Page:Recollections of Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1904).djvu/77

 When all the party were assembled, conversation upon the occult became general. After awhile, the Master of Lindsay related a wondrous story: that some time previously he was with Home the spiritualist whose name was then on everybody's tongue and saw him, whilst in a mesmerised state, rise from off the floor and ascend to the ceiling of the apartment he was in, which was a very lofty one, sufficiently lofty, indeed, to enable the narrator to catch hold of Home's foot as he rose above his head, and to find that in spite of all endeavour to keep him down he still ascended, leaving his shoe in his hand. And also that, on another occasion, he had seen him float out of one of the windows of the room they occupied into the open air, and re-appear a few minutes afterwards floating through the next. This was related by the Master of Lindsay in such perfect belief and simplicity, that we could but listen and, wondering, accept his assertions accordingly.

Of course, Howell had something equally wonderful to tell, and, as far as I recollect, it was in connection with Richard Burton,95 the traveller and orientalist, with whom he professed to have gone through supernatural experiences of a most astounding nature. Then arose and spoke Sala. He had just come up from the Broadmoor criminal lunatic asylum, and he gave us a most interesting account of some of the inmates confined there for murder. He had seen Constance Kent.96 Usually she was very quiet and reserved, but she had recurrent