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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m6thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 G DF A ao GLIMPSES OF THE UNSEEN A STI DY OF DREAMS, PREMONITIONS, PRAYER AND REMARKABLE ANSWERS, HYPNOTISM, SPIRITUALISM, TELEPATHY, APPARITIONS, PECULIAR MENTAL AND SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES. UNEXPLAINED PSYCHICAL PHENOMENA. A aOOK OF PERSONAL EXPERIENCES, ORIGINAL AND SELECTED, RELATED IN THEIR OWN LANGUAGE BY REPUIABLR PERSONS, TOGETHER WITH RUNNING COMMENTS AND A THOUGHTFUL SUMMARY. BY THE KniTOR REV. PRINCIPAL AUSTIN, B.A., D.D. WITH AN" INI'RODUCTK'N nV THE REV. E. I. BADGLEY, M.A., LLD. Professoio] Philosophy, I'iitoria University TOKONTO AND BRANTFORD: THE BRADLEY-UARRETSON COMPANY, Limited M^»^M^ - ' "• ■of - / r '^-«^"'^t;z'^^°^j':Z':r:;\:!.'i::^; ortsjf "■™ -■""■"' -^ '^'-y'^K ^ ■>.. B„d„,. AUTHOR'S PREFACE QIR WILLIAM HAMILTON'S ^avorite aphorism was this: ^^ " In the world there is nothing great but man. In man there is no'hin^' great but mind." The truth of these comprehensive statements is growinj^ more apparent to the world as men advance in knowledfje of nature and of themselves. Man is the centre of all the j^reat plan; and purposes of God in creation, providence, and p;race, and man is but another term for mind. The mineral kingdom exists for and supports the vegetable, the vegetable in turn supports the animal kingdom, the animal creation in turn serves and supports man's physical being ; man's physical nature is the instrument for nourishing and developing the mind. The mind is therefore the final development, the finished product, the highest result of all nature's processes and of all the providential oversight and care bestowed upon our world. What study then can be more interesting or instructive than that of psychology, and what engagement more fascinating than the investigation of those wonderful powers of mind which manifest themselves in certain individuals, and in many individuals under abnormal conditions — powers and faculties which are so astounding in their operations that we are almost tempted to style them supernatural? It may well be doubted if any other realm than the mental can furnish such wonderland for exploration. Nature presents us many wonders for our contemplation, in the heavens above and the earth beneath — wonders of sea and land, of the valley and moimtain, of the air and ocean. Yet no department of the physical realm offers such arrays of marvellous facts for human contemplation and study as the world of mind and that mysterious region whore mind and matter seem to meet, known in modern occult literature as " borderland." For power to interest and charm the human soul no tales of "Arabian Nights," no romance of the novelist, no weird work of the imagination displayed in painting or in poem can equal the tales of marvellous mental experiences which show powers and potencies of mind as yet but ditnly understood. Our current literature abounds with testimonies of reputable men and women concerning mental experiences that border on the mysterious, and in some cases on the miraculous. In addition there is a vast body of interesting data to be collected from the current traditions, and many a marvellous tale told, and believed, at the fireside which has not been seen upon the printed page. It is true very many of these can be explained by illusion, error, hallucination or otherwise, or referred to some law of mental activity well known to the student (iLlMFSES OF THK UNSEEN. of philosophy. Many of these experiences, however, seem utterly incapable of any rational explanation at present, and cannot be resolved by any known law. It would be presump- tion, however, on our part to assume that such experien':es were not in harmony with some law, though that law may be to us unknown, or to assume the existence and agency of other intelligences for explaining phenomena which increased knf)wledge nriv show to be the result of some hidden properties of matter, or some obscure power of mind. Here is a mine for the psychologist, explored but in part, a vein but dimly penetrated by the light of the philosopher's lamp. Here is a vast mass of human experiences await- ing the verification, classification, and induction of the student of mental science. Several purposes have guided the editor in the collection and classification of the materials for this volume. First and foremost has been the aim to present facts, tlie facts of experience in the form of human te^tiin )nies to subserve tlie cause of triitli. All truth is of God, and equally sacred whether written in the pages of Revelation or in the record of the rocks, or in the facts of human consciousness, or in the experiences of men. Of course the fact is one thing and the interpretation of the fact, on the part of the witness, is another, and the expression of that interpretation in language is still another thing. In all theori;jing and attempted inductions these considerations must of course be kept steadily in mind. Another object has been to inspire a deeper faith in the powers, dignity, and possibil- ities of the wonderful human nature which, as someone has declared, is a coil mu| b(; fur J " Opened lo the infinite Anil destined to the eternal.' The editor is not one who believes that men in general entertain too lofty an opinion of themselves. It is true