University of South Carolina Libraries
CONVERTS TO SPIRITUALISM Dr. A. Conan Doyle a Recent Accession WAVE SWEEPS PARTS OF ENGLAND It it Claimed That Mothers are Getting Into Communication With Their Dead Soldier Sons?Dr. Doyle Says That We are Far Behind Japan. London, May 24.?A wave of spiritualism such as no country has ever experienced bofore is rolling- over Great Britain carrying with It thou\ sands of persons of high and low degree. Backed by men of science and letters, with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as the leader, the movement has assumed such proportions that when a gathering is held in London, the Royal Albert Hall one of the largest amphitheaters in the world is engag' ed. Conspicuous among tl.e growing membership are the wives and mothers of soldiers slain on the battlefield, and since the recent announcement made by Sir Arthur that no lesa than thirty women, from his personal knowledge, have been vouch-safed the deep consolation of direct bommunication with their beloved lost, scores of sorrow stricken women are frequenting the seances. Mnuomlint ? Laadina Him. Holmes of Baker street and Dr. Watson with the needle have "passed lief of Scotland Yard) for the spinner lief to Scotland Yords) for the spinner of the most fascinating of modern detective yarns has become an impassioned zealot who conceives it his duty to traverse the country avowing that the dead really live and are clamoring to be recognized. The only books that Conan Doyle will now put his pen to are books on spiritualism. Following closely "The New Revelation", will como 'The Vital Message," about to be published. For his lectures Sir Arthur receives no remuneration. He is not leading the movement, he declares; It is leading him- His activities have passed beyond his control." As a result of the reputable array of men and women who have taken up the cult, the quacks are reaping a rich harvest, and, though their seances are characterized by the usual tamborinc playing, weird knockings, coat-throwing, table-lifting, etc., the faith of the believers is not shaken. I attended the great memorial held by the National Spiritualist Union in Royal Albert Hall for the dead?although they do not call them "dead." It was unusually vile weather, but thousands %attended. The majority wore the white rosette, the insignia testifying that the wearer believes himself to have received a direct communication. Address Invisible Audience. It was the most remarkable meeting I ever saw. The visible audience was all but ignored; the invisible audience which all but the unregenerate believed to be actually present, was addressed. In an atmosphere made electric by the very faith of the congregation, Sir Arthur thanked the vast army whose spiritual bodies they were certain were there for the great service thoy had rendered civilization, the great service of saving the world from barbarism, of straightening out the boundries of oppressed nations; and the greatest service of all, in his opinion, that of prov- , ing by their manifestations that there is no death. Conaii Doyle can vitalize a speech on * spiritualism with the same magic he employs in vitalizing a mystery story. ? He is a robustious, effective speaker, and he has the fire that comes only with absolute sincerity. Even to a rank outsider such as myseu, ms manner ui appealing to the great khaki-clad army that has "gone west" was dramatic enough to create for a few min tes the Illusion that they must be present. Declaring that such a meeting was unique in the history of Europe, but not in Asia, he recalled how, after the Russo-Japanese war, Admiral Togo went to a barren spot by the seashore and invoked the spirits of his dead seamen. Standing there, Togo rejoiced with them over the issue of the war and thanked them for contributing to the victory. "WJien we have got to the level of Japan in psychical research," said Sir Art! ur, coming back to earth again, "it will not be the average civilians nuo nuraslm. but the ereat chiefs of the army and navy who led these men to battle and to death who will welcome and thank them for their services. I know one army commander who is a convinced spiritualist .and who would rejoice to stand here and address his vanished men." "Ghost Stories" from the Trenches, everybody knows, of course, by this time that thousands of soldiers have returned from the gory conflicts of the great war with an unshakable belief in the materialization of spirits, and the ctop of "ghost stories" that have come from the trenches are as .... The 11UII1UVUO cto HIV J UIV |/*v?u?