davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

Tar from taking even a middle
ground Of investigation, the writer
is prepared with a quite elaborate
argument refuting the whole
scheme.
"Few. know" he asserts, "that It
came Of tainted parentage and that
it grew up in an atmosphere of
fraud" At the outset of the In
quiry, he says, further along
"a hearing must be accorded to what
the anthropologist has to say on the
pedigree OF Spirttualism. We shall
learn from him that this pedigree
stretches into dim and dateless past.
reaching to the anmistic stage In the
evolution Of religion.-an age when men
conceived Of spirits indwelling In
everything, and when. as worldwide
evidence shows, largely through the
experience Of dreams. shadows and
reflections of himself and suchlike be-
wilder,ng phenomena, there dawncd
upon him the sense OF personality-an
alter ego--something apart from the
body. On suck plane are tho natives
OF Australia, who stand at the bottom
level Of culture.
"One of the Kurnai tribe told Mr.
Howitt that his yambo, or spirit, could
leave tho body. 1t must be so.' he said
Tor when I sleep 90 to faraway places,
see distinct people, even SEQ and
speak With those who are dead.' Hence.
IN tho lower culture, the widespread
avoidancs of waking sleeper, because
his soul may be absent, and tho En-
ropean folk~custom OF not turning q
sleeper ever lest the absent soul should
miss the way back. To tho savage
dreams arc true, not only while
they last but long afterwsrd. They
link the lowest minds with tho high
And thus, the writer concludes.
both savage and spiritualist are
3na IN hslie1 In thu survival and,
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

chain; thus to the scientific materialist
God necessarily becomes an infinite ct
cetera."
The writer, in concluding this
particular division of his work, OBJ
serves:
MANY stricken men and women in
this gigantic and devastating war have
found solace in the dark hours Of their
bereavement (through spiritualism) .
They have seen in it a ray Of heavenly
light falling
Upon the great worlds altar stairs
That slope through darkness up to
Cod"
e HAVE examined two gen.
w eral phases Of the pro and con
discussion. In conclusion, a few
words about a special department
Of spiritualism - that relating to
spirit photography.
Although not one Of those investi-
gators who regard the genuineness
as "beyond question:" Sir William
Barrett gives some examples of spir-
itual lens-captures. "While profess
ing, for my own part, to leave the
question Of spirit-photography an
open one," he writes, II may here
relate very curious and interest
ing case of supposed spirit photo
graph which some years ago sub
mitted to searching examination
and experiment"
Lady c., the relative Of a friend Of
mine, had taken for the summer the
late Lord Combe rmere's country house,
Combermere Abby, in Cheshire. The
library in the house was fne panelled
room, and Miss @. Gas she then was)
was anxious to secure a photograph of
it. Accordingly, placing her half plate
on its stand in favorable position
fronting the unoccupied carved oak
armchair on which Lord Combermere
always used to sit, she opened new
box of Photographic plates in the dark
room, put a plate in the dark slide,
and after focusing the camera. IN
serted and exposed the plate. On de-
veloping the plate by herself she was
amazed to find the figure Of legless
old man seated in the carved oak arm
chair.
Shortly after this they found Lord
Conlbermere had died from an accident
he sustained in London, and was be-
ing buried in the family vault. few
miles from his country house, at the
very time the photograph was taken.
Tlis curious coincidence came out
after the photograph had been de-
veloped and led to . surmise whether
the ghostly figure resembled the late
nobleman.
"At THO point the facts wers COM
municated to me. and l received a
print Of the photograph. \ vrots to
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

