Col. Olcott’s Book by Uriah Smith

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · May 20, 1875

Col. Olcott’s Book.

By Uriah Smith

The American Publishing Co., have just issued a work, entitled, “People from the Other World,” by Col. H. S. Olcott, narrating his experience during his stay of three months with the spirit mediums, the Eddy Brothers, of Chittenden, Vt. He was commissioned by the New York Daily Graphic Co., to visit the Eddys, for the purpose of establishing the truth or falsity of the claims of materialization of spirits. Mr. Olcott professes to write his book, not in the interest of spiritism, but simply as a strict statement of what he saw, heard, and did, during his stay with the family. He attended fifty seances, saw about four hundred materialized spirits appear, including Indians, Americans, Germans, French, English, Russians, Circassians, Khourds, Georgians (Caucasians), Arabs and native Africans. He saw men and women, old and young, children, and babes in arms. He heard them speak in a number of different languages, sing solos and duets; saw them dance, walk, jump, play the organ, smoke, materialize weapons, shawls, gauzes, and animals, in the presence of the audience; saw them cut off locks of their hair, exhibit jewels, braid wreaths, &c. He saw a great number of detached hands of various sizes, shook hands with them, saw them write their names on cards, and heard them play music, some of it being airs not known in this country, but peculiar to Circassia and other portions of the Caucasus and Italy.

The publishers of this book say that “the world has ceased to be astonished at anything, and a passive acceptance of whatever is fairly proved, let its claims be what they may, has taken the place of surprise, and a general expectancy of future and still more important advancement in this path evidently exists in the public mind. But nothing has taxed the credibility of the people of all classes as the proposition of the actual materialization of spirit forms, and of their appearance before audiences, exercising the power of locomotion, speech, &c., and in addition performing acts yet to be accounted for only on the theory of supernatural skill.”

It is claimed that all this is now fairly demonstrated by the manifestations in question. This is what S. D. Adventists have been for years expecting and predicting in reference to this last crowning deception. And these spirits are to go still farther in this direction. This is set forth as incontrovertible evidence of the immortality of the soul. It might be so taken if there were no devil and his angels, and they did not know how to deceive. In the midst of this working of Satan, and when it is at its height, the Lord is to come. 2 Thess. 2:9. And it has now seemingly to take but one step more to reach the climax of its power. U. S.