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JAVA PROGRAMMING
APPLICATIONS
JAVA PROGRAMMING APPLICATIONS

Gerard Prudhomme

ARCLER
P r e s s

www.arclerpress.com
Java Programming Applications
Gerard Prudhomme

Arcler Press
2010 Winston Park Drive,
2nd Floor
Oakville, ON L6H 5R7
Canada
www.arclerpress.com
Tel: 001-289-291-7705
001-905-616-2116
Fax: 001-289-291-7601
Email: orders@arclereducation.com

e-book Edition 2020

ISBN: 978-1-77407-405-3 (e-book)

This book contains information obtained from highly regarded resources. Reprinted material
sources are indicated and copyright remains with the original owners. Copyright for images and
other graphics remains with the original owners as indicated. A Wide variety of references are
listed. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data. Authors or Editors or Publish-
ers are not responsible for the accuracy of the information in the published chapters or conse-
quences of their use. The publisher assumes no responsibility for any damage or grievance to the
persons or property arising out of the use of any materials, instructions, methods or thoughts in
the book. The authors or editors and the publisher have attempted to trace the copyright holders
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not been obtained. If any copyright holder has not been acknowledged, please write to us so we
may rectify.

Notice: Registered trademark of products or corporate names are used only for explanation and
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© 2020 Arcler Press

ISBN:978-1-77407-319-3 (Hardcover)

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Arcler Press and its products, visit our website at www.arclerpress.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gerard I. Prudhomme has a graduate degree (M.S.) for Computer Science

from University College London (UCL). He has also worked as a software
programmer and tech writer for different Fortune 500 companies, and
studied at UCL, Harvard, and Oxford.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures ................................................................................................ix

List of Abbreviations ....................................................................................xiii
Preface.........................................................................................................xv

Chapter 1 Portability ................................................................................................. 1

Chapter 2 NET and Java ........................................................................................... 17

Chapter 3 Java Documentation................................................................................ 37

Chapter 4 Java Dev Tools ........................................................................................ 55

Chapter 5 The Use of Java for the Web ................................................................... 87

Chapter 6 Using Java for Desktop Applications ....................................................... 97

Chapter 7 How Java Can Help Improve an

Organization’s Overall Efficiency ......................................................... 109

Chapter 8 How Java Functions I ............................................................................ 117

Chapter 9 The Java Language................................................................................. 129

Chapter 10 How Java Functions? II ......................................................................... 139

Chapter 11 Java Data............................................................................................... 149

Bibliography .......................................................................................... 159

Index ..................................................................................................... 161

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1. Java platforms

Figure 2.2. Java
Figure 2.3. Java interpreter
Figure 2.4. Java certification path
Figure 2.5. Images of RMI
Figure 2.6. Images of RMI
Figure 2.7. SWT widgets on Mac OS
Figure 2.8. Apache camel logo
Figure 2.9. Event handling in Java programming event
Figure 2.10. Event handling in Java programming relation
Figure 3.1. Image of the notepad tutorial frame resized to 300x300 made
viewable by the setVisible(.) method
Figure 3.2. Event handling in Java programming action
Figure 3.3. Java programming graphics
Figure 3.4. Source code can be found at en: Java programming/graphics/
drawing shapes
Figure 3.5. Screenshot of a portion of the Java desktop system’s desktop
Figure 3.6. English Wiki book on Java swing
Figure 3.7. The basic of the Java compilation process
Figure 3.8. UML design of a simple example program based on the Java
platform event model (from the JavaBeans spec version 1.01)
Figure 3.9. Taking a screenshot of work with Java 3d
Figure 3.10. Computation of an arithmetic expression in the Java programming
language
Figure 3.11. Denoting a single object in the Java environment
Figure 4.1. This is a sample Dashboard created in the JReport software

ix
Figure 4.2. Overview of the ACARM’s filter architecture
Figure 4.3. ADF11g architecture
Figure 4.4. AspectJ weaving
Figure 4.5. Canada JDB Layered representation of the JDB Framework (Java
desktop basis) deployment architecture in an application
Figure 6.1. A UML diagram of the Java exception class hierarchy
Figure 6.2. Java compilation JIT
Figure 6.3. A diagram explaining the Java runtime environment and how Java
code can be “written once and run everywhere”
Figure 6.4. Depicting a Java object as a system within the Java environment
with properties and behavior [method(s)]
Figure 6.5. Genericness in Java
Figure 6.6. Java throwable inheritance
Figure 6.7. Wildcard types in Java can be specialized in three directions,
forming a cube with two missing edges (Adapted from diagram 6 in Kersten
Krab Thorup and Mads Torgersen, “Unifying Genericity,” ECOOP’99)
Figure 6.8. Components of the Java/bytecode interpretive compiler toolkit
Figure 6.9. The screenshot described Java caps 6.2 projects, component library,
and plug-in in tool list
Figure 6.10. A screenshot of the “Java decompiler” tool, with a decompiled
Java class
Figure 6.11. Standalone version of DOKSoft editor for properties files
Figure 7.1. Java-border grid flow layout
Figure 7.2. Java naming directory interface
Figure 7.3. Construction of multidimensional arrays in Java
Figure 7.4. Java numeric types memory
Figure 7.5. Java is one of numerous programming dialects in the IT business.
You may even know a couple of these dialects as of now, or may have known
about them – ASP, C, PHP are only a couple of cases. All in all, with these
samples, why would it be a good idea for you to run with Java?
Figure 7.6. Java AWT swing event-driven
Figure 7.7. Unisys OS 2200 Java environment support for use in article
Figure 7.8. Java
Figure 7.9. Spring – simple Java project

x
Figure 7.10. The history of development path taken for the Java programming
language
Figure 7.11. A snippet of code in the Java programming language written to
illustrate syntax highlighting of keywords: A vector
Figure 7.12. Hilbert curves of orders 1 to 3, drawn by a Java program
Figure 8.1. Java applet to view Mandelbrot set, under GPL license (Taken from
http://www.its.caltech.edu/~dannyc/fractals/simple.html)
Figure 8.2. Screenshot that shows a window of a fictional program created with
JavaFX API
Figure 8.3. An example of custom painted Swing application
Figure 8.4. Java desktop system (open source freeware) in open Solaris 10 (free
use software common development and distribution license (CDDL) OSI)
Figure 8.5. This is a screenshot of a Gobang application. The GUI is developed
in Swing and all custom painted
Figure 8.6. RESTful Web Services
Figure 9.1. A screenshot of JNode version 0.2.3 (from http://www.jnode.org)
Figure 9.2. Screenshot of JNAerator studio
Figure 9.3. Software architecture of JavaSE (ex-J2SE) with JSR, JDK & JRE
Figure 9.4. Garbage collector generations in Java
Figure 9.5. A UML diagram depicting a use of the Java event model framework
as described in the JavaBeans spec v. 1.01, using an event adaptor
Figure 9.6. Java development milestone
Figure 9.7. This image describes the class member scope within classes and
packages
Figure 9.8. Ginga middleware structure in SB computer D
Figure 9.9. Ginga execution environment v1
Figure 9.10. DrJava on Mac OS X Tiger
Figure 9.11. Screenshot of DirSync Pro on Linux
Figure 9.12. Eucalyptus cloud architecture
Figure 9.13. Example graph of garbage collection issue: too many full garbage
collection happening in a short time
Figure 9.14. GNU compiler for Java
Figure 10.1. Third-party JVM-targeted compilation for non-Java source
compilation to Java byte-code. Illustrated example shows python source being

