Research source

Admitting the authenticity of the afore-mentioned anecdotes--none of which, it is as well to point out, reaches…

Date of account: Published 1908
Source: Historic Ghosts and Ghost Hunters
Reference: Historic Ghosts and Ghost Hunters · selected passage 50
Rights: public_domain
Language: English
Record updated: 2026-08-24

Record summary

Admitting the authenticity of the afore-mentioned anecdotes--none of which, it is as well to point out, reaches us supported by first-hand evidence--it is quite unnecessary to appeal to spirits as his purveyors of knowledge

Published source text

Read the available text below. Archive transcriptions may contain OCR errors; later context is labelled separately. A recorded claim is not a finding that it happened.

Source passage

Source text · mention only

So with Swedenborg. Admitting the authenticity of the afore-mentioned anecdotes--none of which, it is as well to point out, reaches us supported by first-hand evidence--it is quite unnecessary to appeal to spirits as his purveyors of knowledge. In every instance telepathy--or clairvoyance, which is after all explicable itself only by telepathy--will suffice. In the Marteville affair, for example, it is not unreasonable to assume that before his death the Ambassador telepathically told his devoted wife of the existence of the secret drawer and its contents; if, indeed, she had not known and forgotten. It would then be an exceedingly simple matter for the dissociated Swedenborg to acquire the desired information from the wife's subconsciousness. Nor does this reflect on his honesty. Doubtless he believed, as he represented, that he had actually had a conversation with the dead Marteville, and had learned from him the whereabouts of the missing receipt.

Historical context

Contextual commentary · mention only

This comes from historical psychical research. Methods, witness handling and standards of evidence differ from present-day research and should be assessed from the cited passage and edition.

Modern context

Contextual commentary · mention only

The passage can support a history of claims and recurring descriptions. It does not establish a paranormal mechanism, and competing psychological, social and physical explanations remain relevant.

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