Inferences from Haunted Houses and Haunted Men Part 1

Inferences from Haunted Houses and Haunted Men.

by John Harris.

The lack of interest in so-called psychical matters is somewhat surprising.

There is, however, more hope of the clearing up of the scientific aspects of these phenomena than ever before.

Sir William Crookes, late President of the British a.s.sociation, has no doubt that thoughts and images may be transferred from one mind to another without the agency of the recognised organs of sense, and that knowledge may enter the human mind without being communicated in any hitherto known or recognised ways! The word recognised is important; perhaps "not by the recognised action of the organs of sense," would be a better expression.

In the "Alleged Haunting of B---- House," p. 33, Miss Freer says: "Apparitions are really hallucinations or false impressions upon the senses, created so far as originated by any external cause, by other minds either in the body or out of the body, which are themselves invisible in the ordinary and physical sense of the term, and really acting through some means at present very imperfectly known." This would include hypnotism at a distance, but also perhaps spirits.

Dr. Gowers has recently (reported in the _Lancet_), in a speech at University College, pointed out the close connection of the optic and auditory nerves with regard to cases of deafness.

The young lady who, when an attempt at transferring the sight of a candle to her was made, heard the word candle or something like it, the first letter doubtful, shows that thought transfer is to the ear as well as to the eye, or at least goes over from one to the other; she says, "You know I as often hear the name of the object as see the thing itself." This may have been from a mental effort to receive distinctly an inefficiently acute impression of her friend's. She saw a jug seen by her friend, and heard the train she heard. The colour of the jug differed a little. The distance fourteen miles. Audible speech might thus be helped by despatching a picture of the idea from a distance. Other people must be like Miss Campbell.[1] There must be material force in this, since a thought heightens the temperature of the brain. But this force has its limits of distance, &c.

[Footnote 1: Podmores "Studies," p. 228.]

To connect apparitions with hypnotism.

In their case, and in so-called spiritual experiences (spiritistic is the better word), there is generally a preceding feeling like entering an icehouse.[2] This is described as occurring to the butler of the Haunted House at B----, Harold Sanders, in 1896; to Mr. "Endell," and to others.

This chill is surely identical with, or very closely related to, the chill of hypnotism mentioned by Binet and Fere.[3] The balance of the circulation has been interfered with. They state that this is the only symptom by which any one can tell he has been hypnotised, and that this is not always present.

[Footnote 2: "Alleged Haunting," &c., pp. 50, 139.]

[Footnote 3: "Animal Magnetism," chap. xiv.]

In continuous slight hypnotism, chills on part of the scalp, part of the shoulder, part of the face, or the ribs, etc., may be experienced; they are possibly signs of slackening hypnotic power.

There is another symptom, hyperaesthesia of the eye, which Binet and Fere omit; this is extremely rare among men, and with women results from local affection. The symptom probably appears in hypnotic cases from the cutaneous lesser sciatic nerve, which is connected with the nerves of the s.e.xual system, being affected.

The chill and the hyperaesthesia of the eyes can be so severe that a doctor or an oculist would be consulted.

The feeling of gravel in the eye is probably produced by light falling through c.h.i.n.ks on the eye when hyperaesthetic during sleep--the lids may be slightly tightened, as it were; this is perhaps a nearer approach to a profounder hypnotism.

"During actual hypnosis," says Mr. Harry Vincent, "frequently the contraction of the muscles is so obvious that the subject appears to be indulging in a grim smile."[4]

[Footnote 4: "Elements of Hypnotism," p. 99.]

I venture to call attention to the grim smile worn by Charles Kingsley in the portrait which prefaces the large edition of his Life and Letters.

Charles Kingsley suffered from frequent fits of exhaustion; these are often the results of excessive hypnotism after the limit (at the fifth or sixth effort) of the hypnotist's power has been reached. His brother Henry, we learn from Mr. Kegan Paul's "Memoirs," was excessively hypnotisable. His character was weaker perhaps than Charles's, but the geniality of his writings bears testimony to his remarkable ability.

He was only rescued from a condition little better than a tramp's by a kind friend. Charles's life was perhaps shortened by hypnotism. One of Kingsley's neighbours at Eversley was the late Sir W. Cope. The elder son of this gentleman, when Secretary of Legation at Stockholm, came to a tragic end. He suddenly, when out walking with a friend, although his health had been apparently perfect, began to shout and wave his umbrella.

He was put under the care of attendants, as he was considered to be temporarily insane. He jumped out of a window and was killed. Voices insulting or threatening him, and with such scoundrels speech would be of something dreadful, would provoke or frighten the unhappy man.

About two years later a distinguished priest, well known in London, also suddenly waved an umbrella and behaved as if he were angry. But he showed hardly any sign of insanity, and on applying to the proper court for release from supervision, was declared sane by a jury.

Strength of mind and religious feeling doubtless saved him from the fate of Mr. Cope. A brave man can resist such an attack under favourable circ.u.mstances.

It is well known to those who have read the Biography of Lawrence Oliphant, and that of Dr. Anna Kingsford by Professor Maitland, that Lawrence Oliphant, who became a Shaker (a member of a sect who employ hypnotism, as Mr. H. Vincent describes, to bind their neophytes to them),[5] wrote commonplace vulgar verse on religious subjects, although himself a highly cultivated literary man.

[Footnote 5: "Elements of Hypnotism," Appendix, _note_ 3, p. 270.]

Hypnotism doubtless led to this; the verse thought out in some vulgar Shaker's mind was transferred to Oliphant. Not only was Oliphant induced to become a Shaker, but his wife became one also, and both sacrificed much money to the society and agreed to live in celibacy. Let us continue again from the known to the unknown. Mrs. Lawrence Oliphant's brother, the late Captain Lestrange, R.N., left his s.h.i.+p without leave, to avoid his wife. He had married an undesirable person, who has also been dead some years.

