II.

Indian Spiritualists -- Medicine men -- Legends -- The
Spirit-world -- Difference between Indian and Modern
Spiritualists -- Chusco the Spiritualist -- Schoolcraft's
testimony of -- Mode of communicating with spirits -- Belief
in Satanic agency -- Interesting account of Clairvoyance.

The earliest traditions of the various Indian tribes inhabiting this
country prove that they have practiced jugglery and all other things
pertaining to the secret arts of the old uncivilized nations of the
world. Among all the tribes have been found the priests of the occult
sciences, and to this day we find Metais, Waubonos, Chees-a-kees and
others bearing the common designation of Medicine men. In modern
parlance we would call them Professors of Natural Magic, or of
Magnetism, or Spiritualism. The difference however between these
Indian professors of magic and those of modern date is, that while the
latter travel round the country exhibiting their wonderful
performances to gaping crowds, at a shilling a head, the former
generally shrink from notoriety, and, instead of being anxious to
display their marvelous feats, have only been constrained, after
urgent entreaty and in particular cases, to exhibit their powers. The
Indian magicians have shown more conclusively their power as
clairvoyants and spiritualists, than all the rapping, table-tipping
mediums of the present day.

Numerous interesting and beautiful Indian legends show their belief in
a spiritual world--of a shadowy land beyond the great river. Whether
this was obtained by revelations from their spiritual mediums, or
derived from a higher source of inspiration, we know not; but most
certain it is, that in no belief is the Indian more firmly grounded
than that of a spirit-world.

The Indian Chees-a-kees or spiritualists had a different and far more
satisfactory mode of communicating with departed spirits than ever
modern spiritualists have attained to, or perhaps ever will. Forming,
as they did, a connecting link or channel of communication between
this world and the world of spirits, they did not affect to speak what
the spirit had communicated; or, perhaps, to state it more fully,
their organs of speech were not employed by the spirits to communicate
revelations from the spirit world; but the spirits themselves spoke,
and the responses to inquiries were perfectly audible to them and to
all present. In this case all possibility of collusion was out