The Washington herald., 1920-03-01
Less Than 100 Hear Jastrow
Defend Mind Against Spirit
LnReply toSnO OliuerL Lodge
ny GEORGE PERRY NORRIS.

~
ny GEORGE PERRY MORRIS.
PoIfs Theater is a rather large
and inhibiting place to talk to less
than 100 people. But Prof. Joseph
Jastrow did it yesterday afternoon
without seeming to be at all dis
turbed by the striking contrast be-
tween his appeal as propagandist
against "spiritism" and Sir Oliver
appeal in its behalf.
The Briton had his thousands.
the Wisconsin Psychologist his
rational and non-super-
stitious. as he would say.
To analyze the audience would
be more dificult than in the case
of Sir oliver Lodges crowds.
Women were fewer relatively. The
reason. according to the lecturer
is not difficult to explain. They
are more emotional. more easily
willing to believe" what they want
to believe, than men.
FaciIc rs Well ms Deadly.
Through all the ages. among all
the manifestations of what is called
"spiritism" or the occult, woman.
according to the Wisconsin inves-
tigator, has mot only been more
deadly, but more facile than the
male" she has furnished the lar
gest number of mediums"
1t is only when controls" are
brought in that man is allowed to
emerge as a factor in the process.
therefore, women did not
rush to hear Prof. Jastrow, either
those who are heterodox transcen-
of the newer cults or
orthodox adherents who look with
disfavor upon discussion, of the
subject of Immortality in terms of
physics. psychology or telepathy.
There was one clergyman pres |
ent taking notes, one army officer.
a few local scientific men, and the |
rest werc plain civilians. What did
they hear:
Resume OF Changes.
First, a resume of the changes |
wrought in alchemy, astrology and !
other pseudo sciences by the discov- |
cry of real scientific method !
which, when applied. so Prof. Jas !
trow says, to the study of the his
tory of mans psychical evolution,
works as great a ~hange. and con-
firms most psychologists in the
opinion that to argue Tor, spiritua;
communications now rs y turn TO
primityse barbaric fafths.f 1t is re-
version. rather than advance.
Then came compact summary OF
the rise of modern spirituaiism in
the United states. its spread to Eng
land. and now the recurrent wave
induced in part by the war. The
Part played by the French prior TO ,
the revolution and afterward in Gre
ating beliefs in animal magnetism
and mesmerism were described, and
attention called to the fact that no
less a parsonage than Daniel Web
ster headed petition whlch
brought a French mesmerist before
Congress to give formal address
Report Is Negative.
Prof. Jastrow reminded his hearers
Of the work of the Seibert commits
sion of the University of Pennsyl-
yaaia and the Stanford investiGa-
ton at Leland Stanford University,
which, under the direction of train
cd men, had investigated the spirit
ist phenomena and reported mega
lively. He made it clear that as
psychologist and speaking for
rroup of them, who have sent him
forth to trail Sir oliver Lodge, he
discounts considerably the findings
of the Society of Psychical Re-
search. if. for no other reason, be-
cause so many of the eminent men
who have been connected with il
are psychists. and not psy-
biologists. He argues that as psy-
chists they cannot know all the
uuirks. deceptions. eccentricities,
subnormal manifestations of the
human mind They deal with quite
other mediums.
Only Few Assent.
Consequently. for this reason. as
we'll as because he is not certain
of the entire reliability of the me-
diums employed by the Society of
PsychicaI Research, including the
famous Mrs. Piper, he does not ac-
cept arguments drawn from its prS
ceedings by Sir oliver Lodge as con-
elusive. He does not question Mrs.
Piper's honesty. but he believes that
her evidence can be accounted for
by ways other than supernormaL
His estimate of the relative num-
Der of men of science who, hav-
CARDINAL EN- ROUTE