SD1847. Journal Entry of Elizabeth Clementine Kinney
As published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 21, 380–381 (in part).
[Florence]
Saturday August 11th [1855]
A letter from Robert Browning (who is with Mrs B. now in England) tells me the results of his visit to Mr Hume, (or Home, as he now calls himself) the pretended spiritual “medium”, who succeeded so well in convincing Mr Jarves, as he has thousands of others, of his divine mission. It is true that Mr Browning was pre-disposed to doubt; but he is an honest man, & a reliable witness notwithstanding. Indeed I am just as much satisfied with his testimony, as if it were my own. He deduces that he saw nothing which might not have been the work of jugglery; tho’ he did see things which were surprising; nor can he tell how they were effected. Everything however was so conducted as to awaken suspicion of fraud, & as the medium was under the shelter of social courtesy, being the guest of a respectable private family—no satisfactory investigation could be made. When Mr Browning asked to see the “spirit-hands”, the request was complied with tho’ the lamp was first extinguished, & all the light permitted for the experiment came thro’ the muslin curtains, & that the dim light of a cloudy evening; so, that the table could not be seen distinctly, nor anything, save some object held up, before the eyes. Presently a hand, clothed to the elbow in white drapery appeared from the edge—not center—of the table, but no one was permitted to touch it, or even to examine it closely. (Mr Jarves said he did touch both the hands & spirit form; but Mr Jarves was a believer). The mysterious hand took a wreath from the table, (one by accident there, of course.) &, Mr Hume said the spirit wished to put it on Mrs Browning’s head, (a very discerning spirit to be sure—crowning the only lady poet present) but for this purpose Mrs B. must change her place & take the chair next to Mr Hume! Comments are unnecessary. Mr Browning furthermore testifies that knees were pinched, hands clasped, clothes touched, & musical instruments played on; but all these things were done under the table. In short, it was all underhanded well enough. And as for Mr Hume’s “trance”—which he invariably goes off in at just the same period of the performance—that spiritual ecstacy [sic] produced nothing more than a stupid, long-winded, canting exhortation, resembling as Mrs B. said, a “dissenting sermon.” Mr. Jarves had told of “eloquence such as no mere mortal ever uttered!” So, we see how different minds (sound ones) are differently affected by the same thing. But, add to other suspicious circumstances of these mysterious doings, the fact that “the spirits” have a standing programme for all their entertainments, & are never courteous enough to vary, or add anything to their performances even at the request of one of their audience, & how can that mind be sound which admits no doubt? For my part, after reading Mr B.’s letter I laughed at myself for having given so much of the “spiritual” to these things as to dignify them with the name of Sorcery. Yet hundreds of sensible people believe this Hume a true man, & what he does inspired. Old Mrs Trollope & her son went from Florence to England to see him, & came away verily sup[p]osing he had brought up several spirits of their departed friends, who conversed with them thro’ raps, & assured them of the immortality of the soul, which “Moses & the prophets” had failed to do. I also got a letter from Mr Trollope to-day, which, quite contrary to that of Mr Browning, assures me that what Mr Hume does cannot be accounted for on natural principles, nor by fraud: but that Mr H. will be at Florence this coming fall & will himself convince me (skeptic as I am!) that he is honest & his doings not his, but the spirits.
Publication: None traced.
Manuscript: Columbia University.
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