,transcriber's ,notes ,obvious typographical errors have been silently corrected4 ,variations in hyphenation have been standardised but all other spelling and punctuation remains unchanged4 ,italics are represented thus italic4 ,,popular ,,superstitions1 ,,and ,,the ,,truths ,,contained ,,therein1 ,,with ,,an ,,account ,,of ,,mesmerism4 ,,by ,,herbert ,,mayo1 ,m4,d41 ,,formerly ,,senior ,,surgeon ,,of ,,middlesex ,,hospital2 ,,professor ,,of ,,anatomy ,,and ,,physiology ,,in ,,king',s ,,college2 ,,professor ,,of ,,comparative ,,anatomy ,,in ,,the ,,royal ,,college ,,of ,,surgeons1 ,,london4 ,f4,r4,s41 ,f4,g4,s41 ,,etc4 ,,from ,,the ,,third ,,london ,,edition4 ,,philadelphia3 ,,lindsay ,,and ,,blakiston4 #aheb4 ,,wm4 ,s4 ,,young1 ,,printer4 ,,prefatory ,,remarks4 ,in the following ,letters ,i have endeavoured to exhibit in their true light the singular natural phenomena of which old superstition and modern charlatanism in turn availed themselves--to indicate their laws1 and to develop their theory4 ,the subject is so important that ,i might well have approached it in a severer guise4 ,but1 slight as this performance may appear1 ,i profess to have employed upon it the keenest and most patient efforts of reflection of which ,i am capable4 ,and as to its tone at the commencement1 and the prominence given to popular and trivial topics1 ,i candidly avow that1 without some such artifice1 ,i doubt whether ,i should have found a publisher of repute to publish1 or a circle of readers to read1 my lucubrations4 8,cosi all' egro fanciul porgiamo aspersi ,di soave licor gli orli del vaso2 ,succhi amari ingannato intanto ei beve1 ,e dall' inganno suo vita riceve40 ,it was in the winter of #ahdf that the original seven ,letters were written1 of which the present fourteen are the third and expanded reprint4 ,the hour had come for successfully assailing certain already shaking prejudices of the reading public4 ,the ,selbstschau of ,zschokke1 and the researches of ,von ,reichenbach1 were in the hands of the literary and philosophic4 ,the seer-gift of the former 7see ,letter ,,iv47 had established the fact that one mind can enter into direct though one-sided communion with another4 ,the undenied ,od-force of the latter 7see ,letter ,i47 is evidently the same influence with that1 the first crude announcement of which1 by ,mesmer1 had scared the world into disbelief4 ,it had now become possible to explain ghostly warnings1 and popular prophecies1 the wonders of natural trance1 and of animal magnetism1 without having recourse to a single unproven principle4 ,i therefore made the attempt2 other more efficient labourers have co-operated in the same object2 and public opinion is no longer hostile to this class of inquiries4 ,,bad ,,weilbach1 near ,,mayence1 #ast ,august1 #ahea4 ,,contents4 ,,letter ,i4 ,,the ,,divining-,,rod4--,description of1 and mode of using the same--,mr4 ,fairholm's statement--,m4 de ,tristan's statement--,account of ,von ,reichenbach's ,od-force--,the ,author's own observations1 #i ,,letter ,,ii4 ,,vampyrism4--,tale exemplifying the superstition--,the ,vampyr state of the body in the grave--,various instances of death-trance--,the risk of premature interment considered--,the ,vampyr visit1 #cj ,,letter ,,iii4 ,,unreal ,,ghosts4--,law of sensorial illusions--,cases of ,nicolai1 ,schwedenborg1 ,joan of ,arc--,fetches--,churchyard ghosts1 #ec ,,letter ,,iv4 ,,true ,,ghosts4--,the apparitions themselves always sensorial illusions--,the truth of their communications accounted for--,zschokke's seer-gift described1 to show the possibility of direct mental communication--,second-sight--,the true relation of the mind to the living body1 #gj ,,letter ,v4 ,,trance4--,distinction of esoneural and exoneural mental phenomena--,abnormal relation of the mind and nervous system possible--,insanity--,sleep--,essential nature of trance--,its alliance with spasmodic seizures--,general characters of trance--,enumeration of kinds1 #hf ,,letter ,,vi4 ,,trance-,,sleep4--,the phenomena of trance divided into those of trance-sleep1 and those of trance-waking--,trance-sleep presents three forms2 ,trance-waking two4 ,the three forms of trance sleep described2 viz41 death-trance1 trance-coma1 simple or initiatory trance1 #ih ,,letter ,,vii4 ,,half-,,waking ,,trance1 ,,or ,,somnambulism4--,the same thing with ordinary sleep-walking--,its characteristic feature1 the acting of a dream--,cases1 and disquisition1 #ajf ,,letter ,,viii4 ,,trance-,,waking4--,instances of its spontaneous occurrence in the form of catalepsy--,analysis of catalepsy--its three elements3 double consciousness1 or pure waking-trance2 the spasmodic seizure2 the new mental powers displayed--,cases exemplifying catalepsy--,other cases unattended with spasm1 but of spontaneous occurrence1 in which new mental powers were manifested--,oracles of antiquity--,animal instinct--,intuition1 #aaf ,,letter ,,ix4 ,,religious ,,delusions4--,the seizures giving rise to them shown to have been forms of trance brought on by fanatical excitement--,the ,cevennes--,scenes at the tomb of the ,abb ,paris--,revivals in ,america--,the ,ecstatica of ,caldaro--,three forms of imputed demoniacal possession--,witchcraft2 its marvels1 and the solution1 #acf ,,letter ,x4 ,,mesmerism4--,use of chloroform--,history of ,mesmer--,the true nature and extent of his discovery--,its applications to medicine and surgery--,various effects produced by mesmeric manipulations--,hysteric seizures--,st4 ,veitz's dance--,nervous paralysis--,catochus--,initiatory trance--,the order in which the higher trance-phenomena are afterwards generally drawn out1 #aec ,,letter ,,xi4 ,,supplemental4--,abnormal neuro-psychical relation--,cautions necessary in receiving trance communications--,trance-visiting--,mesme rising at a distance1 and by the will--,mesmeric diagnosis and treatment of disease--,prevision--,ultra-vital vision1 #age ,,letter ,,xii4 ,,the ,,odometer ,,or ,,divining-,,ring4--,how come upon by the author--,his first experiments--,the phenomena an objective proof of the reality of the ,od-force1 #bji ,,letter ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,solution4--,examination of the genuineness of the phenomena--,od-motions produced by bodies in their most inert state--,analysis of the forces which originate them--,od-motions connected with electrical1 magnetic1 chemical1 crystalline1 and vital influences--,their analysis1 #bai ,,postscript4--,further analysis of ,od-motions--,proof of their genuineness--,explanation of their immediate cause1 #bdb ,,letter ,,xiv4 ,,hypnotism4 ,,trance-,,umbra4--,mr4 ,braid's discovery--,trance-faculties manifested in the waking state--,self-induced waking clairvoyance--,conclusion1 #bdh ,,on ,,popular ,,superstitions4 ,,letter ,i4 ,,the ,,divining ,,rod4--,description of and mode of using the same--,mr4 ,fairholm's statement--,m4 de ,tristan's statement--,account of ,von ,reichenbach's ,od force--,the ,author's own observations4 ,dear ,archy1--,as a resource in the solitary evenings of commencing winter1 it occurred to me to look into the long-neglected lore of the marvellous1 the mystical1 the supernatural4 ,i remembered the deep awe with which ,i had listened1 many a year ago1 to tales of seers1 ghosts1 vampyrs1 and all the dark brood of night4 ,and ,i thought it would be infinitely agreeable to thrill again with mysterious terrors1 to start in my chair at the closing of a distant door1 to raise my eyes with uneasy apprehension towards the mirror opposite1 and to feel my skin creep through the sensible 8afflatus0 of an invisible presence4 ,i entered1 accordingly1 upon a very promising course of appalling reading4 ,but1 a-lack and well-a-day6 a change had come over me since the good old times when fancy1 with fear and superstition behind her1 would creep on tiptoe to catch a shuddering glimpse of ,kobbold1 ,fay1 or incubus4 ,vain were all my efforts to revive the pleasant horrors of earlier years3 it was as if ,i had planned going to a play to enjoy again the full gusto of scenic illusion1 and1 through absence of mind1 was attending a morning rehearsal only2 when1 instead of what ,i had anticipated1 great-coats1 hats1 umbrellas1 and ordinary men and women1 masks1 tinsel1 trap-doors1 pulleys1 and a world of intricate machinery1 lit by a partial gleam of sunshine1 had met my view4 ,the enchantment was no longer there--the spell was broken4 ,yet1 on second thoughts1 the daylight scene was worth contemplating4 ,a new object1 of stronger interest1 suggested itself4 ,i might examine and learn the mechanism of the illusions which had failed to furnish me the projected entertainment4 ,in the books ,i had looked into1 ,i discerned a clue to the explanation of many wonderful stories1 which ,i could hitherto only seriously meet by disbelief4 ,i saw that phenomena1 which before had appeared isolated1 depended upon a common principle1 itself allied with a variety of other singular facts and observations1 which wanted only to be placed in philosophical juxtaposition to be recognised as belonging to science4 ,so ,i determined to employ the leisure before me upon an inquiry into the amount of truth in popular superstitions1 certain that1 if the attempt were not premature1 the labour would be well repaid4 ,there must be a real foundation for the belief of ages4 ,there can be no prevalent delusion without a corresponding truth4 ,the visionary promises of alchemy foreshadowed the solid performances of modern chemistry1 as the debased worship of the ,egyptians implied the existence of a proper object of worship4 ,among the immortal productions of the ,scottish ,shakspeare--you smile1 but that phrase contains the true belief1 not a popular delusion2 for the spirit of the poet lives not in the form of his works1 but in his creative power and vivid intuitions of nature2 and the form even is often nearer than you think3--but this excursiveness will never do2 so1 to begin again4 ,among the novels of ,scott--,i intended to say--there is not one more wins upon us than the ,antiquary4 ,nowhere has the great author more gently and indulgently1 never with happier humour1 portrayed the mixed web of strength and infirmity in human character2 never1 besides1 with more facile power evoked pathos and terror1 and disported himself amid the sublimity and beauty of nature4 ,yet1 gentle as is his mood1 he misses not the opportunity--albeit1 in general1 he displays an honest leaning towards old superstitions--mercilessly to crush one of the humblest4 ,do you remember the ,priory of ,st4 ,ruth1 and the summer-party made to visit it1 and the preparations for the subsequent rogueries of ,dousterswivel in the tale of ,martin ,waldeck1 and the discovery of a spring of water by means of the divining rod8 ,i am inclined1 do you know1 to dispute the verdict of the novelist on this occasion1 and to take the part of the charlatan against the author of his being2 as far1 at least1 as regards the genuineness of the art the said charlatan then and there affected to practise4 ,there exists1 in fact1 strong evidence to show that1 in competent hands1 the divining rod really does what is pretended of it4 ,this evidence ,i propose to put before you in the present letter4 ,but1 as the subject may be entirely new to you1 ,i had best begin by describing what is meant by a divining rod1 and in what the imputed jugglery consists4 ,then you are to learn that1 in mining districts1 a superstition prevails among the people that some are born gifted with an occult power of detecting the proximity of veins of metal1 and of underground currents of water4 ,in ,cornwall1 they hold that about one in forty possesses this faculty4 ,the mode of exercising it is very simple4 ,they cut a hazel twig1 just below where it forks4 ,having stripped the leaves off1 they cut each branch to something more than a foot in length1 leaving the stump three inches long4 ,this implement is the divining rod4 ,the hazel is selected for the purpose1 because it branches more symmetrically than its neighbours4 ,the hazel-fork is to be held by the branches1 one in either hand1 the stump or point projecting straight forwards4 ,the arms of the experimenter hang by his sides2 but the elbows being bent at a right angle1 the fore-arms are advanced horizontally2 the hands are held eight to ten inches apart2 the knuckles down1 and the thumbs outwards4 ,the ends of the branches of the divining fork appear between the roots of the thumbs and fore-fingers4 ,the operator1 thus armed1 walks over the ground he intends exploring1 in the full expectation that1 if he possesses the mystic gift1 as soon as he passes over a vein of metal1 or an underground spring1 the hazel-fork will begin to move spontaneously in his hands1 rising or falling as the case may be4 ,you are possibly amused at my gravely stating1 as a fact1 an event so unlikely4 ,it is1 indeed1 natural that you should suppose the whole a juggle1 and think the seemingly spontaneous motion of the divining fork to be really communicated to it by the hands of the conjurer--by a sleight1 in fact1 which he puts in practice when he believes that he is walking over a hidden water-course1 or wishes you to believe that there is a vein of metal near4 ,well1 ,i thought as you do the greater part of my life2 and probably the likeliest way of combating your skepticism1 will be to tell you how my own conversion took place4 ,in the summer of #ahdc ,i dwelt under the same roof with a ,scottish gentleman1 well informed1 of a serious turn of mind1 fully endowed with the national allowance of shrewdness and caution4 ,i saw a good deal of him2 and one day1 by chance1 this subject of the divining rod was mentioned4 ,he told me1 that at one time his curiosity having been raised upon the subject1 he had taken pains to ascertain what there is in it4 ,with this object in view he had obtained an introduction to ,mrs4 ,r41 sister of ,sir ,g4 ,r41 then living at ,southampton1 whom he had learned to be one of those in whose hands the divining rod moved4 ,he visited the lady1 who was polite enough to show him in what the performance consists1 and to answer all his questions1 and to assist him in making experiments calculated to test the reality of the phenomenon1 and to elucidate its cause4 ,mrs4 ,r4 told my friend that1 being at ,cheltenham in #ahjf1 she saw1 for the first time1 the divining rod used by ,mrs4 ,colonel ,beaumont1 who possessed the power of imparting motion to it in a very remarkable degree4 ,mrs4 ,r4 tried the experiment herself at that time1 but without any success4 ,she was1 as it happened1 very far from well4 ,afterwards1 in the year #ahae1 being asked by a friend how the divining rod is held1 and how it is to be used1 on showing it she was surprised to see that the instrument now moved in her hands4 ,since then1 whenever she had repeated the experiment1 the power had always manifested itself1 though with varying degrees of energy4 ,mrs4 ,r4 then took my friend to a part of the shrubbery where she knew1 from former trials1 the divining rod would move in her hands4 ,it did so1 to my friend's extreme astonishment2 and even continued to move1 when1 availing himself of ,mrs4 ,r4's permission1 my friend grasped her hands with sufficient firmness to prevent1 as he supposed1 any muscular action of her wrists or fingers influencing the result4 ,on a subsequent day my friend having thought over what he had seen1 repeated his visit to the lady4 ,he provided himself1 as substitutes for the hazel-fork which he had seen her employ1 with portions of copper and iron wire about a foot and a half long1 bent something into the form of the letter ,v4 ,he had made1 in fact1 divining forks of wire1 wanting only the projecting point4 ,he found that these instruments moved quite as freely in ,mrs4 ,r4's hands as the hazel-fork had done4 ,then he coated the two handles of one of them with sealing-wax1 leaving1 however1 the extreme ends free and uncovered4 ,when ,mrs4 ,r4 tried the rod so prepared1 holding the parts alone which were covered with sealing-wax1 and walked on the same piece of ground as in the former experiments1 the rod remained perfectly still4 ,as often1 however1 as--with no greater change than adjusting her hands so as to touch the free ends of the wire with her thumbs--,mrs4 ,r4 renewed direct contact with the instrument1 it again moved4 ,the motion ceased again as often as the direct contact was interrupted4 ,this simple narrative1 made to me by the late ,mr4 ,george ,fairholm1 carried conviction to my mind of the reality of the phenomenon4 ,i asked my friend why he had not pursued the subject further4 ,he said he had often thought of doing so1 and had1 he believed1 mainly been deterred by meeting with the work of the ,compte de ,tristan1 entitled ,recherches sur quelques effluves terrestres1 ,paris1 #ahbi1 in which facts similar to those which he had himself verified were given1 and a number of additional curious experiments detailed4 ,at ,mr4 ,fairholm's instance ,i procured the book1 and1 at a later period1 read it4 ,i may say that it both satisfied and disappointed me4 ,it satisfied me1 inasmuch as it fully confirmed all that ,mr4 ,fairholm had stated4 ,it disappointed me1 for it threw no additional light upon the phenomena4 ,m4 de ,tristan had in fact brought too little physical knowledge to the investigation1 so that a large proportion of his experiments are puerile4 ,however1 his simpler experiments are valuable and suggestive4 ,these ,i will presently describe4 ,in the mean time1 you shall hear the ,count's own narrative of his initiation into the mysteries of the divining rod4 8,the history of my researches10 says ,m4 de ,tristan1 8is simply this4 ,some twenty years ago1 a gentleman who1 from his position in society1 could have no object to gain by deception1 showed to me1 for my amusement1 the movement of the divining rod4 ,he attributed the motion to the influence of a current of water1 which appeared to me a probable supposition4 ,but my attention was more engaged with the action produced by the influence1 let the latter be what it might4 ,my informant assured me he had met with many others in whom the same effects were manifested4 ,when ,i returned home1 and had opportunities of making trials under favourable circumstances1 ,i found that ,i myself possessed the same endowment4 ,since then ,i have induced many to make the experiment1 and ,i have found a fourth1 or certainly a fifth1 of the number capable of setting the divining rod in motion at the very first attempt4 ,since that time1 during these twenty years1 ,i have often tried my hand1 but for amusement only1 and desultorily1 and without any idea of making the thing an object of scientific investigation4 ,but at length1 in the year #ahbb1 being in the country1 and removed from my ordinary pursuits1 the subject again came across me1 and ,i determined forthwith to try and ascertain the cause of this phenomena4 ,accordingly1 ,i commenced a long series of experiments1 from fifteen to eighteen hundred in number1 which occupied me nearly fifteen months4 ,the results of above twelve hundred were written down at the time of their performance40 ,the scene of the ,count's operations was in the valley of the ,loire1 five leagues from ,vendme1 in the park of the ,chateau de ,ranac4 ,the surface of ground which gave the desired results was from seventy to eighty feet in breadth4 ,but there was another spot equally efficient at the ,count's ordinary residence at ,emerillon1 near ,clery1 four leagues south of ,orleans1 ten leagues south of the ,loire1 at the commencement of the plains of ,solonge4 ,the surface ran from north to south1 and had the same breadth with the other4 ,these 8exciting tracts0 form1 in general1 bands or zones of undetermined1 and often very great length4 ,their breadth is very variable2 some are only three or four feet across1 while others are one hundred paces4 ,these tracts are sometimes sinuous2 in other instances they ramify4 ,to the most susceptible they are broader than to those who are less so4 ,m4 de ,tristan thus describes what happens when a competent person1 armed with a hazel-fork1 walks over the exciting districts3-- ,when two or three steps have been made upon the exciting tract of ground1 the fork1 which at starting is held horizontally1 with the point forwards1 begins gently to ascend2 it gradually attains a vertical position2 sometimes it passes beyond that1 and lowering itself1 with its point to the chest of the operator1 it becomes again horizontal4 ,if the motion continues1 the rod descending becomes vertical1 with the point downwards4 ,finally1 the rod may again ascend and resume its first position4 ,when the action is very lively1 the rod immediately commences a second revolution2 and so it goes on1 as long as the operator continues to walk over the exciting surface of ground4 ,a few of those in whose hands the divining fork moves exhibit a remarkable peculiarity4 ,the instrument1 instead of commencing its motion by ascending1 descends2 the point then becomes directed vertically downwards2 afterwards it reascends1 and completes a revolution in a course the opposite of the usual one2 and as often and as long as its motion is excited1 it pursues this abnormal course4 ,of the numerous experiments made by ,m4 de ,tristan1 the following are among the simplest and the best3-- ,he covered both handles of a divining rod with a thick silk stuff4 ,the result of using the instrument so prepared was the same which ,mr4 ,fairholm obtained by coating the handles with sealing-wax4 ,the motion of the divining rod was extinguished4 ,he covered both handles with one layer of a thin silk4 ,he then found that the motion of the divining rod took place1 but it was less lively and vigorous than ordinary4 ,by covering one handle of the divining rod1 and that the right1 with a layer of thin silk1 a very singular and instructive result was obtained4 ,the motion of the instrument was now reversed4 ,it commenced by descending4 ,after covering the point of the divining rod with a thick layer of silk stuff1 the motion was sensibly more brisk than it had been before4 ,when the ,count held in his hands a straight rod of the same substance conjointly with the ordinary divining rod1 no movement of the latter whatsoever ensued4 ,finally1 the ,count discovered that he could cause the divining rod to move when he walked over a non-exciting surface--as1 for instance1 in his own chamber--by various processes4 ,of these the most interesting consisted in touching the point of the instrument with either pole of a magnetic needle4 ,the instrument shortly began to move1 ascending or descending1 according as the northward or southward pole of the needle had been applied to it4 ,it is unnecessary to add that these1 and all ,m4 de ,tristan's experiments1 were repeated by him many times4 ,the results of those which ,i have narrated were constant4 ,let me now attempt to realize something out of the preceding statements4 #a4 ,it is shown1 by the testimony adduced1 that whereas in the hands of most persons the divining rod remains motionless1 in the hands of some it moves promptly and briskly when the requisite conditions are observed4 #b4 ,it is no less certain that the motion of the divining rod has appeared1 to various intelligent and honest persons1 who have succeeded in producing it1 to be entirely spontaneous2 or that the said persons were not conscious of having excited or promoted the motion by the slightest help of their own4 #c4 ,it appears that in the ordinary use of the divining rod by competent persons1 its motion only manifests itself in certain localities4 #d4 ,it being assumed that the operator does not1 however unconsciously1 by the muscular action of his hands and wrists produce the motion of the divining rod1 the likeliest way of accounting for the phenomenon is to suppose that the divining rod may become the conductor of some fluid or force1 emanating from or disturbed in the body by a terrestrial agency4 ,but here a difficulty arises3 ,how can it happen that the hypothetical force makes so long and round-about a course8 ,why1 communicated to the body through the legs1 does not the supposed fluid complete a circuit at once in the lower part of the trunk8 ,such1 at all events1 would be the course an electric current so circumstanced would take4 ,the difficulty raised admits of being removed by aid derived from a novel and unexpected source4 ,i allude to the discovery1 by ,von ,reichenbach1 of a new force or principle in the physical world1 which1 whether or not it is identical with that which gives motion to the divining rod1 exhibits1 at all events1 the very property which the hypothetical principle should possess to explain the phenomena which we have been considering4 ,no attempts have indeed been made to identify the two as one2 and my conjecture that they may prove so1 should it even appear plausible1 is so vague1 that ,i should have contented myself with referring to ,von ,reichenbach's new principle as to an established truth1 and have introduced no account of it into this ,letter1 had ,i not a second motive for insuring your cognisance of the curious facts which the ,viennese philosopher has brought to light4 ,it is less with the view of furnishing a leg to the theory of the divining rod1 than in order to provide the means of elucidating more interesting problems1 that ,i now proceed briefly to sketch the leading experiments made by ,von ,reichenbach1 and their results4 ,objections have been taken against these experiments1 on the ground that their effects are purely subjective2 that the results must be received on the testimony of the party employed2 and that the best parties for the purpose are persons whose natural sensibility is exalted by disorder of the nerves2 a class of persons always suspected of exaggeration1 and even1 and in part with justice1 of a tendency to trickery and deception4 ,but this was well known to ,von ,reichenbach1 who appears to have taken every precaution necessary to secure his observations against error4 ,and when ,i add1 that many of the results which he obtained upon the most sensitive and the highly nervous1 were likewise manifested in persons of established character and in good health1 and that the fidelity of the author and of his researches is authenticated by the publication of the latter in ,woehler and ,liebig's ,chemical ,annals1 7,supplement to volume #ec1 ,heidelberg1 #ahde17 ,i think you will not withhold from them complete reliance4 ,in general1 persons in health and of a strong constitution are insensible to the influence of ,von ,reichenbach's new force4 ,but all persons1 the tone of whose health has been lowered by their mode of life--men of sedentary habits1 clerks1 and the like1 and women who employ their whole time in needlework1 whose pale complexions show the relaxed and therefore irritable state of their frames--all such1 or nearly all--evince more or less susceptibility to the influence ,i am about to describe4 ,von ,reichenbach found that persons of the latter class1 when slow passes are made with the poles of a strong magnet moved parallel to the surface--down the back1 for instance1 or down the limbs1 and only distant enough just not to touch the clothes--feel sensations rather unpleasant than otherwise1 as of a light draft of air blown upon them in the path of the magnet4 ,in the progress of his researches1 ,von ,reichenbach found that the more sensitive among his subjects could detect the presence of his new agent by another sense4 ,in the dark they saw dim flames of light issuing and waving from the poles of the magnet4 ,the experiments suggested by this discovery afford the most satisfactory proofs of the reality of the phenomena4 ,they were the following3--,a horse-shoe magnet having been adjusted upon a table1 with the poles directed upwards1 the sensitive subject saw1 at the distance of ten feet1 the appearance of flames issuing from it4 ,the armature of the magnet--a bar of soft iron--was then applied4 ,upon this the flames disappeared4 ,they reappeared1 she said1 as often as the armature was removed from the magnet4 ,a similar experiment was made with a yet more sensitive subject4 ,this person saw1 in the first instance1 flames as the first had done2 but when the armature of the magnet was applied1 the flames did not disappear3 she saw flames still3 only they were fainter1 and their disposition was different4 ,they seemed now to issue from every part of the surface of the magnet equally4 ,it is hardly necessary to add1 that these experiments were made in a well-darkened room1 and that none of the bystanders could discern what the sensitive subjects saw4 ,then the following experiment was made3--,a powerful lens was so placed as that it should concentrate the light of the flames 7if real light they were7 upon a point of the wall of the room4 ,the patient at once saw the light upon the wall at the right place2 and when the inclination of the lens was shifted1 so as to throw the focus in succession on different points1 the sensitive observer never failed in pointing out the right spot4 ,to his new force1 which ,von ,reichenbach had now found to emanate likewise from the poles of crystals and the wires of the voltaic pile1 he gave the arbitrary but convenient name of ,od1 or the ,od force4 ,his next step was to ascertain the existence of a difference among the sensations produced by ,od4 ,sometimes the current of air was described as warm1 sometimes as cool4 ,he found this difference to depend upon the following cause3 ,whenever the northward pole of a magnet1 or one definite pole of a large crystal1 or the negative wire of a voltaic battery1 is employed in the experiment1 the sensation produced is that of a draft of cool air4 ,on the contrary1 the southward pole of the magnet1 the opposite pole of the crystal1 the positive voltaic wire1 excite the sensation of a draft of warm air4 ,so the new force appeared to be a polar force1 and ,von ,reichenbach called the first series of the above described manifestations ,od-negative effects1 the second ,od-positive effects4 ,from among his numerous experiments towards establishing the polarity of ,od1 ,i select the following3--,one of the most sensitive of his subjects held1 at his desire1 a piece of copper wire1 by the middle with the right hand--by one end with the left4 ,then ,von ,reichenbach touched the free end of the wire with one pole of a large crystal1 in order to charge it with ,od4 ,the patient immediately felt a sensation in the right hand1 which disappeared as quickly1 to be felt by the left hand instead1 at the further end of the piece of wire4 ,she then was bidden to take hold of the wire with both her hands at the middle1 and then to slide them away from each other to the opposite ends3 she observed1 on doing so1 that sensations were produced which were strong and decided when her hands held the two ends of the wire1 and diminished in intensity in proportion as the hands were nearer its middle4 ,von ,reichenbach next came upon the observation that the human hand gives out the ,od force2 and that the right hand displays the characters of negative ,od1 the left those of positive ,od4 ,the more sensitive subjects recognised1 in the dark1 the appearance of dim flames proceeding from the tips of his fingers2 and all felt the corresponding sensations of drafts of cool or of warm air4 ,subsequently the whole body was found to share the properties of the hands2 the entire right side to manifest negative ,od1 the entire left side positive ,od4 ,so1 in reference to this new force1 the human body exhibits a transverse polarity2 the condition is thus realized which is required to belong to the hypothetical force through which the divining rod might be supposed to move4 ,if any terrestrial influence were capable of disturbing the ,od force in the body1 however it might affect its intensity1 a current or circuit could only be established through the arms and hands2 unless1 indeed1 some extraordinary means were taken1 such as employing an artificial conductor1 arched half round the body1 to connect the two sides4 ,the sensations which attend the establishment of a current of ,od and interferences with it1 in sensitive subjects1 are exemplified in the following observations3-- ,a bar magnet was laid on the palm of the left hand of one of the most sensitive subjects1 with its southward pole resting on the end of her middle finger1 the northward pole on the fore-arm above the wrist4 ,it thus corresponded with the natural polar arrangement of the ,od force in the patient's hand and arm4 ,accordingly1 no sensation was excited4 ,but when the position of the magnet was reversed1 and the northward pole lay on the end of the middle finger of the left hand1 an uneasy sense of an inward conflict arose in the hand and wrist1 which disappeared when the magnet was removed or its original direction restored4 ,on laying the magnet reversed on the fore-arm1 the sense of an inward struggle returned1 which was heightened on joining the hands and establishing a circuit4 ,when the patient completed the circuit in another way--namely1 by holding a bar magnet by the ends1 if the latter were disposed normally1 7that is1 if the northward pole was held in the left hand1 the southward pole in the right17 a lively consciousness of some inward action ensued4 ,a normal circulation of ,od was in progress4 ,when the direction of the magnet was reversed1 the phenomenon mentioned in the last paragraph recurred4 ,the patient experienced a high degree of uneasiness1 a feeling as of an inward struggle extending itself to the chest1 with a sense of whirling round1 and confusion in the head4 ,these symptoms disappeared immediately upon her letting go the magnet4 ,similar results ensued when ,von ,reichenbach substituted himself for the magnet4 ,when he took ,miss ,maix's hands in his normally--that is to say1 her left in his right1 her right in his left--she felt a circulation moving up the right arm through the chest down the left arm1 attended with a sense of giddiness4 ,when he changed hands1 the disagreeableness of the sensation was suddenly heightened1 the sense of inward conflict arose1 attended with a sort of undulation up and down the arms1 and through the chest1 which quickly became intolerable4 ,a singular but consistent difference in the result ensued when ,von ,reichenbach repeated the last two experiments upon ,herr ,schuh4 ,herr ,schuh was a strong man1 thirty years of age1 in full health1 but highly impressible by ,od4 ,when ,von ,reichenbach took his two hands in his own normally1 ,herr ,schuh felt the normal establishment of the ,od current in his arms and chest4 ,in a few seconds headache and vertigo ensued1 and the experiment was too disagreeable to be prolonged4 ,but when ,von ,reichenbach took his hands abnormally1 no sensible effect ensued4 ,being equally strong with ,von ,reichenbach1 ,herr ,schuh's frame repelled the counter-current1 which the latter arrangement tended to throw into him4 ,in the first or normal arrangement1 the ,od current had met with no resistance1 but had simply gone its natural course4 ,the distress occurred from its being felt through ,herr ,schuh's accidental sensitiveness to ,od2 of the freaks of which in their systems people in general are unconscious4 ,i have concluded my case in favour of the pretensions of the divining rod4 ,it seems to me1 at all events1 strong enough to justify any one who has leisure1 in cutting a hazel-fork1 and walking about with it in suitable places1 holding it in the manner described4 ,i doubt1 however1 whether ,i should recommend a friend to make the experiment4 ,if1 by good luck1 the divining rod should refuse to move in his hands1 he might accuse himself of credulity1 and feel silly1 and hope nobody had seen him1 for the rest of the day4 ,if1 unfortunately1 the first trial should succeed1 and he should be led to pursue the inquiry1 the consequences would be more serious3 his probable fate would be to fall at once several degrees in the estimation of his friends1 and to pass with the world1 all the rest of his life1 for a crotchety person of weak intellects4 ,as for the divining rod itself1 if my argument prove sound1 it will be a credit to the family of superstitions2 for without any reduction1 or clipping1 or trimming1 it may at once assume the rank of a new truth4 ,but1 alas6 the trials which await it in that character6--what an ordeal is before it6 ,a new truth has to encounter three normal stages of opposition4 ,in the first1 it is denounced as an imposture2 in the second--that is1 when it is beginning to force itself into notice--it is cursorily examined1 and plausibly explained away2 in the third1 or cui bono stage1 it is decried as useless1 and hostile to religion4 ,and when it is fully admitted1 it passes only under a protest that it has been perfectly known for ages--a proceeding intended to make the new truth ashamed of itself1 and wish it had never been born4 ,i congratulate the sea-serpent on having arrived at the second stage of belief4 ,since ,professor ,owen 7no disrespect to his genuine ability and eminent knowledge7 has explained it into a sea-elephant1 its chance of being itself is much improved2 and as it will skip the third stage--for who will venture to question the good of a sea-serpent8--it is liable now any morning 8to wake and find itself famous10 and to be received even at ,lincoln's ,inn ,fields1 where its remains may commemoratively be ticketed the ,ex-,great-,seal4 ,,postscript1 7#ahej47--;,it may save trouble to some future experimenter to narrate my own exploits with the divining rod4 ,in the spring of #ahdg1 being then at ,weilbach in ,nassau1 a region teeming with underground sources of water1 ,i requested the son of the proprietor of the bathing establishment--a tall1 thin1 pale1 white-haired youth1 by name ,edward ,seebold--to walk in my presence up and down a promising spot of ground1 holding a divining fork of hazel1 with the accessories recommended by ,m4 de ,tristan to beginners--that is to say1 he held in his right hand three pieces of silver1 besides one handle of the rod1 while the handle which he held in his left hand was covered with a thin silk4 ,the lad had not made five steps when the point of the divining fork began to ascend4 ,he laughed with astonishment at the event1 which was totally unexpected by him2 and he said that he experienced a tickling or thrilling sensation in his hands4 ,he continued to walk up and down before me4 ,the fork had soon described a complete circle2 then it described another2 and so it continued to do as long as he walked thus1 and as often as1 after stopping1 he resumed his walk4 ,the experiment was repeated by him in my presence1 with like success1 several times during the ensuing month4 ,then the lad fell into ill health1 and ,i rarely saw him4 ,however1 one day ,i sent for him1 and begged him to do me the favour of making another trial with the divining fork4 ,he did so1 but the instrument moved slowly and sluggishly2 and when1 having completed a semicircle1 it pointed backwards towards the pit of his stomach1 it stopped1 and would go no farther4 ,at the same time the lad said he felt an uneasy sensation1 which quickly increased to pain1 at the pit of the stomach1 and he became alarmed1 when ,i bade him quit hold of one handle of the divining rod1 and the pain ceased4 ,ten minutes afterwards ,i induced him to make another trial2 the results were the same4 ,a few days later1 when the lad seemed still more out of health1 ,i induced him to repeat the experiment4 ,now1 however1 the divining fork would not move at all4 ,i entertain little doubt that the above performances of ,edward ,seebold were genuine4 ,i thought the same of the performances of three ,english gentlemen1 and of a ,german1 in whose hands1 however1 the divining rod never moved through an entire circle4 ,in the hands of one of them its motion was retrograde1 or abnormal3 that is to say1 it began by descending4 ,but ,i met with other cases1 which were less satisfactory1 though not uninstructive4 ,i should observe that1 in the hands of several who tried to use it in my presence1 the divining fork would not move an inch4 ,but there were two younger brothers of ,edward ,seebold1 and a bath-maid1 and my own man1 in whose hands the rod played new pranks4 ,when these parties walked forwards the instrument ascended1 or moved normally2 but when1 by my desire1 they walked backwards1 the instrument immediately went the other way4 ,i should observe that1 in the hands of ,edward ,seebold1 the instrument moved in the same direction whether he walked forwards or backwards2 and ,i have mentioned that at first it described in his hands a complete circle4 ,but with the four parties ,i have just been speaking of1 the motion of the fork was always limited in extent4 ,when it moved normally at starting1 it stopped after describing an arc of about #bbe2 in the same way1 when it moved abnormally at starting1 it would stop after describing an arc of about #ace2 that is to say1 there was one spot the same for the two cases1 beyond which it could not get4 ,then ,i found that1 in the hands of my man1 the divining rod would move even when he was standing still1 although with a less lively action2 still it stopped as before1 nearly at the same point4 ,sometimes it ascended1 sometimes descended4 ,then ,i tried some experiments1 touching the point with a magnetic needle4 ,i found1 in the course of them1 that when my man knew which way ,i expected the fork to move1 it invariably answered my expectations2 but when ,i had the man blindfolded1 the results were uncertain and contradictory4 ,the end of all this was1 that ,i became certain that several of those in whose hands the divining rod moves1 set it in motion and direct its motion by the pressure of their fingers1 and by carrying their hands nearer to1 or farther apart4 ,in walking forwards1 the hands are unconsciously borne towards each other2 in walking backwards1 the reverse is the case4 ,therefore1 ,i recommend no one to prosecute these experiments unless he can execute them himself1 and unless the divining rod describes a complete circle in his hands2 and even then he should be on his guard against self-deception4 ,,postscript ,,ii4--,i am now 7,may1 #ahea7 again residing at the bathing establishment of ,weilbach1 near ,mayence2 and it was with some interest and curiosity that the other day ,i requested ,mr4 ,edward ,seebold1 now a well-grown young man1 in full health1 to try his hand again with the divining-rod4 ,he readily assented to my request2 and he this time knew exactly what result ,i expected4 ,but the experiment entirely failed4 ,the point of the divining rod rose1 as he walked1 not more than two or three inches2 but this it does with every one who presses the two handles towards each other during the experiment4 ,afterwards the implement remained perfectly stationary4 ,i think ,i am not at liberty to withhold this result from the reader1 whom it may lead to question1 though it cannot induce myself to doubt1 the genuineness of the former performances of ,mr4 ,e4 ,s4 ,,letter ,,ii4 ,,vampyrism4--,tale exemplifying the superstition--,the ,vampyr state of the body in the grave--,various instances of death-trance--,the risk of premature interment considered--,the ,vampyr visit4 ,in acknowledging my former letter1 you express an eager desire to learn1 as you phrase it1 8all about ,vampyrs1 if there ever were such things40 ,i will not delay satisfying your curiosity1 although by so doing ,i interrupt the logical order of my communications4 ,it is1 perhaps1 all the better4 ,the proper place of this subject falls in the midst of a philosophical disquisition2 and it would have been a pity not to present it to you in its pristine colouring4 ,but how came your late tutor1 ,mr4 ,h41 to leave you in ignorance upon a point on which1 in my time1 schoolboys much your juniors entertained decided opinions8 ,were there ever such things as ,vampyrs8 ,tantamne rem tam negligenter6 ,i turn to the learned pages of ,horst for a luminous and precise definition of the destructive and mysterious beings whose existence you have ventured to consider problematical4 8,a ,vampyr is a dead body which continues to live in the grave2 which it leaves1 however1 by night1 for the purpose of sucking the blood of the living1 whereby it is nourished and preserved in good condition1 instead of being decomposed like other dead bodies40 ,upon my word1 you really deserve1 since ,mr4 ,george ,combe has clearly shown1 in his admirable work on the ,constitution of ,man1 and its adaptation to the surrounding world1 that ignorance is a statutable crime before nature1 and punished by the laws of ,providence--you deserve1 ,i say1 unless you contrive to make ,mr4 ,h4 your substitute1 which ,i think would be just1 yourself to be the subject of the nocturnal visit of a ,vampyr4 ,your skepticism will abate pretty considerably when you see him stealthily entering your room1 yet are powerless under the fascination of his fixed and leaden eye--when you are conscious1 as you lie motionless with terror1 of his nearer and nearer approach--when you feel his face1 fresh with the smell of the grave1 bent over your throat1 while his keen teeth make a fine incision in your jugular1 preparatory to his commencing his plain but nutritive repast4 ,you would look a little paler the next morning1 but that would be all for the moment2 for ,fischer informs us that the bite of a ,vampyr leaves in general no mark upon the person4 ,but he fearfully adds1 8it 7the bite7 is nevertheless speedily fatal10 unless the bitten person protect himself by eating some of the earth from the grave of the ,vampyr1 and smearing himself with his blood4 ,unfortunately1 indeed1 these measures are seldom1 if ever1 of more than temporary use4 ,fischer adds1 8if through these precautions the life of the victim be prolonged for a period1 sooner or later he ends with becoming a ,vampyr himself2 that is to say1 he dies and is buried1 but continues to lead a ,vampyr life in the grave1 nourishing himself by infecting others1 and promiscuously propagating ,vampyrism40 ,this is no romancer's dream4 ,it is a succinct account of a superstition which to this day services in the east of ,europe1 where little more than a century ago it was frightfully prevalent4 ,at that period ,vampyrism spread like a pestilence through ,servia and ,wallachia1 causing numerous deaths1 and disturbing all the land with fear of the mysterious visitation1 against which no one felt himself secure4 ,here is something like a good1 solid1 practical popular delusion4 ,do ,i believe it8 ,to be sure ,i do4 ,the facts are matter of history3 the people died like rotted sheep2 and the cause and method of their dying was1 in their belief1 what has just been stated4 ,you suppose1 then1 they died frightened out of their lives1 as men have died whose pardon has been proclaimed when their necks were already on the block1 of the belief that they were going to die8 ,well1 if that were all1 the subject would still be worth examining4 ,but there is more in it than that1 as the following o'er true tale will convince you1 the essential points of which are authenticated by documentary evidence4 ,in the spring of #agbg1 there returned from the ,levant to the village of ,meduegna1 near ,belgrade1 one ,arnod ,paole1 who1 in a few years of military service and varied adventure1 had amassed enough to purchase a cottage and an acre or two of land in his native place1 where he gave out that he meant to pass the remainder of his days4 ,he kept his word4 ,arnod had yet scarcely reached the prime of manhood2 and though he must have encountered the rough as well as the smooth of life1 and have mingled with many a wild and reckless companion1 yet his naturally good disposition and honest principles had preserved him unscathed in the scenes he had passed through4 ,at all events1 such were the thoughts expressed by his neighbours as they discussed his return and settlement among them in the ,stube of the village ,hof4 ,nor did the frank and open countenance of ,arnod1 his obliging habits and steady conduct1 argue their judgment incorrect4 ,nevertheless1 there was something occasionally noticeable in his ways--a look and tone that betrayed inward disquiet4 ,often would he refuse to join his friends1 or on some sudden plea abruptly quit their society4 ,and he still more unaccountably1 and as it seemed systematically1 avoided meeting his pretty neighbour ,nina1 whose father occupied the next tenement to his own4 ,at the age of seventeen1 ,nina was as charming a picture of youth1 cheerfulness1 innocence1 and confidence1 as you could have seen in all the world4 ,you could not look into her limpid eyes1 which steadily returned your gaze1 without seeing to the bottom of the pure and transparent spring of her thoughts4 ,why1 then1 did ,arnod shrink from meeting her8 ,he was young2 had a little property2 had health and industry2 and he had told his friends he had formed no ties in other lands4 ,why1 then1 did he avoid the fascination of the pretty ,nina1 who seemed a being made to chase from any brow the clouds of gathering care8 ,but he did so2 yet less and less resolutely1 for he felt the charm of her presence4 ,who could have done otherwise8 ,and how could he long resist--he didn't--the impulse of his fondness for the innocent girl who often sought to cheer his fits of depression8 ,and they were to be united--were betrothed2 yet still an anxious gloom would fitfully overcast his countenance1 even in the sunshine of those hours4 8,what is it1 dear ,arnod1 that makes you sad8 ,it cannot be on my account1 ,i know1 for you were sad before you ever noticed me2 and that1 ,i think10 7and you should have seen the deepening rose upon her cheeks17 8surely first made me notice you40 8,nina10 he answered1 8,i have done1 ,i fear1 a great wrong in trying to gain your affections4 ,nina1 ,i have a fixed impression that ,i shall not live2 yet1 knowing this1 ,i have selfishly made my existence necessary to your happiness40 8,how strangely you talk1 dear ,arnod6 ,who in the village is stronger and healthier than you8 ,you feared no danger when you were a soldier4 ,what danger do you fear as a villager of ,meduegna80 8,it haunts me1 ,nina40 8,but1 ,arnod1 you were sad before you thought of me4 ,did you then fear to die80 8,ah1 ,nina1 it is something worse than death40 ,and his vigorous frame shook with agony4 8,arnod1 ,i conjure you1 tell me40 8,it was in ,cossova this fate befell me4 ,here you have hitherto escaped the terrible scourge4 ,but there they died1 and the dead visited the living4 ,i experienced the first frightful visitation1 and ,i fled2 but not till ,i had sought his grave1 and exacted the dread expiation from the ,vampyr40 ,nina's blood ran cold4 ,she stood horror-stricken4 ,but her young heart soon mastered her first despair4 ,with a touching voice she spoke-- 8,fear not1 dear ,arnod2 fear not now4 ,i will be your shield1 or ,i will die with you60 ,and she encircled his neck with her gentle arms1 and returning hope shone1 ,iris-like1 amid her falling tears4 ,afterwards they found a reasonable ground for banishing or allaying their apprehension in the length of time which had elapsed since ,arnod left ,cossova1 during which no fearful visitant had again approached him2 and they fondly trusted that gave them security4 ,it is a strange world4 ,the ills we fear are commonly not those which overwhelm us4 ,the blows that reach us are for the most part unforeseen4 ,one day1 about a week after this conversation1 ,arnod missed his footing when on the top of a loaded hay-wagon1 and fell from it to the ground4 ,he was picked up insensible1 and carried home1 where1 after lingering a short time1 he died4 ,his interment1 as usual1 followed immediately4 ,his fate was sad and premature4 ,but what pencil could paint ,nina's grief6 ,twenty or thirty days after his decease1 says the perfectly authenticated report of these transactions1 several of the neighbourhood complained that they were haunted by the deceased ,arnod2 and1 what was more to the purpose1 four of them died4 ,the evil1 looked at skeptically1 was bad enough1 but aggravated by the suggestions of superstition1 it spread a panic through the whole district4 ,to allay the popular terror1 and if possible to get at the root of the evil1 a determination was come to publicly to disinter the body of ,arnod1 with the view of ascertaining whether he really was a ,vampyr1 and1 in that event1 of treating him conformably4 ,the day fixed for this proceeding was the fortieth after his burial4 ,it was on a gray morning in early ,august that the commission visited the quiet cemetery of ,meduegna1 which1 surrounded with a wall of unhewn stone1 lies sheltered by the mountain that1 rising in undulating green slopes1 irregularly planted with fruit trees1 ends in an abrupt craggy ridge1 feathered with underwood4 ,the graves were1 for the most part1 neatly kept1 with borders of box1 or something like it1 and flowers between2 and at the head of most a small wooden cross1 painted black1 bearing the name of the tenant4 ,here and there a stone had been raised4 ,one of considerable height1 a single narrow slab1 ornamented with grotesque ,gothic carvings1 dominated over the rest4 ,near this lay the grave of ,arnod ,paole1 towards which the party moved4 ,the work of throwing out the earth was begun by the gray1 crooked old sexton1 who lived in the ,leichenhaus1 beyond the great crucifix4 ,he seemed unconcerned enough2 no ,vampyr would think of extracting a supper out of him4 ,nearest the grave stood two military surgeons1 or feldscherers1 from ,belgrade1 and a drummer-boy1 who held their case of instruments4 ,the boy looked on with keen interest2 and when the coffin was exposed and rather roughly drawn out of the grave1 his pale face and bright intent eye showed how the scene moved him4 ,the sexton lifted the lid of the coffin3 the body had become inclined to one side4 ,then turning it straight1 8,ha6 ha60 said he1 pointing to fresh blood upon the lips--8,ha6 ha6 ,what6 ,your mouth not wiped since last night's work80 ,the spectators shuddered2 the drummer-boy sank forward1 fainting1 and upset the instrument-case1 scattering its contents2 the senior surgeon1 infected with the horror of the scene1 repressed a hasty exclamation1 and simply crossed himself4 ,they threw water on the drummer-boy1 and he recovered1 but would not leave the spot4 ,then they inspected the body of ,arnod4 ,it looked as if it had not been dead a day4 ,on handling it1 the scarf-skin came off1 but below were new skin and new nails6 ,how could they have come there but from its foul feeding6 ,the case was clear enough2 there lay before them the thing they dreaded--the ,vampyr4 ,so1 without more ado1 they simply drove a stake through poor ,arnod's chest1 whereupon a quantity of blood gushed forth1 and the corpse uttered an audible groan4 8,murder6 oh1 murder60 shrieked the drummer-boy1 as he rushed wildly1 with convulsed gestures1 from the cemetery4 ,the drummer-boy was not far from the mark4 ,but1 quitting the romancing vein1 which had led me to try and restore the original colours of the picture1 let me confine myself1 in describing the rest of the scene and what followed1 to the words of my authority4 ,the body of ,arnod was then burnt to ashes1 which were returned to the grave4 ,the authorities further staked and burnt the bodies of the four others which were supposed to have been infected by ,arnod4 ,no mention is made of the state in which they were found4 ,the adoption of these decisive measures failed1 however1 entirely to extinguish the evil1 which continued still to hang about the village4 ,about five years afterwards it had again become very rife1 and many died through it2 whereupon the authorities determined to make another and a complete clearance of the ,vampyrs in the cemetery1 and with that object they had all the graves1 to which present suspicion attached1 opened1 and their contents officially anatomized1 of which procedure the following is the medical report1 here and there abridged only3-- #a4 ,a woman of the name of ,stana1 twenty years of age1 who had died three months before of a three days' illness following her confinement4 ,she had before her death avowed that she had anointed herself with the blood of a ,vampyr1 to liberate herself from his persecution4 ,nevertheless1 she1 as well as her infant1 whose body through careless interment had been half eaten by the dogs1 had died4 ,her body was entirely free from decomposition4 ,on opening it1 the chest was found full of recently effused blood1 and the bowels had exactly the appearances of sound health4 ,the skin and nails of her hands and feet were loose and came off1 but underneath lay new skin and nails4 #b4 ,a woman of the name of ,miliza1 who had died at the end of a three months' illness4 ,the body had been buried ninety and odd days4 ,in the chest was liquid blood4 ,the viscera were as in the former instance4 ,the body was declared by a heyduk1 who recognised it1 to be in better condition1 and fatter1 than it had been in the woman's legitimate lifetime4 #c4 ,the body of a child eight years old1 that had likewise been buried ninety days3 it was in the ,vampyr condition4 #d4 ,the son of a heyduk named ,milloc1 sixteen years old4 ,the body had lain in the grave nine weeks4 ,he had died after three days' indisposition1 and was in the condition of a ,vampyr4 #e4 ,joachim1 likewise son of a heyduk1 seventeen years old4 ,he had died after three days' illness2 had been buried eight weeks and some days2 was found in the ,vampyr state4 #f4 ,a woman of the name of ,rusha1 who had died of an illness of ten days' duration1 and had been six weeks buried1 in whom likewise fresh blood was found in the chest4 7,the reader will understand1 that to see blood in the chest1 it is first necessary to cut the chest open47 #g4 ,the body of a girl of ten years of age1 who had died two months before4 ,it was likewise in the ,vampyr state1 perfectly undecomposed1 with blood in the chest4 #h4 ,the body of the wife of one ,hadnuck1 buried seven weeks before2 and that of her infant1 eight weeks old1 buried only twenty-one days4 ,they were both in a state of decomposition1 though buried in the same ground1 and closely adjoining the others4 #i4 ,a servant1 by name ,rhade1 twenty-three years of age2 he had died after an illness of three months' duration1 and the body had been buried five weeks4 ,it was in a state of decomposition4 #aj4 ,the body of the heyduk ,stanco1 sixty years of age1 who had died six weeks previously4 ,there was much blood and other fluid in the chest and abdomen1 and the body was in the ,vampyr condition4 #aa4 ,millac1 a heyduk1 twenty-five years old4 ,the body had been in the earth six weeks4 ,it was perfectly in the ,vampyr condition4 #ab4 ,stanjoika1 the wife of a heyduk1 twenty years old2 had died after an illness of three days1 and had been buried eighteen4 ,the countenance was florid4 ,there was blood in the chest and in the heart4 ,the viscera were perfectly sound2 the skin remarkably fresh4 ,the document which gives the above particulars is signed by three regimental surgeons1 and formally countersigned by a lieutenant-colonel and sub-lieutenant4 ,it bears the date of 8,june #g1 #agcb1 ,meduegna near ,belgrade40 ,no doubt can be entertained of its authenticity1 or of its general fidelity2 the less that it does not stand alone1 but is supported by a mass of evidence to the same effect4 ,it appears to establish1 beyond question1 that where the fear of ,vampyrism prevails1 and there occur several deaths1 in the popular belief connected with it1 the bodies1 when disinterred weeks after burial1 present the appearance of corpses from which life has only recently departed4 ,what inference shall we draw from this fact8--that ,vampyrism is true in the popular sense8--and that these fresh-looking and well-conditioned corpses had some mysterious source of preternatural nourishment8 ,that would be to adopt1 not to solve the superstition4 ,let us content ourselves with a notion not so monstrous1 but still startling enough3 that the bodies1 which were found in the so-called ,vampyr state1 instead of being in a new or mystical condition1 were simply alive in the common way1 or had been so for some time subsequent to their interment2 that1 in short1 they were the bodies of persons who had been buried alive1 and whose life1 where it yet lingered1 was finally extinguished through the ignorance and barbarity of those who disinterred them4 ,in the following sketch of a similar scene to that above described1 the correctness of this inference comes out with terrific force4 ,erasmus ,francisci1 in his remarks upon the description of the ,dukedom of ,krain by ,valvasor1 speaks of a man of the name of ,grando1 in the district of ,kring1 who died1 was buried1 and became a ,vampyr1 and as such was exhumed for the purpose of having a stake thrust through him4 8,when they opened his grave1 after he had been long buried1 his face was found with a colour1 and his features made natural sorts of movements1 as if the dead man smiled4 ,he even opened his mouth as if he would inhale fresh air4 ,they held the crucifix before him1 and called in a loud voice1 #8,see1 this is ,jesus ,christ who redeemed your soul from hell1 and died for you4' ,after the sound had acted on his organs of hearing1 and he had connected perhaps some ideas with it1 tears began to flow from the dead man's eyes4 ,finally1 when after a short prayer for his poor soul1 they proceeded to hack off his head1 the corpse uttered a screech1 and turned and rolled just as if it had been alive--and the grave was full of blood40 ,we have thus succeeded in interpreting one of the unknown terms in the ,vampyr theorem4 ,the suspicious character1 who had some dark way of nourishing himself in the grave1 turns out to be an unfortunate gentleman 7or lady7 whom his friends had buried under a mistake while he was still alive1 and who1 if they afterwards mercifully let him alone1 died sooner or later either naturally or of the premature interment--in either case1 it is to be hoped1 with no interval of restored consciousness4 ,the state which thus passed for death and led to such fatal consequences1 apart from superstition1 deserves our serious consideration2 for1 although of very rare1 it is of continual occurrence1 and society is not sufficiently on its guard