Little children stuffed by, dull and
with beloved eyes. hating in gait and
short OF breath. The man looked and
leered horribly at these evidences OF
the unnatural lack of seIf-expression
that this condition implied. Then. as
he looked, his whole artistic soul
teemed with sensation, and the solution
OF what was wrong with the world
throbbed in his artistic breast. The
root OF the evil must lie in the lack
OF soul satisfaction in the little tender
children, and growing up, scar the
soul OF themselves grown up. Tho
solution lay with the dear little chill
dren.
And so the man OF thought gave up
his art and studied the habits of the
beautiful children. What they ate.
thought, their artless pranks, and
charming love tiffs, all absorbed him
IN his effort to find out why life was
not complete. Suddenly the cause
burned his soul with startling clear
ness. From observing the faces of
children playing in the dirt, he clever
~ discovered that warm luscious lam
or jelly gave the deeper meaning to
their lugubrious little lives. So he
watched them as with resigned ex-
to satisfy their souls.
Night after night the man Of
thought lay tossing moist with per-
spiration, IN his bed OF agony. A thou
sand times the question duly glowed
IN Marrata colors on his wall, "Why is
the soul starved by jelly which sat
isles the childish BELLY"
Then like a flash the answer came
reeling, staggering to him through thu
murky night Why, oh why, had ne
not guessed it before. Of course, it
was question of form, and Jelly was
moulded in such academic forms. cius-
ters Of flowers, ears of corn, "Ye Gods.
how unsatisfying!" But what to sub
stitute! In the agony of seeking tho
solution he tossed off goblet after COB
let of soothing rum, until his thoughts
were crystalline clear.
Then suddenly across his inspired
vision foated a lovely pink form. not
OF prosaic elephant, nothing so inap-
propriate. But it was the vision OF
something whose form sculptured into
granite would mould jelly into q shape
that would satisfy the soul of the most
aesthetic little child. Need I say that
it was the vision of smiling, placid
jellyfishl
In his enthusiasm he drank mors
and more of the soothing rum, and
pictured the race that was to be of
happy, soul satisfied children. But
suddenly another vision came to him
and the calendar fairly moaned as the
date July first" stared out with the
shocking news of the end of hope.
Gone were all the dreams of helping
mankind. With the secret locked in
his embittered artistic soul he watched
countless pink jelly6sh crawl for the
last time over the quilt of his bed and
his soul
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

I the members Of Lord Combermere's
family and sent them the photograph.
lhe figure was somewhat indistinct
and opinions differed as to the lika-
ness; sn the whole it was considered
to be like him, especially in the pecu-
liar attitude which was habitual to him
when seated in his chair
I'm reply to my inquiries Miss c.
informed me the exposure of the plate
was lengthy-some fifteen minutes-
and that she had for short time left
the empty room during the exposure Of
the plate I thought it possible one
OF the menservsnts had come in and
seated himself In the chair until he
heard Miss G. returning. Accordingly.
made Photographic test of this
surmise. Exposing half plate in the
panelled library Of the house Of my
friend, the late Mr.. Titus Salt, where
happened to be staying, / asked his
eldest son, then a youth, to walk into
the room, sit down in the oak armchair.
cross and uncross his legs, move his
head slightly, and then walk out of
the room.
"This was done, and we developed
tho photograph together-when, 10!
there came out almost a duplicate Of
the Combermere photograph, a shad-
owy, rather aged man, with no legs,
seated in the chair and no sign Of any
one coming into or leaving the
room.
There I thought the matter ended.
with young footman as the soi-distant
Lord Combermere; but I found that
Miss c. and some others Of the family
strongly dissented from my view. They
had closely examined their servants
and had reason to believe that the de-
NAL by the footman and others Of any
visit to the room at the time when the
exposure took place was perfectly cor
rect and straightforward.
"some time later an article of mine.
which appeared In The Westminster
Gazette and containing reference to
the photograph, brought me the fol-
lowing letter from one of Lord Com
bermere's married relatives. which dis
closed fact of which previously was
unaware"
The letter read as follows:
Dear Sir, having read your inter-
esting article on the supernormal IN
The Westminster Gazette of the 9th
inst, cannot resist adding one detail
to the account of Lord Combermere's
supposed spirit photograph.
"You say he had not lost his lers.
but he died from an accident in which
they were so much injured he could
never have used them again. He was
run over by wagon at nightsbridge,
crossing the street, and only lived
few weeks.
Lord Ccmbermcre was my father
in-law and lived. some years Mt the
Abbey With him. and was much inter
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
Y Yes!
PSACH1CAL researchers are

PSHCH1CAL researchers are
cutting a path through
uncleared forests, and all
coniectures regarding the
right way are useful. To
change the simile, we are
laying the foundations of a
new and spacious annex TO
the temple of knowledge,
and we must be prepared to
see a forest of scaffolding-
in the shape of theories and
working hypotheses-arise.
Only thus can the solid stones
of fact he laid and the temple
upbuilt, then, In course of
time, ''the facts will tell their
own story and supply their
own explanation, at present
wo have to labor and wait"
Sir William F. Barrett.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