men may think more highly of themselves than they ought when they compare themselves with their fellow men. It is equally true that it is impossible for any man to have too high a conception of the dignity and value, the power and possibility of this wonderful nature which is Goil's masterpiece of workmanship, and which Christ has redeemed. It is hoped that the glimpses this book will afford of the wonderful powers possessed by humanity may deepen in the mind of every reader the conception of the greatness and glory of our common nature. Another object has been to present the reader with a volume that will interest and instruct the mind from preface to conclusion. There is a demand for books to-day that will beguile a leisure hour pleasantly without taxing the brain. This age is one of strong mental excitement, and life in town and city is presenting with each generation increased strain upon the nervous system. The tension of the mental nature through business competition, the pursuit of wealth, office, and honor, and even in the round of fashionable follies and pleasures is in many cases tremendous. A book that can with pleasure and profit occupy the attention of the wearii I business or professional man should be considered a public benefaction. The present volume will be found admirably adapted to this purpose. The plan of the work required separate sections made up of short chapters, in many cases mere paragraphs, each complete in itself, yet having a distinct relation to the other parts of the section. GLIMPSES OF THE UNSEEN. The reader, therefore can find chapters to occupy his attention, we trnst pleasantly, for a few moments ot leisure, or stciions complete in themselves tor several hours of consecutive reading. It is hoped that young and old may alike find appropriate and profitable reading, and much of inspiration to a deeper and fuller study of mental science. It is also the hope of both editor and publishers that the material here furnished may be of value to advanced students of philosophy, and may assist in some small degi ie by furnishing the necessary data for some broad inductions in this interesting realm of study. We doubt not that all readers, old and young, who scan these interesting pages will agree with Hamlet, " There are more things in heaven and earth, Horafio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." B. ¥. AUSTIN- Alma College, St. Thomas, Canada. THE TABLE OF CONTENTS pictcl fictiol meml a won CHArrER I. Dreams. Introductory c'.iapter by the Editor, discussing the various theories of dreams, ancient and modern, and the dreams of Scripture. The strange experience of Mr. McDonald relating to a dream m a Michigan lumber camp. A dream which revealed a future event, related by the Rev. William Kettlewell. Mr. Bowlan's remarkable dream. Miss Gertie Tessler dreams of hidden money and finds it. .Dreams controlled by suggestions, as related by Abercrombie. A young man's dream and its fulfilment, as related by Dr. Buckley. Dr. Kitto's account of a dream which revealed a murder a .d led to the murderer's execution. A dream showiht; clairvoyant power. A dream reported to have located a gold mine. A dream revealing telepathic power. Dr. Bushnell's remarkable dream. Mrs. Eames, of Kansas, relates two singular dreams. An error in book-keeping rectified by a dream. Joseph Wilkin's telepathic dream. The London Times recounts a marvellous dream. The story of a singular and beautiful dream is told by the Editor. Abercrombie relates a dream showing a prophetic insight. Duncan Cameron's dream. Rev. J. D. Millard relates a dream revealing facts not otherwise known. CHAPIER H. Tki.kfaihy. Definitions and theories by the Editor. The theory of brain waves. Views of Professor Wm. Crookes. Dr. Baraduc claims to have photographed the brain waves. Annie Besant, the Theosophist» attempts a lucid explanation. The color, form, and definitenessof thought. Dr. Erneacova, the Italian telepathist, and his experiments. An incident in the life of the Rev. W. G. Henderson, illustrating telepathy. The singular experience of Mark Twain in mental telegraphy. Another incident in the life of the humorist. An interesting case of telepathy, by the Rev. J. M. Savage. An instructive article from the Toronto Mail. The various kinds of molecular action. Nothing supernatural in the scientific sense. The nerve centres and their functions. The mystery of second sight. The nerve centres. Usual and unusual means of communicating with the nerve centres. CHAPTER HL FORESHADOWINGS : ThE PkOPHETIC ELEMENT IN HuMAN NATURE. Notes by the Editor on prevision. " Coining events cast their shadows before." How the future becomes known to us. Hudson's duality of mind. There is a prophetic element in man. Mark Twain as a proi)het. The great French astronomer, Fiammarian, on prevision. An interesting article by Hester M. Poole, on prevision. The strange case of Mrs. A — , of New York city. Mark Twain foretells the contents of a letter. Wolsey predicts the hour of his death. Professor Boehm's singular premonition. A life saved by a premonition. Remarkable presentiment of a merchant. The prophetic element in dreams. The prediclions of M. Cazotte. Remarkable case reported by Rev. Charles W. Gushing. Luman Waiter's gift of prescience. A strange way of practising medicine. Paralysis com- GLIMl'SKS OF THK UNSEEN. g plctely cured by the prescription of Dr. Walter. A life