xi
compiled to both python compiled code and Java byte-code
Figure 10.2. A basic illustration depicting a system interacting with its
environment using input and output messages
Figure 10.3. A diagram showing how the JVM performs its just-in-time
compilation function
Figure 10.4. IS2T embedded Java solution at embedded world exhibition 2014
in Nuremberg
Figure 10.5. Screenshot from the IzPack software running on Microsoft
Windows XP. Captured by Julien Ponge (picture uploader) and available from
the project website. This is a screenshot from software released under the
[Apache License]
Figure 10.6. J 0.23.0 with svn support and updated icons (Coffee theme)
Figure 10.7. J9 plugin
Figure 10.8. Screenshot of Javi’s main window plus tool options
Figure 10.9. JframeJava
Figure 10.10. JBoss-Netty-logo
Figure 10.11. Graph of the Java virtual machine (JVM) engineering. Source
records in different dialects are assembled into Java bytecode utilizing compilers,
for example, Javac and Jython. Any stage with a JVM can run the bytecode, by
first going it through a bytecode verifier and after that either deciphering or
aggregating it to that stage’s machine code on-the-fly with a JIT compiler
Figure 10.12. File: Standard Java VM vs. squawk Java VM.svg
Figure 10.13. JVM Java 7 specification based
Figure 10.14. Diagram explaining the difference between a compiled language
and an interpreted language
Figure 11.1. Java virtual machine Java 7 specification base
Figure 11.2. Schema of the general architecture of a program running in a Java
virtual machine

xii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

API application programming interfaces

AWT abstract window toolkit
CDDL common development and distribution license
DBMS different database management systems
IDE integrated development environment
JVM Java virtual machine
OOP object-oriented programming
PREFACE

When we consider the idea of how to program Java applications, there are
a number of different facts that we need to consider beforehand. The Java
language provides a programmer with, at this moment, a technology that has
been brought to the market to offer a number of advantages. In the market, there
are some languages that are partially similar to Java (e.g., JavaScript is at least
partially based on Java, no matter what people say).
To provide some examples, in a few cases Java is faster than C++ to develop
programs. For all the small or large utilities that we may develop and if we
don’t know on which platform they will run, then it’s better to code directly into
something that is portable to other operating systems. This fact is especially
pertinent at a time when a large number of different alternative OS are starting
to become known to a wide variety of different players in the tech sector.
Another thing you may wish to consider is that more and more companies are
now making the decision to switch over to Linux. The different types of groups
and entities that are now making the decision to switch over to Linux also
include a few large and important organizations like the federal government of
the United States of America. The incredible ecosystem of Java makes it easy
for a dev to program a Java program and then run it on Linux, Windows, Mac,
Android, or even iOS.
As for the level of loads, this is often something that has not yet been considered
by the devs, but the Java ecosystem means that Java applications could very
quickly scale up to handle more users. Not using an object-oriented language,
and this is what happens if you program a computer program in C; and this is a
limitation. But the truth is that this statement is intended to make sure that you
are going to be presented with an excellent source of affirmation. I’d like to
demand you to gain some insight from the following little bit of content. In Java
you can always create a global class; that is, with static methods. Then you’ll
be able to make a static declaration. By making use of this static global class
you will be able to get the same paradigm as in C. On the flip side, the opposite
statement is not true.
Java can function in a similar manner to a non-object-oriented language like
the C programming language by making use of static declarations. At the same
time, using a technology like C will limit the programmer because C is not a
fully objected oriented language. Java is still far away and especially not as fast
as C++.
As long as we don’t make any serious mistakes while programming, Java is
very permissive as a language. At the same time, a dev pays for this permissive
functionality by trading the speed that a C++ program can run at for a slightly
slower speed but with the advantage of being completely cross-platform.
Therefore, the primary difference between Java and C++ is the Java is completely
cross-platform but slightly slower.
At the same time, the slightly faster speed offered by the C++ programming is
not frequently sufficient enough to make up for the inconvenience of dealing
with lots of different libraries and the difficulty of trying to take a C++ program
and convert it to be fully functional on different platforms. A C++ program
can be converted to run on different operating systems, but each platform will
require a significant amount of time to configure the program to run properly
on that specific platform. At the same time, the benefits provided by the Java
programming language will continue to be more and more attractive with
regards to the fact that if you have a large number of different platforms that
you wish to run your program on, then Java is the technology you should use.

