Personal Experiences in Spiritualism - Including the Official Account and Record of the American Palladino Séances

Hereward Carrington

Description

This vintage book contains a summary of the author's experiences and experiments related to spiritualism, with a particular focus on physical phenomena. Spiritualism is a religious movement based on the belief that spirits of the deceased exist and are able to communicate with living people. It began to develop in the 1840s and had reached its peak of popularity by the 1920s, particularly in English-speaking countries. Hereward Carrington (1880 – 1958) was a famous British-born American paranormal investigator and author. His focus was telepathy, and among his subjects were many of the most well-known cases of ostensibly psychic ability of the time. Carrington wrote over 100 books on related subjects during his life. Other notable works by thus author include: “The Physical Phenomena of Spiritualism” (1907), “The Coming Science” (1908), and “Eusapia Palladino and her Phenomena” (1909). Contents include: “Earlier Investigations into Physically Phenomena”, “A Poltergeist in Nova Scotia”, “The Lily Dale Investigation”, “My Experience as a Slate-Writing Medium!”, “Phenomena Witnessed in Private Circles”, “A Séance with De Witt Hough”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with the original text and artwork.

Sujets

• controversial
• Ancient mysteries
• Avatar: The Last Airbender (season 1)
• Spirituality

Informations

• Publié par: Read Books Ltd.
• Date de parution: 22 mars 2021
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781528767736
• Langue: English

