The herald., 1897-03-28
She WiggIes Her Way Around
Like q Snake
"SPEAKER" EATS RAW MEAT
AND ACTS THE PART OF A WILD
BEAST
Twelve Disciples Called but Come to
Grief When They Try to Prosely-
tize-Pounding the Devil
Out of q Man

It takes all kinds of people to make ur
world, and one-half of the good folks
don't know how the other half are living
A food of light is being thrown upon the
mental life of a number of individuals
however, by the trial of the Times-M Mir
ror libel suit now in course of trial in the
United States district court before Judge
Wellborn and jury.
City life is supposed to sharpen the
wits, and in stimulating what phrenol-
ogy would designate as the combative
qualities, deepen the skepticism regard
ing things outside the range of the five
senses, and contrary to the ordinary eX-
perience of the average individual I'm
der these circumstances it is marvellous
to realize, as must perforce be done
that an aggregation of fools have bean
living in veritable fools paradise-or
hades. whichever way the matter IS
viewed-while dabbling in occult mys-
teries.
OF course, no reflection is intended
upon such misguided people. They are
not fools of the "raca raca" kind, with
q sulphurous penalty attached to any
one applying the epithet, but just the
plain. everyday fool, whose mental
equipoise has been badly disturbed, and
whose foolishness illumines their path
way and shows things just as they are
not
In the above classification it may be
stated that Miss Josephine Holmes, the
plaintiff in the action, cannot be in
cluded. AS she sat in the court room
Yesterday costumed irreproachably, and
with a somewhat ooquettish hat upon
her head, she appeared as if no apparent
reason existed for any great discomfort
on her part with the world, or the way it
has been treating her-at least in ma
terial way. And then she rs wondrous
woman. Not infrequently a man con-
fesses having gone towel, 1t is not po-
lite to say it, but it's true, to hell, but in
such case it simply means that he has
simply coppered the queen or played
aces high in an illegal resort. Miss
Holmes, on the other hand, has been to
the bona fide, old fashioned, Calvinistic
hell, and seen the Old Gentleman him
self, cloven feet. tail with the fringes on
II all complete. At least she says so,
and her followers believe her when she
says so; and not only that, but that she
has also sauntered down the shady
lanes of Paradise, and has been taken
by the hand by Jesus Christ.
Right there is interposed thought
which Is in itself a blasphemy Of the
superlative kind, and the evidence must
speak for itself. Suffice it to say that
the most persistent globe-trotter never
covered, in the course of his entire life,
tithe of the mileage that this fair plain
tiff not infrequently covered when 'out
of the body" upon one of her investigat-
ing tours through celestial spheres.
But while the evidence yesterday,
along this line, was curiously interest
ing, other evidence of less striking
kind, and yet, from legal standpoint,
equally important was submitted for
the consideration of the jury.
NO LIBEL.
Col. Harrison Gray Otis was recalled,
and, in obedience to the ruling of the
court, stated that at the time of the pub
lication Of the alleged hbelous article
he rated his individual property at about
S100, 900 and his TimesMirror stock at
$3.50, 1000. Having so stated. the colonel
was excused, and Miss Josephine Holmes
was recalled for a moment in order that
she receive the courts instructions to
produce in the afternoon certain pictures
required as evidence in the case.
Deputy District Attorney Willis then
went upon the stand and told of the in
terview he had with Miss Holmes at the
time application was made to the dis
trict attorneys Office for a complaint
against the Times Mirror company. He
questioned the lady applicant along the
lines suggested by the article complained
of, and she then, as it appeared to him,
substantially admitted the truth of the
several statements made, save as to
doctrinal beliefs. The witness, in this
connection, did not think boss fakir,
and -washerwoman" were libelous
terms. Miss Holmes admitted that she
was conducting house where people
were taken in, cared for and taught the
principles of a new religion. Upon her
own admissions Mr.. Willis concluded
that she had been guilty of fraud and
chicanery.
"Did Miss Holmes at that time admi.
that the basis of her power was hypno-
tism, pure and simpler" inquired coun-
sci.
mot in that language" was the re-
ply, "but she made admissions that
caused me to arrive at that conclusion
The witness, after some allusion to the
doctrines professed by Miss Holmes, was
retired
A ARECALCITRANTS SISTER-IN-LAW.
IneOQOTe OTay, WHO IieSt ttSllhth, -
the gentleman who was endeavoring to
reclaim his sisterin-law, Miss Farms
worth, from what he regarded as the
noxious influences of Belmont Hail. and
who placed the facts regarding the place
before Col. Otis, when he appealed to
him to have an investigation made.
While trying to persuade his sister-in-
law to leave Belmont Hall. and when
she refused he attempted to learn from
Miss Holmes herself something regard
ing the teachings inculcated by her The
lady was. however. not in the explana-
tory humor at the time Mr.. Gray saw
her, and eluded his questions, or an
swered in a vague, indefinite way. A
member of the cult who happened in the
room-a woman-did make the some
what sweeping remark: II have never
seen any real Christian, outside of my
self and the inmates of this hail.
FROM DIFFERENT STANDPOINTS.
At this point Col. Otis was again re-
called and gave an explanation regard
ing the manner in which the matter of
Belmont Hall was brought under his
notice and why he undertook to make
the investigation into the methods fol-