Preface
The publishers take pride in the
production of this book which has been out of print for
too many years.
Its “author”, the Rev. W. Stainton
Moses, regarded as the man who gave Spiritualism its
“bible” was one of the most remarkable mediums of the last century.
Spirit Teachings, which came through his
hand in what is called “automatic writing”, is regarded as
Spiritualism’s greatest classic.
Here, in language of matchless prose, is contained the religious,
philosophical and ethical implications of Spiritualism, as viewed by the
spirit world. The communicators, by sheer brilliant logic, compelled
their medium to abandon, stage by stage, his orthodox religious beliefs.
They gave clear evidence of their high purpose and furnished him with irrefutable proofs
of Survival.
There were twenty-two spirit communicators, headed by one who signed
himself “Imperator”. Later, he revealed that he was one of the Bible prophets. Others proved that they
were ancient philosophers and sages.
The writing of this script—it was done in Stainton Moses’s normal waking
state—took eleven years and filled twenty four notebooks. With the
exception of the third, which has been lost, they are
all preserved at the College of Physic Studies.
Stainton Moses was the son of a headmaster of a Lincolnshire grammar
school. As a youth he won a scholarship which took him to Oxford. A
successful college life, which seemed to offer the highest possible
honours, was interrupted by poor health, which forced convalescence
abroad.
He was ordained a few years after his return. His first clerical
appointment, at the age of twenty-four, was as a curate in the Isle of Man. He won
praise for his labours for his parishioners during an
outbreak of smallpox which took a heavy toll.
Ill health dogged his footsteps, causing him to resign from the Church.
Dr. Stanhope Speer, who attended him, invited Moses to become his son’s
tutor. Mrs. Speer, confined to bed by illness, read a book on
Spiritualism and asked Moses to ascertain whether the experiences
described in it were true. Although at that time, he regarded
Spiritualism as trickery and fraud, he promised to investigate the
subject. Within six months, as a result of
attending séances, he became a convinced Spiritualist.
About this time, his own psychic powers began to function, and many kinds
of phenomena were experienced. By means of spirit rapping, questions
were answered intelligently and long messages given. Materialised lights
were often seen. Varying perfumes were poured, by invisible operators,
on the sitters’ hands and handkerchiefs. Direct writing was obtained on
paper out of the circle’s reach. Objects were brought from other rooms
through bolted doors. There were levitations of the medium and of
furniture. Occasionally the voices of the spirit communicators were heard. In trance, Moses delivered many
inspirational addresses.
In his Introduction to Spirit Teachings, this tribute to his inspirers
was paid by Moses: “There is no flippant message, no attempt at jest, no
vulgarity or incongruity, no false or misleading statement, so
far as I know or could discover; nothing incompatible with the avowed object,
again and again repeated, of instruction, enlightenment and guidance by spirits
fitted for this task.”
Biography
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
William Stainton Moses was born at the
village of Donnington, in Lincolnshire, on the fifth of November 1839.
His father, William Moses, was the Head Master of the Grammar School,
and his mother the daughter of Thomas Stainton, of Alford, Lincolnshire. His
education was commenced at the school of which his
father was Principal,
and was afterwards continued with a private tutor, who, impressed by his
great abilities, strongly urged Mr Moses to send his son to a public school.
His advice was acted upon, and in August , 1855, young Stainton Moses, then in his
16th year, was placed at the Grammar School at
Bedford. Here he remained for nearly three years, winning golden opinions from all the masters
on account not only of his brilliant abilities but also of his conspicuous
industry, regularity, and general attention to all his duties. In one
term alone he carried off four prizes; and shortly before he left was
elected to one of the two exhibitions which had been founded in connection with the school. On
leaving, he received from the Head Master testimonials of the most
flattering nature, speaking in high terms of the very rapid progress he
had made in all departments of study, and also of the uniform excellence
and correctness of his school conduct.
