Page:Resurrection Rock (1920).pdf/265

 "I see."

"The questions I asked were," Barney referred to his transcript of the sitting, Chippewa?'—'From where did you come?'—'Does the spirit know my mother and father?'—Then after she had replied, 'Have never heard of father,' I asked 'Mother?' and then 'In a town?' The Chippewa words, which were spoken in reply meant, as she said, canoe; the other expression used meant, 'It was carried by boat across water—a short stretch of water, like a river or a channel.

"That was all straight?" Bennet returned.

"Straight?" Barney repeated.

Bennet flushed a little. "I meant, you didn't fool yourself? You see, the explanation of most of this stuff is that when people think they get results, they do it themselves; they give something away or take an answer to mean something particular to them when it might apply to almost any one. Of course, her understanding Chippewa words doesn't mean anything. She was using telepathy anyway, reading thoughts instead of words. I've seen an Italian mind-reader work that way. She couldn't speak or read English normally; but she could read the ideas that English people had in their heads. So while it looked impressive, if she got the general idea you put in Chippewa words—and if she got a word or two of Indian from you to sling back—it wasn't anything different."

Bennet seemed to expect his cousin or Barney to dispute him; and evidently he was disappointed when they did not. He realized that what they wanted was to be alone to talk together; but he had no idea of departing yet.

"So I don't see just what you got to-night," Ben-