ested IN Miss C.'s written account al
the photograph, which she gave me
The face always was too indistinct ia
pc quite convincing to me, though
some Of his children had no doubt a,
| all OF the identity. may add, none OF
the menservants in the house in the
least resembled the figure and all were
young men; while the outside men
were all attending the funeral. which
was taking place at the church four
miles off at the very time the photo
graph was being printed. l give you
the pour ct contre quite disinterested div.
as I myself am not persuaded one way
or Che other"
"And there" says Sir William.
II leave the matter, sharing Miss
C.'s opinion"
Turning back to Mr.. Clodd's book.
one comes upon further observa-
tions on such phenomena. The
writer says:
Speaking Of spirit photographs, DR..
Wallace expresses his satisfaction
that whatever marvels occur in
America can be reproduced here, and
he cites examples of clearly recog-
nlzable likenesses of deceased friends
having been obtained Among those
possessing exceptional interest ia that
of the late William Howi4t's two cons.
many years dead, the likenesses to
whom were instantly recognized by
the parents as perfect and unmis-
taxable The interest for spiritual
lists lies in the light which that photo
graph throws on the debatable oues-
tion, whether spirits remain at the
stage of development when they depart.
or, as in the case Of babies dying i'm
mediately after their birth. Of nom
development.
"As bearing on this, al an exhibition
Of spirit photographs at the Spiritual
lists Hall, Chiswick, in the spring Of
1904, Mr.. Blackall stated that his sub
jects are able TO give sittings for any
period OF their earthly existence, Just
rs when our thoughts now can run
over the past periods Of our lives
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

(such rs Professor Hick) are agreed
that this is u corruption of the text;
but we are inclined to think that
the author intended the word to be
spelled this way.
A note of cynicism. Az this
point in the authors life he had lust
discovered Thomas Hardy and was
deep in 'Life's Little Ironies."
This ending has puzzled the
scholars Of all ages. 1t is thought
Chat it should be read GAOL Gas in
The Ballad of Reading GaoD,
which makes better sense. 1t does
not rhyme with soul; but there is no
rhyme for "sneer," so the poet was
evidently not particular.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

Among the spirits photoeranhaa Q,
peering over Mr.. Blackan's shoulder
were those of Browning, Tennvson.
Longteliow, Charles Dickens. Huxley.
Darwin and Napoleon. 1t was repret-
table to hear him add that onlv ono
photographer in England was ahla +o
take the portraits and that 'he wa,
no" retired from business The ex-
hlDlt. says the reporter of the inter-
view with Mr.. Blackall, 'is unious,
None Of US can contradict that"
Speaking of the "photogra DIV Of
the cloud fgures-some of them
very definite in outline-wh;cb ara
found to emanate on occasions from,
mediums in the state of trance" Mr.
Edward Carpenter says:
Notwithstanding ths doubt which
mas commo only been cast on all sro,,
photographs. and notwiths tanding ~.
very OBVIOUS ease with which cameras
can be manipulated and shadow figures
OF some sort fraudulently produced
the evidence for the genuineness ~
some such spirit photographs is-to
any one who really studies i+-hevora =
question. The evidence is so sbun-
dant, and, on the whole, so well con-
flrmed that we are practically now
compelled to admit (and this is the
point in hand) that cloud-like forms of
human outline emanating from
medium or other persons body may at
times be caught by the Photographic
plate. That these forms. oc-
curing and occasionally photographed
IN connection with mediums, are .inde-
pendent spirits or souls, is. of course
in no way assured. They may be such
or (what seems more ikely) they may
be simply extensions of the spiritual or
inner body of the medium"
Sir Oliver Lodge leaves it an open
question, but, observes Mr.. Clodd.
"his leanings are obvious Sir
Oliver says:
The question of photography an
piled to visible phantasms. and to an
invisible variety ("can," interpolates
Mr.. Clodd. "any rational explanation
OF these words be supplied" said TO
be perceived by clairvoyants, is still
an open one-at any rate, no photo
graphic evidence has yet appeared con-
elusive to me. If successful, pho-
Biography could prove that the i'm
preston was not only mental one. hut
that the ether of space had been def
nitely affected in a certain way also
SO that the impression had probably
become received by the optical an
paratus of the eye, and had been trans
mitted in the usual way to the brain"
On a later page this elusive
writer, whose confusion of thought
is manifest in the obscureness of his
language" says:
The fact that photograph can be
clearly recognized when the medium
has only seen the person clairvoyantly
on the other side Of the veil is sur-
gestivc, since It seems to show thar
the general appearance is preserved.
or, in other words, that each humaa
body is true representation Of per-
sonality.'
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

