Bailey the Humbug.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 16 April 1910, Page 4

Bailey the Humbug.

-——« diaries Uailey, -tlio medium for aport.s, who visited Wellington some time ago, and left without convincing many people, lias fallen in very badly at Grenoble, Franco, says the "Free Lance." Uailey's practice has been, as most of tile .New Zealand public know, to submit himself to a more or less perfunctory search, and then, having been placed in some gauze cage, to produce certain articles, generally a .small bird, or eggs, or a libre-made mat, alleging the same to have been "apports" from India, tlio Malay States, or any other foreign country. Bailey never ventured to produce a local tui, nor hen's eggs, nor even an up-to-date copy of a daily paper from a, distance.' Tlie strong clement of doubt which existed in the minds of the Wellington public About Bailey's "seance 'tests" and "apports" has been quite justified by the news, published this week, from Grenoble. Uailey stands revealed as an arrant humbug, and the cJiarge is made this time not by enemies of Spiritualism, but by its friends. At Grenoble, it has been saitisfactorvily proved that Bailey, the supposed medium, bought from a bird-dealer thosmall birds which he afterwards at a seance, produced as "apports" from India. The bird-dealer not only identified the birds, but also recognised in Bailey the man who had purchased them. The most pleasant thing ibout the whole distasteful business is the fact that Mr W. C. Nation, of Levin, a. prominent New Zealand Spiritualist, and one who stood loyally beside Bailey through his Wellington "tests" is the person who has now come forward in print to let the public have the news of Bailey's bowl-out. Mr Nation, having satisfied himself as to Bailey's duplicity, is anxious to acquaint the public of his change of belief in the alleged medium. The Free Lance goes on to sav that the public will appreciate Mr Nation's action in this exposure. Where they will hardly agree with Mr Nation is in his efforts to class Bailey amongst those religionists who, having made shipwreck of faith, bring disrepute upon their creed. Unfortunately, Bailey cannot fairly be placed in that class. | Whilst the average religionist who fails may have been a trier every time, the public may well refuse to believe that diaries Bailey ever was what 'lie claims to he. The evidence goes to discredit all his spiritualistic pretensions.