From Bedford, Stainton Moses went to Exeter College, Oxford, which he
entered at the commencement of Michaelmas term, 1858. His college life
was in
every way as successful as his school life had been, and great hopes
were formed by all
connected with him that at the end of his Oxford career he would take
the highest honours open to him. This, however, was not to be— overwork
gradually told upon him, but he refused to rest or in any way relax his
studies; and so, sad to relate, on the very day before commencement of
his last examination his health gave way completely, and he broke down,
absolutely worn out in mind and body. For some time he was very ill, but
on regaining convalescence he was ordered abroad. He spent nearly a year
travelling on the Continent with friends, and, with a view to complete
restoration, he visited many different scenes and climates. St
Petersburg was the farthest limit of his wanderings, and on his return
journey he lingered for six months at the old Greek Monastery of “Mount
Athos.” Curiosity apparently guided him thither, and his strong desire for rest and
meditation doubtless impelled him to remain for so
long a time in that remote, old-world spot. Many years afterwards he
learned from Imperator ,
his controlling spirit, that he had been influenced even then by his
unseen guides, who had impressed him to go to “Mount Athos”
as part of his spiritual training.
At the age of 23, Stainton Moses returned to England and took his degree,
leaving Oxford finally in the year 1863. Though much improved in health
by his foreign travel, he was not yet strong; so, acting on the advice
of his doctor, who insisted on a quiet rural life, he accepted a curacy
at Maughold, near Ramsey, Isle of Man. Here he remained for nearly five
years, and succeeded during that period in gaining the affection and
esteem of all his
parishioners. The Rector, a very old and infirm man, was practically
unable to render
any assistance in the work of the parish, so that the whole of the
duties connected with the church and the district devolved upon Stainton
Moses. During his stay at Maughold, a severe epidemic of small-pox broke
out in the village and surrounding neighbourhood; and it was then that
the utter fearlessness of his nature was strikingly manifested. There
was no resident doctor in the district, but having at different times
acquired some little knowledge of medicine, Stainton Moses was enabled
to minister to a certain extent to the bodily necessities of his
parishioners, as well as to their
spiritual needs. Day and night he was in attendance at the bedside of
some poor victim who
was stricken by the fell disease; and in one or two cases when, after an
unsuccessful struggle with the enemy, he had soothed the sufferers dying
moments by his ministrations, he was compelled to combine the offices of
priest and grave-digger, and conduct the interment with his own hands.
Such was the panic, inspired by the fear of infection, that it was
sometimes found impossible to induce men to dig graves for the dead
bodies of the victims, or even to remove the coffins containing them.
But through all this terrible time Stainton Moses never flinched, and,
notwithstanding the
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
threefold nature of the duties thus compulsorily thrust upon him, he was
fortunate in escaping the malady, and though he steadily remained at his
post single-handed, from the commencement to the end of the outbreak, he
was spared any uneasiness on the score of his own health. It may be
readily imagined how greatly he endeared himself to all those around him
by his courageous devotion and strong sense of duty during such an
anxious and critical period; but the feelings which he inspired in his
parishioners, and everyone with whom he came in contact at Maughold,
will be best appreciated by a perusal of the address presented to him on
relinquishing his curacy there. It reads as follow:—
“Rev. And Dear Sir,—We, the undersigned parishioners of Maughold, are
much concerned to learn that it is your intention shortly to resign the
position which you have for some years past so usefully and honourably
occupied amongst us. We beg to assure you that your labours have been
greatly appreciated in the parish. The longer we have known you, and the
more we have seen of your work, the greater has our regard for you
increased. The congregations at both the churches under your charge are
very different in numbers to what they were some time ago. The schools
have been better looked after; the aged and infirm have been visited and
comforted; and the
poor have been cheered and helped by your kindness and liberality. By
your courteous demeanour, by your friendly intercourse, and by your
attention to the duties of the parish generally, you have greatly endeared yourself to us all; and not
least to our respected and venerable Vicar, whose hands we are well
satisfied you have done all you possibly could to strengthen. We cannot
but feel that your loss will be a very serious one to the parish, and we
should be glad if you could see your way to remaining some time longer
with us. By reconsidering your determination and consenting to remain, you would place us under a deep
debt of gratitude and obligation.”
Here follow the signatures of the Rector and Churchwardens, also of
fifty-four of the principal inhabitants of the district. Such a
document, spontaneously presented, speaks for itself. However, in spite
of the unanimous wish of the inhabitants that he should remain, Stainton
Moses found that the work of looking after two parishes, practically
single-handed, made too great demands upon his health, and so in the
spring of 1868 he reluctantly relinquished his charge at Maughold, and
accepted the curacy of St George’s, Douglas, Isle of Man. Here he first
met Dr and Mrs Stanhope Speer, and the acquaintance thus commenced soon
ripened into an intimacy which was destined to exercise a very important
influence upon the future of the three persons concerned. Very soon
after taking up his duties at St George’s, Stainton Moses was laid up
with a sharp attack of congestion of the liver, which confined him to
his bed for some little time. Dr Speer attended him through this illness
(although he had retired from active practice for some years), and was
successful in effecting a complete cure. In September of 1869 Stainton
Moses left Douglas, where he had made a great impression by his
preaching and ministrations among the poor of the parish, and took up
the post of
locum tenens
at
Langton Maltravers, in Dorsetshire. Here he remained for two months, when he was
transferred to a curacy in the diocese of Salisbury, the last
ecclesiastical
appointment he held.
