnx
But the Interpretation OF the n ign opeuhs Of the
mediums work The other Mrs Is 70 n1. spr a dd
sr work Ps admirably sns The loud and
sbundan and company declared that they e esme
IRON a a their persistence in the house for
DAYS afterward At any rate the suggesuon nns '
ss Sesa Cf Ss table could be the while making
these wonderful noises seemed at mrs. Sns The
riastio philosophy kept coming backt9oR sns APE
as embodied itself into practice From
that time forth became the master OF two Sp nrS
Believe. Of the same nature. Ny delicate Aress
reside in the second toe Of each FOOT have Inc eerey 10
bend the toe and then suddenly straghten 1t the
result : nhsT rap Sa very Sy rapidly rendered
forte or piano at pleasure To produce 'ne DeS bard
Is advisable S0n 70 It Is we'll to pick out thin
place in the carpet as to profit by tne rSold he
kid rather than patent as bright right S moaIcat o
betrsy slight movement by sE1s mis-
direction of peoples attention Coy the me.noas
familiar to conjurors and ventrooustsl me OS
Who Is about as competent to deal with these matters
as London street-boy With al tbe direction
Of the sounds So long no one Is am1%sa 20
touch the foot Of the operator ecnd sand taking
on weli-lighted floor while the bystahnd1ers now Now
answ THAT prcsncsd 'h9 And at time 50
much in the habit q rappng sns' man pSi In brown
study may rap with his fingers; uo.,. the onIv
But my particular black art is by no means .no Ster
enec'vs, erformsncs happened to dine at the Castle
In Dublin After dinner, Lord Carlisle, VIM ro aon
o snSisnaiism: and showed off the proves OF my
famars But young camp VINO Was t PL;9 on
Ss RPsartSS Were Ike the cracks Of small whip
He told they were produced oy o1d net Examine
the operation closely, confess was not much %is S
for the SsTs esn SIN more dcut Of detection
especially IN a feminine mednm-than NINE 49,.
.vare csrheS One Of the guests conded that some
time before he had met Mrs at country o dOn Sst
,be se rHuf IF his deceased sister Mary desired to con-
muncae with him, and, with gravity peh..ns no
3 ns UuA conversation which followed
At the end Of the seance, the company Droae up n
goIpsf from n the rest A toward bay window wheupOn
this brief but pregnant dialogue TOOK pace she
Did you ever have sister Mary he-N0' '"0
Any one cOnd discern very short scqnsin Ssns
man but it Is not everybody who would have per
ceved 50 shrewdy that Irish wit had for once o oD1
chance for the culprlt was to throw herself on INC
Of the Ot:s s Sa Uen never been able
10 get over certain sneaking admiration ior MIS-
But as 70 the other h Two msoa e %1Sp male and
tembbie clumsy creatures. with no faculty , save AVE
eerap Of y Contemporaries Justly esteemed in
science gt OF reflect that certain other persons Of that
day, most unquestionaby not IN any rsspect % nS
Semorjaca possession Kepler had faith in astroloY
pescares made pilgrimage to horet dS r al n 19e
vent him from enthusiastically backing another very
acute and accomplished person Gianv 10 ms Da
~ Tedworfhr-as silly story any TO be found IN
fhe records of spiriualism.S II decline not only
IN believe in asfrology the authority OF keper,
IN fine renuineness OF the Palestinian house which
flaw to 1oretto that of Descartes In the Dacmon
az reJworth on that of Glanvil and More but even
10 allow that the favorable opinion of these eminent
men makes out q prma face case for these be-
due spect TO Messrs. A. B and c. who surely
not the superiors Of Keper, Descartes and More, IT,
for the reasons, I attach no greater weight
on their authority, in par matera
No one deserves much blame for being deceived IN
these matters We are all intellectually handicapped
IN Youth by the incessant repetition Of the stories
about possession and wchcraft In both the Old and
the New Testaments. The majority OF us are taught
nothing which will help to observe accurately and
10 interpret observations with due caution. Very
few OF us have the least conception how much moro
difficult it is 10 make such observations and nerpre
fatons I'm full of people, stirred by the ex-
recitation of the marvellous than in the calm seclu
Sion of a laboratory the solitude of tropical
forest And one who has not tried II cannot imagine
the strain of the mind involved I'm sitting for an hour
or two In a dark room, the watch for the lodges
Of a wary medium man may be an excellent
naturalist or chemist and yet make very poor de-
fective But in these Investigations those who know
are aware that the qualities of the detective are far
moro useful than those of the philosopher.
had intention when / sat down 70 write so
long a letter But have for many years watched,
not without anxiety the recrudescence In our times,
and under respectable sanction of that belle. in mans
power of evoking spirits from which the basest and
crueest supersions OF bygone ages logically enough
views may be OF use at least TO those who have
not yet toppled the edge Of common sense into
the spirltuastic puddle. Those who have seem to
he. mast praytng for