The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-07-30

| ana was lnCfpdDle OF producing theS
materlalizations. To produce this phe
nomena is exceedingly wearing on
medium. Finding, sometimes, they ar
going TO fail by legitimate means. the.
resort TO trick and device to do sucl
things. II you ever hear OF medium
Undertaking. Ave or six forms In ont
evening, you can set him down as a fraud
If know there are such things as spirit
photographs. l am satisfied that the
camera can take up what the human
sight cannot. l have seei this done un
der remarkable test conditions. i have
no doubt that occasionally, in the pres
ence OF what we may call Undertaking.
| aid. that the spirit form becomes so much
habitated In ETHEREAL substance that the
| camera VIII present the appearance OF
| IL. | know OF an instance where a friend
| Of mine, a highly respectable man, was
taking the photograph OF a house. and.
strange 10 say. the windows were full Of
| human faces. l cannot explain how II was
i done, but certainly there were no human
| faces In the windows that the eye could
see and IL would be impossible 10 fl
those windows with human faces as they
are presented in the picture. / can
send you where you can see ] presume,
that same picture and learn the facts
from the gentleman himself
1T is sometimes asked by the slyeptlc
why the spirits Of great men send such
foolish messages to this world. In the
first place. J. do not believe that one In
hundred Of so-called messages from
great men come from those men at all.
From long study OF this subject, / be-
lieve that q spirit coming here often finds
different surroundings than what he eX-
pected. Being anxious to obtain the re-
spect and attention Of others, / am sat
isfied such spirits assume the names Of
distinguished individuals Then, again,
the Bible teaches us that there are num-
bers of lying spirits. 1t is often the case
that we find where the communications
are unquestonably Of n spiritual nature,
that they are from the low and depraYed
class Of spirits who have not outgrown
their worldly propensities in this direc-
ton. They may be very vicious, or eX-
ceedingly funny and enjoy playing tricks
The truth is. a person has great deal
10 learn in regard 10 this subject, and IL
is a foolish thing for people 20 be dis
gusted with IL at the outset, and con-
denim Il because IL appears TO be I'M
reasonable and unaccountable, and the
door is being opened for evil spirits to
communicate IL IS a very important
thing to establish the fact that n spirit
can communicate at all. That one fact
is an astounding thing In these material
istic times. To establish the fact that
even n bad spirit will communicate with
the world has a tendency TO overcome the
materialism Of the age.
"Spiritualists claim, and I think with
good reason. that il you take everything
that we denominate the phenomena OF
spirituallsm out OF the Bible. II would
600 ca N ho a raffriauc hnaIy Tho cpfrif-
ualists believe that man is a progressive
being: that the first man that went
over into the spirit world was a very
low spirit and that. as man has pro-
crossed on the earth, he has also pro-
crossed I'm the spirit world that many OF
the barbarous thlngs that are taught in
the Old Testament as being part of the |
Jewish law. never originated with any
thing higher than the spirits OF men |
who had passed into the spirit world |
and who were giving back TO the Jewish |
people that which they thought was |
sdapted TO their condition. But. as the |
world progresses. the ideas Of men upon |
NJ religious subjects are advanced. SO |
you will find that the communications
rom the other world are rather corre-
to that advance, or lead It,
with reference TO Jesus Christ, the |
as a rule, do not believe
hat Jesus Christ was the Son Of God in
ny fighar sense than that taught by
-hrist himself. when he said so are we
III sons Of God They believe that he was
higher or more advanced. as he was ca
,able Of receiving the highest and most
livine influence probably OF any being OF
whom we have any record. We do not
'eieyc in the doctrine Of the Atonement
S II IS ordinarily taught in the churches.
hot no
ice the teachings OF Jesus Christ. and
eek entrance into heaven by the modes
nd methods i'm which he instructed his
isciples living a Christ-.ike life, that
hey will attain the highest degree of
appiness In the spiritual world. They
eIeve that every man must suffer for
he sins he commits: that there is no es-
ape from the penalty OF sin. II man
oes not reform. outgrow his evil pro-
ensities and atone 90 those whom he !
e has wronged and injured here, he
INST suffer in the other world and work
MT his salvation there under great diff
ulties. In seeking to get back and i'm
ress living spirits who are lower than !
@ Is. with the necessity of living purer
nd better lives. When at last he has
lbored SO long and has accomplished so
Iuch. and has become so elevated I'm his |
wn spiritual nature that he feels no
niger the pangs of conscience. he turns
is face upwards; he is not required TO |
)me back. and makes advances into
igher spiritual realms in the other
orld
1--WE DO not believe in capital punlsh-
tent. We think IT is a wicked thing for
ne man TO take the life Of another and
md him 70 the spirit world. a wicked I
sing to come back and perhaps torment ,
nd tempt others into crime
Dickens states that some OF his char {
tiers used TO talk to him so much that I
e could not so to church. for they world ;
lt let him alone Victor Hugo believed (
sliritualism SO did Tennyson. There a