lengthened forty years. Truth stronger than fiction. A telei^raph message in a dream aiinoiinces a young man's death a week in advance. Scviial members of a family have premonitions of a coming fatality. A marvellous case of clairvoyance and a wonderful prophecy in relation to James E. Hughes, Esq. CHAPTER IV. Mkmorv. Memory a wonderful power, and a fruitful source of pleasure. Views of different philosophers and poets. Views of the Greeks. Plutarch and Dr. Watts on memory. May he injured or improved. Is memory eternal ? Some account of phenomenal memories. Eord Macaulay, Magliabechi, and Jedediah Hu.xton. Dr. .Abernethy, Secretary Stanton, Cyrus, Otho, and others. Phenome/ial memories of John Kuller, Richard Parson, Mezzofante. Wesley's young Irish local preacher. Th« Jesuit — Suarez — and Ben Jonson. The peasants of Brittany and the Waldenses. Views of Dugald Stewart, the Scottish philosopher. Remarkable memory of a waiter in a San Francisco restaurant. Mezzofante, who knew seventy languages. " Memory Woodfall." Calculating prodigies. The painter of Cologne. The strolling player. William Eyon. Macaulay's marvellous memory. Gibbon and Carlyle. CHAPTER V. Impkrative Imprkssions. Introductory note by the Editor. The ca.se of Stephen Grellet. Called to a long journey in the forest. A sermon without an audience. Bread cast upon the waters. An unknown hearer of the Word. Wonderful results of the sermon in a vacant lumber camp. How Chaplain Searles was led into the ministry. An imperative impression and what came of it. Remarkable case of a clergyman in Quebec. An impression apparently contrary to interest, inclination, and reason. A strange meeting, resulting in a I^aptism and great spiritual profit. David Tatum, the Quaker evangelist, called to the rescue. A young man robbed and rescued. Fearful effects of the drink traffic. A widow's wonderful deliverance. An imperative impression, a sleepless night, and a deed of charity. An imperative impression produced by a dream. The lives of a family saved, Mr. Stead of the Revieiv of Reviews. An impression which found exact fulfilment. Who can explain 'hese mysteries? CHAPTER VI. Praver and its Answer. Prayer as natural to the soul as breathing to the body. The philosophy of prayer. The possibility of direct answer in a universe governed by law. Three views as to the efficacy of prayer. $ioo sent in answer to prayer. They that trust in the Lord shall not want. Annie and Vanie's first real prayer. An effectual prayer. Bishop Simpson's recovery. 'I'he wonderful cure of Mrs. Sherman. A miracle of healing in answer to prayer. Healed through faith. The restoration of the Rev. .A. Kennedy, in answer to prayer. Prayer and the marriage fee. A wedding feast without a minister. A special need and earnest supplication. A sudden call and an exact answer to prayer. " According to your faith." CHAPTER VII. Apparitions and Visions. Definitions and theories. Views of Mr. Andrew Lang, of Merton College, Oxford. Subjective visions and the gift of second sight. Ghost stories and fireside tales. Sir David Brewster on spectral to GLIMTSliS OF HIE UNSKF'N. illusions. Modern spiritualism and similar beliefs. (!ontention of Robert Dale Owen. Mr. I^it))(s' rejoinders. The theory t)f J. N. V'unj;-Slilling, as to visions, etc. Brief summary of Stilling's Pneu- matology. The views of 'I'hompson Jay Hudson. 'I'he duality of the mind. The subjective mind and its wonderful powers. The objective mind, a function of the brain. The subjective mind, an entity. (Governed by sui;nestions and in|iutations under hypnotisuj. DifTcient dogrtes of hypnou^n ;inil methods of hypnotising. Physical tITects of hypnotism. Tiie psychical cflects. .Mental suggestion. Hypnotism as an education. As a moral remedy. Theory of Dr. Dodds. The common sense of hypnotism. Dangers of hypnotism. Theories and speculations ol students of hypnotism. CHAl'lIiR XI. Chris 1 1 AN Sc iknck .\nij Iamh ('rKE. Two new terms in the "ocabuLiry of beliefs. The philosophy of faith. Christ's gilt of healing and His prophecy. Christian Science a reaction against the materialism of the age. A grain of truth in a heap of chaff. The President of the Massachusetts Metaphysical College. Mrs. Mary Maker Glover liddy, and Mr. 1'. V. Quimby. The ('hristian Scientist Asscx iation. .'\ college with courses in Christian Science, fees, and diplomas. What Christian .Science teaches. Sickness only a false dream. Anatomy, physiology, and treatises on health are the parents of disease. Diet and exercise are of no nnportance. A knowledge of Mrs. Eddy's writings is of vast importance. " If the patient should grow worse": The method of treatment. Views of (jhrislian Si leiiiists on mesmerism, spiritualism, rairvoyance, and faith cure. Dr. Buckley's tests. The perpetuation of youth and .iholition of death. Apparent success of Christian Science and how it can be accounted for. The healing power of nature. CHAITI'R XII. Cl.AIKVOVANCE. Introduction by the Editor. The mass of human evidence. Clairvoyant prescience from the A'e/i'xio Philiisophical /ournal. Thrilling illustrations of clairvoyant power. The projection of consciousness. Can the mind see and hear beyond the scope of the senses? Widow Wade and her wonderful powers. An apparition and ('lairvoyance. Strange events in the life of John I'. Weeks. The somnambulist of Lyons. Psychometric readings, Reading a man's character from his cane. Clairvoyance