Preliminary Report of the Commission Appointed by the University of Pennsylvania Part 26

The bright spirit world is everywhere And to each is appointed some care To guide earth's children on their way Amid the poor, as well as the gay We dwell in fields of labor and love Guiding thousands in true relms [_sic_] above.

Many things I would love to rehea.r.s.e Which would be written for me in verse But so many are here to await Their joyous messages to relate Many friends with me are ever near To guide our brother Horace dear.--

By Blind Harry.

For a gentleman who gives his name W---- H----.'

The sealed envelope scarcely needed to be opened at the back for interior inspection; its exterior bore ample and all-sufficing evidence that the seals had been broken, and the gum softened; the fingers which had again pressed down the gummed edge were not as unsullied as 'Sister Belle's' white rose.

This communication from the Spirit world gave me pause. Here was food for reflection. It settled many points in dispute among the scientific Ghosts. First: they were all right on the question of s.e.x; but Hare, Combe and Cornelia Winnie were wrong as to color. Sister Belle is not a negress, her hair is not black and in kinks, it is golden, and its curls are three feet in length, moreover, a _white_ rose is her emblem. And what a sad domestic tragedy have I not here unearthed. In reading between the lines of these verses we learn that what darkened the life of this true and loving woman was a mercenary husband, and that this husband survived her, and in his unhallowed greed sold her body, and this, too, at so exorbitant a price, that it required the united purses of three doctors to induce him to close the bargain.

Secondly: by the message from W---- H----, that most sedate and respectful of all respectful colored servants, the moralist may learn anew the truth that Death is a leveller of all distinctions. Not even when the Emperor Charlemagne appeared at a Materializing Seance in a dress-coat and standing collar, and apologetically remarked that 'Kings leave their ermine, sir, at the door of the tomb,' not even then was this great truth driven so profoundly home as when W---- H---- greeted me by my Christian name, and hailed me 'brother.'

Need it be added that I gratefully remitted to Medium Number Three a double fee, and do yet consider myself many times her debtor? Her grat.i.tude to me found expression in another outburst of song.

Had the ident.i.ty of the original owner of the skull been my sole object, I might well have rested content. I had found the owner, and she had claimed her own. She was 'Sister Belle,' and confessed to that rare combination of golden hair with black eyes, like Lady Penelope Rich, Sir Philip Sydney's first love. But my duty as a member of this Commission compelled me to complete my investigations, and make application to the fourth and last Medium for answering Sealed Letters.

As I have stated, this Medium is also a woman, and resides in Ma.s.sachusetts. Her circular directs the sealed letters to be 'well sealed or st.i.tched, so that they may not be opened until returned.'

To this Medium, Mrs. Eliza A. Martin, Oxford, Ma.s.s., was sent the same letter to W---- H---- that had been sent to her predecessor, of the same name, in Columbus, and it was put in an envelope, merely gummed and sealed, without the silk st.i.tches.

Within a few days I received the following note, enclosing my sealed envelope: 'A message awaits your order from W---- H----. Please state if you recognize Mrs. M.F.H.--Several friends came and that name was mentioned.... There are some words in an unknown tongue.'

The minute that I looked at the returned envelope, I felt like standing uncovered, as in the presence of genius, a genius before which Mediums One, Two and Three paled. Nothing could excel the unsullied virginity of the seals, or of the gummed s.p.a.ces between them. I felt that I must proceed with the utmost caution. With a very sharp penknife I then began to cut the edge of the envelope at one end. Scarcely had the knife been drawn very slowly more than the half of an inch before it became manifest that the edge of the envelope presented more resistance than the simple fold of paper would make. I stopped and examined the severed edges. Very delicate but very distinct traces were visible of a thin mucilage, perhaps of rice-water or of diluted gum-tragacanth. How exquisite and how light are the touches of ethereal, Spiritual fingers!

After all the trouble with my seals, when, emulating Dr. Watt's _Busy Bee_, so neat I spread my wax,' it was beginning to dawn upon me that clairvoyant eyes, quite as much as our own, require Heaven's broad suns.h.i.+ne on black ink and white paper.

The transmission of the fee brought in a few days the following:

'Dictated by the Spirit of W---- H----.

