Glimpses Of The Next State.Pdf - Spiritualists' National Union

43January 30, 1906. Circle of fourteen people.A gentleman present, who very seldom attended, asked Foli, after he had sung “Rock’d inthe Cradle of the Deep,” to sing “The Magic Flute.” Uncle came forward and said, “He wishes toknow which aria you want.” “The second,” was the reply. Thereupon Foli sang the second aria of“The Magic Flute” correctly without accompaniment.The zither, while being played upon, altered course at request, going from one person to anotherseveral times, and it went through the foot as usual.February 12, 1906. Circle of fifteen people.After Foli had sung “Rock’d in the Cradle of the Deep,” the same gentleman alluded to above askedhim to sing ‘‘ The Diver,” which he did at once correctly without accompaniment.February 20, 1906. Circle of ten people.I saw the zither return through the floor by flash of light or illuminated patch.(33) February 26, 1906. Circle of twelve people.Two women materialised without any bandage round the mouth. One was a near relative ofmine who had passed over three months before. It was a very good likeness.A spirit seen by two clairvoyantes standing behind me. One of the two clairvoyantes told meit was Iola.The incidents that I have recorded in the foregoing pages are those which struck me asspecially worthy of mention from my own point of view at one seat in large circles. No doubt theother sitters observed phenomena that, from their point of view, were equally deserving ofrecognition. Judging by the insistence with which many of the members of our societies returnedagain and again to the seances, it is to be presumed that they had recognised their friends in thematerialisations and believed in the genuineness of the other manifestations.It would weary my readers to describe the phenomena that habitually took place; theygenerally came in the same order and in the same convincing way: (a) The greetings andblessing of Cardinal Newman; (b) singing by the circle with spirit voices joining in; (c) playing onthe zither (fairy hells) ; (d) journeys of the zither, always playing a definite tune, to parts of theroom far beyond the reach of the medium; (e) arrival of John King; (f) materialisations; (g) singingof solos; (h) more gyrations of the zither, playing all the time; (i) its rush through a wall, a floor,, ora door, and its return; (k) often the chanting of Greek priests; (l) a final hymn with spirit voicesagain joining in. Whatever theories are afoot about the aerial singing and the materialisations, andthey are many, I am not aware that anyone has had the temerity to profess to account for the flightand management of the zither, or for the column of light seen by many different clairvoyantesstanding or floating behind certain sitters. The zither careers swiftly about and alters its course atthe request of individual sitters, never ceasing to play by fingers on its chords. If the medium hadhis right hand free, he could not control the movements of this instrument and play it at the sametime; nor could he control these white forms. The “striking proof” is a test that is inexplicable byany theory of fraud on the part of the medium. Though some of the whispers through the tube are“Husky,” the voices of the controls, John King, Uncle, Joey, Christopher (who lisps), and Ebenezer,do not resemble the voice of the medium in the slightest degree. Uncle talks the whole evening, andanswers all sorts of questions on the spur of the moment. There is never a jar nor a tactless word,and John King remembers every sitter who has ever sat with his medium.