338 MY LIFE [Chap. 



" Whence, Where, and Whither " ; Professor James, of 

 Harvard, and several others. 



I attended several stances at the house of Mrs. Ross, a 

 very good medium for materializations, in the company of 

 one or more of my friends. I will state what occurred on 

 one of these occasions. The stance took place in a front 

 downstairs room of a small private house, opening by sliding 

 doors into a back room, and by an ordinary door into the 

 passage. The cabinet was formed by cloth curtains across 

 the corner of the room from the fireplace to the sliding door. 

 One side of this was an outer wall, the other the wall of the 

 back room, where there was a cupboard containing a quantity 

 of china. I was invited to examine, and did so thoroughly — 

 front room, floor, back room, rooms below in basement, 

 occupied by a heating apparatus ; and I am positive there 

 were no means of communication other than the doors for 

 even the smallest child. Then the sliding doors were closed, 

 fastened with sticking-plaster, and privately marked with 

 pencil. The ten visitors formed a circle opposite the cabinet, 

 and I sat with my back close to the passage door and 

 opposite the curtain at a distance of about ten feet. A red- 

 shaded lamp was in the furthest corner behind the visitors, 

 which enabled me to see the time by my watch and the out- 

 lines of every one in the room ; and as it was behind me 

 the space between myself and the cabinet was very fairly 

 lighted. Under these circumstances the appearances were as 

 follows : — 



(i) A female figure in white came out between the 

 curtains with Mrs. Ross in black, and also a male figure, all 

 to some distance in front of the cabinet. This was apparently 

 to demonstrate, once for all, that, whatever they were, the 

 figures were not Mrs. Ross in disguise. 



(2) After these had retired three female figures appeared 

 together, in white robes and of different heights. These came 

 two or three feet in front of the curtain. 



(3) A male figure came out, recognized by a gentleman 

 present as his son. 



(4) A tall Indian figure came out in white mocassins ; he 



