3 oo MY LIFE 



time Sir William Crookcs published his much more remark- 

 able investigations, both alike were received with silence, 

 incredulity, or contempt. 



Notwithstanding this refusal to accept my offer of a full 

 examination of phenomena which had repeatedly occurred 

 in my presence and had been submitted to varied tests, a year 

 afterwards two of these men of science wrote to the Pall Mall 

 Gazette (May 19, 1868), making various accusations against 

 mediums and spiritualists. Mr. Lewes declared that scientific 

 men are never allowed to investigate, but are put off by an 

 evasion of some kind ; and many other things equally untrue. 

 He then suggests that the whole thing can be tested by 

 allowing Professor Tyndall to have one sitting with any 

 medium, and to propose three questions for the spirits to 

 answer correctly. I thereupon wrote to the editor with a full 

 reply, pointing out that Mr. Cromwell Varley, the eminent 

 electrician, had recently published the statement that he had 

 been permitted to investigate fully by Mr. Home with satis- 

 factory results. I then related a series of test experiments 

 in my own house, and asked Mr. Lewes how his statement 

 that others have discovered how the tables are turned (and 

 can turn them), how the raps are produced (and can produce 

 them), how the ropes are untied (and can untie them), can 

 apply to such phenomena as I relate, and to such tests and 

 conditions as I gave, or what bearing Professor Tyndall's 

 proposed " three questions " could have upon them. 



This reply was, however, refused publication by the editor, 

 and I wrote to Mr. Lewes suggesting that, for the sake of 

 his own reputation, he should in future, if he wrote publicly 

 on this subject, do so only in such journals as would admit 

 a reply. As an example of the strange methods of our oppo- 

 nents at this time, I may refer to Mr. Lewes's statement to me 

 that " he had forced Mrs. Hayden to avow herself an im- 

 postor." As this was important if true, because this lady 

 was the medium whose phenomena had convinced Professor 

 de Morgan, I inquired further about it, and found from 

 Mr. Lewes's own statement of his experiment that he had 

 asked a series of written questions which were answered 



