The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1909-10-21
,rofsnnar Iamsn, conhdsno..

Extremely Significant, following upon
European rcientists acceptance OF the
supernatural phenomena in the
u the Italian medium, Eusapia PalIa-
aino, as outlined in this column the
,ther day, are the admissions OF Wilt
am James, for 3S years professor Of
philosophy at Harvard and recognized
Us Of the greatest living phycholo-
Eists. Professor James contributes
NThe Condolences OF q Psychical Re-
tenrcher' to the current issue OF Me-
-lure's. There Is "somethians a." these
phenomena, he declares, rather unwill-
!nglY, and concludes that 1T Is in this
field OF phychical research that the
greatest scientific conQueSts OF the
coming generation viii be achieved.
Some excerpts from Professor James
article follow:
For the rs years j have been in
touch with the literature OF psychical
research. and have had acquaintance
with numerous researchers" have
also spent a good many hours Though
far fewer than ] ought to have spent)
In witnessing Cor trying TO witnessl
phenomena. Yet I am theoretically no
further" than / was at the beginning;
and / confess that at times i have
been tempted to believe that the cree
ator has eternally intended this de-
partment OF nature to remain bafiiing,
" RAOAANlN OAA r. GhA AO9AAAEG I'LL WIN
and suspicions all I'm equal measure. 90
that, although ghosts and cl~airvoyances
and raps and messages from spirits.
are always seeming to exist and can
never be fully explained away, they
also can lever be susceptible OF full
corroboration.
I wish to 60 on record for the pres
ence, In the midst OF all the humbug,
OF really supernormal knowledge. BY
this I mean knowledge that cannot be
traced to the ordinary sources OF In
formation-the sense namely. OF the
automatists In really strong mediums
this knowledge seems to be abundant,
though II Is usually spotty, capricious
and unconnected. Really strong medi-
ums are rarities; but when one starts
with them and works downwards into
less brilliant regions of the automatic
life, nj tends to interpret many Wight
but odd condolences with truth as NOS
sibly rudimentary forms or this kind OF
knowledge.
Out OF my experience, such as II is
(and Il Is limited enough) one fixed
conclusion dogmati.alIy energies, and
that IS this, that we with our lives are
like Islands In the sea, or like trees In
the forest. The maple and the pine
may whisper TO each other with their
leaves. and Conanicut and Newport
hear each others foghorns. But the
trees also commingIe their roots In the
darkness underground, and the islands
also hang together through the oceans
bottom. Just so there is q continutuo
OF cosmic consciousness, against which
our individuality builds but nc
cfdental fences, and into which our
several minds plunge as into a
mother sea or reservoir. Our normal"
consciousness Is circumscribed for
adoption to our external earthly en-
vironment, but the fence is weak In
spots, and atf 4 influences from beyond
leak In, showing the otherwise unyeri-
liable common connection.
Vast, indeed, and difficult IS the In
Quirer's prospect here, and the most
significant data for his purpose win
probably be lust these dingy little
mediumistic facts which the Huxleyan
minds OF our time find o unworthy OF
their attention. But when was not the
science OF the future stirred TO its con-
cuering activities by the little rebel
sioas excep, 'ons to the science OF the
present? Hardly, as yet. has the SUR
face OF the facts called psychic" be-
gum to be scratched for scientific pur-
poses, 1t IS through following these
facts, / am persuaded, that the great
est scientific conauests of the coming
generation win be achieved.