XXXVII] SPIRITUALISTIC EXPERIENCES 339 



danced and spoke ; he also shook hands with me and others, 

 a large, strong, rough hand. 



(5) A female figure with a baby stood close to the 

 entrance of the cabinet. I went up (on invitation), felt the 

 baby's face, nose, and hair, and kissed it — apparently a real, 

 soft-skinned, living baby. Other ladies and gentlemen 

 agreed. 



Directly the stance was over the gas was lighted, and I 

 again examined the bare walls of the cabinet, the curtains, 

 and the door, all being just as before, and affording no room 

 or place for disposing of the baby alone, far less of the other 

 figures. 



At another special stance for friends of Dr. Nichols and 

 Mr. Brackett, with Professor James and myself — nine in 

 all, under the same conditions as before, eight or nine 

 different figures came, including a tall Indian chief in war- 

 paint and feathers, a little girl who talked and played with 

 Miss Brackett, and a very pretty and perfectly developed 

 girl, " Bertha," Mr. Brackett's niece, who has appeared to him 

 with various mediums for two years, and is as well known to 

 him as any near relative in earth-life. She speaks distinctly, 

 which these figures rarely do, and Mr. Brackett has often 

 seen her develop gradually from a cloudy mass, and almost 

 instantly vanish away. But what specially interested me 

 was, that two of the figures beckoned to me to come up to 

 the cabinet. One was a beautifully draped female figure, 

 who took my hand, looked at me smilingly, and on my 

 appearing doubtful, said in a whisper that she had often met 

 me at Miss Kate Cook's stances in London. She then let me 

 feel her ears, as I had done before to prove she was not the 

 medium. I then saw that she closely resembled the figure 

 with whom I had often talked and joked at Signor Randi's, a 

 fact known to no one in America. 



The other figure was an old gentleman with white hair and 

 beard, and in evening-dress. He took my hand, bowed, and 

 looked pleased, as one meeting an old friend. Considering 

 who was likely to come, I thought of my father and of 

 Darwin, but there was not enough likeness to either. Then 



