
audiobook
PSYCHOMANCY.
SPIRIT-RAPPINGS.
TABLE-TIPPINGS.
In this meticulously argued work, the author tackles the fevered fascination with spirit‑rapping and table‑tipping that swept mid‑nineteenth‑century America. Drawing on contemporary reports, scientific principles, and theological insight, he sets out to show that these phenomena are nothing more than clever tricks rooted in human psychology and deception, rather than any supernatural agency.
The narrative proceeds with a calm, evidence‑based tone, inviting listeners to follow his step‑by‑step examinations of the tricks that mesmerized audiences in parlors and lecture halls. Along the way, he explores the cultural and religious currents that fueled the craze, offering a window into the era’s clash between emerging scientific rationalism and long‑standing spiritual beliefs. Listeners will come away with a clearer understanding of how skepticism was articulated in a time when the line between wonder and fraud was still being drawn.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (103K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
Release date
Apr 11, 2020
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1812–1868
A 19th-century American inventor and physician, he helped push electromagnetism from curiosity to practical technology. His experiments with induction coils and early electric motors made him an important, if often overlooked, figure in the story of electricity.
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