Professor Sidgwick called on Mr. Frost in June 1892, and learned from him that he had last seen his grandmother in 1878, on which occasion she had promised, if possible, to appear to him at her death. On first seeing the figure Mr. Frost thought that his grandmother had actually come in the flesh to surprise him. It was full daylight, and had there been a real knock and a real presence Mrs. Frost must have both heard and seen. Mr. Frost had no cause for anxiety about his grandmother, and has had no other experience of this kind. News of the death came by letter, and Mrs. Frost remembers the letter, and that she noticed the coincidence at the time.
In the next case the order of perception is reversed; the visual preceded the auditory image. The narrative was procured for us by M. Aksakof, of 6 Nevsky Prospect, St. Petersburg, who also translated the original Russian into French, from which we have translated it into English.
No. 77.—From M. A——.
"It was at Milan, on the 10th (22nd) of October 1888. I was staying at the Hotel Ancora. After dinner, at about seven o'clock, I was seated on the sofa, reading a newspaper. My wife was resting in the same room on a couch, behind a curtain. The room was lighted by a lamp upon the table near which I was sitting reading. Suddenly I saw against the background of the door, which was opposite me, my father's face. He wore as usual a black surtout, and was deadly pale. At that moment I heard quite close to my ear a voice which said to me, 'A telegram is coming to say your father is dead.' All this only took a few seconds. I started up and rushed towards my wife, but not to startle her I said nothing to her about it. To explain my sudden movement I exclaimed 'Look, do you not see that the kettle is boiling over!'... On the evening of the same day, about eleven o'clock, we were taking tea in the company of several other people, among whom were Madame Y., her daughter E. Y., formerly an actress at the Court Theatre, and Mademoiselle M., who is now living in Florence. All at once there was a knock at the door, and the concierge presented a telegram. Pale with emotion I immediately exclaimed, 'I know my father is dead; I have seen....' The telegram contained these words, 'Papa dead suddenly.—Olga.' It was a telegram from my sister living at St. Petersburg. I learned later that my father had committed suicide on the morning of the same day.
"(Signed) E. A."
Madame A. writes:—
"I was present at the time, and I testify to the accuracy of the account."
M. Aksakof wrote to us that he had seen the original telegram, which ran—
"Ricevuto il 22,[1] 1888. Milano, Petersbourg, data 22,[119] ore e minute, 8.40. 'Papa mort subitement.—Olga.'"
Another case, in which the senses affected were those of touch and hearing, has been given to us by Mr. Malleson. In 1874 or 1875 he went for a short sea voyage, taking with him his young son. On the night of his departure, while in a dreamy, half-conscious state, he imagined that his son had fallen overboard, and that he himself was bringing the sad news to his wife. On his return home he learned that on that night Mrs. Malleson had been awakened by feeling some one leaning over her. She put out her arm and, as she thought, touched her husband's coat. She had no doubt that it was her husband's bodily presence, spoke to him, and heard him answer, "Yes, I have come back." But on her continuing, "Where is Eddy?" she received no reply, and felt much alarmed. There are several instances recorded of tactile hallucinations accompanying visual and auditory phantasms.[120]