The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-07-01

ard my wife Is another.
He was right
At his suggestion I visited the medium
In whom he mad such unbounded faith, and
detected the trickery at single interview.
when the former law partner of Daniel
Webster interviewed the spirits Of Adam
and Eve for recolIections of Eden, and
Goliath for his impressions of David he
got what he wanted and faith continued
long after his friends rescued him from the
clutches of mediums to whom he had
decided his property.
The sceptic or doubling investigator IS
never welcome at seance. He Is dis
turbing influence. In July. 1671, in the
columns of a New York newspaper gave
an account of visit with friend TO the
house of Moravia, medium where the first
''materializations'' took place. Every
thing was Indicative of fraud, but as test
we offered the medium a considerable sum
800 I think-if behind the curtain she
would allow her hands to be tied while
mater.alizations took place. OF course It
was refused. 1--WE don't want your mon
ey,' said the manager. eff you cannot
believe in the honesty of the medium, we
don't care to have you stay"
We are told that all appointments for
sittfngs to Mrs. Piper are made now
through Mr.. Hodgson. and that he grams
them only TO those he approves and "wiT
not allow one likely to be distur bling in-
fuence to trouble Ger" and yet there are
those who fancy that scientific investi-
| cation Is in progress in Boston.
| SECONDHAND on part OF the medium.
| Tn Intentional fraud on the par. OF the
medium, l think, may be ascri5e1 the
| greater amount of all the manifestations.
| There Is hardly anyone IN the profession
whose tricks at one time or another have
nit been detected. Materializing mediums
have been so frequently exposed, that such
detections have ceased to be q novelty.
| The lights are suddenly turned up. The
| ghostly form Is found to be a struggling
medium" The disclosure is complete.
Does it disturb in the least degree the
faith of your true believer? Not a par
| ticle.
A trained medium Is more than ordin-
airy person. In ability to note the special
weakness Of the investigator, or to secure
through ordinary conversation bits of in
formation to be produced long afterward
| as messages from the dead, they are adopts
of no mean skill. How easily, for in
stance, might Mrs. Piper, or some one in
close relation with her, have obtained that
Information about the Rev. DR.. Savage,
published in last Sundays Journal, which
immortality of his soul, that his middle
name was Judson. that his father had a
peculiar bald spot on his head. that a
l,,lF II 1,oI ;1l
accident
Once at a public seance in the city of
Washington received a message, tossed
Fly spirit hands over a curtain, behind
which the medium was supposed. to be ly-
ing bound hand and foot 1t was written
in a fine running hand and signed with
the name of one knew. The original Is
before me and 1 copy it.
"How very bright and happy our lives IN
the upper spheres are made by the knowi-
edge of your consciousness of our continu-
ed existence you feel happy to know We
are about, but your pleasure Is not equal
to ours of that account. I send you much
love. HELEN c."
am certain that 1t was an absolute i'm
possibility for the medium on that occa-
sion to have written this note, even with
mis- hands free. From the person signing
it / had expected no communication, its
receipt was an utter surprise. and on al
hands was congratulated as the recipi
ent of 50 brilliant and convincing test
How did the medium ever get that name
Suddenly 1 remembered that a few day.
: before had asked from her, during a pri
waite seance, but without result. Then tn
mystery was clear. The name had beel
kept back, the message carefully pre-
: pared at leisure and communicated whel
, its mystery would have the greater effect
! Why was It not convincing? It was o
fraud. for the lady was and is still amonj
{ the living!
Occasionally a. medium overreac hes him
self in trying to guess the truth. One VII
was vouched for by the great Englis'
9 naturalist, Alfred Russell Wallace. CAV
me on one occasion an example of this
Il Thirty-five years ago my friend wads
worth Brewster had little dog by tn
: name of Trip. On being asked by tn
u medium to write a message. I asked Brew
8 ster whether he had yet met Trip in tn
world beyond. adding the remembrance
1
9 ward me in the past. The answer was d
r lightful.
''My friend. in his upper life. all tn
o chickering's Of the past, all hard feeling.
: all unkind settlements find no part Tri
u feels all right towards you now" It wa
y pleasure tn know that the little do
: cherished no hard feelings toward me. an
Il although think that some dogs are as d.
serving OF the gift OF eternal existence a
u many a human being. nevertheless, I Al
d not convinced that the message Is auther
II tic. And besides other reasons Is the fat
II that my friend still lives.
A very slight indication OF especial intel
II est will give bright medium her cle7
Some twenty-five years since. IN compar
, with my legal friend. Henry r. Hathawa,
'e Of New York. attended a seance held Z
II the Miss Fox. through whom. with n
sister. the original Rochester knockings
3 were heard. Watching the proceedings
others who received messages. it strIC
me that greater interest Sn certa
names was evinced by an unconscior
emphasis OF the voice and when my nv
a turn came I had no difficulty N ohtainir
u n message from the gentleman who ":
= sitting at the table besid me-. How We
IN the raps produced? I do not know. II
:" mistake not this medium afterward ma
III a public confession Of fraud. but that.
course convinced no true believer.
ie late wears the rapping mediums have d
- appeared II is much more agreeable
i lie back n n pile Of pillows. surround
- by awe-strVIck professors from Harva
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