xvi
1
Portability

If you want to test your applications, you’ll be able to realize that Java
programs are frequently pretty good on different platforms. This fact is
especially true for those that programs make use of the native application
programming interfaces (API) directly. By using the native API directly,
you’ll be able to make sure that your programs will run more effectively
than with other programs.
I guess that this functionality will come from the libraries that you will
use these programs with on the native platforms. Also, I should state that
you might wish to keep the following facts in mind. You have additionally
got to realize that the following pieces of data deserve a significant amount
of attention.
If you look at how Java functions, you’ll be able to see that the structure
of Java is also the proof that a Java program is necessarily portable. Hence,
the only thing that is needed to run the Java program will frequently at the
same time be able to be ported to the specific system that you plan to run
your application on. These promises are made to check and make sure that
you will probably have available some excellent methods to achieve your
goals.
Hence, I arranged this chapter to help any individuals to find something
special from the following pieces of data. As far as codes that run an
application are concerned, it is not even a little problematic for an experienced
dev to be able to get a Java app to run on a new platform. In light of that fact,
you should consider how your program will function, and you should also
contemplate the truth that you’ll need to study those environments that you
want to use to run your Java object-oriented programming (OOP) language
programs on.
Other documents randomly have
different content
destined to pass through. Many of our visitors were anxious to learn,
through the Spirits, how to make a fortune. Some wished to know
the secrets of others; some, dissatisfied with their domestic
relations, sought the aid of Spirits to help them out of their difficulty;
some wanted to know what numbers they should buy in a lottery, to
be successful; others would wish to be advised in their stock
speculations.
To all such questions ready responses were given, but invariably
ended in failures.
This order of investigation brought us in rapport with an entirely
different class of Spirits. They had no particular motive in tormenting
us, but they seemed delighted to lead us on, and deceive the visitors
who sought them in such a spirit. But, when people sought for
communications of a more elevated character, answers were given
accordingly.
Frequently our friends would become so deeply interested in their
manifestations that they would forget we were mortal and needed
time to recuperate our physical strength. They did not know that
every echo, as it came through our medium forces, consumed a
portion of our vitality. The Spirit knew this, and would close the
séances by spelling “done.” This, our friends would sometimes take
exception to, and complain that they should break off so abruptly.
We could not explain, to their satisfaction, that we were exhausted
under the constant pressure of mind and body. The Spirits, knowing
this, would give the signal “done.” After this word done was spelled,
we never obtained anything of an elevated character. We could get
physical manifestations, of an independent character, such as
throwing things, and moving furniture in different parts of the
house. Those manifestations seldom seemed to weaken us, but
intellectual communications given through our immediate brain
forces had a weakening effect upon us when continued too long.
A gentleman (Dr. C. D. Griswold) living in Batavia had induced his
minister (an Episcopal clergyman) to visit us.
They arrived late; and, after a few questions had been answered,
the word “done” was spelled. They did not understand the meaning
of this, and continued their questions. Suddenly a loud rapping, in a
distant part of the room, spelled out, “Why the devil do you ask
questions after you have been told done?”
This was a terrible damper to us all. The minister stood aghast,
looking first at one and then at the other with astonishment, as if
wondering what kind of creatures we were. The friend who had
brought him was mortified in the extreme. They remained in town,
and called on us again the next morning. All things were quiet, and
we sat down with these two gentlemen alone. The doctor asked this
question, “Will the spirit of my dear father come and answer my
questions?”
Immediately the alphabet was called for, and spelled out this
sentence, “When good Spirits say ‘done,’ you should not seek for
further communications. Order is heaven’s first law, and you should
not overtax mediums; for no good Spirit will answer, after their
guardians say ‘done.’”
The doctor received the explanation favorably, and felt greatly
relieved when he saw his friend, the minister, was disposed to
investigate further. With us all was turmoil and confusion. When
manifestations and communications were consistent, we believed
them to come from good Spirits; but when they were to the
contrary, we condemned all as evil. We had no religious prejudices,
no motive whatever in establishing theories. We could make no
satisfactory explanations to the various interrogatories, made by
promiscuous parties who were constantly in attendance.
Let me here emphasize the fact that the general feeling of our
family, of all of us, including Calvin Brown, who was virtually one of
us, was strongly adverse to all this strange and uncanny thing. We
regarded it as a great misfortune, as it was an affliction, which had
fallen upon us; how, whence or why, we knew not. The influence of
the surrounding opinion of neighbors, and the country round about,
reacted upon us in conformation of our own natural and educational
impressions, that the whole thing was of evil origin, unnatural,
perplexing, and tormenting; while its unpopularity tended to cast a
painful shadow upon us. We resisted it, struggled against it, and
constantly and earnestly prayed for deliverance from it, even while a
strange fascination attached to these marvellous manifestations thus
forced upon us, against our will, by invisible agencies and agents
whom we could neither resist, control, nor understand. If our will,
earnest desires and prayers could have prevailed or availed, the
whole thing would have ended then and there, and the world
outside of our little neighborhood would never have heard more of
the Rochester Rappings, or of the unfortunate Fox family.
But the movement was not in our hands nor under our control. It
had an object, and we, as reluctant and humble instruments, were
in the hands of other and higher wills and forces, from whom it had
proceeded, by whom it was directed, and, so to speak, engineered.
We have since come to understand that all these events and
incidents, perplexing and distressful as they were to us, were but the
birth-throes of a new truth, which was destined to revolutionize this
world, and establish a communication between the here and the
hereafter; of the Earth and of the Spirit.
And I may here say that, inasmuch as Electricity and Magnetism
seem to play some part in the machinery of this intercommunication,
it is not surprising that the Spirit on the other side who seems to
have been the principal initiator, not to say the inventor of this new
development in the evolution of Humanity, was the great man
known to earthly fame as the father of electrical science, as he was
one of the great fathers of American liberty; he of whom it has been
grandly written that he snatched the lightning from the sky, and the
sceptre from the hand of the tyrant: the immortal Benjamin Franklin.

[5] It opened up communication between the two worlds of

matter and spirit, as that of Morse had done between distant
places in the material plane of our life.—Ed.
 CHAPTER V.

ROCHESTER (Continued), November, 1848.

Light Articles made Immovable—The Coffins—Adieu of the Spirits—Their Return—First
Steps toward Public Investigation—“Hire Corinthian Hall”—First Committee of
Investigation—Second—Third or “Infidel” Committee—Behavior of a Great Dining-
table—The Tar and Torpedo Mob.

