(1) The intelligences acting upon them (the mediums) are almost invariably of a superior character and therefore must mould the organism by constant use for the expression of higher forms of thought.
(2) The relation of the medium to the manifesting intelligence is that of pupil to teacher, sometimes that of a child to a wise and loving parent, and sometimes both these relations combined with a subtle and ennobling spirituality.
(3) There is always a mutual spiritual relation, even though the medium is not humanly conscious of it ; and no one can be a medium for the perfect expression of spiritual messages or discourses who does not consent to the procedure and co-operate with the manifesting spirit.

(4) As the master musician improves the instrument he plays upon, so also a spirit controlling a human organism for the purpose of expressing wholesome thought, imparts a greater power both to the brain and spirit of the medium. It is often difficult for spirits to control a medium sufficiently to manifest in any way through him.

Both trance and catalepsy occur spontaneously; both may also be induced artificially by hypnotism. Both are mistaken for death, and in many respects they are very similar. In catalepsy the body is rigid, whereas in trance this is very rarely the case this forming the chief mark of distinction (external indication) between the two states. What the internal differences are we do not know. Various attempts, however, have been made to define them. Dr. Franz Hartmann, e.g., thus distinguishes them: “There seems hardly any limit to the time during which a person may remain in a trance but catalepsy is due to some obstruction in the organic mechanism of the body on account of its exhausted nervous power. In the last case the activity of life begins again as soon as the impediment is removed or the nervous energy has recuperated its strength.
When a hypnotist places bis subject under hypnotic control, the subject remains en rapport with the operator. The influence comes from a living person. In the medium-trance it seems probable that the operator is not a living but a deceased person, and that it is a kind of telepathic influence from spirits which induces this state. In fact, it is brought about by influence from the “other side.”