At this time he was troubled by an affection of the throat, which rapidly
became worse, and necessitated a complete rest, and the relinquishing of
all public speaking and preaching. Acting, therefore, upon medical
advice, Stainton Moses gave up his curacy, and came to London with the
intention of turning his attention to tuition. This practically severed
his connection with the Church. Had his health permitted him to follow
his original career, he would no doubt have attained a distinguished
position, as he was a powerful and original preacher, a successful
organiser, and an earnest and efficient
worker among the poor.
On coming to London, Stainton Moses stayed with Dr and Mrs Speer for
nearly a year, during which time he superintended privately the
education of their son, the present writer. About the close of 1870 or
the beginning of 1871, he obtained the appointment of English Master in
University College School, which position he held until 1889. Little
need be said of his work there, further than that as long as his health
permitted it was always done
well. As one of the English masters in a great school, his opportunities
of influencing the
boys under his charge, in respect of literary taste and style, were
considerable; and of those opportunities he made good use. Many will
remember his excellent suggestions, and kindly criticisms of their
essays. A portion of his work consisted of
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
preparing a class for the Matriculation of the
University of London. The peculiarly crabbed philological and historical
knowledge required for that examination was uncongenial to Stainton
Moses’s mind, as in literature he liked to have a free hand; yet the
work was done, and done well, and during the years he spent at the
school he embodied in a manuscript volume a vast number of
valuable notes bearing upon this subject.
Even more striking than his success as a master was the personal
influence exercised by him over his pupils. One of the peculiar
institutions at University College School is that by which a certain
number of boys are especially attached to certain senior masters, with
whom they can take counsel and from whom they can seek advice in all
matters pertaining to their well-being—moral, intellectual, and
physical. Over the boys thus placed under his immediate care the strong
personality of Stainton Moses had an enormous influence, often extending
over a period long subsequent to their leaving school. Many a time in
after life his advice has been sought by old pupils on important
matters, and whenever he felt he could help them it was always a real
pleasure to him to do so to the best of his ability. His geniality, his
knowledge of the world and of men, his invariable straightforwardness
and kindness, all combined to strengthen the affectionate regard in
which he was held by those boys who had the good fortune to be under his special supervision. On resigning his post
through ill-health the Council of University College passed a resolution
conveying to Stainton Moses their best thanks for his long and valuable
service to the school, and a special letter of affectionate regret was
also sent to him signed by twenty-eight of his colleagues. Of his
capacity for imparting his ideas to other I can speak from a personal
experience extending over seven years, during which period our relations
as master and pupil were continuous and unbroken. Nothing could have
been kinder or more convincing than his method of imparting knowledge
and information; nothing clearer or more helpful than his manner of
explaining all difficulties; and no trouble was too great for him to
take in smoothing away all obstacles to a clear understanding of the matter
in hand.
It was during Stainton Moses’s visit to Dr Speer in 1870 that the subject
of Spiritualism was first brought prominently before him. For some time
he and Dr Speer had been in the habit of discussing various topics
bearing upon religious belief. Both were gradually drifting into an
unorthodox, almost agnostic, frame of mind, and both were becoming more
and more dissatisfied with existing doctrines, and longing for absolute
truth as regards the future life, and for some demonstration of the
certainty of immortality. To obtain any proof of such immortality
founded upon a strictly scientific basis seemed impossible, and Dr Speer
was rapidly becoming a materialist of the most hard-and-fast nature. A
note received by him from Stainton Moses, together with a copy of W.R.
