FORTUNE TELLING.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1589, 5 November 1912, Page 3

FORTUNE TELLING.

» TEEIE CLIENTS AND EARNINGS. (By,. TeleEraph.—Special . Correspondent.) Auckland, November 4. The apparent increase in the number of fortune-tellers now plying their trade in Auckland raises several questions of public interest. Besides the many who publicly announce ■ themselves as clairvoyants, psychometrists, or crystal seers, thero are numbers following ..this..ancient;.calling/who trade upon : the- ' Credulous public without such notification. These individuals their own regular circle of clients, and do not court publicity or a possible police prosecution. The law on the subject on for-tune-telling is mixed and complicated. Briefly, it enacts that anyone who professes to foretell the future by palmistry or any other means is liable to be punished as the law directs,. Many of those who practise the art of. palmistry :will only, read _ character from their . client's. 1 hand. This apparently 'is not'an: offenoe against the law). Crystal-gazcre '' and others who, pfofess to see visions in a glass globe or a bowl of water cannot strictly be said to be forecasting tho future. Another, means by which the long arirf of the law is evaded by fortunetellers' js by frequently clianging their addresses. A regular system seems to be in vogue amongst some of them in Auckland of . exchanging residences for- , the time being. Those in a. position to speak with authority express the opinion ■ that there are not more palmists and fortune,teller's at present in Auckland than there aTe in other large cities of New Zealand. Investigations made by a "Herald" representative as to the type of person frequents the haunts of these for-tune-tellers show that some of the higher class clairvoyants have a oircle of clients exclusively composed of ladies. Others seem to be consulted by people of all classes in the community, including matrons as well as young girls. The fees charged naturally have an effect on the type of .clients. It is supposed that women attend in larger numbers than men, but from observation it is apparent that at least as mnnjr, if hot more men, than women are anxious to learn something of their character and their future from ithese/professed seers. The fees, charged varied from Is. upwards, according to details required, and the supposed occult powers of "the • medium." Estimates made from frequent attendances at "seances" and "public circles" indicate that on each night on which the medium sits the recoipts vary from ,£1 to ,£3 according to the rate of entrance fee. The clairvoyants who only see individuals separately usually charge from 2s. 6d. to 7s. 6d. for their services. A fair estimate of the number of client's per day is half a dozen at the least. The fortuneteller will therefore make, an income of anything from £5 to a week for a few hours a day. All this conies out of the pockets of a credulous public.