The Detroit times., 1917-03-06
Spirit Messages
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nv N. ADDsNeroS sRUcE
Author OF THE Riddle 81 Person
Atty" Psychology and
Parenthood." etc.

Sir Oliver Loige's recently pub
lished account OF HIS reasons for bee
lieving that he has been IN eommu.
nication with the spirit OF his dead
son, Raymond. mas directed attention
anew to the ever interesting prob
lem OF obtaining scientifically accept.
able proof of the survival OF human
personality after bodily death. Many
inquiries have been made OF me re
sarding this problem IN general.
Answering these 60 the best Of my
ability In the limited space at my
disposal. would say al the outset
that there Is today a marked diver.
gence OF opinion among those who
have seriously and scientifically
made Investigation. They. OF course.
are the ones best qualified TO speak
with authority on the subject.
Many investigators hold, with Sir
Oliver Lodge. that thru specially
endowed persons known as me
diuns" messages from the dead have
actually been received But investi.
gators holding this belief are yet in
The minority. Tho great majority
insist that a verdict Of mot proved"
must be returned.
II Is most important TO note. how
ever. that they do not base their
skeptieism on the ground that al
leged spirit messages are always
and necessarily the product OF fraud
This used 10 De the attitude OF
scientific persons IN general Il sim
Ia the fayorite attitude Of those
scientists who have never taken the
trouble TO make personl investiga-
ton OF spirit mediums" and medi.
umistic utterances. But no investi-
gator with any experience would
dream OF taking such an attitude.
For. In the 35 years that have
elapsed since medlumship began to
be scientifically studied. fraud has
been absolutely ruled out In the
case of countless medfumistlc com
munications. Many mediums, un-
deniably. have been found TO be
cheats and irnposters. But many
others. while entranced. have made
utterances conveying unusual infor-
nation demnnstrably not obtained
~ fraudulent msans
On the other hand. the further in
vestigation has proceeded the more
dinicult has IL become 10 accept the
utterAnces OF even the most honest
OF mediums as true spirit messages
This for several reasons. but chief
IA because II has been discovered
that genuine mediums possess a pc
culiar "telephatic." OF mind reading
power OF getting knowledge OF facts
known 10 other people.
II. then. the alleged spirit mes
tagcs deal with matters known TO
persons still living. there always IL
room for suspicion that the mes
sages really emanate by telepathy
from these persons. not frum the
dead person supposed TO be comn'u
nicating
And since II Is dificult. " not
impossible. TO exclude the chance OF
telepathic action In the case OF any
spirit message that would furnish
absolute proof OF survival, most In
vestigators feel that they must as
| yet suspend judgment even with re
gard 90 communications as remark
able as those described BY Sir Oliver
Lodge.
The investigators. tho, who be
lieve az Sir oliver Lodge does. feel
that the telepathic theory IL unduiy
stretched TO account for all medium
istic utteranoes not Otherwise sx-
pIainabIe. No other means Of ex.
PLANTATION remaining. they accept
these utterances as genuine mes
sages from the dead.
Such. briefly and BADLY. IN the
present situation. II IL no longer a
question OF dlsmiseing all alleged
spirit communications as fraudulent.
II Is a question mainly OF eliminat-
ing from non-fraudulent trance ut
terances the possibility OF telepathie
action.