Spirit Slate Writing and Kindred Phenomena

by Chung Ling Soo

“Ties” have always been one of the great standbys of mediums, second only to slate writing.

The following is a simple test with a rope or piece of string: A long piece of rope is given for inspection, and, on its return to the medium, he coils it up and lays it on the table; the two ends are tied together and sealed fast to the table. The coils of the rope are now allowed to drop on the floor. Lights are lowered, and, in a few minutes, when the lights are relighted, the coil of rope is found with numerous knots tied in it that could not naturally have been accomplished without the ends being untied and unsealed. This mystery is accomplished by simple means. When the medium receives the rope back he does not coil it up as a person would, in the ordinary fashion, but makes the coils so they really form half hitches, and, as he lays them on the table, he runs one of the free ends through all the coils, then ties the two ends together. Each coil will now form an overhand knot. An easy manner of manipulating the rope is as follows: The rope is held in the hands, with palms upward; now, to form the coil, or half hitch, the right hand is given a half twist; this brings the palm facing the person’s breast and back of hand outward, and leaves the rope as seen in Fig. 33; this loop is transferred to the left hand (Fig. 34), and the operation repeated until the supply of the rope is exhausted. Now, to make the knots, one end of the rope has simply to be passed through all the loops.

Fig. 33.—First Position.

Fig. 34.—Second Position.

I have seen the above test worked also as follows: Two skeptics were used. One end of the rope was fastened to one of the skeptic’s wrists and the other end to the wrist of the second skeptic. The knots were sealed. The rope in this case was quite long, about twenty feet. The medium now makes the rope up into a few coils; out go the lights, and, in a few minutes, on the lights being turned up, the rope is found with knots. This is what happens: When the lights went out, the medium went up to one of the skeptics, and, while talking to him and moving him two or three feet further away from the other skeptic, he has passed the coils over this one man’s head, and allowed the coils to drop to the floor. As soon as the skeptic steps out of these, the job is done.

There is another test on somewhat similar lines. A short piece of rope is examined and the performer holds it in one hand and then tosses it into the cabinet, which is empty. On opening the curtain in a few seconds the rope is found with a knot on it. The performer himself actually ties the knot with one hand in the act of tossing the rope into the cabinet. The rope is held in the hand palm upward, very near one end, the short end in the hand being with the long end hanging down, the shorter part being between the thumb and the forefinger. The hand and arm are given a kind of half circular sweep in tossing the rope into the cabinet; this causes the long portion of the rope to swing under, then over the wrist, and across the fingers of the hand. This end is then seized between the fingers and drawn through the loop just made; at the same time the loop is dropped off the wrist as the rope is tossed into the cabinet. In reading the above description it seems like four or five different movements, but with practice they all blend into one.

Here is another test. A single knot is tied in the center of a piece of string; now the ends are tied together and knots sealed. The lights turned down; on their again being turned up, the knot from the center of the cord has disappeared. The moment there was darkness the medium started to work, and kept slipping the knot along the string until it joined the rest at the top of the string, where there is not much fear of its being seen. To further protect himself he uses the following plan: He chews gum colored the same as the sealing wax used. Now in the dark, when he has the single knot up against the others at the end of the string, he covers this knot with part of the chewing gum and blends it in with the sealing wax.

I will now explain a few ties, rope and otherwise, by which the mediums allow themselves to be tied. It is almost invariably the rule for the medium to suggest to the investigator the general way he wishes to be tied. They must have certain conditions, so they say, or the spirits will not work. It is safe to say the conditions are very strict and always in favor of the medium. The female medium has a preference for ties in which tape or muslin, or cotton cloth torn into strips, is utilized. The male performer, as a rule, uses rope and wire. I will first describe what is known as the braid or tape test. Take a piece of tape about three-quarters of an inch wide. Have one end of this securely tied around the wrist; now the person who is conducting the test seats himself in a chair with his hands behind the back of the chair; now have the loose end of the tape passed between the uprights forming the back of the chair; have the other end fastened around the remaining hand. The moment you are in the dark, or hidden from view, you can produce any manifestation that requires the use of one or both hands, by following these instructions. The first hand can be tied as the investigator pleases. Now, when the second hand is to be tied, keep a strain on the tape enough to keep it taut. By so doing a square knot cannot be tied on the tape, but simply a running knot, or a knot around the strand of the tape—a knot that can be slid backward and forward.