Vanishing suddenly

My father's death occurred when I was in my seventh year. It was the subject of conversation between my mother and myself from time to v.] VISUAL CASES. 511 time till her death in 1866, so that the apparition was no mere dream of childhood. I saw the farmer come into the house, and am under the impression that I was present at the interview between my mother and him, but am uncertain on this point. However, my mother forthwith mentioned to the elder children the purport of the farmer's visit ; but at the time she did not attach importance to it, as my father was in his usual health when my eldest brother left him, about half-an-hour previously. All my brothers and sisters are dead, except one sister whom I have not seen, and from whom I have not heard, for a long time. [Though the percipient here did not actually describe his experience before he heard of the death, Mr. Wambey's remembrance of his strange visit assimilates the case to those reckoned as on a par with first-hand. (Vol. I., p. 148). In conversation he mentioned his very strong impression that he was himself in the room during this visit.] (552) From Mrs. Rooke, Rawdon College, near Leeds. On September 28, 1884, Mrs. Rooke wrote that, About October, 1882, at 9 p.m., she had had a visual impression of an intimate friend who was dead, though at the time the fact was unknown to me. In answer to inquiries, she adds : — • Our dear friend had only died within a very short time of my seeing him. He was in Australia, and we heard of his death a few days over six weeks after I saw him. He went there for his health, but the last news we had of him was so good that we were not at all anxious . I was sorry afterwards that I had not kept a note of the exact day, but I had always so scoffed at ghost tales and such like things, that I was most unwilling to believe I had seen him. The gas was full on at the time ; there was no light about the figure ; he was as natural as in life, but as I came near to him vanished. I was going down a corridor, and the vision was certainly 'external and palpable.' I should think I saw him for half a minute quite, and expected him to come forward and speak. He was very much attached to us, as we were to him. u Amelia M. Rooke In answer to inquiries, Mrs. Rooke adds : — I am sorry to say that I did not mention the subject of the apparition to any one at the time I saw it ; indeed, not till many months ^ after our friend's death. There is nothing at all inconsistent with the supposition that the time of the ' vision ' corresponded with the time of death. I always thought it probably did so. The dress was a suit and cap I knew well,i but he died in bed. I have never had a hallucination. [Here the coincidence is of course doubtful. It would remain a remarkable one, even if the interval exceeded the 1 2 hours' limit laid down for the cases in this book.] (553 and 554) From Mrs. Forsyth Hunter, 2, Victoria Crescent, St. Helier's, Jersey, who sent us the accounts in 1882. 1 See Vol. i., p. 540. 2 This seems to be a mistake : see the Additions and Corrections at the beginning of the volume. 512 SUPPLEMENT. [chap. Mrs. Hunter had had a friend from whom she had parted in coldness, and whom she had not since seen or corresponded with.