All this could not have gone on very long in a western city (as it then
was) like Rochester, with its 70,000 inhabitants, without leading to a
state of feeling and opinion which made it impossible to keep the
matter confined to the limited number of persons who, from time to
time, got access to séances (at our house) held under the auspices
of the committee of five persons previously named.
Mr. E. W. Capron, of Auburn, had been introduced to us by friends of
long standing. He was at that time a sceptic in almost everything
relating to immortality, but he was an honest man, and soon became
thoroughly convinced of the truth of Spiritualism. We still hoped to
suppress the manifestations, and mother consented to let Cathie go
home with Mr. and Mrs. Capron, imagining by that means to put a
stop to further disturbances. For a few days there seemed to be a
change for the better, and again mother thought she had
accomplished her object; but all this while the Spirits had been
actively employed, as they soon convinced us by more powerful
demonstrations than ever. They had redoubled their forces and
paraded themselves through every part of the house, standing guard
at all the apertures, thus to prevent any two of us from coming near
each other to confer on any matter, however important we deemed
it to be.
During the winter of 1849, scarcely a day passed that we did not
have some new and wonderful exhibition of the power and
intelligence of our strange visitors. At times things would fly through
space, above our heads, when there was no human form to be seen.
The chairs, tables, and even small articles, would suddenly become
so heavy that no strength that we could exert could move them. It
became a common saying in our house that “the Spirits are holding
them down,” when we would have occasion to lift any light article
from one place to another. It was constantly repeated to us that we
had “a mission to perform,” and we were directed to “make ready for
the work.” My mother declared that we would never yield to any
such directions again; but the Spirits said, “You have been chosen to
go before the world to convince the sceptical of the great truth of
immortality.” It was in vain that we opposed to this a strenuous
resistance, and argued that we had already done enough, and more
than should be required of us. But the constant burden of their
declaration was that we must “go forth and do our duty.”
At last they resorted to more violent measures of coercion. One
morning, on awaking, we found four coffins drawn on the kitchen
floor, of life-size, and corresponding to the different sizes of mother,
myself, Margaretta, and Katie: and after we had washed them away,
we found next morning the same fearful objects on the ceiling.
Twice again was this repeated in the dining-room, so that they came
four times in all. They were handsomely and artistically drawn in
black and white, the lids being thrown back to show how beautifully
they had done the work of pinking the white linings. Each coffin had
the drawing of its plate, and on them were perfectly and correctly
written our respective names and ages, while beneath them was
also written in large plain letters: “If you do not go forth and do your
duty you will soon be laid in your coffins.” We called in our friends to
behold the gruesome sight. Some were superstitious and declared
that they would not dare to disobey such biddings; but we feared
that if we yielded to them, we would become subject to some
unknown evil influences, so that mother still held out against what
did not meet her approval.
It is impossible for me to make my reader understand and realize
the scenes we passed through. Crowds of inquirers came to the
house at all hours of the day and evening.
The committee had more than they could attend to; we had no time
to attend to any household duties. My music pupils had all left, and
the question arose: “What shall we do? How can we live so?” The
new house was finished, and father wanted us all to come home;
but the Spirits said, “No, you cannot go; you must remain here and
do your duty.” After a few brief messages to friends, the Spirits, in a
most impressive and solemn manner, bade us all good-by, and
closed their manifestations. They made the occasion quite solemn,
and the company felt wholly deserted when they became satisfied
that the Spirits had taken their final departure. We tried, on several
occasions, to get the sounds; but could not. The Spirits remained
firm in their decision for twelve days.
Mother now deemed it advisable to return to her home (in Arcadia,
Wayne County), as she was much needed there, and she hoped we
would no longer be disturbed by Spirits. Margaretta, Calvin, myself,
and Alfie, our good servant, were alone, and the absence of all
manifestations or Spiritual communications caused many a pang of
remorse. Often we wished it were possible for us to enjoy the
society of our dear Spirit friends, without being forced into that
public notoriety and that constant collision with a hostile world which
seemed to be involved in what the Spirits called the “duty” which
they were urging upon us.
While we were thus in silent waiting, and had given up all hope of
again hearing from our Spirit friends, Mr. Capron, of Auburn, and Mr.
George Willets, of Rochester, called on us. As we saw them coming,
we met them at the door and informed them that the Spirits would
not rap for us any more. They came into the hall, saying, “Perhaps
they will rap for us, if not for you.” And so they did. They came with
the well-known joyous sounds, all over the hall, as if they were glad
to meet us all again. We could not repress our great satisfaction at
the renewal of our enjoyment, for we now felt that there had really
been enjoyment in it, however mingled with perplexity and distress.
It was, to us, like the return of long absent friends, whose value,
while with us, we had not sufficiently appreciated.
It was during this interview that the Spirits again broached the
subject of a public investigation. Directions were given to have the
whole matter made public.
They then detailed their plan to us in a lengthy communication. They
told us what was required of us, and what they declared to be our
duty, as follows:
“You all have a duty to perform. We want you to make the matter
more public.” To this, Mr. Capron replied that nothing but the
greatest ridicule would be heaped upon all who should engage in
such an undertaking. The following message immediately came in
reply, “That will be so much the better. Your triumph will be so much
the greater!” They told Capron and Willets, that they (the Spirits)
wanted them to get up meetings for the purpose of letting the public
know this great truth. Our friends (C. and W.) said in reply to this
that they had families to support; and they could not see how they
could go before the public with a matter which must make them so
decidedly unpopular in the then existing state of public opinion. The
Spirits then directed that we should hold meetings at different
private houses; and they (the Spirits) would manifest for
promiscuous companies. Meetings were accordingly held at the
residences of Messrs. Willets, Post, Granger, and others. The Spirits
fulfilled their promises admirably. We decided to leave the entire
movement to their direction. We felt powerless to act on our own
judgment. We met at the house of Mr. Isaac Post to talk over the
matter, and learn all we could in regard to this great step forced
upon us in a way so contrary to our own wishes. We had not been
long in the parlor before the alphabet was called and spelled, “Amy,
thee must invite sixteen persons to come here on Saturday evening,
to hear the Spirit rappings.” Amy (Mrs. Post) replied, “Why, I don’t
know whom to invite to such an entertainment. How can I do so?”
The rapping answered, “I will tell thee: ‘Mr. or Mrs. ——: You are
invited By the Spirits to call at the house of Mr. Isaac Post next
Thursday evening, at eight o’clock, to hear the Spirits rap.’” Amy said
she did not know whom to invite, and asked the Spirits if they would
give her the names. This they consented to do, and proceeded to
spell out the names of persons, many of whom neither Mrs. Post nor
any one present knew. They were all lawyers, editors, and doctors.
It is to be regretted that the book containing these names is lost. Dr.
Moore was the only one named who did not come in answer to the
invitation. Frederick Douglass, editor of The North Star, was present.
They met, as I have stated, at the house of Isaac Post. They
listened, with respectful attention, to the sounds of the rappings. A
part of the company went into the cellar, and a part remained in the
room above; but the rapping always seemed to be on the side
opposite to the listeners. After they had satisfied themselves of the
reality of the sounds, and that they were not made by us, they
proposed to get some answers to questions, but the comment or
answer of the Spirits was, “No. We invited you here to listen to the
sounds, and not to get communications. Good night.” They did,
however, make another appointment for the next Thursday evening,
at the house of Mr. George Willets, and again all except Dr. Moore
came, with some individuals added to the number, and the sounds
were heard as in the first instance. Again the visitors proposed to
get answers to questions; but again the reply was that they were
only invited to hear the sounds.
This whole proceeding, as they informed us, was to convince us that
they could rap sufficiently loud to be heard in a public hall.
The Spirits then gave us their directions as follows: “Hire Corinthian
Hall” (then the largest hall in Rochester). Margaretta and myself
were to go to the hall; Mr. Capron was to deliver the lecture, in
which he was to relate the commencement at Hydesville, and the
progress of it up to the present time. Mr. Willets was to act as friend
and business man, doorkeeper, etc. A committee of five gentlemen
was to be appointed at each meeting, by the audience, and
instructed to report at the commencement of the next meeting.
The Spirits who had given the directions had promised to make the
sounds so loud that all in the hall could hear them. Before the
meeting the following names were spelled out, of persons thus
designated to sit on the platform with us: Rev. A. Jervis (Methodist
minister), Lyman Granger (a well-known member of the M. E.
Church), Simeon Draper (a prominent Methodist), Mrs. Sarah D. Fish
(a member of the Society of Friends), and Mrs. Pierpont. When
these names were first spelled out by the Spirits some of the
persons objected to thus going forward in so unpopular a work,
when the Rev. Mr. Jervis spoke up and said, “I know it is true, and
I’ll face a frowning world.” His emphatic earnestness awoke the
others who had been named, and they all consented to serve. It
should be remembered that the most minute directions were given
by the Spirits, through the use of the alphabet, without suggestions
from any one concerned in the work to be done. The Spirits told us,
moreover, that this was the best way to interest the public, and
prepare them for a more general acceptance of Spiritual
Communication by the world at large.
Notices were accordingly published in the newspapers of the
meeting to be held in Corinthian Hall, on the evening of November
14, 1848.
According to the directions of the Spirits, Margaretta and myself
appeared at Corinthian Hall, where a large audience had already
assembled to witness the manifestations which had excited so much
general curiosity.
Mr. Capron, in delivering the lecture, depended more upon his
knowledge of the facts, as they had then occurred, than on any
theory of his own, or of others, in regard to the rappings.
We wished to have the subject carefully scrutinized by honest
committees, and have them report to the public the result of their
investigations. Mr. Capron stated emphatically that if he could not
explain what it was, he certainly knew what it was not.
It was also announced to the audience that no ordinary minds would
be accepted on the committees. We had, at that early day,
