Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-07-27
Frederick L. Thompson, Gold
smith, Claims to Be Ruled
by Spirit.
HEARD A STRANGE VOICE
Followed. Promptings and Took Up
Work OF Robert Swain Gift
ford rs Artist.

account of the olSession of Frederic l..
Thompson. goldsmith. by the spirit OF
Robert Swain Clifford, an artist. Mr..
Thompson has. Teen obliged to give up
his own trade and devote himself to
painting the same scenes rs the dead
artist and on different occasions has
heard words which seemed to proceed
from the artists spirit and the music
il loved. though no one was near 20
produce ii.
According TO Professor Hyslop. Mr..
Thonipson's acquaintance with Mr..
Clifford was only slight. and he knew
practically nothing of art outside of
his own trade.
In the summer of 1905 Mr. Thonp-
son was first seized with the desire
to paint in oils. As he gave way to
the impulse he lost his interest in his
own line of work and showed unex-
pected skill as an artist. As he worked
he felt that he was Mr. Clifford and
remarked 10 his wife. Clifford wants
TO sketch but ii was not till six
months later as lie saw the notice of
an exhibition in the American Art gal
leries of the work of 1.-The late Robert
Swain Clifford" that he discovered that
the artist had died about six months
before he first felt driven to the brush
AS Mr.. Thompson went through the
Clifford exhibition he seemed To hear.
according to Professor Hyslop. Il voice
saying: You see what | have done
Can you not take up and finish my
work. From this time ON the i'm
pulse TO paint was stronger than ever.
and by the following year he had pro-
duced several paintings of sufficient
merit to command a fair price One
Of his patrons was James b. Town
send. who remarked as he examined
the picture that it resembled those of
Mr.. Clifford.
Mr.. Thompson came TO Professor
Hyslop in January, 1907, as he feared
that his mind was giving way through
the strength of the obSesSion. and Pro
fessOr HySiop gives details OF his Wis
its to mediums, who had no idea who
he was. In the following summer he
handed to Professor HySlop some
sketches which he had made in the
summer and ], fall of 1905. Professor
Hyslop locked them up.
Then Mr.. Thompson went to the
summer home of Mr.. Clifford at Non
quit, Mass, which. he said. he had
never visited before. His object was
to discover certain scenes which had
appeared TO him repeatedly in his vi
sions. While he was there Mrs. Gift
ford took him into the studio of the
dead artist
saw sketch ON Easel.
ITO his SURPRISE says Professor
Hyslop. he saw on the easel an unfin-
ished sketch which was absolutely
Identical with one of the sketches
which he had left In my hands more
than month before. He said in his
diary it almost took his breath away
to see The identity between this paint
ing and his visions and sketches.
There We're two other pictures on
casels which were identical with
sketches he had made, but had not
been left with me"
Mrs. Clifford bore witness that to
make this coincidence the more strik-
ing the picture had been rolled up and
put away till after Mr.. Gifford's death.
so that Mr. Thompson had no oppor-
tunity to see IT.
Mr.. Thompson pursued his search
for the places he saw in his visions
and discovered that Mr. Clifford had
been particularly fond of an island
which is private property and only Wis
tied after permit has been obtained.
On this island Mr.. Thompson came
across a peculiar group of trees which
had become familiar to him through
his visions.
HE stumbled upon Them" writes
Professor Hyslop, lin his wanderings
about this island and started to sketch
them, when he heard voice similar
to the one he had heard ut the art gal
lery and which said. Go and look on
the other side of the tree Though
some sixty feet away. he went for
ward. and on the opposite side of the
tree he found the initials of Mr.. Gift
ford carved i'm the bark of a beech
tree in 1902"
OlHeE CdStS VI lutliitS btiNtti
sketches made after his visions and
the actual scenes he found are men
toned by Professor Hyslop. There
was one of "A forest rather dense. which
Mr.. Thompson sketched from a hallu
cination and then found the original
ON another easel. though he did not
recognize it at the time, having for
gotten that he had sketched it.
Mr.. Thompson had other interesting
experiences on this island, which he
set down at the time in his diary. He
often heard music like that of q violin
or guitar. says Professor Hyslop.
and hunted to see il he could find who
the performer was. But there APP
peared to be no one there except two
or three families of caretakers.
The music was heard in different
places and at different times. "and
once" says Professor Hyslop. Mr..
Thompson ran ND a hill to see II he
could find some one whom he fan
cied he heard singing, but found no
one. and, he had several miles of
view before him that WAS clear. us
uaJj,r the music that he heard was