26. ESTABLISHING PSYCHIC IDENTITY

One would suppose that, if the spirits were really those of departed human beings, and if they controlled mediums of communication (as in these experiments), it would be an exceedingly simple matter to establish their identity to the entire satisfaction of those who knew them in life; and particularly should this be an easy matter where secret pre-arrangements had been made (as in this case) to facilitate the establishment of such identity. If, on the other hand, the communications were from demons (well-acquainted, possibly, with those they were endeavouring to personate, but yet necessarily limited in their knowledge of them), we should expect occasional hitches and discrepancies, and other indications of imperfect acquaintance with the life-history of the impersonated individuals. It is therefore highly significant that the messages received were frequently (if not generally) of a nonsensical and bombastic character, like the following: "I stretch my hand across the vaporous space, the interlunar space—twixt moon and earth—where the gods of Lucretius quaff their nectar. Do you not understand?"

We think one might, indeed, be excused if he failed to understand this cryptic utterance; and it requires a great stretch of credulity to suppose that the spirit of a departed human being would send such a communication as this to his friends in the attempt thereby to establish his identity. But the sapient investigators were of the opinion that Myers was, in the above message, paraphrasing some lines of Lucretius,—which, by the way, are exceedingly unlike the supposed paraphrase. But even if we indulge this rather violent assumption, it is yet not seen how the communication tends in the slightest degree to establish the identity of Myers, unless (which nowhere appears) the latter was, in his lifetime, addicted to the very eccentric habit of framing exceedingly clumsy paraphrases of the ancient poets.

Here are some other of the reported messages:—

"Look out for Hope, Star, and Browning"; "with laureat wreath his brow serene was crowned." "No more to-day—await the better news that brings assurance with a laurel crown," etc. etc.

These utterances are such as might be expected from some of the preposterous characters in Alice in Wonderland; but our scientists, on due consideration of them, reached the conclusion that they constituted parts of a complicated attempt on the part of Myers and Hodgson to establish their identity beyond all doubt.

It is further stated, in the accounts which have reached us, that many poetical communications were received, "automatically suggesting or elaborating on the idea of a supernal heavenly calm." No doubt the awful Being, who has "the power of death, that is the Devil" (Heb. ii. 14), would be glad to spread the

A BLUNDERING "CONTROL"

notion that all and sundry of the dead, even though out of Christ, are in a state of "supernal heavenly calm."

But a further explanation is needed at this point. It appears that, for some unexplained reason, the spirits of Myers and Hodgson themselves were not able to communicate directly through the "psychics." The latter, it seems, can be possessed only by certain specially endowed Intelligences, technically called "Controls." When a message is to be delivered the control enters the psychic, receives the message, and causes the psychic to write it out. This is called "automatic writing," being done by the psychic while in a trance condition. Thus, Mrs. Piper has two "controls," who gave their names respectively as "Imperator" and "Rector." Hence Messrs. Myers and Hodgson had to entrust their messages to a "control," and the latter, entering one of the "psychics," turned it into words through automatic writing. The advantage of this arrangement on the part of the demons is evident. Whenever a mistake, discrepancy, or other blunder occurs, it may be conveniently attributed to the stupidity of the "control." For example, one communication contained the word "Evangelical." This word being unintelligible (and to our mind grotesquely incongruous), an explanation was demanded; and Myers was reported as explaining that he had been trying to give through "Rector" the name "Evelyn Hope," and that "Rector" had carelessly put it down "Evangelical." This explanation appears to have been perfectly satisfactory to the scientists. They conclude their report by saying—

"To sum up: In this concordant episode of Mrs. Piper's trance and Mrs. Verrall's script, the controlling influence in both cases claims to be one and the same personality, namely, Frederic Myers."

And the report proceeds to give reasons from which the only inference possible is that, in the opinion of its writers, the communicator was none other than the discarnate human spirit of Frederic Myers.

It would be difficult to exaggerate the seriousness to humanity of this alliance between physical science and demonism. As the result, we have the machinery prepared, and already in full operation, for the most gigantic deception over practised upon the educated classes of society. By means of this new engine of deception millions upon millions may be lured into the comfortable belief that they may reject the Christ of God, and may yet be assured, upon the authority of "Science," of a continued existence of blissfulness—"a supernal heavenly calm"—after death.

Here, then, we have the source from which the coming religion of Humanism is to derive its supernatural components.