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virgin field, proceeded from bad to worse. “ Spirits ” became 
far too general a term ; special spirits were asked for, and im- 
mediately presented themselves, those of well-known and for- 
merly distinguished persons, as might have been expected, 
being particularly obliging ; then this in return became 
wearisome, and these renowned spirits took to music as a 
relaxation, and the seances were never complete without most 
melodious and soul-inspiring “ spirit-music.” From music the 
step to poetry is not far, and spiritual poetry (such lovely 
verse and sentiment !) became quite the rage. Then these 
spirits, ever so considerate and attentive to poor mundane 
humanity, endued their hands with a corporeal reality, and let 
their most ardent believers both see and feel them, and more- 
over, as photography became a science, they so far condescended 
as to allow themselves to be photographed, and “ spirit-photo- 
graphs ” arose, had their day, and disappeared. And so it went 
on, till, finally, the latest of all spiritual manifestations is, that 
these obedient spirits come in crowds at the mere bidding of a 
great medium, they tumble chairs and tables about, they play 
on accordions, they tickle people with their corporeal hands, 
they scribble on pieces of paper, they carry the medium 
through the air, and, finally — the greatest achievement of all 
— they make converts of two Fellows of the Eoyal Society ! I 
The climax of absurdity is here surely reached. Can even 
spiritualism and human credulity go further ? is there no limit 
to either ? Are we destined to see the revered letters F.E.S. 
lowered to mean nothing more than “ Follower of Eampagious 
Spiritualism,” or are we to believe that spiritualism, with all 
its tomfoolery, its absurdity, and its outrageous defiance of 
both common sense and common decency, really does contain 
some modicum of true science, and that there is 
More in heaven than is dreamt of in our philosophy ? 
Are we to believe that the trained intellects of Mr. Crookes, 
F.E.S., and Dr. Huggins, F.E.S., aided by the refreshing inno- 
cence of Mr. Home, have discovered a new and subtle force in 
nature, which, under the mystic title of “Psychic Force,” is 
not only to revolutionize Nature herself, but to undo all the 
past and accepted teachings of science? For this “psychic 
force ” is no child’s play, it is a force of so powerful a character 
that no laws of science can stand before it, it falsifies every 
law in Physics and Biology, it creates force, it despises 
gravity, it can create music, and bid an accordion play when 
no one is touching it, and yet it is so obedient that it does 
all this, and much more than this, at the bidding of one man ! 
And who is this great, this most powerful of human beings, a 
man who, apparently at will, can directly create force, can 
