The Washington times., 1919-12-26
SHE HOLDS BLAZING
LOG IN HER HANDS
SpirituaIist Says Parsee Who
Died Centuries Ago Pro-
tects Her.

LONDON, Dec. 26.-Not since the
days of Home, the medium who con-
vinced Sir Oliver Lodge of the reality
of psychic phenomena, has there been
an actual case of an English medium
whose controlling spirits are said to
be able to inIerpose an invisible non
conducting medium between burning
substances and the naked hand, says
the London Daily Express.
The natural assumption Is that
the trick-if trick it be-is due to
same protective heat-repelling solu-
tion spread on the hands. The argu-
ment against this is that IL any such
substance were known il would have
an enormous market value as q heat
retaining agent for coating steam
pipes. Besides. any thick layer OF
substance would be detachable.
Mrs. Annie Hunter. OF Bournemouth,
claims to possess this power Of hand
ling fire without suffering injury
when she Is under spirit control. She
gave a small seance before a society
interested in psychic matters, and
Daily Express representative was In
vited to be present.
E.tirely DiHerent.
The sitting was entirely different
from the usual spiritualistic seance.
There were no hymns, there was no
darkness. and every possible precau-
tion against fraud and trickery was
encouraged. The people present
wanted the truth. The Daily Express
representative was taken to the cell
lar to select his own log, and chose q
piece of dry deal, part of builders
scantling. 1t was about three inches
square and ten inches long.
He was then introduced to Mrs.
Annie Hunter, the medium, q kindly.
middle-aged woman, dressed in an
ordinary reddish material. She has
lark. sunken eyes, and does not strike
a casual observer as being anything
more than a normal individual. Her
hands are soft and yielding, yet she
is able to carry flaming logs in them.
The room was a bare studio, with a
plain linolieum-covered floor and
dozen wooden chairs. A bright coke
fire burned in the fireplace. The log
was put on and was soon blazing. 1t
was not touched until red hot and
thoroughly charred On all sides. In
otaer to destroy any suggestion OF
preUared hands the medium washed
them thoroughly with soap and water.
The sitters, a group of ten people,
then took their seats and Mrs. Hunter
passed rapidly into the controlled
state. Her control Is stated to be
the spirit Of a Parsee who died hum
dreds of years ago, and when en-
tranced she speaks no English.
Speaks stranger Tongue
In a minute or two she began to
speak and words that sounded like
"oot-al-a-massa. Korusi, a-leek-a-la-
massa' occurred frequently. She was
violent, expostulative, shaken and ex-
cited. The words poured out in a
quick, unbroken stream. She stood
up and waved her hands and gesticu-
lated. Then she pounced on the glow
ing log flaming among the Goals and
kept juggling II from hand to hand.
The log was aflame and showered bits
of burning charcoal. sparks and ashes
about the room. She did this twice,
putting the log back into the fire
to flame again.
The Parsee language stopped and
an English spirit control, healer"
translated his words. "He Is doing
this in order that you may know
that there is a connection between
the pure spirit OF fire and the Great
Spirit. was the gist of his communi-
cation. Then came the Parsee again
and Mrs. Hunter seized the log and
held 1t down on the head of the Daily
Express representative. Bits Of burn
ing charcoal and ash fell of. and, de-
spite the psychic theory that the log
Is wrapped in a name-proof psychic
envelope, his hair singed nicely.
Put Back On Fire.
Again the log was put back in the
fre. 1t was then carried by the
medium and laid on the open palm Of
another woman. 1t was not there
long. but quite long enough to have
burned 1t under normal conditions.
She felt no pain.
After an interval a trial was made
with another log. The medium held
the new blazing log on the head OF
colonel for approximately two sec
onds- 1t did not affect him or his
hair.
Later the Daily Express represen-
tative attempted to pick the log of
the fire. 1t was impossible to hold 1t
even fractional part of n secon6.