mother and daughter recognized it as a good likeness of Mrs. Cutmore's mamma (the lady who had given her granddaughter the instructions to visit Mr. Hudson's studio): she has been a resident in the spirit-world now about seven years. Miss Cutmore then 'sat,' and upon her plate the figure of a well-formed young man appeared, whose features however, were not distinguishable.

"The foregoing is the more interesting, in consequence of the whole of the arrangements having been made in the spiritworld by their friends there; for neither Mrs. Cutmore, her daughter, nor Dr. Cutmore knew anything of either Mr. Hudson or Mrs. Guppy, except what they had read of them in the spiritual papers.

"Dr. Cutmore, with the permission of his wife, sent me a copy of each photograph, and I can personally add my testimony as to the clearly-defined features of Mrs. Cutmore's mamma. "C. W. PEARCE.

"6, Cambridge Road, Kilburn, N.W."

SPIRIT-PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN BY ANOTHER LONDON
PHOTOGRAPHER.

Of course, as was expected from the first, counterfeit spirit portraits are being manufactured in various quarters, but we have seen some (taken by a photographer who does not wish his name to appear at present) which there seems reason to believe genuine. Dr. Sexton (well known in the Secularist camp) and Mr. Clark, of Glasgow, have with their portraits, taken by this photographer, a second figure. The same figure appears in different positions in the several pictures which have been taken. They recognise it as that of the late Mr. J. W. Jackson. We were present at the Spiritual Institute, Southampton Row, when Mrs. Jackson was showing them. Mr. Morse, who came in, and had not before seen them, at once said, "Why, that is Mr. Jackson!" Mrs. Jackson told us that Mr. Jackson's friends readily identified the portraits. We hope further experiments will be made under strict test conditions, and that the results will be made public.

Since the foregoing was in type a letter has appeared from Mrs. Jackson in the Medium of May 24th, from which we extract the following:

"I went to Mr. Reeves, in York fessional photographer, and therefore for producing astounding results.

Road, who is not a prohas no interest or motive When the very simple

arrangements were made, I sat down, and in a few seconds longer than is usual for ordinary photos, I distinctly recognised the face of my husband standing over me. The expression and chiselling of the features, contour of head, the curling length of beard and outline of form were as perfect as when he was on earth. There could be no imposition in this instance, for Mr. Reeves never saw or knew anything of my husband during his life.

"A few days afterwards, I took a lady friend, who sat for her photograph also-a stranger to our kind friend, Mr. Reeves. On the other side of the small table at which the lady was seated, when the plate was taken from the camera, appeared two spirit-forms which were immediately recognised as two of my friend's ancestors, who had left this earth many years

ago.

"Like many others, Mr. Reeves is testing these phenomena crucially, and hopes to obtain higher and better results ere long. I have no doubt that those patient searchings after truth will bring their fitting reward in a more perfect development of those spirit-forms than we have yet obtained. The art is yet in its earliest infancy, and we must not be discouraged by the many failures and crude attempts that are now appearing before the public.

E. B. JACKSON."

We learn that Mr. Reeves has been holding a circle for spiritmanifestations at his house for some time past. In August last, the controlling spirits at this circle desired that a photographic apparatus should be procured, with a view of producing spiritphotographs when circumstances would permit. At that time Mr. Reeves knew nothing of photography. The first spiritphotographs were taken February 13th. At first only positives were taken, but after a while the spirits directed that negatives should be taken, and the positives be broken up. Miss Clara Harris, who is a medium, has been quite successful in obtaining satisfactory results. The first attempt produced a cloud of curious faces like masks, in the centre of which was a cross, the likeness of an arm, a wing, and other objects. another occasion, the likeness of an old lady with a walkingstick and a basket on her lap appeared; she has been recognised as her grandmother. Again, in like manner, she obtained a shadowy likeness of her grandfather, and lately her father, in an attitude very characteristic of him. He suffered very much from gout and walked with a stick. The children were in the habit of teasing him, and the spirit-photograph represents him in the act of leaning on his stick with the right hand, and holding up

On

his left as if shouting at the children who were annoying him. Other sitters have obtained figures on the plate, a number of which have been identified. Mr. Reeves and the medium with whom he co-operates make no profession as to their ability to take spirit-photographs. They are simply experimenters, and, as in the case of all other spiritual manifestations, they cannot foretell what may be forthcoming. They are yet in a state of progress, and have been promised much better results if they will obey orders and persevere. The spirits say that at present they cannot give more than three photographic sittings per day. We may state that the spirits appear like white images, their features being determined by faint lines and marks. They have not the material texture or appearance of those produced by Mr. Hudson, but more nearly resemble the spirit-forms of Mr. Mumler's photographs, which are, however, of a greyer colour and more defined in outline.

A SPIRIT-POST.

CHEVALIER KIRKUP, at Florence, has lately had some extraordinary experiences of letters being carried by spirits between himself and some friends in Leghorn. We are permitted by him to quote this fact from a letter of his to a lady in Rome.

"6, Lungarno Torrigiani.

