Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1931-09-24, Page 6eree AG.; SEVEN NGFIAM ADVANCE-TIM4S Thursday, Sept,, .24th, 193/ Wingham Advance -Tines, Published at WINGHAM - ONTARIO Every Thursday Morning W. Logan Craig - Publisher 4ubscription rates — Cane year $2.00. Six months $1.00, in advance. To U. S. A. $2.50 per year. Advertising rates ,mn application: Wellington Mutual Fire Insurance Co. Established 1840 Risks taken .on all class of insur -mace at reasonable rates. Head Office, Guelph, Ont. ig,BNER COSENS, Agent, Wingham J. W. DODD Two doors south of Field's Butcher shop. FIRE,, LRE, ACCIDENT AND HEALTH INSURANCE AND REAL ESTATE P. 0. Box 366 Phone 46 'WINGHAM, ONTARIO J. W. BUSHFIELD Barrister, Solicitor, Notary, Etc. Money to Loan Office -Meyer Block, Wingham Successor to Dudley Holmes J. H. CRAWFORD Barrister, Solicitor, Notary, Etc. Successor to R. Vanstone '.!Wingham .011 Ontario J. A. MORTON BARRISTER, ETC. Wingham. Ontario — — -.---- DR. C. H. ROSS DENTIST Office Over Isard's. Store H. W. COLBORNE, M.O. Physician and Surgeon Medical Representative D. S. C. R. Successor to Dr. W. R. Hambly Phone 54 Wingham DR. ROBT. C. REDMOND lld.R.C.S. (ENG.) L.R.C.P. (Land,) PHYSIPIAN AND SURGEON DR. R.. L. STEWART Graduate of University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine; Licentiate of the Ontario College of Physicians and .Surgeons. Office ip Chisholm Block oselti}}Il@ Street: Phone 29 DR. G. W. HOWSON DENTIST Office over John Galbraith's Store. F. A. PARKER OSTEOPATH All Diseases Treated Office adjoining residence acxt to ' Anglican Church on Centre Street. lo Sundays by appointment. Osteopathy Electricity Phone 272. Hours, 9 a,m. to 8 v.m. A. R. & F. E. DUVAL ,t Licensed Di uglest k'ractitioners Chirotiract;c and Electro Therapy. Graduates of Canadian Chiropractic College, Toronto, and National Col- lege, Chicago; 'ti} of town and night calls res- ponded to. All business confidential, Phone 300. J. ALVIN FOX Registered Drugless Practitioner CHIROPRAeTIC AND DRUGLESS PRACTICE ELECTRO -THERAPY Hours: 2-5, 7-8, or by .appointment, phone 191. v, .:. THOMAS FELLS AUCTIONEER REAL ESTATE SOLD A thorough knowledge of Farm Stoek Phone 231, Wingham RICA 7"-. y - . pr4 Et,, JACKSON P4iohe 613r6, Wrbxt;i:t;i:, tlir address R, 1t 1, Goirie. Sales conducted any- where, and satisfaction guaranteed. DR. A. W. IRWIN DEw['IST X-RAY Office, McDonald Block, Wingham. A. J. WALKER FURNITURE AND FUNERAL SERVICE •AW J. WALXIR sed Funeral Directs* end Embalmer. Office Phone 1,03. Rae, Phone 21~4,; gest Litrtousitae 1uttetalt Coad.; ., 'ROBERTSMARY RINEHART coPypichfr sot 6y MARY RoB5PTS R/NEhART WSW The rather extraordinary story re- vealed by the experiments of the Nei- ghborhood Club have been until now a matter only of private record. But it seems to me, as an active partici- pant •in the investigation, that they should be given, to the public; not so much for what they will add to the existing data on physical research, for from that angle they were not unusual, but as yet another exlpora- tion unto that still uncharted terri- tory, the human mind. The psycho -analysts have taught us something about the individual mind. They have their own patter, of com- plexes and primal instincts, of the unconscious, which is a sort of bond- ed warehouse from which we clanctes tinely withdraw our stored thoughts and impressions. They lay to this un- conscious mind of ours all phenom- ena that cannot otherwise be labelled, and ascribe such demonstrations of power as cannot thus be explained to trickery, to black threads and fold- ing rods, to slates with false sides and a medium with chalk on his fin- ger nail. In other words, they give us sub- jective mind but never objective mind. They take the mind and its reactions on itself and on the body. But what about objective mind? Does it make its only outward manifesta- tions through speech and action? Can we ignore the effect of mind on mind, when there are present none of the ordinary media of communication? I think not. In making the following statement concerning our part in the strange case of Arthur Wells, a certain aIlow- ance must be made for our ignorance of so-calledpsychic phenomena, and also for the fact that since that time, just before the war; great advances have been made in scientific methods of investigation, For instance, we did not place Miss ,Jeremy's chair on a scale, to measure for any . loss of weight. Also the theory of rods of. invisible matter emanating from the medium's body, to move bodies at a distance from her, had only been ev- ohred; and none of the methods for calculation of leverages and strains had been formulated, so far as I know. at the different houses, . There wer Herbert Robinson and his sister Alice —not a young woman, but celver, al err, and very alive; Sperry, the well known heart specialist, a bachelor still in spite of much feminine activ- ity; and .there was old Mrs, Dane hopelessly crippled a sto the knees with rheumatism, but one of those glowing and kindly souls that have a way of being a neighborhood nuc- leus. It was around her that we first gathered, with an idea of forming for her certain contact points with the active life from which she was oth- erwise cut off. But she gave us, I am sure, more than we brought her, and, as will be seen later, her shrewdness was an important element in solving our mystery. In addition to these .four there were my wife and myself. It had been our policy to take up different subjects for these neighbor- hood dinners, Sperry was a reformer in his way, and on his