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I recently read a very interesting autobiography by Leslie Flint, one of
England's best known direct-voice mediums, and would like to recommend it to
anyone interested in that subject. The title is VOICES IN THE DARK. It is
published by Two Worlds Publishing Co., London, and is 221 pages.
This
book was first published by Macmillan London in 1971, reprinted by Psychic Press
in 1988, and most recently released by Two Worlds. In addition to the
direct-voice, Flint (1911-1994) had clairvoyant, clairaudient, and trance
mediumship abilities, but the direct-voice phenomenon was his primary gift. He
demonstrated his ability before packed audiences in London halls and in small
circles that included many prime movers and celebrities.
Flint
opined that he must have been the most tested medium in England. "I
have been boxed up, tied up, sealed up, gagged, bound, and held, and still the
voices have come to speak their message of eternal life," Flint wrote.
In
direct-voice mediumship, discarnates draw ectoplasm from the medium to form a
larynx (or "mask") some two feet from the medium. They spirit entities
usually speak with the same voices they possessed when incarnate. Searching
for a logical explanation, the skeptics (i.e., the cynics) often suggest the
medium is a ventriloquist; hence, the reason for Flint being gagged in some of
his tests. In one test, he was forced to hold a cup of water in his mouth
throughout the séance. In another, his lips were sealed with plaster. Of
course, even ventriloquism could not explain the many different voices and the
evidential information that came from them in different dialects. Nor could it
explain how Flint could be observed now and then talking to the person next to
him at the same time the spirits talked. In one sitting, the voice moved
from above Flint to the other side of the room near the door, then began
speaking loudly with a woman on the other side of the door. It turned out to be
the mother of the spirit speaking. She had not arrived on time and was locked
out of the séance. Although Flint and others in the room were unaware that the
mother had arrived and was sitting outside, the spirit took the voice mask over
to the door to communicate with his mother through the door. (The door could not
be opened because light has a destructive effect on ectoplasm and can seriously
injure the medium.)
In
a demonstration before 75 people in New York City, Mickey, Flint's control and
"gatekeeper," announced that the presence of one known on earth as
Carl Schneider was there to speak. At first, no one responded, but a member of
the audience finally spoke up and mentioned that he knew a Carl Schnieder and
that the voice was unmistakably his; however, as far as he knew Schneider was
still among the living. The next day, the person attempted to call Schneider,
only to find that he had committed suicide a year earlier. In several
sittings, the voices of people still alive came through, and upon investigation
it was determined that they were deeply asleep or in a coma at the time.
Flint
recalls his first psychic experience, or the first he can remember, coming in
1918 at age 7. It was shortly after his Aunt Nell had received word that her
husband had been killed in the Great War. Young Flint observed a soldier
standing in the kitchen and pulling at his aunt's sleeve, seemingly trying to
attract her attention. His aunt took no notice of the soldier and shortly he
vanished. Later, when his aunt showed him a photograph of his Uncle Alf, he
recognized him as the soldier he had seen in the kitchen.
Because
he did not feel he could bring himself to kill anyone, Flint was a conscientious
objector during World War II. However, he still joined the army and volunteered
for bomb disposal duty. When some of his fellow soldiers became aware of his
mediumistic abilities, they harassed him until he decided to give them a
demonstration one night after lights were out in the barracks. Mickey began
speaking to them individually, giving them help and advice on various problems
that Flint was unaware of. Mickey brought the deceased sister of one through and
she began having a personal talk with her brother when one of the sergeants
barged into the room and turned the lights on. This caused the ectoplasm to rush
back into his body. "I felt as though I had been kicked in the solar
plexus," Flint recalled the incident, stating that it caused him to lay
winded and retching.
I
purchased this book six months before I got around to reading it. Once I
started on it, I couldn't put it down. It is a fascinating read.
The
book is available from Two Worlds, A3 Riverside, Metropolitan Wharf, Wapping
Wall, London E1W 3SS for 7.95 pounds sterling (about $13). It can be
ordered by e-mail at tortzen@globalnet.co.uk Tapes of a number of Flint's séances
also are available.
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