And this, it appears to me, is the only way of approaching this problem that is liable to prove conclusive or trustworthy. Discussions of historical phenomena will never settle anything one way or the other: nothing is _proved_ thereby, one way or the other. The only conclusive method, as Count Solovovo pointed out--and I heartily agree with him--is the accumulation of _new facts_; and these new facts, when obtained, have, it appears to me (and to my colleagues also), proved beyond all question that the phenomena were genuine in at least some instances; and, that once admitted, the _a priori_ doubts are removed, and the historic phenomena raised to a standard of probability which amounts to certitude. Some of the physical phenomena of spiritualism are objective--real, external facts; and I am assured that they are not due to fraud or trickery. Whatever their ultimate explanation, however, they can no longer be said to be due to any form of hallucination in the sitters. FOOTNOTES: [25] The chapter which follows originally appeared in the _Journal_ of the American S.P.R. (December 1909), and was critical of the articles of Miss Alice Johnson and Count Solovovo, which had previously appeared in the English _Proceedings_. While the chapter is self-explanatory, it may be well to say that Count Solovovo, in his original paper, considered the "hallucination theory" as a possible explanation of certain physical phenomena--such as those of D. D. Home--and, after a lengthy discussion, came to the conclusion that it would be extremely difficult to believe that hallucination could account for all the observed facts. Miss Johnson, in her reply, inclined rather more to the hallucination theory--at least in some cases--and endeavoured to show how it might have occurred on several occasions. My paper is critical of these articles--chiefly Miss Johnson's; and I have here endeavoured to combat the hallucination theory,--which I do not believe to have nearly so wide a range as Miss Johnson supposes. The interested reader is referred to the original papers, as well as to the discussion which follows; after which he may decide for himself which seems to him the more rational explanation of the facts. [26] _Proceedings, S.P.R._, vol. xxi. pp. 436-515. [27] _Researches in the Phenomena of Spiritualism_, p. 92. [28] _Proceedings, S.P.R._, vol. xxi. p. 488. [29] _Proceedings, S.P.R._, vol. xxi. p. 487.