Agnosticism - strongly impregnated with incredulity. My
friend had no misgivings, no doubts on the subject whatever.

Absolute certainty is the prerogative of the orthodox. He
had taken University honours, and was a man of high position

at the Bar. I was curious to learn upon what grounds such an
one based his belief. His answer was: 'Upon the phenomena

of electro-biology, and the psychic phenomena of mesmerism.'
His 'first convictions were established by the manifestations

of the soul as displayed through a woman called "The
Mysterious Lady," who, &c., &c.'

When we have done with our thaumaturgist on board the ISABEL,
I will give another instance, precisely similar to this, of

the simple origin of religious beliefs.
The steamer was pretty full; and the conjuror begged me to

obtain the patronage of my noble friend and the rest of our
party for an entertainment he proposed to give that evening.

This was easily secured, and a goodly sum was raised by
dollar tickets. The sleight-of-hand was excellent. But the

special performance of the evening deserves description in
full. It was that of a whist-playing dog. Three passengers

- one of us taking a hand - played as in dummy whist, dummy's
hand being spread in a long row upon the deck of the saloon

cabin. The conjuror, as did the other passengers, walked
about behind the players, and saw all the players' hands, but

not a word was spoken. The dog played dummy's hand. When it
came to his turn he trotted backwards and forwards, smelling

each card that had been dealt to him. He sometimes
hesitated, then comically shaking his head, would leave it to

smell another. The conjuror stood behind the dog's partner,
and never went near the animal. There was no table - the

cards were thrown on the deck. They were dealt by the
players; the conjuror never touched them. When the dog's

mind was made up, he took his card in his mouth and laid it
on the others. His play was infallible. He and his partner

won the rubber with ease.
Now, to those ignorant of the solution, this must, I think,

seem inexplicable. How was collusion managed between the
animal and its master? One of the conditions insisted upon

by the master himself was silence. He certainly never broke
it. I bought the trick - must I confess it? for twenty

dollars. How transparent most things are when - seen
through! When the dog smelt at the right card, the conjuror,

who saw all four hands, and had his own in his pocket,
clicked his thumb-nail against a finger-nail. The dog alone

could hear it, and played the card accordingly.
The other story: A few years after my return to England, a

great friend called upon me, and, in an excited state,
described a SEANCE he had had with a woman who possessed the

power of 'invoking' spirits. These spirits had correctly
replied to questions, the answers to which were only known to

himself. The woman was an American. I am sorry to say I
have forgotten her name, but I think she was the first of her

tribe to visit this country. As in the case spoken of, my
friend was much affected by the results of the SEANCE. He

was a well-educated and intelligent man. Born to wealth, he
had led a somewhat wildish life in his youth. Henceforth he

became more serious, and eventually turned Roman Catholic.
He entreated me to see the woman, which I did.

I wrote to ask for an appointment. She lived in Charlotte
Street, Fitzroy Square; but on the day after the morrow she

was to change her lodgings to Queen Anne Street, where she
would receive me at 11 A.M. I was punctual to a minute, and

was shown into an ordinary furnished room. The maid informed
me that Mrs. - had not yet arrived from Charlotte Street, but

she was sure to come before long, as she had an engagement
(so she said) with a gentleman.

Nothing could have suited me better. I immediately set to
work to examine the room and the furniture with the greatest

care. I looked under and moved the sofa, tables, and
armchairs. I looked behind the curtains, under the rug, and

up the chimney. I could discover nothing. There was not the
vestige of a spirit anywhere. At last the medium entered - a

plain, middle-agedmatron with nothing the least spiritual
about her. She seated herself opposite to me at the round

table in the centre of the room, and demurely asked what I
wanted. 'To communicate with the spirits,' I replied. She

did not know whether that was possible. It depended upon the
person who sought them. She would ask the spirits whether

they would confer with me. Whereupon she put the question:
'Will the spirits converse with this gentleman?' At all

events, thought I, the term 'gentleman' applies to the next
world, which is a comfort. She listened for the answer.

Presently three distinct raps on the table signified assent.
She then took from her reticule a card whereon were printed

the alphabet, and numerals up to 10. The letters were
separated by transverse lines. She gave me a pencil with

these instructions: I was to think, not utter, my question,
and then put the pencil on each of the letters in succession.

When the letters were touched which spelt the answer, the
spirits would rap, and the words could be written down.

My friend had told me this much, so I came prepared. I began
by politely begging the lady to move away from the table at

which we were seated, and take a chair in the furthest corner
of the room. She indignantly complied, asking if I suspected

her. I replied that 'all ladies were dangerous, when they
were charming,' which put us on the best of terms. I placed

my hat so as to intercept her view of my operations, and thus
pursued them.

Thinking the matter over beforehand, I concluded that when
the questioner, of either sex, was young, love would very

probably be the topic; the flesh, not the spirit, would be
the predominant interest. Being an ingenuous young man of

the average sort, and desperately in love with Susan, let us
say, I should naturally assist the supernatural being, if at

a loss, to understand that the one thing wanted was
information about Susan. I therefore mentally asked the

question: 'Who is the most lovely angel without wings, and
with the means of sitting down?' and proceeded to pass the

pencil over the letters, pausing nowhere. I now and then got
a doubtful rap on or under the table, - how delivered I know

not - but signifying nothing. It was clear the spirits
needed a cue. I put the pencil on the letter S, and kept it

there. I got a tentative rap. I passed at once to U. I got
a more confident rap. Then to S. Rap, rap, without

hesitation. A and N were assented to almost before I touched
them. Susan was an angel - the angel. What more logical

proof could I have of the mortality" target="_blank" title="n.不死，不朽，永生，来生">immortality of the soul?
Mrs. - asked me whether I was satisfied. I said it was

miraculous; so much so indeed, that I could hardly believe
the miracle, until corroborated by another. Would the

spirits be kind enough to suspend this pencil in the air?
'Oh! that was nonsense. The spirits never lent themselves to

mere frivolity.' 'I beg the spirits' pardon, I am sure,'
said I. 'I have heard that they often move heavy tables. I

thought perhaps the pencil would save them trouble. Will
they move this round table up to this little one?' I had, be

it observed, when alone, moved and changed the relative
positions of both tables; and had determined to make this my

crucial test. To my astonishment, Mrs. - replied that she
could not say whether they would or not. She would ask them.