Fifty Years a Medium – Chapter 9, 4/10 by Estelle Roberts

We sat every fortnight in an upper room in my house at Teddington, and for the first ten months we made no progress. It was most disappointing. Only the knowledge that we were sitting in response to Red Cloud’s request prevented me from giving up in despair. Nevertheless, he gave us his blessing and encouragement from time to time.

At an early stage he asked that any donations resulting from these meetings should be paid to a medium who had fallen ill and was unable to work. Useful sums were regularly passed to her for several months until Red Cloud told us that her time of need was over and that thereafter donations received should be sent to the Marylebone Spiritualist Association.

Our sittings were held in darkness. This Red Cloud said was essential for making the psychic rods, and more than once he drew our attention to chinks of light appearing through imperfectly drawn curtains. There was, however, an occasion when a small crack of light passed undetected by us all.

I am reminded of it now only because it subsequently formed the subject of a letter printed in a psychic journal. The writer, a Mr. Pillow, who was sitting in the circle at the time, said that he saw the trumpet pass between him and the chink of light from the curtain. In the fraction of time that it was illuminated from behind it had appeared to him that the trumpet was supported by a pillar of smoke.

The trumpet we used was of the ordinary tin variety, outlined at its broader end with phosphorescent paint which made it clearly visible in the darkness. According to eyewitness accounts it moved about the room with incredible speed, yet never did it accidentally strike the floor, walls, ceiling, or furniture; nor did it ever make a mistake, when transmitting a message, by going to the wrong member of the circle.

The only other essential to our sittings was the short hand writer whose job it was to make a verbatim record of all that was said. She was seated outside the circle, in a partitioned-off alcove containing a dim red light but sufficient to enable her to make notes. During the initial period when there was no success, she was certainly not over-occupied, but as results came she was kept more and more busy, her notes often running into dozens of pages.

The opening procedure of each meeting was invariably the same. The members would take their seats, each holding hands with its neighbour. Soft music from a gramophone would make a pleasant background of sound and by its vibrations contribute to conditions necessary for this form of psychic phenomena.

Meanwhile, I was deeply entranced by Red Cloud and it would not be long before he greeted the circle with words, “God bless you all.” Once our ten-month initiation period was over, the voices started to come in, and keep coming in, almost without break.