Greg’s
Enigmas of Life,
may prove interesting to those who would fain have some inkling of the
inner working of these two friends’ minds, at a time when the old faith had lost
its hold upon them, and they were standing upon the brink of a newer
Revelation :—
“My Dear Friend,—You and I have tackled some ‘Enigmas of Life’ together,
and if we have not always solved them, we have generally agreed in our
opinion respecting them. I offer you the opinions of a great thinker,
which will be, in their outcome, very similar to what we have thought
out for ourselves. And if the half century, during which your life here
has lasted, leaves much unknown, and much that even another such period
will not unravel, I hope at least that during such part of it as we are
here together we may continue to talk and speculate together.— Your
sincere friend, W.S.M.”
It will be interesting to note the
circumstances under which, during this visit to Dr Speer, the subject of
Spiritualism pressed itself upon Stainton Moses’s attention. Mrs Speer
had been confined to
her room by illness for three weeks, during which period she had
occupied herself in reading Dale Owen’s
The Debatable Land.
It interested her much, and on being able to rejoin the
family circle she asked Stainton Moses to read the book, and endeavour
to discover whether there was any truth in the experiences therein
narrated. Though at that time he took no interest in Spiritualism,
regarding it merely as trickery and fraud, yet he promised Mrs Speer to
go into the matter with the view of ascertaining whether there might be
some germs of truth underlying the mass of jugglery and imposture; and
so began those astounding experiences of his, which, commencing at the
time, extended over a period of more than twenty years. In those days,
although dissatisfied with the cut-and-dried doctrines of the
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
Church, and with the manner in which its teachings were expounded from
the pulpit and elsewhere, Stainton Moses was, nevertheless, immensely
interested in all religious subjects, and his reading of everything that
bore upon them was enormous. No book, pamphlet, or magazine likely to
throw any light upon the questions which perplexed him was overlooked,
and even after intercourse with the unseen world had commenced he did
not entirely give up his faith in the Church without an arduous and
prolonged struggle. The reality of the struggle may be clearly discerned
in the pages of
Spirit Teachings,
and in his other automatic writings; but when he had fully satisfied
himself of the reality of those “Teachings,” and of the truthfulness and
integrity of his spirit-guides, his faith never faltered, and his zeal in the prosecution of
the work entrusted to him never flagged. Previous to his own development
as a medium, Stainton Moses had been present at various sittings with
other mediums. Mrs Speer having been so immensely impressed by her
perusal of the
Debatable Land,
he determined to read it for himself, and in consequence became almost
as anxious as she was for fuller information. This was the more curious as, only a
month before, he had tried in vain to read Lord Adare’s record of
private séances with D.D. Home, but, as he said himself, it had absolutely no interest for
him. His first noteworthy experiences were with Lottie Fowler, in the
spring of 1872; and soon afterwards Dr Speer—although at that time
regarding the whole
subject of Spiritualism as “stuff and nonsense”—was persuaded to join him in a visit
to the medium Williams. They went several times, and were soon convinced that
there was
some
force outside the medium at work—in which conviction they were much
strengthened by a remarkable séance held shortly afterwards in Dr
Speer’s house, when Williams was again the medium.
About this time Stainton Moses’s own mediumistic powers began to be
developed. It is unnecessary to give a detailed description of that
development, as a full and exhaustive account may be found in
Mrs Speer’s “Records,” which have lately appeared in
Light;
but I think that some of my own
recollections of the séances, at which I had the privilege of being
present during the last two years of Stainton’s Moses’s active
mediumship, may be of some interest. At any rate they will place on record the impressions of
another witness, and may possibly be of service as bearing additional testimony to
the wonderful powers of the medium, and the absolute reality of the
phenomena given through him.
It is important to note that at these séances no less than ten different
kinds of manifestations took place, with more or less frequency. On
occasions when there were fewer varieties we were usually told that the
conditions were not good. When they were favourable the manifestations
were more numerous, the raps more distinct, the lights brighter, and the musical sounds clearer. The
various occurrences may be briefly enumerated as follows:—
1. The great variety of raps, often
given simultaneously, and ranging in force from the tapping of a
finger-nail to the tread of a foot sufficiently heavy to shake the room.
Each spirit
always
had its own distinctive rap, many of them peculiar as to be immediately
recognisable; and these sounds often took place in sufficient light for
the sitters to see each other’s features, and—I suppose more
important—hands. Raps also were frequently heard on the door, sideboard,
and wall, all some distance removed from the table at which we sat;
these raps could not possibly have been produced by any human agency; of
that I satisfied myself in every conceivable way.
2.
