The herald., 1897-04-25
Eusapia Paladino and Nine.
D'Esperance's Powers
PHYSICAL FORCE OF NO AVAIL
THOSE WHO HAVE SOUGHT TO
SOLVE THIS PROBLEM
Alleged Demonstration Of the Posi-
tive Existence of the Dual
Personality-Tests


PARIS, April 1.-two women, Mile.
Eusapia Paladino and Nine. D'Esper-
ance, have given scientists OF Europe a
problem to solve over which they are
still puzzling. The theory of what is
known as action at a distance seems to
have been proved beyond peradventure.
Caesare Lombroso and NJ Sully Prud-
homme, men of wirld-wide fame. are
among the notable savants who believe
these women to be all that they have
claimed. 1t Is a mystery intensified. II
is a scientific problem which after the
closest observatic1 by the shrewdest OF
men seems to utterly fail of solution.
Paris, France, for that matter all SCI
entific Europe, is agog over the achieve
ments Of these two demonstrators of the
occult. If there Is a fraud in their ac-
tions, there has been none so clever or
SO carefully concealed. To deceive the
ignorant is one thing. To deceive the
learned men who have made the natural
forces and occultism the studies OF their
lives, and who are quicker to suspect
fraud than to believe truth, is totally
different. The first of these women, Eu-
sapia Paladino. is by birth Neapolitan.
Her father was slain by bandits and the
child. retaining a vivid recollection of
that fact, was constantly on the watch
for danger from the same cruel hands
directed toward herself. AS she grew In
years, 1t was noticed that she was diff
ferent from others in her moods and In
her tastes. She seemed to have halluci-
nations. Nature had been generous to
her in point of attrativeness, but she
seemed inclined to live her life to herself.
Just to what extent she differed in those
earlier years there is no absolute record.
But at the age of 23-she tells her own
story-she suddenly discovered that
mysterious influences operated through
her. She found herself capable of infiu-
encing objects at distance. The ordin-
ary table tipping, such as all France
talks of today, became to her an almost
matter-of-fact occurrence. Being pos
sessed of a keen mind, which all now ad-
nit, she saw that to rise above mere vul-
garism she must call the attention OF
science to her actions and look to the
savants for the explanation thereof.
Mile. Paladino Travelled from city to
city and country to country giving DEM
onstrations Of her strange power before
the most notable men with whom she
could gain audience. 1t appeared to be
the case that her motive force escaped
from her body, which was powerless to
confine 1t, and this flight of the souP'
impressed material objects, moved fur
niture, agitated curtains and created
forms. She convinced Professor Alexan-
der Aksakoff, the Russian counsellor OF
state, that her powers were genuine.
She has proved the same to the satisfac-
vIa nf fha
Society of Physiological Psychology,
we'll known men.
Wagner, the famous zoologist, wit
messed trial of her powers and believed.
At Varsovis she succeeded In removing
the doubts of M. Ochorowicz. one Of the
promoters of the doctrine Of mental
suggestion. She has, in flfty-two days,
given forty exhibitions of the mystery
that controls her, each Of which was wit
messed by from twenty to twenty-five
persons Of this city. She lighted lamps
at a distance. She drew resonant music
from the tambourine without touching
it. She removed the spectacles from the
eyes of persons without touching either
She sounded a trumpet, though It was
far from her lips She played on an ac-
Gordon that was not near her at all. All
these things she did while her hands and
feet were under strict surveillance.
Although the Society for Psychical
Research of England was inclined to
doubt her ability to honestly perform
what she claimed to demonstrate, the
French savante, one after the other, say
they have provedsher to be genuine. The
most notable of the recent tests were
made under the charge Of committee
consisting Of six men Of recognized posi-
ton. There were NJ Dariex, editor of the
Annales des Sciences Psychiques; Count
De Gramont, Col. De Rochas, NJ. Saba
tier, the Baron De VAUDEVILLE and M.
Maxwell, a lawyer Of Limoges. This
test took place In drawing room at
Col. De Rochas' villa. M. Sabatier, who
is q skeptio Of skeptics, stood behind
Mile. Paladino, holding her hands firm
ly in his own. He allowed her finger
tips only to project beyond his own.
Under these circumstances, Eusapia
was asked II she could affect, by the
simple imposition of hands without con-
tact. a small weighing machine which
M. Sabatier had brought with him. She
then Joined in point the fingers Of both
her hands. She placed them first to the
right and then to the left Of the machine
at distance of one and one-fifth inches.
Then she seemed to concentrate her will
upon the point she had formed with her
hands. She indicated by slight motion
a movement downward. Although she
was not touching the scale, it went down
and then rose. There was no movement
of the table on which the scale rested.
M. Sabatier saye 1t was impossible for
Eusapia to have touched the scales.
This experiment was conducted in a
room where the light was brilliant and
where the observers were so numerous
and so located that the young woman
was observed from every point.
When, at M. Sabatier's request, after
he had placed himself opposite to Eu-
sapia and to the weighing machine, the
woman moved her hand horizontally in
stead Of vertically, the entire Weighing
machine moved from the table and
seemingly cast itself upon the floor
some distance away. There were abso-
lutely no confederates and every person
In the room would have been glad to
have secured even the slightest evil
dence of fraud.
At another test, in the presence Of the
members of the committee heretofore
named, far more remarkable perform
ances took place. The arrangements as
TO precautions against fraud were elab-
orate and paiustaking. Every one was
on the lookout all the time. One person
hold the right hand Of stha woman an.