The New York herald., 1921-07-24

tn HE papers say that the medlums are
having convention up at the Wal
dorf Hotel in New York We failed
to see any mention of Dr. Conan Doyle as
among those present but we did read an
account of some outsider who appeared on
the scene waving a thousand dollar check
crying "show me for my thousand dollars"
AT last accounts he still had his check, no
glimpse of a ghost having been given him,
but he drove the medium over for another
whiff of the flowers in the urn
Flowers appear to be a necessary part of
the work of a regular dyed in the wool
medium. 1t seems that the spirits of the de-
parted are made much easier to handle if
there is a bowl of flowers on the stage. A
perfectly well regulated ghost, one that be-
haves himself consistently, bothers nobody
and attends to his own business, will some
times get in a bad humor and then the
only thing that will bring him around to a
proper frame of mind again is the odor of
flowers.
That is why they always have them and
that is why the medium is so frequently
standing behind the flowers. The idea that
he has anything concealed among the flowers
to assist him in his work is a cruel inven-
tion of the sceptics.
TIME only ghost we ever came in per-
sonal contact with was that of
baboon.
This happened in a park department of
which we once had charge. The carpenter
OF the department was named Buck Lewis,
and Buck not only first class carpen
ter, but he was practical joker of no mean
ability. The Zoo was in charge of Blackie
Boyd, and Blaclde was a real animal man.
We took him away from Johnny Patterson,
vol 1ar g.
shows. Blackie called all animals that had
claws cats and the elephants to him were
bulls. He had as his assistant in the Zoo
to do the cleaning an old negro named
Lige and the darkey very friendly with
the animals, particularly a chacma baboon-
Lige always divided his lunch with the
baboon and tried to make him talk
"Yo' is des naturally hard h'aded" he
would say. How cum yo' look like yo' kin
talk and does like yo wants to talk, but
won't say nary word?"
The old man complained lot at the
baboon but never a word did he receive in
response, although it really seemed that the
animal was trying to talk to him. OF one
thing we are absolutely convinced, and that
is that the baboon understood what Lige was
saying.
Well, one day the baboon was found deae
in his cage. Someone with keen sense Of
humor nau given MIN some pins 10 eat, the
pins being concealed in food. incidentally
isn't it remarkable that cities are forced to
employ special guards to prevent the public
from killing the animals which are pur-
chased for their enjoyment and education?
Anyway, the baboon having died, 1t became
the duty of Lige to bury him and accordingly
the animal was placed in crocus sack and
he was told to inter the body in the anima,
graveyard
Now, it so happened that the park force
was constructing a drainage system for sur
face water at the time. The outlet was
right where the baboon was to be buried
and the line of twelve inch pipe had been
carried about two hundred feet away. Ligc
put the sack containing the body of the
animal on his back about dusk and started
for the graveyard while Buck Lewis. keep
ing the shrubbery between himself and the
negro, went to the head of the pipe line