nave given years, will find it impos-
slble to continue sitting in the seat
or the scornful, whatever other
position he may take up.
There can be little doubt" OBJ
serves this writer:
that the impatience with which ortho-
COX science regards spiritualism and
psychical research in general arises
from the difficulty Of finding any ex-
planation of the phenomena which is
related to existing scientific knowledge
Hence, as Goethe remarked in one of
his conversations, "a new truth may
wait long time before it can make It's
way'".
Mr.. O. @. Massey once pointed
out:
when we see how a thing can have
happened we are much more ready to
give fair hearing to evidence that it
has happened than when the material
offered is quite indigestible to our in
telligence. And thus an explanatory
hypothesis is hardly less necessary for
tho reception Of facts Of a certain
character than are facts for the SUD-
port of hypothesis"
Sir William quotes this passage,
as also statement made by the late
William James: "It often happens a
fact Is strenuously denied until a
welcome Interpretation comes along
with it, then it is admitted readily
enough"
Sir William goes on to say,
1.-THE insistence Of the demand for
some explanation Of these phenomena
which we find within US Is only a spe-
cial case Of that continuous pressure
Of the casual instinct which charac-
terizes our reason; and 1t is because
Of the difficulty of finding any adequate
explanation of them In known and
familiar causes that science distrusts
the existence Of the phenomena them
selves. The reasoning faculty, in re-
jecting every known cause as made
quate, satisfies Its unrest by rejecting
the occurrences as improbable or un-
proved. In truth, there Is. strictly
speaking, no scientific explanation of
the higher phenomena of spiritualism.
Secondary causes, with which science
deals, are only antecedcnts or previous
states, which, In turn, need to be ac-
counted for, and so on In an endless
''Tf any ono advances anything new
which oontradIcts, perhaps threatens to
overturn. tho creed which have for
years repeated. and have handed Gown
to others all passions aro raisod ngains,
him ana every effort In mado to crush
him People resist with all their might
they Aot II they neither heard pop
could comprehend they speak of tho
now Wow with contempt. as II Il wsre
not worth the trouble of even 50 much
as an Investigation or a regard. ahd THUG
. new truth may walt Ions time before
a can nneke ~ wayxs
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
Bellows and another by John Sloan
Dipping into the contents we find:
The Ballad of the Golden
Goat

NOV this is tale Of Lore and aoor
' And the things that men did do
OF cra,oly things with shiny avings-
OF maud and Irish stew.
am Sros0ing old, who tell it,
Bat ever I recall
Hoa0 Greasy Sue and Red Hand Lon.
Ate cheese at an Art School boJl
met her there IN the gloomino
And she held my hand a chue
But Just as touched the monev.
The blind man sano me smile,
1.-THE baby needs a cigarette,
Cried she a1ith broken sioh
"-For aocnt Of q drink of soater
You'd let dead man die."
"l'm only claimants daughter
Yet my hair is achite as snoaU.
For Iove thot hclf Dutch Sponish
Suede,
And msy che-ild sciN never knou."
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
n O.!
SEEMINGLY, the rules o.

SEEMINGLY, the rules of
evidence are disregarded
and logic entirely discarded
by the credulous followers of
the spiritualistic faith. Weare
forced by such facts to rec
ognize that education counts
for very little; that our boast
ed civilization is but a thin
veneer; that man, as Carlyle
persisfently maintained. is
infinitely gullible. 1t is clear
that we still retain his primal
nature and instincts; the ten.
dency to belief in the occult
is our heritage.-Henry E.
Armstrong.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
Detailed Weather Report

EhE air was sitting hot. Thick
beads of perspiration were on his
brow. He shivered as with the ague.
The whole world was wrong. To per-
son who has tried to express himself
IN an intellectually soul satisfying way
1t does seem that nothing is real and
everything sham. And so this man of
soul sat and suffered as he craved to
make the world better place to live in,
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
some General Comment For and Against Sprasm Together
With Bit About Spirit Photography

