and women.' Of course he got the answers he expected on this hypothesis. The following is his set of 'test questions,' the answers to which being entirely opposed to his own notions of truth-satisfied him, and were expected to satisfy his partners in the experiment, of the diabolical character of the respondent : "Are we justified by works?' 'Yes.'-' By faith alone?' 'No.'-'Is the whole Bible true?' 'No.''Were the miracles of the New Testament wrought by supernatural power?' 'No.'-' By some hidden law of Nature?' 'Yes.' — 'Was Oliver Cromwell good?' 'No.' 'Was Charles I. a good man?' 'Yes.'-' Is it right to pray to the Virgin?' 'Yes.'-'Is Christ God?' 'No.'-' Is he a man?' 'No.' 'Is he something between God and man, a sort of angel?' 'Yes.'-' Is he in heaven?' 'No.' -'Where is he?' It spelt slowly H E L L.-As the last letter was indicated, the girl drew her hands quickly off the table, much as a person would do who was drawing them off a hot iron. Her brother-in-law turned very pale, and took his hands off the table also." (Lecture on Table-turning, 1853; p. 8.) The character, position, and obvious sincerity of the actors in these performances place them beyond suspicion of intentional deception; and the phenomena they narrate afford a singularly apposite illustration of the principle which I desire to enforce. But that such obvious products of the questioners' own mental states should have been accepted by men of education, occupying the position of religious teachers in the National Church, as the lying responses of evil spirits, sent expressly to delude them, can only be deemed-by such, at least, as are prepared to accept a scientific rationale of the phenomena-a pitiable instance of the readiness with which minds of a certain type may allow themselves to become 'possessed' by dominant ideas. APPENDIX N. MRS. CULVER'S STATEMENT. "I am by marriage a connection of the Fox girls. Their brother married my husband's sister. The girls have been a great deal at my house; and for about two years I was a very sincere believer in the rappings; but something which I saw when I was visiting the girls at Rochester made me suspect that they were deceiving. I resolved to satisfy myself in some way, and sometime afterwards I made a proposition to Catherine to assist her in producing the manifestations. I had a cousin visiting me from Michigan, who was going to consult the spirits; and I told Catherine that if they intended going to Detroit, it would be a great thing for them to convince him. I also told her that if I could do anything to help her, I would do it cheerfully; that I should probably be able to answer all the questions he would ask, and I would do it if she would show me how to make the raps. She said that as Margaretta was absent, she wanted somebody to help her; and that if I would become a medium, she would explain it all to me. She said that when my cousin consulted the spirits, I must sit next to her, and touch her arm when the right letter was called. I did so, and was able to answer all the questions correctly. After I had helped her in this way a few times, she revealed to me the secret. The raps are produced by the toes. All the toes are used. After nearly a week's practice with Catherine showing me how, I could produce them perfectly myself. "At first it was very hard work to do it. Catherine told me to warm my feet, or put them in warm water, and it would then be easier to rap. She said that she had sometimes to warm her feet three or four times during the evening. I found that heating my feet did enable me to rap a great deal easier. I have sometimes produced 150 raps in succession. I can rap with all the toes on both feet; it is most difficult to rap with the great toe. Catherine told me how to manage to answer the questions. She said it was generally easy enough to answer right, if the one who asked the question called the alphabet. She said the reason why she asked people to write down several names on paper, and then point to them till the spirits rapped at the right one, was to give them a chance to watch the countenance and motions of the person, and that in that way they could nearly always guess right. She also explained how they held down and moved tables. (Mrs. Culver here gave some illustration of the tricks.) She told me that all I should have to do to make raps heard on the table, would be to put my foot on the bottom of the table when I rapped; and that when I wished to make the raps sound distant on the wall I must make them louder, and direct my own eyes earnestly to the spot where I wished them to be heard. She said if I could put my foot to the bottom of the door, the raps would be heard on the top of the door. "Catherine told me that when her feet were held down by the Rochester Committee, the Dutch servant-girl rapped with her knuckles under the floor from the cellar. The girl was instructed to rap whenever she heard their voices calling the spirits. Catherine also showed me how they made the sounds of sawing and planing boards. When I was at Rochester last January, Margaretta told me that when people insisted on seeing her feet and toes, she could produce a few raps with her knees and ankles. "Elizabeth Fish (Mr. Fish's daughter), who now lives with her father, was the first one who produced these raps. She accidentally discovered the way of making them by playing with her toes against the foot-board while in bed. Catherine told me that the reason why Elizabeth went west to live with her father, was because she was too conscientious to become a medium. The whole secret was revealed to me, with the understanding that I should practise as a medium when the girls were away. Catherine said that whenever I practised, I had better have my little girl with me, and make folks believe that she was the medium; 'for,' she said, 'they would never suspect so young a child of any tricks.' After I had obtained the entire secret, I plainly told Catherine that my only object was to find out how these tricks were done, and that I should never go any further in this imposition. She was very much frightened, and said she believed I meant to tell of it and expose them, and if I did, she would swear it was a lie. She was so nervous and excited that I had to sleep with her that night. When she was instructing me how to be a medium, she told me how frightened they used to get in New York, for fear somebody would detect them; and gave me the history of all the tricks they played upon the people there. She said that once Margaretta spoke aloud, and that the whole party believed it was a spirit." (Signed) MRS. NORMAN CULVER. Certificate. "We hereby certify that Mrs. Culver is one of the most respectable and intelligent ladies in the town of Arcadia. We were present when she made the disclosures. We had heard the same from her before, and we cheerfully bear testimony that there cannot be the slightest doubt of the truth of the whole statement.". (Signed) C. J. POMEROY, M.D. APPENDIX O. LETTER FROM MR. A. R. WALLACE TO THE EDITOR 6 Sir,-In your comment on Mr. Lewes's letter you seem to imply that the experiment described may prove imposture, but that Professor De Morgan's experiment was equally decisive against imposture. Will you allow me very briefly to point out that the alleged exposure proves nothing without assuming the very fact at issue—that Mrs. Hayden herself caused the raps following the indications given by the person who pointed to the letters of the alphabet? For let us assume, on the other hand, that the raps were, as alleged, caused by invisible beings, perhaps not superior in intelligence to Mrs. Hayden, and equally liable to be affected by insult or impulse, and that these beings could read, more or less imperfectly, the questioner's mind. Nonsense questions were asked these intelligences, and absurd or contradictory answers were sought to be obtained by dwelling on certain letters. These absurd answers were obtained. This is consistent with the supposition on two theories. Either the intelligence could read only the questioner's active desire for a certain answer while pointing to the letters, and accordingly gave that answer; or, if it were able also to perceive the question (though less vivid in the questioner's mind at the moment), it might well adopt the human principles of answering what would be impertinent questions in the only way they deserved an answer. It is a fact within my own knowledge, and it is well-known to all spiritualists, that both kinds of answers are obtained in private circles where any imposture is out of the question. Professor De Morgan's experiment on the other hand absolutely precluded imposture on Mrs. Hayden's part, since not only were the letters and pointer carefully concealed from her, but the |