Raps which answered questions coherently and with the greatest
distinctness, and also gave messages, sometimes of considerable length,
through the medium of the alphabet. At these times all the raps ceased
except the one identified with the communicating spirit, and perfect
quiet prevailed until the message had been delivered. We could almost
always tell immediately with which spirit we were talking, owing to the
perfectly distinct individuality of each different rap. Some of the
higher spirits never manifested by raps at all, after the first few
séances, but announced their presence by a note of music, or the flash
of a light; but among those who did manifest in the usual way it would be difficult to
forget Rector’s heavy and ponderous tread, which shook the whole room with
its weight, while it appeared to move slowly round the
circle.
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
3. Numerous lights were generally
visible to all the sitters. These lights were of two different
kinds—objective and subjective. The former usually resembled small
illuminated globes, which shone brightly and steadily, often moved
rapidly about the room, and were visible to all the sitters. A curious
fact in connection with these lights always struck me, viz. that looking
on to the top of the table one could see a light slowly ascending from
the floor, and to all appearance passing out
through
the top of the table—the table itself apparently not affording any
obstacle to one’s view of the light. It is a little difficult to explain my meaning exactly, but had
the top of the table been composed of plain glass, the effect of the
ascending light, as it appealed to one’s organs of vision, would have
been pretty much the same as it was, seen through the solid mahogany. Even then, to make the
parallel complete, it would be necessary to have a hole in
the glass top of the table, through which the light could emerge. The
subjective lights were described as being large masses of luminous
vapour floating round the room and assuming a variety of shapes. Dr
Speer and myself, being of entirely unmediumistic temperaments, were
only able to see the objective lights, but Mr Stainton Moses, Mrs Speer,
and other occasional sitters frequently saw and described those which
were merely subjective. Another curious point in relation to the
objective lights was that, however brightly they might shine, they
never, unlike an ordinary lamp, threw any radiance around them, or
illuminated the smallest portion of the surrounding darkness—when it
was
dark—in the slightest degree.
4. Scents of various descriptions were always brought to the circle—the
most common being musk, verbena, new-mown hay, and one unfamiliar odour,
which we were told was called spirit-scent. Sometimes breezes heavy with
perfume swept round the circle; at other times quantities of liquid
musk, etc., would be poured on to the hands of the sitters, and also, by
request, on to our handkerchiefs. At the close of a séance, scent was nearly always found to be
oozing out of the medium’s head, and the more frequently it was
wiped away the stronger and more plentiful it became.
5. The musical sounds, which were many
and varied, formed a very important item in the list of phenomena which
occurred in our presence. Having myself had a thorough musical
education, I was able to estimate at its proper value the importance of
these particular manifestations, and was also more or less in a position
to judge of the possibility or impossibility of their being produced by
natural means, or through human agency. These sounds may, roughly
speaking, be divided into two classes—those which obviously proceeded
from an instrument—a harmonium—in a room, whilst the hands of all the
sitters were joined round the table; and those which were produced in a
room in which there was no instrument of any kind whatever. These latter
were of course, by far the most wonderful. As regards the musical sounds
produced in the room in which there was no instrument, they were about
four in number. First, there were what we called “The Fairy Bells.”
These resembled the tones produced by striking musical glasses with a
small hammer. The sounds given forth were clear, crisp, and melodious. No
definite tune was ever played, but the sounds were always harmonious, and at
the request of myself, or any other member of the circle,
the “bells” would always run up or down a scale in perfect tune. It was
difficult to judge where the sound of these “fairy bells” came from, but
I often applied my ear to the top of the table, and the music seemed to
be somehow
in
the wood—not underneath it, as on
listening
under
the table the music would appear to be above. Next we had quite a different sound—that of a
stringed instrument, more nearly akin to a violoncello than anything else
I have ever heard. It was, however, more powerful and sonorous, and
might perhaps be produced by placing a ‘cello on the top of a drum, or
anything else likely to increase the vibration. This instrument was only
heard in single notes, and was used only by one spirit, who employed it
usually for
answering questions—in the same way that others did by raps. The third
sound was an
exact imitation of an ordinary handbell, which would be rung sharply by
way of indicating the presence of the particular spirit with whom it was
associated. We naturally took care to ascertain that there was
no
bell of any kind in the room at the time. Even if
there had been, it would have been a matter of some difficulty to ring
it all round the walls and even up to the ceiling, and this particular
sound proceeded indifferently from all parts of the room. Lastly, we had
a sound of which it is exceedingly difficult to offer an adequate
description. The best idea of it I can give is to ask the reader to
imagine the soft tone of a clarionet gradually increasing in
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
intensity until it rivalled the sound of a trumpet, and then, by degrees,
diminishing to the original subdued note of the clarionet until it
eventually died away in a long drawn-out melancholy wail. This is a very
inefficient description of this really extraordinary sound, but as I
have in the whole course of my experience never heard anything else at all like it, it is
impossible to give to those who have
not
heard it a more accurate idea of what it was like.