and clairaudience. "The power of hearing the spoken words of a human soul." The demon of Socrates. The process employed in the ordinary communion of subjective minds. " Not now, you have two years yet." A remarkable case of clairaudient warning. I'lie great evidential value of the case. " What pretence have I to deny well-attested facts because 1 cannot cumphrclicnd them ? " CllAPTKR XIII. Unaccou.ntahi.k KxI'KKIKNCES. Phenoinena which cannot bo classified. Nature, a vast realm, only the margins of which are explored. Faith and reverence siiould characterize the student. " Earth's crammed with heaven.' " He is not far from any one of us." Sinking facts and incidents witliout theory. Tiie mysterious visitor on board the ship. A strange conjunction of an imperative impression and an apparition. Mr. Nelson Howell's account of it. Astonishing feats of mysterious Hindoos. Dr. Honigberger and Sir Claudius Wade. Huried for four months and resurrected. Professor Keller's account of the magic of the Zulus. The revelations of a psychic. The finding of dead bodies. Telepathy and clairvoyance excluded. Will the reader decide? The strange case of Moilie Fancher. A vision that extends hundreds of miles. Solid walls and partitions no hindrance to her view. A somewhat similar case reported in the Duluth Herald. K girl who sees through her fingers. 19 GLIMTSKS OK THE UNSEEN. CHAl'I'KR XIV. Human Pkodu.iks. The out cropping of human nature. A promise and a prophecy of Ininian greatness. A place ir» this utilitarian age for human prodigies. The mission of " IMind Tom.'" How to estimate and measure human nature. What our nature can do under the most favourable conditions. Zerah Colburn, the mathemalioai prodigy. A ciiild eight years of age, without training, a marvellous mathematician. Tells the number of seconds in a term of years with correctness and dispatch. Extracts scjuare and cube root. ("lives the square and cube of large numbers. Raises the number 8 to its sixteenth pt)wer. Num- bers of two figures raised to the eight!) power, tlives the factors of numbers. Discovers prime num- bers instantly. Tells instantly the num'oer of seconds in foriy-eight years. No discoverable method in his calculations. Discovery of the fixed laws of nature. The memory has little to do with his power. •'Dlind Tom," the negro pianist. Idiotic, blind, uneducited, and yet inimitable as a musician. Hears for tlie first time long and ditlicult musical compositions, and reproduces them accurately. Imitates all the sounds of nature. Other musical prodigies. ClIAl'II.K \V. Sl'lRITUALlSM. Introductory sketch by the Editor. Phenomena in the house of the Fox family. The spirit circles^ and table rappings. Andrew Jackson Davis. The movement spreads like an epidemic. Mrs. Hayden and Daniel Douglas Home. S[)reads like wild-fire in England. The Yorkshire Spiritual Telegraph. I'^stimated number of spiritualists in 1S67 varied from three to eleven millions. Two periodicals in iMigland, thirty in America, fifteen in France, and six in Austria advocate spiritualism. Physical and automatic phenomena. Sound, lights, voices, and materializations. " Psycography," and "spirit phot{)^,.aphy." Writing and drawing through \hv medium's hand. Entrancement and trance speaking. Seeing spirits and hearing phantom voices. The physical manifestations criticized. Communications cannot be relied on. Spiritualism has not a creed. Thompson Jay Hudson's explanation of spiritualistic phenomena. Summary of objections to spiritualism. From the character of the medium. The sup- |)i)sed communications and the efl'ects on society. A presentation of spiritualism from the National Spiritualists' .Association. CHAPTER XVI. Gkniu.s and Insanity. 'Tiie close relation of genius and insanity. The poets aud prophets regard the source of their utterances extraneous to themselves. .An abormil condition which opens the fount of latent memorv and experience. Genius utilizes the stored oxi)eriences of the subjective mind, and calls into play the spiritual [lowers. "IJIind 'Tom" and Zorah Colburn. Marvellous powers of memory. Mechanical genius. Preternatural cunning. Heightened sensibility. Flights of imagination. Rapidity of mental operation. Dr. Arthur Macdonald on "Abnormal Man." Views ot .Aristotle, IK-inocrittis, Locke, Ciiateaubriand. Sentiments of Dryden and 'Tolstoi. The demons of Socrates ami I'ausanias. Lucretius, and ("harles V., and Peter the (Ireat. Raphael and Pascal. Voltaire ami Jeanne d'Arc. Henry Heine, Mozart and Condillac. Swift, Johnson, Cowper, Southey, Shelley, Byron, Goldsmith, Lamb, and others. CHAPTER XVII. DiVINAriON AND .As IKOI.OGY. Man essentially a religious being. Prayer and supplication for help and direction. In all ages men have sought guidance of the Cods. 'The earlier forms of divination. Crude notions of spiritual tri SCI V itness. A place ir» itimate and measure '.erali Colhiirn, the illiematician. Tells s square atid cube enth |H)vver. Nuni- covers prime num- )veral)le method in io with his power. I musician. Hears ately. Imitates all GLIMPSES OF THE UNSEEN. »3 truths. Various methods of divination. The famous oracles. The flight of birds, .\ugurs and soothsayers. C'onsultinn the stars. 