A physician, as we have seen, got the better of the demon in Mrs.Shchapoff's case, at least while the lady was under his care. Reallythese disturbances appear to demand the attention of medical men. Ifthe whole phenomena are caused by imposture, the actors, or actresses,display a wonderful similarity of symptoms and an alarming taste forfire-raising. Professor William James, the well-known psychologist,mentions ten cases whose resemblances "suggest a natural type," and weask, is it a type of hysterical disease? {229} He chooses, amongothers, an instance in Dr. Nevius's book on Demon Possession in China,and there is another in Peru. He also mentions The Great AmherstMystery, which we give, and the Rerrick case in Scotland (1696),related by Telfer, who prints, on his margins, the names of theattesting witnesses of each event, lairds, clergymen, and farmers. AtRerrick, as in Russia, the _little hand_ was seen by Telfer himself,and the fire-raising was endless. At Amherst too, as in a pair ofrecent Russian cases and others, there was plenty of fire-raising. Bya lucky chance an English case occurred at Wem, in Shropshire, inNovember, 1883. It began at a farm called the Woods, some ten milesfrom Shrewsbury. First a saucepan full of eggs "jumped" off the firein the kitchen, and the tea-things, leaping from the table, werebroken. Cinders "were thrown out of the fire," and set some clothesin a blaze. A globe leaped off a lamp. A farmer, Mr. Lea, saw allthe windows of the upper story "as it were on fire," but it was nosuch matter. The nurse-maid ran out in a fright, to a neighbour's,and her dress spontaneously combusted as she ran. The peopleattributed these and similar events, to something in the coal, or inthe air, or to electricity. When the nurse-girl, Emma Davies, sat onthe lap of the school mistress, Miss Maddox, her boots kept flyingoff, like the boot laces in The Daemon of Spraiton.All this was printed in the London papers, and, on 15th November, TheDaily Telegraph and Daily News published Emma's confession that shewrought by sleight of hand and foot. On 17th November, Mr. Hugheswent from Cambridge to investigate. For some reason investigationnever begins till the fun is over. On the 9th the girl, now in a verynervous state (no wonder!) had been put under the care of a Dr.Mackey. This gentleman and Miss Turner said that things had occurredsince Emma came, for which they could not account. On 13th November,however, Miss Turner, looking out of a window, spotted Emma throwing abrick, and pretending that the flight of the brick was automatic.Next day Emma confessed to her tricks, but steadfastly denied that shehad cheated at Woods Farm, and Weston Lullingfield, where she had alsobeen. Her evidence to this effect was so far confirmed by Mrs.Hampson of Woods Farm, and her servant, Priscilla Evans, when examinedby Mr. Hughes. Both were "quite certain" that they saw crockery riseby itself into air off the kitchen table, when Emma was at aneighbouring farm, Mr. Lea's. Priscilla also saw crockery come out ofa cupboard, in detachments, and fly between her and Emma, usually in aslanting direction, while Emma stood by with her arms folded. YetPriscilla was not on good terms with Emma. Unless, then, Mrs. Hampsonand Priscilla fabled, it is difficult to see how Emma could moveobjects when she was "standing at some considerable distance,standing, in fact, in quite another farm".Similar evidence was given and signed by Miss Maddox, theschoolmistress, and Mr. and Mrs. Lea. On the other hand Mrs. Hampsonand Priscilla believed that Emma managed the fire-raising herself.The flames were "very high and white, and the articles were verylittle singed". This occurred also at Rerrick, in 1696, but Mr.Hughes attributes it to Emma's use of paraffin, which does not applyto the Rerrick case. Paraffin smells a good deal--nothing is saidabout a smell of paraffin.Only one thing is certain: Emma was at last caught in a cheat. Thisdiscredits her, but a man who cheats at cards _may_ hold a good handby accident. In the same way, if such wonders can happen (as so muchworld-wide evidence declares), they _may_ have happened at Woods Farm,and Emma, "in a very nervous state," _may_ have feigned then, orrather did feign them later.The question for the medical faculty is: Does a decided taste forwilful fire-raising often accompany exhibitions of dancing furnitureand crockery, gratuitously given by patients of hystericaltemperament? This is quite a normal inquiry. Is there a nervousmalady of which the symptoms are domestic arson, and amateur leger-de-main? The complaint, if it exists, is of very old standing and wideprevalence, including Russia, Scotland, New England, France, Iceland,Germany, China and Peru.As a proof of the identity of symptoms in this malady, we give aChinese case. The Chinese, as to diabolical possession, are preciselyof the same opinion as the inspired authors of the Gospels. Peopleare "possessed," and, like the woman having a spirit of divination inthe Acts of the Apostles, make a good thing out of it. Thus Mrs. Kuwas approached by a native Christian. She became rigid and her demon,speaking through her, acknowledged the Catholic verity, and said thatif Mrs. Ku were converted he would have to leave. On recovering hereveryday consciousness, Mrs. Ku asked what Tsehwa, her demon, hadsaid. The Christian told her, and perhaps she would have deserted hererroneous courses, but her fellow-villagers implored her to pay homageto the demon. They were in the habit of resorting to it for medicaladvice (as people do to Mrs. Piper's demon in the United States), soMrs. Ku decided to remain in the business. {232} The parallel to thecase in the Acts is interesting.
