ESSAY-REVIEWS m 



harmony which we hope should be the normal effluence of the 

 mechanism worked by that lofty angel ? 



But we admit that Sir Oliver claims to have found some of 

 the steps by which he argues the existence of superior intelli- 

 gences. For instance he says, " It is unreasonable that the soul 

 should jump out of existence when the body is destroyed. We 

 ourselves are not limited to the few years that we live on this 

 earth. We shall go on without it. We shall certainly continue to 

 exist, we shall certainly survive. Why do I say that? I say it 

 on definite scientific grounds. I know that certain friends of 

 mine still exist because I have talked with them. . . . And I have 

 conversed with them as 1 could converse through a telephone 

 with anyone in this audience now." We wish that he would 

 give the details ; but indeed honestly admit that even if he did 

 we should remain sceptical. A little while ago we saw a stately 

 lady, with the remains of considerable beauty, living in a poor 

 apartment far removed from Greece. And yet she told us that 

 she was the Queen of that country. Now we do not imply that 

 our seven Knights are as she is ; but our experience in this old 

 world does not allow us to accept every statement that is made 

 — certainly not if it is unaccompanied by the most careful details 

 as to time and place and person, or if we are not privileged 

 to see the experiments. Sir Oliver says, " You must have evi- 

 dence, of course. The evidence, so far, is recorded in volumes 

 of the Society for Psychical Research." Alas, not all the writers 

 in these volumes are so sanguine as Sir Oliver Lodge. For 

 example, Count Perovsky-Petrovo-Solovovo reviews in the 

 Proceedings of that Society for January 1914, the book by 

 Mr. Hereward Carrington on Personal Experiences in Spiritualism, 

 etc. He quotes, on page 184, a sentence by M. Aksakoff: " In 

 the decline of life I ask myself sometimes, ' Have I in truth done 

 well to have devoted so much toil and time and money to the 

 study and the publication of facts in this domain? Have I not 

 struck into a blind road ? — followed an elusive hope ? Have 

 I not wasted my experience with no result to justify all my 

 pains?'" M. Aksakoff, nevertheless, does not regret this devo- 

 tion of his whole life, but the reviewer adds, " Mr. Carrington 

 seems to agree entirely with this optimistic attitude. May I add 

 that I do so but partially ? Certainly, the more I advance in 

 age, the more I am inclined to think that the road is blind 

 indeed and the hope elusive. I wish I had spent the energy 



