Mark reentered, seating himself in one corner of the room outside the circle. The Professor made room for Esther beside himself, but she declined his civility, and passed around to the side of her mother, not noticing, until too late to retreat, that she had placed herself next to Donald Bartram. She flushed slightly as she gave him her hand, humiliated that she should be placed in such a position.
Again silence prevailed for the space of several minutes. Donald glanced through half-closed eyes about the circle, noting the placid content of Auntie Dearborn, the grim determination of Solomon Garrett, the complacent expectancy of Mrs. McCleary, the awed, half-frightened look of Lissa, the sly, furtive glance which each Pemberton twin cast frequently at her sister, and he felt a hysterical inclination to laugh. The thought must have been communicated to his companion upon the right, for he felt her fingers tremble in his. He rolled his eyes up to hers with an affected air of terror. Then a ripple of merriment burst from Esther’s lips, in which he joined. The Pemberton twins giggled in unison, while all started and opened their eyes.
Russell frowned and demanded quiet, fixing his gray eyes upon Esther. Mrs. McCleary rebuked her daughter, but explained that Esther was “hystericky,� and biting her lips to subdue the nervous inclination to laugh, Esther closed her eyes and quiet was restored. Donald, thrilled by her trembling fingers, dared not again look toward her, and presently he saw Mrs. Jenkinson, his neighbor on the left, begin to jerk spasmodically. Her eyelids quivered, she sighed a few times, then drawing her hands from those who clasped them she began rubbing them briskly together, then slapped them energetically for a moment, while every eye was fixed upon her. She was under “control.�
Suddenly she began to speak in a high, shrill voice.
“My friends, I have a message for you to-night,� and continuing without hesitancy she delivered a somewhat tedious harangue to the listening believers, who sat awed and open-eyed, as if her words were really from the world beyond. All present knew Mrs. Jenkinson to be illiterate and only able to use provincialism in conversation. They marvelled at the correct English which fell from her lips, even though the thought expressed was of little value.
Her “inspired� speech ended, Mrs. Jenkinson sank into a chair, dropped her face in her hands and remained quiet.
A few moments later Mrs. McCleary began to manifest similar signs of influence, and sang in a sweet, plaintive voice the old hymn, “Oh, sing to me of heaven, when I am called to die! Sing songs of holy ecstasy to waft me to the sky,� etc.
Mark remembered that Mrs. McCleary was not a singer in her natural state, and again was forced to marvel at this exhibition of power which he had no faith to believe emanated from the source prescribed by Russell.
Donald, too, was becoming interested, and forgot the humorous side of the spectacle. When his eyes again sought Esther’s, to his surprise he found them fixed and vacant, her face unusually pale and rigid. He noticed, too, that the small, brown hand he held felt cold and unnatural. Glancing from her to Russell he saw the man looking fixedly at her. Then the Professor arose, and passing to Esther’s side moved his hands several times before her face, though without touching her. He then took a handkerchief from one of the gentlemen and bound it tightly over her eyes, closely shutting out every ray of light.
“I think, my friends,� he said, as he placed several chairs in the unoccupied space of the room, “we shall prove that, though Esther cannot see with mortal vision, there are spirit forms about her who will direct her course and thus demonstrate their presence.