The New York herald., 1922-04-11
Most Of Us Will Get There
in Spite OF Ourselves,
Novelist Thinks.
TALKS OF sECToPLAsM'
Matter Exuded From Bodies Of
Mediums Has Been Photo
graphed, He Says.

"I have seen my dead mothers face
materialize before me and / have had
all sorts of delightful chats with my
dead son, Kingsley. There is abso-
lutely no question Of that. Proof, you
ask? Could one want anything better
than a letter in my mothers hand
writing. signed In her pet name and
characteristic spelling which found
on the table following seance?"
The speaker was Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle. WHO in his suite at the Hotel
Ambassador yesterday outlined some
thing Of the spiritualistic subject he
intends to treat in his American lee
ture tour. which opens here to-mor-
row night. Sir Arthur believes in
varying spheres or planes through
which spirits move or progress. He
speaks of peculiar substance he calls
ectoplasm that results from the solidi-
fication of vapor emanating from the
bodies of mediums--a soft puttylike
substance that is only partially sus-
ceptible to chemical analysis. He has
held and photographed this substance
and with lantern slides promises to
explain it more fully.
This ectoplasm that exudes like. an
aura from the body Of medium" Sir
Arthur vert on, "is a sort of ethereal
ized matter, and in It's more tenuous
passing through become visible to the
medium and the matter itself later be-
comes glutinous In character. 1t is COM
posed of the phosphates. carbonates and
sulphates that go to make up the human
body and other elements rot yet recog-
nized. The medium loses weight sc-
cording to the amount of ectoplasm
exuded.'
"vftalixes Religion"
Sir Arthur was particularly anxious
that It should be understood that spirit
ualism as he regards IL IS not opposed
or antagonistic to any form OF religion.
Or the other hand. he said. it vitalizes
religion by giving an accurate knowl-
edge of death and the life beyond.
1T requires no acrobatic feat TO get
into heaven" Sir Arthur continued. I'm
fact most of us will get there il. spite
of ourselves. Thcologians have made
the attainment of Paradise unneces-
sarily difficult and there Is no hell
Those OF us who have not led decent
lives when we pass over VIII simply
have 10 remain on lower sphere or
plane unless we are qualified to progress
higner. The life beyond Is very much
ika ha 70
octaves higher"
Sir Arthur spoke with much positive
ness. Several times he injected an en-
phatic II know when he enlarged on
some particular phase of the subject.
There will be marriages on the other
side, but IT, less gross sense than we
regard them in the material world.
There will be no children born, but
spirits, Sir Arthur assures US, develop
amazing affinities.
.'what Is the attitude In the other
world toward suicides?" Sir Arthur was
asked.
".That Is very good question:" he
shot back, for the people on the other
side are very unhappy over these sui
cides One can't force Providence, you
know, and a person who suicides to get
away from some sort of trouble will find
the same trouble on the other side.
Forty Years I'm Paradise.
Paradise, or Summerland. Is the name
Sir Arthur applies to the next plane to
which We ascend after death, ard he
fixes the average span Of life there at
about forty years After that. and if
proper progress has been made. the de.
parted ascend to a still higher sphere.
Angels. spiritualists believe, are mere
ly humans who have died and progressed
from one spiritual plane to the highest.
The devil, on the other hand, Is orly
human being druggcd in materiallsm
who has sunk to the lowest sphere OF all.
Everything on the other side is regu-
lated by sympathies and our whole duty
on this side Is to spiritualize ourselves.
Nothing else matters, names. titles
demonstrating. We progress in
the next world in just so far as we
prepare ourselves here"
"Why is It," Sir Arthur was asked
that many members of the clergy are
opposed to spirltualiHn?''
"It is because of their woeful igno-
rance" he replied. "In England that Is
being gradually overcome and we have
a number OF clergymen In our organiza-
tions and more are coming all the time"
sir Arthur referred to the revelations
of the Rev Vale over. whose writings
made In n spritualistic trance caused
a sensation throughout England.
world OF sound nnd Color.
Although he talked with assurance OF
the mysteries OF the life beyond. there
are features that are beyond even his
understanding. Life. he explained. In
the spirit world is expressed in colors
and sounds which are not perceptive to
our eyes and ears.
.'Is IL expressed in the fourth dimen-
sion?" some one asked.
"Ah, now you have me. No. IL Is In
three dimensions. T believe--I know.
The fourth dimension has always been
n good deal OF mystery to me and
fear will have TO remain So
There Is not so much fraud In spir.
ituaIIetic manifestations as is supposed
sir Arthur said, and real students Of
the subject are quick TO expose II
whenever II Is encountered. He said
climatic changes affect mediums con-
facts and that sometimes mediums sue
cessful i'm one country will fail in an
other.
In The manifestation when his mothers
face was revealed to him, Sir Arthur
said happened only a few months ago
following his return from Australia
where lie was when she died. 1t was
during a seance and her face came up