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Show I vator. "The only way I can ficure it j out Is that she commits the poems to i memory before she sits down at the tioard, hut if she does she has one of the most remarkable memories in existence." e Amone the unconvinced Is Dr. 'James M. Hyslop. head of the Psychical Research Re-search society, who, writing in the journal i of that - organization, declared one of Pa-i tlenee's books to be "worthy of children and savages." and "a fool adventure to influence the public in behalf of ideas which have no credentials between its i covers." Confronted with these embarrassing embar-rassing statements at one of the sittings, however. Dr. Hysiop declared that he had leen referring not to Mrs. Outran, but to the publishers of her boosts. The audience au-dience half-expc-.-ted i'atience herself to appear to rebuke him. but she merely reproached re-proached him tn mild and rather abstruse verse, ns follows: Throturh that vast vale, black, pitlike, WooMst thou hold a taper" Wo'uldst thou ienU thy hand unto them that seek? Is that yearning, born of truth. Kating thy heart In hungry- anticipation. That thou shouldst leave a beacon upon the sands? Yet! Oh. had thou 'beheld the regal bark of day i Floating upon ttw Fea of eternity j And no bacon alight, no chart! la benediction do I bow before thee. I I What Is Patience Worth? j I I By Fredenc J. H&Sk& f-T NEW YORK, Nov. 22. New York is just recovering from the surprise of a visit from Patience Worth, the invisible but loquacious English girl, who is supposed sup-posed to have lived here and been killed oy Indians 350 years ago. Usually Patience hovers conveniently over tne home of Mr. and Mrs. James Curra n in St. Louis, frequently descending descend-ing upon Mrs. Cur ran with bursts of epigrams epi-grams and poetry. But when Mrs. Cur-ran Cur-ran came on to New York Patience came .with her. Here, in spite of the harrowing memories that her early adventure with the Indians must nave had for her, she Bpettt j most productive ten days, obliging oblig-ing a large audience with from nine to fourteen poems every afternoon and talking talk-ing off altogether 2S.tH.iO words of verse. ! in addition to this;, she offered a number of valuable suggestions for the screening of one of her books, which she dedicated to Mrs. Curran a couple of years ago. The meetings at which Patience manifested mani-fested her peculiar skill for producing a rapid fire of verse were held in the apartment apart-ment of Mrs. and Mrs. Herman Behr, who are great admirers of her genius. The public was invited, and the public, including many writers, artists and actors, came In great numbers, crowding the Behr drawing ro-jm beyond its capacity for chairs, part of it standing patiently for two hours while Mrs. Curran communicated commu-nicated with Patience on the ouija board. At the last meeting nearly 3t0 peopl-were peopl-were admitted to the room. Mrs. Behr declaring de-claring hospitably that she did not care how many came, so long as they did not stand on her chairs. While no one had quite the temerity to do that, several found a comfortable resting place and an excellent view of the proceedings on the top of the grand piano. Promptly at 4 o'clock the mtetlng was called to order and everyone stopped telling tell-ing what he had heard about Patience Worth and stared curiously as an attractive-looking woman In a light gray dress, with rather somber eyea, untidy hair and drooping jade earrings, pushed her way through the crowd and took her place before be-fore a small table In front of the large central fireplace, where a cheerful log lire burned. "She has the medium's eyes.' said a woman somewhere in the audience, and everyone leaned forward expectantly. Mrs. Curran. however, made no attempt to create a spooky impression. She began be-gan by saying that people had. been unkind un-kind enough to call ner a fraud and assert as-sert that her publishers were using Patience Pa-tience Worth as a money-making proposition, propo-sition, whereas she was not a fraud, and Patience was not at all remunerative. In six years, she declared, tne royalties on her books liad amounted to only 11300. Then she went on to confide that sne had adopted a baby girl when she was only 12 days of age and Z pounds big, and that the money made from Patience poetry was being used to educate this foundling. "Will you plps.se come forn ard now ?' Bbe motioned to a young woman with blond hair, who emerged rrom u corner and took a seat at the opposite side of the table, placing her hand in contact with Mrs. Curran's on the ouija board. At the I ame time a man with a cleer, Inter-' Inter-' isting fa1', adorned with tortoise-shell glasses, who soon turned out to be Mr. Curran, sat down at an adjoining table and prod uced a pen a nd notena per far recording Mistress Wffrth's poetry. 