BF 1272 .C75 Copy 2 THE CHICAGO ADDRESS. Signs of the Times: From the Standpoint of a Scientist. AN ADDRESS DELIVFRED AT THE FIRST METHODIST CHURCH, APRIL 26, l8$X UNDER THE AUSPICES OV THE WESTERN SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH. Prof. ELLIOTT COTES, M. D., MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES; OF THE LONDOK SOCIETY FOR PSYCHICAL RESEARCH*, OF THE THEOSOPH- ICAL SOCIETY OF INDIA, ETC., FTC. "Per aspera ai/ astral CHICAGO: RELIGIO-PHILOSOPKICAL PUBLISHING HOUSE, 1S89. L LjL '^. The coinci- dence, — if it be nothing else, is more striking than had occurred to me in penning these lines. The Qabbalist may perceive the full significance of the numbers. "Here is wisdom. He that hath un- derstanding, let him count the number of the beast; for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty and six."— [John, Revel , Ch. 13, v. 18. 6 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES my own sex, before so much as a sight of the promised land was theirs, or even a respectful hearing. But then came the glad re- vulsion of feeling. That is done with, and we are all so far ahead. As I listened to the addresses, I could not help pon- dering that strange thing which some of us know as psychic force or spiritual power ; it seemed to me then, if never be- fore, a reality. Think for a moment of these things : Concentration of will-power; the fixed, firm, — if you will, grim determination of the great women who have led their cause for a life-time. Think of the fixity of purpose ; of singleness of aim ; of disinter- ested benevolence; of unselfish endeavor; of ardent aspiration; of fervid appeal; of personal example: of unflagging courage; of the contagion of enthusiasm, — can such forces be set in ope- ration and be futile? No! a thousand times No! These are real forces, powers, principles, living and operative. The law of gravitation is not a fixeder fact in nature, than that such forces are the effectual and necessary causes of concrete results — hard, solid facts in human progress, not less substantial and endur- ing than the granite of which we rear material edifices. Such forces never ferment without leavening the lump ; and the abun- dant leaven of the last Convention can be no more disputed than explained away. It is a grand result that we see to-day. It is all abroad; it is in the air; the birds are carrying the news; the flowers are nodding the tidings to one another, thatwoman^ rights are secure in America. Only ten years ago, such a convention would have been greeted with jeers and sneers from the lords of creation. A lit- tle further back, had it been attempted, the women might have been mobbed, as the anti- slavery heroes were before the cursed blot of human bondage and traffic was wiped from the shield of the nation with the blood of martyrs to the cause of liberty. A little further back, it would simply have been impossible ; for women were still sleeping in unseen chains like those the Afri- can visiblv wore amongst us. What does this movement mean I FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 7 to us all, — not only to the women most concerned, but to their other halves? I will tell you: It is another Declaration of Inde- pendence. It means freedom, the watch-word of every true American; liberty, dear to every man's heart — to woman's not less dear ; independance of thought to the uttermost ; freedom of speech to the bounds of propriety; liberty of action to the verge of infringing another's equal rights — and these are price- less boons, without which man has not humanity's heritage. The woman question, as it is called, has a deeper significance than appears upon the surface. The "surface indications," as they savin the mining regions where we dig in the bowels of the earth for hidden treasures, are good. They are witnessed in the substantial benefits to accrue to women and hence to society from the triumph of their cause. But, viewed from my stand- point, which you know is that of a psychic researcher, this is a problem in psychic science which has worked out its own solu- tion. And that this problem is involved in a still broader one I can easily show. That broader problem is not merely politi- cal, or social, or even worldly; for it is also spiritual. It is no other than Spiritualism. Was it not the 40th Anniversary of the Woman's Rights Movement that was lately celebrated in Washington? What now was the year when the first faint raps at Rochester ticked off their message from the passing to a coming generation? That was in 1848, just forty years ago. They are twins, I may say, — these two great pulsations of the soul-life of the nation. Strangely unlike have they seemed to be — this orthodox sister and her unorthodox brother ! But they were born of one blood, and that the same divine ichor which has sown the seeds of pro- gress and reform wherever in the world mankind has passed to a higher estate. They grew up together, along parallel lines of evolution, though seldom did their faces turn to one another, so fixed were the eyes of each upon their respective goals. And as they thus grew side by side, the one never knocked louder at the gates of Congress than the other has knocked at the door of ~ 8 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES the understanding of millions of Americans, begging to be heard. Upon the answer we give to Spiritualism more depends, for bet- ter or worse, perhaps, than upon our reply to any other problem which we are now called upon to solve. Spiritualism will not dowm, — and why should it? It has come to stay — and wme subject over which he has absolute con- trol. All experim i* is made on and by and with the bodies of men and women — nay, upon and by and with their very souls. That is psychic research. Psyche means soul. Think you it is to be lightly or ignorantly or blunderingly played upon? A thousand times, no ! Here, blunder and crime are one and the same thing. Recollect, then, that psychic research, if it mean anything, means the investigation of the human soul. Not of the body alone ; that is physiology or anatomy. Not of the mind alone ; that is psychology, of which you may learn from any text-book, only a step beyond ordinary physiology, such as every medical .man studies. And animal magnetism is the key to the discov- ery of the soul that inhabits the body; it is the pass key to every mystery of life and death of the body, and to every secret we may hope to disclose respecting the conditions of the soul's ex- istence after the death of the body. In using that key we open the way to all that was barred before. By this means we un- lock every secret recess and unveil every mystery of the human being that