2nd May. THE little cosmos known as the Shanghai world has been somewhat divided of late upon the question whether or no thought transference, or thought reading as it is commonly called—although the two terms are not strictly convertible—is possible or not. Many credulous people have listened with awe to the correct delivery of questions which, safely stowed away in their pockets, had never left their possession nor, so fur as they believed, been seen by mort eyes other than their own. In not long since past the White Mahatma would have run the risk of burning at the stake for her performances last week in the Lyceum. But we are wiser ti our ancestors in some things, and whether knowledge be open or occult, so that it be kno' ledge, we welcome it, and if trickery ko its place, we are willingly humbugged " for the fun of the thing."
We do not propose to tell how the White Mahatnia so successfully throws dust in the eyes of the credulous. That she does it cleverly is enough for us and for most men who want amusement, though no one could fail to have noticed that in the in! between the writing and the gi of the answers two full hours ha elapsed, ample time for the study of such questions as were answered.
But when we leave the White Mahatma and come to the subject itself—when the actual question is put to us, "Is there, can there br such athing as thought transfer we reply, "Why not?" What is positively known to physiology psychology to demand an unqualified negative? And the answer so far as we are aware is, " Nothing." On the other hand the sudden recurrence of the same thought often in identical terms to different persons at the same instant is so common that little bits of superstitious practice are 4 indulged in to mark such occasions, and "See how great minds agree" has become a current phrase. Of; course, a very great percentage! of such cases can be explained merely by following the train thought. When a teacher puts a! question in the multiplication table} to a class of little children, no} one suggests thonght_ transference when there is an identical answer in chorus. So with most of the ©2828 where utterance is given by different persons in company to the same idea. The thought is the last of series. But there are quite enough instances left after all these have been deducted, to give us reason to pause more than once before we deny the: possibility of thought transference. Probably every one of our will be able to recall instan or her experience where nothing has led up to a certain subject, a how often" hi not ye we "That's curious. that very thing my More than t there are authenticated cases of thought transference between persons separated by wide intervals of space. Usually such instances are referred to as cases of telepathy, a distinction without practical "di ference except as to distance. Ma Twain has rious story an instance in point. While in one of the eastern states of America, one day a thought occurred to him that so vivitl as to cause him at once to note it down. Is took shape in his mind the complete plot ofa new story, of which the scene was to be laid" "out west." Some time later, and, we believe, exactly the period required by the mail, he received a bulky letter, of which he he knew the contents before opening it. When he did so, th re in black and white was the identi plot which his correspondent in a western state had determined to send him some before. This is given asa bona file case of thought transference over a wide inter: as he calls it, of telepathy; Any such example standing alone would deservedly be considered a mere coincidence. But there is an increasing number of such instances. Many have been times by various psy and the belief is growing th by little in the process of man is developing a power alw: latent in him, but never yee sufliciently prominent to pass-as and his senses or even to win for its recognition "2s a natural frente, Fudging from logy, not alwa} however, a sate guir we should that the possibility of thought tran: ference is not merely likely' but ce i What is wanted is sutticiently delicate apparatus. A man might stand amongst mountains, hills, and the everlasting rocks for ever and a lay, and while there might ran and down the gamut of his fiddle {strings without ing note from the solid stocks and stones around him. But let him his standing point. Put him w room in which there is a large collection of delicate glass ware, anil before a single octave shall have been given forth, some trembling: vase will answer to the call of its sympathetic string. Or stand beside an organ as the chimes outside are pealed, and the chances are that one or more of the notes will raise an answering thrill within a pipe which in its turn will sing in unison.
Again, if we turn to electricity, the same effect is seen. The crude efforts of carly experimenters resulted al
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.