36. When the strange phenomena of spiritism were first produced, or, to speak
more correctly, when they began to be renewed in these latter days, the first sentiment
they excited was doubt in regard to their reality, and, still more so, in regard to their
cause. Since their reality has been proved by unexceptionable testimony and by
experiments that any One may try for himself; each observer interprets them in his own
way, in accordance with his own ideas, beliefs, or prejudices ; hence have arisen
various theories, which a comparative observation will enable us to estimate at their
true value.
The adversaries of spiritism have imagined that, in this divergence of Opinion,
they find an argument against it. They say : "The spiritists themselves are at variance !"
This is but a poor argument, for every new science is necessarily uncertain, until the
facts which will settle a question have been brought together and arranged in their
proper order. It is only in proportion as accumulated facts explain one another, that
premature conclusions are got rid of and unity is established, at least in regard to
fundamental points, if not in every detail. Spiritism could not escape the common law,
and, from its very nature, was especially liable to give rise to a diversity of
interpretations. But even in this respect, we can confidently assert that it has proceeded
faster than any of the other sciences, its elders, in all of which we find that opposite
opinions are held by minds of the highest order.