is possible to scrutinize in our present state of exist- ence. He must be a pretty brave man, and I think he should be a very honest, pure-hearted, truth-loving, kind and gentle man, who should undertake psychic research. THE GREAT POWER OF THE MAGNETIZER. Perhaps I can make it clear now that pursuit of this thing exposes one to dangers that otherwise might have slept. A person who has magnetized or been magnetized, is never after- 30 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES ward the same person exactly. The difference is not only men- tal. Of course, he has some new experiences and acquires some new ideas ; but that is not all. The change is to some extent physical. It is like the difference between iron that has be- come a magnet, and this same metal before touching the lode- stone. In one sense, and to some degree, it is true that we are never twice the same from moment to moment of our lives. The body is incessantly dying, and the finer principles are cease- lessly interacting. But this is true, to a conspicuous extent and in a particular sense, of the operation of induced or artificial magnetization, as in trance and the like peculiar states. The currents of animal magnetism, passing through the particles of the body, seem to make some actual bodily change. I would almost say some new or different molecular motion is set up. Certainly a current of ordinary magnetism passing through iron so affects the particles of the metal that they exhibit activi- ties and produce visible effects that were before latent if not actually non-existent. How prof oundly the whole being, phys- ical, mental, moral, spiritual even, can be affected by this ex- quisitely subtile, unspeakably powerful force, few are fully aware. The induction of complete trance by a magnetizer m his subject is the most astounding instance of the supreme control of one human being over another that the nature of man ad- mits. One may kill another's body by any kind of mechanical violence, as a blow ; or destroy life by poison, which disarrang- es the vital machinery fatally. But in neither case is the mind, still less the soul, at the mercy of the murderer. But the mag- netizer can deprive a victim of mind without leaving a trace upon the body; he may make a lunatic or an idiot of a philoso- pher; he may make a criminal of a saint. He can call up at will the most fervent religious ecstasy; he can excite with equal ease the most malignant and furious passions. He can induce artificial lockjaw or complete catalepsy. He can para- lyze the will, and blot out the memory. Love and hate— eve- FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 31 ry instinct, emotion and appetite, attends his sovereign pleas- ure. He can suggest crimes which his victim, forgetting the source of the suggestion, shall afterward commit at a given mo- ment. He can cause various bodily sicknesses at will; he can make and unmake the most excruciating pains ; he can render the patient insensible to pain and amputate a limb without the patient's knowledge. As to hallucinations of the mind he can produce at his will and pleasure, they are endless. The subject of his art shall see, hear, smell, taste, touch, what the magician pleases. He can induce somnambulism, clairvoyance and clair- audience, in some cases even to the extent of informing himself of what is occurring at a distance. I need not prolong this catalogue of his powers, to which it is not using figurative or extravagant language to apply the terms superhuman or magi- cal, so far above ordinary powers and everyday experiences are these actualities of animal magnetism.* The moral aspect of this case is a very grave one indeed ; but it is obvious. Let me only say, it has come so far to the front, in France at least, as to require legislative action ; and that upon it hinge some of the gravest medico-legal questions, to say nothing of the whole range of professional study of * Lest I may seem, however, to have indulged a flight of my own imagination, let me cite some authorities which the reader may con- sult. I refer to no works on Spiritualism, Theosophy, and the like for these are on trial just now, and therefore not competent witness-* es. The reader may consult the publications, for example, of the London Society for Psychical Research — a body of men never yet suspected of leaning towards Occultism, nor indeed of knowing much about the objects of their own investigation. The published re^ suits of mesmerism or hypnotism, conducted on an enormous scale in France, as at Salpetriere, are of great weight, judged from the most matter-of-fact professional standpoint. The American Jour- nal of Psychology, edited by Professor G. Stanley Hall, of Johns Hop- kins University, is mainly devoted to such topics; and the whole of the above paragraph might have been taken from its pages, so fully do my statements of fact fall within the bounds of orthodox psychol- ogy, however widely my own conclusion may be at variance with cur- rent opinion. Study of such exoteric publications is advisable, as preliminary to the attempt to grapple with the higher aspects of the case represented in the literature of esoteric philosophy. 33 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES alienism or insanity. Let me ask, also, if Theosophists are so far wrong, after all, when they say they possess some kinds of knowledge and some kinds of power which it is not expedient that every one should share? Let me ask the Spiritualists if, in this immense range of the possibilities of the spirit while still in the body, with that wonderfully organized apparatus at the command of trained intelligence and concentrated will-power, a good many of the phenomena ascribed to disembodied spir- its, and supposed to be feasible to them alone — may not be fair- ly and safely referred to embodied intelligences? MAGNETISM THE PASS-KEY TO PSYCHIC SCIENCE. This brings me back to the position I am trying to hold, that of the scientist who looks at these things with an eye only to psychic research. This is the field that opens before you, Gentlemen of the Society, offering an abundant harvest. It is here that you can safely proceed from the well known to the less known, and thence to the unknown. Your feet are on solid ground. Your instruments are at command, in the persons of those whom you can use in your investigations. Have a care only, I implore you, that the instruments be neither injured in themselves, nor turned against others. Whether you fully be- lieve me or not, I know that animal magnetism gives you the pass-key to psychic science. It invests you with the Master's word* of the greater mysteries in the construction of an edifice more splendid than