downward, in the middle of the table; on these hands the Medium places his own and the seance begins.  Before long, the presence of Spiritual power becomes manifest by raps on the table, or by vibratory movements of the table, more or less violent, and by spasmodic jerkings or twitching of the Medium’s arms or body.  When sufficient Spiritual power has been generated, the Medium takes up the slate, and, still controlling with his left hand the hands of his sitters, places on it a minute fragment of slate pencil.  No offer is made to show both sides (the prepared message is on the hidden side), the side in full view is perfectly clean, and it is on that side that the Spirits are to write with the slate pencil; there is no need of showing the other side.  With his right hand the Medium holds the slate under the edge of the table, barely concealing it thereunder, and drawing it forth every few seconds to see if any writing has appeared.  After waiting in vain for five or ten minutes, the Medium’s patience becomes exhausted, and he reaches for another slate from the table close behind him, and, ostentatiously washing both sides of it, lays it on the table in front of him (still controlling with his left hand the hands of his sitters), and removes the pencil from the first slate to the second, and on top of the second so places the first slate that the prepared message is underneath, on the inside and next to the other slate.  The trick is done.  All that now remains for the Medium to do is to hold the two slates under the table for awhile, or rest them on the shoulder close to the ear of the sitter on the Medium’s right, and, by scratching with the finger nail on the frame of the slate, to imitate the writing by the Spirits with the enclosed pencil.  When there are two or more sitters it is only the one on the right of the Medium who is privileged to hear the writing.  To apply the slate to the ear of any other would disclose the way in which the sound of the writing is counterfeited.  To him, therefore, who sits on the Medium’s left, so that the Medium’s hand, while holding the slates on the shoulder of the sitter on the right, is sharply outlined against the light, the motions of the Medium’s fingers while the sound of writing is imitated by him may be distinctly seen.

By such elementary tricks of legerdemain as these are guileless, honest folk deceived.

Dr. Slade prefers to have only two sitters at a time, one on his right and one opposite.  The fourth side of the table he prefers to have unoccupied; his manipulations of the slate can be from that side more readily observed; moreover, strange Spiritual antics may be there manifested, such as upsetting chairs which happen to be there, making slates appear above the edge of the table, etc.  These manifestations are executed by the Medium’s foot, which, on one occasion, was distinctly seen before it had time to get back into its slipper by one of our number, who stooped very quickly to pick up a slate which had accidentally fallen to the floor while the Spirits were trying to put it into the lap of one of the sitters.