against a contingency so dreadful when overlooked4 ,when the nurse or the doctor has announced that all is over--that the valued friend or relative has breathed his last--no doubt crosses any one's mind of the reality of the sad event4 ,disease is now so well understood--every step in its march laid down and foreseen--the approach of danger accurately estimated--the liability of the patient1 according to his powers of resisting it1 to succumb earlier or to hold out longer--all is theoretically so clear that a wholesome suspicion of error in the verdict of the attendants seldom suggests itself4 ,the evil ,i am considering ought not1 however1 to be attributed to redundance of knowledge3 it arises from its partial lack--from a too general neglect of one very important section in pathological science4 ,the laity1 if not the doctors too1 constantly lose sight of the fact1 that there exists an alternative to the fatal event of ordinary disease2 that a patient is liable at any period of illness to deviate1 or1 as it were1 to slide off1 from the customary line of disease into another and a deceptive route--instead of death1 to encounter apparent death4 ,the ,germans express this condition of the living body by the term 8scheintod10 which signifies exactly apparent death2 and it is perhaps a better term than our ,english equivalent1 8suspended animation40 ,but both these expressions are generic terms1 and a specific term is still wanted to denote the present class of instances4 ,to meet this exigency1 ,i propose1 for reasons which will afterwards appear1 to employ the term 8death-trance0 to designate the cases we are investigating4 ,death-trance is1 then1 one of the forms of suspended animation3 there are several others4 ,after incomplete poisoning1 after suffocation in either of its various ways1 after exposure to cold in infants newly born1 a state is occasionally met with1 of which 7however each may still differ from the rest7 the common feature is an apparent suspension of the vital actions4 ,but all of these so-cited instances agree in another important respect1 which second inter-agreement separates them as a class from death-trance4 ,they represent1 each and all1 a period of conflict between the effects of certain deleterious impressions and the vital principle1 the latter struggling against the weight and force of the former4 ,such is not the case in death-trance4 ,death-trance is a positive status--a period of repose --the duration of which is sometimes definite and predetermined1 though unknown4 ,thus the patient1 the term of the death-trance having expired1 occasionally suddenly wakes1 entirely and at once restored4 ,oftener1 however1 the machinery which has been stopped seems to require to be jogged--then it goes on again4 ,the basis of death-trance is suspension of the action of the heart1 and of the breathing1 and of voluntary motion2 generally likewise feeling and intelligence1 and the vegetative changes in the body1 are suspended4 ,with these phenomena is joined loss of external warmth2 so that the usual evidence of life is gone4 ,but there have occurred varieties of this condition1 in which occasional slight manifestations of one or other of the vital actions have been observed4 ,death-trance may occur as a primary affection1 suddenly or gradually4 ,the diseases the course of which it is liable1 as it were1 to bifurcate1 or to graft itself upon1 are first and principally all disorders of the nervous system4 ,but in any form of disease1 when the body is brought to a certain degree of debility1 death-trance may supervene4 ,age and sex have to do with its occurrence2 which is more frequent in the young than in the old1 in women than in men--differences evidently connected with greater irritability of the nervous system4 ,accordingly1 women in labour are among the most liable to death-trance1 and it is from such a case that ,i will give a first instance of the affection as portrayed by a medical witness4 7,journal des ,savans1 #agdi47 ,m4 ,rigaudeaux1 surgeon to the military hospital1 and licensed accoucher at ,douai1 was sent for on the #hth of ,september1 #agde1 to attend the wife of ,francis ,dumont1 residing two leagues from the town4 ,he was late in getting there2 it was half-past eight1 ,a4 ,m4--too late1 it seemed2 the patient was declared to have died at six o'clock1 after eighteen hours of ineffectual labour-pains4 ,m4 ,rigaudeaux inspected the body2 there was no pulse or breath2 the mouth was full of froth1 the abdomen tumid4 ,he brought away the infant1 which he committed to the care of the nurses1 who1 after trying to reanimate it for three hours1 gave up the attempt1 and prepared to lay it out1 when it opened its mouth4 ,they then gave it wine1 and it was speedily recovered4 ,m4 ,rigaudeaux1 who returned to the house as this occurred1 inspected again the body of the mother4 7,it had been already nailed down in a coffin47 ,he examined it with the utmost care2 but he came to the conclusion that it was certainly dead4 ,nevertheless1 as the joints of the limbs were still flexible1 although seven hours had elapsed since its apparent death1 he left the strictest injunctions to watch the body carefully1 to apply stimulants to the nostrils from time to time1 to slap the palms of the hands1 and the like4 ,at half-past three o'clock symptoms of returning animation showed themselves1 and the patient recovered4 ,the period during which every ordinary sign of life may be absent1 without the prevention of their return1 is unknown1 but in well-authenticated cases it has much exceeded the period observed in the above instance4 ,here is an example borrowed from the ,journal des ,savans1 #agda4 ,there was a ,colonel ,russell1 whose wife1 to whom he was affectionately attached1 died1 or appeared to do so4 ,but he would not allow the body to be buried2 and threatened to shoot any one who should interfere to remove it for that purpose4 ,his conduct was guided by reason as well as by affection and instinct4 ,he said he would not part from the body till its decomposition had begun4 ,eight days had passed1 during which the body of his wife gave no sign of life3 when1 as he sat bedewing her hand with his tears1 the church-bell tolled1 and1 to his unspeakable amazement1 his wife sat up and said--8,that is the last bell2 we shall be too late40 ,she recovered4 ,there are cases on record of persons1 who could spontaneously fall into death-trance4 ,monti1 in a letter to ,haller1 adverts to several2 and mentions1 in particular1 a peasant upon whom1 when he assumed this state1 the flies would settle2 breathing1 the pulse1 and all ordinary signs of life disappeared4 ,a priest of the name of ,clius ,rhodaginus had the same faculty4 ,but the most celebrated instance is that of ,colonel ,townshend1 mentioned in the surgical works of ,gooch1 by whom and by ,dr4 ,cheyne and ,dr4 ,baynard1 and by ,mr4 ,shrine1 an apothecary1 the performance of ,colonel ,townshend was seen and attested4 ,they had long attended him1 for he was an habitual invalid1 and he had often invited them to witness the phenomenon of his dying and coming to life again2 but they had hitherto refused1 from fear of the consequences to himself3 at last they assented4 ,accordingly1 in their presence1 ,colonel ,townshend laid himself down on his back1 and ,dr4 ,cheyne undertook to observe his pulse2 ,dr4 ,baynard laid his hand on his heart1 and ,mr4 ,shrine had a looking-glass to hold to his mouth4 ,after a few seconds1 pulse1 breathing1 and the action of the heart1 were no longer to be observed4 ,each of the witnesses satisfied himself of the entire cessation of these phenomena4 ,when the death-trance had lasted half-an-hour1 the doctors began to fear that their patient had pushed the experiment too far1 and was dead in earnest2 and they were preparing to leave the house1 when a slight movement of the body attracted their attention4 ,they renewed their routine of observation2 when the pulse and sensible motion of the heart gradually returned1 and breathing1 and consciousness4 ,the tale ends abruptly4 ,colonel ,townshend1 on recovering1 sent for his attorney1 made his will1 and died1 for good and all1 six hours afterwards4 ,although many have recovered from death-trance1 and there seems to be in each case a definite period to its duration1 yet its event is not always so fortunate4 ,the patient sometimes really dies during its continuance1 either unavoidably1 or in consequence of adequate measures not being taken to stimulate him to waken1 or to support life4 ,the following very good instance rests on the authority of ,dr4 ,schmidt1 a physician of the hospital of ,paderborn1 where it occurred1 7,rheinisch-,westphlischer ,anzeiger1 #ahce1 ,no4 #eg and #eh47 ,a young man of the name of ,caspar ,kreite1 from ,berne1 died in the hospital of ,paderborn1 but his body could not be interred for three weeks1 for the following reasons4 ,during the first twenty-four hours after drawing its last breath1 the corpse opened its eyes1 and the pulse could be felt1 for a few minutes1 beating feebly and irregularly4 ,on the third and fourth day1 points of the skin1 which had been burned to test the reality of his death1 suppurated4 ,on the fifth day the corpse changed the position of one hand3 on the ninth day a vesicular eruption appeared on the back4 ,for nine days there was a vertical fold of the skin of the forehead--a sort of frown--and the features had not the character of death4 ,the lips remained red till the eighteenth day2 and the joints preserved their flexibility from first to last4 ,he lay in this state in a warm room for nineteen days1 without any farther alteration than a sensible wasting in flesh4 ,till after the nineteenth day no discoloration of the body1 or odour of putrefaction1 was observed4 ,he had been cured of ague1 and laboured under a slight chest affection2 but there had been no adequate cause for his death4 ,it is evident that this person was much more alive than many are in the death-trance2 and one half suspects that stimulants and nourishment1 properly introduced1 might have entirely reanimated him4 ,i might exemplify death-trance by many a well authenticated romantic story4--,a noise heard in a vault2 the people1 instead of breaking open the door1 go for the keys1 and for authority to act1 and return too late2 the unfortunate person is found dead1 having previously gnawn her hand and arm in agony4--,a lady is buried with a jewel of value on her finger2 thieves open the vault to possess themselves of the treasure2 the ring cannot be drawn from the finger1 and the thieves proceed to cut the finger off2 the lady1 wakening from her trance1 scares the thieves away1 and recovers4--,a young married lady dies and is buried2 a former admirer1 to whom her parents had refused her hand1 bribes the sexton to let him see once more the form he loved4 ,the body opportunely comes to life at this moment1 and flies from ,paris with its first lover to ,england1 where they are married4 ,venturing to return to ,france1 the lady is recognised1 and is reclaimed by her previous husband through a suit at law2 her counsel demurs1 on the ground of the desertion and burial2 but the law not admitting this plea1 she flies again to ,england with her preserver1 to avoid the judgment of the parliament of ,paris1 in the acts of which the case stands recorded4 ,there are one or two other cases that ,i dare not cite1 the particulars of which transcend the wildest flights of imagination4 ,it may be thought that these are all tales of the olden time2 and that the very case ,i have given from the hospital at ,paderborn shows that now medical men are sufficiently circumspect1 and the public really on its guard to prevent a living person being interred as one dead4 ,and ,i grant that in ,england1 among all but the poorest class1 the danger is practically inconsiderable of being buried alive4 ,but that it still exists for every class1 and that for the poor the danger is great and serious1 ,i am afraid there is too much reason for believing4 ,it is stated in ,froriep's ,notizen1 #ahbi1 ,no4 #ebb1 that1 agreeably to a then recent ordinance in ,new ,york1 coffins presented for burial were kept above ground eight days1 open at the head1 and so arranged1 that the least movement of the body would ring a bell1 through strings attached to the hands and feet4 ,it will hardly be credited1 that out of twelve hundred whose interment had been thus postponed1 six returned to life--one in every two hundred6 ,the arrangement thus beneficently adopted at ,new ,york is1 however1 imperfect1 as it makes time the criterion for interment4 ,the time is not known during which a body in death-trance may remain alive4 ,nothing but one positive condition of the body1 which ,i will presently mention1 authenticates death4 ,it is frightful to think how1 in the south of ,europe1 within twenty-four hours after the last breath bodies are shovelled into pits among heaped corpses2 and to imagine what fearful agonies of despair must sometimes be encountered by unhappy beings1 who wake amid the unutterable horrors of such a grave4 ,but it is enough to look at home1 and to make no delay in providing there for the careful watching of the bodies of the poor1 till life has certainly departed4 ,many do not dream how barbarous and backward the vaunted nineteenth century will appear to posterity6 ,but there is another danger to which society is obnoxious through not making sufficient account of the contingency of death-trance1 that appears to me more urgent and menacing than even the risk of being buried alive4 ,the danger ,i advert to is not this2 but this is something-- ,the ,cardinal ,espinosa1 prime minister under ,philip the ,second of ,spain1 died1 as it was supposed1 after a short illness4 ,his rank entitled him to be embalmed4 ,accordingly1 the body was opened for that purpose4 ,the lungs and heart had just been brought into view1 when the latter was seen to beat4 ,the cardinal awakening at the fatal moment1 had still strength enough left to seize with his hand the knife of the anatomist6 ,but it is this-- ,on the #bc;d of ,september1 #agfc1 the ,abb ,prevost1 the ,french novelist and compiler of travels1 was seized with a fit in the forest of ,chantilly4 ,the body was found1 and conveyed to the residence of the nearest clergyman4 ,it was supposed that death had taken place through apoplexy4 ,but the local authorities1 desiring to be satisfied of the fact1 ordered the body to be examined4 ,during the process1 the poor abb uttered a cry of agony4--,it was too late4 ,it is to be observed that cases of sudden and unexplained death are1 on the one hand1 the cases most likely to furnish a large percentage of death-trance2 and1 on the other1 are just those in which the anxiety of friends or the over-zealousness of a coroner is liable to lead to premature anatomization4 ,nor does it even follow that1 because the body happily did not wake while being dissected1 the spark of life was therefore extinct4 ,this view1 however1 is too painful to be followed out in reference to the past4 ,but it imperatively suggests the necessity of forbidding necroscopic examinations1 before there is perfect evidence that life has departed--that is1 of extending to this practice the rule which ought to be made absolute in reference to interment4 ,thus comes out the practical importance of the question1 how is it to be known that the body is no longer alive8 ,the entire absence of the ordinary signs of life is insufficient to prove the absence of life4 ,the body may be externally cold2 the pulse not be felt2 breathing may have ceased2 no bodily motion may occur2 the limbs may be stiff 7through spasm72 the sphincter muscles relaxed2 no blood may flow from an opened vein2 the eyes may have become glassy2 there may be partial mortification to offend the sense with the smell of death2 and yet the body may be alive4 ,the only security we at present know of1 that life has left the body1 is the supervention of chemical decomposition1 shown in commencing change of colour of the integuments of the abdomen and throat to blue and green1 and an attendant cadaverous fetor4 ,to return from this important digression to the former subject of the ,vampyr superstition4 ,the second element which we have yet to explain is the ,vampyr visit and its consequence--the lapse of the party visited into death-trance4 ,there are two ways of dealing with this knot2 one is to cut it1 the other to untie it4 ,it may be cut1 by denying the supposed connexion between the ,vampyr visit and the supervention of death-trance in the second party4 ,nor is the explanation thus obtained devoid of plausibility4 ,there is no reason why death-trance should not1 in certain seasons and places1 be epidemic4 ,then the persons most liable to it would be those of weak and irritable nervous systems4 ,again1 a first effect of the epidemic might be further to shake the nerves of weaker subjects4 ,these are exactly the persons who are likely to be infected with imaginary terrors1 and to dream1 or even to fancy1 they have seen ,mr4 or ,mrs4 such a one1 the last victims of the epidemic4 ,the dream or impression upon the senses might again recur1 and the sickening patient have already talked of it to his neighbours1 before he himself was seized with death-trance4 ,on this supposition1 the ,vampyr visit would sink into the subordinate rank of a mere premonitory symptom4 ,to myself1 ,i must confess1 this explanation1 the best ,i am yet in a position to offer1 appears barren and jejune2 and not at all to do justice to the force and frequency1 or1 as tradition represents the matter1 the universality of the ,vampyr visit as a precursor of the victim's fate4 ,imagine how strong must have been the conviction of the reality of the apparition1 how common a feature it must have been1 to have led to the laying down of the unnatural and repulsive process customarily followed at the ,vampyr's grave1 as the regular and proper preventive of ulterior consequences4 ,i am disposed1 therefore1 rather to try and untie this knot1 and with that object to wait1 hoping that something may turn up in the progress of these inquiries to assist me in its solution4 ,in the mean time1 ,i would beg leave to consider this second half of the problem a compound phenomenon1 the solutions of the two parts of which may not emerge simultaneously4 ,the ,vampyr visit is one thing2 its presumed contagious effect another4 ,the ,vampyr visit6 ,well1 it is clear the ,vampyr could not have left his grave bodily--or1 at all events1 if he could1 he never could have buried himself again4 ,yet in his grave they always found him4 ,so the body could not have been the visitant4 ,then1 in popular language1 it was the ghost of the ,vampyr that haunted its future victim4 ,the ghostly nature of the visitant could not have been identified at a luckier moment4 ,the very subject which ,i next propose to undertake is the analysis of ghosts4 ,i have1 therefore1 only to throw the ,vampyr ghost into the crucible with the rest2 and to-morrow ,i may perhaps be able to report the rational composition of the whole batch4 ,,letter ,,iii4 ,,unreal ,,ghosts--,law of ,sensorial ,illusions--,cases of ,nicolai1 ,schwedenborg1 ,joan of ,arc--,fetches--,churchyard ghosts4 ,the projected analysis has been crowned with success4 ,the fumes of superstition have been driven off1 and the ghosts have been reduced to rational elements4 ,all trace of supernatural agency has vanished2 and in its place are found three principles--one physical1 two psychical--by the help of which every conceivable ghost may in future be alternately decomposed and recompounded by the merest tyro4 ,the first of which ,i shall describe the nature and operation is a psychical truth1 already known to most persons of education4 ,it is of very general use in ghost-building2 it forms the immediate personnel of every ghost2 and is of so active a nature that alone1 or assisted by a little credulity1 it is enough to constitute the simplest kind--a common fetch4 ,mixed with a dose of mental anxiety1 or as much remorse as will lie on the point of a dagger1 it will form a troublesome retrospective ghost4 ,the second principle--a physical one1 less generally known--is the basis of that sturdy apparition the churchyard ghost1 which it will turn out in very fair style aided by fancy alone2 but1 to perfect the illusive result1 the co-operation of the first principle is necessary4 ,the third1 an entirely new one1 is the foundation of real ghosts--that is1 of ghosts which announce unexpected events1 distant in space or time2 the same principle is concerned in true dreams1 and in second-sight4 ,the first of the three principles adverted to is the physiological fact that1 when the blood is heated1 the nervous system overstrained1 or digestion out of sorts1 the thereby directly