Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-12-27
ne revenIen tn vnn- ;
ted Literary Bureau.

before ner working table IN the iapOf3'
tory with rack full of test tubes be
fore her. 1 confess that. while l was
profoundly impressed with her reason
ing, l regarded any attainment of the
purpose she enunciatcd as chimerical.
My wife passed away soon after this
injunction, and l was fortunate In
having an object TO occupy my mind
so intimately connected with her as 10
hold my attention. l began my work
within week after consigninC her
earthly body to the tomb. though l
spent much time before experimenting
in thinking on the subject.
/ divided my Investigations into two
branches. the light l would use and
the plate and its preparation which
was 10 receive the image. l shall not
give an account OF my experiments
during a term Of several years. for
even 70 catalogue them would require
considerable space. The difficulty Of
the problem before me will appear ~
thiS-that | must find n kind OF light
that would act with sufficient delicacy
on my plate aud plate that would
satisfactorily receive the light. !
would not have made the attempt Mt
all had l not remembered that my
wife had promised to guide me by
thought transference TO any informa-
ton which she might possess in what
we have been accustomed to call the
spirit world. In this | had much con
fidence. because | had noticed that
when we were together il seemed that
one of us could never have thought
upon something remote from what
was occupying our minds but the other
would speak Of it. This is common
occurrence among many persons. and
I attribute It to thought transference.
One morning | was sitting alone,
running over in my mind the various
metals with which l would expert
ment for a plate for my picture. l
had n pencil and Il bit OF paper be
fore me and. unmindful OF what |
wrote. laid down on the paper the let
tiers ichteptyl There was nothing
singular in this, for 1t is a substance
which. though little known even TO
chemists. 1 had some knowledge OF.
Somehow it came into my head to ex.
pertinent with solutions OF IL as
wash for my Photographic plate. At
another time, while passing from my
was seized with an impression-I can
give it no other name-that / might
try the influence Of radium on plate
prepared with some solution of ich-
teptyl. l finally used a solution OF
nitrate of ichteptyl exposed to the
beta rays of radium.
For months | had been making ex-
periments with various combinations
Of these two. leaving my plate exposed
for twenty four hours in each case so
as to try both night and day. My
camera was clamped to point to the
spot where my wife used to work in
the laboratory. For week / had
suspected that something not visible
had been photographed on the plate.
and by slightly changing the character
of my agents l hoped to bring it out
more distinctly. In this way SOME
times I obtained a more distinct i'm
preston, sometimes one less distinct.
One morning | went to my camera,
took out my plate and developed IT.
What | am about to say i ask no
one to believe. I surely would not
believe ii myself il it had been told me
by any one else. There was n picture.
indistinct. admit, of my beloved wife
turned from her work table toward
me- smiling upon me as If to exclaim:
we have succeeded
But our dream of attaining the emf
nence OF the Curies is not-at least
though | hope at
some future time IL may be. ! have
succeeded in producing but the one
picture. Whether for reasons unre-
vealed to me my wife will not appear
again to be photographed or whether
there were conditions of light, atmos
Dhere or chemical agents that are not
'epeated I do not know. l only know
that after trials extending over n year
cannot get another photograph.
Why not exhibit the one ] havaY II
has been shown just as other so called
spirit photOgra phs have been shown to
number OF persons. A few have be
ieyed that it is genuine; the many
ook at me pityingly, as much NJ ("
,ay. "PoOr man. his love for one WHO
s dead has turned his brain"
Nevertheless. there IS hope. Scien-
lists who even a quarter Of a century
sgO would not deign TO investigate so
allied spiritual manifestations are be
Ginning to admit that there is some
hing in them. Why? Was not the m
wer given me by my wife when sh"
aid to me: L believe that my soul Is
rather than the ghOstly thing
ouIs have been considered.
There is in me a faith that we shall
lake such n discovery. but In order to
chieve what ! have In mind we must
'e in different spheres, you in the NOR
al, | in the immortal. II It
5 possible for me to aid you from tb~
Their existence | shall do so. BY tran
erence % thought purely material
recess, beleve-I hope / may sug-
est TO you agents or processes to be
sed I'm your experiments"