>wv|MV, Angel of the Marne who thousands of practical, fighting men are convinced appeared to them from out of No Man's Land on the now historic battlefield is perhaps the most familiar instance. Writers, even the best of them uch as Edith Wharton, caught the contagion. Fresh fuel has been added to biighten the flame by the publication of statements made by the officers and crew of the "Royal Oak" of the British Navy which received the surrendered German fleet at Scarpt Flow. They declare unequivocally that they heard Drake's drum the entire time that the British fleet -was closing around the German vessels. Admiral, captain, commander, officers and men of the "Royal Oak", on which the drum was heard, have asserted that after a thorough investigation of the ship, they are convinced the sound they heard was none other than Drake's drum, the audible manifestation of the spirit of the great sea captain rejoicing at Britain's latest triumph of the sea. Severe critics have arisen to censure Conan Doyle for his advocacy of spiritualism and the publicity that is the result. A storm of disapproval followed his statement in a recent interview that "nearly every woman is an undeveloped medium." "Let her try her own powers of automatic writing," he continued, in answer to a question as to how a mother could communicate with her son, "since this Is when genuine the most unsatisfactory means of communication. What is done must be done with every precaution against self-deception, and In a reverent and prayerful mood. But if you axe in earnest you will- win through somehow for your son is probably trying on the other side." Sir Arthur is convinced that he has had communications from his own son and also from his brother-in-law, who was killed early in the war. He admits there are frauds. "blasphemous frauds", as he phases it, who pass themselves off as mediums, but he believes that even through "true mediums," playful, mischievous spirits sometimes are not averse to manifesting themselves by the shaking I of tamborines, eerie knocks and other freak demonstrations. Underlying Principle. "The first principle of spiritualism," he asserts by way of explanation, "is that when a man dies he in no way alters. He is on the other side of the grave exactly what he was on this. From their point of view, having passed it, death is not the solemn and serious thing it appears to us. If you look at mankind you find that a great number of them are more or less shallow and frivolous, or fond of practical jokes. Many of the moro crude manifestations may be put down to this, and even some of the false ones." "T71e desire of the spiritual world is strorely to attract a generation that is materially-minded. What methods are open? Suppose that beautiful messages arrive without any physical manifestation do you think they would attract any attention? Everybody would say, as they did in the old days in the Bible "Give us a sign, give us a sign!" "These phenomena extend over many things and some of them are puerile, but some of them, on the other hand, are wonderfully impressive to those who have witnessed them. We spiritualists deprecate the natural phenomena. What we attach importance to is the direct communication either through clairvoyance, automatic writing or direct voice." Enormous importance is given by spiritualists to a seance recently held in the north of England, at which they declare, the mother of a dead soldier received a direct communication by voice. The lad had a splendid baritone voice and a favorite song which , began, "When the fields are white with daisies", was constantly on his lips. "I shall sing that when I come back to you mother", he said when he went to , war. He was one of those millions who , will never come back?in the flesh, at least His mother became a devotee of the seance. She sat at the meeting , in question with eight other persons. The speaking trumpet which, it seems, is necessary if spirit voices are to be materialized, became active. Presently it is claimed, the boy's rich voice singing his favorite song was unmistakably audible, so audible, in fact, that the boy's dog, hearing the voice, came bounding from another part of the , house and scratched impatiently on the door for admission. The mother collapsed Mr. Ernest Oaten, president of the National Spiritualist Union, ( vouches for this story, and Sir Arthur and Lady Doyle give it their entire ( credence. Sir Authur's own favorite medium is a Mrs. B. Doyle is Strong Convert Getter Undoubtedly, with Conan Doyle as the latest celebrated champion of their cause, the spiritualists have a powerful convert-getter for in addition to the mllltons of friends "Sherlock Holmes" has made for him all over the world, he is a medical man of repute. And the fact that he is but following in the footsteps of other equally eminent men such as Sir Oliver Lodge, William James and