Such knowledge would also help delineate the decisions Sadler made when he created commercial social structures for care of the Revelation, how his personal attitudes led to such choices, and consequent later dangers to the Revelation. The more we know about such details the more we can assess the integrity of the Revelation.

But perhaps our Planetary Supervisors intended that we not have too much information, that we make our assessments based on faith and truth rather than on technical information.

While this was a perfectly truthful statement it was intended to deflect further inquiry. Sadler could have gone into detailed description of the history of his experiences with the Sleeping Subject, the unfolding of the Revelation through the Forum, and subsequent developments, but he did not. He was under instruction to not reveal how the Revelation came. He did not want to become involved in convoluted partial stories. It was better to leave it with this simple remark.

Note: The technique of the reception of the Urantia Book in English in no way parallels or impinges upon any of the above phenomena of the marginal consciousness.

In discussions of fraudulent mediums or self-deceived psychics, the reader of this book has several times encountered the statement that there were certain exceptions to the general indictments there made, and was referred to this appendix. It now becomes my duty to explain what I had in mind when those footnotes were inserted.

In the interest of scientific accuracy on the one hand, and of strict fairness on the other, it becomes necessary to explain that there are one or two exceptions to the general statement that all cases of psychic phenomena which have come under my observation have turned out to be those of auto-psychism. It is true that practically all the physical phenomena have proved to be fraudulent, while the psychic phenomena are almost invariably explainable by the laws of psychic projection, transference, reality shifting, etc. But many years ago I did meet one trance medium, a women now deceased, whose vision, revelations, etc., were not tainted with spiritualism. As far as my knowledge extends, at no time did she claim to be under the influence of spirit guides or controls, or to communicate messages from the spirits of departed human beings. Her work was largely of a religious nature and consisted of elevated sayings and religious admonitions.

I never had the privilege of making a thoroughgoing psychic analysis of this case, and am not in a position to express myself as to the extent to which her revelations originated in the subconscious realm of her own mind. I make mention of the case merely to record the fact that I have met one instance of psychic phenomena apparently of the trance order that was not in any way associated with spiritualism.

The other exception has to do with a rather peculiar case of psychic phenomena, one which I find myself unable to classify, and which I would like very much to narrate more fully; I cannot do so here, however, because of a promise which I feel under obligation to keep sacredly. In other words, I have promised not to publish this case during the lifetime of the individual. I hope sometime to secure a modification of that promise and to be able to report this case more fully because of its interesting features.

I was brought in contact with it, in the summer of 1911, and I have had it under my observation more or less ever since, having been present at probably 250 of the night sessions, many of which have been attended by a stenographer who made voluminous notes.

A thorough study of this case has convinced me that it is not one of ordinary trance. While the sleep seems to be quite of a natural order, it is very profound and so far we have never been able to awaken the subject when in this state; but the body is never rigid, and the heart action is never modified, tho respiration is sometimes markedly interfered with. This man is utterly unconscious, wholly oblivious to what takes place, and, unless told about it subsequently, never knows that he has been used as a sort of clearing house for the coming and going of alleged extra-planetary personalities.

In fact, he is more or less indifferent to the whole proceeding, and shows a surprising lack of interest in these affairs as they occur from time to time.

In no way are these night visitations like the séances associated with spiritualism.

At no time during the period of eighteen years’ observation has there been a communication from any source that claimed to be the spirit of a deceased human being. The communications which have been written, or which we have had an opportunity to hear spoken, are made by a vast order of alleged beings who claim to come from other planets to visit this world, to stop here as student visitors for study and observation when they are enroute from one universe to another or from one planet to another.

These communications further arise in alleged spiritual beings who purport to have been assigned to this planet for duties of various sorts.

Eighteen years of study and careful investigation have failed to reveal the psychic origin of these messages. I find myself at the present time just where I was when I started. Psychoanalysis, hypnotism, intensive comparison, fail to show that the written or spoken messages of this individual have origin in his own mind. Much of the material secured through this subject is quite contrary to his habits of thought, to the way in which he has been taught, and to his entire philosophy. In fact, of much that we have secured, we have failed to find anything of its nature in existence. Its philosophic content is quite new, and we are unable to find where very much of it has ever found human expression.

Much as I would like to report details of this case, I am not in a position to do so at present. I can only say that I have found in these years of observation that all the information imparted through this source has proved to be consistent within itself.

While there is considerable difference in the quality of the communications, this seems to be reasonably explained by a difference in state of development and order of the personalities making the communications. Its philosophy is consistent. It is essentially Christian and is, on the whole, entirely harmonious with the known scientific facts and truths of this age. In fact, the case is so unusual and extraordinary that it established itself immediately, as far as my experience goes, in a class by itself, one which has thus far resisted all my efforts to prove it to be of auto-psychic origin. Our investigations are being continued and, as I have intimated, I hope some time in the near future to secure permission for the more complete reporting of the phenomena connected with this interesting case.

The first case can only be Ellen White. There is no other likely candidate; I have run across none in my investigations. If we found another we would then have to put aside the phenomenon of White.

He refers to her as a trance medium. This means that her prophetic pronouncements, visions, and religious admonitions derived from an abnormal state of mind. He admits that he had no opportunity to study White to determine more exactly the causes or sources of her spiritual emanations. It is true that she never entered into the deceptions of psychism as her source of authority, and believed to the end of her life that her messages truly came from God. John Harvey Kellogg had predicted that after menopause she would no longer experience visions. Apparently he was correct, for after fifty years of age she no longer based her authority on such sources, although she continued to claim divine guidance. Examination of her work shows purely human origins for her spiritual admonitions, as Sadler so well detailed in his 1905 letter to her.