return Of the soul, and in thei1
vague conception of it's nature" A
later depression from the mair
theme is so interesting that it ought
to be included here. Among the
Mas Islanders Of the Indian Archi
pelago, he says:
! souls are weighed out for those vhr
are yet to be born: the child in the womb
Is asked by the god Balm IL he will
choose heavy or light soul-that Is, 8
long life or short life, and a natura
or violet death. The maximum weight
allotted is about ten grams. Elsewhere
the soul Is found to weigh q little more. >
"a. E. Crawlsy), "1dea Of the Soul. =
p. 1927
The concluding paragraph Of Mr.
Clodd's introduction reads as fol-
lows, summing up the evidence Of
pedigree:
"The physical phenomena Of earlier
and presumably more ignorant times as
to the nature and behavior Of the
occult have given place in large degree
to psychical phenomena; to the clair
voyants and to the trance utterances
OF mediums. Tho quasi-physical, as
we may perhaps define materialized
spirit forms, are now little, if at all, in
evidence, nor does belief in the genu-
ineness Of the photographs Of these
diaphanous anemics now obtain cre-
dence save from the very few who fol-
low Mr.. Edward Carpenter In regard
ing that genuineness as beyond ques-
tion.' But, physical or psychical, the
trail OF the serpent is over it ALL"
II
pUT not so, thinks Sir William F..
~ Barrett, F. r. s., whose book,
"On the Threshold of the Unseen,"
has been recently published by e. P.
Dutton G. Co. While this writer.
does not take the "beyond qestion"
attitude, and while, according to
Professor Hyslop, he came to the
subject "as skeptic himself" Sir
Williams book is defence of spir-
itualism, especially is it plea Che
remains throughout the questioner)
for unbiased discussion of a SUBJ
ject easily obscured, both by fanat-
ical advocates themselves and by
determined objectors with precon-
ceived opinions.
However, though the writer's de-
meanor throughout is cool and dis
passionate, he admits in one place
that he has "failed to find that a
single person who ridicules spirit
ualism has given to the subject any
serious and patient consideration.
Moreover, he adds, II venture to
assert that any fair-minded person
who devotes to it's careful and dis
investigation as many
dayD. OK even hours. "a some pt ps
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

.sss a brand new magazine and
rs called bad News" Not an
;nsradating title perhaps
.rt what can you expect In this
! ., rsalists and actuallsts' 1t Is
a ,s.b.d by tho Art Students
.,u. Publishing Company, at 215
4 sFifty-seventh Street The two
,,,,;sls. "Bad News" and "It
Ga. Be Worse" which open the
: issue, read as follows'
q co.. News, but II nigh. be worsel
:. .r. the worst is yet 30 comel
..ss,. he said, aud pointed toward
n. Issa,' Take up this book with grim
.,,y and read as far as possible
.,,s an anasthedc- When human
-scan bear no more, stop for ten
.1,s to recuperate, mop your brow
mar. Then with invinc chile, un-
4 s.s.bte. indonitable pluck pick 1t up
! snd carry on. Pessimism, cyni-
: stoicism will all stand you in
Il 4 ,tsad snd help you to withstand
n. ss.ribls agony of disgust and en-
II al else fails, try singing
H., There or grit your teeth and
j, On to the FinishI'
& .sta. public thinks that Bad News
II, wawe are sorry; but it should see
3,.ss We didn't print If we had print
a.s IL things We didn't we might de-
hi the things we don't. But since we
a..,s done as we have, and have not
3,s,d as we might otherwise have
|5sss we feel that what we have done
4. Brilliant and far better than 1t
3ssA. otherwise have seemed. The
asr.s.urss may seem rough, but when
;zpsrad with the people, and per-
lzs,rgs taken into consideration, and
"a. .ac. that most o. the staff artists
ss studied Hambidge, it can be
rkIy seen that what we have done
a ncthing to what we might have
Srs and since we have drawn the
&iss We have, we have done only a
sslE part OF what would otherwise
asYs been the natural result. If these
Dr. things that are untrue, it must be
#ssenbered that the truth is never
sms il seems, and there are always
Ias tides to a question, and what is
Bnss to-day IS false tomorrow, and
e,. what is so at one time is not 90
b saother. II We are unkind, it must
u lanImbered that kindness is
sss Of mind, and that the mind Is a
hing Of prejudice and rot 30 be wholly
'nlsa upon. We hope that you now un-
!assssna what yon didn't see before
|nasshat now you see that we have
ass what we have done and have not
lr.sd Otherwise
esricatures figure largely in the
'sasgup of this newcomer, although
|asts IS one full page by George
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
Pottery

1T AVE you ever seen an attractive
IL woman convalescing in bed after
a brief illness?
Notice her hair dropping carelessly,
yet mournfully, over the pillow. How
helpless it looks, and yet how full Of
feeling. Does 1t not remind you Of
singers last note in a death scene :?
You can imagine you see the artists
face; the pathos, weakness and yet
New-York tribune., 1919-05-25

||A, Nhat dusty 0nsrer gets the
soul
Men hot lor certaintics in this
cur lfe!~
George Meredith.
lhs character Of the true phi
aspasr IS to hope al things not
Ns0ssl6le and to 5elieve aU things
Ut #anreasonnble."
Sir John Herschel.