To H.H. Furness. I found things very different here from what I expected. I think that is almost the universal experience. The half has not been told, nor can it ever be, for no language known to humanity can convey any definite knowledge of the mysteries of the Spiritual Life.

I remain the same toward you and all my earthly friends. Am with you frequently. Was present in your Library with you one day recently. I send my love to M---- F---- and to all others who knew me in earth-life.

A friend whom we both know and respect will pa.s.s over to this side before long.

Will come to you again.'

I cannot but think that all will agree in estimating this communication, with its adroit generalization, and in its general tone as superior to any thus far received. On another sheet of paper was written:

'There is a Spirit Friend present, who gives the name of Marie St.

Clair. Earth-life had not much pleasure for her, and a course of dissapation [_sic_] and sin resulted in an untimely death. Born of French parentage, and inheriting some of the peculiar characteristics of that people might perhaps furnish some excuse. This Spirit says furthermore, you have something which once belonged to her in your possession.

"Behold this ruin, 'tis a skull Once of etherial spirit full--"

"Par quel ordre du Ciel, que je ne puis compendre Vous dis-je plus que je ne dois?"

Here is evidently 'a spirit of no common rate,' of whom we might well desire further acquaintance, albeit at the cost of losing golden-haired, black-eyed Sister Belle. But why should we talk of 'loss?' If, as Banquo says, 'there's husbandry in Heaven,' why should we not in the 'Summer-land' find one and the same skull, with frugal economy, given to two owners?

Desirous of submitting the mother-wit of this Medium to the test of st.i.tched envelopes, I wrote the following:--'Is Marie St. Clair pleased in having her skull carefully treasured here in my Library? Does it gratify her, as a Spirit, that it is mounted on black marble? Does she ever hover over it?'

This was placed in an envelope, gummed, and sealed with five seals in the ordinary, easy-going way, and marked No. 1.

The very same questions were repeated on another piece of paper and put in an envelope, which was st.i.tched securely with silk, the st.i.tches pa.s.sing through both the envelope and the paper, and carefully concealed under the sealing wax. This was marked No. 2, and in the note accompanying these two envelopes, the Medium was requested to sit with No. 1 first. The Test was the same as that to which Dr. Mansfield had been subjected, and to which he had succ.u.mbed.

The mail soon returned both envelopes, with this note:--'The reply comes to us in the affirmative to both envelopes. There is quite a communication for you from same Spirit Friend.'

A close examination of the edges of the envelopes soon revealed the edge at which they had been opened and closed again. That edge has been preserved intact for future verification, if required, and the envelopes were opened by cutting the other edges. The seals had not been removed; as, in fact, there was no need of removing them. The paper containing the questions had not been extracted from No. 2; it still remained firmly st.i.tched to the front of the envelope. Yet the Medium had evidently read it. Her words are 'the reply comes in the affirmative to both envelopes,' which is a good, fair answer. I was puzzled, it must be confessed. Suddenly it occurred to me to try how far one could look into the contents of the paper, supposing the end of the envelope to be open.

I tried it, and lo! enough can be easily read to make out that No. 2 is a repet.i.tion of No. 1. The needle had missed taking up all the folds of the paper!

The communication from Marie St. Clair, which accompanied these envelopes, runs thus:--'To H.H. Furness. Your kindly nature has often drawn the Spirit of Marie to your side. I consider myself indebted to you for certain acts which you will understand. Not that the poor inanimate thing which you have so kindly treated, is of itself of much account, but your kindness has often drawn me to your side in moments when you little dreamed I were near. Had I met in material existence one like yourself my past might have been far different. In this beautiful life, the sources and courses of all earthly misfortunes and sins appear to us like a figure seen in a dream. The lowest plane of Spiritual life is as much superior to earthly existence as sunlight is superior to starlight. From Marie St. Clair. Please inform Mrs. Martin why you so carefully preserved the skull, and where you obtained it, and all you know about it, and oblige yours truly, E.A. Martin. There is an acrostic upon your name waiting for you here from Marie.'

