Page 1 Advertisements Column 7

Evening Star, Issue 4292, 28 November 1876, Page 1

DR. SLADE AND SPIRIT MESSAGES. (Manchester Examiner, September 18 .) In the discussion on Spiritualism at the medium" of extraordinary powers. Believers in Spiritualism claimed that these powers were superratural, and that the manifestations produced by the "medium n ought to be accepted as a proof of the truth ot their assertions ; and even men who had no sympatny with the Spiritualists admitted formances which they could not understand lor explain. But what they failed to see has juuii C jrana we trickery of Dr. Slade have been both exposed in the most complete manner. T>_„r -r»_ » . rVZ va I P, 0I l kin - The manifestation which has made I blade for a time fameus is thus described by lit sitting-room Slade and the witness sit at a four-legged table. Slade produces a common slate on which there is seen to be no writing, and a pieoe of slate penoil. He against the table, the little piece of Blate pencil being supposed to be between the slate and the flat uader-surface of the table The slate is so closely applied to the table tween them in order to write. A noise as of writing is now heard proceeding from the slate, which is held by Slade or by the witness, and the spirit is supposed to be at work. The slate is then removed, and a message is found written either on the under-surface of the slate or on the surface which was facing the lower surfaee of the table. Professor Lankester simulated considerable agitation in order to mislead the "medium, whom he all the while kept under the keenest observation, with the result, as he says, of finding the strongest reason to believe that the " spirit messages" himself, the first being written in some manner not then apparent while the slate was held beneath the table, and the others the slate rested on his knee, and eoncealed from the witness by the edge of the table Tbe idea, then, which occurred to Professor Lankester, was that, with the exception of the first message, all communications alleged to proceed from the spirits were placed on table. This was but a suspicion, s» far; but it was to be put to the test. Professor Lankester paid another visit wtthDr. Donkin of Queen's College, Oxford, with the intention of seizing the slate at the critical moment when Made professed that it was entirely untouched. If the writing were already on the slate before the spirits were supposed to have begun their work he considered he would have a demonstration of the truth of his hypothesis whioh would be convincing to persons not already lost to reason. He thoroughly carried out his in!en^^\." S ! ade '" he sa y s ' "allowed me to hold the slate against the table in order to receive the spirit writing, saying that the spirit would probably write more distinctly for me than for him. The Blate had been cleaned and was now declared by Slade to be devoid of writing, but writing was to appear on it in the usual way, accompanied by the scratching noise of the pencil. There had been the usual delay and fumbling on blade s part, when I put out my hand and immediately seized the slate away, saying, lou have already written on the slate. I have watched you doing it each time.' And written, as I had anticipated." Dr. Donkin fully confirms this statement, and adds some particulars of his own. During the time in which the spirits were believed to be writing the first message, he saw a slight to and fro movement of Slade's arm, with some contraction of the flexor tendons in the perfect and distorted, requiring the interpretation of an expert, and the result, in his opinion, was in accordance with the theory that the agent ÜBed a minute piece of slate pencil, probably held under the nail of the middle finger. Again, before the slate was replaced for the spirits to write again, Dr. Doikinsaw Slade's arm moving exactly as though he were wiiting on something placed on his knee, and it was then, in his belief, that the message which was to appear to come from the spirits was written. We shall, of course, be told that this exposure exposes nothing, for there seems no depth of credulity to which believers in Spiritualism will not descend ; but sensible people will be satisfied with it as another proof that the marvels nf " moAiiimr, " n .« „*i. -11 just like the conjuror's trick, examples of the ease with which the quicknesß of the hand may deceive the eye. THE FIRE BRIGADE DEMON. STRATION. a letter was read from the Hokitika Brigad requesting to be entered for all events upon impossible for the Mayor to attend in consequence of two of his employees being in the team. The secretary was instructed to write to the Mayor and thank him for withdrawing in favor of his men. A letter waß also read, and accepted with thanks, from Mr M. Hume, conductor of the Artillery Band, stating that he bad arranged for the Band the foUowinff pieces, which they will play at the demonstration :-" Grand QuiokMarch,"introducing the "Tramp of the Fire Brigade;" "Fhc-Floc," firemen's galop; "New Zealand National Anthem," which obtained the ' Saturday Advertiser' prize; also other appropriate pieces. The chairman undertook to wait on Mr Conyers relative to a platform being placed on the Ocean Beach Railway at the Anderson Bay road entrance to the grounds. It was decided that the Volunteers of Dunedin be asked through Stavely to give their patronage to the demonstration, and also if they will join in the torchlight procession. A nice little anecdote is told of the Empress Eugene, who alighted on Chislehurst Common the other day in the midst of a pouring rain, and resigned her carriage to *n po m l . ma , n who n ad been suddenly taken ill. The Empress walked all the way home {For continuation q/ New we Fourth Page.*