'Maieficsand benefics. I'rediction of the Great Plague in London. Prediction of the Great Eire in London. Coincidences and the law of chances. CILXPTER Win. SOMNAMIUI.ISM. Somnambulism an acted dream. Queer doings of somnambulists. Writing letters, reports. Artistic work and piano playing. Dangerous deeds performed in somnambulism with apparent safety. Four types of somnambulists. Those who speak but do not act ; this type frequent among children. Those who act but do not spe. ;. Those who both speak and act. Those who speak and act, and have sight and hearing ; this lat.er the most extreme type. Working from a mental picture. Often doe' not see or hear whilst performing" his ditticult feats. Immoral acts from which the individual would shrink in waking hours may be performed with indifference. The somnambulist not responsible for his conduct. How to treat the somnambulist. Illustrative incidents. The spirit circles- lie. Mrs. Hayden irituai Telegraph, wo periodicals in im. Physical and )hy," and "spirit d trance si)eaking. Communications on of spiritualistic dium. The sup- oni the National d the source of fount of latent :tive mind, and arvellous powers ty. Mights of ^lan." Views of The demons of ael and Pascal. Jowpcr, Southey, 1. In all ages Jns of spiritual CHAPTER XLX. WiTciK u.\i r. General belief in witchcraft. Astounding statement of Dr. Buckley that the majority of citizens in the United States believe in witchcraft. From the Twelve Tables to the Hill of Rights. Altitude of Church and State towards witchcraft. State laws and Church canons against it. .More natural to women than to men. King James L a specialist on witcheraft. Trials for witchcraft in England and America. Coke, IJacon, Hale, and Hlackstone admitted the possibility of witchcraft. Origin n\ witchcraft. Israelites and witchcraft. Salem witchcraft. Recent e.vaniples of belief. Does llie liihle admit the reality of witchcraft? 'The woman of Endor. 'The phenomena of witchcraft. Explanation of phenomena. Interesting articles. CHAPII'.R \.\. HaII.I'C IN A 1 lON.S. Definitions and divisions of hallucinations. Can they coexist with sanity? II illucinations whicn involve insanity. Hallucinations of the sane. Hallucinations accompanied with mental derangement. Hallucinations in reference to illusions. 'Those combined with monomania and other forms of insanity. 'The luillucinations of nightmare and delirium tremens. ICcslacy, somnambulism, animal magnetism. Hallucinations in febrile, acute, and chronic disea.ses. The causes of hallucination. Hallucinations in regard to history, morality, religion. Treatment of liallucinations. Physical and moral causes. Singular and interesting incidents in regard to hallucinations. Kelation of dreams and balluciiiatioiis. Catalepsy and epilepsy in relation to hallucmaliuus. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS I . REV. B. F. AUSTIN Frontispiece REV. PROFESSOR bai)(;li;v i6 THE GLORIFIED SPIRITS RETURXIXG TO Visrr EARTHLY SCENES - - - 55 MARK rWAIN - 63 BACH - - - . 75 J. H. COYNE 103 J. L. HUGHES .... - Ill REV. J. W. GARLAND 131 REV. \\\M. si:arles 131 REV. R. D. THOMAS 141 REV. A. KENNEDY 157 THOMPSON J. HUDSON 163 DUNCAN CAMERON 183 REV. WM. KETTLEWELL 187 WM. JAY GROO 191 HANDEL - 221 VISION OF ANGELS CLINGING TO THE CROSS - - 279 REV. CHARLES \V. GUSHING - 313 REV. H. T. CROSS LEY - 339 MOZART - 363 ARE THEY NOT ALL MINISTERIN(; SPIRITS? 381 DR. R. M. BUCKli 397 REV. W. G. HENDERSON 411 AUGUST SCENE AT THE CRUCIFIXION 425 W. T. STEAD 453 INTRODUCTION uy THE REV. PROFESSOR BADGLEY, LL.D. The human consciousness is an exhaustless theme. Its origin, significance, and destiny constitute the central problem in all literature, science, and art. Tennyson has truthfully said : " Dark is the world to thee ? Thyself art the reason why." Among the many mysteries there is none greater than man himself. In him focalize all forces, human and divine, the spiritual and the material, the finite and the infinite, the actual and the potential, that which already is and that which by a process of spiritual development may grow up into life eternal. He is the one being who may be rich in the midst of poverty, and poor m abounding riches which he has never made his conscious possession. His is a nature so manifold in character, and so significant in meaning that we obtain but an im- perfect and partial knowledge of its exhaustless resources. We seem ever to be standing upon the edge of depths that are fathomless, or looking upwards to heights where even the eye of faith is unequal to the task imposed. We catch but shadowy "glimpses of a steep and narrow path that leads to wide and shin- ing tablelands above." Man's nature, in its rich and varied complexity, bridges and unites the sum total of all finite existence, and claims kindred and compan- ionship with God. His life is but the incessant travail of an immortal spirit wrestling with the forces which for the time imprison it, and which constitute the battlefield of its development. " Man is not ; he has to make himself," and it is the strange and marvellous union of these spirit forces in companionship with the material and commonplace, that constitutes the uniqueness of his history as he struggles to " mount from the darkness and bondage of earth to light and liberty." " Though inland far we be, Our souls have sight of that immortal sea Which brought us hither, Can in a moment travel thither, And see the children sport upon the shore, And hear the mighty waters rolling evermore." We live in daily companionship with the supernatural — that is, with that which lies outside of merely