discovered that the greater the intelligence, the more satisfactory
were the manifestations. At this lecture the audience listened with
very respectful attention. The editor of a Second Advent paper also
delivered his little speech, telling the audience that the sounds were
spiritual, he had no doubt; but it was the spirit of the devil, and that
the persons in whose presence the sounds were heard should be
cast into prison. He said his “little say,” and we never heard of him
afterward.
When this episode had closed, the following gentlemen were named
as a Committee of Investigation, and requested to report the next
evening, viz., A. J. Coombs, Daniel Marsh, Nathaniel Clark, A.
Judson, and Edwin Jones.
Thus the first great step was taken, in order to lay the facts of
Modern Spiritualism before the world. It was now to be tried in a
way by which no guilty person could hope to escape detection. Any
one guilty of fraud as great as this would have been, had it consisted
of simulation on our part, must certainly have met with swift
exposure, and been stripped of all power or opportunity for further
mischief. In fact, could it be rationally apprehended that we, or any
one, would have dared to face an adverse public, of a thronged city,
and the entire sentiment of a world against us, as we had been
directed to do, with nothing but a damning falsehood at our backs to
lean upon?
The appointment of an intelligent committee was readily agreed
upon by the audience; and they—most of them perhaps—felt
confident that the supposed fraud would now be probed to the
bottom. So sure seemed the editors of the Rochester Democrat that
this was “the last of the rappings,” that they wrote a long article on
the “humbug” which had deceived so many, rejoicing that the end
was near.
But when, on the following evening, the Committee made their
report, the newspaper men were obliged to substitute something
else in place of the anticipated detection and exposure, as the result
of their examination did not verify the theory of these newspaper
quasi-leaders and instructors of public thought. The following was
the report of the Committee:
“Without the knowledge of the persons in whose presence the
manifestations are made, the Committee selected the hall of the
‘Sons of Temperance,’ for investigation of the subject under
consideration. That the sounds, on the floor near where the
Mediums stood, were heard as distinctly as at the other places; and
that part of the Committee heard the rapping on the wall behind
them; that a number of questions were asked, which were answered
not altogether right nor altogether wrong; that, in the afternoon,
they went to the house of a private citizen, and while there, the
sounds were heard on the outside (apparently) of the front door,
after they had entered, and on the door of a closet. By placing the
hand upon the door, there was a sensible jar felt when the rapping
was heard.
“One of the Committee placed one of his hands upon the feet of the
ladies, and the other on the floor, and though the feet were not
moved, there was a distinct jar of the floor. On the pavement and on
the ground the same sounds were heard; a kind of double rap, as of
a stroke and a rebound, was distinguishable. When the sisters were
separated at a distance from each other, no sound was heard; but
when a third person was interposed between them, the sounds were
heard. The sisters seemed to give every opportunity to the
Committee to investigate the case fully, and would submit to a
thorough investigation by a committee of ladies, if desired. They all
agree that the sounds were heard, but they entirely fail to discern
any means by which it could be done.”
On the following evening, each member of the Committee spoke for
himself, and they all perfectly agreed as to the facts stated. Their
report was received with surprise by such of the audience as had
come with the expectation of having the subject exposed as a fraud,
and the rappings stopped.
After some further remarks by Mr. Capron, and a discussion of a
brief character upon the subject, another Committee was appointed
consisting of the following gentlemen: Dr. H. H. Langworthy, Hon.
Frederick Whittlesey, General D. C. McCallum, William Fisher, of
Rochester, and Hon. A. P. Hascall, of Le Roy, subsequently member
of Congress.
At the meeting, on the evening after this lecture, this Committee
reported that “They went into the investigation at the office of
Chancellor Whittlesey, and they heard the sounds on the floor, on
the wall, and on the door; that the ladies were placed in different
positions, and, like the other Committee, they were unable to tell
from what the sounds proceeded, or how they were made; that Dr.
Langworthy made observations with a stethoscope to ascertain
whether there was any movement of the lungs, and found not the
least difference when the sounds were being made, and there was
no kind of probability or possibility of their being made by
ventriloquism, as some had supposed; and they could not have been
made by machinery.”
As this report was read, there was a murmur of discontent, of
baffled opposition, and, in some cases, unmistakable willingness to
proceed to violence against all who had offered every opportunity for
fair investigation. Many persons, among the large number
congregated there, were disappointed and indignant at the discovery
that it was not a cheat. A very large number of people were present
on this occasion, and a portion of them seemed determined that the
cause of the deception, or the manner of its performance, should be
ascertained and exposed. They predetermined that there could be
no honesty unless it came in their old beaten track of belief.
It was during the investigation on this second day, that Chancellor
Whittlesey informed me that he was a friend to us. He said to me:
“Now, don’t be alarmed. I am a friend to you and know that these
things are true. I have read ‘Davis’s Revelations,’ and I believe fully
that Spirits can communicate. You shall have a fair investigation.”
This was after very insulting and even violent behavior by Dr. H. H.
Langworthy; and it did me a great deal of good to be so assured by
one of the Committee, and one of the best of them; and also a man
who had long been Vice Chancellor of the State of New York; and
whom the whole country knew as one of the wise men of the time, a
neighbor of ours and known to us.
On the third evening the audience was much larger, and a portion of
them seemed determined that at all hazards, and cost what it might,
it should be exposed. Mr. Warren L. Burtis declared that “those girls
would not have him on the Committee for a hundred dollars;”
intimating that he was known to possess unusual facilities for the
detection of fraud. The audience was not looking for the proof of
facts. They constituted a large and self-chosen committee who
seemed to consider it their duty to prove by anathemas the falsity of
Spiritualism. He, W. L. Burtis, was at once placed on the Committee;
and after being so appointed, he remarked with much importance, if
he “could not find it out he would forfeit a new hat.” Mr. Kenyon
said, “If I cannot fathom the fraud, I will throw myself over Genesee
Falls.” He too was immediately placed on the Committee. All the
others chosen as members were equally opposed to us. The
Committee consisted of Dr. E. P. Langworthy, Dr. J. Gates, William
Fitzhugh, W. L. Burtis, and L. Kenyon. Mr. Packard, a well-known
cabinet-maker, suggested that if he were chosen he would have a
party of ladies to examine the clothing of the girls, as he believed
the sounds were all made by leaden balls, sewed in the bottom of
their dresses. But Mr. Packard was not chosen, because, as before
stated, the occasion required the application of the higher order of
intelligence. To this, however, no attention was given by him or
others excepting a significant smile of disappointment. The public
had by this time learned that such leaden-ball suggestions were not
less than absurd.
This Committee met at the rooms of Dr. Gates, in the Rochester
House. This was called the “Infidel Committee.” The public had
heretofore chosen persons of a more religious character; and men
representing the scientific portion of the inhabitants had now
concluded that, by placing the subject in the hands of scientific
infidels, they would “fathom the fraud.”
This party now chosen were disgusted by the reflection that they
were to enter upon such an undertaking; but they had been chosen,
and would serve and do their duty to the public. This Committee
appointed three ladies, who took us into a private room, disrobed
and clothed us with garments of their own selection, after which we
seated ourselves around a table; but no manifestations of any
importance were made. Disappointed in not finding any machinery,
they had a lurking suspicion that we had doffed it for the occasion.
They called on the “Ghosts” to manifest themselves if they could,
but no responses came to such invitations. They now concluded it
was about dinner-time, and said to us, “You can go home and get
your dinner. Perhaps the ghosts will be more sociable in the
afternoon;” plainly intimating that we could go home and prepare
ourselves for rapping, and that things would be more satisfactory
after our return. It was now my turn to be the speaker; I told them:
“No, we shall not stir from this room until the time for this
investigation shall expire; which will be at six o’clock p.m.” Some of
the Committee exclaimed, “Good for the Rappers! That looks like
business. Ladies and gentlemen, let us have dinner in this room. We
will give the girls fair play.” A sumptuous dinner was prepared and
brought in to us, and all took seats at the table. They taunted us in
every way. Sometimes we felt ourselves forsaken, and disposed to
give up in despair. Our friends were locked out, and not permitted to
come into the room; but we could hear their faithful footsteps
outside the door, in the hall of the hotel—Isaac and Amy Post, Mr.
and Mrs. Pierpont, George Willets, and others. My young sister
Maggie was by my side, bathed in tears. Dr. Gates was carving. I
was struggling with a choking emotion, and could not taste food.
The party were joking and funning at our expense, when, suddenly
the great table began to tremble, and raised first one end and then
the other, with loud creaking sounds, like a ship struggling in a
heavy gale, until it was finally suspended above our heads.
For a moment all were silent and looked at each other with
astonishment. The waiters fled in every direction. Instantly the scene
was changed. The ladies threw their arms around us, one after
another; and it was their turn to cry.
They said to us: “Oh, you poor girls, how you have been abused!
Oh, how sorry we are for you; after all, it is true!” The gentlemen
with one accord said, “Girls, you have gained a victory. We will stand
by you to the last.”
Let it be understood that this Committee of ladies and gentlemen
took us to the parlors of the Rochester House, which could be
divided into two rooms by closing the folding-doors. After dinner the
gentlemen of the Committee insulated the table by putting glass
under the legs, procured two sacks of feathers, and advised the
ladies how to conduct the investigation. They then closed the doors,
and (the gentlemen of the Committee having retired) left us and the
lady members of the Committee alone. By this time the Committee
had become kindly disposed toward us. They suggested to us that
we should stand upon the sacks of feathers on the table, with our
dresses tied tight above our ankles. We complied with all their
suggestions, cheerfully. Immediately the sounds were heard on the
table, floor, and walls. The ladies instantly opened the doors, and
the gentlemen came in and witnessed the manifestations
themselves.
The ladies, at my suggestion, signed the following certificate:
“When they were standing on pillows, with a handkerchief tied
around the bottom of their dresses, tight to their ankles, we all
heard the rapping on the table, on the wall, and floor distinctly.
 “Mrs. Stone.
“Mrs. J. Gates.
“Miss M. P. Lawrence.”