As was the case with the two previous sounds I have described, it was
always associated with one spirit. It is a noteworthy fact that in no
case did the controlling
agencies produce more than single notes or at best isolated passages.
This they accounted for as due to the peculiarly unmusical organisation
of the medium. At any rate, the production of these sounds was wonderful
enough in
itself, as I over and over again satisfied myself fully that there were
no materials in
the room which could in any way assist in the making of any kind of
musical tones; and the clarionet and trumpet sound was one that I should
be utterly at a loss to give at all an adequate imitation of, whatever
materials might be at my disposal. Before I joined the circle several
other musical sounds were frequently heard, and all were given with
greater variety, both of manipulation and tone; but as I am now only
giving a brief epitome of what
actually happened under my own observation, I refrain from alluding to
occurrences which
took place when I was not present.
6. Direct writing was often given, sometimes on a sheet of paper placed
in the centre of the table, and equidistant from all the sitters; at
other times one of us would place his hands on a piece of paper
previously dated and initialled, and usually a message was found written
upon it at the conclusion of the séance. We usually placed a pencil upon
the paper, but sometimes we only provided a small piece of lead—the
results being the same in both cases. Usually, the writing took the form
of answering questions which we had
asked, but sometimes short, independent communications were given, and
also messages of
greeting.
7. Movements of heavy bodies, such as tables and chairs were by no means
infrequent. Sometimes the table would be tilted up at a considerable
angle; at other times the chairs of one or more of the sitters would be
pushed more or less forcibly away from the table, until they touched the
wall behind; or the table would move away from the sitters on one side, and be propelled irresistibly
against those on the other, compelling them to shift their chairs in order
to avoid the advance of so heavy a piece of furniture. The table in
question, at which we usually sat, was an extremely weighty dining-table
made of solid Honduras mahogany, but at times it was moved with much
greater ease than the combined efforts of all the sitters could
accomplish; and these combined efforts were powerless to prevent it
moving in a certain direction, if the unseen force willed it to do so.
We frequently tested the strength of this force by trying to check the
onward movement of the table, but without success.
8. The passage of matter through matter was sometimes strikingly
demonstrated by the bringing of various articles from other rooms, though the
doors were closed and bolted. Photographs, picture-frames,
books and other objects were frequently so brought, both from rooms on
the same floor and from those above. How they came through the closed
doors I cannot say, except by some process of de-materialisation, but
come they certainly did, apparently
none the worse for the process, whatever it might have been.
9. The direct spirit voice, as opposed to the voice of a spirit speaking
through the medium while in a state of trance, was very seldom heard,
and never with any clearness or distinctness. But occasionally it was
attempted, and by listening carefully we could distinguish one or two
broken sentences which were hissed out in a sort of husky whisper. These
sounds generally seemed to be in the air above us, but they were produced with evident difficulty, and
there being so many other methods of communication,
the direct voice was essayed but seldom.
10. The inspirational addresses given by various spirits through Stainton
Moses when in an entranced condition have been so thoroughly dealt with
by Mrs Speer in her “Records” that I can add nothing as regards the
matter
thus expounded. Touching the
manner
of
these addresses (one or more of which we had
Biography of W.
STAINTON MOSES
at almost every séance) I can only say that they were delivered in a
dignified, temperate, clear, and convincing tone, and that though the
voice proceeded from the medium, it was always immediately apparent that
the personality addressing us was
not
that of the medium. The voice was different, and
the ideas were often not in accordance with those held at the time by
the medium. An important fact, too, was that although many spirits exercised
this power of control, the voice which spoke was always different; and
in the case of those spirits which controlled regularly we came to know
perfectly well which intelligence was communicating, by the tone of the voice
and the method of enunciation.
