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SHADOW LAND OR  LIGHT FROM THE OTHER SIDE by Elisabeth d’Esperance(1897)

Another experiment was to read closed or sealed letters.

The first attempt was fairly successful. I could see the writing distinctly, but had to follow the folds of the paper, turning it over and over to trace the lines. It was enclosed in seven envelopes, gummed, and sealed, and was written in a language I did not know, so that I had to spell every word aloud in order that a member of the circle should write it according to my dictation.

Another time a letter was given me to read, but in spite of repeated trials, I was unable to make anything of it. At last, once when I took up the envelope I was delighted to find its contents clearly visible to me, but it also was in a foreign language- Swedish-and I was compelled to copy each word carefully, not knowing its meaning.

At the first I used to wait anxiously for the letters to be opened, to be assured that I really had seen the actual writing, but as there had never been a mistake so far, I had no more fear;  I knew I had seen what was behind the sealed cover.

Even this power fluctuated. Given two letters to read, the one would be as clear and distinct as though spread out before me, the other perfectly impenetrable. Once or twice I have kept such letters by me, trying now and again to decipher the sealed contents. In some cases after having kept them for awhile I was enabled to see and read them, though with difficulty having to guess at the words very often. Frequently the paper appeared of a murky tone, sometimes quite black, and the written words indistinguishable.

Strange to say, I always had a particular aversion to such letters, in some cases almost amounting to horror. I hated to touch them, and after having done so I felt an instinctive desire to wash my hands. Quite in vain I tried to combat this feeling as it interfered frequently with my usefulness.