King Solomon's temple, and more enduring. *As a matter of Masonic shibboleth, the "Master's word" is Ma- habone, or Moabon— variously spelled in different parts of the world. It has, or did have, an occult significance in connection with the story of Lot in the Bible, known, probably, to few Masons who have received or given it 'on the five perfect points of fellow- ship" in the third degree of "blue" Masonry. Ihe writer learned it else- where than in the Lodge, and consequently violates no obligation here. No Theosophist has far to seek for the secrets of any occult fraternity in the wor'd. There are two organizations at present from which nothing is hidden. One of these is the Theosophical Society of India. The other is the College of Cardinals at Rome. It is said that the old Roman augurs (whose successors now occupy the Vatican) could not look each other in the face without laughing. And be- hold how these brothers, F. T. S. and S J., now love one another! FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 33 But of what avail is this key, if we know not how to use it? But for its purpose, it were merely a bauble to hang on the breast as a visible sign oi authority. What is the use of the Word unless it be spoken to some good end What, then, is animal magnetism? Is it a myth, a figment of the imagination, an idea only and thus purely immaterial, or is it a thing, a concrete objective reality? To define its sub- stance or essence were impossible. The most learned electri- cian, who uses electricity most skilfully and successfully, is silent when asked, "Well, but what is electricity?" To define a much more subtile form of force or mode of motion called animal magnetism, were still more difficult. But it is a great j3oint gained, and a great advance, made, when we clearly re- cognize and define its operation and effect. That it is a mode of motion, there is no question; for it is a force, aud every force ii a mode of motion of something. Heat is a mode of molecu- lar motion of ordinary matter. Light is a mode of motion of a very delicate, tenuous, ethereal substance known to science as luminiferous ether. Electricity is another mode of motion; so is ordinary magnetism, as of the loadstone; so is galvanism, re- sulting from the chemical decomposition of various substances. But animal magnetism differs from all these in at least one res- pect, and that is one of supreme consequence. It is partly mental, not entirely physical ; and it is capable of acting with- out any known medium of communication. This is an energy capable of communicating — what? Thought? Yes. Whatev- er be the substance that is stirred when this kind of magnetism acts and sets it in motion, that is the substance of mind which is moved. It is something in which consciousness, thought, volition, memory, and all other mental faculties severally take form. It is a conveyer of consciousness. It is the medium of changes of consciousness, by means of which one's state of mind may affect another's state of mind, without any known means of transferring the affection or making the cause take effect. No one now has the hardihood to deny the manifest and in- 34 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES cessant action of magnetism, for it goes on constantly under our eyes. The effect or result comes into play in the simplest acts of mesmerizing. The fact is established, explain it as. we may. Mesmer's claims are verified by modern science, and recognized alike by those who differ most widely in their explanation of the actual phenomena. Now since there is no known medium of transfer of the en- ergy of animal magnetism ; since there can be no transfer of any force without some medium of transference ; and since there ia probably no absolute vacuum in any space in nature, it is nec- essary to infer that there must be some substance which con- veys this energy. What this substance is, in which magnetism subsists, in whose motions magnetism is manifested and set to work, I do not permit myself to say. Certainly it is no ordina- ry matter, as known to the chemist or physicist, for such mat- ter can only act mechanically, whereas the substance of magnet- ism acts mentally. Yet it is material in one sense, for its mo- tions constitute magnetic currents whose visible effect we can study. In very truth, there is such a substance, some of whose properties I could describe if I would. When I say it is "un- known," I only mean unknown to the materialistic science of our day, since it is not a kind of matter which can be investi- gated by the ordinary methods of the chemist or physicist, like any molecular solid, or fluid, or gas. But it has been known to some scientists for ages. It has been known longer than most of the sixty or more elements which the chemist describes ; and it has received more names than any one of the chemical elements of the text-books. The oldest name of it that I know is "akasa," or "a'kasa." This is the Hindu name, given many centuries ago, perhaps by Kapila, the founder of one of the four great schools of Hindu philosophy. Theo- sophists and other occultists commonly call it the "astral fluid." I have often heard Spiritualists speak of it 'as "spirit- light. " Some biologists, of the school to which I am supposed to be- long, call it "psychoplasm," which literally means "soul-stuff" FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST 36 or "mind- stuff." It seems to correspond in many respects with what Professor Crookes speaks of as "radiant matter," a suppos- ed fourth state of matter (the solid, the fluid and the gaseous being the other three). Baron von Reichenbach named it "od." Such terms as "nervaura," "psychaura," "brain- waves," and "zoether," seem to point in the same direction. My friend, Professor E. D. Cope, with a bold stroke of genius imagined on theoretical grounds the possible existence of some such ethe- real substance, which he called an "aesthetophore," or bearer of consciousness. I have myself taken the liberty of naming this child of my brain, and "biogen," as I call it, is already a word well known enough to have found its way into the dictionary. I am far from insisting that all these terms mean exactly the same thing. For instance, Reichenbach describes and names several different kinds of "od." Bat all these names face in one and the same direction, and probably indicate one and the same thing, under various aspects and from different stand- points of observation. The words show a more remarkable co- incidence of opinion than might have been expected under the circumstances. I shall recur to the subject presently. Mean- while, whatever we may call this biogen, it certainly has many remarkable properties, different