THE BAILEY SEANCES. SOME INTERESTING APPORTS. THE MANGO PLANT.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 59, 7 September 1909, Page 2

THE BAILEY SEANCES. SOME INTERESTING APPORTS. THE MANGO PLANT.

Owing to the claims of urgent business outride of Wellington, Mr. M'Lean last week found it necessary to shorten the period originally fixed for the series of bix weekly Bailey seances, the last two of which were originally appointed for 16th and 17th inst., respectively. By consent of tho guarantors, these dates wero changed to the 6th and 7th. The fifth beuuee was, therefore, held last night. The atmosphere was more harmonious than usual, the "vibrations" presumably favourable, and the familiar spirits appeared to be in unusually good form. The medium seemed to havo recovered from his recent indisposition ; but at the close was so heavily entranced that Mr. M'Lean had to exercise considerable patience in the task of bringing him rpund. It is scarcely necessary to describe details of searching, bagging, and locking up the medium, which are substantially the same on each occaeion. Hymns (mostly of the popular class to be found in Sankey's collection) were sung at intervals. The range has been limited so far to four or five. "Professor Denton,"who was less aggressive than usual, took a text, appropriate as it appeared to a coming "apport." He made direct reference to a discourse on Sunday by his "brother Gibb," who, he said, had spoken in ignorance of what Spiritualism really was. His strictures really applied to Spiritism, concerning which the Professor was even more severe than the minister. Before the address, the mango waa unsealed — since last Friday it had been watered through a cloth. In the interval the stem had grown, perhaps, a quarter of an inch, and a central oud had appeared between the seed leaves. It was ooveyd with a piece of brown paper, passed to tho medium, and remained at his feet, in half-light, "during the disoourse. At the close, the plant was in-covored, and tho cage unlocked. The stem waa now about three inches in length. The medium, in the presence of The Post representative (who originally marked tho seed, and who identified it with the living shoot on Friday), stood inside the cage while the medium took tho plant from the pot, cleared the earth from the roots, and pointed ' out the shrunken seed from which it had sprung. The reporter held the plant in his hand and measured the length by a rule — six inches from root to crown. The original owner of the seed, who wished to roar the mango, demurred at the ordeal to which the delicate plant was subjected, I but the control insisted. Otherwise, he said, "no believe." He held out no hope that the plant would live— it would certainly perish if the seed leaves remained. These he accordingly removed, and cave instructions as to further treatment. . Of the "apports" space will not permit us to say much. The first — "money !" said Abdul, had been promised to "Sahib M'Lean." < It was a silver denarius of Tiberius, a coin which is not specially rare, and which figures in nearly all illustrated Bibles, as it is frequently mentioned in the Gospel as "a penny," and is of the identical mintage which, as the tribute-money, was produced to show the "image and superscription" of Caesar. The specimen last night was in fine condition, the figures sharp, and the inscription distinct. On its genuineness only an expert could decide, but it was true to type. Its value on the basis of the value of our own current coin, would be eightpence halfpenny. It came in the light. The medium just reached up overhead and "gathered" it. The next was a "yashmak" or vejl of a Bedouin woman, "Mohammedan," Abdul explained. It is one of those which, suspended from the forehead, hang nearly to the feet, hiding the whole face except the eyes. It was of a somewhat coarse blue material, with a red edging and a bead trimming at the top. A row of five small copper coins was tanged along the forehead. These had the Arabic numerals for "10" in the centre, surrounded by an inscription in decorative Arabic Bcript in wreath form. "Dr. Whitcombe" subsequently explained (as does Dr. Farrar) that it -was from such a veil that the lost piece of silver of the parable was missing. Only he said, the Syrian veil was white and not blue, and the coins were of a mote valuable metal. But the Bedouin woman would be as greatly concerned about the loss of one of these copper coins, as it would be a bad omen. The veil, which had been worn, was distinctly scented — with attar of roses, according to Abdul. It was examined with much interest by tho ladies. Two Babylonian clay tablets, "from a .vet mound," were also produced. These had to be handled with much caution, and it was explained that the soft clay from which they projected must be allowed some days to dry before any attempt was made to remove them, otherwise they would fall to pieces. No "apports" are expected to-night, but some new and quite different phenomena are looked for, in anticipation of which a small table and writing-pad are to be locked into the cage with the medium. At five o'clock this evening a meeting of the committee appointed to settle the test conditions in connection with JUr. Driver's challenge will be held. Provisional conditions have been drawn up in considerable detail, but have not yet been definitely agreed upon.