SPIRITS AND FORTUNETELLING.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 February 1918, Page 5

SPIRITS AND FORTUNETELLING.

MINISTER RECEIVES A DEPUTATION. A firm refusal was given by the Hon. T. M. Wilford to a deputation which waited upon him on behalf of the National Association of Spiritualist 'Churches of New Zealand, with a request that the law bo amended in such a way that genuine spirit mediums might be recognised, and might not be prosecuted for practising. Mr. W r . C. Nation, for the deputation, said that the reason why the association had been formed was in order that mediums might be protected. It was admitted that there were many charlatans claiming to be mediums, but out of some twp htuidred professing mediums the association recognised only twenty, and he claimed that they practised in good faith. They were not doing the thing to make money. In the course of his reply, Mr Wilford said that he would not d/scuss whether there was or was not any foundation for spiritualistic beliefs, but he was not yet convinced that they were right. He pointed out to the deputation that no medium was in any danger of punishment by the courts in this country unless for foretelling the future —"telling fortunes" —for fees. Nothing else that a medium did in the course of his work as a medium could make him liable to a penalty under the law.