Lombroso, gives added weight to his own convictions. Whatever reservations In ( regard to psychic phenomena one's own skeptical mind may make, it cannot be denied that his very ardor and sincerity, and his willingness to risk * J' ' " V*{a I me snans 01 nuicuic uau; ? .? friends and acquaintances have showered upon him, make him a potent evangelist that appears to the ministers of denominational religions to be positively alarming. Arabs played big role. Had Only University in the World in Dark Ages. Few realize the greatness of the role played by the Arabian culture through the Dark Ages. As Mr. Gibran told his interviewer the other day "In the century after Mohammed, the Arabs composed the greatest empire in the history of the world?from within 60 miles of Paris to the heart of China. And with it grew the learning and the literature of the people. At that time they had the only universities in the world. They knew that the earth was round long before Galileo; in the towers of their churches were telescopes; later, when the Spanish came, and conquered, they replaced them with church bells. "When all Europe was dark, in the Eighth, Ninth and Tenth centuries, the Arabs had a school of translators of Greek philosophy. The Book of Job, for instance, is an Arabic work, translated and adopted by the Hebrews." It was their religion that forbade their sculpturing and painting of nature's forms, but still these arts have gone in to the conventional patterns of rugweaving. "In music, as well as poetry," said Mr. Gibran, "the Arabs have made themselves felt in the western world. The songs of southern Russia, /.vomnln \irol 1 nnHpi'Qtond 1U1 CAtlUt^V, *? vuiu MV It v. and enjoyed by my people, their origin being often Arabic- Tchaikovsky and Verdi have felt his influence; 'Aida' is composed of Arabic motifs. Italianized Debussy told me that he, too, had taken our motifs and built upon them some of his works." But the adaptability of the Arabs is the great hope for Mesopotamia and the rest under the coming new order. Mr. Gibran says that there is hardly an educated man in Syria who does not know English and French besides his own language. "In Syria and Egypt we know Dante, Shakespeare, Hugo, the French poets from Villon to Maeterlinck," he says; "and it would not surprise me if a survey of how widely Shakespeare is known among us were to show that we read him as much as you do, if not more." ? Luther Horton, a well-to-do farmer of Kershaw, was killed hist Friday by Mose Witherspoon, a negro renter, on a place belonging to his father, near Kershaw. Full particulars of the killing have not been obtainable; but the understanding is that Horton went to the negro's house to remonstrate with him in connection with a question of leaving the premises. Witherspoon j shot Horton through the head and ran away. At last accounts he was being pursued in a sparsely settled section of the county over in the neighborhood of Great Catawba Falls. BUILDING OF AIRPLANES. American tnergy Met With Greater Difficulty Than It Expected. Admission that both military and civilian experts overestimated the country's capabilities in setting: out In 1917 "to accomplish the impossible task" of producing- 222,000 airplanes in 12 months is made in the official history of the government's efforts to build up the industry made public a few days ago by the war department. Realization of this error resulted almost immediately in the placing of contracts in France for 5,875 planes of the Sped, Nieuport and Bregeut types. The report shows that by May 23, 1918, American factories had delivered 5,270 planes, or 24 per cent of the ambitious program while the French had delivered 31 per cent of the number promised on that date. Up to Novem Der II, 3. IUIUI VI 11,out aupiaucs iiau been produced in America, but these were largely training machines, fighting planes completed during the war period totalling only 3,328. "Broadly stated," the history says, "the United States produced for the army alone in her second year of manufacture, as many airplanes as England pioduced for her army and navy in her third year." Organization of the manufacturing industry is declared to have been the smallest of the air sendee's problems, an alarming shortage of cloth and varnish, or "dope," for the wings developing at the very start. Lack of an adequate supply of linen was overcome quickly through the assistance of the United States bureau of standards which evolved a special cotton fabric with a tensile strength of 90 pounds to the square inch. Production Of this material was soon at the rdte of 1,200,000 yards per month. "Cotton proves not only to be an admirable substitute for linen, bub oven a better fabric than the original cloth," the