Dirkse Lammers.

— Present at the session, Mr. Van B…, of The Hague, relates the following personal fact:

At a Spiritist meeting which he was attending, in The Hague, a Spirit who said he was called Dirkse Lammers manifested spontaneously. Questioned about the particulars concerning him and about the reason for his visit to persons who did not know him and who had not called him, he thus narrates his history: “I lived in 1592 and hanged myself in the place where you find yourselves at this moment, that is, in a stable that then existed in the same place where this house now stands. Here are the circumstances: I had a dog and my neighbor raised chickens. My dog strangled the chickens and, to avenge herself, the neighbor poisoned him. In my anger, I beat and wounded that woman; she denounced me to justice: I was condemned to three years of prison and to a fine of 25 florins. Although the condemnation was rather light, I bore no less hatred toward the lawyer X…, who had provoked it and, for that reason, I resolved to avenge myself on him. So decided, I waited for him on a little-frequented path which he took every afternoon to go to Loosduinen, near The Hague. I strangled him and hung him on a tree. To make it appear a suicide, I put in his pocket a paper previously prepared, as if written by him, in which he said that no one should be accused of his death, since he himself had attempted his own life. From that moment remorse pursued me and, as I said, I hanged myself three months later, in the place where you are. Impelled by a force which I cannot resist, I come to confess my crime, in the hope that perhaps this may bring some relief to the anguish I have been enduring ever since.” This account, made with such minute details, caused astonishment in the assembly. Information was gathered and, through the researches made in the registry, it was verified, in effect, that in 1592 a lawyer named X… had hanged himself on the road to Loosduinen.

— Having been evoked at the session of the Society, on November 11, 1859, the Spirit of Dirkse Lammers manifested by acts of violence, breaking the pencil. His writing was irregular, large, almost illegible, and the medium experienced extreme difficulty in tracing the characters.

Evocation Answer. – Here I am. For what?

Do you recognize here a person with whom you communicated recently?

Answer. – I have already given sufficient proofs of my lucidity and of my good will. This should suffice.

With what objective did you communicate spontaneously at the house of Mr. Van B…?

Answer. – I do not know. I was sent there. Of myself I did not feel much desire to narrate what I found myself obliged to say.

Who obliged you to do it?

Answer. – The force that leads us; I know nothing more about it. I was dragged, against my will, and forced to obey the Spirits who had the right to make themselves obeyed.

Are you vexed at coming to our call?

Answer. – Quite; I feel out of place here.

Are you happy as a Spirit?

Answer. – A fine question!

What can we do to be agreeable to you?

Answer. – Could you do something that would be agreeable to me?

Certainly; charity commands that we be useful, to the measure of our possibilities, to the Spirits as well as to men. Since you are unhappy, we shall pray for you for the mercy of God. We commit ourselves to pray for you. Answer. – Here, at last, after centuries, are the first words of this nature that are addressed to me. Thank you! Thank you! For God’s sake, may this not be a vain promise, I implore you.