from those of ordinary matter, and for the most part quite the reverse. The property which chiefly concerns us now, is that of sustaining consciousness and • conveying thought. It carries mental images ; and it is capable of reproducing in the mind of one person the thoughts that have been formed in the mind of another. It is the medium of all actual exchange of thought ; for the words we use are mere- ly conventional noises which we understand as a code of sym- bols agreed upon. It is the means of all genuine mind-read- ing. It is the substantial basis of all clairvoyant visions and all clairaudient sounds. The real existence of this akasic or astral fluid is the secret of telepathy, or the affecting of one mind by another at any distance without physical means of communication. No fact 36 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES in nature is better attested than the fact of telepathy, which the London Society for Psychical Research has rediscovered and carefully demonstrated by thousands of cases, though that So- ciety has given no hint that it knows the rationale of telepathy. Nay, more: This same biogen, in whose properties telepathy has its possibility and its realization, furnishes the material or substance which composes the bodies of those strange appari- tions or phantoms, with which the public has become familiar, and has laughed at and stormed at, known in spiritualistic cir- cles as "materializations." These alleged spirits of the dead are in most cases (I will not say exactly the percentage of cases, but in most cases) deliberate frauds ! Such ghosts are the veri- est humbugs in the world, gotten up for money to deceive the unwary, just as coolly and carefully as actors "make up" for their parts on the stage ! These dummies and effigies rep- resent the most flourishing department of the business of com- mercial Spiritualism. No ghastlier or more unholy imposture ever came out of Babylon or Rome than you may witness for a dollar to-clay in Boston, New York, Washington or Chicago. But in case of the genuine thing, a materialization is for the time being a substantial reality, whose substance consists of this astral fluid in a temporary state of condensation, which renders it palpable and visible to our ordinary senses. I should like to say more just here, but must remember that I am ad- dressing a public audience, and take to heart certain guarded words of St. Paul. Let us instead draw a long breath here and see how far we have gone in the last few moments, during which I have been speaking of the properties of the astral fluid — from mesmerism through telepathy to materialization! It is a mighty power we have invoked; almost like magic rises the ghost we have conjured, to confront us and refuse to down. For the linking of these phenomena is so close, the chain of reasoning is so un- broken, that once the least phenomenon called theosophic or spiritualistic be proven, the rest follows as a matter of course. FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 37 The whole body of psychic science is fairly brought before you, needing only patience and care in your research to be clothed in proper vestments to stand before the world by the side of the orthodox physical science of our day. These two should never have been separated. Neither can live without the other. As the Latin poet says of the famous sisters : Fades nou omnibus una, Nee diversa tatnen; qualis decet esse sororum — Ovid. THE BIOGEN THEORY. But lest I may have overhauled the links of this chain too rapidly, let us retrace our steps for a moment. We have assum- ed or inferred the existence of this astral substance to account for the established facts of animal magnetism. We find that it has every proper character of a legitimate scientific theory, in that it is a priori probable; that if true it accounts for the facts; and that the facts have never been accounted for on any other theory in a way that will bear investigation. Science has two opposite, equally legitimate procedures in every investigation. Every one knows thes3 a"> induction and deduction. We may reason from particulars to generals, or conversely. In the form- er case, we establish our facts, and construct a theory to ac- count for them. In the latter case, we imagine or invent a theo- ry which seems reasonable, and proceed to try it upon the facts. If a single fact can be found to contradict our theory, it falls flat. If no fact disproves the theory, it stands; the more facts that sustain it, the stronger it stands. A theory constructed in- ductively is subject only to the limitations of observation, or the fallibility of reasoning processes. Such a theory is usually of slow growth, and correspondingly safe. The theory of grav- itation is a good example. Of deductive theories, that of the luminiferous ether is an illustration. No one knows whether it is true or not. But the whole modern science of Light pro- ceeds upon the assumption that it is true ; no optical fact has been found to disprove that assumption; many such facts tend to support it ; and the facts cannot be better accounted for on 38 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES any other theory. This is precisely the present state of the Bi- ogen theory, as we have already seen. It has, therefore, as I have claimed, all the characters of legitimate deductive propo- sition in science, and the burden of proof is with those who dispute it. Like the luminif erous ether in space, this biogenic or magnetic or astral substance is everywhere. It penetrates all space, probably; certainly it interpenetrates all matter, resid- ing in matter side by side with the gross molecules which the chemist knows. It is in our bodies as well as in all other bod- ies, animate or inanimate. Animal magnetism, I repeat, is in all living animals, not excepting that one which crowns crea- tion. It is, in short, apart of the composition of man; an ele- ment of the human constitution. If special proof of this were requisite, I should only have to point to the unquestionable fact that this magnetic force proceeds from the magnetizer at his will ; and certainly nothing can be got out }f a man that is not in him. This is obvious. In mesmerizing, the operator is often aware that something has gone out of him. Some influence has proceeded from him, which it is no irreverence to liken to the virtue that departed when the woman touched the hem of the garment. If there happens to be in my audience a good clairvoyant to-night, or some one easily open to mediumistic influences, that person may have actually seen something not visible to all, when I may have flagged at a time and then spok- en with increased energy. Certainly