The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1909-11-17
THAT death THOUGHT"


The Brooklyn Times has been in
vestigating the stories growing out of
the Christian Science eruption in the
east and has the following comment on
one incident:
The statement made by Mrs. Maude
Nissan Babcock that after her quar-
rel with Mrs. Stetson, the head of the
Christian Science cult in New York,
she suffered severely from the effects
of a death thought" cast at her by
Mrs. Stetson, is apt to excite the ribald
lherision of the unregenerate. IT seems
SO strange, in a. highly civilized and
educated community, to find the lang
uage expressed suddenly revived, and
in the quarters where of al: others 1t
might be least expected. It is we'll
known that the belief in witchcraft
with all its omens and spells, still ling
ers among the ignorant peasantry in
various countries of Europe, and In the
darker corners of our own land, and
that the craft OF fortune telling is by
no means an Improbable craft, even in
our most enlightened Glitter The vogue
/ Of Spiritualism in its varied manifesto
tions shows the strength and persist
ency OF the belief In the occult, even
among those who have been raised
among the most materialistic surround
ings, but at least there is not assumed
to be any malignant power attached tc
the alleged powers of the medium, such
as the witches OF Shakespeare's time
and the antecedent centuries were sup
posed to possess The discovery that
the prophetesses OF tie Christian Sci
ence faith claim the possession of such
lpowers, and that their disciples-not
Ignorant Swedish servant girls, but mer
and women Of wealth and culture--give
full credence to their claims Is some.
what startling.
Yet there is nothing phenomenal OF
that need excite establishment in this
discovery. 1t has invariably beer
found in all the ages that an era
of skepticism and question is newt.
ably attended, as with an adumbration
with Renaissance of credulity, a:
lii the Powers that govern human
thought must needs mair ain the bal.
ance between the two extremes. Thi.
is an era of free thought, when doc.
trines and dogmas that have been &C.
!. cepted withou. question for centurie.
are thrown into the crucible of re.
search and analysis and subjected Il
a rigorous scrutiny. 1t is sucn a time
when, in accordance with I'll prece,
dent. we might also lool- for coun.
terbalancing revival OF unthinking ans
unreasoning faith. an6 wit such w,
seem to be nfronted in this new
Gospel according to Mrs. Eddy. It In
shock to many who have been disposed
to look with favor upon the preten,
sions of the Mother to discover tina
the powers for GOO with which sh,
processes to be able TO endow her dis
ciples may also. according to her teach
ings, be perverted int. an instrumen
for evil and destruction, but there i
nothing illogical or irrational In tn
claim. Neither is there anything nsv
in 1t. The Apostle Peter is represents
to us IT. the Book Of Acts 40 endowe
with the pow to work miracles, Z
cure diseases and even to raise tn
dead. but conJoined with this In ais
the mental assassination claim. q
witness the story OF the death DC Ans
Mas and Sapphire his wife who re
ceived prompt treatment In the styl
Mrs. Stetson Is said to effect whe
they tried to cheat the apostle III r.
gard to the price they got TO- the
real estate. Il is not surprising to I'm
that those who have been accustome