xin THE DESIRE FOR IMMORTALITY 239 



afforded by the history of a friend of mine, who, having 

 lost his wife, for a long time derived much consolation 

 from the belief that he was, by automatic writing, 

 receiving communications from her spirit. His spiritist 

 enthusiasm was, however, seriously checked when he 

 discovered that his spirit guide did not take at all 

 kindly to his growing interest in a young lady in the 

 flesh. He has now married again, and is quite convinced 

 that the automatic messages, which once seemed so 

 expressive of his first wife s personality, were merely the 

 productions of his own subconsciousness. And in time 

 he will doubtless chime in with the current doctrine that 

 there is something intrinsically degrading in the notion 

 that our departed dear ones can still communicate with us, 

 continue to be interested in us, and are watching us all 

 the time. 



It is the notion of this espionnage which is intolerable 

 and constitutes the unpardonable offence of Spiritism. 



It seems pretty clear then that the anomalous case 

 of Spiritism does not upset the results we have already 

 arrived at : it forms a temporary anodyne for over 

 wrought feelings ; it cannot give permanent satisfaction, 

 because it arouses the opposition of feelings which in the 

 long run are more powerful. And in any case its interest 

 in the future life is emotional and not scientific. 



The other religions are more artful. They advocate 

 the belief in immortality indeed, but with a significant 

 distinction. The future life is a vision that floats before the 

 eye of faith, not a brutal fact to be thrust upon a reluctant 

 attention. The world can stomach a future life so dis 

 creetly formulated. Indeed, it rather likes the notion. 

 There are times when we are out of sorts and the spectre 

 of death will not down, and blank annihilation stares us 

 in the face, and then it is a great comfort to turn to some 

 religious tradition of another and a better life. We may 

 even go so far as to consider heavens and hells agreeable 

 topics for an occasional sermon, or like to use them, 

 metaphorically, to strengthen our assertions. But all this 

 in no wise implies that they are taken as facts and must 



