d not to
explain all the facts. Many might contend that the board was moved by a
principle or force as yet unknown, and think the question settled in
that way. Of course this is a mere begging of the question, for all
practical purposes, because, if the explanation were known, there would
be no mystery and no argument about it. But the mere statement that the
board is operated by a force as yet unknown merely restates the problem,
without in any way attempting to solve it, and hence leaves us precisely
where we were. Certainly this theory will not do!

Undoubtedly, the simplest explanation--and the correct one--for the
majority of the facts is that the subconscious mind is alone responsible
for them. Thoughts, images, reflections, imaginations, tend to
externalize or express themselves in this manner,--in motor
avenues,--through the movement of the board. The vast majority of ouija
board "communications" are to be accounted for in this way. But what of
those other (relatively rare) cases in which supernormal information,
unknown to the sitter, is obtained? Any theory which is advanced must
explain these cases also, as well as the movement of the board, and pure
subconscious activity does not. We should still have to account for this
knowledge, unknown to the writer; so that we shall have to seek further
yet, in order to discover the true cause of the intelligence doing the
writing.

We seem to be driven, then, into one of two alternatives: (1) that
unconscious muscular action pushed the board, and that the supernormal
information given was obtained by telepathy, clairvoyance, etc.; or (2)
that spirits did the writing. Let us examine each of these hypotheses in
turn a little more carefully. It seems to me that the first theory is
practically unable to account in any satisfactory way for many
communications that have been received. On the other hand, it would be
perfectly absurd to invoke the agency of "spirits" for every one of the
messages that have been written out--I mean supernormal messages. On the
contrary, there are many experiments that point to clairvoyance or
telepathy as the true explanation. It is highly probable, it seems to
me, that the same agency is not involved on every occasion, but that
there may be spirits (granting such to exist) on some occasions;
telepathy and clairvoyance on other occasions; and purely unconscious
muscular action on most occasions, when no supernormal is involved. It
is only the