Extrait

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES IN SPIRITUALISM
(INCLUDING THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT AND RECORD OF THE AMERICAN PALLADINO S ANCES)
BY
HEREWARD CARRINGTON
AUTHOR OF THE PHYSICAL PHENOMENA OF SPIRITUALISM , EUSAPIA PALLADINO AND HER PHENOMENA , THE COMING SCIENCE , DEATH: ITS CAUSES AND PHENOMENA ( JOINTLY ), ETC .
ILLUSTRATED
Copyright 2018 Read Books Ltd. This book is copyright and may not be reproduced or copied in any way without the express permission of the publisher in writing
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
DEDICATED TO THE HON. EVERARD FEILDING,
WHOSE ACUMEN, CRITICAL JUDGMENT, AND IMPARTIALITY MAKE HIM, IN MY ESTIMATION, AN IDEAL PSYCHICAL RESEARCHER.
E USAPIA P ALLADINO
PREFACE
T HE present volume contains a summary of my experiences and experiments in the physical phenomena of Spiritualism -in that branch of psychic research which deals with the subject-and the reader will notice a curious contrast between Parts I and II of the book. While Part I is almost entirely negative, Part II is equally positive; while the one destroys, the other builds up! This is due to the fact that physical mediums, who present genuine phenomena, are rare indeed; and though, at the present day, I am quite convinced of the reality of such phenomena-and even that materialisation is a certain and positive fact in nature-yet I still believe as firmly as when I wrote The Physical Phenomena of Spiritualism, that ninety-eight per cent of the phenomena are fraudulent. Very rarely can one find a medium presenting genuine manifestations-at least that has been my experience. Yet they are to be found! Eusapia Palladino is one of these; and I have devoted Part II to a detailed account of her American s ances, hitherto unpublished. This cannot fail, I think, to be of very great interest to every serious student of psychic research, and particularly to the student of the physical phenomena.
While I do not pretend to speak upon these questions from the point of view of the scientific expert in any other field of research, nevertheless I have endeavoured to render some useful service, merely by reason of long-continued interest, and a close study of the evidence so far adduced. In speaking of M. Aksakof, Mr Myers said of him ( Proceedings , vi., p. 674):
I wish to point out how few men there are . . . who, without pretending to exceptional scientific attainments, have expended on these problems the persevering sagacity, the lifelong devotion by which, in common life, as in exact inquiries, all great results must needs be won.
And again, in speaking of the work of Mr Frank Podmore, Mrs Sidgwick said ( Proceedings , vol. xxv., p. 9):
What it is not easy to find is a man of unflagging energy in keeping his knowledge up to date, unflagging belief in the importance of the investigation, who can yet put himself outside it and view it from an impartial, impersonal, and mainly critical standpoint. All real scientific investigators, of course-however sanguine and enthusiastic-endeavour to maintain a critical attitude; but there is a distinct advantage, at least in investigations so difficult and elusive as ours, in having, so to speak, a professional critic.
One s value, therefore, may not perhaps be negligible, even if he be not a specialist in physics, or chemistry, or psychology. I say this merely by way of personal apology.
One word more. The value of these researches is constantly being called into question-their utility; the cui bono? objection. More and more one hears this, I think, in certain quarters; and many of us who devote the greater part of our lives to this work are constantly reproached for wasting time and energy upon a dubious inquiry, which, if applied in other directions, might in some measure benefit self and humanity. In reply to this objection, I cannot do better, perhaps, than to quote-and conclude in-the words of Count Aksakof, when he said ( Animism and Spiritism, vol. i., pp. 40-1):
In the decline of life I ask myself sometimes, Have I in truth done well to have devoted so much time and toil and money to the study and the publication of facts in this domain? Have I not struck into a blind road?-followed an illusive hope? Have I not wasted my experience, with no result to justify all my pains? Yet always I seem to hear the same reply: A life on earth can have no higher aspiration than to demonstrate the transcendental nature of man s being-to prove him called to a destiny loftier than the phenomenal existence he knows. I cannot, then, regret that I have devoted my whole life to the pursuance of this aim; although it be by methods which science shuns and spurns-methods which I hold far trustier than any other which science has to show. And if it be in the end my lot to have laid one stone to that temple of the Spirit, upbuilt from century to century by men true of heart, this will be the highest and the only recompense which ever I strove to gain.
H. C.
CONTENTS
PART I
EARLIER INVESTIGATIONS INTO PHYSICAL PHENOMENA
I. A POLTERGEIST IN NOVA SCOTIA
II. THE LILY DALE INVESTIGATION
III. MY EXPERIENCE AS A SLATE-WRITING MEDIUM!
IV. PHENOMENA WITNESSED IN PRIVATE CIRCLES
V. A S ANCE WITH DE WITT HOUGH
VI. THE BANGS SISTERS SPIRIT PICTURES
VII. THE GREAT AMHERST MYSTERY
VIII. REPORT OF A PERSONAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE GREAT AMHERST MYSTERY
PART II
EUSAPIA PALLADINO S AMERICAN S ANCES
IX. INTRODUCTION
X. THE AMERICAN S ANCES
XI. NOTE ON THE SITTINGS HELD AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
XII. THEORETICAL DISCUSSION
APPENDIX-THE NEED OF A PSYCHICAL LABORATORY
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Eusapia Palladino
The Auditorium, Lily Dale
The Rostrum, Lily Dale
Spirit photograph taken by A. Norman, showing the faces of various so-called guides
A spirit bride -showing the method of faking a negative
A spirit bull-dog
Photo of a spirit a l Bien Boa
Photo of a large, transparent hand
The haunted house, in The Great Amherst Mystery
Forest Temple Woods Meeting, Lily Dale
Eusapia seated at the s ance table
General view of the s ance room, and position of sitters
The stocks apparatus
Interior of the cabinet
A square, black object at the end of a long neck
Spring balance used to test Eusapia, and two possible methods of trickery by employing a hair
Impression of fingers in the box of clay
A queer object which appeared in good light at one of Eusapia s s ances
Black heads which emerged from the cabinet close to the floor
Radiograph of fingers on X-ray plate; and photograph of the photographer s fingers who wrapped it up
Wire screen made to cover cabinet and side of s ance table nearest medium
Apparatus intended to duplicate Sir William Crookes experiments with D. D. Home-the spring-balance
PART I
EARLIER INVESTIGATIONS INTO PHYSICAL PHENOMENA
I
A POLTERGEIST IN NOVA SCOTIA
P ERHAPS the most baffling as well as the most interesting phenomena in the whole history of spiritualism and psychic investigation are the so-called poltergeist cases-in which bells are rung, furniture upset, crockery broken, etc., without any apparent cause. Many of them have been explained, and shown to be due to simple trickery-generally on the part of a young boy or girl; but, on the other hand, many cases remain inexplicable, and these can only be regarded as historical enigmas about which nothing definite can be said one way or the other. New cases of this character are rare. Usually, when a member of the S.P.R. visits the haunted spot, in person, it is long after the occurrences have ceased; or they cease immediately on his arrival! Very rarely can we find phenomena which continue to manifest after an investigator has arrived upon the scene; and because of the fact that such was the case in the present narrative it possesses some originality and charm.
During the last three months of the year 1906 and the first two months of 1907 reports of these phenomena had steadily been sent to the American S.P.R. by a Judge of the Probate Court, living in Windsor, Nova Scotia. These reports were carefully written, and, as will be seen, extended over a considerable period of time. The witness seemed an intelligent man, and the reports, though they indicated great credulity, were carefully drawn up. What could more strongly invite a thorough, first-hand investigation? The nature of the phenomena, too, was most striking-physical manifestations of all sorts, apports, independent voices, apparitions seen in various localities, telekinetic phenomena, etc.; and this not in one house merely, but in nearly every house and shop in the entire village! The whole town seemed to be haunted! An idea of the character of the phenomena may be seen from the following descriptive extracts from Judge X. s reports:
. . . I think the phenomena occurring here should be investigated without delay. Various strange things have been happening for months. Light, and even very heavy, articles have been moved quite a distance without contact, in various stores in this town, in daylight. The last of March I saw the headless figure of a man in the cellar of one of these stores. The groans of the figure were very distressing. I am convinced there was no trickery. . . . About a fortnight ago I bought two empty boxes from a store close to my residence. In crossing the street to come to my land, the two young men bringing the boxes on a hand-cart noticed that their load was becoming heavier, and when they came opposite my yard and attempted to lift one of the boxes off the cart, it was as much as they could do to lift it. I