The Washington times., 1922-08-23

Q.-You should exercise great
caution IN lecturing on spiritualism,
for you may fall into the common
error OF making spiritualism and
spiritism synonymous in your mind.
What good you may do by throw
Ing the light OF truth on the .ac-
-tivities OF fraudulent mediums
would be offset by the injustice
you would do honest mediums. You
made your researches as an unbe-
liever. seeking the worst. You
found 1t. Others have looked for
light. and, perhaps. have found it.
You unconsciously are a spirit
ualist; for you are certain that your
mother lives In another plane OF
existence.
Do you know that Christians and
Jews all over the world are spirit
ualists? Do you realize that many
Christians appeal to Mary. the
mother of Christ, for assistance?
She was a Jew, and Christ was u
Jew and the most mighty medium
ever known. A medium claims to
be inspired from an extra-mundial
source. The first great medium
was Moses, also a Jew. THE Jew
lsh prophets were all mediums,
and the wonders they worked can
be duplicated today by any profess
sional magician. But you cannot
logically brand them as frauds
i. G. L.
Al am not confusing spiritual
ism with spiritism. / am a student
of spiritism. which argues that n
spirit world exists: am not yet con-
yinced of spiritualism, the doctrine
based on the belief that human be-
ings can communicate with spirits.
I do not purpose to offend one per-
son, or a thousand, but / deem II my
duty to express publicly my convic-
tions, regardless of the effect II may
have on my business. i am human
and a student first. and business
man In a secondary. or perhaps
tertiary capacity. !.
ia within my power to earn 1.000, 900
any year OF my life. IL wish to tui y
INV back upon my conscience ana
announce to the world that am a
medium. But cannot permit my
self TO use such methods as Hoime,
Mrs. Fletcher, and the hundreds OF
mediums now gulling the public.
IL is far from my desire 10 enter
into a controversy regarding reng-
ion. For centuries my foreiatners
were ministers Of the Gospel. was
brought up N a truly religious atIno-
sphere. and I claim that any reiiY-
ION IL right II conscientiously follow
ed. I have carefully read the scrip
lures and incidentally confess that L
taught in my dads Sunday schooi.
A great many things In the oio
Testament must necessarily appear
not plausible to the modern minu,
benefited by the accumulative resuIts
OF scientific research and mecnahicai
progress.
/ do not say that there are no
mediums, and that there never
were. I state simply that In tne
g 900 seances have attended. az
tive or passive, the deducti?e inlno
which the Almighty has given me
will not permit me to accept as
facts manifestations which appear
genuine to the layman. nave
used this mind as a mystirer, rer-
forming feats which the greatest
conjurors In the world are unap,e
TO explain. At the various seanSes
i close my eyes aiio II. - =
sense what the medium is doing.
1 honestly believe in the suocon-
scious mind, and many times IN
muIiins over new mysteries nave
awakened in the middle OF the
night with my problem solved. ana
II know that in the back OF my
brain the subconscious mind was
working on IL all the time.
cannot brand as frauds the
Jewish prophets, because have no
way of knowing how they per
formed their apparently super
natural value. and devote my ef-
forts to exposing persons who rep
resent themselves to the public. Tor
gain, as being inspired and who are
really only second-rate tricksters.
Q.-In view of your recently ex-
pressed interest in spirit manites-
tations, am led to wonder IL you
have ever studied the life OF Joan OF
Arc. Born in the village of Dom
remy, a simple, untutored maid, she
rose TO immortal fame and has been
listed among the saints OF the Roman
Catholic Church. She was led to her
destiny by voices" and a kingdom
listened to her inspired wisdom and
followed her to victory.
Imagine. II you can, peasant
girl of eighteen years assuming gu
preme command of the Frexch Drmy
during the siege OF Verdun.. Does II
not appear absurd to you? But this Is
n historical fact, and the time and