or sympathetically disordered brain is liable to project before us illusory forms1 which are coloured and move like life1 and are so far undistinguishable from reality4 ,sometimes a second sense is drawn into the phantasmagoria1 and the fictitious beings speak as you do4 ,almost always the illusion stops there4 ,but in one or two marvellous cases1 the touch has been involved in the hallucination1 and the ghost has been tangible4 ,these phenomena are termed sensorial illusions4 ,the visual part of them1 the first and commonest1 has been the most attended to4 ,the cause immediately producing it appears to be an affection1 not of the organ of vision1 but of that part of the brain in which the nerves of seeing take their origin4 ,this organ it is which in health realizes our sensations of colour1 and converts them into visual perceptions4 ,like other parts of the brain1 it is stored with memories of its past impressions1 ready to be evoked--either pure and true by conception1 or any how combined by fancy4 ,in perfect health1 a chance moment of warm recollection will call up from this source the once familiar face transiently1 but how distinctly6 ,in its morbid state1 the beings it projects before us are for the most part strangers1 just as the personages we meet in our dreams are exceptionally only our living and present acquaintance4 ,the most instructive case of sensorial illusions on record1 as containing the largest illustration of the phenomena1 is that of ,nicolai1 the bookseller of ,berlin4 ,the narrative was read before the ,academy of ,sciences at ,berlin1 in #agii4 ,its substance runs thus3--,nicolai had met with some family troubles1 which much disturbed him4 ,then1 on the first of ,january1 #agia1 there stood before him1 at the distance of ten paces1 the ghost of his eldest son4 ,he pointed at it1 directing his wife to look4 ,she saw it not1 and tried to convince ,nicolai that it was an illusion4 ,in a quarter of an hour it vanished4 ,in the afternoon1 at four o'clock1 it came again4 ,nicolai was alone4 ,he went to his wife's room1 the ghost followed him4 ,about six other apparitions joined the first1 and they walked about among each other4 ,after some days the apparition of his son stayed away2 but its place was filled with the figures of a number of persons1 some known1 some unknown to ,nicolai--some of dead1 others of living persons4 ,the known ones represented distant acquaintances only4 ,the figures of none of ,nicolai's habitual friends were there4 ,the appearances were almost always human2 occasionally a man on horseback1 and birds1 and dogs1 would present themselves4 ,the apparitions came mostly after dinner1 at the commencement of digestion2 they were just like real persons1 the colouring a thought fainter4 ,the apparitions were equally distinct whether ,nicolai was alone or in society1 in the dark as by day2 in his own house or in those of others2 but in the latter case they were less frequent1 and they very seldom made their appearance in the streets4 ,during the first eight days they seemed to take very little notice of one another1 but walked about like people at a fair1 only here and there communing with each other4 ,they took no notice of ,nicolai1 or of the remarks he addressed regarding them to his wife and physician4 ,no effort of his would dismiss them1 or bring an absent one back4 ,when he shut his eyes1 they sometimes disappeared1 sometimes remained2 when he opened his eyes1 they were there as before4 ,after a week they became more numerous1 and began to converse4 ,they conversed with one another first1 and then addressed him4 ,their remarks were short and unconnected1 but sensible and civil4 ,his acquaintances inquired after his health1 and expressed sympathy with him1 and spoke in terms comforting him4 ,the apparitions were most conversable when he was alone2 nevertheless1 they mingled in the conversation when others were by1 and their voices had the same sound as those of real persons4 ,the illusion went on thus from the #bdth of ,february to the #bjth of ,april2 so that ,nicolai1 who was in good bodily health1 had time to become tranquillized about the nature of his visiters1 and to observe them at his ease4 ,at last they rather amused him2 then the doctors thought of an efficient plan of treatment4 ,they prescribed leeches2 and then followed the 8denouement0 of this interesting representation4 ,the apparitions became pale1 and vanished4 ,on the #bjth of ,april1 at the time of applying the leeches1 ,nicolai's room was full of figures moving about among each other4 ,they first began to have a less lively motion2 shortly afterwards their colours became paler1 in another half hour paler still1 though the forms still remained4 ,about seven o'clock in the evening the figures had become colourless1 and they moved scarcely at all2 but their outline was still tolerably perfect4 ,gradually that became less and less defined2 at last they disappeared1 breaking into air1 fragments only remaining1 which at last all vanished4 ,by eight o'clock all were gone1 and ,nicolai subsequently saw no more of them4 ,in general1 as in ,nicolai's case1 the sight is the sense at first and alone affected4 ,illusions of the hearing1 if they occur1 follow later4 ,in some most extraordinary cases1 ,i have observed that the touch has likewise participated in the affection2 the following is an instance3-- ,herr von ,baczko1 already subject to visual hallucinations of a diseased nervous system1 his right side weak with palsy1 his right eye blind1 and the vision of the left imperfect1 was engaged one evening shortly after the battle of ,jena1 as he tells in his autobiography1 in translating a pamphlet into ,polish1 when he felt a poke in his loins4 ,he looked round1 and found that it proceeded from a ,negro or ,egyptian boy1 seemingly about twelve years of age4 ,although he was persuaded the whole was an illusion1 he thought it best to knock the apparition down1 when he felt that it offered a sensible resistance4 ,the ,negro then attacked him on the other side1 and gave his left arm a particularly disagreeable twist1 when ,baczko again pushed him off4 ,the ,negro continued to visit him constantly during four months1 preserving the same appearance1 and remaining tangible2 then he came seldomer2 and1 finally appearing as a brown-coloured apparition with an owl's head1 he took his leave4 ,sensorial illusions1 technically speaking1 are not mental delusions2 or they become so only when they are believed to be realities4 ,so sensorial illusions are not insanity1 neither do they menace that disorder3 they are not its customary precursors4 ,nevertheless1 they may accompany the first outbreak of madness2 and they occur much more frequently in lunatics than in persons of sound mind4 ,in insanity they are firmly believed in by the patient1 whose delusions they may either suggest or be shaped by4 ,in insanity1 illusions of the hearing often occur alone1 which is comparatively rare in sane people4 ,the objects of visual illusions are commonly men and women2 but animals1 and even inanimate objects1 sometimes constitute them4 ,a lady whose sight was failing her had long visions every day of rows of buildings1 houses1 and parks1 and such like4 ,the subjects of visual illusions are generally perfectly trivial1 like the events of a common dream4 ,but1 though susceptible of change1 their custom is to recur with much the same character daily4 ,one patient could at will summon the apparition of an acquaintance to join the rest2 but1 once there1 he could not get rid of him4 ,sometimes it happens that sensorial illusions are in accordance with a congenial train of thought--for instance1 with peculiar impressions referring to religion4 ,they are then very liable to be construed by the patient into realities1 and to materially influence his conversation and conduct4 ,he remains1 no doubt1 strictly sane in the midst of these delusions4 ,but he is apt not to be thought so2 or1 to use a figure1 the world's opinion of such a person becomes a polar force1 and society is divided into his admiring followers and those who think him a lunatic4 ,such was1 and remains1 the fate of ,schwedenborg4 ,schwedenborg1 the son of a ,swedish clergyman of the name of ,schwedberg1 ennobled as ,schwedenborg1 was up to the year #agdc1 which was the fifty-fourth of his age1 an ordinary man of the world1 distinguished only in literature1 having written many volumes on philosophy and science1 and being professor in the ,mineralogical ,school1 where he was much respected4 ,on a sudden1 in the year #agdc1 he believed himself to have got into a commerce with the world of spirits1 which so fully took possession of his thoughts1 that he not only published their revelations1 but was in the habit of detailing their daily chat with him4 ,thus he says1 8,i had a conversation the other day on that very point with the apostle ,paul10 or with ,luther1 or some other dead person4 ,schwedenborg continued in what he believed to be constant communion with spirits till his death1 in #aggb4 ,he was1 without doubt1 in the fullest degree convinced of the reality of his spiritual commerce4 ,so in a letter to the ,wurtemburg ,prelate1 ,oetinger1 dated ,november #aa1 #agff1 he uses the following words3 8,if ,i have spoken with the apostles8 ,to this ,i answer1 ,i conversed with ,st4 ,paul during a whole year1 particularly with reference to the text1 ,romans iii4 #bh4 ,i have three times conversed with ,st4 ,john1 once with ,moses1 and a hundred times with ,luther1 who allowed that it was against the warning of an angel that he professed fidem solam1 and that he stood alone upon the separation from the ,pope4 ,with angels1 finally1 have ,i these twenty years conversed1 and converse daily40 ,of the angels1 he says1 8,they have human forms1 the appearance of men1 as ,i have a thousand times seen2 for ,i have spoken with them as a man with other men--often with several together--and ,i have seen nothing in the least to distinguish them from other men40 ,they had1 in fact1 exactly the same appearance as ,nicolai's visiters4 8,lest any one should call this an illusion1 or imaginary perception1 it is to be understood that ,i am accustomed to see them when myself perfectly wide awake1 and in full exercise of my observation4 ,the speech of an angel1 or of a spirit1 sounds like and as loud as that of a man2 but it is not heard by the bystanders4 ,the reason is1 that the speech of an angel1 or a spirit1 finds entrance first into a man's thoughts1 and reaches his organs of hearing from within40 ,a wonderful instance this last reason how it is possible cum ratione insanire2 he analyzes the illusion perfectly1 even when he is most deceived by it4 8,the angels who converse with men speak not in their own language1 but in the language of the country2 and likewise in other languages which are known to a man1 not in languages which he does not understand40 ,schwedenborg here interrupted the angels1 and1 to explain the matter1 observed that they most likely appeared to speak his mother tongue1 because1 in fact1 it was not they who spoke1 but himself after their suggestions4 ,the angels would not allow this1 and went away at the close of the conversation unpersuaded4 ,the following fiction is very fine3 8,when approaching1 the angels often appear like a ball of light2 and they travel in companies so grouped together--they are allowed so to unite by the ,lord--that they may act as one being1 and share each other's ideas and knowledge2 and in this form they bound through the universe1 from planet to planet40 ,a still more interesting example of the influence of sensorial illusions on human conduct is furnished by the touching history of ,joan of ,arc4 8,it is now seven years ago10 so spoke before her judges the simple but high-minded maiden--8it was a summer day1 towards the middle hour1 ,i was about thirteen years old1 and was in my father's garden1 that ,i heard for the first time1 on my right hand1 towards the church1 a voice1 and there stood a figure in a bright radiance before my eyes4 ,it had the appearance and look of a right good and virtuous man1 bore wings1 was surrounded with light on all sides1 and by the angels of heaven4 ,it was the archangel ,michael4 ,the voice seemed to me to command respect2 but ,i was yet a child1 and was frightened at the figure1 and doubted very much whether it were the archangel4 ,i saw him and the angels as distinctly before my eyes as ,i now see you1 my judges40 ,with words of encouragement the archangel announced to her that ,god had taken pity upon ,france1 and that she must hasten to the assistance of the ,king4 ,at the same time he promised her that ,st4 ,catharine and ,st4 ,margaret would shortly visit her3 he told her that she should do what they commanded her1 because they were sent by ,god to guide and conduct her4 8,upon this10 continued ,joan1 8,st4 ,catharine and ,st4 ,margaret appeared to me1 as the archangel had foretold4 ,they ordered me to get ready to go to ,robert de ,beaudricourt1 the ,king's captain4 ,he would several times refuse me1 but at last would consent1 and give me people who would conduct me to the ,king4 ,then should ,i raise the siege of ,orleans4 ,i replied to them that ,i was a poor child1 who understood nothing about riding on horseback and making war4 ,they said ,i should carry my banner with courage2 ,god would help me1 and win back for my king his entire kingdom4 ,as soon as ,i knew10 continued ,joan1 8that ,i was to proceed on this errand1 ,i avoided as much as ,i could taking part in the sports and amusements of my young companions40 8,so have the saints conducted me during seven years1 and have given me support and assistance in all my need and labours2 and now at present10 said she to her judges1 8no day goes by but they come to see me40 8,i seldom see the saints that they are not surrounded with a halo of light2 they wear rich and precious crowns1 as it is reasonable they should4 ,i see them always under the same forms1 and have never found in their discourse any discrepancies4 ,i know how to distinguish one from the other1 and distinguish them as well by the sound of their voices as by their salutation4 ,they come often without my calling upon them4 ,but when they do not come1 ,i pray to the ,lord that he will send them to me2 and never have ,i needed them but they have visited me40 ,such is part of the defence of the heroic ,joan of ,arc1 who was taken prisoner by the ,duke of ,burgundy on the #bc;d of ,may1 #adcj--sold by him for a large sum to the ,english1 and by them put on her trial as a heretic1 idolatress1 and magician--condemned1 and finally burned alive on the #cjth of ,may1 #adca6 ,her innocence1 simplicity1 and courage incense one sadly against her judges2 but it is likely there were at that time many good and sensible persons who approved of her sentence1 and never suspected its cruelty and injustice4 ,making allowance for the ignorance and barbarity of the age1 her treatment was1 perhaps1 not worse than that of ,abd-el-,kader now4 ,her visions--they were palpably the productions of her own fancy1 the figures of saints and angels1 which she had seen in missals1 projected before her mental sight2 and their cause the instinctive workings1 unknown to herself1 of her young high-couraged and enthusiastic heart1 shaping its suggestions into holy prophesyings--the leading facts of which her resolute will realized1 while their actual discrepancies with subsequent events she pardonably forgot4#a ,footnote #a3 ,i cannot deny that another principle1 afterwards to be explained1 may have been additionally in operation in this interesting case4 ,i will present yet another and less pleasing picture1 where the subject of sensorial illusions was of infirm mind1 and they struck upon the insane chord1 and reason jangled harshly out of tune4 ,it would be a curious question whether such a sensorial illusion as overthrew the young seer's judgment in the following case1 could have occurred to a mind previously sane2 whether1 for instance1 it could have occurred to ,schwedenborg1 and1 in that event1 how he would have dealt with it4 ,arnold 7a ,german writer7 relates1 in his history of the church and of heresy1 how there was a young man in ,knigsberg1 well educated1 the natural son of a priest1 who had the impression that he was met near a crucifix on the wayside by seven angels1 who revealed to him that he was to represent ,god the ,father on earth1 to drive all evil out of the world1 c4 ,the poor fellow1 after pondering upon this illusion a long time1 issued a circular1 beginning thus3 8,we ,john1 ,albrecht1 ,adelgreif1 ,syrdos1 ,amata1 ,kanemata1 ,kilkis1 ,mataldis1 ,schmalkilimundis1 ,sabrandis1 ,elioris1 ,hyperarch-,high-priest and ,emperor1 ,prince of ,peace of the whole world1 ,hyperarch-,king of the holy kingdom of ,heaven1 ,judge of the living and of the dead1 ,god and ,father1 in whose divinity ,christ will come on the last day to judge the world1 ,lord of all lords1 ,king of all kings10 c4 ,he was thereupon thrown into prison at ,knigsberg1 where every means were used by the clergy to reclaim him from these blasphemous and heretical notions4 ,to all their entreaties1 however1 he listened only with a smile of pity--8that they should think of reclaiming ,god the ,father40 ,he was then put to the torture1 and as what he endured made no alteration in his convictions1 he was condemned to have his tongue torn out with red-hot tongs1 to be cut in four quarters1 and then burned under the gallows4 ,he wept bitterly1 not at his own fate1 but that they should pronounce such a sentence on the ,deity4 ,the executioner was touched with pity1 and implored him to make a final recantation4 ,but he persisted that he was ,god the ,father1 whether they pulled his tongue out by the roots or not2 and so he was executed6 ,from the preceding forcible illustrations of the working of sensorial illusions on individual minds1 it is to descend a little in interest to trace their ministry in giving rise to the rickety forms of popular superstition4 ,however1 the material may be the same1 whether it be cast for the commemoration of a striking event or coined for vulgar currency4 ,and here is a piece of the latter description1 with the recommendation of being at least fresh from the mint1 and spic-and-span new--an instance of superstition surviving in ,england in the middle of the nineteenth century4 ,a young gentleman1 who has recently left ,oxford1 told me that he was one evening at a supper-party in college1 when they were joined by a common friend on his return from hunting4 ,they expected him1 but were struck with his appearance4 ,he was pale and agitated4 ,on questioning him1 they learned the cause4 ,during the latter part of his ride home1 he had been accompanied by a horseman1 who kept exact pace with him1 the rider and horse being close facsimiles of himself and the steed he rode1 even to the copy of a new fangled bit which he sported that day for the first time4 ,he had1 in fact1 seen his 8double0 or 8,fetch10 and it had shaken his nerves pretty considerably4 ,his friends advised him to consult the college-tutor1 who failed not to give him some good advice1 and hoped the warning would not be thrown away4 ,my informant1 who thought the whole matter very serious1 and was inclined to believe the unearthly visit to have been no idle one1 added that it had made the ghost-seer1 for the time at least1 a wiser and better man4 ,such a visionary duplicate of one's-self--one's fetch--is a not unfrequent form of sensorial illusion4 ,in more ignorant days the appearance of a fetch excited much apprehension4 ,it was supposed to menace death or serious calamity to its original4 ,properly viewed1 unless it proceed from hard work and overstrained thought1 7from which you can desist17 it indicates something wrong in your physical health1 and its warning goes no further than to consult a doctor1 to learn1 8what rhubarb1 senna1 or what purgative drug will drive the spectre hence40 ,the efficiency of such means was shown in the case of ,nicolai4 ,yet in this case1 ,i may remark1 the originating cause of the attack had been anxiety about the very son whose apparition was the first of the throng to visit him4 ,had the illusion continued limited to the figure of the son1 it would have been more questionable what art could do towards dismissing it4 ,at all events1 in such a case1 the first thing is to remove the perilous stuff that weighs upon the mind4 ,so the personage whose words ,i have been using was doubtless right1 in his own case1 to 8throw physic to the dogs40 ,in the tragedy of ,macbeth1 sensorial illusions are made to play their part with curious physiological correctness4 ,the mind of ,macbeth is worn by the conflict between ambition and duty4 ,at last his better resolves give way2 and his