So far, in this enumeration of the various phenomena, I have spoken
generally
of
the manifestations which usually occurred at most of our sittings, but in
conclusion I will give two particular instances, one of direct writing, and one of
identity, both of which I think are interesting, and which certainly
impressed me considerably. On one occasion we were told to cease for a
time and resume the séance later on. I asked the communicating
intelligences if they would during the interval give me a sample of
direct writing under test conditions. Having received an affirmative
reply, I procured a piece of my own note-paper, and, unknown to the
other members of the circle, I dated and initialled it, and also put a
private mark in a corner of the sheet. The others having retired from
the dining to the drawing room, I placed my piece of paper with a pencil
under a table in the study, and having thoroughly searched the room, I barred
the shutters, bolted and locked the door, and put
the key in my pocket. I did not lose sight of the door until I
re-entered, when to my great satisfaction I found a message clearly
written on the
paper. As we had not been sitting in the study, and as I can positively
aver that no one entered the room after I had left it until I myself unlocked the door, I have
always considered this particular instance of direct spirit writing as a most
satisfactory and conclusive test. The other occurrence which I consider
specially worthy of mention took place as follows. We were sitting one
night as usual, and I had in front of me, with my hand resting
upon it, a piece of note-paper, with a pencil close by. Suddenly
Stainton Moses, who was sitting exactly opposite me, exclaimed, “There
is a very bright column of light behind you.” Soon afterwards he said
that the column of light had
developed into a spirit-form. I asked him if the face was familiar to
him, and he replied in
the negative, at the same time describing the head and features. When
the séance was concluded I examined my sheet of paper, which my hand had
never left, and found written on it a message and signature. The name
was that of a distinguished musician who died in the early part of the
present century. I purposely refrain from specifying him, as the use of
great names very frequently leads to results quite different from those
intended. However, now comes the most extraordinary part of the affair.
I asked Stainton Moses—without, of course, showing him the written
message— whether he thought he could recognise the spirit he saw behind
my chair if he saw a portrait of him. He said he thought he could, so I
gave him several albums, containing likenesses of friends dead and
alive, and also portraits of various celebrities. On coming to the photograph of the composer in
question he at once said, without hesitation, “That is the face of the spirit I
saw behind you.” Then, for the first time, I showed him the message
and signature. I regarded the whole incident as a very fair proof of
spirit-identity, and I think that most people would, at any rate,
consider the occurrence one of interest.
During the time of Stainton Moses’s
active mediumship, he was often busily engaged in assisting in the
formation of various societies, whose primary object was the
investigation of Spiritualism
and other occult, though kindred, subjects. He took part in the
establishment of the British National Association of Spiritualists in
1873. He was also connected with the Psychological Society of Great
Britain, which was inaugurated in April 1875, and of the Council of that
Society he was one of the original members. In 1882 Stainton Moses took
an active interest in the formation of the Society for Psychical
Research; and in 1884 he established “The London Spiritualist Alliance,”
and became its first President, which post he filled up to the time of
his death. For the last few years of his life, he added to his other duties
the editorship of
Light,
and though his active mediumship, as regards physical phenomena, had
then almost entirely ceased, yet his power of automatic writing remained
with him to the end. For the last three or four years of his life he
suffered from failing health, and many successive attacks of influenza
gradually undermined a constitution which had never been conspicuously
robust. Though he gradually became worse, he was never supposed to be in
any real danger, and when the end came, on September 5th, 1892, it was a
Biography of
W. STAINTON MOSES
terrible shock to all those who knew
him, and who realised what a loss to themselves personally, and to the
cause
of Spiritualism generally, his death would prove.
Far more interesting to those who knew him intimately was Stainton
Moses’s personality than his life. The latter, as all who read this
brief sketch will readily see for themselves, was, with the exception of
the wonderful spiritual experiences so indissolubly linked with it,
unmomentous and uneventful. But his individuality and force of character
were immense; his ability was quite out of the common; and more than
all, the
versatility of his talents was perhaps one of his most striking
features. No study was too dry or uninteresting for him to master, no
subject so apparently unimportant and unworthy his attention but he
would easily acquire an intelligent conception of its details. And this
applies equally to the whole range of more or less trivial matters which
make up the sum total of nineteenth-century every-day life, as well as
to those deeper and more serious subjects which, being akin to his own
especial one, naturally engrossed most of his attention. From the time
that he first began to realise of what vast importance it was to
establish the possibility of communion with the world of the future, to
the end of his life, his zeal in proving the truth of his teachings
never failed. In spite of the demands made upon his time by school and
press work, he contrived to bestow an immense amount of energy upon his
Spiritualistic researches; his enormous correspondence with thousands of
inquiries all over the world affording quite sufficient material to
occupy the life of any ordinary man. But in this as in everything else
he was conscientious to the last degree, and
never considered time wasted that was expended in answering the queries
and solving, to
the best of his ability, the doubts of earnest seekers after truth. A
certain proportion of his time was devoted to visiting many of the most
important people in the country—important both socially and
politically—and also those who were distinguished for their eminence in
the scientific, literary, and artistic world. During the lifetime of
such people their names cannot be divulged, but it is not too much to
say that Stainton Moses had interviews, more or less frequently, with
most of the illustrious personages of his day; and all who took any
interest in the phenomena of Spiritualism, whatever their position or
attainments, were alike anxious to hear his opinions and experiences of
that subject, on which none were so well qualified to
speak as himself.