report says. "No.matter how abundant the supply of flax may be, it is unlikely that linen will ever again be used in large quantities for airplane wings." Search for varnish to protect airplane wings resulted in the establishment of 10 large chemical plamts to produce acetone, the principal ingredient. "Had the war continued," says tjhe history, 'these new plants would have taken care of all American an4 Allied military needs, allowing the produc tion of private plants to fill commercial needs.' * Development of aircraft was so rapid that frequent changes in modles and designs were before the sendee experts for consideration. At the time of the armistice, the whole production machinery had been, or was about to he. turned over to putting out a new De Haviland, known as 9-A; the Lepere, a two-seater built around the liberty engine, and the great Handley-Pege machine for bombing work. Experiments also w ere under way with the Italian Caproni, to be driven by three liberty engines. "But American invention' was able to bring out a strictly American bombing plane that promised to supercede all other types in existence," says the report. "This was the Martin plane which, with a wing spread of 75 feet, attained a speed of 118 miles per hour against 100 for the HandleyPage and Caproni. Where the foreigners required 46 minutes to climb 15,000 feet, the Martin craft took 30 minutes." One entire chapter of the history is given to the evolution and preparations for the production of the liberty engine. First drawings were made May 29, 1917 and the 8-cylinder engine was delivered July 4, 1917. On August 25, the first liberty "twelve" successfully passed a 50 hour test. "As an achievement in speed in the development of a successful new engine?this performance has never been equalled in the motor history of any country," the report declares, quoting a Hritish officer statement that more than one year from the conception to completion must be allowed in such cases. The performance was possible, it added, because all the inventive and manufacturing talent of the country was turned over patriotically to the government for use without stint, even secret patents and processes being thrown into the common pool. Deliveries started with 22 motors in December, 1917. This was increased to 39 in January, 1918, 70 in February, 122 in March, 416 in April and 620 in May. By October the daily production was 130 complete machines. The report asserts that as a fair standard of comparison it could be said that the most famous British aviation engine never reached a larger production than 10 machines a day. Liberty motors comprised about onehalf of the aviation horsepower pro?n thi? pnuntrv. the remainder being divided between the Hispanoftiizas, Le Khones, Gnomes, Curtisses, Hall-Scotts and one or two experimental types. Disappointing results met efforts to produce the British RollsBojce and the French Bugatti engines in this country, this being attributed largely to insufficient data obtained from the originators. Vivid description is .given of the development of the various special equipment for war planes, such as the synchronising device, permitting the aviator to lire through his propeller, the special compasses and sights, the camera "gun" and many types of bombs. As an illustration of the adaptability of American factories, the rel?ort cites the case of a manufacturer of skates who turned out thousands of demolition bombs daily. The Passing of the Fire Engine Horse.?Of course it is all right; it had to come; we knew years ago the horse would be displaced to some extent by the motors*?and so recorded it. But the passing of the last horse from the fire department of this city?well, "things ain't what they used to be in this old town." And what kind of hovs are thev going to raise in the future? That is, what kind of man will develop from a boy who never saw a pair of fire engine horses rushing madly down the street at breakneck speed? It wasn't really breakneck speed, of course; it only seemed so. Any boy could himself follow the engine and keep up with it. but?speed? Why, all of us have imagined that galloping horses, jumping almost straight up and down and hauling an engine at the rate ol eight miles an hour, were the fastest things on earth. There isn't any more fun in the world for the boy who knew the Are engine horses by name, now that they have "motorized" the fire department. There is something about the very name that Isn't sentimental. "Motorized," indeed! What about the "old bay" with the clipped mane, three white fee and a wicked eye? Ever see him comi ' out of the tire engine house on a frost; morning? What's a motor got to d< I with excitement such as that? Why > he didn't touch his forefeet to th : ground until he was around the cor ? ner; Just reared up and away he went 1 pawing all the time with those whit I feet. Say, but "them was the clays. 