As there is a maudlin complaint in this book, about men of Science being
hard upon “the ‘Orphan’ Home”, and as the “gentle and uncombative nature”
of this Medium in a martyred point of view is pathetically commented on
by the anonymous literary friend who supplies him with an introduction
and appendix—rather at odds with Mr. Howitt, who is so mightily
triumphant about the same Martyr’s reception by crowned heads, and about
the competence he has become endowed with—we cull from Mr. Home’s book
one or two little illustrative flowers. Sir David Brewster (a pestilent
unbeliever) “has come before the public in few matters which have brought
more shame upon him than his conduct and assertions on this occasion, in
which he manifested not only a disregard for truth, but also a disloyalty
to scientific observation, and to the use of his own eyesight and natural
faculties”. The same unhappy Sir David Brewster’s “character may be the
better known, not only for his untruthful dealing with this subject, but
also in his own domain of science in which the same unfaithfulness to
truth will be seen to be the characteristic of his mind”. Again, he “is
really not a man over whom victory is any honour”. Again, “not only he,
but Professor Faraday have had time and ample leisure to regret that they
should have so foolishly pledged themselves”, etc. A Faraday a fool in
the sight of a Home! That unjust judge and whited wall, Lord Brougham,
has his share of this Martyr Medium’s uncombativeness. “In order that he
might not be compelled to deny Sir David’s statements, he found it
necessary that he should be silent, and I have some reason to complain
that his Lordship preferred sacrificing me to his desire not to immolate
his friend.” M. Arago also came off with very doubtful honours from a
wrestle with the uncombative Martyr; who is perfectly clear (and so are
we, let us add) that scientific men are not the men for his purpose. Of
course, he is the butt of “utter and acknowledged ignorance”, and of “the
most gross and foolish statements”, and of “the unjust and dishonest”,
and of “the press-gang”, and of crowds of other alien and combative
adjectives, participles, and substantives.
Nothing is without its use, and even this odious book may do some
service. Not because it coolly claims for the writer and his disciples
such powers as were wielded by the Saviour and the Apostles; not because
it sees no difference between twelve table rappers in these days, and
“twelve fishermen” in those; not because it appeals for precedents to
statements extracted from the most ignorant and wretched of mankind, by
cruel torture, and constantly withdrawn when the torture was withdrawn;
not because it sets forth such a strange confusion of ideas as is
presented by one of the faithful when, writing of a certain sprig of
geranium handed by an invisible hand, he adds in ecstasies, “_which we
have planted and it is growing_, _so that it is no delusion_, _no fairy
money turned into dross or leaves_”—as if it followed that the conjuror’s
half-crowns really did become invisible and in that state fly, because he
afterwards cuts them out of a real orange; or as if the conjuror’s
pigeon, being after the discharge of his gun, a real live pigeon
fluttering on the target, must therefore conclusively be a pigeon, fired,
whole, living and unshattered, out of the gun!—not because of the
exposure of any of these weaknesses, or a thousand such, are these moving
incidents in the life of the Martyr Medium, and similar productions,
likely to prove useful, but because of their uniform abuse of those who
go to test the reality of these alleged phenomena, and who come away
incredulous. There is an old homely proverb concerning pitch and its
adhesive character, which we hope this significant circumstance may
impress on many minds. The writer of these lines has lately heard
overmuch touching young men of promise in the imaginative arts, “towards
whom” Martyr Mediums assisting at evening parties feel themselves
“drawn”. It may be a hint to such young men to stick to their own
drawing, as being of a much better kind, and to leave Martyr Mediums
alone in their glory.
As there is a good deal in these books about “lying spirits”, we will
conclude by putting a hypothetical case. Supposing that a Medium (Martyr
or otherwise) were established for a time in the house of an English
gentleman abroad; say, somewhere in Italy. Supposing that the more
marvellous the Medium became, the more suspicious of him the lady of the
house became. Supposing that the lady, her distrust once aroused, were
particularly struck by the Medium’s exhibiting a persistent desire to
commit her, somehow or other, to the disclosure of the manner of the
death, to him unknown, of a certain person. Supposing that she at length
resolved to test the Medium on this head, and, therefore, on a certain
evening mentioned a wholly supposititious manner of death (which was not
the real manner of death, nor anything at all like it) within the range
of his listening ears. And supposing that a spirit presently afterwards
rapped out its presence, claiming to be the spirit of that deceased
person, and claiming to have departed this life in that supposititious
way. Would that be a lying spirit? Or would it he a something else,
tainting all that Medium’s statements and suppressions, even if they were
not in themselves of a manifestly outrageous character?