Abstract
THE Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research for July (48, Pt. 175) has a suggestive and highly critical article by the research officer, Dr. D. J. West, in which he examines afresh the evidence hitherto collected by the Society for the super-normality of such spontaneous phenomena as pre-cognitive dreams, apparitions and other forms of hallucinations. In the case of the precognitive dream Dr. West concludes that a perfect case has not yet been printed in the Society‘s publications. "There is always a flaw somewhere," he writes, adding that "the perfect case is a myth" (p. 271). In dealing with the crisis apparition, he points out that numerous and unsuspected sources of error abound, and he indicates his dissatisfaction with the evidence on which those conducting the famous Census of Hallucinations were inclined to rely. Finally, he points out how better evidence could be secured if witnesses could be persuaded to forward their results immediately to some independent source, so that adequate inquiries might be forthwith made and the original documents preserved for subsequent examination and verification.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hallucinations. Nature 162, 447 (1948). https://doi.org/10.1038/162447a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/162447a0