1 Columbus Dispatch. Are Women Honest.?A friend hai sent us a pamphlet, entitled "Are Wto ' men Honest?" The purpose of th< document and what it is about we d( not know and shall not know, as i was immediately thrown away. An; writing that seeks our attention witl such a question is not pursued. Of course women are honest?an< under the most trying temptations Kvon li rney were noi more mnereniii honest than men their religion wouk cause them to be honest In most cases Women take their rellgrion seriously as they should. They believe in future rewards and punishments to t greater extent than do men. They an more sentimental, and sentimentalitj is at the bottom of honesty if yoi please. If women were not honest, half th< husbands in the land would be robbec every night of the money in their pockets. Probably aboi^t that per cent 01 the husbands of the country do noi take the pains to inquire if their wives need money, and a large number ol those who do inquire give grudgingly and only when they feel compelled tc do so. Men, as a rule, are more liberal with everybody else in the world than with their wives. 9 The large employers of this country will tell you that women are more honest than men. They are more conscientious, as a rule in regard to theii work?and that is certainly a matter of honesty. Even ftie I. W. W. doesn't try to induce women to practice sabotage knowing that the women would not respond to their inducements. So with all of this knowledge in our possession. we have no desire to read a pamphlet that asks the question right in the beginning, "Are \V]omen Honest ?Columbus Dispatch. The Successful Man.?He pushes for more business in busy seasons, and, it customers are scarce, still pursues. He practises _ strict economy and does not condescend to penurlousness. He pays promptly and collects as he pays, rather than pays as he collects. He is courteous in manner and appreciates the commercial value of cordiality. He is honest, not from policy, but from principle; he considers success lacking self-approbation as failure in disguise. He thinks first and deeply; and speaks last and concisely. He possesses executive ability to a degree which renders him appreciative of the most valuable points in ^etnployees.?Backbone. I 31 V T] Thro mnni lilUllt Wee! stant with ware wort' youri An< The wiU 1 ly be if ev< TW< The A Yes, it's r rivets clii smooth as the inside, only one o and cause inside ant skin deep. ] ^?r t WAR BLOWN TO ISLAM. e y Mohammedans Lost Heavily to Christians in Great Conflict g One of the most striking results ol ...e world war Is the new prestige t with which Christianity, as a world rell' gion emerges. It Ls true, as Judge Wesley O. Howard of Troy, N. Y., points out an article in the New York Herald, that the gigantic conflict was in no sense a g religious war. Christians and Mo. hammedans, on one side, foughl e against Christians and Hindoos on the 3 other- The struggle was primarily bet tween Christian nations. In the aggrey gate, however, and as an incident ol i the war, Christianity has made immense inroads into the ranks of Mo l hammeaanism. The three great centers of Islamism, >' Jerusalem, Bagdad and Constant1 nople, have fallen into Christian hands. . Judge Howard tries to envisage for us . the significance of this one fact "There will, of course, be absolute freedom of religious worship in all i the conquered . lands of the Turkish 7 territories, and the Mussulman will 1 by as much at -liberty to cry out to Allah as ever he was: nevertheless, 5 the dethronement of Moslem rulers 1 and the exaltation of Christian gov" crnors will exert a deep influence f upon the minds of the Mohammedan - peoples. And the advantages and se' curity of the Christian civilisation will have a tendancy at least to incline them toward the superior civilization. ' Moreover, their communities will be ' invaded by groups of Christian colo1 nists, secure now against Turkish outrages and oppression, and there will be intermingling of family and business interests. "Industrial enterprises, stimulated by western zeal and money, will spring up in Jerusalem, Tarsus, Damascus, Bagdad and other Mohammedan cities, and revolutionize the customs of the people. Commercial houses and manufacturing establishments will be built, railroads will be stretched, mines developed and wells bored, and all these enterprises will be directed and flnan j k.. ik^ ^s r?k ueu uy liic ytnjpie ui v^iu latiun uoliuus. But most destructive of all to the . power of Mohammedanism is the* de feat of the sultan of Turkey. This Ottoman monarch was head of the Moslem church. His person sacred in the eyes of every Mussulman, and his , debasement and impotence must convulse Mohammedanism to the foundation and shake even the fanatic faith of the/Islamites. On Purpose.?Insurance man putting questions to cowboy: "Ever had any accidents?" "No," was the reply. "N'ever had an accident in your life? ."None. A rattler bit me once, though." \ "Well, don't you call that an accident." "Hell, no. He bit me on purpose." ir r * L-Hiih w "M El iii SJjT f 1 \(?"