The Missing Link In Modern Spiritualism Part 18

LETTER OF JOHN E. ROBINSON.

"D. M. DEWEY:

"SIR--As you have requested of me some recital of my acquaintance with the phenomena known as the 'mysterious knockings' or 'rappings,' as the popular term is, the following is cheerfully placed at your disposal.

"My attention was first called to the subject, I think, by Mr. Isaac Post, in the month of October, 1848, at which time Mrs. Fish, with a younger sister, was living on Prospect Street. I had previously heard accounts of something of the kind which was said to have occurred at Hydesville, Wayne County, of this State, the former place of residence of Mr. John D. Fox and Mrs. Margaret Fox, now of Arcadia; but had considered it, as most others did, the mere offspring of excited imagination, or a trick made up perhaps for the purpose of harmless deception. You may well suppose that I sought an introduction to the singular mystery with no very credulous ear. I could not doubt the honesty of my friend Post, and from the reports which he gave of his experience thus far, I thought the contrivance must certainly be an ingenious one and well worth one's while to unravel.

"I went in company with my friend John Kedzie. What transpired on the occasion of my first visit, I do not distinctly recollect. My curiosity, however, was only increased, and as an invitation was extended for further observation, I soon became more conversant with the mystery and those whom it seemed more particularly to attend. I soon discovered that I must utterly doubt the truthfulness of my senses--which, by the way, are not deficient beyond those of others--or admit that there were sounds produced in my presence, in some manner utterly unaccountable.

They were considered to be produced by spiritual beings, but the bare fact that I heard noises and could not account for them, was no evidence to me that such was their origin. Some action of a (to me) hidden law of nature upon inert matter might do this; or it might, in some way, be the effect of animal magnetism. I wanted to know if there was any intelligence connected with, and controlling, these manifestations. That point reached, I desired to ascertain whether or not the signs of such intelligence could be imparted to me in such a manner, that I should know it was out of the power of these individuals of flesh and blood to give them.

"I had been informed that these manifestations, although partaking of the same general features, did not claim to be the production of any one particular Spirit or intelligence; but that numberless Spirits, those most naturally drawn by affinity to present themselves in the presence of visitors, had and exercised this power.

"In accordance with the hint thus given, I asked the noisy but unseen conversationist if I could have the privilege of talking with my sister--then in the Spirit-world. An affirmative answer being given, pretty soon a gentle rapping was heard, and on my asking if this was the signification of her presence, the reply was, yes. I then asked a number of questions, referring to the time when we were together in years long since past. The questions thus asked were answered promptly and intelligibly.

"Afterward the same gentle rapping was heard in the form of a call for the alphabet (five quick successive raps). The letters were called, and a sentence spelled out (unsuggested by any query), addressed to me and commencing, 'Brother, do you remember,' etc. I have not the memoranda made at the time and cannot recall the precise language of the communication; but the impression then made upon my mind was that it was exceedingly like my sister. They were _her thoughts_, clothed in the self-same drapery which she was accustomed to throw around them. She mentioned the disease of which her body died (consumption), and alluded to the protracted cough accompanying it. I asked if she was happy, and received an affirmative reply. She told me, in reply to my queries, that human Spirits after they leave this stage of existence enter upon a sphere in advance of the one they pa.s.s from; that they are the subjects of an universal law, that of progress, and occupy such sphere as the state of their purity and advancement, at the time of death (so-called), prepares them for, and as various in its arrangements as are the cla.s.ses of Spirits; that the 'many mansions in the Father's house,' are but the varied spheres, suited to the wants and conditions of their occupants.