I have been conscious in my own person of varying tension and relaxation of the mag- netic currents, and I have no doubt that in time we shall have instruments to record these ebbings and flowings with the same accuracy that the sphygmograph now records by the pulse the varying tension of the arteries. THE ASTRAL BODY. I have spoken to little purpose if my remarks have not gradually led you up to the pivotal idea I wish to present — the existence of the astral body, as a substantial entity. For my FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 39 own part, I regard the astral body as proven. The demonstra- tion is to me complete, from not one but many experiences I have had in my own person ; from not one but many experiments I have made on the persons of others. But the popular verdict is — "impossible." The scientific verdict is the Scotch one — u not proven." It is to you, Gentlemen of the Psychical Society, that I appeal, to confirm or disprove the theory I advance. The ev- idence or testimony to the facts is established indisputably. The question remains as to the explanation of those facts of an- imal magnetism. I said that animal magnetism was the pass- key to psychic research, and then proceeded to discuss the man- ner in which that key is to be used. I indicated to what pur- pose it was to be turned. I meant to give you access to the very goal of sound psychic science, and I have done so. This is a demand for the recognition of the astral fluid as the medium of the manifestation of all spiritualistic phenomena, and the recognition of the twin fact, that a human being is partly com- posed of this same substance. On the heels of this very grave and momentous assertion, let me record a warning : You will make no satisfactory progress in psychic research along any other path than that which I have pointed out ; and you will have no solider body of psychic science than that which incorpo- rates the doctrine of the astral human form. This is the pivotal point on which all the rest turns — turns to sink, on the one hand, into some dull theory of nervous action, such as our text- books of physiology teem with; or turns, on the other hand, to rise and melt away in the cloudland of the visionary enthusiast. Sometimes I tremble at the thought, that the whole affair may be a question between the fool and the fanatic. Be it so; then I will adopt fanaticism as a profession. I prefer to side with those who help the world to move, and do not believe that it turns with a mere crank. THE BETTER WAY. Though I can thus point the way, and perhaps help some- what to find it, yet that way each one must tread for himself. 40 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES Those who have entered upon the path know this way; those that live the life discover these things. The whole secret cannot be imparted. Many have found it; but not all seekers are find- ers. Strangely enough, one must first become aware of the ex- istence of the astral body in himself before he can use the fac- ulties of that body in psychical research. An abortive, rudi- mentary or decayed spiritual body, such as many persons pos- sess, is no fit instrument with which to discern supersensuous phenomena. Like the man in Mitchell's experiments on pain, who was the the necessary instrument of investigation, the psychic researcher himself is the instrument of psychic research and the demonstrator of his psychic science. Just as the natu- ral body, with its natural five senses and other natural or phys- ical faculties, is the apparatus of investigation of ordinary ma- terial or physical phenomena, so is the psychic or astral body, with its senses and faculties, the instrument ot research into ex- traordinary and non-material and non-physical phenomena. Most persons live and die with only the conscious exercise of their physical senses to guide their reason and enlighten their minds. Consequently, they know only those phenomena which address those senses. Hence they only become aware of mate- rial things. But there is an eye back of the outward eye. It is the inner, astral eye that catches ordinarily invisible rays. The clairvoyant's natural eye is shut when the other opens to the vision. There is an ear back of the outward ear. It is this that catches ordinarily inaudible sounds. The clairaudient's natu- ral ear is shut when the voice of the silence is heard. All these and other senses and faculties of the psychic body must be brought into operation to determine the truths of psychic sci- ence. These are not imaginary, in the usual sense of that word. They are indeed among the results of the exercise of the faculty of imagination in its proper creative activity. All realities are imaginary. Only unreal appearances pass for facts. They only pass for facts because "all things are to the sense that per- ceives them what to that sense they appear to be" (Garretson)* FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 41 Those who perceive things with the body only, perceive only bodily things. Those who perceive things with the spirit have the faculty of discerning spirits. This is almost a truism. It is necessarily axiomatic. But the thing is so simple that it is seldom found out. The majesty of truth is Oneness. NATURAL MAGIC. You have all heard of the practice of occultism ; of so-call- ed operative magic; of the training of adepts; of the develop- ing of the mediumistic faculty — for such are phrases of the The- osophists and of the Spiritualists. But do I not invest these terms with a new or different meaning, not at all unreasonable or supernatural, when I speak of them as the exercise of the psy- chic faculties and the direction of such means to a desired end? Mediumship is, in fact, the activity of the psychic senses more or less intelligently and consciously open to impressions made upon them by psychic forces, whether these forces proceed from an intelligence still embodied, or from an intelligence which has left its tenement of clay. Far from me be it to say that this last is never true. On the contrary, I think it is true, and not very rare. If so, the claims of the Spiritualists, — their statement of what is called "spirit communication," may readily be conceded. It is wholly within the bounds of natural sci- entific possibility, and nothing appears to forbid the most cau- tious person to entertain the idea. In this case, the interchange of thoughts and feelings and wishes and wits between us who are here and others who have gone on, becomes a fact in psy- chic science of the utmost possible moment. What is that "adeptship" of which we hear the Theosophists speak, if not the full activity of the psychic senses, trained to do the will of their