excited fancy projects before him the fetch of his own dagger1 which marshals him the way that he shall go4 ,the spectator is thus artistically prepared for the further working of the same infirmity in the apparition of ,banquo1 which1 unseen by his guests1 is visible only to the conscience-stricken murderer4 ,with a scientific precision no less admirable1 the partner of his guilt--a woman--is made to have attacks of trance1 7to which women are more liable than men17 caused by her disturbed mind2 and in her trance the exact physiological character of one form of that disorder is portrayed--she enacts a dream1 which is the essence of somnambulism4 ,one almost doubts whether ,shakspeare was aware of the philosophic truth displayed in these master-strokes of his own art4 ,the apparitions conjured up in the witch scenes of the same play1 and the ghost in ,hamlet1 are moulded on the pattern of vulgar superstition4 ,he employs indifferently the baser metal and the truthful inspirations of his own genius--realizing ,shelley's strange figure of 8a poet hidden ,in the light of thought40 ,so they say the sun is himself dark as a planet1 and his atmosphere alone the source of light1 through the gaps in which his common earth is seen4 ,i am tempted--but it would be idle1 and ,i refrain--to quote an expression or two1 or a passage1 from ,shakspeare1 exemplifying his wonderful turn for approximating to truths of which he must have been ignorant--where lines of admired and unaccountable beauty have unexpectedly acquired lucidity and appositeness through modern science4 ,while1 to make a quaint comparison1 his great contemporary1 ,bacon1 employed the lamp of his imagination to illuminate the paths to the discovery of truth1 ,shakspeare would1 with random intuition1 seize on the undiscovered truths themselves1 and use them to vivify the conceptions of his fancy4 ,let me now turn to explain a ghost of a more positive description--the churchyard ghost4 ,the ghost will perhaps exclaim against so trivial a title1 and one so unjust in reference to old superstition2 but it will be seen he deserves no better4 ,in popular story he had a higher office2 his duty was to watch the body over which church rites had not been performed1 that had been rudely inearthed after violent death4 ,as thus-- ,there was a cottage in a village ,i could name to which a bad report attached4 ,more than one who had slept in it had seen1 at midnight1 the radiant apparition of a little child standing on the hearth-stone4 ,at length suspicion was awakened4 ,the hearth-stone was raised1 and there were found buried beneath it the remains of an infant4 ,a story was now divulged how the last tenant and a female of the village had abruptly quitted the neighbourhood4 ,the ghost was real and significant enough4 ,but here is a still better instance from a trustworthy ,german work1 ,p4 ,kieffer's ,archives4 ,the narrative was communicated by ,herr ,ehrman of ,strasburg1 son-in-law of the well-known writer ,pfeffel1 from whom he received it4 ,the ghost-seer was a young candidate for orders1 eighteen years of age1 of the name of ,billing4 ,he was known to have very excitable nerves1 had already experienced sensorial illusions1 and was particularly sensitive to the presence of human remains1 which made him tremble and shudder in all his limbs4 ,pfeffel1 being blind1 was accustomed to take the arm of this young man1 and they walked thus together in ,pfeffel's garden1 near ,colmar4 ,at one spot in the garden1 ,pfeffel remarked that his companion's arm gave a sudden start1 as if he had received an electric shock4 ,being asked what was the matter1 ,billing replied1 8,nothing40 ,but on their going over the same spot again1 the same effect recurred4 ,the young man being pressed to explain the cause of his disturbance1 avowed that it arose from a peculiar sensation which he always experienced when in the vicinity of human remains2 that it was his impression a human body must be interred there2 but that1 if ,pfeffel would return with him at night1 he should be able to speak with greater confidence4 ,accordingly they went together to the garden when it was dark1 and as they approached the spot1 ,billing observed a faint light over it4 ,at ten paces from it he stopped1 and would go no farther1 for he saw hovering over it1 or self-supported in the air--its feet only a few inches from the ground--a luminous female figure1 nearly five feet high1 with the right arm folded on her breast1 the left hanging by her side4 ,when ,pfeffel himself stepped forward and placed himself about where the figure appeared to be1 ,billing said it was now on his right hand1 now on his left1 now behind1 now before him4 ,when ,pfeffel cut the air with his stick1 it seemed as if it went through and divided a light flame1 which then united again4 ,the visit1 repeated the next night1 in company with some of ,pfeffel's relatives1 gave the same result4 ,they did not see any thing4 ,pfeffel then1 unknown to the ghost-seer1 had the ground dug up1 when there was found at some depth1 beneath a layer of quicklime1 a human body in progress of decomposition4 ,the remains were removed1 and the earth carefully replaced4 ,three days afterwards1 ,billing1 from whom this whole proceeding had been kept concealed1 was again led to the spot by ,pfeffel4 ,he walked over it now without experiencing any unusual impression whatever4 ,the explanation of this mysterious phenomenon has been but recently arrived at4 ,the discoveries of ,von ,reichenbach1 of which ,i gave a sketch in the first letter1 announce the principle on which it depends4 ,among these discoveries is the fact that the ,od force makes itself visible as a dim light or waving flame to highly sensitive subjects4 ,such persons1 in the dark1 see flames issuing from the poles of magnets and crystals4 ,von ,reichenbach eventually discovered that the ,od force is distributed universally1 although in varying quantities4 ,but among the causes which excite its evolution1 one of the most active is chemical decomposition4 ,then1 happening to remember ,pfeffel's ghost story1 it occurred to ,von ,reichenbach that what ,billing had seen was possibly ,od light4 ,to test the soundness of this conjecture1 ,miss ,reichel1 a very sensitive subject1 was taken at night to an extensive burying-ground near ,vienna1 where interments take place daily1 and there are many thousand graves4 ,the result did not disappoint ,von ,reichenbach's expectations4 ,whithersoever ,miss ,reichel turned her eyes1 she saw masses of flame4 ,this appearance manifested itself most about recent graves4 ,about very old ones it was not visible4 ,she described the appearance as resembling less bright flame than fiery vapour1 something between fog and flame4 ,in several instances the light extended four feet in height above the ground4 ,when ,miss ,reichel placed her hand on it1 it seemed to her involved in a cloud of fire4 ,when she stood in it1 it came up to her throat4 ,she expressed no alarm1 being accustomed to the appearance4 ,the mystery has thus been entirely solved2 for it is evident that the spectral character of the luminous apparition1 in the two instances which ,i have narrated1 had been supplied by the seers themselves4 ,so the superstition has vanished2 but1 as usual1 it veiled a truth4 ,,letter ,,iv4 ,,true ,,ghosts4--,the apparitions themselves always sensorial illusions--,the truth of their communications accounted for--,zschokke's ,seer-gift described1 to show the possibility of direct mental communication--,second-sight--,the true relation of the mind to the living body4 ,the worst of a true ghost is1 that1 to be sure of his genuineness--that is1 of his veracity--one must wait the event4 ,he is distinguished by no sensible and positive characteristics from the commoner herd4 ,there is nothing in his outward appearance to raise him in your opinion above a fetch4 ,but even this fact is not barren4 ,his dress1--it is in the ordinary mode of the time1 in nothing overdone4 ,to be dressed thus does credit to his taste1 as to be dressed at all evinces his sense of propriety2 but alas6 the same elements convict him of objective unreality4 ,whence come that aerial coat and waistcoat1 whence those visionary trousers8--alas6 they can only have issued from the wardrobe in the seer's fancy4 ,and1 like his dress1 the wearer is imaginary1 a mere sensorial illusion1 without a shadow of externality2 he is not more substantial than a dream4 ,but dreams have differences of quality no less than ghosts4 ,all do not come through the ivory gate4 ,some are true and significant enough4 ,see1 there glides one skulking assassin-like into the shade1--he not long since killed his man2 8,hilloa1 ill-favoured ,dream6 come hither and give an account of yourself40 7,enter ,dream47 ,a ,scottish gentleman and his wife were travelling four or five years ago in ,switzerland4 ,there travelled with them a third party1 an intimate friend1 a lady1 who some time before had been the object of a deep attachment on the part of a foreigner1 a ,frenchman4 ,well1 she would have nothing to say to him on the topic uppermost in his mind1 but she gave him a good deal of serious advice1 which she probably thought he wanted2 and she ultimately promoted1 or was a cognizant party to1 his union with a lady whom she likewise knew4 ,the so-married couple were now in ,america2 and the lady occasionally heard from them1 and had every reason to believe they were both in perfect health4 ,one morning1 on their meeting at breakfast1 she told her companions that she had had a very impressive dream the night before1 which had recurred twice4 ,the scene was a room in which lay a coffin2 near to it stood her ex-lover in a luminous transfigured resplendent state2 his wife was by1 looking much as usual4 ,the dream had caused the lady some misgivings1 but her companions exhorted her to view it as a trick of her fancy1 and she was half persuaded so to do4 ,the dream1 however1 was right1 notwithstanding4 ,in process of time1 letters arrived announcing the death1 after a short illness1 of the ,french gentleman1 within the twenty-four hours in which the vision appeared4 7,sensation--applause1 followed by cries of ,shame2 the ,dream1 hurrying away1 is hurt by the horn of the gate47 ,it would be difficult to persuade the lady who dreamed this dream that there was no connexion between it and the event it foreshadowed in her mind beyond the accidental coincidence of time4 ,nevertheless1 to this conclusion an indifferent auditor would probably come2 and upon the following reasoning3 ,we sometimes dream of the death of an absent friend when he is alive and in health1 just as we sometimes dream that long-lost friends are alive4 ,and it is quite possible--nay1 likely to occur in the chapter of accidents--nay1 certain to turn up now and then among the dreams of millions during centuries--that a fortuitous dream1 seemingly referring to the fact1 should be coincident in point of time with the death of a distant friend4 ,to explain one such case1 we need look no further than to the operation of chance4 ,why1 then1 ever seek another principle8 ,let us examine a parallel ghost-story4 ,a gentleman has a relative in ,india1 healthy1 of good constitution1 in the civil service1 prosperous3 he has no cause for anxiety1 and entertains none1 respecting his relative4 ,but one day he sees his ghost4 ,in due course letters arrive mentioning the occurrence of his relative's death on that day4 ,the case is more remarkable than the last2 for the ghost-seer never in his life but that once experienced a sensorial illusion4 ,still1 it is evidently possible that the two events were1 through chance alone1 coincident in time4 ,and if in this case1 why not in another8 ,then let me adduce a more remarkable instance3 ,a late ,general ,wynyard1 and the late ,general ,sir ,john ,sherbroke1 when young men1 were serving in ,canada4 ,one day--it was daylight--,mr4 ,wynyard and ,mr4 ,sherbroke both saw pass through the room where they sat a figure1 which ,mr4 ,wynyard recognised as a brother then far away4 ,one of the two walked to the door1 and looked out upon the landing-place1 but the stranger was not there2 and a servant who was on the stairs had seen nobody pass out4 ,in time news arrived that ,mr4 ,wynyard's brother had died about the time of the visit of the apparition4 ,i have had opportunities of inquiring of two near relations of this ,general ,wynyard upon what evidence the above story rests4 ,they told me they had each heard it from his own mouth4 ,more recently1 a gentleman1 whose accuracy of recollection exceeds that of most people1 has told me that he had heard the late ,sir ,john ,sherbroke1 the other party in the ghost-story1 tell it much in the same way at a dinner-table4 ,one does not feel as comfortably satisfied that the complicated coincidences in this tale admit of being referred to chance4 ,the odds are enormous against two persons--young men in perfect health1 neither of whom before or after this event experienced a sensorial illusion--being the subjects at the same moment of one1 their common and only one1 which concurred in point of time with an event that it foreshadowed1 unless there were some real connexion between the event and the double apparition4 ,and we feel a nascent inclination to inquire whether--in case such instances as the present occasionally recur1 and instances like the two before narrated become1 when looked for1 startlingly multiplied--there exists any known mental or physical principle1 by the help of which they may be explained into natural phenomena4 ,the more we look after facts of the above nature1 the more urgent becomes the want of such a means of explanation4 ,in every family circle1 in every party of men accidentally brought together1 you will be sure to hear1 if the conversation fall on ghosts and dreams1 one or more instances--which the narrators represent as well authenticated--of intimations of the deaths of absent persons conveyed to friends either through an apparition or a dream1 or an equivalent unaccountable presentiment4 ,a gentleman--himself of distinguished ability--told me that when he was an undergraduate at ,cambridge1 he was secretary to a ghost society formed in sportive earnest by some of the cleverest young men of one of the best modern periods of the university4 ,one of the results of their labours was the collection of about a dozen stories of the above description resting upon good evidence4 ,then there transpire occasionally cases with more curious features still4 ,not only is the general intimation of an event given1 but minute particulars attending it are figured in the dream1 or communicated by the ghost4 ,such tales have sometimes been authenticated in courts of justice4 ,here is one out of last week's newspaper3-- 8,in a ,durham paper of last week1 there was an account of the disappearance of ,mr4 ,smith1 gardener to ,sir ,clifford ,constable1 who1 it was supposed1 had fallen into the river ,tees1 his hat and stick having been found near the water-side4 ,from that time up to ,friday last the river had been dragged every day2 but every effort so made to find the body proved ineffectual4 ,on the night of ,thursday1 however1 a person named ,awde1 residing at little ,newsham1 a small village about four miles from ,wycliff1 dreamt that ,smith was laid under the ledge of a certain rock1 about three hundred yards below ,whorlton ,bridge1 and that his right arm was broken4 ,awde got up early on ,friday1 and his dream had such an effect upon him that he determined to go and search the river4 ,he accordingly started off for that purpose1 without mentioning the matter1 being afraid that he would be laughed at by his neighbours4 ,nevertheless1 on his arriving at the boat-house1 he disclosed his object on the man asking him for what purpose he required the boat4 ,he rowed to the spot he had seen in his dream2 and there1 strange to say1 upon the very first trial that he made with his boat-hook1 he pulled up the body of the unfortunate man1 with his right arm actually broken40--7,herald1 ,december1 #ahdh47 ,reviewing all that ,i have advanced1 it appears to me that there are two desiderata which pressingly require to be now supplied4 ,first1 some one should take the pains of authenticating at the time1 and putting on permanent record1 stories like the above1 to be at the service of future speculators4 ,but1 secondly1 so numerous and well attested are those already current1 that the bringing forward into light of some principle by which they may be shown to be natural events is now peremptorily called for4 ,to lead to the supply of the second desideratum1 ,i proceed to mention a physical phenomenon1 which from time to time occurred to the late historian and novelist1 ,heinrich ,zschokke4 ,it is described by him in a sort of autobiography1 entitled ,selbstschau1 which he published a few years ago4 ,it was only last year that ,zschokke died1 having attained a good old age4 ,early brought into public life in the troubles of ,switzerland1 and afterwards maintaining his place in public consideration by his numerous writings1 he was personally widely known3 he was universally esteemed a man of strict veracity and integrity4 ,he writes thus of himself3-- 8,if the reception of so many visiters was sometimes troublesome1 it repaid itself occasionally either by making me acquainted with remarkable personages1 or by bringing out a wonderful sort of seer-gift1 which ,i called my inward vision1 and which has always remained an enigma to me4 ,i am almost afraid to say a word upon this subject2 not for fear of the imputation of being superstitious1 but lest ,i should encourage that disposition in others2 and yet it forms a contribution to psychology4 ,so to confess4 8,it is acknowledged that the judgment which we form of strangers1 on first meeting them1 is frequently more correct than that which we adopt upon a longer acquaintance with them4 ,the first impression which1 through an instinct of the soul1 attracts one towards1 or repels one from1 another1 becomes1 after a time1 more dim1 and is weakened1 either through his appearing other than at first1 or through our becoming accustomed to him4 ,people speak1 too1 in reference to such cases of involuntary sympathies and aversions1 and attach a special certainty to such manifestations in children1 in whom knowledge of mankind by experience is wanting4 ,others1 again1 are incredulous1 and attribute all to physiognomical skill4 ,but of myself4 8,it has happened to me occasionally1 at the first meeting with a total stranger1 when ,i have been listening in silence to his conversation1 that his past life1 up to the present moment1 with many minute circumstances belonging to one or other particular scene in it1 has come across me like a dream1 but distinctly1 entirely1 involuntarily1 and unsought1 occupying in duration a few minutes4 ,during this period ,i am usually so plunged into the representation of the stranger's life1 that at last ,i neither continue to see distinctly his face1 on which ,i was idly speculating1 nor to hear intelligently his voice1 which at first ,i was using as a commentary to the text of his physiognomy4 ,for a long time ,i was disposed to consider these fleeting visions as a trick of the fancy2 the more so that my dream-vision displayed to me the dress and movements of the actors1 the appearance of the room1 the furniture1 and other accidents of the scene2 till1 on one occasion1 in a gamesome mood1 ,i narrated to my family the secret history of a sempstress who had just before quitted the room4 ,i had never seen the person before4 ,nevertheless the hearers were astonished1 and laughed1 and would not be persuaded but that ,i had a previous acquaintance with the former life of the person1 inasmuch as what ,i had stated was perfectly true4 ,i was not less astonished to find that my dream-vision agreed with reality4 ,i then gave more attention to the subject1 and1 as often as propriety allowed of it1 ,i related to those whose lives had so passed before me the substance of my dream-vision1 to obtain from them its contradiction or confirmation4 ,on every occasion its confirmation followed1 not without amazement on the part of those who gave it4 8,least of all could ,i myself give faith to these conjuring tricks of my mind4 ,every time that ,i described to any one my dream-vision respecting him1 ,i confidently expected him to answer it was not so4 ,a secret thrill always came over me when the listener replied1 #8,it happened as you say2' or when1 before he spoke1 his astonishment betrayed that ,i was not wrong4 ,instead of recording many instances1 ,i will give one which1 at the time1 made a strong impression upon me4 8,on a fair day1 ,i went into the town of ,waldshut1 accompanied by two young foresters who are still alive4 ,it was