EUSA PI A *-..' aI HER PHENOMENA Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/eusapiapalladinoOOcarruoft EUSAPIA PALLADINO AND HER PHENOMENA By HEREWARD CARRINGTON Z>r^^Z^ u V, ' *.' I f C 3^ & e Eusapia Palladino AND HER PHENOMENA BY HEREWARD CARRINGTON author of "the physical phenomena of spiritualism,^ "the coming science," etc. LONDON T. WERNER LAURIE CLIFFORD'S INN THIS BOOK IS LOVINGLY DEDICATED TO THE MEMOEY OF MY FATHER E. C. CARRINGTON, F.R.G.S., F.E.A.S., F.E.S.L. AS A TOKEN OF MY RESPECT AND ESTEEM FOE HIS UNRECOGNIZED GENIUS PREFACE While much has been written in France and Italy con- cerning the remarkable woman who forms the subject of this book, but little has appeared either in England or America—with the exception of M. Flammarion's work, Mysterious Psychic Forces, and a series of articles that have appeared from time to time in the English edition of the Annals of Psychical Science, Yet the case is one of the most remarkable that has come to the attention of the scientific world for many years—since we are concerned, apparently, with movements of physical objects without contact, and even far more startling phenomena—contrary to the known laws of physics and physiology. In the following book I propose to lay before the reader a summary of all the historic evidence available, together with a detailed record of our own experiments with this medium, conducted in Naples, in November and December, 1908; a complete resume of every theory that has been ad- vanced to date—with a provisional hypothesis of my own; and then to discuss at some length the biological and psy- chological peculiarities of the case—from the point of view of one who assumes, on the strength of the existing testi- mony, that the facts are established. One forms a very different opinion of Eusapia's seances before and after he has obtained personal sittings. Before, although I was vastly impressed with the cumulative evi- vii viii Preface dence, I was far from being irrevocably convinced—an atti- tude which I occupy to-day. I had given a rapid survey of the Palladino case in one of my previous books, The Physi- cal Phenomena of Spiritualism, saying In part: "And thus the matter stands: One half the world is con- vinced that Eusapia is a fraud, and the other half is con- vinced that the phenomena witnessed in her presence are genuine! What the ultimate verdict will be it is hard to foresee; but it is certain that the case, as it stands, is not convincing to the scientific world, and fresh evidence must be forthcoming if the case is ever to be decided in her favor. If Eusapia possesses genuine mediumistic gifts, it ought only to be a matter of time and sufficiently careful experimenting in order to establish that fact." Professor Morselli took occasion to make this the text of a lengthy reply to my book (appearing In the Annals of Psychical Science, August-September, 1908), based on his seances with Eusapia, In which he said: "I hope and believe that my voluminous work on Palla- dlno's spiritism will give a satisfactory answer to the dis- tinguished American psychist, who is so severe on physical mediumship, and only accepts as valid, In general, the bygone categories of the historical phenomena of spiritism. He is guided by the preconceived Idea that In the earlier times, from the Fox Sisters to Home, the physical phenomena were more authentic, because then the mediums did not copy one another and mediumship was confined to the spontaneous revelation of new biopsychical forces, without the Interven- tion of mimicry. "Now it is hazardous to express judgments on a powerful but variable medium like Eusapia on such slight documentary evidence; but Mr. Carrington, like all the English and American psychists. Is still under the impression received from the check at Cambridge, caused by an excess of rigidity Preface ix m the interpretation of the movements of the medium's hands and feet. We have the obsession of trickery by the substi- tution of one hand for the other, according to the formal accusation made by E. Torelli-VioUier against Palladino in 1892, at the time of the celebrated experiments in Milan, at the house of M. E. Finzi. And in reality, in America also, where the conjuring ability of mediums has reached the highest degree, the trick of the freeing of one hand from the chain of controllers is practised every day by charlatan mediums, who are very numerous there. I append two very significant illustrations which Mr. Carrington has inserted in his book, . which show very plainly the method of deception used by mediums for evading the surveillance of the controllers to right and left; with the freed hand they are able to produce touchlngs, raps, noises, slight move- ments of