natural causation or sequence. Strictly speaking, our life is one o( constant surprises, but constant repetition deprives them of their deep significance. What, but for its frequency, is more unnatural or less to be expected than sleeping or awakening from sleep ? What greater mystery than causation, expressed in every act of will ? Can anything more challenge our wonder than the daily solution of problems by the mere force of intellectual energy, solutions that in many instances have centuries and millenniums yet for their fulfilment? What theme can more excite and enlist our curiosity than a i8 GLIMPSES OF THE UNSEEN. mother's undying affection for the child that death has taken from her embrace ? In theniselves these are no less mysterious than the most unusual event recorded in this volume. It is not for any one of us to claim a monopoly of all that has ever entered into human consciousness. The poet, the statesman, the orator, the man of genius, all may live a life in many points common with ours and yet in many respects wholly different. Their minds revolve in an orbit familiar only to the few. It will not do for any man to make his experience the test and rule for all. It is true that we can have a science only of that which is general and con- stant ; but a true science is ever ready to modify its laws, and to enlarge its hypotheses, in relation to every new fact or reasonably well authenticated truth. No science should announce itself as finally closed and thus degenerate into repulsive dogma. Materialism and atheism are as unscientific as they are absurd ; and yet, what human vision has taken hold of the spirit forces of the universe, or when has the eye of man perceived the infinite and eternal God ? Can either one or the other be scientifically proved .-* Yet science limps and halts without them. Demonstration is not always the highest proof, nor can it be the primal step in knowledge. " Reality smiles at logic " in the commonest and most fre- quent affairs of every-day life. Did we make logic the master rather than the servant of reason, our own experience would fall into countless contradictions. Did each of us make the facts of our own consciousness the limit of all, then history, science, literature, politics and art would be our overwhelming condemnation, for they have a breadth and depth that we have but imperfectly realized. These things should teach us caution ; while the record of those who may justly challenge respect for the highest scholarship shows that they have been the most modest in their preten- sions, the most charitable in their judgments, and the least disposed to dogmatize in relation to the final solution of problems that reach out into the unseen. Within the last decade the interest awakened in psychical studies is some- thing phenomenal. The introspection of earlier days has been largely superseded by modern scientific methods. The " Psychical Research Society" — founded in 1882 — has already accomplished much in its careful and critical investigation of mesmeric, psychical and spiritualistic phenomena. Already we have many remarkable cases vouched for, after having been subjected to tests that should satisfy even the most sceptical. Principal Austin has put before us, in this very interesting volume, some remarkable and apparently well-authenticated experiences. In many instances they rest upon the testimony of men whose integrity, candor and judgment are unquestionable. Whatever may be our explanation of them we must admit that they open most interesting chapters in the psychical life of man ; and cannot fail to press upon us still more effectually the great Socratic exhortation — " know thyself" — the first rule and the final fruit of all true mental activity. Victoria University, January jrd, i8g8. D CHAPTER I. Dreams. Introductory Essay by the Editor. REAMS may be classed among the most curious and mterestmg i I I J phenomena of our mentalhfe. From the earhest times to the present they have been subjects for study and reflection upon the part of philosophers, and of special interest to the religious because of the wide-spread belief in the dream as a method of divine revelation. In the earlier times the materials and methods for a scientific study of dreams were wanting, and hence dreams were generally regarded either as objective realities or as revelations from God or communications from spiritual beings. To-day from the rapid advance of scientific enquiry into the structure and workings of the brain and nervous system, the careful collection of data from trustworthy sources and by experiment, it is possible to arrive at more rational views of the nature, origin and significance of dreams. The reader who is especially interested will find somewhat exhaustive and very instructive articles outlining the different theories of dreams, ancient and modern, in the Encyclopaedia Britannica and in McClintock and Strong's Encyclopaedia. For much of the information given in this chapter the editor is indebted to these authorities. Before passing in review some of the chief characteristics of dreams and the various theories propounded by the philosophers, one observation may be pertinent as to the effect of dreaming on life's enjoyment. When we consider the large portion of time spent in sleep and the multitude of dreams the average per^onhas in a year, it becomes an interesting enquiry whether dreams add to