“I have had with me for many years two Indian spirits, from whose association I have derived great pleasure; and I have ever found them true, faithful and honest. The male Indian has never given me his full and proper name, telling me that it was ugly. He was of the Chippewa tribe, and has always been known as ‘Chip.’ Chip abhors fire-water and tobacco, and every thing immoral, and in very many respects widely differs from the leading characteristics of his people. The Indian maiden, whom we call Winnie, came to me in 1868, and gave her name as Winniepesaga, and said while quite young she was drowned in a stream of water in the Far West. She is sprightly, quite talkative, exceedingly smart and interesting in conversation. Naturally gifted with clairvoyant powers and prophetic abilities, she has given very many remarkable tests, and by reason of her equability of temper, general good disposition and real cleverness in colloquial gifts, she is generally well liked by all who have come in contact with her spirit ministrations. She has controlled me for years, does yet, and her influence is sweet, soothing and strengthening. Captain Oliver C. Curry died at Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1874, and was a lawyer by profession, and was for a long time city attorney of that city. He was a cousin of mine, and has belonged to the band for two years, and has been exceedingly active, especially in the trumpet seances. By his suavity, intelligence and witty sayings, he has made himself quite a favorite with many. Assisting in the development, I have had with me several spirits familiar with the laws of science, including a distinguished French scientist, our own Franklin and Professor Mapes. They seem to have only been engaged with the band temporarily in aiding the advancement of the development. They have my sincere thanks and profound gratitude. I come now to speak of another spirit, although of an humble name, yet a grand and highly progressed one, who has been my leading counsellor, adviser and friend. In 1868, I laid away the lifeless form of a dear little boy, and in my unutterable grief this noble spirit first appeared to me and gave me words of consolation. He has been with me ever since. He passed out of the form in the State of Georgia at the early age of thirty-three and had been at the time he came to me upwards of fifty years in spirit life. He always inspires me as being the very embodiment of purity itself, and his whole ambition seems to be to do good. This spirit also possesses wonderful prophetic power, and communicates with me only in case of an exigency, when I am in trouble, or otherwise need the sustaining and guiding power of the angel world. He gives me his name as Henry Teaney, and no Christian ever worshiped the gentle Nazarene with more devotion than I do my friend and guide, Henry Teaney. He is pure, noble and godlike, loves the right, hates the wrong, and never condescends to any thing little, hateful, or mean.
“Here I close after again returning thanks from the inmost recesses of my heart to my honored and noble band of spirits engaged with and through me in the great work of advancing the kingdom of God in the dissemination of truths vouchsafed to the children of earth through spirit communion.”
CHAPTER XXII.
A VISIT TO SPLIT ROCK, KENTUCKY—CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM IDA
TO HER PARENTS—ANNIE WINTERBURN TO HER BROTHER JOHN WINTERBURN,
AND HIS TESTIMONY AND HER FAREWELL TO THE MEDIUM, MRS. GREEN.
Mrs. Green’s home proper, is at Aurora, Dearborn county, Indiana. Aurora is a beautiful and enterprising little city of five or six thousand inhabitants, and is located on the western bank of the Ohio river, twenty-five miles or thereabouts below Cincinnati, Ohio. It can be reached from Cincinnati in less than an hour’s ride over the Ohio and Mississippi railroad, which passes through it. While her husband pursues the legal profession at Aurora, Mrs. G., in obedience to the wishes of her spirit guides and attendants, devotes her time and medial gifts at Cincinnati from Monday until Saturday of each week, returning to her companion and daughter each Saturday, and remaining with them over the Sabbath. This statement is deemed proper in view of and as prefatory to what I am about to relate as occurring recently, and which can not fail to be estimated as a truly remarkable spirit manifestation.
By the invitation of Mr. Green, Mr. Edwin Stebbins, of Cincinnati, and myself accompanied Mrs. Green to her home at Aurora on Saturday, August the 5th, for the purpose of joining a small party of excursionists on the day following to the celebrated Split Rock, some three miles down the river from Aurora, on the Kentucky side of the Ohio. Our host had chartered a small propeller steamboat known as the Wave, which we boarded early Sunday morning (the 6th), and it required less than a half hour to land us at our destination. Our party consisted of our host and hostess and their daughter, Cora B. Green; Mr. B. F. Vandegrift, his wife, three daughters and son; James W. Shirley, wife, and two small children.
During the afternoon we were threatened with a rain-storm, and our party divided, some going into the caves for shelter, others repaired to a farm-house near by. The rain passed around us, after which a party of five in number, namely, Mr. and Mrs. Green, Mr. and Mrs. Vandegrift, and myself, reassembled on the summit of the elevation overlooking the Split Rock. It was suggested by me that we have a spirit seance, but we had no stand, slate or pencil. The novelty of a spirit seance on that noted spot was sufficiently suggestive and interesting to induce us to improvise a seat for the medium, which consisted of a couple of stakes driven into the ground and a fence rail placed on them. I took out my annotation book and with lead pencil placed it on Mrs. G.’s lap, and she threw over them a rubber circular, making the necessary condition of darkness. We formed a semi-circle in front of the medium thus seated, and sang the “Sweet Bye and Bye,” and “Nearer My God to Thee.” In a few moments the covering over the writing material was raised up and down three times, indicating thereby that the writing had been accomplished. In this way we received in rapid succession three communications, which I hereby transcribe and number them in the order of their production.