The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-03-15
sp1R1TUA11sM.
The Phenomena of spiritualism Ex
plnined by Natures Laws.

The Phenomena Of spiritualisul Ex-
planned by Natures Laws.
To the Editor OF the Intelligencer
sIR:-As "splrltualism" seems to be
in evidence through the columns OF
your newspaper, permit me to con-
tribute my mite" on the subject by
saying there can be no doubt OF the
reality Of some Of the phenomena, even
that which is mysterious to many and
accountable only on the hypothesis of
spirit return" For example, the levi
tatlon, or floating" Of the trumpet or
megaphone-wIthout physical contact
is fact, and so are the messages which
the medium" receives; and facts are
divine revelations addressed to the
common understanding Of mankind,
and reason is their dlvinely commits
stoned interpreter"
1t is one of the laws OF inductive
science that we have no logical or scien-
tlfic right to attribute to supermun-
dane, or supernatural, agency any
phenomena which can be explained by
natural law. In other words, to ex-
plain away any Of those apparently
mysterious events which occur In our
lives by attrIbut;ng them to some de
vine or unseen power, carries Us into
the province Of that most detestable
enemy Of mankind, superstition for
only IN the realm OF superstition Is
there any such things as Spirits" or
devils" and such like. So much as a
preface. Far. be 1t from me to dogmat-
ically affirm that there is no such
thing as spirit return" !. e.. the return
to this terrestrial sphere OF the Souls
OF the departed; hut whnt DO say IS
that all the phenomena attributed 10
the agency Of departed spirits las
manifested at Mr.. Stephens seances-
are explained from natural causes. For
instance. the mysteries of spirituallSm
are explained by hypnotIsm, and the
subject is controlled (?) by the law OF
suggestion, and not by spirit; and
SO, some people, especially neurOtics, by
auto-suggestlon are able to hypnotlze
themselves, and when in sllnt condition
the objective mind, Of which the brain
is the organ, is in abeyance--the senses
are, as It were, dead-and the subjec-
tive mind Is in control Of all the facul-
ties Of the body; and to the subjective
mind, or in other words, the soul, Is at
tributed in q limited degree all the FAC
ulties or powers OF omnipresence, by
which we understand telepathy, or
mind reading; and in proof OF which 1t
matters not whether the persons prAc-
ticlnR teiepathy are one foot or one
mile, or 1000 miles apart. Also the fac-
ulty OF omnIpotence Is exhibited by the
subjective mind when the psychic or
medium" is ina hypnotic state. It Is
the same power that was exhibited by
Jesus when he and Peter walked on
the water-the knowing how" to over.
come the law OF gravitation without
physical contact-and iB the power eX-
hlbIted ESQ reported) by Mr.. Stephens
when he caused the trumpet, or mega
phone, to float in the air. Another rae
ulty, or power, Of the subjective MIND
or soul, Is that Of omniscience, when 10
only another name for what ID called
"intultIon" In man, and instinct IN
animals; and concomitant with that
faculty Is memory, which in the sub
jectIve mind Is potentially perfect. That
fact accounts for the perfect memory
Of some animals; the elephant for IN
tnnce, OF which 1t Is said that 1t never
fbrRets an injury, or kindness. This
last faculty Is only mentioned mere IN
order to explain how the medium" as
a Tnin6.readnr - enabled to obtain facts
which have been, apparently, forgot
ten by everybody, but the remembrance
OF which Is stored away in the subjec-
tive mind Of those, or some Of those, IN
the audience; and when the medium"
IN using his mInd-readlng power brings
10 light forgotten events the mystery
Is attributed by the ignorant and credu-
lous, to communications from the de-
parted dead.
/ do not know whether I have made
myself clear to the understanding OF
your readers, but Il any are sufficiently
Interested to pursue the subject fur
ther, / suggest that they read work
which can be obtained at the public lie
brary, and which is the result Of thirty
years careful investigation by the au-
thor, who classifies ''spirltuallsm' un.
der the head of psychology. The DOOR
referred to Is 1.-THE Law Of Psychic
Phenomena" by T. ]. Hudson. Let no
one be frightened by the title, for the
subject is treated in q very plain and
simple, and its perusal Is a liberal edu-
cation In the science OF psychology.
Wheeling, March II. w. u. IL