Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-10-26
THE SPIRlTUALISTS.
tt Two Meetings Held by Them Yester-
day Afternoon and Evening.

The believers in the spiritual philosophy
in this city are holding services in HUFF
mans hall. The first meeting at this nall
was held yesterday afternoon, and 4 good
audience listened attentively to what proved
TO be a very interesting exposition of the
doctrines of Spiritualism. The speaker.
MIR. Colby, is a very interesting, able and
forcible talker, and is certainly an able eX-
pOnent of the doctrine he proclaimS. After
an invocation the medium requested ques-
lions from the audience, TO be answered by
him, though he did not speak in a trance
condition. In the course of his remarks he
spoke of the difference between spiritual
ism and orthodoxy as to the nature of pun
ishment, declaring that every man would
have to suffer the consequences of his own
acts, that if we disobeyed natural law we
were bound to suffer the consequences ::
that there is sure retribution which fol-
lows our every wrong act, and 4 sure re-
ward for every good deed. This he con-
trasted with the Christian scheme of re-
demption by which, said the lecturer, man
could sin all his life, and at the eleventh
hour repent and throw all mis- sins on Jesus
aud receive the same reward as attached to
Il pure life. He said if men only believed
that the spirits of friends and loved ones
were ever near and interested in their vel
fare, instead of being away in some far
away heaven: that if they knew positively
that mother or father knew their every
act, it would deter men from wicked
ness. From that. in answer TO another
question: he drifted into the subject of the
scientific evidences of life beyond the
grave, which he claimed modern spiritual
ism could and did demonstrate.
The speaker SAID believers in the ortho-
dox religion believed in q life beyond the
grave, but spiritualists knew it; that they
did not ask faith, but that every man or
woman could certainly know there was 4
hereafter. In answer to another question
he stated it as fact that we have had an
eternal existence in the past, and should
have one in the future. and also stated that
il is the browning triumph of the Nine
teeuth century to have demonstrated the
indestructibility of matter, and conse-
qucntly its beginningless duration in the
paSt-that all matter was alive and that
such thing rs dead matter had no exist
encc. He said spirit was but refined and
attenuated matter. In answer to the ques-
ton from an evident sceptic as to whether
i man could be an atheistic spiritualist, he
said that if what was meant by that was,
could he believe in existence after death
and be an atheist Mo- that whatever
the name God was worShiped under
whether Jehovah, or Buddha. or Nature.
every man must believe i'll his existence
The speaker secuted the idea of Gods per-
Sonality. and said that GOO comprised
everything. that all We're a part of God,
aud thus identified God and the universe as
one. After slate-writing feat of the usual
character the meeting dispersed
The evening services were almost a
duplication of those of the afternoon. with
the addition of an alleged naturalization
through Mr.. Pettibone. a slight wooden
cabinet was placed on the stage. draped
with black cloth. Mr.. Pettibone entered
the cabinet and his sleeves We're sewed to
his trousers by a lady selected by the
audience. The curtain was then drawn
over him covering his entire body except
his head. After the singing of Nearer.
my,,God, to Thee decidedly masculine look
ing hand reached out through slip in the
cloth and deposited several flowers on MIR.
Petitioners head. This ended the service
About five hundred people were in at
Tendance