234 THE ASCENT OF MAN 



feet forms of human intercourse than telegraphed 

 or telephoned words. As there was a stage in 

 the ascent of Man at which the body was laid 

 dside as a finished product, and made to give way 

 to Mind, there may be a stage in the Evolution 

 of Mind when its material achievements — its body 

 — shall be laid aside and give place to a higher 

 form of Mind. Telepathy has already become a 

 word, not a word for thought-reading or muscle- 

 reading, but a scientific word. It means "the ability 

 of one mind to impress, or to be impressed by 

 another mind otherwise than through the recognized 

 channels of sense." ^ By men of science, adepts 

 in mental analysis, aware of all sources of error, 

 armed against fraud, this subject is now being made 

 the theme of exhaustive observation. It is too soon 

 to pronounce. Practically we are in the dark. But 

 there are those in this fascinating and mysterious 

 region who tell us that the possibilities of a more 

 intimate fellowship of man with man, and soul 

 with soul, are not to be looked upon as settled by 

 our present views of matter or of mind. How- 

 ever little we know of it, however remote we are 

 from it, whether it ever be realized or not, telepathy 

 is theoretically the next stage in the Evolution of 

 Language. As we have seen, the introduction of 

 ^ Phantasms of the Living^ p. 6. 



