The commonwealth., 1902-08-07
TEE REALITY OF GHOSTS.
Some Thoughts About Th,
AN IMAGE FOR ALL.

1t used to be in the time OF the An
cient Greeks that the philosophers made
theory and then tried to base on it {:
whole system of education. IN Other
words they made their theory and suited
the phenomena to it. More careful
study and common sonse soon-after a
period OF twelve Or fifteen hundred
years-tanght men the truer method
at the time of the Revival of Learning
the Inductiye method Of study and real
sonlng was introduced. Men no longer
made theories they studied phenomena
and made their theories afterwards. 1t
was very soon seen that this was the
true method and Bacon of England
who introduced it in its modern ten.
dency, in very few years had Il large
following all over the continent. At
the present day it has come to be
adopted in all the so called exact
sciences. But it was not until quite re-
Gently that it was applied to meta
physics.
For a long time there has been a
tendency to use the Inductiye
method of study in metaphysics and
several books have been written MAX
ing an attempt to explain many abnor-
NAL psychlcal phenomena by amsssing
numerous so-called facts, classifying
them, and then ceducing theory.
But this method was net wholly ac-
piled, until Mr.. Hudson produced his
"The Last Of Ps. caic Phenomena"
In this the author has left the beaten
paths Of philosophy and tries something
new. The hest that can be
said OF his book is that it is very plans-
lble. Personally I am somewhat skep-
tical about his sc. called facts. But for
the moment let us assume that they
really are facts and see how he proceeds
to explain them or rather those that
involve "ghosts."
First postuiate is that there are In
very truth such things as ghosts. Now
the mind has two distinct powers-the
subjective and the objective. The lat
er is that which is used in all the con-
aections with the material world the
subjective is the true mind or rathcr
the highest power OF the mind the
power The mind will have, "when we
have shuffied off this mortal coil" act
'ng in Its capacity as subjective mind,
Nc: only has it the ability to remove
and cast them into the ut
termost part OF the sea, but it can
actually make men-that is it can form
an image which for a given length Of
time has the faculties of an intelligent
human being. This Image can be
even, and can exist any
where for any length OF time according
10 the will Of the person who forms
Item.
At death it person has a message
be wants to deliver to the world but is
kept from doing so by sudden or ylo-
lent death, he makes an image of him
self and leaves 1T In the world to tell
what he could not say in life. Though
this image can be photographed and
:an talk very nationally, it refuses to
answer any questions that have no OIL
rect bearing upon the subject of its
mission. It Is this kind OF image that
30 often comes to give one PRESENT.
ment that friend has died. It is this
Kind Of image that walks in our dreams
The author of this article is not fully
prepared to confirm the absolute truti,
If Mr.. Hudson's theory. To say the
east it is very plausible and some of
he wonderful things the spirit me-
liuins do, Decess,tates us to try to
ind some explanation. Blu: Mr. Hud-
son goes furthe: an1 says that not only
y spirit mediums and persons at the
of death, but every body has
his power. You can form an image of
yourself and project 1t any where on
he earth while you are in good health.
0f this too l am somewhat skeptical.
do, however, know this much that
,ou can influence another's dreams, or
,yen make them dream OF you and
lream what you want them to. More |
,ver, I think that the vivid pictures |
We have of our friends in our dreams |
seem to argue that the mind !
las some power of some sort by which |
t can make some tangible impression
'n the mind OF another person at any |
tistauc3 from 1t. But there are needs !
If great many more undoubted iac:s
o substantiate the belief that an i'm
preston can be made so strong as to !
ast fo1 any length of iine and that too
when the mind has itself left this world.