Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1890-01-02


sidered to be the work of charlatans
who should be declared vagrants and
placed on the chain-g while its
devotees L rated as soft Drained people
who ought to be confined in an asylum
for imbeciles.
But L had an experience that con-
verted me. My wife had read OF
"seances" that were being given by
medium, and proposed that we go wit.
ness them. At first the suggestion so
astounded me that though her crazy;
but she said of course she did not be-
ieve in such nonsense, only thinking
it would be harmless way to spend
pleasant evening. She enjoyed a
sleight- -of-hand performance, she said,
and she considered these spiritual"
manifestation and materializations as
nothing more. l agreed to go, with
holding desperate resolve l made at
the time. L am man of powerful
physical strength and proportions
over six feet Highland would, before
this occurrence, have bargained to
hold a prize-fghter after / had once
gotten my hands on him. I determin-
ed that when one of those spirits came
near me 1 would catch and hold it, and
prove it real flesh and blood.
We went There was good crowd
1t was small room. The only furni-
ture was cabinet in corner farthest
from the auditors. The room was
darkened. To soft music spirits began
to appear. They came from the cabi-
net, in which the medium, dried
herring old man, weighing one hundred
pounds, was seated, and were family
visible in white raiment. One, larger
than the rest, walked off from his fel.
lows and came toward me. "Come
little further" | said to myself, "and l
will see whether you are of diaphanous
material or not" 1t came. L grasped
it firmly around the waist. 1t made a
noise that was neither groan nor
howl, but seemed like a subdued moan
struggling for louder utterances, and
dragged me to the cabinet. Here my
breath stopped short, my brain reeled,
and l lost consciousness for q moment.
The next instant the spirit was gone,
the lights were raised, and l stood at
the door of the cabinet stupidity gazing
at the medium who occupied his seat
as when first he entered, sleeping as
quietly as an infant.
Trembling, scarcely able to stand, I
tottered to my seat and fell into it as
limp as dishrag. 1 was frightened,
but not fully converted. 1 felt that
nothing short of an immortal could
escape my strong hold as this had
done; but in search of confederate,
whom, of course, | suspected, l min
utely inspected the room. ] found no
place where one could be hidden.
had the cabinet taken to pieces. No
fraud was there.
Doctor" said the medium, who
called at my Office next day, "this was
test case, so / am informed by the
control. Your intention was under
stood, and the spirit approached you
in consequence. Are you still skep-
tic?"
Count me henceforth as believer"
/ answered. "Truly, are there more
dreamt of in our philosophy. The fact
that any force can shake me off in an
instant, as did that last night, is all
sufficient proof that it is not of this
world" HORACE ADLER.
"Men who think themselves the
closest Investigators are always the
most careless" said the medium"
when he had returned to his room.
"You converted him. this to the big
fellow who sat beside him, with an arm
as hard as railroad iron and hand as
big as canvased- ham. "He was SO
friphtened he couldn't understand how
his breath left him so quickly"
"If he could see that, now, he'd
know" said the man, holding up
fist as full of knots as Zulu's club.
"An' speakin' of breath, do you know
come mighty nigh suffocatin' after 1
got back in that panel closet" point
ing to the wall. at tight place to be
in, in more respects than one. &c ht-
cago Ledger. ..-