?1 L MAJESTM? r I C3M8Troe y a ttfa r'" I. rr3^Tr^^~~~^ HE BARGA -AND IT'S WELL WORTH YOUR WHILE! ugli special arrangements wi ifacturers, and during this B k only, a beautiful, useful an ;ial set of Cooking Ware will bi every Majestic Range sold, is good ware'(not cheap ware li a lot to vou. Come and s self. d Remember? price of a Majestic Range tlii lot be increased, and there wil a great reduction for years tc 3r, but there may be an increas > NEW AN Vonderful Unseei ivet-tiglit, just like the old ' 1C11 HlHiUe Ul pax t. glass, and there are no big, bu And, remember, rivets hold r two threads holding are boi no end of trouble. The M< 1 outside?it's a striking be [f you haven't a MAJESTIC, i this wond< k Furniti "Give your commands more clearly!" said the colonel to the young lieutenant. "Yes, sir!" I KAJ( fu V M, * ?"v ' ," ^ ;../ Actumlpkalogrmpfithmirm ditferenca in width . ? bjetwfin Mtehmtin . x Tutu* ana otnMr tubtt, ' .' T ;|! m' ', Michelin Tabes casing: even befo: ;V' ' * I Kit mfln^nn fn gll 4-1 UJ uiuauuii IU mi u constant tension wh the natural life and resistant to cuts am :: on Michelins?the f MieMi* 7W*r?. Httth* :.: ?w? tuft* Inflatu III YORK '. ~ I 1PI | , ] Great Bar spec: Maj f A1 IJune To Be B, (K ? Economy is r3?fer^" buying a r<i V_-X? euunuiuy. The First c< IN tional first < with its eeo Nearly a m cally, scient tli the lions and m: argain is proof posi id sub- mi . 3 given m!1Cr?r1Srr*liis e -M-ajest: ranges. Th lee for beauty and it embc i i no otner rai Your C s week At our store 1 hard- your chana > come, ' about rang< e soon. your while 1 D IMPORTA i Riveting C AT oTfltj + i/i V\n+ llin A iuajconv>j uut tiivv 3, leaving nickel ^ ilky bolt-heads on tight; bolts with ind to work loose c ajestic is smooth ti auty?more than ji n ivail yourself of this opportui ;rful range?know the inside ol ire & He "The other day one of your officers cleared his throat and the entire company about faced." ? Detroit Free Press. U-site tu\ '' ' ' ' *,' '"'"WW*. . vj?-v v, ?I1? ??? " * ' : '.' ; .V ' '! }. iS'x '..-i'.'V'" $> u ' f\ * _ f : ~-f. ,? .? *v"'"4 V " ' ?< - ' j " : }.?:.' V lySIS|flt^ r Af|$& vV ' being made full-sized fill! Reajafti^;^|.! ' iraaller in diameter than Mich eiir te casing, Hie flexing of tfccies en inflated causes destructive he i resiliency of the rubber, makin I punctures. ' ng full-sized, are free from these < ull-sized inner tubes. f-fPP?- " ; > sv." -r eating Othar tul w? ? . ' -M.-- 'J . 't by inflat MOTOR CA ifORK, S. C f : Majestic R gain W< rAL DEMONSTRATION BARGAIN SALE OF estic t Our Store?One Week Onl] 9th to 14th, s Truly Economical There Sh 5 a Majestic in Your Kitchei not merely spending the leas mge at too low a price is m >st is not the only cost?the 1 jost of a Majestic is nothing nomy of fuel and satisfactoi illion Majestic Ranges, now ifically and satisfactorily se: illions of people, civilians an< tive of their superiority over Iy one best. The public ha ic is recognized as the stand e construction, material, wor of this wonderful range is i >dies important features pos lge. )pportunity is He !?during Majestic Bargain 1 e to get acquainted with ] 2s. We assure you it will to investigate. NT FEATU )h, Joy! Top Needs No I smnntli. ViicrVllv nolisbfid cot .. 7 o J x urnished blue, not only ad eauty of the Majestic, but i liminates the work, dirt and tying to keep the range looki List an occasional thin coat of etains its beautiful velvet b lity to get acquainted with ? ranges. irdware Ouch!?He?"My ancestors come over in the Mayflower." She?"It's lucky they did; the Immigration laws are stricter now." LINl ber . j * n jcpj -\tff T^- M^? jSr>^ the inside of the 4m &vs* 1 m % ' $? .* so* - h, must be stretched \ - / tretcbed tubes under ating which kills all g it porous and lew : If - ^ - , iisad vantages. Insist 4 tiitrHiif *> : . HP# mhhm Om ttmwwmKfwmO ion to fill tht toting 1 ? _ lR CO. h * I ' ange ;ek AND * x f iges 7 inin L717 ould 1 % t moneydeed false ittle addi- Ji compared y service. economirving mil1 soldiers, V ail others. judged. -r iard of all kmanship mequaled, isessed by re? Veek. It's real facts be worth RES Hacking )king top, ds to the ibsolutely worry of ng nice? paraffine lue color. Co.