"My dear Madam,-I am as much as ever engrossed by Spiritualism. It goes on increasing with great variety. Miss Haworth complained that there was such sameness, nothing but rapping and turning of tables. I find always something new, and now I have had one of the greatest of all the demonstrations I know of, and the most perfect, as my precautions against either imagination or fraud were complete. I think you have seen a young lady here from Leghorn with Bibi, who often comes and stays with her. I knew her sister who died four years ago, and is now her angel, named Annina. The lady is Paolina Carboni, daughter of a former British Vice-Consul at Rome. He is now in India. Paolina has become a powerful medium, and her angel is more ready to oblige than Regina, and had often taken messages to and from Leghorn, where her mother and sister live, and even letters. It appeared to me that they were carried quicker than the post, and I was desirous to know. I, therefore, asked Annina how long she was on the road. She said ten

minutes. Non c'è male, but Count Ginnasi was only three minutes, he said, when he took my trumpet, and frightened these very ladies by blowing it in the air, for they had never heard of spirits, and ran out of the room crying, 'c'è il diavolo !! "Well, I asked Paolina to write to her sister Teresa, at Leghorn, and gave her a model to copy, which I have preserved. When she had written it out, she went out, and I shut the door. There is but one door to the room-and I remained alone. I put the letter on the piano, the usual place, and watched it, hoping to see it fly away-I have seen them flying-but they don't like it to be seen; I don't know why. After two minutes, finding it did not move, I took a book, and after two minutes more, it was gone, I marked down the time, four minutes after six p.m.

"In this letter I asked Teresa to note the precise minute of its arrival, of which notice is usually given by three loud blows on the furniture. Then to write us an answer at once, and tell us that, and likewise the exact time that she places an answer on her drawers for Annina to bring us; and then to leave the room, that they may be at liberty, as they dislike being watched.

"In the meantime, I remained alone in my room with my watch on the table. It was eight minutes past seven when there came three loud blows, as with a heavy stick on the sofa. It was to announce the answer. I went to seek it on the pianonothing and returned to my place, and on my book was a little triangular billet, like the one I sent, without an envelope for lightness, and unsealed.

"It was an answer to my requests, giving the precise time, viz. Ho ricevuto la littera alle 6 e 15 minuti, e ti metto la risposte sul cassettone alle 6 e 25 minuti.' That is, 'I received the letter at 15 minutes past 6, and I put the reply on the chest of drawers at 25 minutes past 6.'

"Annina must have been 44 minutes travelling the two journeys of 60 miles each, that is 120 miles, a slow coach for them, but of no consequence. Quite enough to prove that they act at too great a distance for it to be the effect of the newly invented psychic force. A man of science has put to the most severe proof some phenomena of Spiritualism; only two of them, however: the increase of weight in the presence of Home, which is not very interesting, and what is more so, the playing of good music by an accordion, by daylight and in a cage untouched by human hand; and in the presence of two anti-spiritualists who have invented the word psychism, soul-force, which may be either your souls, or the spirits, who are souls too: that is, either subjective or objective.

"Now this experiment at Leghorn is so remote from the brain of Paolina, that even by their verdict, it is what the spirits say, their own act and deed; quite as credible, and more so, than the subjective theory. "Ever yours,

"SEYMOUR KIRKUP."

In a second letter dated April 17th, Mr. Kirkup says, "Mr. Howitt is welcome to make what use he likes of my post experiment. If he wishes it I will send him copies of the two letters." He there speaks of the great care he has taken to avoid the possibility of deception. Mentions the fact of the room from which he sent the letter and in which he received the answer having only one door, and that he sat within four feet of it, so that no one could open it without his perceiving them: and he adds, “The so-called supernatural is worth nothing if the proofs are incomplete. I am as incredulous as ever, and am of Hume's opinion that a deception is more probable than a miracle."

I may remark on Mr. Kirkup's observation that the distance betwixt Florence and Leghorn, 60 miles, is too great to allow of the agency which carried the letters being mere psychic force, is nothing to the distance at which the celebrated magnetists of France, Billot and Deleuze, assert to have produced similar effects, namely 300 miles. In a later part of Mr. Kirkup's second letter I perceive he has added, “I have since made another post experiment. Paolina has another sister living at Bologna, and I have used all the same precautions with the same success; or greater, for the journey is longer, and the answer is longer, nineteen lines, and the time is an hour exactly shorter by four minutes."

Chevalier Kirkup has also been getting spirit-photographs very successfully. One of the spirits, Annina, who carried the letters is now before me. Her sister, Paolina Carboni, is seated facing you, and near her standing in the recess of a cabinet, is the figure of Annina, wrapped in a white bed-gown. She stands as if addressing her sister with one hand and with projecting forefinger directed towards her. Mr. Kirkup says, "The likeness of the face, the height of the figure, the sex and and age are all tests of its reality;" facts, all of which were wholly unknown to the photographer.

The likeness of the two sisters is sufficiently striking, though one is a full face and the other in profile. Mr. Kirkup says, "Annina has also painted herself in this dress and position with the door locked. The colours are the same described by Judge Edmonds and others, red, blue and white, for the first order of spirits. Regina has done the same. You shall see them when