Ouija boards: ever use one?

KatyKing wrote:I'd quite like a resin one for my birthday.
(60 tomorrow!!!! How the heck did that happen?)

“Planchette” - Reprinted from the "Religio-Philosophical Journal" - July 11, 1891


No other mechanical accessory of psychical phenomena has been so widely used or has produced such sensational results as the little instrument known as planchette. Originally of French origin, as the name indicates, it has been utilized in all parts of the world and unnumbered instances of its effectiveness are on record. It first attracted attention in France about 1857, as near as we can state without authentic data for reference. Many suppose that the instrument had its origin in this country: while this is not correct, it is probably true that it was first made an article of merchandise in the United States.

On this point we have before us an interesting letter, dated May 29, 1891, addressed to Mrs. J. M. Staats, who had supposed the writer to have been the inventor. He writes:“I regret that I cannot throw any light upon the origin of planchette. I was first induced to make it and offer it for sale through an article in the London Once a Week, describing it and its antics. This was some thirty-two years ago. I was the first one to manufacture and offer it for sale, and for this reason I was looked upon as its inventor; I see that such an idea prompted your letter. I also tried to patent it, solely to make money out of it; but the Patent Office declined to give me a patent, alleging as a reason that it was immoral in its tendency; and I must confess that at times its answers were startling, even shocking, to orthodox minds.

I learned afterward that the patent office official who passed upon its merits was a staunch believer in the Westminster Confession, and I was powerless against such narrow-mindedness, and so my patent was denied. Many went to making it; profits were reduced, and seeing no money in it I gave it up.

There are some manufacturers still making it, and it has a sale of at least 2,000 to 3,000 a year.”The demand is much larger than Mrs. Staats’s correspondent estimates and is just now having one of its irregular periods of activity. A series of extended and exhaustive experiments would undoubtedly be productive of data for valuable generalizations. That many messages written with the aid of the planchette are from spirits seems conclusive; but that more of them must be accounted for in other ways is equally as conclusive. Sometimes facts have been given unknown to any one present, at other times predictions made that have come to pass.

Under some hands, there has come at one time messages of the purest and most exalted nature, and at another abominable falsehoods and unutterable profanity. On this point, and in reply to a complaint that spirit communications are not to be trusted, Mr. Thomas Shorter, of England, once wisely remarked: “Well, perhaps that is the very lesson they were chiefly designed to teach you.”

An intelligence claiming to be a spirit gave the following through a planchette:“It is one of the important providential designs of these manifestations to teach mankind that spirits in general maintain the characters that they formed in themselves during their earthly life—that, indeed, they are the identical persons they were while dwelling in the flesh—hence, that while there are just, truthful, wise, and Christian spirits, there are also spirits addicted to lying, profanity, obscenity, mischief and violence, and spirits who deny God and religion, just as they did while in your world. It has become very necessary for mankind to know all this; it certainly could in no other way be so effectually made known as by an actual manifestation of it; and it is just as necessary that you should see the dark side as the bright side of the picture.”

Admin wrote:Here you go Jim, this is a fun site http://www.museumoftalkingboards.com/

Might direct you to a place to buy something. Planchette would be best, insert a pencil and let it write for you.

Admin wrote:Talking of which
http://www.planchettes.com/html/home.shtml

Margaret Challenger wrote: Can't see why we need to call out the alphabet as they did in 1848 when we have Mediums myself - but each to their own. Margaret