'I hear a lot of hoof beats." declared Mrs. Curran as soon as she started moving mov-ing her hand over the board. Her voice was calm and natural. "1 uever sec anything, any-thing, i only hear It.' Almost Immediately Patience evidently started to talk, because Mrs. Curran began be-gan rapidly dictating a poem, half spelling, spell-ing, half saying it. The verse had to do with noble deeds and the joy of self-sacrlftce. self-sacrlftce. When Mr. Curran finished reporting re-porting It. he read It to the audience, from which it drew murmurs of fervent admiration. "Isn't it lovely? aske 1 Mrs. Curran. 'I'atience Is doing good work today." "I Just want to say." said the lady who had supplied the other necessary hand foi the ouija board, "that those were the verv thoughts in my mind as I sat here. I had the idea that I should like to do Mimethlng ennobling for the world, even at the price of a great sacrifice." Fhe retired to the front row of the audience, au-dience, and another ts'dy came forward to supply Patience with Inspiration, whys the hostess rose and demanded to know If Mr. btM was present. Mr. Ibanez was not. so Mrs. rurran a vain proceeded ; to get In touch with Patience. This time the poem spoke romantically of "communion "com-munion with the beloved. " and the new-comer new-comer it the outja board, who was dressed In mourning, testified to the fact that Patience Pa-tience had also managed to read her thoughts that she had come to the table concentrating on the thought of communion com-munion with hi r builand after death. Tiie next ouija hosrd assistant was a young man in a gray suit, with a plump and practical countenance. who was i at e-r r, f-conscious a bout his role. Pa-tfenca. Pa-tfenca. however. Immediately becAinc extremely ex-tremely coy and metaphorical. If this gentleman had such thoughts In his mind when he sal down at the table he evidently evi-dently decided not to acknowledge them. i nice move an intense inquiry was tnaito concerning the presence of Mr. I Nines, and then the hostess wanted to know If Mr. Bodanaky, COadlMtor of the Metropolitan Metropoli-tan ( M'pra Mouse orchestra, was there. Hoth gentlemen, she aid. had been promised prom-ised sittings ut the ouija board, but apparently ap-parently I Key had decided not to take ad .int. ice nf them. This fail 1 mentioned because some of the audience thought It rather significant signifi-cant t hat Patience iasl porni for the afternoon concerned four allegorical horsemen, which wouM have been particularly par-ticularly appropriate for Mr. Thanes. When Mrs Curran announced thnl she was tco tlrsd to receive anything more from the indefatigable 1'atlencS. she was flooded with questions from the audience. Mow did she discover Patience? DM sho ever receive communications from airy-one airy-one sTmT GOU?d she w rite any t lme at air Or wis patience ever stubborn and liable tO sudden strikes? w Mrs. Curran answered all Of these Inquiries In-quiries quite simply and modestly. She ev pin bird that Patience originated with the first ouija board Intrnducod Into the Curran household, which at the time was i unacquainted with the psychic phenomena and merely regarded the ouija as a means of entertnlnmenl. Mrs, Curran was aflliaad and friahlened when Patience first started using lief as a means of expression. expres-sion. Put . siwm she Ixv wno used to t lie voice of the young Knsllsh girl. Although Patience has never failed her et. Mrs, Curran Is In constant fear that some tints she will. She was not sure, for Instance. If I'atience would accompany her to New York. M'll one time some years ago, when she was scheduled to lve a stttlnn In Washington, she became so worried for fear Mistress Nrth had remained In st. I,o tils that she held n private silting with the ouija hoard. I'atience. are you there?" she demanded de-manded fearfully. "1 be, and astir." wmn Patience's unique reply. . "Today," concluded Mrs. Curran, "la (tie tenth Sitting we have bad In New-York. New-York. I hiring this time wo have re-reived re-reived abOUt eighty poems, including 28,000 woids." K This remarkable task on the part of Patience Is accepted with vailed feelings by the New Yorkers who attended the Blttlnftl ond hflrird the verse poured forth through Mrs. Cumin's Hps. Tho majority n ieadv IntSraitOd In spiritism and My-3hl0 My-3hl0 mnlestntlons take the whole thing ns a matter of course. One woman, for example, declines that she has always been tormented by the voice of A simll-u aplrll. but Inn never had the courage to develop the a c.jua Int a nee. On the other band, there are those who frankly slate that thev would have more faith tn th spook lues of Put fence If her w ork did not supply I tie Curra us w ith such excellent excel-lent monetary returns, "Funny that Mri Otirrati ihdufd know hOW man) words t hey had received be rote she bad .unite I iliosr in today posmii said a graj -haired gent I ep inn In a I rot k con I, as he hull led to t lie ele- a, |