Apart from Spiritualism, Stainton Moses possessed in his own character a
rare combination of remarkable qualities, not often met with in the same
individual. He had the keenest sense of justice and equity, his judgment
was invariably sound and discreet, and in addition to all this, no man
ever possessed a kinder heart or livelier sympathies, or was more ready
to assist with counsel or advice those who came to him for either.
Notwithstanding his varied spiritual experiences, unique in themselves,
he was never puffed up by them in the smallest degree, and though impatient of mere frivolous or
ignorant opposition, he would never refuse to join
issue in friendly argument with any opponent—however much beneath his
attention. In these various encounters, Stainton Moses’s clear understanding and extremely
logical habits of mind enabled him to score heavily and with
decisive effect off those antagonists who sometimes had the temerity to
attack him with very little reason and still less knowledge. His
crushing rejoinder to Dr Carpenter, who some eighteen or twenty years
ago lectured at the London Institution on the “Fallacies of Modern
Spiritualism,” will probably be still remembered by a good many people
as a striking instance of logical reasoning and effective
sarcasm, which, significantly enough, was never answered. Considering the then
unpopular nature of the subject which he had unmistakably made his own,
and of the conclusions which he deduced from a close and systematic
study of the same, it is a matter to be wondered at that he was not more
often attacked by narrow-minded religious bigots, pseudo-scientists, and
superficial penny-a-liners. But however this may be, the fact remains
that with a few insignificant exceptions he was
not
so attacked; when he was, his power of showing up
the weakness of his opponent’s case and ignorance of the matters on
which he presumed to dogmatise was only equalled by the polite ridicule
and quiet satire which he was always ready to bring to bear upon the author of any unprovoked piece
of aggressive meddling.
It was a noteworthy feature about Stainton Moses, that in spite of his
being compulsorily drawn in many ways into a conspicuously public position,
no man ever hated publicity more than he did. Retiring
and modest by nature, he detested the making of speeches, delivering of
addresses, presiding over meetings, and other similar functions for
which the singularity of his own powers and the extent of his knowledge
naturally marked him out as being
Biography of W.
STAINTON MOSES
eminently fitted. Though richly endowed with gifts sufficient to stamp him
in any age as a leader of men, his own inclinations would, had he been
untrammelled by force of circumstances, have led him to prefer a life of
studious ease and unostentatious retirement. But this was not to be; so he
trod his allotted path with zeal, courage, and discretion; did his duty with an utter abnegation of
self; and died at his post in the prime of manhood, carrying with him to
the grave the affectionate regard and esteem of hundreds who will cherish
the memory of his friendship as one of their most precious legacies.
It is quite impossible within the limits of a short biography like the
present to do more than present a brief sketch of the character of
Stainton Moses; but I should like to once more insist upon the entirely
admirable ingredients of which that character was composed, and I might
fill volumes in dilating upon his utter absence of pride, fanaticism,
arrogance, or conceit; upon his love of truth, purity, and integrity; and
upon his absolute fearlessness, generous large-heartedness, and wholly
sympathetic friendship. But to what
avail? He has crossed the bar, and gone from out
mortal
vision for ever. And whatever I could say in his
praise would not heighten the affection and esteem of those who knew him;
and those who did not would gain but a poor idea of his worth and talents
from any paltry efforts of mine. So let us gain what benefit we can from
the words of those inspirational teachings which he has left behind, and
to which this short memoir is intended to serve as a humble introduction,
and
then, for a time at any rate, let us re-echo the old formula,
Requiescat in Pace.
CHARLTON TEMPLEMAN SPEER.
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