master? They act under the conscious and intelligent op- eration of an expert in psychic science, and impress upon other psychic organisms the thoughts that the adept desires. If there be any truth in this, the claims of the Theosophists, which seem so wild, may after all be found within the limits of sober facts. They are certainly more amenable to verification by ex- 42 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES periment, than those of mediumship. For example, the alleged communication between two bodies of Theosophists, by the "projection of the double" or some similar means, is reducible to a simple experiment in psychic science. If any such com- munication be possible between trained adepts in the flesh, it should not be impossible between one such and another who has cast off the flesh. In very truth, the relation between the spirit-world and the matter-world is that of substance and shadow. The latter does not exist apart from the former. All matter is but the ev- idence of spirit. That is an "evidence of things unseen" which may not have occurred to all readers of a certain book. The relation between the two is one of cause and effect. The inter- dependence is absolute ; it is universal ; it is everlasting ; it is here; it is now. "I am that I am," says Jehovah. And when you make the same discovery respecting yourselves, you will cease to ask idle questions of Theosophy. The phenomena of mediumship and of adeptship, if not fully explained, are capable at least of being brought under one broader law of equal applicability to both. They differ only in degree, not in kind. We see in them both the possibility of successful psychic research, the material for sound psychic sci- ence, and the probability that the pivotal propositions of the Spiritualist and of the Theosophist may become demonstrable theorems which, so far from refuting or antagonizing one anoth- er, do countenance and confirm one another, each rendering the other more likely to be established. That is a consummation devoutly to be wished by every lover of truth. Do I then believe in spirits and in spirit intercourse? As- suredly I do ! For am I not a spirit, like every one of you? Do I not communicate with this visible world by my natural body, my visible apparatus of relation with the phenomenal world, without being thereby shut out from my spiritual pre- rogative of communicating with such other spirits as I can reach, on another plane, by the spiritual body appropriate to that FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A SCIENTIST. 43 plane of existence? Ask me for my authority for this statement, and I point first to the ascertained facts of psychic science. But if other authority be acceptable, I may quote one whom not many will be inclined to dispute when I repeat the solemn words : "There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body," THE OUTLOOK. What now, my friends, think you, are the real "Signs of the Times" when such questions as we have discussed to-night are to the fore? We know not, indeed, what a day may bring forth, when that day is on the turning point of one of the great natu- ral cycles of the evolution of the human race. Not single and isolated are the spiritual phenomena we have so hurriedly re- viewed. They are signaled by greater terrestrial disturbances than have been witnessed on an equal scale for many a day. Volcanic action has sunken parts of the earth's crust, and alter- ed the coast lines of continents. The dust of the conflict of these Titanic forces has reddened the very sky. Earthquakes have shaken the solid ground; and not less active than these grand cosmic forces are the spiritual energies at work, exact counterparts of physical agencies. Men and women are shak- en in the beliefs of a life-time. Things sacred and things pro- fane seem melting indistinguishable in the single crucible of the mind. Every revered religious creed is fiercely assailed and hotly defended. The challenge of Science to Religion resounds. The counterblast of the Church to the State echoes back that defiance. Every where are old foundations shaken; every where the scaffolding of new structures is erected. The times are revolutionary in thought, in feeling, in belief. Nothing is too wild or fanciful to find its heralds; nothing is too securely grounded for attack. Emerson said : "Beware when the great God lets loose a thinker in the world." But lo ! here are thous- ands of thinkers all around us, thinking for themselves with small deference to authority, and little regard for precedent, cus- tom or established institutions. Thoughts are free and the thinkers are freed, as perhaps never before in the history of the 44 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES world. Who shall be the moderator in this vast throng where every one clamors to be heard? My eyes turn wistfully back to the fixed faith of bygone years — where is it? We must look forward, though in all the glare it takes a steady eye to discern undimmed the truth that is surely advancing. Physical science has well-nigh conquered the physical realm. May we not hope- fully turn to psychical science to establish also her kingdom on the earth? The problem of the day is not a question of matter; it is a question of mind; and the problem of mind has ceased to be only a question of the intellect. It has become the cry of the soul for more light in the dungeon of the body I This cry goes up the loudest from the women of the land, be- cause her soul's imprisonment is harder to bear than man's, and her duty to redeem a world is more imperative. A great con- vention of women is but an outward sign. The real sign most legible is the inward compact that woman's soul has made with her spiritual self. That is the covenant of a new dispensation to reincarnate the God in man, as the final triumph of spirit over matter. That is the law of life, here and hereafter. That is the Master's Word, forever lost and found again, that every man himself shall know and do the will of the Most High. CONSENSUS OF THE COMPETENT. The domain of Psychics and the realm of Spirit so long claimed by theological dogmatists as their exclusive possessions, and under their tyrannical sway, are being gradually thrown open to the world. Men of science and members of the learned professions are join- ing forces with the masses in a persistent and determined effort to explore these mysterious possessions, and to develop them in the interests of humanity at large. The enterprise is alluring; the prize magnificent; but the first is not without its dangers, and the last lies beyond the Mountain of Endeavor. After reading the very able essay of Dr. Coues, on "The Signs of the Times," one