“June 8th, 1886.
“As desired I write down the following facts as well as I can recall them. I was living in Scotland, my mother and sisters in Germany. I lived with a very dear friend of mine, and went to Germany every year to see my people. It had so happened that I could not go home as usual for two years, when on a sudden I made up my mind to go and see my family. They knew nothing of my intention; I had never gone in early spring before; and I had no time to let them know by letter that I was going to set off. I did not like to send a telegram for fear of frightening my mother. The thought came to me to will with all my might to appear to one of my sisters, never mind which of them, in order to give them warning of my coming. I only thought most intensely for a few minutes of them, wishing with all my might to be seen by one of them—half present myself, in vision, at home. I did not take more than ten minutes, I think. I started by the Leith steamer on Saturday night, end of April, 1859. I wished to appear at home about 6 o’clock P. M. that same Saturday.
“I arrived at home at 6 o’clock on Tuesday morning following. I entered the house without any one seeing me, the hall being cleaned and the front door open. I walked into the room. One of my sisters stood with her back to the door; she turned round when she heard the door opening, and on seeing me, stared at me, turning deadly pale, and letting what she had in her hand fall. I had been silent. Then I spoke and said, ‘It is I. Why do you look so frightened?’ When she answered, ‘I thought I saw you again as Stinchen (another sister) saw you on Saturday.’
“When I inquired, she told me that on Saturday evening about 6 o’clock, my sister saw me quite clearly, entering the room in which she was, by one door, passing through it, opening the door of another room in which my mother was, and shutting the door behind me. She rushed after what she thought was I, calling out my name, and was quite stupefied when she did not find me with my mother. My mother could not understand my sister’s excitement. They looked everywhere for me, but of course did not find me. My mother was very miserable; she thought I might be dying.
“My sister who had seen me (i. e. my apparition) was out that morning when I arrived. I sat down on the stairs to watch, when she came in, the effect of my real appearance on her. When she looked up and saw me, sitting motionless, she called out my name and nearly fainted.
“My sister had never seen anything unearthly either before that or afterwards; and I have never made any such experiments since—nor will I, as the sister that saw me first when I really came home, had a very severe illness afterwards, caused by the shock to her nerves.
“J. M. Russell.”
Mrs. Russell’s sister, in answer to her inquiry whether she remembered the incident, replied: “Of course I remember the matter as well as though it had happened to-day. Pray don’t come appearing to me again!”
We started out with this proposition. Perceptions—those of the class denominated hallucinations—may have their origin telepathically. In proof and illustration of that proposition we have so far presented a single class of cases, namely, Those where the hallucination was produced with will and purpose on the part of the agent. The cases present the following conditions:—