The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-07-02

ussts s,afF1sens sS s13 as very TIM
porsant by the soSissA. fos Il seems to the
students 10 ln3.case that the spirit ean Dis
Germ coiors. Another somewaa, significant
incident was the writing az some French
words. with accents by the medium, when
usten<ihly controlled by Miss Field. Mira
Piper is not a stuaen, OF French.
So far ~ Mrs. Pfper's work al the present
time goes. I, Is not possible 10 obtain much
Information fer publication. All arpolnt-
menss fer Attsnss have been made through
DR. Hodgson. and he grants them only to
those whom he approves. That Is 10 say.
ne Will not allow one who would he likely
10 lse a disturbing influence 20 trouble her.
Tor IL nigh. interfere seriously with her
work as medium. from which, from q
scientific standpoint. ire students hope to
learn much. Saifsngs are also granted on
the condition that the reports shall Ne given
70 the society for such use as ii sees nt in
reports 20 be made fran time 10 time.
So far as Mrs. Piper goes, she seldom re-
eeives STRANGERS. and positively will not
talk 10 any hg; the favored few of her ex-
persences. In fact, she probably could tell
very little of them II she would, that il.
accepting the hypothesis that she Is not Q
fraud. She Ia rot woman Of broad esfu-
cation, and II Is declared that in her normal
self she simply could not discuss the SUBJ
5ects that are dwell upon In the sccie;y's
y
pencil.
Mrs. Piper was married In 1881. Her fara
child WAS h,rn in May. 1884. and the second
In October. 1854. Her FIRST trance Was on
June -. 1854. Soon after this she began TO
attract the attention OF students OF psyche-
lcsy. In May. iSSs. nr. Hodxson met her
for the first time. being introduced to her
by Prof. JameA of Harvard. Late In 100
she went 20 England With her two children
M ra0 vai her. n bxst ~
giving eighsy-;hree sistingS under the su-
pervision ct Prof O. q. Lodge. Walter LEAF
and +. w. II. Myerx. Mr.. Leafs conclu-
sion at this time was that IL was case
of thought transference from the sitter.
Prof. Lodge held that I: was ''teiepashy OF
some kind. a. distinct from any conceivA-
BILE method OF extracting information from
any persons present"
Up to issc Mrs. P.per's control was DIR.
rhinuit. but. according to the statement OF
DIR. HodGson. the sudden death OF George
Pelham In that year had great bearing
upon her work. Pelham. formerly 4 BoS-
ton man. but In later years OF his life
resident OF New York. lawyer and =
writer OF some note. was interested In the
work OF the Psychical Research Society.
About four weeks after his death II waa
announced that he had made himself
known through Mrs. p.per's trance and NJ
10 about two years ago he was very prom
inent as a control. II Was he. again. ac-
cording TO DIR. Hodgson. that developed the
writing by Mrs Piper's hand. method
which 10 now used almost entirely by her.
In September. 1887. DIR. HodGson return
ed 10 London. where he remained about Z
year. During his absence he gave Sew
erai people permission TO have stttiueo
with Mrs. Piper, and many OF the sitaines
were attended by Pref. James. OF Harvard.
who had to some extent shared with DR..
Y<~A~ .sxv<x ixSa - 49,
efforts. Since Pr Hodxson.s return, no
has, with Prof. James consent assumed
entire charge. and has begun q course OF
Systematic Investigation. tho results Of
which he will publish In the form OF re-
port to the society In the course Of year
or so. Meantime. what goes on between
Mrs. Piper and the little circle OF the cho-
sen few IL q closely guarded secret. 20 far
at least as names Of sitters and impor-
tant details 20 Mrs, Piper In, 10 oil In
tents and purposes, the property Of the
r0cfefy when VII teH (a0 World what 8
pleascs when Il pleAses.
Among the latest xitters whcac expert
ences are now public property are Prot.
Newbold. Of the University of Pennayl-
vania. who had twenty-six sittin9s with
Mrs Piper and Frank Podmore who also
had many sttttngs. Tho former eayA:
with regard 20 the origin Of the infor-
nation given have no theory to offer.
can frame none to which I cannot myself
ailese unanswerabie objections. am sat-
isfied. however. a. n everyone. 20 far ~
know. who has studied the case 1t any
length that II was not consciously got By
Mrs Piper during waking ltfe and then
fraudulentfy paimed OF on the sitter -
supernormai. There IL every reason for
believing that there IN no memory bond
between Mrs. Piper's walking conscious
ness and that Of her trance Mfe.''
A. -. 49, 49, -
Piper's work with that Of other noted me-
diuma. somewhat TO the detriment OF the
oshers. and concludes that. - 10 Mrs.
Piper ''Our choice now seems clearly
defined between deliberate and syStcmatic
fraud on the one hand ana superuormal
faculty on the other" AZ to this conclu-
sion Mr. Podmere cites tho fact that for
the past fourteen yeara Mrs. Piper has
been under the constant close observation
OF Prof. James. Dr. HodxsDn and others:
that she has been watched by detectives
her personal baggage searched, and her
private correspondence read and that dur
ing all that time not the sli9htcst circum-
stance has come to Hight rejecting on No.
honesty.
At one time some four or Ave years ago.
Prof James conceived the idea % getting
all the Harvard professors 10 nave stt-
tings with Mrs. Piper. Among those who
yielded to his wishes were profs. ahalef.
Norton and rrowhridge. OF these the last
named did not see In the sitting anything
more than IAN insane cunning In the crop
Ing OF the woman after something intAn-
Rfble' Prof. Shaler was somewhat i'm
pressed, hut says at the close OF his Re-
port that he cannot exclude the hypothesis
OF fraud Prof Noston'e conclusions were
that there was no question as TO Mrs.
pfper's good faith or 10 her delustUn
in respect 20 the nature Of tho Influences
10 which she was subject when I'm tho
trance state" He acknowledged ''pe-
Guitar influence Upon the medium" and
says he has an opinion az 90 the origin of
many Of the phantasmagorias III her trance
,lreanns hut he does not give that opinion.
pr Uodpsons description OF Mrs.
Pipers trance IN follows:
s.wncn Mrs. Piper begins To pass into
| trance her normal or aupraiimiraI con-
scsousness begins 10 disappear and her
s,shisusnsI consciousness begins 10 mani
fest Itself II IL an though her supra
lirnlnai consciousness Was sinking ana
her SuhIifsasnai consciousness rising.
There H. one stage where the sabiiminal
onsctonsuesa seems TO come into View
before the stipraisnatnal consciousness has
,.ss,~xtx,.fv af49 nae ed q this sfaRA