of the first inquiries which will arise in the mind of him who has mastered it and desires to begin a search for himself will be: " How can I best learn to guard myself against error and where can I secure a competent and faithful assistant for the dif- ficult work of scaling the mountain?" To all such inquirers the perusal of the following pages is respectfully commended. In every activity of life, and especially in politics, religion and science, the newspaper has become the most powerful agent and the greatest disseminator of knowledge and opinions. In its particular field it is generally acknowledged that the Religio-Philosophical Journal has no equal; that it far surpasses all other similar publi- cations in those features which commend a paper to educated, thoughtful, rational, earnest people. From a large number of fresh communications and opinions, the following are selected and spread on these pages as the testimony of representative men of wide repu- tation who, while differing with one another and with the Religio- Philosophical Journal in regard to many things, all agree in bear- ing testimony to the ability, courage, vigor, scientific spirit, and judi- cial fairness of the paper. CONSENSUS OF THE COMPETENT, Elliott Ooues, A. M., M. D., Ph. D., Naturalist, Etc, Gnostic Theosophical Society, Washington, D. C., Sept. 21, 1888. Editor Religio-Philosophical Journal: — The Journal is al- ready recognized as the ablest exponent of Spiritualistic doctrine in America, and no Theosophist or Psychic Researcher can fail to note with satisfaction its persistent endeavor to place the phenome- na of Spiritualism on a proper basis The world does like cour- age, candor, sincerity, earnestness and resolution, however much the cynics may decry these qualities; and they do not depend for their telling effect upon coincidence with logical truth or the re- verse. They are in themselves moral forces, to which the intellect is only subservient. Though I have allowed my name to become in some measure identified with the modern cult which is now widely known under the name of " Theosophy," and though I have acquired through this association some knowledge concerning which I think it inexpedi- ent at present to take the public into my confidence, I am far from insisting upon the superiority of theosophical doctrines for all per- sons or all purposes I recognize and endorse the Journal's "open-court" policy — its actual and not merely ostensible openness and judicial impar- tiality. Its columns are as open to those of my own communion as to the enemies of the cult I represent, if they have anything to say and know how to say it Very truly yours, ELLIOTT COUES, F. T. S., Pres't, etc. B. F. Underwood, Author, Lecturer on Philosophical and Scientific Subjects, and Journalist: 86 So. Page Street, Chicago, September 29th, 1888. Dear Colonel Bundy: — Although not a Spiritualist, I am, as I have been for years, an interested reader of the Journal, in which I fiud a great deal to approve and admire 1 wish to see all gen- uine psychic phenomena carefully and thoroughly examined. An independent, incorruptible journalism at this time needs encourage- ment, and it has no worthier representative than the Journal. Sincerely yours, B. F. UNDERWOOD. CONSENSUS OF THE COMPErENT. B. Heber Newton, D. D., Rector of "All Souls' Church," (Protestant Episcopal), New York City: Garden City, New York, October 30th, 3888. Dear Colonel Bundy: Yon know my position on the u anx- ious bench." "Almost persuaded " at times, and then again repell- ed by the superabounding fraud in the movement, I represent hosts of men who must be deeply concerned to see the Journal prose- cute its fearless work, and sift out the true from the false, so that outsiders may be able to judge intelligently. Every one must hope that Spiritualism maybe able to verify its superlatively important claims If Spiritualists really believe what they profess, they ought to back you up vigorously in the work ycu are doing. Nothing but such a work will enable the general public to believe Yours cordially, R. HEBER NEWTON. George H. Hepworth, Author and Journalist. New York, September, 26th, 1888. My Dear Bundy: — As you know, while I am not a Spiritual- ist, I have leanings that way; for all that is good, beautiful and true in the theory that our friends are not "lost, but gone before "; that they are never so far away as to be beyond reach; that u a cloud of witnesses" hold us "in full survey," and that the alarm bells in heaven are rung whenever we are in the pinch of dire distress, I have great admiration. For the large admixture of humbug, fraud and impudence, however, which stares us in the face at every turn, I have an unbounded and inexpressible contempt. You have helped! by your able Journal to expose and drive these fiends, who coin cash out of bleeding and stricken hearts, to their holes You have crushed them under your trip-hammer like filberts, and dragged them out into the light for the world's scorn and detestation. All right! You have done, and are doing, a good work. We who are in the rushing tide of life, too busy with the affairs of this world to do more than wonder concerning the next, need some wholesome suggestions, good reading, solutions of difficulties, an- swers to doubts. You can help us amazingly to "bear the ills we have," if you can furnish us with a literature that has its base in un- deniable facts. So I say, go ahead, and God spare you. Yours sincerely, GEO. H. HEPWORTH. CONSENSUS OF THE COMPETENT. Hudson Tuttle, Author, Lecturer on Philosophical and Sci- entific subjects, and Writer for the Press. Berlin Heights, Ohio, September 28th, 1888. My Dear Bundy: — .... That the Religio-Philosophical Jour- nal has been able to maintain its fearless independence in the face of all opposition and to utter editorially and through its contributors much that was in advance of the general Spiritualist sentiment, and live to see these utterances finally accepted as truth and echoed in other channels, is something phenomenal and almost unprecedented. Such a record entitles its editor and publisher to the unlimited and generous confidence of the public May the angels strengthen the hands of all connected with it. Fraternally, HUD30N TUTTLE. M. J. Savage, Pastor of the "Church of the Unity/' Boston, Autnor and Poet. Colonel J. C. Bundy: — My Dear Sir: .... I know enough, through my own personal experiences, to feel sure that this psychic field is thoroughly worth exploring, and I feel equally sure that the path marked out by your spirit and methods, is the only way. You have so identified yourself with sense and honesty, that your victory will be their victory. I cannot help believing