evening1 and1 tired with our walk1 we went into an inn called the ,vine4 ,we took our supper with a numerous company at the public table2 when it happened that they made themselves merry over the peculiarities and simplicity of the ,swiss1 in connexion with the belief in ,mesmerism1 ,lavater's physiognomical system1 and the like4 ,one of my companions1 whose national pride was touched by their raillery1 begged me to make some reply1 particularly in answer to a young man of superior appearance1 who sat opposite1 and had indulged in unrestrained ridicule4 ,it happened that the events of this very person's life had just previously passed before my mind4 ,i turned to him with the question1 whether he would reply to me with truth and candour1 if ,i narrated to him the most secret passages of his history1 he being as little known to me as ,i to him8 ,that would1 ,i suggested1 go something beyond ,lavater's physiognomical skill4 ,he promised1 if ,i told the truth1 to admit it openly4 ,then ,i narrated the events with which my dream-vision had furnished me1 and the table learnt the history of the young tradesman's life1 of his school years1 his peccadilloes1 and1 finally1 of a little act of roguery committed by him on the strong box of his employer4 ,i described the uninhabited room with its white walls1 where1 to the right of the brown door1 there had stood upon the table the small black money-chest1 c4 ,a dead silence reigned in the company during this recital1 interrupted only when ,i occasionally asked if ,i spoke the truth4 ,the man1 much struck1 admitted the correctness of each circumstance--even1 which ,i could not expect1 of the last4 ,touched with his frankness1 ,i reached my hand to him across the table1 and closed my narrative4 ,he asked my name1 which ,i gave him4 ,we sat up late in the night conversing4 ,he may be alive yet4 8,now ,i can well imagine how a lively imagination could picture1 romance-fashion1 from the obvious character of a person1 how he would conduct himself under given circumstances4 ,but whence came to me the involuntary knowledge of accessory details1 which were without any sort of interest1 and respected people who for the most part were utterly indifferent to me1 with whom ,i neither had1 nor wished to have1 the slightest association8 ,or was it in each case mere coincidence8 ,or had the listener1 to whom ,i described his history1 each time other images in his mind than the accessory ones of my story1 but1 in surprise at the essential resemblance of my story to the truth1 lost sight of the points of difference8 ,yet ,i have1 in consideration of this possible source of error1 several times taken pains to describe the most trivial circumstances that my dream-vision has shown me4 8,not another word about this strange seer-gift1 which ,i can aver was of no use to me in a single instance1 which manifested itself occasionally only1 and quite independently of any volition1 and often in relation to persons in whose history ,i took not the slightest interest4 ,nor am ,i the only one in possession of this faculty4 ,in a journey with two of my sons1 ,i fell in with an old ,tyrolese who travelled about1 selling lemons and oranges1 at the inn at ,unterhauerstein in one of the ,jura passes4 ,he fixed his eyes for some time upon me1 joined in our conversation1 observed that though ,i did not know him he knew me1 and began to describe my acts and deeds1 to the no little amusement of the peasants1 and astonishment of my children1 whom it interested to learn that another possessed the same gift as their father4 ,how the old lemon-merchant acquired his knowledge he was not able to explain to himself nor to me4 ,but he seemed to attach great importance to his hidden wisdom40#b ,footnote #b3 ,zschokke told a friend of mine at ,frankfort1 in #ahdg1 shortly before his death1 which took place at an advanced age1 that in the latter years of his life his seer-gift had never manifested itself4 ,in the newness of such knowledge1 it is worth while to note separately each of the particulars which attended the manifestation of this strange mental faculty1 with his account of which ,zschokke has enriched psychology4 #a4 ,then1 after the power of looking up the entire recollections of another1 through some other channel than ordinary inquiry and observation--and as it seemed directly--we may note1-- #b4 ,the rapidity1 minuteness1 and precision1 which characterized the act of inspection4 #c4 ,the feeling attending it of becoming absent or lost to what was going on around4 #d4 ,its involuntariness and unexpectedness4 #e4 ,its being practicable on some only2 and #f4 ,those entire strangers1 and at their first interview with the seer4 ,at present ,i shall avail myself of the first broad fact alone1 remarking1 however1 of the conditions observed in it1 that they clearly indicate the existence of a law on which the phenomenon depended4 ,and ,i shall assume it to be proved by the above crucial instance1 that the mind1 or soul1 of one human being can be brought1 in the natural course of things1 and under physiological laws hereafter to be determined1 into immediate relation with the mind of another living person4 ,if this principle be admitted1 it is adequate to explain all the puzzling phenomena of real ghosts and of true dreams4 ,for example1 the ghostly and intersomnial communications1 with which we have as yet dealt1 have been announcements of the deaths of absent parties4 ,suppose our new principle brought into play2 the soul of the dying person is to be supposed to have come into direct communication with the mind of his friend1 with the effect of suggesting his present condition4 ,if the seer be dreaming1 the suggestion shapes a corresponding dream2 if he be awake1 it originates a sensorial illusion4 ,to speak figuratively1 merely figuratively1 in reference to the circulation of this partial mental obituary1 ,i will suppose that the death of a human being throws a sort of gleam through the spiritual world1 which may now and then touch with light some fittingly disposed object2 or even two simultaneously1 if chance have placed them in the right relation2--as the twin-spires of a cathedral may be momentarily illuminated by some far-off flash1 which does not break the gloom upon the roofs below4 ,the same principle is applicable to the explanation of the vampyr visit4 ,the soul of the buried man is to be supposed to be brought into communication with his friend's mind4 ,thence follows1 as a sensorial illusion1 the apparition of the buried man4 ,perhaps the visit may have been an instinctive effort to draw the attention of his friend to his living grave4 ,i beg to suggest that it would not be an act of superstition now1 but of ordinary humane precaution1 if one dreamed pertinaciously of a recently buried acquaintance1 or saw his ghost1 to take immediate steps to have the state of the body ascertained4 ,it is not my intention1 in the present letter1 to push the application of this principle further4 ,with slight modifications it might be brought to explain several other wonderful stories1 which we usually neglect just from not seeing how to explain them4 ,one class of these instances is what was termed second-sight4 ,the belief in it formerly prevailed in ,scotland1 and in the whole of the north of ,europe4 ,but the faculty1 if it ever existed1 seems to be disappearing now4 ,however1 it is difficult1 one has heard so many examples of the correctness of its warnings and anticipations1 not to believe that it once really manifested itself4 ,a much respected ,scottish lady1 not unknown in literature1 told me very recently how a friend of her mother1 whom she perfectly remembered1 had been compelled to believe in second-sight through its occurrence in one of her servants4 ,she had a cook1 who was a continual annoyance to her through her possession of this gift4 ,on one occasion1 when the lady expected some friends1 she learned1 a short time before they were to arrive1 that the culinary preparations she had ordered to honour them had not been made4 ,upon her remonstrating with the offending cook1 the latter simply but doggedly assured her that come they would not2 that she knew it to a certainty2 and1 true enough1 they did not come4 ,some accident had occurred to prevent their visit4 ,the same person frequently knew beforehand what her mistress's plans were1 and was as inconvenient in her kitchen as a calculating prodigy in a counting-house4 ,things went perfectly right1 but the manner was irregular and provoking2 so her mistress turned her away4 ,supposing this story true1 the phenomena look just a modification of ,zschokke's seer-gift4 ,a number of incidents there are turning up1 for the most part on trivial occasions1 which we put aside for fear of being thought superstitious1 because as yet a natural solution is not at hand for them4 ,sympathy in general1 the spread of panic fears1 the simultaneous occurrence of the same thoughts to two persons1 the intuitive knowledge of mankind possessed by some1 the magnetic fascination of others1 may eventually be found to have to do with a special and unsuspected cause4 ,among anecdotes of no great conclusiveness that ,i have heard narrated of this sort1 ,i will cite two of ,lord ,nelson1 told by the late ,sir ,thomas ,hardy to the late ,admiral the ,hon4 ,g4 ,dundas1 from whom ,i heard them4 ,the first was mentioned to exemplify ,nelson's quick insight into character4 ,captain ,hardy was present as ,nelson gave directions to the commander of a frigate to make sail with all speed--to proceed to certain points1 where he was likely to fall in with the ,french fleet--having seen the ,french1 to go to a certain harbour1 and there await ,lord ,nelson's coming4 ,after the commander had left the cabin1 ,nelson said to ,hardy1 8,he will go to the ,west ,indies1 he will see the ,french2 he will go to the harbour ,i have directed him to2 but he will not wait for me--he will sail for ,england40 ,the commander did so4 ,shortly before the battle of ,trafalgar an ,english frigate was in advance1 looking out for the enemy2 her place in the offing was hardly discernible4 ,of a sudden ,nelson said to ,hardy1 who was at his side1 8,the ,celeste10 7or whatever the frigate's name was17 8the ,celeste sees the ,french40 ,hardy had nothing to say on the matter4 8,she sees the ,french2 she'll fire a gun40 ,within a little time1 the boom of the signal-gun was heard4#c ,footnote #c3 ,the following anecdote has no conceivable right to be introduced on the present occasion2 but ,i had it on the same authority1 and it is a pity it should be lost4 ,as our fleet was bearing down upon the enemies' line at ,trafalgar1 ,nelson paced the quarter-deck of the ,victory with ,sir ,thomas ,hardy4 ,after a short silence1 touching his left thigh with his remaining hand1 ,nelson said1 8,i'd give that1 ,hardy1 to come out of this40 ,i am not sure that my new principle will be a general favourite4 ,it will be said that the cases1 in which ,i suppose it manifested1 are of too trivial a nature to justify so novel a hypothesis4 ,my answer is1 the cases are few and trivial only because the subject has not been attended to4 ,for how many centuries were the laws of electricity preindicated by the single fact that a piece of amber1 when rubbed1 would attract light bodies6 ,again1 the school of physiological materialists will of course be opposed to it4 ,they hold that the mind is but a function or product of the brain1 and cannot therefore consistently admit its separate action4 ,but their fundamental tenet is unsound1 even upon considering the analogies of matter alone4 ,what is meant by a product8--in what does production consist8 ,let us look for instances3 a metal is produced from an ore2 alcohol is produced from saccharine matter2 the bones and sinews of an animal are produced from its food4 ,production1 in the common signification of the word1 means the conversion of one substance into another1 weight for weight1 agreeably with1 or under1 mechanical1 chemical1 and vital laws4 ,i speak1 of course1 of material production4 ,but the case of thought is parallel4 ,the products of the poet's brain are but recombinations of former ideas4 ,production1 with him1 is but a rearrangement of the elements of thought4 ,his food may turn into or produce new brain2 but it is the mental impressions he has stored which turn into new imagery4 ,to say that the brain turns into thought1 is to assert that consciousness and the brain are one and the same thing1 which would be an idle abuse of language4 ,it is indeed true that1 with the manifestation of each thought or feeling1 a corresponding decomposition of the brain takes place4 ,but it is equally true that1 in a voltaic battery in action1 each movement of electric force developed there is attended with a waste of the metal-plates which help to form it4 ,but that waste is not converted into electric fluid4 ,the exact quantity of pure zinc which disappears may be detected in the form of sulphate of zinc4 ,the electricity was not produced1 it was only set in motion1 by the chemical decomposition4 ,here is the true material analogy of the relation of the brain to the mind4 ,mind1 like electricity1 is an imponderable force pervading the universe3 and there happen to be known to us certain material arrangements1 through which each may be influenced4 ,we cannot1 indeed1 pursue the analogy beyond this step4 ,consciousness and electricity have nothing further in common4 ,their further relations to the dissimilar material arrangements1 through which they may be excited or disturbed1 are subjects of totally distinct studies1 and resolvable into laws which have no affinity1 and admit of no comparison4 ,it is singular how early in the history of mankind the belief in the separate existence of the soul developed itself as an instinct of our nature4 ,timarchus1 who was curious on the subject of the demon of ,socrates1 went to the cave of ,trophonius to consult the oracle about it4 ,there1 having for a short time inhaled the mephitic vapour1 he felt as if he had received a sudden blow on the head1 and sank down insensible4 ,then his head appeared to him to open1 and to give issue to his soul into the other world2 and an imaginary being seemed to inform him that 8the part of the soul engaged in the body1 entrammelled in its organization1 is the soul as ordinarily understood2 but that there is another part or province of the soul which is the daimon4 ,this has a certain control over the bodily soul1 and among other offices constitutes conscience40--8,in three months10 the vision added1 8you will know more of this40 ,at the end of three months ,timarchus died4 ,,letter ,v4 ,,trance4--,distinction of esoneural and exoneural mental phenomena--,abnormal relation of the mind and nervous system possible--,insanity--,sleep--,essential nature of ,trance--,its alliance with spasmodic seizures--,general characters of ,trance--,enumeration of its kinds4 ,the time has now arrived for expounding the phenomena of ,trance2 an acquaintance with which is necessary to enable you to understand the source and nature of the delusions with which ,i have yet to deal4 ,you have already had glimpses of this condition4 ,arnod ,paole was in a trance in the cemetery of ,meduegna--,timarchus was in a trance in the cave of ,trophonius4 ,let me begin by developing certain preliminary conceptions relating to the subject4 ,i4 ,common observation1 the spontaneous course of our reflections1 our instinctive interpretation of nature1 reveal to us matter1 motion1 and intelligence1 as the co-existing phenomena of the universe4 ,in the farthest distances of space cognisable to our senses1 we discern matter and motion1 and their subordination to intelligence4 ,upon the earth's surface we discern1 in the finely designed mechanism of each plant1 the agency of life2 and we recognise in the microcosm of each animal a living organization1 fitted to be the recipient of individual consciousness1 or of personal being4 ,,ii4 ,the intelligence which is communicated to living beings becomes1 to a great extent1 dependent upon the organization with which it is combined4 ,thus every mental faculty is found to have its definite seat and habitat in the bodily frame4 ,the principal successes of modern physiologists have been achieved in determining with what precise parts of the nervous system each affection of consciousness is functionally associated4 ,different classes of nerves are found to be appropriated to sensation and volition2 different parts of the spinal cord are proved to minister to different offices2 and of the subdivisions of the brain1 each is thought to correspond with a separate faculty1 or sentiment1 or appetite4 ,so far the mental forces1 or operations of a living human being1 may be conceived to be essentially esoneural1 7 47 ,each appears to have its proper and special workshop or laboratory in the nervous system4 ,,iii4 ,but there are not wanting facts which make it reasonable to think that our mental forces or operations transcend occasionally and partially the limits of our corporeal frame4 ,the phenomena adverted to in the preceding letter1 in connexion with the narrative of ,zschokke's seer-gift1 hardly seem to admit of explanation on any other supposition4 ,nor is it a very improbable conjecture1 that phenomena of the same class form1 as it were1 the complements of many ordinary esoneural operations4 ,possibly in common perception the mind directly reaches the object perceived1 being excited thereto by the antecedent material impressions on our organs1 and the sensations which follow4 ,to denote mental phenomena of the kind ,i am supposing1 ,i propose the term exoneural1 7 47 ,i venture even1 following out this idea1 to conjecture further1 that the ,od force may somehow furnish the dynamic bridge along which our exoneural apprehension travels4 ,,iv4 ,the affections of consciousness would thus be in part esoneural1 in part exoneural1 during the healthy and normal state of our being2 the esoneural part being executed in immediate connexion with its appropriate organ1 and every manifestation of it being attended with a physical change in the latter4 ,v4 ,but it is conceivable1 on the assumption of mind being a separate principle from matter1 that the human soul may be capable of retaining its union with the body in a new1 unusual1 and abnormal relation4 ,the hypothesis is startling enough4 ,i adopt it only from seeing no other way of accounting for certain facts which1 with the evidence of their reality1 will presently be brought forward4 ,i venture to suppose that the mind of a living man may energize abnormally in two ways3 first1 that a much larger share of its operations may be conducted exoneurally--that is1 out of the body--than usual2 secondly1 that the esoneural mental functions may be conducted within the body in unaccustomed organs1 deserting those naturally appropriated to them4 ,two or three instances have been already given1 which favour1 at all events1 the supposition of the possibility of such an abnormal relation between the mind and the body being realized4 ,but in most of the instances hitherto adverted to1 the normal relation may be supposed to have remained4 ,,vi4 ,thus all the ordinary phenomena of sensorial illusions at once are esoneural1 and suppose the persistence of the normal relation of mind and body4 ,the material organ to which the physical agencies preceding sensation are propagated being irritated1 is to be supposed to excite in the mind sensuous recollections or fancies that are so vivid as to appear realities4 ,,vii4 ,in mental delusions1 again1 there is no reason for surmising the intervention of the abnormal relation4 ,but what are mental delusions8 ,they are a part of insanity4 ,and what is insanity8 ,i will summarily state its features2 for some of the instances which remain for explanation are referrible to it1 and because ,i delight to crush a volume into a paragraph4 ,the phenomena of insanity may be arranged under five heads3 ,the first1 the insane temperament2 the next three the fundamental forms of mental derangement2 the fifth1 the paroxysmal state4 ,the features of the insane temperament are various2 some of them are incompatible with the simultaneous presence of others4 ,when a group of them is present1 as a change in natural character1 without insanity1 insanity is threatened3 no form of insanity manifests itself without the presence of some of them4 ,the features of the insane temperament are these3 ,the patient withdraws his sympathies from those around him1 is shy1 reserved1 cunning1 suspicious1 with a troubled air1 as if he felt something to be wrong1 and wonders if you see it2 he is capricious1 and has flaws of temper2 being talkative1 he is flighty and extravagant2 he is hurried in his thoughts1 and mode of speaking1 and gestures2 