Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1899-08-25

When Mr.. lngersolls dramatic re-
cital along these lines hal attained the
point where it reached an intense
climax in depletion of the suppositi-
tious terrors of soul liquefaction he
astounded the little band of students
by calmly declaring that an expert
ment with a view to the liquefaction
of his soul would have no terrors for
him; that he deemed it his duty as a
persistent disbeliever in the souls I'M
mortality to offer his soul for llque-
faction through hermetic imprison-
ment when he should come to die, and
that, Furthermore, he was quietly per-
fecting arrangements to have his
career closed with the great test which
should either prove or belle all the
views and tenets for which he stood
in his lifetime.
Reverting to what his friends
thought of his purpose, Col. Ingersoll
admitted very freely, according to DR..
ThOrne, that there were few of his
intimates who regarded the project
with any degree of favor. His friends
he declared, were as a rule emphatic
in saying that the test rs to his souls
liquefaction whatever the result
would be accepted as of value by only
a small portion of the human race.
To this the colonel made answer" that
the majority OF to-day is the majority
of tomorrow" He recognized that
the preachers would deride the test
would claim that the soul is insub-
stantial and immaterial, and that
therefore the experiment could not be
of value. But should the product of
breath liquefaction be found no differ
ent from ordinary liquefied air-and
Mr.. Ingersoll had no doubts on this
point-the preachers would in his
opinion have hard time explaining
how the soul escaped from q hermeti-
cally sealed vessel that should be
found to have held imprisoned the
dying breath together with which the
soul had left the body. Besides, there
was the further consideration that the
experiment would be intensely inter
estIng to scientists and thoughtful
people the world over. This, too, was
thought that had great weight with
Mr.. Ingersoll, as with him it was a
cardinal article of faith "that the
people do think, or at least are be.
ginning to think little Bit"
One tremendous difficulty seemed
to stand in the way of the novel ad-
venture intended by Mr.. Ingersoll for
his soul. This, he intimated, was the
opposition which he anticipated from
his family. The interested band OF
youthful medicos was aware of his
wife's and his daughters remarkable
personal devotion to the colonel and
his views. Therefore these assiduous
inquisitors very quickly realized what
shock it would be to the devoted
ones to contemplate their only idols
soul going through freezing process
rs low as POO deg. below zero. At this
low level of the thermometer the ex-
tremes of heat and cold are said to
meet and to become undistinguishable
sensations, just as theology AYERS that
the same two elements meet and unity
in the orthodox Christian hell. To
have to admit that the fond parent
and husband who laughed at the
Christian hell during his lifetime had
precipitated his own soul into an arti.
fetal hell of exactly similar torturing
power was too dreadful an ordeal for
the agnostic leader to ask his family
to endure.
Because of their feelings of delicacy
on this point DR.. Thoren says that he
and his student friends were quite
ready to let the conversation drop.
But the colonel pursued his theme
and told how he proposed to obviate
in measure all the difficulties in his
path by publishing pamphlet or a
magazine article in which he would
suggest that the time was ripe for ex-
periments in soul liquefaction and for
that purpose would set forth or init
mate the offer OF his own soul at death
Through the mysterious workings OF
an inscrutahle fate he was not, how
ever, given sufficient length OF life for
the working out OF his plans. And
he died without making q practical
move-so far as known-toward the
realization of a conception as original
and daring as any accredited to poet
or alchemist of the ancient schools OF
to those wizards of science whose
discoveries in the matter OF unraveling
natures mysteries have become the
marvel of the present generation.
eyes, it is undoubtedly that Col.
Ingersoll conversed with several
students on the subject of soul lique.
faction" said DIR. Thoren at the Cook
county hospital few days ago. "Not
being in sympathy with his views ]
did not, however, pay the close atten'
ton to them which they no doubt de-
served. Still, I can recall how he
clearly gave the impression that he
thought experiments with a view tc
the liquefaction OF the dying breaths
of human beings, and of the lower
animals, should be inaugurated for the