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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 77
The open mind is an essential requisite to all investigation
and skepticism is absolutely fatal to the attainment
of knowledge. As an illustration, we may mention that the
writer was in Columbus a few years ago and there went to a
lecture by Professor Hyslop, the Secretary of the Society
for Psychological Research. The subject of the lecture
was "New Evidence of a Future Life." The writer was
astonished to find that Prof. Hyslop did not present in his
lecture one single point which had not been brought out in
the last twenty years in the reports of the Society to which
he belongs. But the solution came after the lecture, when
a question brought out the fact that Prof. Hyslop did not
believe in anything that had been said in the Society's re-
ports, lie did not believe in the results obtained by anyone
but himself. This evidence which he had just presented
had been collected by him; therefore it was new to him
and he expected his audience to take his word, although he
himself was unwilling to take the word of anyone else,
and as an illustration of how skepticism acts, he uncon-
sciously gave a very fine example, when he related that, going
to a medium on a certain day, Eichard Hodgson, de-
ceased, spoke through the medium and Prof. Hyslop commenced
to ask questions which, though quite simple, Mr.
Hodgson had great difficulty in answering. Prof. Hyslop
at last impatiently said, "Why, what is the matter with you,
Eichard; when you were alive you were quick enough;
why can't you answer now?" "Then," said Prof. Hyslop,
came the answer, quick as lightning, "Oh, every time I get
into your wretched atmosphere I go all to pieces." Prof.
Hyslop could not understand the reason why, but anyone
who has seen a pupil before a Board of Examiners which
has made up its mind that he is a dunce will know why,
und understand that it was Prof. Hyslop's critical skeptical