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SOME OBSEEVATIONS ON TABLE-MOVING. 



By William Archer, F.L.S. 



The mystery which appears to surround the experiments con- 

 nected with Table-Moving, has prevented many intelligent 

 persons from arriving at a satisfactory conclusion as to the 

 true cause of such singular results ; and the celebrated Faraday 

 has failed to convey to other than scientific minds that precise 

 information upon the subject which he himself may be pre- 

 sumed to possess, — while others have involved the question in 

 technical language, quite unintelligible to the public. The 

 real nature of the case appears to me to be capable of a simple 

 elucidation, which I will endeavor to place clearly before the 

 Eoyal Society, in the hope that it will, at the least, create a 

 discussion apon this curious and interestion subject. 



It must be premised that whenever the will is exercised, and 

 is unobstructed in its operation, that operation is immediate. 

 Contemplated corporeal exertion is no sooner willed than it is 

 attempted by the obedient muscles. When the will is weak, 

 or enfeebled by disease, or confused by intoxication, its ser- 

 vants the muscles, cease to operate with the same exact and 

 instantaneous obedience ; and thus the man " sick of the 

 palsy," fails to impart motion to his paralysed limbs, — the 

 suiferer from ague vainly endeavors to compose and quiet his 

 agitated body, — and the drunken man strives unsuccessfully 

 to move his perplexed members with their natural strength 

 and regularity. Moreover, it is evident that, when the mind 

 wills a certain result, it not only constrains the muscles to act, 

 but to act in the manner and direction most likely to produce 

 that result. 



Now, when a person proceeds to try the experiment of 

 " Table-Moving," he is instructed to keep his whole body per- 

 fectly quiescent, and to will at the same time, that a certain 

 effect should be produced upon the table. 



It is clear, then, in such a case that the mind is influencing 

 the will with respect to two operations utterly opposed to one 

 another : the one, that the muscles should act, the other, that 

 they should remain quiescent ; and the immediate result is in 

 accordance with the idea which is impressed most strongly on the 

 mind, — which idea at the outset, is invariably that the muscles 

 should remain quiescent ; consequently, no immediate movement 

 of the table occurs. After some time, however, the idea that the 

 muscles should remain quiescent becomes fainter, while the 

 idea of the projected movement, which is being continually 

 impressed upon the mind, becomes more and more deeply 

 implanted, until it is completely dominant, and the movement 

 accordingly, takes place ; but the idea of quiescence, which at 

 first influenced the will almost entirely, still retains much of 

 its force, and causes such confusion in the mind as to prevent 

 it from realizing the fact that the movement in question is the 

 direct consequence of voKtion. 



Thus, when it is intended by persons seated round a table, 

 with their hands placed upon its margin, that one side of the 