"Since the occasions above alluded to, and many times during the past year, I have had opportunities of this kind. Very frequently when I have been at the house of Mrs. Fish, the time and attention of these manifestations have been engrossed by other visitors, and often, on such occasions, I have been exceedingly interested. In a mult.i.tude of instances I have seen individuals there, entire strangers to the family, whose questions have been answered by these invisible agencies with the utmost accuracy. I remember at one time while there, a gentleman and his wife called and begged an opportunity for a few moments. They were non-residents of the city, and desired to leave town on the morrow. The request was granted. We all took seats around the table, and permission was given the gentleman to ask questions. To the question 'How many children have I had?' the reply was, _one_. 'Is it living?' The question being reversed, the signal intimated to the father (what was the case) that the child was in the Spirit-world. He asked the child's age at the time of its death, and the length of time that had elapsed since its death, which queries were, as he said, correctly answered. He then asked if the Spirit of that child would be allowed to converse with him; an affirmative was given, and soon a roll of light sounds announced the presence of the little one. A signal for the alphabet was given, and the childlike Spirit spelled out a communication to its earthly parent, the effect of which, upon the father, told but too plainly the reality of the semblance. The mother then asked a few questions, such as 'Are you very happy?' 'Are you often with me?' 'Must I cease to grieve that I have lost you, and remember that you are permitted, although unseen, to be with me still?'

"That mother left the room in tears; but they were not the outburst of sorrow. Gladness was in her heart (as she said) for the first time since she laid her darling child--her first-born--down to sleep on the bosom of its mother earth.

"I might give you a variety of instances to which I have been a witness, wherein a remarkable perception has been evinced by these agencies; but a statement of such things goes but a little way toward convincing a sceptic, or satisfying the mind of any one who has not the opportunity of observing for himself. The human mind admits with extreme reluctance the truth of things which it has been trained to believe without the range of possibility.

"I have thus given to you, as briefly as possible, what you have asked me for. My convictions are the result of patient and honest investigation, extending through a period of sixteen months. They are fixed--so far as the prime fact is concerned, that a communication exists between the inhabitants of 'this breathing world,' and a distinct order of intelligences invisible to the outward eye. If at any time I embrace an error, I would thank him who should point it out and demonstrate the truth. But mere argument, however ingenious, can never move my convictions on this subject. I have submitted everything to the scrutiny of such powers as G.o.d has given to the highest nature I possess, and know no better guide to lead me; and any evidence which shall change my opinions must reach me through the same channels of the mind by which these convictions entered it.

"Perhaps it would not be out of place, in this connection, to state (what many are aware of) that the family to whom I have alluded as the ones in whose presence these manifestations occur--although by no means the only ones--have, in consequence of the circ.u.mstances, been subject of much misrepresentation, and, in some instances, of serious wrong.

This might have been expected at the hands of those who are ever ready to cast opprobrium on individual character if it chance to be allied in any way to what _to them_ is unaccountable, or cannot be made to serve their peculiar views and purposes. During my acquaintance with them I have never discovered the least ground for the justice of such charges.

I have known them intimately nearly a year and a half, and some of my friends have been acquainted with them for many years. No one has ever suggested to me the belief that any of the family had been guilty of any departure from moral rect.i.tude. I have uniformly been treated by them with courtesy and kindness; and they have, on all proper occasions, extended to me such facilities as were requisite to enable me to prosecute my inquiries. They make no ultra pretensions to what the world calls piety, neither do they claim exemption from the venial faults which exist more or less in all their fellow-beings. Neither do they set up the false claim (which some exceedingly soft heads have imputed to them) that they, as individuals, are inspired, or have a mission from the Deity to this world. They are _merely_ the _pa.s.sive media_ through whom these communications are made to us, from the world of Spirits.

"Recognizing then, as I do--what to me is undeniable--that for some wise purpose, intelligences in another sphere of existence are permitted to communicate with us in this way, numberless questions have suggested themselves to my mind.

"As nothing important ever takes place in the wide realm of the Universe, _unconnected with a purpose_, what is the aim of this?