nights we gen erally took up civic questions. He was particularly interested in the res- ponsibility of the state to the sick poor. My wife and I had "political" evenings. Not really politics, except in their relation to life. I am a law- yer by profession, and dabble a bit e violence in the air, but 1 was not violent. And with a bath and my - dinner clothes I put away the Horrors of the day. My wife was better, but the cook had given notice. '' "There Ixas been quarreling among the servants ail day," my wife said. "I wish I could go and live on a de- sert island." We have no children, and my wife, for lack of other interests, finds her housekeeping an engrossing and seri- ous matter. She is in the habit of bringing her domestic difficulties to axe when I reach home in the even- ings, a habit which sometimes renders me unjustly indignant. Most unjust- ly, for she has borne with me for thirty years and is known throughout the entire neighbourhood as a perfect housekeeper. I can close my eyes and find any desired article in my bed- room at any time. We passed the Wellses' house on our way to Ivfrs. Dane's that night, and my wife commented on the dark condition of the lower floor. "Even if they are going out," she said, "it would add to the appearance of the street to leave a light or two burning. But sorne people have no public feeling. I made no comment, I believe. The Wellses were a young couple, with children, and had been known to ob- serve that they considered the neigh- borhood "stodgy." And we had retal- iated, I regret to say, in kind, but not with any real unkindness, by re- garding them as interlopers, They drove too many cars, and drove them too fast; they kept a governess and didn't see enough of their children; and their English butler made our neat maids Iook commonplace. We went on to Mrs. Dane's, We were early, as my wife is a punctual person, and soon after our arrival Sperry came, Mrs. Dane was in her chair as usual, with her com- panion 'in attendance, and when she heard Sperry's voice outside she ex- cused herself and was wheeled out to him, and together we heard them go into the drawing -room. When the Robinsons arrived she and Sperry re- appeared,- and we waited for her cus- tomary announcement of the even- ing's program. When none came, ev- en during the meal, I confess that my curiosity was almost painful. I think, looking back; that it. was Sperry who turned the talk to the supernatural, and that, to the accom- paniment of considerable gibing by the men ,he''told a ghost story that set the women to looking back over their shoulders into the dark corneas beyond the zone of candle -light. All of us, I remember, except Sperry and Mrs. Dane, were skeptical as to the supernatural, and Herbert Robinson believed that while there were so- called sensitives who actually went into trance, the controls which took possession of then were buried per- sonalities of their own, released dur- ing trance from the sub -conscious „..,4.;a, ni;ntl. "If not," he said truculently, "if they are really spirits, why can't they tell us what is going on, not in some vague place where they are always happy, but here and now, in the next house? I don't ask for prophecy,. but for some evidence of their know- ledge. Who are going to be the next candidates for president? Is Horace here the gay dog some of us sus- pect?" As ,I am the Horace in question, I must explain that Herbert 'was merely being facetious. "Physical phenomenal scoffed the cynic. "I've seen it all—objects mov- ing without visible hands, unexplain- eed currents of cold air, voice through a trumpet—I know the whole rotten mess, attd I've got a book which tells 1itiVv to do all the tricks. I'll ` bring it along some night," "As a matter of fact, Herbert," said Mrs. Dane, 'we intend to put your skepticism to the test tonight, Doc- tor Sperry has found a medium for us, a. nonprofessional and a patient of his, andi she has kindly consented to give us a sittiing. She is a total stranger to all of us except the doc- tor, and is a newcomer in town." The butler wheeled out Mts. Dane's chair, and led us to the drawing -room dooms, There Sperry threw thein op- en, acid we saw that the room had been completely metamorphosed, The roam had been dismantled. It opened 'before us, walls and chimney - piece bare, rugs gone from the floor',. even curtains taken from the win- dows, To emphasize the change, in the center stood .a common pine table surrounded by seven plain chairs. All the lights were out save one, a earner in city government. The Robinsons had literature. Don't misunderstand me. We had no papers, no set programs. On the Robinson evenings we discussed edi- torials and current periodicals, as well as the new books and plays. We were frequently acrimonious, I fear, but our small wrangles ended with the evening. Robinson was the literary editor of a paper, and his sister read for a large publishing house. Mrs. Dane was a free-lance, "Give ire that privilege," she begged. "At least, until you find my evenings dull, It gives me, during all the week be- fore you come, a sort of thrilling feeling that the world is mine to choose from." The result was never dull. She led us all the way from moving pictures to modern dress, She led us evenfurther, as you will see. On consulting my note -book, I find that the first evening which directly concerns the Arthur Wells case was To be frank, I am quite convinced that, even had we known of these so- called explanations, which in reality explain nothing, we would have ig- nored them as we became involved in the