Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1900-03-29
Or. TALMAGES SERMON,
SvNDAY's DISCOURSE RY THE NOTED
DIVINE.
iubject: A Religion of Ghosts-spirit-
uaiism Denounced as Necronancy and
Dclusion-Its Disciples Are DOome ed.
1t Causes Insanity Among Its Victims.

uaiism Denounced as Necromancy and
Dclusion-Its Disciples Are Doom ed
1t Causes Insanity Among It's Victims.
copyright 1901
WASHINGTON, d. O.-In this discourse
Or. Talmage discusses theme never more
lnder exploration than Mt this time and
warns people against What he calls re-
sgion of ghosts; text, Samuel xviii, z:
Behold, there Is a woman that hath a
amiliar spirit at En-dor. And Saul dis
yuised himself and put on other raiment,
and he went, and two men with him, and
shey came to the woman by night"
Trouble to the right Of him and trouble
10. AS a last resort lie concluded to seek
out spiritual medium or a witch or any
hing that you please to call her-a woman
who had communication with the spirits
Of the eternal world. 1t was q very diffi-
suit thing to do, for Saul had either slain
all the witches or compelled them to stop
business. A servant one day said to King
Saul, II know OF spiritual medium down
ut the village OF En-dor.'' ''Do you," said
the king. Night falls. Saul, putting off
his kingly robes and putting on the dress
out to hunt up this medium.
Saul and his servants after awhile
reached the village, and they say, "I
wonder If this is the house," and they look
in, and they see the haggnrd, weird and
shriveled up spiritual medium sitting by
the light and on the table sculptured
herbs and bottles and vnses They say.
yes, this must be the place. One loud
rap brings the woman to the door, and rs
she stands there, holding the candle or
lamp above her head. and peerlng out into
the darkness, she SAYS "Who is here?"
The tall king informs her that he has &C mo
to have his fortune told. When she hears
that, she trembles and almost drops the
light, for she knows there is no chance for
fortune teller or spiritual medium in all
the land. But Saul having sworn that no
harm shall come to her, she says, "Well.
says, Bring up Samuel.' That was the
prophet who had died little while before.
| see her waving wand, or stirring up
some poisonous herbs in caldron, or
hear her muttering over some incanta-
tions, or stamping with her foot as she
cries out to tho realm OF the dead:
Samuel, Samuell' Lo, the freezing hor-
ror! The floor ofthe tenement opens, and
the gray hairs float up and the forehead,
the eyes, the lips, the shoulders, the arms
the feet-the entire body OF the dead
Samnel--wrapped In sepulchral robe, ap-
pearing to the astonished group, who
stagger back and hold fast and catch
their breath and shiver with terror.
The dead prophet, white and awful from
the tomb, begins to move his ashen lips,
and he glnres upon King Saul and cries
out: what did you bring me up forp
What do you mean, King Saul?" Saul,
trying to compose and control himself,
makes this stammering and affrighted
utterance as he says to the dead prophet:
''The Lord is against me, and have come
to you for help. What shall do?'' The
dead prophet stretched forth his finger to
King Saul and said: 'Die tomorrow!
Come with me into the sepulcher. l am
going now. Come, come with me.'' And.
10, the floor again opens. and the feet OF
the dead prophet disappear and the arms
and the shoulders and the forehead! The
floor closes. Oh, that was an awful seance!
To unlatch the door between the present
state ana the future state all the fingers OF
superstition have been busy. We have
books entitled "Footfalls on the Boun-
daries OF Other Worlds" ''The d ebatable
Land Between This World and the Next"
Researches Into the Phenomena of Spur
itualism" and whole libraries OF hocus
pocus, enough to deceive the very elect.
/ shall not take time to rehearse the his
tory OF divination, Delphic oracle, sibyl or
palmistry or the whole centuries OF i'm
posture.
Modern spiritualism proposes to open
the door between this world and the next
and put us into communication with the
dead. 1t has never yet offered one reason
able credential.
When 1 flnd Saul in my text consulting
familiar spirit, learn that splritualism Is
a very old religion.
Spiritualism in American was born in the
yenr 1847, in Hydesville, Wayne County,
N. Y, when one night there was loud
rap heard against the door OF Michael
Weekman; 4 rap second time, rap
third time, and all three times. When the
door was opened there was nothing found
there. tho knocking having been made
seemingly by invisible knuckles.
After yhila Mr. Eov with hfo 20 ~, tIx,
moved into that house, and then they had
bangings Mt the door every night. Ono
night Mr.. Fox cried out, care you spirlt?"
Two raps--answer In the Affirmative. "Are
you an injured spirit?" Two raps-answer
in the Affirmative. Then they know right
AWAY that it was the spirit OF peddler
who had been murdered In that house
years before and who had been robbed of
his $500. Whether the spirit of the peddler
came back to collect his $500 or his bones
/ do not know.
The excitement spread. There was uni
versal rumpus. The Hon. Judge Edmonds
declared In book that he had actually
seen bell start from the top shelf OF u
closet, heard 1t ring over the people that
were standing In the closet: then, swung by
invisible hands, 1t rang over the people in
the back parlor and foated through the
folding doors to the front parlor, rang over
the people there and then dropped on the
Hoor. Senator OF the United States. af-
terwnrd Governor OF Wisconsin, had his
head quite turned with spiritualistic demon
strations. The tables tipped, and the stools
tilted, and the bedsteads raised, and the
chairs upset, and it seemed us IL the spirits
everywhere had gone into the furniture
businessl "Weli," the people said, 1--WE have
got something new In this country. 1t is a
new rellgioni" Oh, no, my friend, thou
sands of years ago, we find in our text, u
spiritualistic seance!
Nothing in the spirltualistic circles OF
our day has been more strange, mysterious
and wonderful than things which have
been seen in past centuries of the world.
In all ages there have been necromancers,
those who consult with the spirits of the
departed; charmers, those who put their
subjects in a mesmeric state; sorcerers,
those who by taking poisonous drugs see
everything and hear everything and tell
everything; dreamers, people who in their
sleeping moments can see the future world
and hold consultation with spirits. Yes,
before the time of Christ, the Brahmans
went through all the table moving, all the
furniture excitement, which tho spirits
have exploited in our day, precisely the
same thing over and over again, under the
manipulation OF the Brahmans. Now, do
you say that spirltualism is different from