Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-06-12
AS ONE WOMAN SEES 1T
The Medium Who Mystifed Proved
to Have a Retentive Memory. but
the Case Of Hiekson Presents
Problems That Puzzle
BY SARAH u. LOWRIE
7 SAT opposite a rather noted playwr

with one another TO poke fun ut spiritualism
and the late Doyle and Lodge enthusiasm,
he gave himself over to stories prefaced py'
But how do you account for this!' or
II get this at second hand. but what is the
answer to 1t If 1t isn't proof that there
are communications. etc.?"
Presently the conversation sheered of the
subject. which he did not like either. Per.
haps he thought the rest of us doubted MS
evidence. The truth of the matter was. IL
did not seem overwhelming at that dis
tancc. but IL also seemed churlish to cross
question him. which was why suppose we
all instinctivcly abctted a change oi SUBJECT.
S1NCE it has been placed on scientific
~ basis by its chief advertisers. Spiritism
can safely be left to the physicists. whose
business 1t is to pronounce on things ap-
parent to the senses. One Of them told me
not long ago that after ry sLrSa ,ISSmre scumIe
with very high up and dependable medium
he had gone to great trouble to investigate
the sources possible to that medium for the
information that was given as though from
departed spirit. He went about his. IN
vestigation, too, in way not TO- excite
testimony for or against the mediumistic
evidence. and was at great pains to get ms
data from persons who were unaware that
they were being used either to confirm or 10
confute previous data.
For instance. sftcd down. the scancc
| had only one communication that could not
| have been easily obtainablr but that one
| was TO him and was from soldier who had
been killed in tho late war. conversation
which he had held with the soldier day
| before he met his death was known in its
details only--so far as he knew-to near
relation of the boys. The point for him
| to find out was, Had this near relation come
In contact with the medium? And II SO,
| what mention of that conversation had been
made coupled with names and places anu
dates?
But he was anxious not to have the testi-
mony as to such an occurrence biased for
| or against the medium, in hunting up
| the near relation of the soldier he made the
! meeting appear a casual one aud the con-
! versation that followed mere happening.
lie learned that the man in question had
| dipped considerably into spirituasin and
mad consulted mediums. and. among Others,
| this particular medium. He was given a
| the answer to the relatives questions made
| by the dead boy.
All the data given by the medium at the
later seance were easily obtanablc from those
questions, as well as the name of the
| physicist.
The clever thing had been the mediums
| rctentive memory ior minute details and
for the physicists name, and his quick and
| preclS" uSe of that knowledge on the spur
| Of the moment and after some lapse of
| time. In ordinary life the medium would
| he classed with such men aS Roosevelt or
l
| who has sympathetic genius for the affairs
| of others. Such men are rare. but they do
exist. At all events in this particular in
| stance. from scientific point of view. the
| explanation of the facts given ut the seance
| were accountable as feats of memory and
imagination. They could not he put down
10 inspiration. as they were all known TO
the medium prior to the seance.
T WAS Interested In some scientific tcsti-
i mony with regard to the now famous pic.
| lures with the spirit lowering in the back
ground which Doyle has shown The fact
that Doyle trusts the photographer and does
| not feel called upon to nvcstignt" the marks
! of Il separate process back of al III" spirit
| forms on tn" plates Would not hold in any
! observed rs final tests.
There Is. of course. a whole srries Of
| truths. or beliefs at least by which men
| live and die that are not and which cannot
| be put to the tests of Scicncc-thc great
religious truths. These are unprecedented and
| are practiced by another SGT of faculties
| was never so impressed by this as when
| tn" other day | received Il report from a
| man who has roligiouSly analytical mind
concerning a healing mission that was held
| in the American Church in Rome under the
| healer who was her" last summer about this
timc--IIckson. tn" English churchman.
give the letter without comment beyond the
| remark that whereas >riri;uaiism or spirit =
| ism aS it is now rallcI has to be proved
! scientifically sine" i is Il matter of the
senses and Is sibicr 10 tests Of Il material
sort lIickson has +" be examined and
judged by an analysis of his mind and will
and purpose.
take the letter up at the point where
the observer of lIickson begins to thus
unalyze him:
A MAN upon whose Judgment. ! rely had
| n told me that hc was convinced that
| InI .iLi ia, l~i..
was indignant when ] told him of this opip
| ion about him. for hr had II strong aversion
to spritism. but this led him to tell me
| about himself and his experiences
For the most part il" relies upon his intui
tiuuS and ON mystical sources OF information
I have not the least duub, that he does tar
such sources. For inSlaN"", hc AYERS that
he can detect n d"moniar by pcculia,
SMELL and evil spirits disincarnate an(
demons unincarnate have n very distinctive
| smell, very ropulsive.
| He "sees spirits and exercises ghosts from
haunted houses. And with it all he is 9
| perfectly commonplace man-to an incredibl,
| degree. ] mean h" seems to be an example
of super -commonplaccncSs. He uttcrs witt
great force and clearncSS the most sound ant
self evident truths-at least they are self
evident to one who accepts Christianity II,
never said anything that wasn't true ant
he seems TO hav" the gift of infallibility
without inspiration. The singular thin,
about the man is--pcrhnps it is the fac
that explains him--h" never thinks. I meal
he profoundly diSilics TO reason and does /
only when he has TO-
TIE DOUBTLESS has good reason on tn,
II ground Of past experiences to expec
that he will heal Il certain proportion of tn
ncople he ministers to. But he has pre
tisely the same ground to expect that by ia
the greater proportion of them will not b
helped. Such being the case cannot un
, derstand how 1t is possible for him to trea
each case with the same unwavering faith
> hut that he does it seems clear, whateye
be the disease. My reaction to hi
mission was not hostile. but 1t was negative
Iic left sprcnely unronccrned about tb
p effects of his !abors. have at least an in
, tcllectual curiosity.
, Apart from the cures the mission wu
successful h III ,nat IT, II f snnG MIN an oppor
. ignorant people. 1t was held without an
aLuortisinp and announced only nnno In III,