or subtract from the amount of life's enjoyment. In this respect dreams may be classed as enjoyable, indifferent and disagreeable. In what proportion do these various classes of dreams come to us ? The great majority of people dream, and I am convinced that to the healthy person most dreams are pleasing. In the aver- age dream there seems to be little to tax the mind or excite unpleasant emotions, but on the contrary a pleasing succession of mental images, mostly visual, which float serenely over the mind's horizon as the fleecy clouds pass over an August sky. Life's joys and sorrows are lived over again ; new experiences apparently are introduced ; most vivid impressions are sometimes made which remain a lifetime ; and life's burden and cares seem the easier borne by reason of the mental relaxation of pleasing dreams. to GLIMl'SES OF THE UNSEEN. ; I 3) 55 J^^^- xxvii. 9; Joel ii. 28, etc., dreamers of dreams, whether true or false, are placed below 'prophets,' and even below ' diviners'; and similarly in the climax of I Sam. xxviii. 6, we read that ' the Lord answered Saul not, neither by dreams nor by Urim [by symbol], nor by prophets.' " ta GLIMPSES OF THE UNSEEN. Under the Christian dispensation, while we frequently read of trances and visions dreams are not referred to as regular vehicles of divine reve- lation. In exact accordance with this principle are the actual records of the dreams sent by God. The greater of such dreams were granted, for prediction or for warnings to those who were aliens to the Jewish covenant. Thus we have the record of the dreams of Abimelech (Gen. xx. 3-7), Laban (Gen. xxxi. 24), of the chief butler and baker (Gen. xi. 5), of Pharaoh (Gen. xii. 1-8), of the Midianite (Judg. vii. 13), of Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. li. i; etc. iv. 10-18), of the Magi (Matt. ii. 12), and of Pilate's wife (Matt, xxvii. 19). Many of these dreams, moreover, were symbolical and obscure, so as to recjuire an interpreter. Again, where dreams are recorded as means of God's revelation to his chosen servants, they are almost always referred to the periods of their earliest and most imperfect knowledge of Him. So it is in the case of Abraham (Gen. XV, 12 and perhaps 1-9), of Jacob (Gen. xxviii. 12-15), o^ Joseph (Gen. xxxvii. 5-10), of Solomon (I. Kings iii. 5), and, in the New Testament, a similar analogy prevails in the case of the otherwise uninspired Joseph (Matt. i. 20 ; ii. 13, 19, 22). It is to be observed, moreover, that they belong to the earliest age, and become less frequent as the revelations of prophecy increase. The only exception to this (at least, in the Old Testament) is found in the dreams and 'visions of the night' given in Daniel (ii. 19; vii. i), apparently in order to put to shame the falsehoods of the Chaldaian belief in prophetic dreams and in the power of interpretation, and yet to bring out the truth latent therein (comp. Paul's miracles at Ephesus, Acts xix. 11, 12, and their effect, 18-20). " The general conclusion therefore is, first, that the scripture claims the dream, as it does every other action of the human mind, as a medium through which God may speak to man either directly, that is, as we call it, 'providentially,' or indirectly in virtue of a general influence upon all his thoughts ; and, second- ly, that it lays far greater stress on that divine influence by which the under- standing also is affected, and leads us to believe that as such influence extends more and more, revelation by dreams, unless in very peculiar circumstances, might be expected to pass away." — (Smith.) "Dreams," says Sully in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, "are a variety of a large class of mental phenomena which may be roughly defined as states of mind which, though not the result of the action of external objects, resume the form of objective perceptions." In this class he places "fleeting images" of waking hours, the "visions" of certain exalted emotional conditions, as in ecstacy, hallucination, hypnotism. Dreaming is distinguished from the others of this class by a complete withdrawal of the mind from the external world. In normal sleep the avenues by which external impressions are conveyed to the consciousness are closed, and the mechanism by which the mind regulates its relations with the external world is shut off. ORKAMS. •I One of the common characteristics of dreams is their apparent objectivity. We see or think we see the persons and places dreamed of, and these appear to us as real persons and places. Yet there is much of difference between actual vision and the vision of the dream. There is, for example, a great con- fusion of the order of time, space, etc., which holds amonj; real objects. Then the objects and scenes assume a greatly exaggerated intensity. The large becomes larger, the ugly becomes hideous, the beautiful becomes entrancing in our dreams. In some dreams we are passive spectators: in others we are the chief actors. In some dreams the most unreasonable things occur without in the slightest degree impressing their unreasonableness upon us. Sometimes the dreamer's identity is lost or he imagines himself another person. In other dreams the ordinary powers of reflection and reasoning seem to be in normal condition. As an illustration of the nonsensical and impossible events which do not impress their absurdity upon the dreamer, the editor, years ago, dreamed