"I answer--as I did involuntarily, in the first stage of my experience--to teach mankind that what they have been harboring as a shadow, but never known, is in truth a reality; that the interior man, the sentient being

'That stirs within and animates the clay,'

is immortal and never dies. This consideration, were there no others, is quite sufficient. But it is not to be supposed that we have yet been made acquainted with all the bearings which it is to have upon us and our welfare. If these Spiritual beings are indeed what they purport to be--human Spirits--our own kith and kin, who once walked with us on earth, and still sympathize with us; then, indeed, we may be immensely benefited by what they may unfold to us. That they _are such_, I have no positive knowledge or evidence, and none sufficiently strong to warrant the a.s.sertion. It is somewhat difficult to identify them, with our present crude and limited knowledge. The best we can do, is to judge for ourselves from the correspondences of things. If I converse with a Spirit, and its language--as addressed to me--corresponds closely with the mind of that individual, as I knew it in this life--and particularly if it alluded to occurrences known only _to myself and it_--I have an a.n.a.logical evidence of its ident.i.ty. On the other hand, if such Spirit gives me a communication, the sentiment and structure of which are totally at variance with my perception of the individual thus personated, I have the same kind of evidence (but no other) that the said Spirit has sought to deceive me.

"Thus you will perceive my impression to be that Spirits of various grades of intelligence and moral dignity in the scale of being, are allowed the same power; and those persons who seek intercourse with _the good_, need all the panoply of truth and sincerity to guard them from contact with the opposite.

"This admission, however, is by no means condemnatory of the whole matter. A Wisdom, exceeding man's, allows good and evil men to live in this world; but it does not follow that, because I may occasionally chance to meet with one of the latter, I am to deny myself communication with the former. We must do the best we can in our condition; act, as well as we may, the part for which we are adapted by the attributes with which Deity hath endowed us. And if, in order to commune occasionally with a bright being of the upper sphere, I am, at times, subjected to annoyance by one of a lower order (a devil, if you please), I can well afford it, and come off best in the _finale_. These unseen devils, after all the disrespect that has been shown them, if I have met them in council, have evinced the possession of nothing _much_ worse than ignorance.

"And here let me say, I am of the serious opinion that _all_ the devils of the universe are not _yet_ congregated in the Spirit-world. Many, alas! too many of them, are clothed with human forms, and move in our midst, visible to the common eye. They are spirits of darkness, with a moral depravity which would do no discredit to any locality ever dreamed of in a vision of h.e.l.l itself. Their presence is confined to no one particular cla.s.s. They enter your Senate chamber even, sometimes, and distract the councils of honest men.

"So will it be, in that strange economy which our dark vision seeks in vain to fathom, until man attains that higher stature, that more perfect being to which we must all hope he is ultimately destined.

"Respectfully yours, "J. E. ROBINSON.

"ROCHESTER, March 6, 1850."

CHAPTER XVI.

THE OHIO CAMPAIGN.

RETURN TO ROCHESTER--ATTEMPTED BURGLARY--SUMMONS TO OHIO--"REV."

C. C. BURR--"TOE-OLOGY"--GOLD MEDALS AND JEWELLED WATCH--FIRST PUBLIC SPEECH--COMMITTEE INVESTIGATIONS AS USUAL--CALVIN'S ILLNESS, AND HENCEFORTH MRS. BROWN--FIRST SPIRITUAL CONVENTION.

We reached our home in Rochester late in the evening, and, as my housekeeper was absent, we were alone in the Troup Street house that night. The friends had kindly lighted and warmed the house, and were there to receive us. After they left we immediately retired, and were soon lost in sleep. I had not slept long, however, when I was awakened by a voice saying urgently in my ear, "Get up and light your candle, quick!" Supposing that Margaretta had spoken to me, I replied, "What did you say?" but finding her fast asleep, I scratched a match, and had just time to see the form of a man who had got the lower sash raised and half his body into the room. He was, of course, a burglar, and doubtless expected to find a booty in the money which the papers had reported us to have brought with us from Buffalo. My voice and the flash of light made him start back so precipitately that he broke the window-sash while making his exit. The visit was never repeated. I may have mentioned that once before, in my former house in Prospect Street, we had been awakened by a voice bidding us to "Get up, the house is on fire." We found that the wood-box behind the stove in the sitting-room was in flames, which would soon have been communicated to the door, within a few inches of the staircase, which was our only means of egress and safety.

