The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1895-02-26
As TRANCE QUEEN.
The sunday Chronicle.


Nine years OF the thirty were spent
In q trance. While she was In that
trance she was practically dead.
Strange tales are told OF queer visions
It ia-sn4icteut to say that il she had
wished to adopt spiritualism as a pro-
f~essioD, the mediumistie powers which
are unquestionably hers would have
made her a great fortune and would
haze intrenched spiritualism i'm a much
hrmer position in the public belief
than 1t occupies today.
The woman Is Mollie Fancher, the
most famous invalid in the world.
Twenty-Five years ago, when she was
lying In the awful trance that made
her famous, she was written and talk
ed about the world over. The people
OF Brooklyn spoke in whispers about
the weird girl and told how, when
MOVERS were brought in the room
whore the sleeper lay, thew would
almost Immediately wither and die.
and that when a canary bird was left
in the room it was found dead at the
h"Nt0m OF the cage an hour later. 1t
'at the t~rance-girl consumed
ure air OF an apartment, leay-
ing only the poison for other things
and people.
Strange stories were told, also of the
visions OF Miss Fancher. There is not
u particle OF doubt about her medium
lstic powers. That she had the facul-
ty OF second sight there lie not the
shadow of "a doubt. None Of her friends
are s~piritualists. Miss Fancher abhors
anything leaning toward spiritualism,
and she has tried in every way to loose
the strange power which has been
vested in her. She Is a good, old
fashioned Baptist, and she has prayed
night and day that the uncanny pow
or be- takeniaway from her. She al
ways knew what her friends were 90
ing to say before they said it; she
could t:grsee misfortune that would
happen to them In the death or sickness
oi' relatives, and in a countless number
OF ways she would discover things
tina it was intended she should never
know about.
Mollie Fancher 10 f~orty-six years
old, and she was but sixteen when she
met with the accident that caused her
troubles. She has dropped 30 COM
pletely ont OF sightn1 b pu,. decade
md a hae that the younger genera
know nothing about her. Her
withdrawal from the public gaze is
largely due to her own efforts. She
detests notoriety, and particularly the
visits OF curiosity seekers. 1t Is at the
solicitation OF her friends that her
street address in Brooklyn is not
published. She has always been
besieged by theatrical people who were
anxious to exhibit her and her TRANCE
powers to the public.
Years ago, when she was so much
discussed Ia the and among
The medical franternity, p. T. Barnum
sent an agent to see her, with this
message:
You have the powers to make two
great fortunes-One for me and one for
you"
Miss F'ancher sent word to the agent
that h twas not for sale" She also
narrowly escaped giving an order to
nave him put out of the house. Her
Indignation was real, notwithstanding
she was thrusting aside a chance to
make $4,000 or $50, 900 a year.
Miss Fancher Is now Il plump woman
Notwithstanding her long confinement.
Her original trouble was brought about
by o horse a accident. AS she was
getting out OF a car her dress caught
In a hook on the platform and she was
dragged over the cobble stones a block
before the conductor noticed her. The
accident occurred in June, 1864, and
the 3rd OF the following February she
was seized with frightful spasms and
became paralyzed.
Then she fell into the trance from
which there was no conscious awaken
ing for nine years. Her brother
James, to whom she was greatly at
tached, was a small boy when she en-
tered the trance, and was q grown man
with, q mustache when she came out
Of it.
Her mother died when she was but
six years old and an aunt nursed her
while she Was in the n Miss
Fancher had wonderful visions of
which she unconsciously de!
at the time. She imagined
that her mother was at her side ali
the time. When she regained CON
s~ciousnees she had lost the power of
speech, hearing, the sense OF
.mell and b use OF her arms, hands. |
body and limbs. She has partially
recovered the use of all OF these with
Inc exception of the lower part of her
body. She suffers from pain all the
time, particularly at Tight.
MISS occupies a room open
into q small parlor. The parlor
Is Kept darkened. Its furniture is old
doors separate it from the room used
by Miss Fancher. When her few
intimate friends call, as they often do
at night, the folding doors are thrown
open md the invalid from her snowy
bed joins In the conversation or listens
singing or playing on the old-fash-
oned square piano in the room.
Miss FaDcher does not look the in
valid she Is, Notwithstanding her years
Of living in bed. Her face, though
colorless, is not at all ghastly. There
are deep lines-the imprint OF constant
neutrality-suspicious. the nose and mouth.
The face itself, though not pretty, is
pleasant and intelligent.
Miss Fancher has her little vanity,
and in that she shows her womanii-
ness. She is proud OF her arms and
wrists. She ornaments them with
OF the fashion Of generation
She wears pretty, lose sacaues,
with short, loose sleeves, allowing q
generous exposure OF the wrist and
Her eyes are only partially |
open, her sight being very delicate.
She wears her hair short, as 1t would
a difficult matter to attend to it
we're 1T allowed to grow long. 1t is
curly. mixed with gray and well worn
he lies on
though
Their