Modern spiritism; its science and religion - SpiritArchive.org

210 MODERN SPIRITISM
perispirits) good and, bad, are all around us everywhere."
Such is the hypothesis of Spiritism. , The
astral body, more particularly, is said (with equal
"truth") to be constructed of "bound" ether, which
Fresnel and others have shown to be denser than
"ordinary" ether (which is thousands of times
denser than steel). Perhaps Sir Oliver Lodge may find
time (if he has patience enough) to tell us if this be
true. Sir Oliver observes that "there is after all,
no great change in the next world, but all here
appears less important. This," he says, "has been
known over a century" (with regard to the latter
half of the sentence he might have said "over
nineteen").
A 50 per cent.
Chance
W. T. Stead tells us that "Cecil Rhodes devoted
much thought to the question whether or not
there was a God" (such a question certainly
requires a good deal of thought, even when of the
capacity of a Cecil Rhodes), "and he came to
the (somewhat lame) conclusion that there was a
50 per cent, chance that there was" (forgive the
irreverence).
"Is there a similar chance," asks Stead, "that
death does not end all." (More, I should say.)
"How then," he continues, "can we arrive
at certainty." (We should suggest, by the same
means that we are certain that Saturn has a ring,
or Jupiter moons; that is, by faith in the evidence
of others: in this case in the living God, who is
more than a 50 per cent, chance to all reverent
men.)