Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-19

SUNDAY MAGAZINE FOR JULY 10. 1905
And another asked him, Is it fact, or is it story
made up to see how cunning tale one tell'"
IVA Waxing indignant Rolf wrote long letter to
1.-The Philosophical Journal, y denouncing
the imputation of fraud giving the names of num-
Der of men that would vouch for his integrity, and
concluding with the statement: 81 am now sixty
years old; have resided in 1roquos County thirty
years; and would not now sacrifice what reputation
l may have by being party to the publication of
such narrative, if it was not perfectly true"
Following this there appeared in the same pub
lication several letters from well known illinois
Professional men, warmly indorsing Roff's charac-
ter, and announcement to the effect that the
editor, Colonel I. C.. Bundy, himself of undoubted
honesty, has entire confidence in the truthfulness
of the narrative, and believes from his knowledge
of the witnesses that the account is unimpeachable
in every particular" AS for DR.. Stevens, Colonel
Bundy declared that he had been personally &C
quainted with the physician for years, and had i'm
picit confidence in his veracity.' After all this,
accusations of perjury and deception obvousl:
futile and adequate nonspiritualistc interpreted
ton being forthcoming there was increasing ten
dency to accept the view advanced by those who
had participated in the affair
Hodgson Begins the Investigation
SUCH was the situation at the time Of Richard
bered by all who have followed the work of the
Society for Psychical Research, DR.. Hodgson had
come. to this country to investigate the trance
attention having been called to the Vennum mystery
he visited Watseka in April, 1890, and instituted
rigorous cross examination Of the surviving wit.
Dr. Stevens dead, and Lurancy herself
had married and moved with her husband to Kansas
but DR.. Hodgson able to interview Mr. and Mrs
Rof Mrs Alter, and half dozen neighbors that had
personal knowledge of the possession" All an
swered his questions freely and fully reiteratng the
facts given in DR.. Stevens narrative, and adding
some interesting information hitherto not made
public. In the main this bore the question of
identity and tended to vindicate the rencarnation
theory. 1t also developed that while Lurancy had
grown to be strong, healthy woman, she had had
occasional returns of Mary's spirit in the years
Immediately following the chief visitation; but
that these had ceased with her marriage to a man
who, Rolf regretfully observed. had made
himself acquainted with spiritualism, and therefore
furnished poor conditions for further development
in that direction.
Approaching the fact that Rolf and his family
would furnish the best possible conditions for such
development, and that he must be his guard
against unconscious exaggeration and misstate-
ment, DR.. Hodgson nevertheless deemed the evil
dence presented to him too strong to be explained
away on naturalistc grounds Contributing to
The Religio-P Philosophical Journal an account
brought to light, he described the as unique
among the records of supernormal occurrences,
and frankly admitted that he could not find any
satisfactory Interpretation OF it except the spiritual
stic
Spiritualism Not Necessary
VET. as said at the outset. it may now be
and one far satisfactory than the spirtualisic
this too without impeachng in anyway the truth
funess of the testimony given by Dr. Stevens, the
Roffs, and the numerous other witnesses To begin,
apart from the supernatural implications forced
into it by the appearance of the called Esprit
control, it is clear that the affair bears striking
resemblance to the instances of secondary" or
multiple personality which recent research has
discovered in such numbers which due to per-
fectly natural, if often obscure causes In these
as the result of an illness, a blow, shock, some