MESMERISM TO SPIRITUALISM 303 



I had some correspondence at this time with William 

 Howitt, and he and Mrs. Howitt came one evening for a 

 seance with Miss Nichol, and were much pleased with the 

 curious musical and other phenomena ; and I also made 

 the acquaintance of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall, and visited 

 them to attend a seance with Home, which, although all 

 present were friends and spiritualists, turned out a failure, 

 owing to the circle being broken by Mr. Hall being called 

 out on urgent business. 



But perhaps the most interesting response to a copy of 

 my pamphlet was that from Robert Chambers, which I here 

 give— 



" St. Andrews, February 10, 1867. 

 " Dear Sir, 



" I have received your letter of the 6th inst., and 

 your little volume. It gratifies me much to receive a friendly 

 communication from the Mr. Wallace of my friend Darwin's 

 1 Origin of Species,' and my gratification is greatly heightened 

 on finding that he is one of the few men of science who 

 admit the verity of the phenomena of spiritualism. I have 

 for many years known that these phenomena are real, as 

 distinguished from impostures ; and it is not of yesterday 

 that I concluded they were calculated to explain much that 

 has been doubtful in the past, and when fully accepted, 

 revolutionize the whole frame of human opinion on many 

 important matters. 



% 9 • • • 



" How provoking it has often appeared to me that it 

 seems so impossible, with such a man, for instance, as Huxley, 

 to obtain a moment's patience for this subject — so infinitely 

 transcending all those of physical science in the potential 

 results ! 



" My idea is that the term ' supernatural ' is a gross mis- 

 take. We have only to enlarge our conceptions of the natural, 

 and all will be right. " I am, dear sir, 



" Yours very sincerely, 



''Robert Chambers." 



