OCR Text |
Show SPIRITUALISTS ARE OFFERED PRIZE New York, Sept, 10 The fact that several spiritualistic meetings re-ctntlv re-ctntlv asserted that they have re- reived messages from the late Prof. I William James of Harvard, one of j whose favoilte themes was the possibility pos-sibility of communication between the dead and the living, has led the Metropolitan Met-ropolitan Psychical society here to propose a test as to the validity of all such assertions. The society offers of-fers a prize of $1,00.1 to any medium who will obtain from the spirit of Prof. James, when it speaks th.ougli lliein. a statement of the contents of i a certain letter sent by him a few-days few-days before his death to W. S. Davis, I secretary of the society. j Mr Davis has the letter from Prof. James ln his safe No one el-e has seen It or has received from him any ' Inkling of Us contents. The president of the Psychical soc iety. in making public the prize offer, of-fer, makes the following comment on the alleged "raessaves" thus far put forward by various mediums. "The great difficulty with all tho messages which have so far been published pub-lished Is (hat they are vague, Indrln Ite. and trashy and could have been concocted by anyone Such alleged communications have invariably followed fol-lowed the demise of all persons of note In the spiritualistic field, but (lo cry simple test herein proposed would considerably narrow (he question ques-tion down, and should easily be within with-in Ihe capability of any person actually ac-tually in communication with the spirit of the late Prof. James. "We recognize in Prof. James a great and open-hearted Investigator. We have striven to maintain his spirit spir-it of ojx-n-mlndeduess toward all assertions as-sertions and have endeavored to give I hem a full hearing and, fair trying-ouL trying-ouL That we have never encountered encounter-ed any phenomena of a superhuman kind does not wholly discourage us from looking into any fresh assertions asser-tions advanced as to the existence of J such." |