EXORCISE CURE FOR INSANITY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18255, 8 September 1927, Page 2

EXORCISE CURE FOR INSANITY.

SEANCE CIRCLE SEES WEIRD EXPERIMENT. LONDON. July 25. A remarkable experiment—the modern counterpart of the New Testament miracle of casting out an evil spirit—has just been carried out under scientific observation in London. The attempt, which, according to the evidence, led to satisfactory results, was made at the Psvchic College on Wednesday night, before a party of twelve, which included Sir Arthur Doyle and another medical man in addition to the practitioner. Dr Carl A. Wickland. M D, of Los Angeles, California, who is visiting England, conducted the experiment, assisted by his M’ife. The patient was the M*ifc of an English doctor of repute. She is a mental case of some difficulty. She is perfectly normal at times, but on occasions develops acute melancholia with suicidal tendencies, and phases of harmful passion against her near relatives. Her husband M*it.nessed the experiment. It has long been the serious teaching of Dr Wickland that certain kinds of mental cases can be positively cured bv psychic interference and influence. He contends that these unfortunate cases are actually possessed by spirits, not always evil spirits, but the earthbounfjl spirits of people who have died or “ passed over.” He has an institution in California M'here cases of this kind come to him and are treated psychically through the mediumship of Mrs Wickland. It is claimed by Dr Wickland that he has a high percentage of positive cures in cases which have resisted all other forms of more orthodox medical treatment. Medical men who have investigated his methods and results are deeply interested in them.

Psychic Wife. “ Mv theory,” said Dr Wickland. in an interview with a Press representative yesterday., “is perfectly easy to understand. lam a. Spiritualist. My wife is a psychic, and through her, when she is in a complete trance, I can get in touch with the spirits who are in possession of the mind of my patient. “ They are often just ignorant, not necessarily evil spirits. They do not understand the harm they are doing, and the pain they are causing the sufferer. One can exorcise them and return the patient to normal by reasoning with them, and making them comprehend what they are doing, and also by bringing them into contact M’ith higher spirits.” That explanation is necessary to understand the full significance of the experiment in respect of the London doctor’s wife. Dr Wickland is a spare, elderly man with the manner of a savant. lie talks quickly in perfect English, although he is a native of Sweden, and his sub-ject—psychic-pathology —is his life. He has investigated psychic phenomena for thirty 3-ears. In a Trance. The woman patient in his latest experiment sat in the circle of observers in the room at the Psychic College. Mrs Wickland went into her trance, during which she remembers nothing of what happens, and the investigation began. ... “It M’as most interesting, said Dr Wickland. “We got into touch with the spirit M’hich influences the patient, but not directly. “ Our direct contact was with a girl spirit,, who spoke through my w-ife. She gave her name as Clare Stevens, and I talked with her. She described how she saw a ‘ nasty, ugly,’ scowling man standing by the patient. This spirit was obsessed with hate and vindictiveness. He said, ‘ I will not come away.' ... “ I tried, through the girl spirit who was for the .moment in possession of my wife, to influence the man spirit—the obsession spirit of the patient, and at the end I think there was some effect, for the girt spirit told me that she saw the man smile, which was a good sign. _ . . “It is impossible, to effect much m one experiment. The patient needs a course of treatment, but I have little doubt that good M’as done. How much good cannot be known at the moment, for, by the influences which M-ere set at work for good during our sitting, the patient may lose her obsession and be cured. . . “ I see that to-da3’ it is reported from the British Medical Association conference at Edinburgh that insanity can be cured by surgical means. It can- be cured, I am convinced, from my experience, far more often by psychic means.”