r. Sir William's proposal was hailed with the
greatest satisfaction by the critics of spiritism in general and of Home
in particular. Here, it was said, was a man fully qualified to expose
the archimpostor who had been so justly pilloried in Browning's "Mr.
Sludge the Medium"; here was a scientist, trained to exact knowledge and
close observation, who would not be deceived by the artful tricks of a
conjurer. It was pleasant too to learn that in order to circumvent any
attempts at sleight of hand, Sir William intended using instruments
specially designed for test purposes, and which he was confident could
not be operated fraudulently.

But Home, or the spirits proved too strong for even Sir William Crookes
and his instruments. In Sir William's presence, in fact, there was a
multiplication of mysteries. The instruments registered results which
seemed inexplicable by any natural law; a lath, cast carelessly on a
table, rose in the air, nodded gravely to the astonished scientist, and
proceeded to tap out messages alleged to come from the world beyond;
chairs moved in ghostly fashion up and down the room; invisible beings
lifted Home himself from the floor; spirit hands were seen and felt; an
accordeon, held by Sir William, played tunes apparently of its own
volition, and afterward floated about the room, still playing. And all
this, according to the learned investigator, "in a private room that
almost up to the commencement of the seance has been occupied as a
living room, and surrounded by private friends of my own, who not only
will not countenance the slightest deception, but who are watching
narrowly everything that takes place."

In the end, so far from announcing that he had convicted Home of fraud,
Sir William published an elaborate account of his seances, and gave it
as his solemn belief that with Home's assistance he had succeeded in
demonstrating the existence of a hitherto unknown force. This was
scarcely what had been expected by the scientific world, which had
eagerly awaited his verdict, and loud was the tumult that followed. But
Sir William stood manfully by his guns, and Home--bland, inscrutable,
mysterious Home--figuratively shrugging his shoulders at denunciations
to which he had by this time become perfectly accustomed, added another
leaf to his spiritistic crown of laurels, and betook himself anew to his
friends on the Continent, where, despite increasing ill health, he
continued to prosecute his "missi