objects, apports, etc. "Mr. Carrington, whom I still quote for precaution, for he is not only a firm believer in immortality, but also a psychist of authority, assumes an attitude of extreme distrust when he says: " 'It is not only probable, but certain, that the vast ma- jority of modem occult phenomena are fraudulent. I am disposed to believe that fully ninety-eight per cent, of the phenomena, both mental and physical, are fraudulently pro- duced. / "No critic or skeptic, were it Dr. Hodgson returned to earth, could ever convince me that, in a long series of seances w^ith Eusapia, and especially in the last ones of 1906-7, I had only seen, in all, two genuine phenomena in every hun- dred! This is my opinion, and I live in this confidence toward myself and my fellow-investigators, notwithstanding ." all that Carrington writes about Eusapia Palladino. This will, I trust, serve to show the reader that I did not go to Eusapia's seances any too ready to be convinced; and the fact that I was so convinced (this being the first case of genuine physical mediumship I had ever seen during ten viii Preface dence, I was far from being irrevocably convinced—an atti- tude which I occupy to-day. I had given a rapid survey of the Palladino case in one of my previous books, The Physi- cal Phenomena of Spintualism, saying in part; "And thus the matter stands: One half the world is con- vinced that Eusapia is a fraud, and the other half is con- vinced that the phenomena witnessed in her presence are genuine! What the ultimate verdict will be it is hard to foresee; but it is certain that the case, as it stands, is not convincing to the scientific world, and fresh evidence must be forthcoming if the case is ever to be decided in her favor. If Eusapia possesses genuine mediumistic gifts, it ought only to be a matter of time and sufficiently careful experimenting in order to establish that fact." Professor Morselli took occasion to make this the text of a lengthy reply to my book (appearing in the Annals of Psychical Science, August-September, 1908), based on his seances with Eusapia, in which he said: "I hope and believe that my voluminous work on Palla- dino's spiritism will give a satisfactory answer to the dis- tinguished American psychist, who is so severe on physical mediumship, and only accepts as valid, in general, the bygone categories of the historical phenomena of spiritism. He is guided by the preconceived idea that in the earlier times, from the Fox Sisters to Home, the physical phenomena were more authentic, because then the mediums did not copy one another and mediumship was confined to the spontaneous revelation of new biopsychical forces, without the interven- tion of mimicry. , "Now it is hazardous to express judgments on a powerful but variable medium like Eusapia on such slight documentary evidence; but Mr. Carrington, like all the English and American psychists, is still under the impression received from the check at Cambridge, caused by an excess of rigidity Preface ix in the interpretation of the movements of the medium^s hands and feet. We have the obsession of trickery by the substi- tution of one hand for the other, according to the formal accusation made by E. Torelli-VioUier against Palladino in 1892, at the time of the celebrated experiments in Milan, at the house of M. E. Finzi. And in reality, in America also, w^here the conjuring ability of mediums has reached the highest degree, the trick of the freeing of one hand from the chain of controllers is practised every day by charlatan mediums, w^ho are very numerous there. I append two very significant illustrations w^hich Mr. Carrington has inserted in his book, . , w^hich show very plainly the method of deception used by mediums for evading the surveillance of the controllers to right and left; with the freed hand they are able to produce touchings, raps, noises, slight move- ments of objects, apports, etc. , "Mr. Carrington, whom I still quote for precaution, for he is not only a firm believer in immortality, but also a psychist of authority, assumes an attitude of extreme distrust when he says: " *It is not only probable, but certain, that the vast ma- jority of modern occult phenomena are fraudulent. I am disposed to believe that fully ninety-eight per cent, of the phenomena, both mental and physical, are fraudulently pro- .' duced. "No critic or skeptic, were it Dr. Hodgson returned to earth, could ever convince me that, in a long series of seances with Eusapia, and especially in the last ones of 1906-7, I had only seen, in all, two genuine phenomena in every hun- dred! This is my opinion, and I live in this confidence toward myself and my fellow-investigators, notwithstanding ." all that Carrington writes about Eusapia Palladino.