The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-05-29


OF the dark one, The wrong one had
been used for the dictionary
This statement. being submitted to
psychologists with request for the
cries OF explanation. brings out some
interesting information respecting the
present state and tendency OF thought
among scholars regarding psychic phe-
nomena. Four possible theories are
submitted for selection of the more
probable: Fraud coincidence, subcon-
scious intercon1munication among liv-
ing persons, or spirit communication.
BY no means as many as might be sup
posed incline 10 a theory OF fraud or
trfckery. Among these who do, howr
ever, are Prof. George TrumbulI Ladd
OF Yale, Prof. Al. Kirschmann of Tor
onto university, and several Others.
Prof Edward H Griffin of Johns Hop
kins regards all four theories as open
to objection There are few who ac-
cept the Spiritualist theory of CONF
munication between the living and the
dead. and among them are Alfred Rus
sci Wallace, the eminent English nat
uralist, Sir William Crookes, the Eng
lish scientist. Rev. DR.. Minot =. Saw
age,--who are all avowed spiritualists.
and Prof. Anesaki of the Imperial
university of Toxic, Japan
The theory finding strongest support,
and this is noteworthy fact, is that
of the play of subconscious faculties
among living persons as between the
medium and the cashier in DR.. Funk 8
office. Prof. william James of Harvard
accepts this as the more probable
theory, and thus explains it IN a LETT
ter to DR.. Funk
T regard fraud as an Improbable
hypothesis, and, If the circumstances
are completely reported, not seriously
to be considered The inprobabilities
Of an accidental coincidence grow WITH
the number of details which coincide.
The medium hit so many details in ref
erence to this widows mite" that the
probabilities of her success being alto
gether accidental are very small In
view of the many recent proofs that
our "subconscious self may ofeen
know what our conscious self is lgno-
rant of, 1t is possible that the medium
chad her silbconscious mind been n
communication with the cashiers SUB
conscious lnind) might have thus
known that fhe coin had never been
sent back. The greater genuineness OF
the darker coin, If it were not a pure
coincidence. might have been similarly
gathered from other minds at q dis
lance. It is obvious that in the case
under discussion subconscious mind
reading would have 20 go beyond the
actual sitters at the .'seance. Inc
hypothesis of spirit communication -
undoubtedly possible one and sirzapler
than any other, provided one supposes
the spirits in question TO have been
tremendously inhibited in their conlnlu-
nicatfons. This is necessary inter-
ence from the gaps and guesses @hlcn
the facts they reported exhibited
Now DR.. James has much support IN
this view Prof Max Wentscher OF
the university at Bonn, Germany, ac-
cepts the same explanation, as also 90
the Russian physicist, A. SadowsKy,
Prof 1. J. De Busy of the university
of Amsterdam, Prof. Robert NJ. Yerkes'
associated with Prof. James at Har-
ward, Prof. George Rebec of the Uni
versfty of Michigan and Prof. H. Cor
senet of the University of Besancon'
France. With them perhaps may DC
counted Prof A. Meinong of the I'M
versity of Gratz Germany, who speci-
fies unknown natural laws
! The point of interest here is that 20
many leading scholars in mental anu
! physical science have come to conceds
the existence of a large measure oL
phenomena of a telepathic character
/ which cannot be explained on recogfiD-
ed natural, grounds, and are leaning
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