On the morning after our return from Buffalo, to my great surprise, mother drove up to the door, having just arrived by the train from New York. Her first words were, "What is the matter? I have been so urgently directed to come to you, that I feared something had happened, or was going to."

She and Katie had remained in New York, during the time of our stay in Buffalo, with the friends before named. I may here mention that Katie attended school, all the time she remained in New York, during the day hours, and sometimes united in the seances held by the friends in the evenings. Mr. Greeley often said, on the strength of her childish letters, "Katie, I expect to see you develop into another Margaret Fuller some day, if you will only give your attention to study."

We employed private teachers for the children, at the hours not compulsorily absorbed by the public. I gladly stood the brunt of the labors for their benefit in the matter of their education. (See Mr.

Robinson's letter of March 12, 1851, p. 203.)

After explanations, the upshot was that mother returned the same evening to rejoin Katie in New York, taking Margaretta with her. Soon after our return to Troup Street it became necessary, to my great regret, to leave the house, as the property had to be sold for division among heirs; but I found a much larger and finer house on the corner of Troup and Sophia Streets. The fatigues of moving, following so soon upon the Buffalo inquisition, brought on a serious illness, from which I had scarcely recovered when I received such insisting summons, by letters and telegrams, from good friends in Cleveland, Ohio, that I was compelled to undertake the journey, which proved to be the beginning of what was called "the Ohio campaign."

So did events arrange themselves, or so did other influences arrange them, to compel us to widen more and more the fulfilment of the "duty"

to "go forth" which had been imposed upon us. Among the telegrams from Cleveland, received when I was on a sick bed, was this one: "Mrs. Fish, we want you to come immediately to Cleveland. It is vitally important."

To which Mr. Post replied, "Mrs. Fish is not well, and we think it would be dangerous for her to leave." Then came another, saying, "Burr is here, slandering you and all who believe in Spiritualism."

Still, my friends insisted on my waiting until I was stronger, when a letter came containing a partial explanation of the "Rev." Burr's villanous conduct toward me. He had slandered me so grossly that my friends would not allow him to go unpunished. They had arrested him in my name, and it was necessary for me to be there in person. I also received the following letters from a valued friend:

"CLEVELAND, April 25, 1851.

"MRS. FISH:

"DEAR LADY--There are _many_ reasons why you should visit our city. One is, we are anxious to witness the Spirit manifestations, and another reason is, that the world-renowned _cheat_, C. Chauncy Burr, will soon be here to expose the Rochester rappings and the mediums. I wonder if he will succeed as well as Flint, Lee, and Coventry did in Buffalo! All this and more, makes it desirable that you should come at once.

"Very Respectfully, "M. L. WRIGHT."

"CLEVELAND, May 1, 1851.

"MRS. FISH:

"DEAR FRIEND--Yours of the 28th inst. is at hand. We are glad (as you see by the _Plaindealer_ which we have to-day sent you) that you have concluded to come. You have many friends here who will make your visit pleasant, and not disappoint your expectations. As regards Burr, his tongue is no slander where he is known. We have decided the Dunham House (for many reasons) is the best, as you can have a first floor parlor with three rooms attached, and the house is as respectable as any in the place, though perhaps not quite as large as the Weddell. You will be much better accommodated. The table is first-cla.s.s. Telegraph the day you will start so that we may know when to expect you, as every one feels anxious to meet you.

"With kind regards, yours truly, "M. L. WRIGHT."

All this decided my course and I went. And as my mother and the two girls, Margaretta and Cathy, were in New York, my married sister, Mrs.

Smith, and her dear little boy Charlie, and Calvin Brown, accompanied me. Imagine our surprise when we arrived at Cleveland. A party of our true friends escorted us from the boat to the hotel, where they informed us they had arranged for a drive to a water-cure resort some ten or twelve miles in the country.