He was a most intelligent officer, and commanded the despatch vessel of the Admiral in command of the Mediterranean fleet. It is most probable that he was weakened by hypnotism, otherwise he would not have entered into this marriage, or allowed himself to be broken down by disgust at its consequences. An exceedingly manly, robust character, and devoted to his profession, he could not without being hypnotised have deserted his s.h.i.+p. The only reason he had for leaving it was that his wife threatened to come to the Mediterranean to Malta. There was a gang of criminal hypnotists on the Mediterranean coast then. Captain Lestrange fled to Copenhagen, a place connected with most of the attacks of criminal hypnotists, mentioned before and hereafter. He had visited it on duty two or three times, and been in contact with others who suffered. He died two or three years afterwards, probably of a broken heart. Here, for the second time, a connection between two victims is traceable.

In the former case, the two were simply neighbours; the probability that in each pair of cases one gang was concerned is very great. One gang, if not both, were connected with Copenhagen; indeed, they may have been the same gang.

If striking haunted house stories are rare, the reason is that, on obvious grounds, gangs of hypnotists are rare also.

The writer believes that Lord Howe's and his sister's courage prompted the attack on them by a gang of hypnotists 120 years ago.[6] Poltergeist disturbances are caused by a single person generally; it is not impossible that in rare cases there is a confederate.

[Footnote 6: A. Lang's "Ghost Stories."]

These victims of hypnotists were thus four--two very eminent literary men, distinguished also in other ways; a very rising naval officer; and a diplomatist, a member of the foremost of the services of the Crown.

Father B. was attacked in 1888-89 in London. In June 1892, Father H.

visited the Haunted House at B----. He first brought the haunting to the notice of Lord Bute in August 1892, and in 1893 met a lady who had been governess at B---- about twelve years before, and who reported that the house was haunted then.

A noise like the continual explosion of petards, another like the falling of a large animal against his bedroom door, another noise like spirit raps, and shrieks were heard by Father H.; no one else then heard them.

Father H. heard them for eight nights, and not on the ninth. As a priest, he was probably a good deal alone, and had to walk over to a cottage behind a belt of wood to the eastward, where the retreat of the nuns he attended to was held.

According to the average experience of Miss Freer's party, he would only have been attacked on about two days. The last day his tormentor left--doubtless to avoid a journey with Father H. and subsequent recognition. How these sounds are produced is easily understood. If the doctrine of a very light stream of electricity be admitted, the pressure on the ear readily causes raps--there is a slight buzzing sound if the pressure on the ear be relaxed at a distance at first, later there is pain; the flap is from an intermitted pressure. It is a thud if the pressure be more acute, and the pattering, which is almost identical to the effect produced by a drop of water rolling on the inside of a sensitive ear, occurs when there is a double or treble intermission. In some cases where the victim is strong, the consonants can be worked off to his hearing.

Add to this a slight effect on the eye, and Miss Campbell's doubtfully p.r.o.nounced word "candle" becomes clear enough. An initial starts a word there is some reason to believe. Mr. Osgood Mason dwells upon community of sensation, and it is doubtless this that renders the direction of aim so exact; but when the subject of tickled faces is considered, we shall see that it does not insure complete accuracy, any more than that exists in volley firing, which with inferior shots is more telling than independent firing, and yet is not perfect.

The reason why more audile phenomena are perceived at night is that the percipient is tolerably still. Father H. and other people heard these sounds more when in bed after daylight. If loud clangs, &c., were heard by night by the garrison under Miss Freer's command, it was that the attacking hypnotists did not have the chances they had with Father H. of hypnotising their victims; and here again, where action on the ear and eye is concerned, talking with a friend, or indeed any one, is a great safeguard. The tympanum is stirred, the eye moves--the mere irregularity of the breath is an aid. Another reason will be given later. Miss Campbell, whose case--one of experimental thought transference--has been twice referred to, was an intimate friend of Miss Despard, who effected the transfers. Her case differs from his; he expected nothing (at least consciously), and perceived nothing except ugly sounds, until he got a feeling that some one was glad that he left, and that he himself would not like to pa.s.s another night there. Perhaps this last feeling was a deceptive transfer; they did not like the stout priest bluffing them.

Later he was willing to go to the house at B---- again.

Miss Campbell got a word, imperfect perhaps, but a better-developed effort developed better results. It is worth remarking that in another experimental transfer of thought, where the percipient was not warned, when Mr. G.o.dfrey's apparition was seen by a lady friend, she heard a curious sound like birds in the ivy. It is by no means unlikely that this was the result of his first trying to attract her attention.[7]

[Footnote 7: Podmore's "Studies," p. 250.]

The eye impression moving to the ear in a new and strange way, there is perhaps a stirring and dragging of the cartilages.

That Mr. G.o.dfrey's friend appeared in response and spoke to him, and referred back to some joint conversation, is curious.

It must be said here that the speech coming from within is extremely indicative of a real transferred or hypnotic speech, and its coming from within facilitates surprise where it is used fraudulently or criminally.

A certain amount of collateral trickery would enhance this. It is easily confounded with the victim's own thoughts.

The appearance of a person to another does not seem to be as difficult as the causing another person to appear to a third person. In this case the second person should apparently be hypnotised, and willed to appear to the third. The third person must know the second person.[8]

[Footnote 8: Osgood Mason, "Telepathy," &c., chap. x.]

The apparition to Miss Ducane is interesting, and it is a pity it could not be recognised.[9] It was seen in the mirror by her sisters, with one exception; but she (Miss Ducane) and the other young ladies all felt the cold air.

[Footnote 9: Podmore's "Studies," p. 275.]