Before we left the room, word was sent to the Committee, saying,
“Do not go to the Hall this evening; for if you report favorably to the
girls you will be mobbed.” Our friends, who anticipated a riot and
feared for our safety, as soon as we got to the house after this
terrible day’s work and anxiety, urged us not to go to the Hall. But
what were we to do? Even the Committee were threatened if it
made a favorable report; but they all informed us that they would
protect us in any event.
E. W. Capron and George Willets said, “What are we to do, if you
forsake us at such a time?” Amy Post said, “Go, I will go with you.”
The Spirits spelled, “Go, God will protect you. You will not be
harmed.” Margaretta had been so harassed during the day, and had
been so urged by some of her friends, that she resolved not to go to
the Hall that night. This would have spoiled all our success so far. It
would be utter ruin to us. Amy Post (that darling little Quaker lady),
who stood firm as a rock, said, “We will go and sit down by
ourselves, and see how we shall feel about it.” I soon said, “Amy, if
you will go, I will go with you, if I go to my death.” Margaretta did
not change her mind until we were preparing to go, when she said,
“I cannot have you go without me. I must go, although I expect we
will be killed.” So we all went. We found the faithful friends, who
were appointed to sit on the platform, already in their places. There
were but few words said by Mr. Capron, as every one was anxious to
hear the report of the Committee. When it was made, it was more
full than any of the others. It rehearsed the fact that they had
excluded from the room, in which the examination was conducted,
all our friends, and we were left alone to fight the battle. Each
member of the Committee reported separately, agreeing with, and
corroborating the first statement.
The reports of the different committees did not satisfy the rowdy
element, which at this time had become a howling mob, who were
predetermined to assault us, and also the last Committee, if they did
not report against us. They even warmed tar, and had it concealed in
a closet at the head of the stairway adjacent to the door of the Hall.
Some of our friends, knowing this, took the precaution of calling on
the police. Our Committee was informed of the proceedings of the
mob, and when we separated at six o’clock and went to Mr. Post’s to
await the hour of meeting at the Hall, declared to us that they would
stand by us, in these words: “Never fear, girls, you have gained the
victory; we will stand by you to the last.” And they did, nobly.
We were directed by the Spirits to go forth and submit to everything
lawful; but that the committees chosen by the audience should be
composed of such as represented the best intelligence of the
community.
Josiah Bissel was the presiding genius of the mob. He had caused to
be purchased some torpedoes which he distributed among his rowdy
friends to throw upon the floor, and thus begin disturbance. It had
been agreed upon by his bosom friends (the rowdy element) that he
should ascend the platform, and with a long heavy stick, which he
carried as a cane, give a signal for the onslaught. The other leaders
in this mob were Lawrence R. and Leonard W. Jerome, Alderman
Lewis Seelye, Major Packard, and others, awaiting the signal. But no
sooner was it given them than a fine, large, respectable-looking
gentleman sprang upon the platform and took a seat between
myself and my sister, whose hand he took in his. I thought, at the
moment, he was an enemy, and ordered him to leave, and not dare
touch my sister. He replied, “I am your friend; I am the Chief of
Police—look, these men in front are all my men; and they have come
to protect you.”
At the sound of the signal made by Bissel, the mob rushed to the
platform. Torpedoes were heard in every part of the Hall. The Chief
of Police quietly informed Josiah Bissel that if any one was taken into
custody he would be the man.
As the mob began their demonstrations, one gentleman, Mr. Alfred
Hubbell, who had been an investigator at our house, raised his hand
and said in a loud voice: “Girls, you have nothing to fear. Don’t be
afraid. I have fifty good men here all ready to protect you.”
Mr. Abelard Reynolds, proprietor of the Hall, was on the platform,
determined to stand between us and the mob. The ringleaders of
the mob, followed by their gang, quickly disappeared. Our work, as
planned by the Spirits, for that time was done. Our triumph was
complete. The promises of our Spirit friends and directors were all
fulfilled. However they may have allowed suspicion to come upon us,
which it was not in their power to prevent, they had always brought
us safe and sound out of the apparent difficulty, and gained a signal
triumph through our humble agency.
 CHAPTER VI.

MEDIUMISTIC VEIN IN OUR FAMILY.

Some Family Antecedents—Our Great-grandmother—Phantom Prophetic Funerals—Vision

of a Tombstone Nine Years in Advance, etc.

I will here interrupt the course of this narrative with a chapter about
our family, principally in reference to that peculiar and strange
constitutional something, which, in us three children (myself and the
two younger ones, Margaretta and Catharine), has come out so
strongly into what is called “mediumship,” and which would seem to
have been the cause why the “Spirits,” whose instruments we have
been, chose us for their purpose, and imposed upon us the burden
of what they called “the duty,” against which we thus so long and
hard, but vainly, struggled.
My parents were both native-born Americans. My father’s ancestors
were German; the name having been originally Voss, which passed
through Foss into Fox. In my mother’s family, French, English, and
Dutch mingled. Her paternal grandfather, John C. Smith, was of
English ancestry. He married Elizabeth Blauvelt, of descent from
Holland. Her maternal grandfather was French, Rutan by name, and
her maternal grandmother, whose maiden name was Margaret
Ackerman, was also a descendant from Holland, and resided on
Long Island with her parents until her marriage, after which she
removed to New York City, where her only child, my grandmother,
was born. She (Margaret Rutan), my mother’s maternal
grandmother, had, from childhood, evinced the power of foretelling
events. She frequently followed phantom funerals, and entering the
grave-yard, would stand and look on until the last rites had been
performed, after which she would turn away sorrowing. She never
felt timid until the ceremony was ended. Then she would find herself
alone, in her normal condition, and remembering all she had seen,
and knowing also what would inevitably follow, she would be sadly
depressed.
On two occasions she was prevailed upon to tell whose funeral she
had attended the previous night, which caused her such intense
distress of mind, she besought them to never again urge her to
reveal that which was made known to her during her somnambulic
walks. The moment the person ceased to breathe, she would say,
“Mr. or Mrs. (whoever it might be) is dead.”
If the death had taken place in a distant part of the country it would
make no difference, so long as the burial place was there. She felt
relieved as soon as the event transpired. She always visited the
grave-yard between the hours of twelve and two o’clock at night. My
grandfather frequently walked slowly after her to accompany her
home on her return.
Another remarkable feature used to attend these nocturnal
excursions of my great-grandmother, in the somnambulic condition,
when she would thus witness the celebration of funerals of persons
who were at the time still alive and well. She would see and
recognize all the persons in attendance on the funeral, from the
officiating minister down, and afterward remember and relate their
names, which used always to correspond with the fact as it
afterward came about. She would even tell by whose horses the
body was brought to the grave (in the country at that time there
were no regular hearses, and this service was performed by some
friend or neighbor). When the crowded phantom funeral was over
she would awake to find herself alone in the graveyard; sometimes
with my grandfather (her son-in-law) awaiting at a little distance to
accompany her return home. But frequently she had no such
watching attendant, and I remember to have heard it said how
distressing it would be for her to awake entirely alone and make her
solitary way homeward, from what she knew to be the
foreshadowed interment of some one near and dear.
 MY AUNT ELIZABETH’S VISION OF HER OWN TOMBSTONE.

My mother’s sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Higgins, had much the same

faculty. She never left her bed at night to visit scenes about to
transpire, but nearly everything of importance was foreshadowed in
her dreams. She would frequently relate them on the morning
following. One morning, she gave us a relation of her dream. She
said, laughingly, to her brother: “I dreamed I had a fall, last night.
You and I were riding on horseback, when suddenly my horse
stumbled and fell in front of Judge Perry’s door. I rolled down the
little embankment, and Tom Foot came and helped me up.”
Grandmother said, “That can’t come true, for Tom is, by this time,
far away.” They thought no more of it.
Some time after, her brother said to her, “Bessie, would you like to
take a ride with me this morning?” She replied that she would, and
they soon started off, each on a spirited horse, never thinking of her
dream, until the horse stumbled and she fell and rolled down the
bank, exactly in front of Judge Perry’s door. Tom came out and
helped her up. He had not gone away, as he had contemplated
doing.
Mr. Robert Dale Owen, in his “Foot-falls on the Boundary of Another
World,” has given a more detailed account of her remarkable
dreams. I will only add the last sad fulfilment of a dream which she
had some years previously to its fulfilment. She was then in her
nineteenth year. She said, “I dreamed I was in a new country,
walking alone, when suddenly I came to a small cemetery, and,
walking up to one of the most prominent head-stones, read the
inscription, which was this:

IN MEMORY
OF

ELIZABETH SMITH,
Wife of H——,
 Who departed this life
In the year of our Lord 18—,
Aged 27 years, 8 months and 26 days.”[6]

She was deeply impressed by this dream, and could not rest. She
left her bed, and went into her mother’s sleeping-room, sobbing,
and related the dream. Her father and mother both endeavored to
disabuse her mind of any belief in this unhappy dream. He tenderly
folded her in his arms and quoted from Scripture many beautiful
sayings, such as: “Of that day and hour knoweth no man: no, not
even the angels in Heaven.” She was comforted and seldom referred
to her dream. The gentleman to whom she was affianced died. Her
father purchased a home, and moved to Sodus, Wayne County, N. Y.,
where she became acquainted with Mr. C. Higgins. They were
married, and enjoyed five years of uninterrupted happiness. The
time was drawing near when she expected to become a mother.
Uncle Charles was a devoted husband, and regretted that duty called
him from home at this time. (He was engaged in Albany on public
business.) He could not rest; he must return to his darling little wife,
and spend a few days with her, and arrange with his brother, Dr.
Higgins, to remain as a protector and physician in his house, until all
danger had passed. He came (to her) unexpected, and she was
delighted to see him.
The doctor came to remain as long as it was necessary. Her husband
had already overstaid his time; and, as it was important for him to
be in Albany, he was obliged to leave. There were many anxious
hearts that feared, and silently prayed that their hopes of happiness
might be realized. (I really do think that she had been reasoned out
of belief in that dream.) She rejoiced and was happy when he
promised her he would never again accept an office which would
take him from home.
It was a bright, lovely morning. The team stood waiting at the gate,
to take him to Newark (ten miles), the nearest point from which he
could reach the canal packet boat, for Albany. Bessie walked with
him to the gate (about two hundred feet from the door), where he
tenderly embraced her and kissed her again and again, promising
that he would refrain from leaving home on business in the future.
He alluded in glowing terms to their prospects of happiness, in the
birth of their expected child, and warned her of the danger of
yielding to superstition. He begged her not to repeat her dreams, as
they were the result of a disordered condition of health. Then, taking
her in his arms, he carried her back to the house, saying: “My
darling, I cannot part with you here at the gate; permit me to
remember you as seated in your pleasant room, surrounded by
loving friends, and happy again.” He held her in a long, fond
embrace, kissing her with tears and sobs, and gently seating her in
her easy-chair, bade her farewell, and rushed to the conveyance,
fearing to look back, lest he should see her weeping at the door.
She wept some time after he was gone, but soon felt more cheerful,
and frequently repeated what he had promised—that he would
never leave home again after that season.
A week had passed, and a little voice was heard. She fondly clasped
her babe to her breast and called it “My little Charles, my darling
baby! Oh! how happy I am.” They were both doing well. Letters
were sent to her husband by every mail, which were duly received
by him. She wished the child would resemble his father, who was a
splendid man in every sense. She too was perfect in form and
feature.
It was the day on which she had attained her age of twenty-seven
years, eight months, and twenty-six days, the age marked on the
tombstone she had seen in her dream of about nine years before. All
the family knew of it, though she gave no sign of thinking of it, and
seemed entirely cheerful and happy.
The little one was two weeks old; a letter was received that morning
saying, “I shall be at home the last of this week. I shall say farewell
to Albany.” Words cannot express her joy at this unexpected
announcement. She directed everything, how to dress the baby, and
arranged for them to go after her husband’s mother and sister, who
had not seen the little one, as they had been absent on a visit. They
were delighted to find Bessie and the baby so well, and the little
Charles looking “so exactly like his father, except that he had his
mother’s curly hair.” The mother seemed perfectly happy, but there
were anxious hearts that silently prayed to God to avert the fearful
calamity, which they feared might now be hanging over them. The
day was passing away. She was well and cheerful. Her family were
near her, doing all they could to divert her thoughts from the date.
Her minister, Rev. Mark Johnson, and his wife called to spend an
hour with the family. She was pleased to see them, and united with
them in prayer. She called Mrs. Johnson to see how sweetly the
infant nestled in her bosom. Then, turning to the minister she said,
“Mr. Johnson, we shall have the baby christened Charles Smith
Higgins as soon as his father comes home.”
The last rays of the setting sun shone on the tree tops. Once more
she called attention to the child, smiling on it the while; when
suddenly she exclaimed, “Oh!” and placed one hand upon her
breast, while with the other pressing the babe closer to her bosom.
Mother caught her in her arms, her sister Catharine ran to call the
doctor; but before they could enter the room, her spirit had taken its
flight to the immortal world.
Her tombstone now records her dream, verbatim, in the old
cemetery in Sodus.
They directed letters to her husband and friends in Albany, also sent
letters to every packet-boat going east and returning. (There were
no railroads nor convenient telegraph wires at that time.) They
published the sad news in all the papers, and sent them to every
place where he would be likely to get them.
He left Albany on Thursday, expecting to reach home on Sunday. At
Lyons he left the boat, thinking he could reach home some hours
sooner by taking a private conveyance. He met an acquaintance at
the hotel, who handed him a paper containing a “special notice” of
the sudden death of Mrs. Elizabeth Higgins. He saw no more, but fell
prostrated with overwhelming grief. In vain they tried to rouse him
until the reaction came. The funeral was appointed for half-past two
o’clock p.m. He had twenty miles to ride, and it was nearly one
o’clock then; he called for a horse, and started direct for the church,
hoping to reach there before the burial. A large concourse had
already assembled at the house, which was about two miles distant
from the church. All were anxiously looking and waiting for the
absent one. The weather was extremely warm, and they would
proceed slowly; so it was thought best to start. Several times they
halted on the way. Every eye and ear were strained to catch the
faintest sight or sound, but all in vain. The church was reached. The
mourners moved slowly up the aisle. There was not a single heart in
that large assembly which did not thrill with sorrowful emotion. The
congregation prayed in silence, and sobs were heard in every part of
the house. The minister stood silent for a moment, then slowly and
distinctly said—“I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord.”
His voice was deep and solemn, and its clear tones penetrated every
heart. His eyes beamed with tenderness, as he recounted with
touching pathos the scenes of past happiness and this sad reverse.
He offered up petitions to the Most High for the bereaved husband
and friends. After taking final leave of those dearly loved features, so
soon to be closed forever from our mortal vision, we started for the
cemetery, distant about a quarter of a mile. Once more we halted.
All hearts were high-strung with the hope that Uncle Charles might
yet arrive; a prayer was said, the last sad offices were performed,
and the friends returned, with aching hearts, to their bereaved
home. Just as the family were entering the gateway, a tired, dusty
rider came galloping at full speed. He came from the cemetery,
where he had been seen to throw himself on the newly made grave,
and call, in the bitter anguish of his soul, “My darling, O, my darling,
come back to me.” (His sister’s son witnessed the scene.) It was sad
to see his manly form so bowed by sorrow. He threw his arms
around her sisters and held them in a long embrace; then calling for
the child, he clasped it to his heart, crying, “My Bessie’s baby! Oh,
my darling child! You are all that is left to me.”
I cannot describe his grief. It can be better imagined, than
expressed in language.

PROPHETIC CLAIRVOYANCE.

Another story of my great-grandmother, which not only exists in the

family, but which I perfectly remember to have heard from her own
lips, illustrates her faculty of what I may call prophetic clairvoyance.
She had a friend and neighbor, named Urie, who had a splendid
team of horses, of which he was very fond and proud, but which she
had often urged him to get rid of, assuring him that they would
cause his death if he did not. Her habitual manifestations of this
faculty were during her somnambulic walks in the middle hours of
the night; but this I am now to relate occurred about noonday, when
she had not been asleep.
She was seated at a window which looked upon the road, engaged
in some work of embroidery, when she was seen to start up, rush
out to the road and run at her utmost speed about a mile, to a spot
where the grassy side of the road sloped up to a fence. At this spot
(followed by Mr. Urie’s wife and family), she ran up to the fence,
and, taking off her apron, was seen to hold something, seemingly
enfolded in it, with every indication of extreme agitation and
distress. With her hands clasped together she was seen to rock her
body backward and forward in great distress over the something
apparently covered by the apron. Exactly one year from that day she
did see from her window Mr. Urie’s team running away wildly past
the house, dragging him entangled in the lines.
At the precise spot where she had stopped before, now lay his dead
body, with the bloody face so torn and disfigured that she took off
her apron to cover it up from sight.
My mother used frequently to receive warning of an approaching
death in the family, through a particular dream (it was that of dining
with General Washington). The recurrence of that dream always
brought with it great distress to her mind, and she used to say (she
was the soul of truth and all human goodness) that this warning had
never failed her.
Much more on this subject of these indications of ancestral
mediumship running in our family may be found in Mr. Owen’s “Foot-
falls,” he having taken particular interest in inquiring into the aspect
of the subject.

BROTHER DAVID.

Besides ourselves, who have been brought so prominently before

the public, my brother David and my other sisters have often given
clear proofs of some form or degree of mediumship. David and his
wife can, at almost any time, communicate with Spirits; not only by
sitting at a table, but by together touching a chair, or any other
similar object, the movements of which will signal to them the letters
of the alphabet.

UNCLE JOHN.

My mother’s only brother, John, was once kicked on the head by a

favorite horse, which the blacksmith did not dare to shoe, and which
his young master once rashly attempted to handle for the purpose.
Uncle John was carried into the hotel unconscious, where he lay all
night in that condition. About twelve o’clock that night his sister,
Aunt Elizabeth (Mrs. Higgins), at home, about thirty miles distant,
both heard and saw him walk across her room, groaning in pain. As
he did not answer when she spoke to him, she supposed he had not
heard her, and she went into her grandfather’s room; who, speaking
first before she could do so, said, “What’s the matter with John? He
has walked past my door several times, holding his hand to his head,
and looked into my room; but when I spoke, he went away without
answering me.”
The next morning word came that he was lying, dangerously injured,
at the hotel. His father went immediately to him, but found him
unconscious and unable to speak. He eventually recovered, and
declared that he had been at home with the family during the night
of his injury.
His grandfather, John C. Smith, my great-grandfather, English by
birth, was the one who saved me when lost in the woods. (See the
curious story related on a future page.) I think he was the very
noblest and grandest man I have ever known. He was of unusual
stature and strength, of the sweetest temper and character, as well
as of superior intellect.

MR. COOK’S DEATH.

A party consisting of Mr. and Mrs. Emerson, Mr. Cook—an English

gentleman and a partner and intimate friend of Mr. Emerson—
mother, her sister Catharine, Ann Emerson and myself (we were little
girls at that time), drove to the “Sand Hill burying-ground” to visit
the graves of our loved ones. Mr. Cook and my aunt rode in his
carriage, while the rest of us rode in the family carriage. They
arrived a little before we did, and walked to Mr. E’s. plot, where
stooping he pulled up a flower and, tossing it at my beautiful Aunt
Catharine, said, “I wonder who will lie here next?” After remaining a
while we drove home, in Clinton Street, Rochester, where the nurse
was standing with the babe Georgie in her arms. (George was an
uncommonly lovely boy, named after Mr. Cook.) When taking the
child in his arms Mr. Cook said, “O thou angel boy! I must not
neglect to will thee thy dower.” He remained with us through the
evening and bade us good-night. His house was nearly a mile away.
I retired with mother and her sister. I slept in a trundle-bed drawn
from under their large bed. Our family was then boarding there,
father being absent from home much of the time. It was my habit to
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