In the next place, it is to be borne in mind that, as shown in Chapter I of this book, every soul has always some definite location in space. Nothing certain is known as to whether the shape and volume of a soul correspond exactly in form and size with those of the human body that is associated with the soul during life on earth. It is sometimes thought, in a speculative way, that the soul extends beyond the confines of the body, which thus becomes invested with an “aura,” as it is termed, and can come into contact with other souls even when the respective bodies are more or less apart in space; but no facts have been observed that give serious support to this view. The probabilities, indeed, are in favour of the something--which may or may not be akin to ordinary physical matter--that constitutes a soul having a volume approximating to the space occupied by its earthly body. A third fundamental consideration is that the actual experiences of every day consist in a large measure of the most astounding instances of communication between widely separated bodies--or bulks of matter--and souls. The sun is distant some 93,000,000 miles from the earth, and yet it can impart sensations of illumination and warmth to a soul on the earth’s surface, to say nothing of more subtle influences conveyed by what are known as “dark rays.” The fact is indisputable, but it is not yet clearly understood. Physicists have felt themselves compelled to form the hypothesis of an “Ether” pervading interstellar space and serving as a medium or vehicle for the passage of radiant energy from place to place. This Ether has to be conceived of as possessing a nature and attributes quite as wonderful and incomprehensible as anything narrated in the “Arabian Nights” or set forth in the Church doctrine of the Holy Trinity. It is understood to be the means by which the marvels of wireless telegraphy become possible, by which glances are exchanged between human eyes, by which newspapers are read, and by which an artillery observer at the front becomes aware whether the gunners are or are not hitting their mark. Yet there is not any certainty that the particular Ether imagined by modern science exists at all. For anything that is known and proved the medium of communication may in the end turn out to be something quite different. When, therefore, telepathy is spoken of, no scientific man is entitled to reject the idea merely because it involves the existence of some as yet unknown means of interaction. If the fact of telepathy be established he must accept it, even though it may be as yet inexplicable. The knowledge possessed by Science from time to time does not set limits to the realities of the universe.