It must be admitted that this case, so exactly recorded, would be a difficult one to explain away.
I would now quote the case furnished by Major Spencer, who is an experienced and careful observer, and has given much attention to psychic photography. In this experiment he used his own camera, his own carriers and his own plates. What could be more drastic than that! He says, if I may abbreviate his account:
“The box of plates was never out of my sight and was cut open in the dark room by myself; Hope or Mrs. Buxton in no instance touching them.”
The red light, he explains, was a good one and he could see all that occurred.
“Hope stood on my left hand for the whole time in the dark room and I kept the box of plates under my right elbow during the operations of initialling and inserting the plates in the slides.... My own camera remained closed in my despatch-case (also closed) till I returned from the dark room, when I set it up on its tripod, extending it, and focussing it upon the chair afterwards used. When the exposures were made by Hope I had to explain to him how to actuate the shutter, as the lever on the camera front was new to him. The only contact with the camera was when he touched this lever. Exposure thirty-five seconds. Neither Mrs. Buxton nor Hope knew that I had intended using my own camera and dark slides till we met in the studio. These slides are metallic and each contains one plate.”
Fig. 5.—Group of Members of the S.S.S.P. The psychic face will be seen in the centre of the plate and situated horizontally to the sitters. (See p. [28].)
Fig. 6.—Major R. E. E. Spencer and psychic face obtained in special test. (See p. [31].)
