The New York herald., 1922-11-16
Continued from First Page.

no defense is available) stuns the intel
lect. When the Coloners bombast Is
done with one Is Imply ready to accept
most anything, even the astonishing
change in the still erect figure which an
nounces that Black Hawk has arrived
and is about to show something.
Reference Books as Guides.
Often enough Il Is Richard Mans
field" There are a number OF people In
the Association to Advance Psychic
knowledge" who are immensely inter-
ested in Mansfield's career who would
like answers to many questions. Whether
for that reason or no Mansfield Is often
trotted out. SO is William Winter. SO
are lot Of people" who were known
to the company, but known only in
fashion-haphazardly and vaguely In a
personal way and mostly through books,
books written by the departed ones or
books written about them.
1t Is an interesting fact that more
than one investigation of Ticknor's rev
elations" have shown that the informa-
ton he conveyed was found in almost
precisely the same form IN books OF ref
erence easily available. What a good
workman in the medium business can
do with q few reference books TO Gre
ate atmosphere Is really amazing,
though It's an old story and should be
familiar to about one hundred and nine
million people out of our one hundred
and ten-idiots always excepted.
In one checkup made of Ticknor's 8
"evidential material 1t was found that
the recollections and suggestions pre-
sented by him in a trance to much
impressed subject were contained in
four reference books and an old New
York City Directory or two. all avail
able In the New York Public Library
Old New York City Directories running
back to the eos and the sos are
hot stuff in the mediums game and if
there is one thing investigation has
found 1t is that Black Hawk. unlettered
savage that he is. is strong on street
addresses and such precise data. This
is regarded as curious because spiritist
investigators tell you that the hardest
matter "to get across as mediums
work is such information as Is con-
tanned in exact ages. exact street ,ad-
dresses and so on.
Meeting tho ''Tests."
Other tests Of Ticknor's performance
have revealed that Black Hawk. speak
ing to his audience, not communing
crudest OF pidgin Indian. the me love
you all and me make big noise for good
people" kind of patter. to a sonorous
quotation from Shakespeare or TO
phrases that are often stitled in their
overdressed, overprecise English. The
Hawk isn't supposed to know much Eng
lish. A little French and lot OF In
diana that's his llngual repertoire, but
he dashes off a few swinging periods at
times that wouldn't disgrace old Sam
Johnson at his ponderousest.
Nobody has ever bothered to check
up the Colonel to any extent. The Col
onel Is just as an old fussbudget who
doesn't seem to know much interesting
biography but who has an ante bellum
talent for the ballyhoo that brings on
the smooth worker. That's Black Hawk.
It's Black Hawk who calls up William
Winter" and NAT Wills'' and goodness
knows how many more, while many
wealthy. and possibly important. persons
who discarded their rattles half a life
time ago sit and draw their breath In
with n kissing sound and clinch their
fingers and murmur "Oh, oh, oh" and
think tremendous thoughts that some
how canot get themselves expressed In
mere commonplace words.
This Is all done In secret--or II IS
supposed to be secret. Whenever the
Association to Advance Psychic Knowl-
edge has a new ''test' to submit its pet
medium to they call a meeting. 1t is
held sometimes in a private house and
sometimes in the Biltmore ghostery.
Usually there Is a feed, after which
Ticknor Is put to the test. AS ex-
planned to this reporter yesterday the
tests are of various kinds They
brought a Harvard professor down and
sicked him on to Ticknor. the prof
having fixed up lot of tricked ques-
tions. Ticknor won easily, answering
everything, Harvard and its staff being
practically unknown, of course.
Never Caught with Goods.
Conan Doyle, incoming through the
States. tried out the great Ticknor and
pronounced him the goods; even went
home and sold him to the British Psychic
Club. Various members and groups of
members. bankers and lawyers of cool,
calm minds, frame lists of questions and
shoot them at Ticknor or Black Hawk,
IL you will, and always with the result
that I'VE are astounded." Always. Mr..
Ticknor meet the tests without fall"
They have never caught him with the
goods In all Of the shiver parties that
have been held, and these have been 60
Ing on for three or four years.
Ticknor himself did not take the air