BY
EDWIN STEBBINS.
On Christmas evening myself and wife secured an independent slate-writing sitting with Mrs. Lizzie S. Green, at 309 Longworth street, Cincinnati, Ohio, and we received the following communication from our dear spirit daughter, viz:
“Merry, merry Christmas to you all! I do not know of a better Christmas gift than to give you a spirit communication on this memorable day. I am so happy and excited I can not write good. Oh, I have a beautiful home and am advancing in music all the time. I have a beautiful library of books. I am a teacher, and have a nice little class. We do not have as many scholars here in the spirit world as you do. We can not teach every one like we did here. We have to be attracted to each other magnetically. Therefore our work is not in vain, for by this method spiritual growth must ensue. We work in harmony together, and nothing occurs to retard our progress in learning. You would be surprised, and I rather think you are now, even at my style of composition. If you could see me as I am here, and hear me talk, you would see how fast I have progressed. Oh, how happy I am in my spirit home, but my heaven is not there. It is with my dear pa and ma, but duty calls and I must obey. I have been made extremely happy by your obedience to my will and all will be well. Henney says this is quite new to him, but when he saw you and me at his funeral his happiness was beyond expression. When you laid away my form of clay you did not think to see me here to talk and write to my loved ones dear.
“When you’re sad and sometimes cry,
Remember your Ida, dear, is nigh,
To bless and comfort you while here,
And guide you to a brighter sphere.
“And when the time comes for you to go we will meet you with our golden boat, and row you safely over the beautiful river to our home that I have helped prepare for you. Now, thanking Mrs. Green for her kindness to you and Ida, I bid you good night. All the relatives are here, and send you their Christmas greetings.
“Good night, good night, to all that’s here,
I leave and go to a brighter sphere.
Wishing you all success in the new year, dear pa and ma, ever hold sacred the Christmas gift I present you to-day. Good night, Mr. Green, wife and daughter. Good night, my dear pa and ma. This indeed is the happiest Christmas I have spent since I left my earthly home. I must leave, but it is hard. Your loving daughter,
“Ida.”
“My daughter passed away on the 18th day of December, 1875, at the age of seventeen, and she was an only child. The above message from her possesses peculiar value to me, for therein are a number of valuable tests and evidences of her identity. My belief in the return of the spirits of the departed is of brief duration in point of time antecedent, and was mainly brought about, through the mediumship of Mrs. Green. I can not express the real happiness I enjoy since I have been the recipient of this new light divine and I can only say, ‘God speed the good work.’