The other case refers to the Sleeping Subject. Sadler identifies it also as a case of psychic phenomena. In giving this classification he once again reverts to common terminology, and demonstrates inability to clearly delineate his thoughts about the processes involved. In his adherence to the notions of spiritualism Ellen White and SS were simply other cases of psychic phenomena he was unable to classify.

He states that he was brought into contact with it in the summer of 1911. He also describes eighteen years of study, (from 1929).

These are most extraordinary remarks, and have caused endless difficulty. In the summer of 1911 he was making plans to go to Europe to study under leading psychiatric figures, including Sigmund Freud. By that time he had made up his mind to leave the lucrative practice of surgery to enter the uncertain field of psychiatry. His decision was based on several factors:

• 1. Not the least was Ellen White and the causes of her religious revelations. He had much reason to reflect on the authority of prophets and prophetesses.

• 2. Another element was his earlier experience with the social outcasts of the cities. Anyone who has worked with those people soon becomes aware of the impact of mental attitudes on life choices, and states of health.

• 3. Still another factor, and perhaps the most immediate to his decision, was his experience with SS. He had consulted with many experts in order to arrive at some understanding of that phenomena, and continued to do so for many years. Perhaps he could come to better understanding if he personally became more acquainted with the hidden activities of the human mind and their impact on human behavior.

• 4. Still more, he had accumulated considerable experience in his contacts with patients who were psychics. How could he be more professional in the treatment of such individuals unless he became more expert? And what made SS different from them?

All of this accumulated experience was the motivation for his decision to enter psychiatry.

(The distance between La Grange and north Chicago was about thirty miles. In 1910 hardly anyone had automobiles. Travel would have to be by train with night schedules that were few and far between. In 1920 many more people had automobiles but the distance over the unpaved roads of those days would have required more than an hour one way. Thus it seems unrealistic that SS remained in La Grange while Sadler lived in North Chicago.)

On Tuesday morning, April 1, 1997 I visited the Board of Trade in Chicago and obtained a list of members for the year 1908 from Bob Lynch, administrator of the Records Department. On Wednesday morning I obtained copies of the 1908 La Grange Directory from the women at the Historical Society. I then spent that afternoon and evening comparing the lists of more than 1800 persons against one another.

I found ten individuals who were listed as Board of Trade. I found another seven who were identified as Commission Merchants. I also found another six persons identified  as Brokers. The question then before me was this, Did any of those individuals meet the other requirements?

Sadler stated that the lease of SS expired on his first apartment that fall, the apartment in which Sadler first met him, and that the man thereupon moved into another apartment in the same block. Therefore, the address of SS should change from 1907 or 1908 to 1909, and should be in close proximity to Sadler.

Of the twenty-three candidates nineteen continued to live at the same address from 1907 to 1910. Two were not listed after 1908. One man moved between 1907 and 1908 and again between 1908 and 1909, but to addresses not near Sadler — certainly not in the same block. Also this man continued to live at his last address until 1920. The remaining man moved to addresses convenient to Sadler, but after 1909. He also failed to move in the same block.

Two other possibilities existed. Perhaps the individual was not listed in the La Grange Directory, just as the Sadler’s had not been listed in 1904 and 1905. This might especially be true if SS lived in an apartment, rather than in a house. If so we would not be able to identify him. Another possibility is that he might not be identified in any of the professional categories I described above. Therefore I examined the La Grange Directory for all male individuals who were not identified by trade and who lived within a four-block radius of Sadler. This gave me another thirty-two candidates. Of those, seven were not listed after 1908; I could not follow their movements. The remaining individuals either continued to live at the same address, or moved to addresses which were not compatible with the criteria I had established.

I could test the validity of an apartment in the same block as Sadler by examining the U. S. Census reports for 1910. When the census takers collect their data they move up one side of a street and down the other, in sequential order. They list all family members, (and servants), with names, ages, and occupations.

Thus one is able to determine not only the household composition of the person under investigation, but also of all his neighbors. In fact, one can proceed through an entire Enumeration District to determine all persons at all addresses for that census year. Obviously this becomes a tedious task, limited by time and financial resources.

From village maps for 1909 I was able to find multiple family dwellings in the same block on South 6th Avenue in La Grange that would indicate an apartment.

But strangely, those addresses were not included in the Census survey! There was another possibility. Perhaps Sadler had meant that the man moved in the same block on adjacent streets, on 7th or 5th Avenues. I found none on 7th

Avenue, a residential street like 6th Avenue. 5th Avenue is now La Grange Road, and was the main business thoroughfare through the Village. I found multiple family dwellings on that street, but none of the persons were brokers, grain buyers, or commission merchants.

If SS had moved in La Grange to be near Sadler, because he did not want the Sadlers traveling great distances during the middle of the night, then we would expect the same principle to hold after the Sadlers moved from La Grange to north Chicago in 1913. SS also should have moved to the same neighborhood in north Chicago. Unfortunately, with elimination of the three dozen candidates while in La Grange I had no candidates left to follow. I attempted to locate the several who were no longer listed in La Grange after 1909, but again was unsuccessful.

The trail was too nebulous, and too many persons with the same names appeared in U. S. Census reports for Chicago and environs for 1920.

I eventually reached the view that lack of identity of SS may be part of the conditions for each of us to reach our own decisions regarding the Revelation.

Perhaps we might unduly emphasize his importance, in attempt to avoid the personal crises which will now face each and everyone of us.

I left the effort behind, satisfied that I had been faithful as a researcher, and to the trust others might place in my integrity.

If they were active to obscure the trail to that unique individual they certainly succeeded.