dramatic movement of the rev- elations and the personal experiences which grew out of them. I confess that following the night after the first seance any observation of mine would have been of no scientific value what- ever, and I believe I can speak for. the others also. Of the medium herself I can only say that we have never questioned her integrity. The physical phenoin ens occurred befor'i'' he went into trance, and during that time her fore- arms were rigid, During the deep trance with 'which 'this unusual re- etird renals, . she spoke in her own voice, but in a querulous tone, and Sperry's examination of her pulse showed that it went from eighty nor- mal to a hundred and twenty' and very feeble. With this preface 1 eotttt? to the death of Arthur Wells, our acquain- tance and neighbor and the investiga- tion :into that death by a group of six earnest people who call themselves the Neighborhood Club. • The Neighborhood Club was or- ganized fn my house. It was too small really to be called a club, but women have a way these days of conferring a titular dignity on their activities, and it is not so bad, after all. 'l"lie Neighborhood Club it really was, composed of four of my neighbours, thy wife, and myself, We had drifted into the habit of ininN together on :Monday evenitgs Monday, November the second, of last year. It was a curious day, to begin with. There come days, now and then, that bring with them a strange sort of mental excitement, I have never an- alyzed them. With me on this oc- casion it took the 'form' of nervous irritability, and something of appre- hension. My wife, I remember, com- plained of headache, and one of the stenographers had a fainting attack, I have often wondered for how much of what . happened to Arthur Wells the day was °responsible, .There are days when the world is a place fer lnye and play and laughter, And then ti"eere are sinister days, when the earth is a" hideous place, wheel eveni the thought of iminortalitst iq linbear- ab!e, and life itself is a burden; when all that is riutottl and unlawful comes forth and bares itself to the light. This was such a day. T am fond of my friends, but I found no pleasure in the thought of meeting them that evening. I remem- bered the odious squeak in the wheels. of, Mrs. Dane's chair, I resented, the way Sperry would clear his throat. I read in the morning paper Herbert Robinson's review of a book 7; had liked, and disagreed with him. Disa- greed violently. I wanted to call him on the telephone and tell him that he was a foo]. I felt old, although I' am only fifty-three, old and bitter, and tired. With the fail of twilight, things changed somewhat. I was more pas- sive. Wretchedness encotripaased bet f was not wretched. There was ....:.wit Evening rates (7.00 p.m. to 8.30 p.m. local time) are considerably lower than day rates on "any- one" calls. Night rates (8.30 p.m. to 4.30 a.m.) are lower still. LOVE LAUGHS AT TELEPHONE TOLLS Hospital days were lonely. Of course, her friends did. all they could to keep her cheerful -- her room was a bower of roses but how she looked forward to evening when Jack, could sit by her and talk of his day at the office. Then came the news that he must leave town on busi- ness. She wondered how she could stand the wait until he came home. But Jack, wise fellow, knew how to bridge the gap. Promptly each evening at nine he called her over Long Distance and told her all the things she wished to hear. Extravagant? . . . not a bit . . , for night rares are always inexpensive! What could be worth more for what it ccst? bracket, which was screened with a red paper shade. Mrs. Dane watched us with keen satisfaction. "Such a time I had do- ing itl" she said. "The servants, of course, think I have gone mead. All except Clara. T told her. She's a sen- sible girl." As the purely physical phenomena obtained proved, relatively insignifi- cant, it is not necessary to go into the detail of the room. As I said: at the beginning, this is not a ghost story. Parts of it we now understand, other parts we do not. Far the physical phenomena we have no adequate explanation. They oc- curred. We saw and heard them. For the other part of `the seance we have come to a conclusion satisfactory to ourselves, a conclusion not reached, however, until some of us had gone through some dangerous experiences, and had been brought into contact with things hitherto outside the ord- erly progression of our lives. But at no time, although incredible things happened, did any one of us glimpse that strange world of the spirit that seemed so often almost within range of vision, (Continued Next Week.) They Were Persistent The ambitious young actor had set out to conquer the provinces with. "Hamlet", but the tour soon ended; and he was compelled to walk home. "Didn't they like you?" asked a sympathetic friend. "They didn't seem to," replied the actor, sadly. "But didn't they ask you to come before the curtain?" "Ask mel" repeated the would-be actor, with tears in his eyes. "Ask me! They even dared me," BUYERS READ.... That prices are low and that means bargains. Wise merchants with stocks on hand want to convert, them in- to cash and are looking for buyers. Newspaper advertising points the way to both — when the buyer and seller have a message of common ,in terests. The great news of the day and the unprecedent- ed bargains for the thrifty. It means great savings for the buyer and a cleaning out of shelves for• the seller. It is time to buy and time to advertise bargains to the buyer. THE vance -Times Wingharn, Ontario:. 0M.•.mm�.�m�0