Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-07
Pro and Anti-Spiritualism

Another writer says:
"All hail to every candid, honest and in
telligent effort to make known the truth in
any dir ection-to separate the false from
the genuine either in the domain of theory
or practice. No one has power to aSsimi-
late both the chaff and wheat. In moral
economy. to eliminate the evil from the
good becomes a prime necessity. Thanks
to the sun. The Star and other lesser llShts
for judicious efforts at illumination. Your
reporter says truly, This city is becoming
a sort of mecca for frauds. When was it
otherwise? But now more than ever they
appear to flourish not only under the garb
of religion and morality in. as well as out
of, Congress but deception and trickery-
synonyms for fraud-abound throughout
the body polite.
The press of today has made it evident
that this condition exists and that it finds
expression alike in military, naval, political
and social circles in Washington as else
where.
And now our attention is called to
mount ebanks in spiritualism. Counterfeit
men and women are as common as coun-
terfeit dollars. They are not confined to
any one class more than another. A New
York publishing concern has issued a work
which contains the criminal doings of
thousands of clergymen. 1t is because of
the genuine that counterfeits seek to pass
as current.
The judiciary, the pulpit and the church.
respectively. no less than the real spiritu-
alist, deplore the frauds that mask them
selves and work their way to the front,
finally exposing their frailties to the public.
But every such case of purgation is pro
bono publico. Every sensible spirltuaist
will welcome the exposure of fraudulency
in mediumship The bogus, the willfully
false in spirtualism, as in everything else,
always has been and is, its greatest curse.
Often. however, because of the ignorance,
conceit and prejudice of the self-elected.
would-be-detective, the exposure would fail
to get exposed. A great hue and cry would
be made, but no exposure follows Per-
haps the noise made was all that was really
wanted Even wellmeant efforts have fire.
quently made bad matters worse, because
OF lack of knowledge.
"A careful perusai of the seven columns
and more of the reporters expose of the
Sd instant appears to be of this character.
1t is fundamental law that like attracts
like In conformity with this truism,
when one goes to a man, woman or child
medium they range in years from child
hood to nonagenarians) with open decep-
ton In his her heart. for the sole pur-
pose of playing double, who premeditately
practice fraud - such ought to receive
fraudulent communications, and they gen.
orally do.
1.-The least knowledge Of physical law in
its relation to the living principle in man,
the spiritual part of his nature. would
sure him of their essential truth. This
often demonstrated fact usually proves the
genuneness of the medium-who is not
wholly responsible for what Is said any
more, much, is hypnotic sub
ject while under control Of an operator.
But there are mediums and mediums To
make known and condemn the false ones
is as serviceable to the community as it is
to commend the trustworthy. There are
thousands in this city who know by per-
sonaI experience of the verify in spiritual
ism, whose lives have been blessed through
its demonstrations. and they are as eager
and generally more so, to have those who
masquerade in its name brought to the bar
of public condemnation as any one else can
possibly be. And so I say, thanks for every
candid, honest and intelligent effort to
separate the false from the true"
Dut,ytc JihrnrH