the following : I was, it seemed to me, walking upon the main street of Belleville in company with a college mate with whom I was on terms of intimacy and closest friendship, the Rev. J. V. Our pleasing conversation was soon inter- rupted by a sudden and most violent quarrel, in which my indignation and wrath rose to an unwonted height (I can still feel the surges of that tide of anger in my breast) and I seized him by the neck with one hand, with which 1 seemed somehow able to encircle his neck, gave his head a sudden twist from his body and threw it into the gutter. I walked on with head erect, a feeling of pride in my achievement and a sense of well-merited punishment administered. These feelings continued until I had reached the end of the block, when sud- denly the thought of Mrs. V. intruded itself upon me, and with this came the thought of her displeasure at me for my hasty and intemperate conduct. The more I thought of it the more penitent I became; and on turning off Main Street to Bridge Street what was my surprise, and I may add pleasure, to meet my friend smiling and apparently none the worse for his drastic punishment. " Why, Mr. V.," said I, " I am delighted to meet you. I did not think you would be able to be out." '• O, yes," said he, pleasantly enough, '* I am quite recovered." " Well," said I, " How did you get your head fastened on again ? " •• O," said he rather carelessly, as though it were an easy and trivial thing, " I just picked it up and put it on its proper place." And did it grow on securely again } " I said. " Without the slightest dilTiculty," said he. " Well," I responded, " I am certai ly glad of it, for I thought after twisting your head off, that Mrs. V. would not like it." Another distinction between the dream and mental operations in a waking state is "the extreme rapidity with which the mental operations are performed, or, rather, with which the material changes on which the ideas depend, are ii 1 •K r.LIMI'SKS OF THE UNSEEN. excited in the hemispherial ganjj^lia. It would appear as if a whole series of acts that would really occupy a lo;ij^ lapse of time, pass ideally throu^^h the mind in an instant. We have in dr<:ams no true perception of the lapse of time — a stranj^e property of mind ; for if such be its property when entered into the eternal, disembodied state, time will appear to us eternity. The relations of space as well as of time are also annihilated ; so that while almost an eternity is compressed into a moment, infinitii space is traversed more swiftly than by real thought. "--Dr. I'orbes W'inslow. Tniv Varioi's Mf.tmods ok I-'mm.w mion, The various methods of explaiiiin}^^ dreams may l»e resolved into four : (a) The dream as an objective experience. (/>) The dream as a communication from a supernatural being, (c) The dream as a subjective phenomenon depend- ent on natural causes. ('tual state. In the second method the dream is regarded as a revcilation or im^ssage from some actual divine personage, ami so, in this sense, also objective. The essence of the dream lit:s in the fact that it conveys sonit; command or prohil)i- tion which the divine personage wishes the dreamer to know and h'-cd. In some cases the deity is represented as sending a m(;ssenger to the dreauK-'r; in other cases a voice is heard in command or prohibition, .ind in others a mere impression of the divine will is supposed to be impressed on the dreanu-r's mind- In some cases the dreams were clear and intelligible; in others, obscure, and recpiiring the aid of an interpreter. In Homer, dreams are sent by the gods and goddesses, sometimes to instruct, sometimes to deceive. The prescience of Clytemncestra concerning the fall of Troy is represented as the result of a dream. Plato believed in a divine manifestation to the soul in sleep. In the Tiiiueits the prophetic visions are represented as given in sleep. The Stoics reasoned that if the gods love men, and are omniscient and all-powerful, they certainly must disclose their purposes to men in sleep. The divine origin of dreams became a doctrine of the early Christian Church, and was defended by the fathers on biblical as well as classical authority. In medieval and later times, dreams were referred not only to God and the devil, but also to subordinate beings such as the fairy, fiend, and incubus. DRKAMS. •5 There has been jjrachially growing uj) from an early period a more scientific conception of the phenomenon of the dream as dtpeiulinj^ on natural law (of mind and body). The first ji^erms of this scientific theory are to be fouiul in ancient times. Democritiis, from whom the I'lpicureans derived their theory, held that dreams are the |)roduct of simulacra or phantasms of corporeal objects which are constantly (loatinj^ in the atmosph(!r(!. ami which attack the soul in repose. IMato, in the Republic, speaks of dreams as illustratiiif^ the dominant mental habits and impulses. Aristotle's view we have already noted. Cicero, in I)e /)ivinationf, rejects completely the doctrine of the supernatural ori^jin of dreams. Hippocrates, whilst admittiiij^ tho possibility of a divine orij^nn to some; dreams, contends that others sprinj^f from the natural action of iiiiiul and body. He also declares that dreams announce beforehand the affections of the body. This view is larj^ely accepted by medical num to-day. The modern tluiory of dreainiiijj^ pr(!S(!nts some vari(.'ty of vi