Page:The astral world, higher occult powers; (IA astralworldhighe00tiff).pdf/144

 Many people suppose that if their hands are touched, a Spirit has got hold of them, and is about to make something great of them, and they set themselves up as something wonderful. If they can perceive any influence coming upon them, it is attributed to a Spiritual agency. It may be so and it may not, because there are other than Spiritual agencies. I once witnessed the curing in five minutes of an individual who had been blind for three years. This, told to the world as an instance of Spiritual healing, would appear marvelous; and if I had happened to do it on the platform, before the people of New York, they would have thought I had almost performed a miracle. It is probable that not a particle of Spiritual influence was exerted in the case. The individual performing the cure did not suppose that he was a medium, though some would not hesitate to publish it to the world as a remarkable instance of healing by Spiritual aid. The blindness was doubtless caused by a paralysis of the optic nerve, and required only a little action to restore the sight. The individual proceeded according to the usual modes of mesmerism. The cure was not half as difficult as it would be to get a sliver from under the nail, nor was it half as mysterious.

A case of the restoration of hearing, by placing the fingers in the ears and taking them out suddenly, is also within my knowledge. Such cases are frequently circulated as evidence that Spirits do cure. The cure in this case was doubtless effected by a strong mesmeric current passing from the fingers of the operator over the nerve of the ear. As honest men and women, we should be careful about publishing these things as