3 04 MY LIFE 



In the latter part of the year, while attending" the meeting 

 of the British Association at Dundee, I visited St. Andrews, 

 and after a geological excursion under the guidance of Sir 

 A. Geikie, and a collation with the university authorities, at 

 which Robert Chambers was present, I had the great pleasure 

 of an hour's conversation with him in his own house. The 

 Spiritual Magazine, founded by William Howitt and some 

 friends, was at that time admirably edited by Mr. Thomas 

 Shorter, and my host told me that he always read it through 

 from cover to cover, and that few of the magazines of the 

 day contained so much valuable information and so much 

 good writing as this despised periodical, in which I fully 

 agreed with him. 



Two years later (in 1869) I received a letter from him to 

 introduce me to Miss Douglass, a lady much interested in 

 spiritualism, who lived in South Audley Street. Here I 

 attended many seances — on one occasion when Home was 

 the medium and Mr. (now Sir William) Crookes was present. 

 As 1 was the only one of the company who had not witnessed 

 any of the remarkable phenomena that occurred in his pres- 

 ence, I was invited to go under the table while an accordion 

 was playing, held in Home's hand, his other hand being on 

 the table. The room was well lighted, and I distinctly saw 

 Home's hand holding the instrument, which moved up and 

 down and played a tune without any visible cause. On 

 stating this, he said, ' Now I will take away my hand " — 

 which he did ; but the instrument went on playing, and I 

 saw a detached hand holding it while Home's two hands 

 were seen above the table by all present. This was one 

 of the ordinary phenomena, and thousands of persons have 

 witnessed it; and when we consider that Home's seances 

 almost always took place in private houses at which he was 

 a guest, and with people absolutely above suspicion of collu- 

 sion with an impostor, and also either in the daytime or in a 

 fully illuminated room, it will be admitted that no form of 

 legerdemain will explain what occurred. 



In view of the extraordinary misstatements that were con- 

 tinually made by scientific men, who had influence with the 