that, more and more, all clear- vision ed and honest men will be with you With all faith in you, and with all good wishes for your success, I am Most sincerely, M. J. SAVAGE. Boston, October 8th, 1888. H. W. Thomas, D. D, Pastor of "The Peoples' Church," Chicago, Illinois: Dear Bro. Bundy: — .... The higher phases and interests of man's strange life must more and more come to the front; and in do- ing this, they must become more orderly, more systematic, and even scientific in form and statement; and as far as may be, more verita- ble in personal experience. But this will not, and can not come all at once; nor to all at the same time; it must wait upon the slow de- velopment of the higher in each one, and hence the need of such a Religio-Philosophical Journal of facts and experiences and reas- onings and suggestions and of criticism, exposures even, as you have for years published. .... Man is yet to come out upon that high and luminous way where he will realize that he is a spirit, and that he should emphasize that CONSENSUS OF THE COMPETENT. which is highest and best in himself and in his fellow beings; and to this end our age needs a spiritual philosophy, a spiritual religion, a spiritual literature; in a word, everything that helps to that higher state. May God bless you in your noble endeavors. Affectionately, H. W. THOMAS. Chicago, Illinois, October 5th, 1888. W. H. Herndon, Abraham Lincoln's old Law partner, Bosom Friend and Biographer. Springfield, Illinois, November 26th, 1888. Friend Bundy: — I am extremely busy reading proof-sheets of my Life of Lincoln, which I hope will be out— say in Feb. next. .... I admire your course— a heroic one, you well know; and wish you success in your struggle to uplift mankind. You are correct! everything is governed by law — matter and mind — nothing is law- less. Your method of arriving at truth, through observation, expe- rience and reason, is the correct one; not discarding wholly the de- ductive Go ahead just as you are going, and it will all end right in some, probably now unknown, direction; while it will prove what you are struggling for. I am most heartily with you in all this. Your friend, W. H. HERNDON. E. P. Powell, Preacher, Journalist, and Author of "Our Heredity from God." Clinton, New York, September 21st, 1888. My Dear Bundy:— You know I am not technically a Spiritualist, but underneath even the terrible load of fraud and trash called spirit- ual, I believe there is the all-important fact that man is in evolution beyond the purely material stage. With your magnificent effort to de- feat materialistic M Spiritualism," and give us the warm and vital oneness with Life — the All-Life, you have won the heartiest sympa- thy of not only myself but of all sincere workers and thinkers Allow me as an outsider to extend you the warm right hand of an evolutionist Yours most heartily, E. P. POWELL. ; PUBLISHER'S STATEMENT. The Religio-Philosophical Journal, In the estimation of a large pro- portion of the leading authorities on Spiritualism, stands pre-eminent as a fearless, independent, judicially fair advocate of Spiritualism. It is admired and respected not only by reflecting, critical Spiritualists, but by the large constituency just outside the spiritualistic ranks, who are looking longingly and hopefully toward Spiritualism as the beacon light which may guide to higher, broader grounds, and give a clearer insight to the soul's capabilities and destiny. It is disliked by some very good but very weak people; it is hated by all who aim to use Spiritualism as a cloak to serve their selfish pur- poses. The Journal has received more general notice, and more frequent and higher commendations from intelligent sources, regardless of sect or party, than any other Spiritualist or liberal paper ever published ; the records will confirm this. The Journal is uncompromisingly committed to the Scientific Method, In its treatment of the Phenomena of Spiritualism, being fully assured that this is the only safe ground on which to stand. Firmly convinced by rigid in- vestigation, thaX life continues beyond the grave and that spirits can and do return and manifest at times and under certain conditions, the Journal does not fear the most searching criticism and crucial tests in sustaining its position. Some Reasons Why Rational, Broad-Minded People fiike the Religio-Philosophieal Journal. The Journal lends its active support to every scheme adapted to the amelioration of man. The Journal is unsectarian, non-partizan, thoroughly independent, never neutral, wholly free from cliques and clans. The Journal is ever ready to back an honest medium with all its power, and its bottom dollar; it is equally ready to drive into the bottom of the last ditch every persistent, unrepenting swindler. The Journal is published in the interests of Spiritualism and the gen- eral public; its columns can never be used to grind the axes of individuals, nor as a channel for cranks, charlatans and hobbyists to reach the public. The Journal opens its columns to all who have something to say and know how to say it well, whether the views are in accord with its own or not; It courts fair and keen criticism and invites honest, searching inquiry. The Journal has a large and well-trained corps of regular and occasion- al contributors and correspondents, not only in America, but in England , France, Germany, Italy, Russia, and Australia, and is therefore always in re- ceipt of the earliest and most trustworthy information on all subjects coming within its scope. TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION. One Copy One Year - $2.50 One Copy Six Months - 1.25 Specimen Copy Sent Free. Remittances should be made by P. 0. Money Order, Postal Note or Draft on Chicago or New York, payable to John C. Bundy. Address all letters and communications to JOHN C. BUNDY. Chicago, III. MH,fi«,!i!y 0F CONGRESS 022 007 244 7 THE BIOGEN SERIES. JEclitecl 13 >- PROFESSOR COUES, No. 1. No. No. No. 4. No. 5. BIOGEN: A Speculation on the Origin and Nature of Life. By Elliott Coues. Boston: Estes & Lauriat. Fifth edition. THE D.EMON OF DARWIN. By Elliott Coues. Boston: Estes & Lauriat. Third edition. A BUDDHIST CATECHISM. By Hen r, S. Oleott, with Notes by Elliott Coues. Boston: Estes & Lauriat. Second edi. tion.. CAN MATTER THINK? By an Occultist. Edited by Elli- ott Coues. Boston: Estes & Lauriat. Second edition. KUTHUMI: The True and Complete Oeconomy of Human Life, based on the system of Theosophical Ethics. Bos- ton: Estes & Lauriat. A New Edition. ^ By the Same Author: A WOMAN IN THE CASE. Washington: Brentano. 1887. FOR SALE, At the Office of the RELIGIO-PHILOSOPHICAL JOURNAL, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.