Fifty Years a Medium – Chapter 11, 2/12 by Estelle Roberts
“Shingi had set his heart on achieving a certain speed at the trial run. My husband was timing him. One lap had been just finished and he was at the beginning of another when the boat overturned.
“His statement was correct. He achieved his speed.”
One of the difficulties in writing a book from the medium’s viewpoint is that when you have been in a deep trance you are dependant on the memories of those present for an accurate description of what transpired. Because of this the presence of the shorthand writer at the voice séances was invaluable.
It made it possible for me to study the word-for-word transcriptions of what was said. The result, however, was curious, for the verbatim accounts, as I read them, produced a feeling of complete detachment from the events described, even though I was so intimately concerned in them.
Quite often, however, verbatim records have not been available (the present-day use of the tape recorder has solved this problem) and so no one has been dependant for facts on reliable eyewitnesses.
I have always been fortunate in those who have testified to events that took place while I have been entranced. Often they have been distinguished men and women from many walks of life, frequently well-known writers and journalists whose names are widely known and whose integrity is unquestioned.
Such people, knowing that Spiritualism is a controversial subject, bring balanced and inquiring minds to each new manifestation they witness. They accept nothing on trust, and when they write on the subject they do so from close experience and not from hearsay.
It is because I appreciate the value of an eyewitnesses account that I asked Maurice Barbanell’s permission to use the following extract from his recently published, deeplyabsorbing book ‘This Is Spiritualism’. It concerns the case of Bessy Manning, of whose existence none of us had heard until she was introduced by Red Cloud in the course of a sitting.
It is remarkable, I think, not only in its evidence for survival after death but also as an example of the answer to prayer. It is remarkable, too, in that it was extended to include not only Bessy and her brother, but her mother too. This is how Maurice Barbanell describes the case of Bessy Manning in his book:
My most moving experience in Estelle Roberts séance room came when I was addressed by an unknown spirit communicator. About halfway through one sitting, Red Cloud said to me, almost casually: “There is a girl here who has approached me to get in touch with her mother on earth. She will give her own evidence.”
“Do I know her?” I asked.
“No,” the guide replied, “but you can help her.”