Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-07-04
MEDIUM KATE FOX DEAD.
She and Her Sister Startled the World
Years Ago.

She and Her Sister Startled the World
Years Ago.
Mrs. Catharine Fox Jencken. once widely
known as Kate Fox. the second of the three
sisters who attracted attention all over the
world with their spiritualistic seances. died
suddenly Saturday afternoon at her home
in New York She had been complaining for
the last week of pains in the region of the
heart, but kept up and around and secuted all
suggestions OF sending for doctor.
Kate Fox's only male relative beside her sons
is her brother. David Fox. farmer in Wayne
county. Pas. who is not believer in Spiritual
ism. He was notified by telegraph of his sis
ter's death. and no arrangements for the funeral
will be made until he is heard from. The two
Jencken boys. Ferdinand and Henry, who are
eighteen and sixteen years old respectively. said
they did not expect that their uncle would take
any interest in the funeral and that they
thought their mother would probably be given
large public funeral by the Spiritualists of
New York city.
The fat i'm which the woman lived was small
ard poorly furnished. but the boys said their
mother had left them comfortably well of.
They said she again took up spiritualism after
her denunciation of it five years ago and died a
firm believer in it. Leah Fish or Mrs. Under
hill. as she was later known, is dead Mrs.
Kane. who lives in SD street, was completely
Frustrated at the news of her sisters death.
THEIR SPIRIT RAPPINGs.
Kate and Margaret Fox were of humble par
ents in Hydesville, n. Y, forty years ago. But
they attracted the attention of the whole world
by producing sensation almost unparalleled in
the history of the hemisphere. According 10
voluntary confession which they made in 1858
By the manipulation of certain muscles of the
toes and fingers the two sisters left much to
themselves. discovered that they could make
certain peculiar sounds. BY the merest acci-
dent their mother once heard these uncanny
sounds and became alarmed.
The children. amused at their mother fright.
kept their secret and persisted in the sport for
fun" When that mother could conceal her fear
no longer she told her neighbors. the Fox
homestead was soon regarded with suspicion.
Leah Fish. married sister mnch older than
Kate and Margaret and who lived in Rochester.
visited her mother and heard Of the peculiar
powers OF her sisters. She took means TO de-
yelop their tricks TILL long before the children
realized their knavery, Hydesville became
famous and they were objects of general
curiosity.
Leah egged them on. Vanity and love Of no.
toriety did the rest. Soon they went to live
with Leah in Rochester aud then followed the
wonderful stories Of their powers and their
spirit rappings." Scientists and seekers after
truth visited them. Their Interpretation of
spiritualsm was new. Harriet Martineau and
Elizabeth Barrett Browning were among their
visitors. Men of strong intellect discussed their
achievements soberly and seriously. Mrs. Fish
took the girls to Philadelphia and the contagion
of sriritualism spread rapidly.
at Hydesville. Margaret in 1852 had developed
into a beautiful woman. She and her sister were
at the Union Hotel in Philadelphia. giving
scances. Her mother was with them. Margaret
met DIR. Elisha Kent Kane, the great explorer,
then handsome Young fellow Of thirty-four.
He cour.ed her and seeing the hollowness Of the
life she was leading tried to lead her from it. 1t
was hard work. for Mrs. Fish ruled the family,
and Kate. who might have aided her, was at
school in New York at the time.
MARGARET MARRIED DIR. KANE.
The Foxes all moved to New York city and
were living in Twenty-sixth street. DIR. Kane
arranged to educate Margaret. He had prom
ised to marry her, but on returning from an ex-
petition he did not call on her. and she broke
the engagement But he persisted, and they
were again engaged. In the autumn of 1856.
before sailing for England, he declared In the
presence of Kate Fox, her mother, q servant and
friend, that Margaret was his wife. He died
in Havana February 16, 1857. Margaret was
prostrated. She received none Of the fortune
derived from Ksne's books.
Kate according to her Rister, had been the
first to discover that by swishing her fingers she
could produce q certain noise with the knuckles
and joints. and that the same effects could be
produced with the toes.
After Margaret's union with Kane Kate kept
up the seances She had many wealthy patrons
I'm New York, among them Mr.. Lvermore, a
wealthy banker. and Dr.. Gray, physician
KATx's MARRIAGE.
Kate was married to Mr.. Jencken, an English
barrister, in 1873, in ST. Paurs Cathedral, Lon
don, by Canon Irons. Her husband was killed
In Spain about eight years ago in . riot He
left her o comfortable fortune.
She was arrested in Rochester in August,
1885, for drunkenness. This was about a wear
after her children bad been taken from her by
the Society for the Prevention Of Cruelty to
Children on the ground that she was dypso-
maninc and incapable Of caring Tor them.
Her sister Margaret enlisted the sympathy
Of rich believers in spiritualism and recovered
through their aid Mrs.. Jencken's s'daxlinRs. I"
One Of those who aided her was IssbeIla
Beecher Hooker, sister Of Henry Ward Beecher.
Kate Fox announced her approval Of her
sisters confession in 1853 Of the humbueRery
in which thsy Bad engaged, and did some
lecturing ON ths subject Of the frauds of spirit
uaiistic mediums