The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1897-10-10
ASTROLOGY LOOKING UP
Il GROWING DEMAND TOR THE ZEAL
ARTICLE FELT nOWADATs.
People Who Like To Know what the Stars
Think About Their Ansirs-Real
Astrologers Scarce.


a development OF the popularity OF Ara
biology, pilImistry, anu Otner ms nous "a
diyinatlOn with flXed principles mat nave
been making their way over the country
These arts nave much 70 s... 49,, ~.
them to those VINO consult thein lol .no
nrsr time When properly STUDIED, me
formula IS pretty mucn the same III al
OF them. -
Now says the operator. If he
possesses the qualities wnlcu conihdiW
success in his vocation peloie 4 pesin
TO read your character must VAIN
YOU that the principles OF TINS science
are strictly laid down and can III no
way depart from them. however 7etious'
however disgracetui may b. the ueletls
4 discover ia YOUR character, j must de-
crihe Them frankly and plainly. 1 may
have to utter some very oisagteeapie
truths and II you 90 not wish To near
them We had better stop tlgnt mere. on
wish me TO 20 on at any FISK! very Weh'
then. / see here THAI YOU nave great hih-
ness OF character, tempered Dy KIND
heart and an uncrring sense 81 justice
with hfgniy developed artistic teinpera-
,nent aud literary powers capabic o.
&C.
So the art Of divnation so practiced
has fascination for the subject ana seE-
eral worthy professors OF IL nave hiau'
comfortable incomes for considerable pc
RODS. II Is apt to be eioyin6 TO the SUI
iect in the end, though. one soon grows
accustomed TO the knowledge that one
has great nrmness OF character, an arus-
tic temperament. AID high literary pow
ors Indeed IL becomes so familiar th@l
one feels that the possession "a lhess
qualities had always been known, ana
then the subject looks Tor further illloi
nation and nnds none. So the great ran
INK OF paimistry Srapholosy' phteholo5S
and their kindred arts becomes appaienI,
one doesn't learn anything from tnem
that one could not learn just as wen OF
better in some other way, and, ABOVE an,
when practiced on fixed principles, tney
say nothing about the future; 90 hot e,sn
SO much as mention the ishl iduy, tne
dark man. and the crossing OF water >.
Here's where astrOlogy comes IN. IL
can tell as much about the character as
any Of the others, and in ADDITION, III one
believes i'm IT, one must admit that II can
form az least conJectures as 10 the tu'u,e.
or course some peOple are found VINO
make the same claim for spiritualism: but
there is this to be said in favor or astrol-
ogy. that we can see the stars. whlle
II is not certain that any one mas really
seen a spOOk. Consequently asuolosy
rests on the sounder basis or the Two
and people who have turned from SPIRIT
ualism with that tired feeling think they
have found in astrology what they nave
been looking for.
Real astrologers are scarce. Astrology
is a most complicated science. The stars
may run along all right so far as thelr
merely astronomical duties are concerned,
but they have a way or gettlns ther
influences mixed up most diihcut 10
untangle when one tries TO make out
what the net result will be TO some poor
mortal who happens TO be porn CURING
such a state Of affairs. Inen the hi 1..'
makes things dOubly. trebly worse. Inc
moon deserves all the evil things that
have been said OF her. merely on account
of perplexities that she has caused TO
astrologers Some OF the things she does
i'm astrOlogy are so involved thlt the
words used TO describe her performances
are not 70 be found IN ordinary dlctloh-
aries. IL requires much preliminary learn
ing 10 read understandingly a thorough
going work on astrolOgy. TO say nothing
OF extraordinary stores OF patience ana
perseverance, TO be scriOus-minded
astrologer. one needs to be scholar ana
an enthusiast with a particular bent.
Under these conditions 70 Is not Surprls-
ing that astrOlogers should be scarce.
There is M least one In this city. Inc
most surprising thing about him 10 per-
sons who don't believe In astrolOgy may
be the fact that he IS n man Of unusual
| cultivation and wide Information. By pro-
fessiOn he is "a literary man and mas made
a position for himself. For thirty years
he has been studying astrol0gy lie mas
always had n liking for Occultism. tie
wears on one finger piece or crystal
with n history centuries long. winch IS
supposed 10 be charged with some mys-
toriOus fluid or force AMI IN when me-
diums and other sensitive people say they
can see things. He carries gnostic ANU
lets and queer charms from Egyptian
tOmhs which are supposed 10 nave heen
| handed down from adept To adept, ana
~ have all kinds Of esOteric meanings.
While he was investgating Spiriiuailsm
| his associates used 10 declare that they
could sec violet light streaming from
his finger tips when he raised his hands,
! like svfneal 20 out somebody 10 sieep
If Nine Blavatskv Col. Olcott and the
! others over really hohnobhed with ma %
| hatma. he did. too. His head Is a store
| house Of queor lore collected bv philoso-
phcrs. Rosicrucians. Talmudists. magic
/ ians and other irccnious persons In the
middle ages and further back.
\ couple of years ago he decided 10
I abandon literature and take 10 astrology
as "a profession He did so because 50
| MANY nj his friends and their friends
! kent begging him 90 east horoscopes for
| them and tel them what was going 10
| bappen Now he practices 10 for liveii-
\ hood Naturally he is n thorough believer
/ I'm IL. and he is glad 10 be able 10 combine
| money making with opportunities for
| pursuing his Investigations for. like other
| astrologers In other centuries. he looks
upon himself as only beginner in the
| science.
"It's really wonderful the way things
| n.
| udiced IN favor OF astrology: but some OF
| the results that have been reached since
| have had this wider field OF operations
| arc remarkable. The best evidences That
| there is really something in astroloey
| is that people come 10 me again and again
| to consult regarding particular cohllh-
he does not undertake to say exactly
| what will happen. but confines himsel
! 10 ascertain the general conditions OF the
| particular time as they anect the SUD-
| iecr In other words. he does about the
| samo amount Of predicting as the Wealth
! or Bureau. and doesn't acknowledge n
| whit mere responsibility than Farmer
| Dunn. II something else happens than
| his forecast well. that isn't his funeral
| but he claims an average record, az least
! az good IS that Of the Weather Bureau
A large proportion of his customers are
| Young women. as is 10 be expected; but
J lie is also consulted by many business
! men who want TO know 1t the astrological
/ conditions are favorable. for entering upon
certain enterprises. One business man en-
! gagged him to cast a horoscope FOR every
} day for a year in advance Now. when
| the business man is thinking OF embark
I ing IN any project. he looks up the horo-
/ scope for the day and those for the pc
riod covered by the undertaking. and IS
| governed by their showing OF the favora-
bic . unfavorabie influences OF the stars.
| MOss OF his customers go INTO the as
| trolngical business on "A less extensive
! scale. however. They want 10 know their
prospects ia a general way merely. An
other class Of customers consists OF those
who wish advice as 10 the bringing up
ri their children and the careers for which
they are best suited. IL VIII be seen that
there are plenty OF serious questions FOR
him to answer in addition TO the frlvo-
Ions interests OF the young women VINO
anniv TO him. In all cases he works out
the answer by the most approved
,rinciples Of astroiogy. Since he has be-
"a hu =