A. STRANGE STORY.

The following appeared in the London Times of September 13, 1849, and has been kindly sent us by William Turner. M D., of New York.

A. STRANGE STORY.

[From the Bolton Chronicle.]

On Saturday, July 14, a letter was received by Messrs. C. R. Arrowsmith & Co., of this town, from Bradford, Yorkshire, containing a Bank of England note for £500, another for £50, and a bill of exchange for £100. These Mr. Arrowsmith handed over, in the regular mode of business, to Mr. William Lomax, his cashier, who took, or sent, as he supposed, the whole to the bank of Bolton, and made an entry accordingly in his cash-book. The bank-book was then at the bank, so that no memorandum of the payment was received or expected.

After the expiration of about five weeks, upon comparing the bank-book with the cash-book, it. was found that no entry for these sums was in the bank-book. Inquiry was then made at the bank, but nothing was known of the money nor was there any entry existing in any book or paper there ; and, after searching no trace could be found of the missing money. In fact, the parties at the bank denied ever having received the sums, or knowing any thing of the transaction. Before the discovery of the loss the bill had become due, but upon inquiring after the loss was discovered, it was found that it had not been presented for payment. It was, therefore, concluded that as the notes and bill could not be found at the bank, nor any trace or entry connected with them, the probability was that they were lost or stolen, and that the bill had been destroyed to avoid detection. Mr. Lomax had a distinct recollection of having received the notes, etc., from Mr. Arrowsmith, but from the length of time that had elapsed when the loss was discovered, he could not remember what he had done with them—whether lie had taken them to the bank, or sent them by the accustomed messenger—nor could the messenger recollect any thing about them.

As might be expected, this unaccountable loss occasioned great anxiety to Mr. Lomax, and in this emergency he applied to a friend, to whom the discovery of Mr. Wood's cash-box was known, to ascertain the probability of the notes, etc., being found by the aid of clairvoyance. The friend replied that he saw no greater difficulty in this case than in Wood's, and recommended him to make the inquiry, which he said he would do, it" only for his own satisfaction.

On Friday, August 24, Mr. Lomax, accompanied by Mr. V Jones, of Ashbourne street, Bolton, called on Mr. Haddock for this purpose. The clairvoyant was put into a psychic state, and then into connection with Mr. Lomax. She directly asked for " the paper," meaning the letter in which the notes and bill were enclosed ; but this Mr. Lomax did not appear to have in his possession, and she said she could not tell anything without it. This sitting, therefore, was so far useless. The next day Mr. Lomax brought the letter, and Mr. Haduock requested that the contents might, not be communicated to him, lest it should be supposed that he had suggested any thing to her. After considerable thought, the clairvoyant said that there had been three different papers for money in that letter—not post-office orders, but papers that came cut of a place where people kopl money in (a bank), and were to be taken to another place of a similar kind ; that these papers came in the letter to another gentleman (Mr. Arrowsmith), who gave them to the one present (Mr. Lomax), who put them in a paper, and put them in a red book that wrapped round (a pocket-book). Mr. Lomax then, to the surprise of Mr. Haddock, pulled from his coatpocket a deep, red pocket-book, made just as she had described it, and said that was the book in which he was in the habit of placing similar papers.

Mr. Lomax said the clairvoyant was right ; that the letter contained two Bank of England notes and a bill of exchange; but did not say what was the value of the notes. Mr. Haddock then put a £10 Bank of England note into the clairvoyant's hand. She said that two of the papers were like that, but more valuable, and that the black and white word at the corner was longer. She further said that these notes, etc., were taken to a place where money was kept (a bank), down there (pointing toward Deansgate). Beyond this no further inquiry was made at that sitting.

On Monday, Mr. Lomax called again. The clairvoyant went over the case again, entering more minutely into particulars. She persisted in her former statements, that she could seethe "marks" of the notes in the red pocket-book, and could see them in the banking-house ; that they were in paper, and put along with many more papers in a part of the bank; that they were taken by a man at the bank, who put them aside without making any entry, or taking any further notice of them. She said that the people at the bank did not mean to do wrong, but that it arose from the want of due attention. Upon its being stated that she might be wrong, and requesting her to look elsewhere, she said that it was no use ; that she could see they were in the bank, and no where else ; that she could not say any thing else, without saying what was not true : and that if search were made at the bank, there, she said, they would be found. In the evening, Mr. Arrowsmith, Mr. Makant, and Mr. Jones came again, and she was put in a psychic stare, to repeat these particulars in theft presence, which was done.

Mr. Haddock then said to Mr. Arrowsmith, that he was tolerably confident that the clairvoyant was right,, and that he should recommend him to go next day to the bank, and insist on a further search, stating that he felt convinced, from inquiries he had made, that his cashier had brought the money there. Mr. Makant also urged the same course on Mr. Arrowsmith.

The following morning (Tuesday, August 2S), Mr. Arrowsmith went to the bank, and insisted on further search. He was told that, after such a search as had been made, it was useless, but that, to satisfy him, it should be made again. Mr. Arrowsmith left for Manchester, and after his departure a further search was made ; and among a lot of papers, in an inner room of the bank, which were not likely to have been meddled with again probably for years, or which might never have been noticed again, were found the notes and bill, wrapped in paper, just as the clairvoyant had described them.

PSYCHOLOGY or the SCIENCE OF THE SOUL,

CONSIDERED

PHYSIOLOGICALLY AND PHILOSOPHICALLY.

WITH AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING NOTES OF MESMERIC AND PSYCHICAL EXPERIENCE.

JOSEPH HADDOCK, M.D.

1876

From:

Volume II

LIBRARY

OF

MESMERISM

AND

PSYCHOLOGY.

IN TWO VOLUMES.

COMPRISING

Philosophy of Mesmerism, Electrical Psychology, On Fascination, The Macrocosm, Science of the Soul.