Buchanan's Journal of Man, May 1887: Volume 1, Number 4

In Short

This issue of a late nineteenth-century alternative journal combines phrenology, neuroanatomy, mediumship, and social commentary into an eccentric vision of human progress. Edited by Dr. Joseph Rodes Buchanan, the publication surveys everything from the physical structures of the brain to psychic predictions of war, chemical innovations like saccharine, and severe critiques of contemporary politics and medical legislation. It endures as an authentic window into Gilded Age fringe science, where spiritualism and emerging technology briefly shared the same intellectual stage.

The Story

The issue opens by exploring the psychic phenomenon known as psychometry, specifically its capacity to foresee major historical conflicts. The narrative examines how spiritual mediums, operating in states of trance, purportedly channelled messages from historic leaders like George Washington and John Quincy Adams to issue grave warnings about American slavery and the imminent horrors of the Civil War. A striking accounts details medium Emma Hardinge delivering a chilling prophecy of desolation within the Alabama state legislature just months before the outbreak of hostilities. This introductory section establishes the journal's foundational premise: that unseen spiritual forces actively intercede in human affairs to warn against moral decay and social corruption.

From these mystical warnings, the text pivots sharply toward an aggressive critique of modern governance, organized religion, and industrial greed. The editor lambastes the hypocrisy of self-proclaimed Christian nations for maintaining standing armies and pursuing aggressive foreign policies while neglecting genuine peace initiatives. Legislative bodies are condemned for passing restrictive medical laws that penalize non-traditional healers, as well as for ignoring basic property and parental rights for women. The discourse extends to economic exploitation, denouncing market syndicates that manipulate the prices of essential goods like wheat and pork, and warning of the dire environmental consequences of unchecked population growth and resource depletion.

The middle section shifts to a detailed anatomical study of the human brain, framing cerebral architecture as the physical key to understanding human nature and potential. The text provides a descriptive tour of the brain's internal structure, detailing the lateral ventricles, the corpus callosum, the corpus striatum, and the optic thalamus. Rejecting pure materialism, the argument asserts that physical structures are animated by invisible spiritual energies. It claims that a microscopic germinal element carries the spiritual blueprint that determines whether a cell becomes an oyster or a genius like Alexander von Humboldt.

Finally, the publication closes with a mix of practical technology, institutional promotion, and reader testimonials. Brief notices celebrate recent industrial discoveries, such as coal-tar saccharine, methods for hardening steel, artificial ivory made from treated potatoes, and paper pianos from Germany. Dr. Buchanan advertises his College of Therapeutics, offering six-week courses in sarcognomy and psychometric diagnosis for practicing physicians, while reprinting enthusiastic praise from subscribing readers and secular newspapers. The issue ends as a unified manifesto advocating for a new era of spiritualized science and holistic human culture.

How It Unfolds

Prophecies of war and peace The issue begins by demonstrating psychometric foresight, contrasting the naive optimism of nineteenth-century diplomats with detailed spirit communications that correctly predicted the catastrophic violence of the American Civil War.

The desolation of Alabama Medium Emma Hardinge delivers a spontaneous, horrifying prophecy of war and ruin while visiting the Alabama State House, a prediction that manifests five years later when local regiments are annihilated on the battlefield.

Indictments of modern institutions The text fiercely attacks state legislatures, corporate syndicates, and conventional churches, arguing that true morality requires anti-war arbitration, equal property rights for women, and an end to market manipulation.

Anatomy of the inner brain A extended scientific tour traces the physical pathways of the cerebrum, explaining the functions of the ventricles, the corpus callosum, and the central ganglia as the physical foundations of human thought.

Spirituality in biological genesis The argument addresses embryonic growth, asserting that physical science alone cannot explain life and that microscopic protoplasm is guided by invisible, higher spiritual energies.

Practical science and notices The final section surveys modern inventions, detailing new chemical processes for synthetic sugar and ivory alongside advertisements for medical courses in psychic diagnosis and magnetic healing.

The People

Dr. Joseph Rodes Buchanan The editor and publisher, a veteran professor of physiology who seeks to revolutionize human medicine. He aims to synthesize physical neuroanatomy with spiritual phenomena, positioning his journal as a crusade against orthodox medical bigotry and political corruption.

Joseph D. Stiles An American trance medium through whose hand spirit messages purported to come from John Quincy Adams and George Washington, warning the nation that divine judgment would fall upon America for the crime of slavery.

Emma Hardinge A celebrated spiritualist lecturer and medium who travels the United States. Forbidden by local laws from speaking in Mobile, her brief visit to the state capitol in Montgomery triggers an unbidden, terrifying prophecy regarding the impending ruin of Alabama.

Mr. Adams A witness to Hardinge’s 1860 capitol prophecy who writes years later from New York, horrified to confirm that the predicted destruction fell upon his own family and the state's young soldiers.

In Its Own Voice

"America can no more expect mercy in her prosperous wickedness, from the hand of Deity, than can the most degraded child of earth expect to enjoy equal happiness and bliss with the more refined and exalted intelligences of heaven."

This solemn warning, delivered through a mid-century trance medium, framed the coming Civil War as an inevitable divine penalty for national sins.

"Profound science does not take away religion, as superficial or false science does, but develops a far nobler, holier, and more beneficent religion than any churches comprehend."

Here the editor outlines his core philosophy, arguing that true scientific inquiry enhances spiritual faith rather than destroying it.

"Why is it that a simple speck of protoplasm void of visible organization... carries within itself in that invisible spiritual element the destiny of myriads of animal beings...?"

This central question highlights the journal's attempt to reconcile biological development with metaphysical design.

What It's Really About

Beneath its eclectic mixture of trance mediumship and scientific summaries, the journal argues that material science and spiritual truth are fundamentally inseparable. It contends that modern civilization suffers from a fatal divide: religion has become perfunctory and dogmatic, while mainstream science has degenerated into cold, unfeeling materialism. By studying the human brain through both physical anatomy and psychic phenomena like psychometry, the publication asserts that humanity can unlock its latent moral powers. The text insists that true human progress requires reforming political institutions, eliminating war through international arbitration, protecting women's legal rights, and recognizing that invisible spiritual laws govern physical evolution.

Why Read It Today

This publication offers a captivating look at the vibrant nineteenth-century intellectual underworld, where alternative medicine, phrenology, and early spiritualism merged with legitimate reform movements. Readers interested in the history of science, social history, or American occultism will find it a fascinating primary source that demonstrates how deeply fringe ideas were entangled with progressive causes like women's rights and anti-war advocacy.

The prose is confident, sharp, and intensely idealistic, offering an energetic reading experience that reflects the fierce convictions of its editor. Modern readers may find the technical neuroanatomy somewhat outdated and the reliance on spirit messages unusual, but these elements reflect the genuine scientific debates of the 1880s. What remains with the reader is the editor's earnest belief in human perfectibility and his relentless determination to challenge authority in pursuit of a better world.