If the fair and frail Marie appears somewhat cautious in direct allusions to her skull, and to her 'earth-life,' it is certainly to her credit that she seems to have retained no taint of mercenary greed. She made no demand or reference to a fee, and a second letter had to be sent to her Medium to learn the amount of my debt. This is her reply:--'Your kind favour came duly to me, and as your message to your Spirit Friend was delivered previously, that is, as soon as it was written, I had no further effort to make than to convey the following to you:

'Amants, heureux amants, voulez-vous voyager! Que ce soit aux rives prochaines.

Patience, je n'en ai pas quand je suis si pres et si loin de vous.

Ah! tout ce qu'il y a dans le coeur de crainte, de douleur, de desespoir, j'ai tout devine; tout souffert, je puis tout exprimer maintenant surtout la joie. Adieu! Marie St. Clair.'

Here end my investigations into the power of Spirits to answer sealed questions.

In every instance the envelopes had been opened and reclosed; it is therefore scarcely necessary to add that every instance has borne the stamp of Fraud.

There is yet one other dark chapter, perhaps the darkest of all, which my duty compelled me to read.

I began with Dr. Mansfield, in Boston; let me end with him there.

In addition to the answering of sealed letters sent to him by mail, this Medium exercises his Mediumistic powers on questions propounded to him, or rather to the Spirits through him, at his own home.

His method of work, as described by several highly intelligent observers, is somewhat as follows:--There are two tables in the room of seance, at one of which sits the Medium, at the other the visitor. The visitor at his table writes his question in pencil at the top of a long slip of paper, and, after folding over several times the portion of the slip on which his question is written, gums it down with mucilage and hands it to the Medium, who thereupon places on the folded and gummed portion his left hand, and in a few minutes with his right hand writes down answers to the concealed questions; these answers are marvels of pertinency, and prove beyond a cavil the Clairvoyant or Spiritual powers of the Medium. So remarkable are the results of this phase of Mediums.h.i.+p, that through them and through the high standing and intelligence of those who believe in him, this particular Medium is a tower of Spiritualistic strength. Examine my informants as narrowly as possible, there appeared to be no possibility of fraud. The impression had gradually deepened in my mind that here is an instance of genuine Spiritual power. But the fraudulent character of his dealings with the sealed letters made me fear that _falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus_.

On the 14th of May, 1885, I called on Dr. Mansfield at his house, No. 28 Dartmouth Street, and was ushered into the second story front room--a bedroom. There were, I think, three front windows looking on the street; at the farthest was the Medium's table, so placed sideways to the window, and close to it, that the full light fell on the Medium's left hand, as he sat at it, and faced the middle of the room. In front of the Medium, as he sat at the table with his back to the wall, were the usual writing materials, lead pencils and mucilage bottle, and beyond them, on the edge of the table farthest from the Medium, and between him and the rest of the room, was a row of books, octavos, etc., extending the whole length of the table and terminating in a tin box, like a deed box, with pamphlets on it. When the Medium sits at his table, this row of books is between him and his visitor. The table for the visitor is a small one, near one of the other windows and six or seven feet from the Medium. On this table were a number of strips of paper and a pencil.

The Medium, who did not ask my name, bade me take a seat at the small table and write my question on one of the strips of paper, and then to fold down the paper two or three times.

I sat down and wrote, "Has Marie St. Clair met Sister Belle in the other world?" I then folded that portion of the strip of paper down three times, and told the Medium that it was ready for the mucilage; he came over from his table at once with a brush of mucilage, and spread it abundantly under the last fold. Then, taking the strip between his thumb and forefinger, he walked with it back to his table, keeping it in my sight all the time. As soon as he took his seat and laid the strip on his table before him, I rose and approached his table, so as to keep my paper still in sight; _the row of books entirely intercepted my view of it_. The Medium instantly motioned to me to return to my seat, and, I think, told me to do so. I obeyed, and as I did so could not repress a profound sigh. Why had no one ever told me of that row of books? The Medium did not sit in statue-like repose, but moved his body much, and his arms frequently; his hands I could not see, hidden as they were, behind the row of books. After a minute or two the Medium looked up and said, 'I don't know whether I can get any communication from this Spirit,' a remark which a long experience with Slate-Writing Mediums has taught me to regard as a highly favorable omen, and as an indication that they have read the question and are now about to begin the little game, in which I always take much interest, of experiencing great difficulty in obtaining the 'rapport,' as they term it. Dr. Mansfield frowned, shook his head and a.s.sumed an air of great doubt and perplexity. I was certain that there would be now an ostentatious display of the strip of paper, and sure enough, in a minute more the Medium, strip in hand, came over to my table, and shook his head ominously. He placed his left hand on the portion of the strip containing my question, and began tapping on it with his forefinger.

