IMMORTALITY 367 



"We think" — so and so, is a common commencement to 

 some trivial remark. 



It does not hesitate to tell falsehoods about people : 

 and when asked "if it is true," adds " No we were only- 

 funning ". 



Like the experience of other automatic writers, the 

 Intelligences always say they are not allowed to say any- 

 thing about themselves or their condition either now or 

 formerly, one observing, " It's against the rules ", 



On one occasion the " Intelligence " said she was 

 the lady's mother, and to prove her identity, told the 

 lady (her daughter) to remember a gentleman whom she 

 knew as a little child in Brussels. The question her 



mother put was : " Do you remember Dr. and what 



he used to say about his violin ? " For the first time 

 since she was ten years old, the lady recalled the fact 

 that he said he believed his violin had a "soul". 



The " Intelligences " sometimes have names ; and one 

 failed for some time to write ; so the lady asked what 

 had become of him ? The reply was : " He is gone to be 

 an inspector of spirits ! " One of the lady's married 

 daughters is named Marion, but from a child she has 

 never been addressed by it, but has always been called 

 Maggie ; yet one of the writers persists in speaking of 

 her as " Mrs. Marion ". 



These are but a few samples of what comes spon- 

 taneously from the lady's fingers. It is all trivial enough, 

 if not false ; but it is intelligejit. 



The following cases were communicated to me by 

 friends who vouched for their accuracy. The late Rev. 

 H. R. Haweis informed me that a relative of his used to 

 amuse himself by seeing what his hand would write. On 

 one occasion he asked what the carriage builder was 

 doing to his carriage, sent to be repaired, at that particular 



