“‘Is it the Spirit of my brother?’ Answer, ‘Yes.’ He wrote the names of his deceased brothers, and it designated its own name by pinching his toe. ‘Does the Spirit wish to communicate with me?’ ‘I will communicate with you at home, when all is calm.’ Here silence prevailed for a time. The bells commenced ringing, and occasionally one would fall upon the floor. Alphabet called, spelling, ‘Move back a little from the table.’ All moved back except Capt. Walker, who made several efforts to obey, but found his chair fast. He looked to see if it was not fast in the carpet, and tried to raise it, but it refused to move upward, backward or forward. Alphabet called, spelling, ‘Sit close to the table.’ All drew their chairs close to the table, and Capt. Walker embraced the opportunity to see if the order had not loosened his chair; but he could not stir it.
“Now the Spirit commenced performances with bells; sometimes ringing them all at once, and sometimes placing them on the feet of one, and on the knees of another. Sometimes they would fall on the floor, and sometimes hit the under side of the table. This ceased, the alphabet was called, and the spelling was, ‘Look.’ We looked, and the three bells stood in a right line, about eighteen inches apart. We resumed our positions, and the operations of ringing, pressing feet, and throwing down bells, went on again. Again we were called to ‘look,’ and the two large bells stood upright, but the small one was missing, and could not be found. One of the company suggested that we look under the larger bells. The largest bell was lifted, and the missing one was found under it, standing erect. The play then went on, till we were again told to ‘look,’ and the small bell was found under the large one, lying on its side. So it continued for some time, placing the bells in various positions, and calling on the company to ‘look.’
“In answer to a question asked some days previously,—‘What is the use of these demonstrations?’ the Spirits said, ‘They are made to prove that the mediums have no agency in it.’ And the question asked by Mr. Stringham, ‘May I leave the table while the others remain, that I may look under and see the bells ringing?’ was answered, ‘What do you think we require you to sit close to the table for?’ When Spirits make these physical demonstrations they are compelled to assume shapes which human eyes must not look upon.
“When the above-named performances were finished, loud concussions were heard and felt on the under side of the table. They became louder and louder, till the brass candlesticks were made to bound up six or eight inches from the table. The candles were repeatedly thrown out of them, and we were compelled to hold them in our hands. These concussions were equal to those a man could make with a large nail-hammer, while lying on his back and striking with all his strength. We expected the bed of the table to be split in pieces, and Mrs. Fish became alarmed, turned pale, and begged us to leave the table. We did not comply, and the concussions were continued for full fifteen minutes. At the close of this very noisy exhibition, the alphabet was called for, and the spelling was, ‘We are all done for to-night.’ They were not importuned to continue the performances, and we arose from the table.
“The table was turned up to see what impressions were made, and a great number of deep indentations, in the hard cherry-wood, manifested the force with which the middle-sized bell had been thrust against it. Dr. Hayes took the bell and struck the table with the battered iron point which comes through the wooden handle, and made like indentations, though nothing like so deep as those made by the performers. Any one might have examined the table, and found the evidence.
(Signed) “One of the Company.”
This, coming as it did from, and being endorsed by, respectable citizens, was a strong opposing argument against the knee-joint theory. Every one could see that either these persons had formed a conspiracy to deceive the public, or the professors were proved to be the “humbugs” themselves. Still another report appeared in a few days, which rendered the explanation of the professors still more ridiculous. It was from the pen of a well-known citizen of Buffalo, who had been appointed by a company to prepare it. I give it as it appeared in one of the Buffalo papers.
SPIRITUAL COMMUNICATION.
“Mr. Maynard: