he spent his whole life yearning to make contact with the great beyond, and it was precisely because he did not succeed that he bequeathed his money so that the search might carry on. Or maybe, terrified that he might one day find himself a soul in torment, he wanted to leave the door open for his own return.
‘Although I think I know a great deal about this episode in the history of magic, it would be stupid to claim I know more than you do, since, after all, you were involved in it.’ Víctor turns to look at the table and does not seem to think it remarkable that all of the members of the commission are still asleep. ‘Anyway, you worked out that the only thing Seybert was interested in was the truth about spiritualism and that, if he had lumped it together with other religious, philosophical and ethical systems, it was only to place it within a scientific context. As you know, before inviting self-professed spiritualists to demonstrate their powers before the commission, you decided to limit the enquiries to two concrete points.’
Víctor stops walking and looks up. For some reason, he feels the need to prove to the tribunal that, in spite of the exactness of his account, he is not referring to any notes.
‘Firstly, you had to determine whether the phenomena in question were real or imaginary. By which I mean, whether they weresomething that could be seen, touched or heard or whether they existed only in the mind of the witness. Secondly, you assumed responsibility for confirming what produced these phenomena. Natural forces? Supernatural? Human intervention? Spirits?’
As he says the word ‘spirits’ he hears a strumming behind him and notices a sudden change in the air temperature. He turns and sees an amorphous mass in the sky, like a cloud that is not fully formed, trailing behind it a line of chalk which reads ‘Preliminary Report of the Commission appointed by the University of Pennsylvania to investigate Modern Spiritualism in accordance with the request of the late Henry Seybert with a foreword by H. H. Furness, Jr, 1887’. He is not particularly surprised, he knows the document almost by heart.
Víctor waves his hand like someone turning the page of a newspaper and begins to recite the introduction: ‘The commission is composed of men whose days are already filled with duties which cannot be laid aside, and who are able, therefore, to devote but a small portion of their time to these investigations. They are conscious that your honorable body looks to them for a due performance of their task, and the only assurance which they can offer of their earnestness and zeal is in thus presenting to you, from time to time, such fragmentary reports as the following, whereby they trust that successive steps in their progress may be marked. It is no small matter to be able to record any progress in a subject of so wide and deep an interest as the present. It is not too much to say that the farther our investigations extend the more imperative appears the demand for these investigations. The belief in so-called spiritualism is certainly not decreasing. It has from the first assumed a religious tone, and now claims to be ranked among the denominational faiths of the day.
‘What chutzpah!’ Víctor cries. ‘But it was a brilliant tactic.’ When he turns he discovers that the ten men have vanished, together with the table at which they were sleeping, yet he continues to address them, his tone accusatory: ‘In other words, you made no progress but wanted to continue with your investigations for as long as a single dollar remained to be spent.’
He continues turning the pages. His fingers are covered in chalk dust. When he comes to the index, he realises that his suspicionsare unfounded. The chapters of the report are in fact the minutes of dozens of meetings held by the members of the commission with so-called spiritualists, during which time they rigorously recorded every statement by those present, every
‘Although I think I know a great deal about this episode in the history of magic, it would be stupid to claim I know more than you do, since, after all, you were involved in it.’ Víctor turns to look at the table and does not seem to think it remarkable that all of the members of the commission are still asleep. ‘Anyway, you worked out that the only thing Seybert was interested in was the truth about spiritualism and that, if he had lumped it together with other religious, philosophical and ethical systems, it was only to place it within a scientific context. As you know, before inviting self-professed spiritualists to demonstrate their powers before the commission, you decided to limit the enquiries to two concrete points.’
Víctor stops walking and looks up. For some reason, he feels the need to prove to the tribunal that, in spite of the exactness of his account, he is not referring to any notes.
‘Firstly, you had to determine whether the phenomena in question were real or imaginary. By which I mean, whether they weresomething that could be seen, touched or heard or whether they existed only in the mind of the witness. Secondly, you assumed responsibility for confirming what produced these phenomena. Natural forces? Supernatural? Human intervention? Spirits?’
As he says the word ‘spirits’ he hears a strumming behind him and notices a sudden change in the air temperature. He turns and sees an amorphous mass in the sky, like a cloud that is not fully formed, trailing behind it a line of chalk which reads ‘Preliminary Report of the Commission appointed by the University of Pennsylvania to investigate Modern Spiritualism in accordance with the request of the late Henry Seybert with a foreword by H. H. Furness, Jr, 1887’. He is not particularly surprised, he knows the document almost by heart.
Víctor waves his hand like someone turning the page of a newspaper and begins to recite the introduction: ‘The commission is composed of men whose days are already filled with duties which cannot be laid aside, and who are able, therefore, to devote but a small portion of their time to these investigations. They are conscious that your honorable body looks to them for a due performance of their task, and the only assurance which they can offer of their earnestness and zeal is in thus presenting to you, from time to time, such fragmentary reports as the following, whereby they trust that successive steps in their progress may be marked. It is no small matter to be able to record any progress in a subject of so wide and deep an interest as the present. It is not too much to say that the farther our investigations extend the more imperative appears the demand for these investigations. The belief in so-called spiritualism is certainly not decreasing. It has from the first assumed a religious tone, and now claims to be ranked among the denominational faiths of the day.
‘What chutzpah!’ Víctor cries. ‘But it was a brilliant tactic.’ When he turns he discovers that the ten men have vanished, together with the table at which they were sleeping, yet he continues to address them, his tone accusatory: ‘In other words, you made no progress but wanted to continue with your investigations for as long as a single dollar remained to be spent.’
He continues turning the pages. His fingers are covered in chalk dust. When he comes to the index, he realises that his suspicionsare unfounded. The chapters of the report are in fact the minutes of dozens of meetings held by the members of the commission with so-called spiritualists, during which time they rigorously recorded every statement by those present, every
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