CLAIRVOYANCE AND CRIME.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 6, 2 October 1907, Page 5

CLAIRVOYANCE AND CRIME.

MURDER RE-ENACTED. CRIMINAL SAID' TO BE AT SEA. DETECTIVES AND .MEDIUM. By Telegraph.—Association.-CopyriEht. London, Scptombor 30. On Soptembcr 11' a murdor took place at Camden Town, London, the victim boing a woman named Emily Dimmock, who was also known as Shaw. Tho police were at fault, being totally unable to find a clue to the. murdor. Seeing no way to overcomo the difficulty, tho detectives entrusted with tho caso were at length induced to accept aid from a clairvoyant. } The medium was thrown into a trance, and while lying on the bed on which the corpso was found gave a startlingly -vivid reconstruction of the crime, and declared that the murderer of Dimmock is now voyaging to Melbourne. POSSIBILITIES OF THE OCCULT.' ME. WILLIAM M'LEAN'S VIEWS. If, as stated, the London police au- v thorities have attempted to securo a result through tlio medium of clairvoyanco, no doubt tho fact will be clainicd to be evidence of a much«dcfined *idvancement in the recognition of occult means to gain a material end. Tho subject is a'fascinating'one, and a few remarks from Mr. William M'Lean, President of the Wellington Spiritualists' Association, should bo read with interest.' » As regards recent proof'that there aro more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy;" Mr. M'Lean quotes the now famous case of Archdeacon Collie, of Stockton, and Mr. Maskelyne, tho clever conjurer. The' Archdeacon, an Anglican, held that forms of manifestations could be made to appear through the person of a medium—forms ablo' to move about and talk intelligently. Mr. Maskelype, declared that lie could produce phenomena precisely the same, presumably by his. art (trickery), whereupon the Archdeacon said he would pay ,£IOOO if Mr. Maskelyne could produco the samo phenomena under, similar conditions; Mr. Maskelyno accepted the challenge. Mr. l Alfred Wallaco and other leading Spiritualists were present at the test, which Mr. Maskelyne, claimed to havo succeeded in, but Archdeacon Collie maintained that the conditions had not been fulfilled, and refused to pay the money. Mr. Maskelyne thereupon made certain derogatory statements as to tho Archdeacon's "proper status in the Church, and instituted an action for tlio recovery of the -i£looo then lying in the baiik, to which the Archdeacon replied with a counter-action for .£IOOO for defamation of character; After an interesting trial the, court hold that Mr. Maskelyne had not complied with the conditions and dismissed the case. The other ended in the Archdeacon being awarded >675 damages and costs. "Chlirvoviinco," said Mr. M'Lean, "has been'admitted a branch of proved science, though, admitting that, it is difficult' to prove anything by such mean?. Murder will out, M'o all know; but why is that so? According, to onr belief it is so bccausc tho murdered man, though dead in the flesh, is not so in the spirit, and that spirit is ever about seeking a medium to'assist justice. Frequently, of'course, they reach, tho other world and ,aro so satisfied with the better conditions fliat they rest there, hut there are, undoubtedly, instances where the. spirit returns to assist in restoring property and doing justice, and with the, aid of a good clairvoyant is • enabled to present a picture of the incident under investigation. . ' "As a proof .there can be none better than that on which the whole of modern Spiritualism is based—the murdor of the pedlar, Brosiian, at New York, in 1848. Brosnan was murdered •and his body was placed in a cellar. Some time afterwards a family by tho name of Fex took possession of the house,' and two of the girls being mccliumistic, tho spirit of tho dead pedlar manifested itself by means of raps, informing them of the - murder and tlio spot whero tho body was con'cealcd. Search was made, and, sure enough, the body 'of the pedlar was 'found, though his rauvderer was not •discovered, the lapse of time between : tho crime and its discovery having given him a long start. ' , "From' that time numerous cases of murder have been assisted in the solving by clairvoyance, and quite recently tho Betrttive Department of Germany has resorted to this method to assist them • in the elucidation of serious criminal cases. "As to this efficacy of euro by psychic force, :I would refer yo.u to the Juno number of the .'Phsychtc Kescarch,' where a case is quoted of a lady in Paris who had been confined to her bed foi; twenty-seven months. She had been under tho care of several of the best medical men, who had diagnosed her case as one of advanced consumption, and gave no hope of, recovery. tProfessor Magin visited the woman, and treated her hypnotically. After he produced a deep sleep, a second personality took possession of her, arid throughworking on that personality—tho subconscious self—a complete cure was effected in less than three months. Professor Magin invited the medical men who had given her up, to visit ithe invalid;, read their diagnoses and showed them, a photograph of her as she appeared in hoi' wasted condition; and then triumphantly introduced the lndy, who testified to the complete cure wlueh had been effected." CHIEF DETECTIVE'S OPINION. Tho text of the aboye 'cablegram was ridiculed by Chief Detective M'Grath, who held the opinion that someone had been "having a loan of" the cable man. To his mind it was impossible that a detective could liave enlisted the aid of a clairvoyant, unless, as has often happvned ivhen a big sensation has Wn on, the clairvoyant had made a statement in nnblic that he or she could give definite information. Under such conditions lie could understand a detective interviewing the clairvoyant, and, though an unbeliever, listening to what" tho clairvoyant had to say. and investigating it as he would any other rumour. The clairvoyant had never, to his knowledge, been used for such a purposo as that indicated in the'cablegram anywhere in Great Britain or anywhere else. Tho authorities o? Scotland Yard had set their face against this sort of thing from the outset. v