The appeal of "Dr." Monck, the "spirit-medium," who was convicted
in October last at Huddersfield of "using subtle means, crafts, and devices, by palmistry and otherwise, with in- tent to deceive," was heard in the Court of Exchequer yesterday week, and on Tuesday Baron Cleasby delivered judgment on the appeal, which was an appeal not as to the facts of the case, but whether, in point of law, frauds practised at a spiritualistic séance come within the terms of the Vagrancy Act. "We have nothing to do," said Baron Cleasby, "with the correct- ness of the conclusions of fact arrived at by the magistrates." "We are not called upon to express any opinion upon the subject of spiritualism generally,—whether there does exist any real power in a medium,' as he is called, of the nature set up, or whether its existence is a mere delusion." All the Court had to determine was whether the sort of fraud of which the appellant was convicted, could be properly punished under an Act pro- fessing only to punish deceits of the kind described as deceits practised "by palmistry or otherwise." Baron Cleasby decided that they were punishable under that Act, and Baron Pollock concurred. Something beyond mere palmistry and fortune- telling must be supposed to have been meant by the words, "or otherwise," and no frauds could be conceived more analogous to those of fortane-tellimg by palmistry than those in which it is pretended that manifestations of spirit power are given, when the pretended manifestations are really nothing but trickery. An attemptwas made to ask for a further appeal, but the Court could not decide on the spot whether or not such an appeal was legally admissible.
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