'Pray, tell me,' I said, 'is that motion of your forefinger voluntary or involuntary?' 'It's my telegraph to 'em,' he replied, 'getting 'em to come.' 'I don't want to weary you,' I rejoined, 'but if that tapping will bring them, _do_ keep it up! I cannot tell you how anxious I am to hear from this Spirit.' He paused, and then made some marks, like cabalistic signs, which are still to be seen on the paper. Then the tapping was resumed. Then more cabalistic signs were made. At last he said, 'Put your left foot against mine, and your left knee against mine, and hook your forefinger into mine, and pull hard.' I did so. 'Stop,' he cried, 'is it Maria?' 'Yes,' I replied, 'that's it, she is called "Marie." It's Marie!' 'I have to go by the sound,' he rejoined. We then pulled forefingers again. 'Stop,' he cried, 'is there a "Saint" about it?' 'Yes,' I answered, 'St. is the first part of the next name! I have so longed to have her come to me.' Dr. Mansfield arose, gathered up the strip and returned to his table. I could go now unopposed and stand by him while he wrote the following: 'I am with you my dear Bro but too xcited to speak for a moment have patience brother and I will do the best I can do to control. Your sister

Marie St. Clair.'

The change in kins.h.i.+p, and its novelty, staggered me somewhat; clearly they manage things differently in the 'Summer-land.' However, I mastered my emotion. 'And now,' I said, 'for the great question,' and was going hastily to my table to write it. 'Stop,' said the Medium, 'you're too excited to ask that question now. Put some other questions first. Then when you are calmer put the important question.' (A clever stroke! He did not know enough of me or of Marie to answer _anything_ definitely--a few intermediate questions might furnish him with many a clue.) 'But, my dear sir,' I cried, 'what _can_ I ask about? I have but one thought in my mind; _that_ engulfs all others. If I don't ask that, I shall have to ask Marie if she minds this pouring rain, or some twaddle about the weather.' 'Well, well, you'd better ask it then, and get it off your mind, and we'll see how far Marie can answer it.' (Here let me recall that stanza in Sister Belle's communication wherein she says:

"My form was sold to doctors three And you have all that's left of me," etc.)

I sat down at my table and wrote: 'Is it really true that Sister Belle's body was sold to three doctors?' I folded it down, carried it to the Medium's table, watched him gum it, and still remained standing at his table, but he immediately and peremptorily waved me to my seat. Again were his hands and my strip of paper, with its _freshly gummed_ fold, completely hidden from sight, behind the row of books. Again the Medium's arms moved. He turned to the window and hastily pulled down the shade. This puzzled me. There was no suns.h.i.+ne to be excluded, it was raining fast outside, the day was unusually dark, and he needed all the light he could get. I turned and looked out of my window, and there in the house just across the narrow street, at a window on a level with ours, and commanding a full view of the Medium's table, sat a woman sewing, with another, I think, standing by her. 'Bravo!' I thought, 'are not the four Cardinal virtues, Temperance, Justice, _Prudence_ and Fort.i.tude?' and then resumed my watch inside. Dr. Mansfield finished writing, and then held up the slip as though for a final revision before handing it to me. A toothpick which he had in his mouth worked energetically from side to side, and he gravely shook his head as in perplexity. 'I don't like this,' he e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed at last, 'I don't want to give it to you. There'll be trouble here. It's very serious. Better let me tear it up.' 'Let me see it,' I cried, 'I promise you I'll be calm,'

and I took the strip from his fingers and read:

'Dear Brother--I fear such was the case--but--I could not say who--I have consulted Dr. Hare--and the far famed Benja Rush, and they agree that the body is not in the earth--I fear darling Belle's body--is in process of being--wired. Marie St. Clair.'