158 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



moral capacities in the mind to which it owes its origin. Much more is 

 absurd, puerile and disgusting, infinitely below the grade of the human pro- 

 ductions of the same persons from whom it professedly comes. Yet the 

 spiritual revelation has given us nothing of such extraordinary value or 

 novelty as to stamp it, in the judgment of unprejudiced minds, as of super- 

 mundane production. Dr. Bell alluded to a treatise which had been put into 

 his hands by an earnest spiritualist, purporting to be the work of Thomas 

 Paine, the author of "The Age of Eeason," etc., which was thought would 

 carry conviction to any body, as it purported to be a full explanation of 

 the formation and changes of this earth by one who, from Ms situs, must 

 know all about it. The truth was that the work was the production of some 

 mind, celestial or mundane, ignorant of the very first rudiments of chemical 

 philosophy, in which the most ridiculous blunders were made on every page 

 in matters which are as demonstrable as mathematics, and where, of course, 

 the answer can not be made that the revelation was too high for common 

 readers. Nor does Dr. Bell believe, from his observations, that the waters 

 from this fountain ever reach a higher level than their source. The most 

 elevated specimen of the spiritual literature would no doubt be found in the 

 communications from Swedenborg and Lord Bacon, in Judge Edmond's and 

 Dr. Dexter's first and second volumes. Yet whoever reads the very elegant 

 and powerful preliminary treatises of these gentlemen, which Dr. Bell thought 

 would compare favorably with any writings of the kind ever published, 

 would not be able to feel that Swedenborg and Lord Bacon, after their nearly 

 one and more than two centuries' residence respectively, amid the culture and 

 refined senses of the superior spheres, had more than equaled their unpre- 

 tending amanuenses still in "the vale of tears." Dr. Bell concluded by the 

 expression of his full conviction that, while the faith in spirits must be given 

 up as being connected with these facts, it was a topic, whether regarded as a 

 physical novelty, or even as a delusion, cutting deeply into the very religious 

 natures of our people, which was worth our fullest examination. There were 

 great, novel, interesting fads here. They had not been treated fairly and 

 respectful!}?- as they should have been. The effect was that the community 

 knowing that here were facts, if human senses could be trusted at all, went 

 away from those who should have thrown light upon the mysteries, but who 

 would or could not, to those who gave some explanation, even if it was one 

 which uprooted all previous forms of religious faith. He hoped that the 

 members of this Association, who were as much required to examine this 

 topic as any order of men except, perhaps, the clergy, would not be afraid 

 of looking it in the face from any apprehensions of ridicule or of degrading 

 their dignity. 



Dr. Gray inquired if there were any perceptible effects produced upon the 

 feelings or health of the mediums by the exercise of this power. 



Dr. Bell replied that his inquiries of them led him to suppose that there 

 were no palpable influences from this cause. 



Dr. Cutler wished to know if Dr. Bell supposed that the medium was con- 

 scious of what was passing in the mind of the questioner. 



Dr. Bell thought such was not the case. The mediums all concur (and 



