With a little practice the above test can be given with very small chance of failure; and in the event of making a failure it can be explained by the statement that “there are opposing spirits present,” or some similar excuse.  If one has other tests at his command, it is well, in the event of failure, to announce that he will try something else, and then give another test.  As these experiments are always tried alone with one or, at most, two subjects, a failure attracts little notice.

Now I cannot say positively that Dr. Schlossenger performed this experiment in exactly this same manner; but I do have a recollection of his hurrying me along in my writing at some stage of its progress.  I also know that I can succeed as often as he did.  I will add further that a few days later I prepared six names in advance, and, with my wife, had a sitting with the medium; this time, although I paid him, he failed utterly.  He tried in every way and had me write additional names.  This time I guarded the points in the above explanation, yet no matter how he tried, he made an utter failure.  All tricks require certain conditions, and this is why it is not safe to repeat the same trick for the same person.  There is too much danger that the subject may notice the sameness of the modus operandi.

Referring to the second test which was given by the medium to my father, I will state that when the subjects are writing the cities and diseases, they will naturally pause after writing the city, to think of a disease to go with it.  Of course, when writing the correct ones, which are already in mind, no pause will be necessary.  Also advantage may be taken of the fact that a small per cent of persons die of smallpox or measles.  If in giving the directions one says, “Write like this:  ’Philadelphia smallpox, New York measles,’” and the subject writes smallpox or measles in the list, it is safe to eliminate that from the case.  This is especially true if written in connection with some large city, the name of which occurs readily to the mind.  It is safe also to eliminate Philadelphia or New York if these should be written, providing you mentioned these names in the directions, and that the test is not being given in their section of the country.  A small per cent of the people of a country die in any two places of prominence.  Yet these places will be written readily by most subjects if they are suggested, or at least other places of equal prominence will be written.  If an unusual place or disease should be written, it is almost certain these are the ones.

It can readily be seen how expert one can become at this by continuous practice, such as a medium has many times a day; how one can learn to take advantage of every little point, and use it with telling effect on unsuspecting strangers, who do not know what is going to happen, or what to look for.