he has fits of absence1 in which he talks aloud to himself2 he is restless1 and anxious for change of place4 ,of the elementary forms of insanity1 one consists in the entertainment of mental delusions3 the patient imagines himself the ,deity1 or a prophet1 or a monarch1 or that he has become enormously wealthy2 or that he is possessed by the devil1 or is persecuted by invisible beings1 or is dead1 or very poor1 or that he is the victim of public or private injustice4 ,the second form is moral perversion3 the patient is depressed in spirits without a cause1 perhaps to the extent of meditating suicide2 or he feels an unaccountable desire to take the lives of others2 or he is impelled to steal1 or to do gratuitous mischief2 or he is a sot2 or he has fits of ungovernable and dangerous rage4 ,the third form exhibits itself in loss of connexion of ideas1 failure of memory1 loss of common intelligence1 disregard of the common decencies of life4 ,each of these three elementary forms is sometimes met with alone2 generally two are combined4 ,sensorial illusions are common in insanity2 auditory1 unaccompanied by visual illusions1 are almost peculiar to it1 and to the cognate affection of delirium from fever or inflammation of the brain4 ,to the head of the paroxysmal state belongs the history of exacerbations of insanity1 of their sudden outbursts in persons of the insane temperament1 of their preferential connexion with this or that antecedent condition of the patient1 of their occasional periodicity4 ,,vii4 ,in congenital idiotcy and imbecility1 the relation of the mind and brain is normal4 ,often the defective organization is apparent through which the intelligence is repressed4 ,in many countries a popular belief prevails that the imbecile have occasional glimpses of higher knowledge4 ,there is no reason evident why their minds should not be susceptible of the abnormal relation4 ,,viii4 ,in sleep1 the mind and brain are in the normal relation4 ,but what is sleep1 psychically considered8 ,it is best to begin by looking into the mental constituents of waking4 ,there is then passing before us an endless current of images and reflections1 furnished from our recollections1 and suggested by our hopes and our fears1 by pursuits that interest us1 or by their own inter-associations4 ,this current of thought is continually being changed or modified1 through impressions made upon our senses4 ,it is further liable to be still more importantly and systematically modified by the exercise of the faculty of ,attention4 ,the attention operates in a twofold manner4 ,it enables us to detain at pleasure any subject of thought before the mind2 and1 when not on such urgent duty1 it vigilantly inspects every idea which presents itself1 and reports if it be palpably unsound or of questionable tendency4 ,to speak with more precision1 it is a power we have of controlling our thoughts1 which we drill to warn us whenever the suggested ideas conflict with our experience or our principles4 ,then of sleep4 ,we catch glimpses of its nature at the moments of falling asleep and of waking4 ,when it is the usual time for sleep1 if our attention happen to be livelily excited1 it is in vain we court sleep4 ,when we are striving to contend against the sense of overwhelming fatigue1 what we feel is1 that we can no longer command our attention4 ,then we are lost1 or are asleep4 ,then the head and body drop forwards2 we have ceased to attend to the maintenance of our equilibrium4 ,any iteration of gentle1 impressions1 enough to divert attention from other objects1 without arousing it1 promotes sleep4 ,thus we recognise as the psychical basis of sleep the suspension of the attention4 ,are any other mental faculties suspended in sleep8 ,sensation and the influence of the will over the muscular system are not2 for our dreams are liable to be shaped by what we hear4 ,the sleeper1 without waking1 will turn his head away from a bright light1 will withdraw his arm if you pinch it1 will utter loud words which he dreams he is employing4 ,the seeming insensibility in sleep1 the apparent suspension of the influence of the will1 are simply consequences of the suspension of attention4 ,i have1 on another occasion1 shown that the organs in which sensations are realized1 and volition energizes1 are the segments of the cranio-spinal cord in which the sentient and voluntary nerves are rooted4 ,i think ,i see now that the seat of the attention is the 8medulla oblongata40 ,for--alas for the imperfect conceptions into which the imperfection of language as an instrument of thought forces us6--what is the faculty of attention1 which we have been considering almost as a separate element of mind1 but the individual 8ich0 energizing1 now keenly noticing impressions and thoughts1 now allowing them to pass1 while it looks on with lazy indifference2 now1 at length1 worn out and exhausted1 and incapable of further work8 ,but this inspecting and contrasting operation1 where should it more naturally find its bureau than at a point situated between the organs of the understanding and those of the will8--that is to say1 somewhere at the junction of the spinal marrow and the brain4 ,well1 ,magendie ascertained that just at that region there is a small portion of nervous matter1 pressure upon which causes immediately heavy sleep or stupor1 while its destruction--for instance1 the laceration of the little organ with the point of a needle--instantaneously and irrevocably extinguishes life4#d ,this precious link in our system is1 reasonably enough1 stowed away in the securest part of our frame--that is to say1 within the head1 upon the strong central bone of the base of the skull4 ,how came the fancy of ,shakspeare by the happy figure which seems to adumbrate ,magendie's discovery of to-day1 in poetry written three hundred years ago8 ,footnote #d3 ,the reader who wishes to pursue this subject farther1 will find it expounded1 in connexion with a large body of collateral facts1 in my work entitled ,the ,nervous ,system and its ,functions4 ,parker1 ,west ,strand3 #ahdb4 8,within the hollow crown1 ,that rounds the mortal temples of a king1 ,keeps ,death his court2 and there the antic sits ,mocking his state1 and grinning at his pomp2 ,allowing him a breath1 a little hour1 ,to monarchize1 be feared1 and kill with looks2 ,infusing him with self and vain conceits1 ,as if the flesh that walls about our life ,were brass impregnable4 ,till1 humoured thus1 ,he comes at last1 and1 with a little pin1 ,bores through his castle wall--and farewell king60 ,to return to our argument1 ,are the sentiments and higher faculties of the mind suspended during sleep8 ,certainly not1 if dreaming be a part of natural sleep1 as ,i hold it to be4 ,for there are some who dream always2 others1 who say they seldom dream2 others1 who disavow dreaming at all4 ,but the simplest view of these three cases is to suppose that in sleep all persons always dream1 but that all do not remember their dreams4 ,this imputed forgetfulness is not surprising1 considering the importance of the attention to memory1 and that in sleep the attention is suspended4 ,ordinary dreams present one remarkable feature2 nothing in them appears wonderful4 ,we meet and converse with friends long dead2 the improbability of the event never crosses our minds4 ,one sees a horse galloping by1 and calls after it as one's friend--,mr4 so-and-so4 ,we fly with agreeable facility1 and explain to an admiring circle how we manage it4 ,every absurdity passes unchallenged4 ,the attention is off duty4 ,it is important to remark that there is nothing in common dreams to interfere with the purpose of sleep1 which is repose4 ,the cares and interests of our waking life never recur to us2 or1 if they do1 are not recognised as our own4 ,the faculties are not really energizing2 their seeming exercise is sport2 they are unharnessed1 and are gambolling and rolling in idle relaxation4 ,that is their refreshment4 ,the attention alone slumbers2 or1 through some slight organic change1 it is unlinked from the other faculties1 and they are put out of gear4 ,this is the basis of sleep4 ,the faculties are all in their places2 but the attention is off duty2 itself asleep1 or indolently keeping watch of time alone4 ,in contrast with this picture of the sleeping and waking states1 of the alternation of which our mental life consists1 ,i have now to hold up to view another conception1 resembling it1 but different1 vague1 imposing1 of gigantic proportions1 the monstrous double of the first--like the mocking spectre of the ,hartz1 which yet is but your own shadow cast by the level sunbeams on the morning mist4 ,to answer to this conception1 there is more than the ideal entity made up of the different forms of trance4 ,for although trance may occur as a single sleep-like fit of moderate duration1 yet it more frequently recurs--often periodically1 dividing the night or day with common sleep or common waking2 or it may be persistent for days and weeks--in which case1 if it generally maintain one character1 it is yet liable to have wakings of its own4 ,then the first division of trance is into trance-sleep and trance-waking4 ,in extreme cases it is easy to tell trance-sleep from common sleep1 trance-waking from common waking2 but there are varieties with less prominent features1 in which it is difficult1 at first1 to say whether the patient is entranced at all4 ,there is1 upon the whole1 more alliance between sleep and trance1 than between waking and trance4 ,or1 in a large class of cases1 the patient falls into trance when asleep4 ,it is a cognate phenomenon to this that the common initiatory stage of trance is a trance-sleep4 ,trance is of more frequent occurrence among the young than among the middle-aged or old people4 ,it occurs more frequently among young women than among young men4 ,in other words1 the liability to trance is in proportion to delicacy of organization1 and higher nervous susceptibility4 ,but what is trance8 ,the question will be best answered by exhibiting its several phases4 ,in the mean time1 it may be laid down that the basis of trance is the supervention of the abnormal relation of the mind and nervous system4 ,in almost all its forms it is easy to show that some of the mental functions are no longer located in their pristine organs4 ,the most ordinary change is the departure of common sensation from the organ of touch4 ,next1 sight leaves the organs of vision4 ,to make up for these desertions1 if the patient wake in trance1 either the same senses reappear elsewhere1 or some unaccountable mode of general perception manifests itself4 ,a strict alliance exists between trance and the whole family of spasms4 ,most of them are exclusively developed in connexion with it2 all are liable to be combined with it2 they are all capable of being excited by the same influences which produce trance2 so they often occur vicariously1 or alternate with trance4 ,one kind is catalepsy2 the body motionless1 statue-like1 but the tone of spasm maintained low1 so that you may arrange the statue in what attitude you will1 and it preserves it4 ,a second is catochus1 like the preceding1 but with a higher power of spasm1 so that the joints are rigidly fixed2 and if you overcome one for a moment with superior strength1 being let go1 it flies back to where it was4 ,a third1 partial spasm of equal rigidity1 arching the body forwards or backwards or laterally1 or fixing one limb or more4 ,the fourth1 clonic spasm1 for instance1 the contortions and convulsive struggles of epilepsy4 ,the fifth1 an impulse to rapid and varied muscular actions1 nearly equalling convulsions in violence1 but combined so as to travesty ordinary voluntary motion2 this is the dance of ,st4 ,veitz1 which took its name from an epidemic outbreak in ,germany in the thirteenth century1 that was supposed to be cured by the interposition of the saint2 then persons of all classes were seized in groups in public with a fury of kicking1 shuffling1 dancing together1 till they dropt4 ,now1 the same agency is manifested either in a violent rush1 and disposition to climb with inconceivable agility and precision2 or alternately to twist the features1 roll the neck1 and jerk and swing the limbs even to the extent of dislocating them4 ,the causes of trance are mostly mental4 ,trance appears to be contagious4 ,viewed medically1 it is seldom directly dangerous4 ,it is a product of over-excitability1 which time blunts4 ,the disposition to trance is seldom manifested beyond a few months1 or1 at most1 two or three years4 ,for epilepsy is not a form of trance2 it is1 however1 a mixed mental and spasmodic seizure1 much allied to trance4 ,those who suffer from its attacks are found to be among the most susceptible of induced trance4 ,but let me again ask1 what then is trance8 ,trance is a peculiar mental seizure1 7totally distinct from insanity1 with which again1 however1 it may be combined17 the patient taken with which appears profoundly absorbed or rapt1 and as if lost more or less completely to surrounding objects or impressions1 or at all events to the ordinary mode of perceiving them2 he is likewise more or less entirely lost to his former recollections4 ,the mental seizures may or may not occur simultaneously or alternately with spasmodic seizures of any and every character4 ,this definition of trance conveys1 ,i am afraid1 no very exact or distinct picture2 but it is the definition of a genus1 and a genus is necessarily an abstraction4 ,however1 it gives the features essential to all the forms of trance4 ,a true general notion of trance can1 indeed1 only be realized by studying in detail each of the forms it includes4 ,these are separated by the broadest colours4 ,in the one extreme an entranced person appears dead1 and no sign of life is recognisable in him2 in the opposite1 he appears to be much as usual1 and perfectly impressible by any thing around him1 so that it demands careful observation to establish that he is not simply awake4 ,then trance presents no fewer than five specific forms1 distinguished each from the other by clear characters1 their essential identity being established by each at times passing into either of the others4 ,the terms by which ,i propose to designate the five primary forms of trance are--,death-trance1 ,trance-coma1 ,initiatory ,trance1 ,half-waking-trance1 ,waking-trance4 ,the five1 however1 admit1 as ,i have before said1 of being arranged in two groups3 the first three forms enumerated constituting varieties of trance-sleep2 the two latter constituting varieties of waking-trance4 ,the next letter will treat of the first group2 the two following will treat of the two varieties of the second4 ,i have observed that the causes of trance are for the most part mental impressions2 but it will be found that certain physical influences may produce the same results4 ,the causes of trance1 whether mental or physical1 deserve again to be regarded in three lights4 ,either they have operated blindly and fortuitously1 or they have been resorted to and used as agents to produce some vague and imperfectly understood result1 or they have been skilfully and intelligently directed to bring out the exact phenomena which have followed4 ,it is with trance supervening in the two former ways that ,i alone propose at present to deal2 that is to say1 with trance as it was imperfectly known as an agent in superstition1 or as a rare and marvellous form of nervous disease4 ,of the third case of trance1 as it may be artificially induced1 ,i shall afterwards and finally speak4 ,,letter ,,vi4 ,,trance-,,sleep--,the phenomena of trance divided into those of trance-sleep1 and those of trance-waking--,trance-sleep presents three forms2 trance-waking two4 ,the three forms of trance-sleep described3 viz41 death-trance1 trance-coma1 simple or initiatory trance4 ,trance1 then1 it appears1 is a peculiar mental seizure liable to supervene in persons of an irritable nervous system1 either after mental excitement or in deranged bodily health4 ,the seizure may last for a few hours1 or a few days1 or for weeks1 or years2 and is liable to recur at regular or irregular intervals4 ,trance again1 it has been observed1 has phases corresponding with the sleeping and waking of our natural state4 ,and as natural sleep presents three varieties--the profound and heavy sleep of extreme exhaustion1 ordinary deep sleep1 and the light slumber of the wakeful and the anxious1 so trance-sleep is three-fold likewise4 ,but as in trance every thing is magnified1 the differences between the three states are greater1 and the phenomena of each more bold and striking4 ,two conditions are common1 however1 to every phase of trance-sleep2 these are1 the occurrence of complete insensibility1 and that of vivid and coherent dreams4 ,the insensibility is so absolute that the most powerful stimulants are insufficient to rouse the patient4 ,an electric shock1 a surgical operation1 the amputation even of a limb1 are seemingly unfelt4 ,the dreams of trance-sleep have a character of their own4 ,it is to be remarked1 that in the dreams of ordinary sleep the ideas are commonly an incoherent jumble2 and that1 if they happen to refer to passing events1 they commonly reverse their features4 ,the attention seems to be slumbering4 ,thus ,sir ,george ,back told me1 that in the privations which he encountered in ,sir ,john ,franklin's first expedition1 when in fact he was starving1 he uniformly dreamed of plentiful repasts4 ,but in the dreams of trance-sleep1 on the contrary1 the impressions of the waking thoughts1 the exciting ideas themselves1 which have caused the supervention of trance1 are realized and carried out in a consecutive train of imaginary action4 ,they are1 accordingly1 upon the patient's awaking1 accurately remembered by him2 and that with such force and distinctness1 that if he be a fanatic or superstitiously inclined1 he very likely falls into the belief that the occurrences he dreamed of actually took place in his presence4 ,a temperate fanatic goes no further1 under such circumstances1 than to assert that he has had a vision4 ,the term is so good a one1 that it appears to me worth retaining1 in a philosophical sense1 for the present exigency4 ,i propose to restrict the term vision to the dreams of persons in trance-sleep4 ,then of the three different forms of trance-sleep1 ,i4 ,death-trance4--,death-trance is the image of death4 ,the heart does not act2 the breathing is suspended2 the body is motionless2 not the slightest outward sign of sensibility or consciousness can be detected4 ,the temperature of the body falls4 ,the entranced person has the appearance of a corpse from which life has recently departed4 ,the joints are commonly relaxed1 and the whole frame pliable2 but it is likely that spasmodic rigidity forms an occasional adjunct of this strange condition4 ,so the only means of knowing whether life be still present is to wait the event4 ,the body is to be kept in a warm room1 for the double purpose of promoting decomposition if it be dead1 and of preserving in it the vital spark if it still linger2 and it should be constantly watched4 ,but should every recently dead body be made the subject of similar care8 it is natural to ask4 ,there are1 of course1 many cases where such care is positively unnecessary--such1 for instance1 as death following great lesions of vital organs2 and in the great majority of cases of seeming death1 the bare possibility of the persistence of life hardly remains4 ,still it is better to err on the safe side4 ,and although in ,england1 from the higher tone of moral feeling1 and from the respect shown to the remains of the dead1 the danger of being interred alive is inconsiderable1 still the danger certainly exists to a very considerable degree of being opened alive by order of a zealous coroner4 ,but for the illustration of this danger1 and examples of the circumstances under which death-trance has been known to occur1 and of its usual features1 ,i refer the reader back to the second ,letter of this series4 ,let me1 however1 add1 that it is not improbable that1 by means of persons susceptible of the influence of ,od1 or of persons in induced waking-trance1 the question could be at once decided whether a seeming corpse were really dead4 ,in ,england1 during the last epidemic visitation of cholera1 several cases of death-trance occurred1 in which the patient1 who was on the point of being buried1 fortunately awoke in time to be saved4 ,death-trance1 it is probable1 is much more frequently produced by spasmodic and nervous illness than by mental causes3 it has followed fever2 it has frequently attended parturition4 ,in this respect it differs from other forms of trance-sleep1 which mostly1 when spontaneous1 supervene upon mental impressions4 ,the only feature of death-trance which it remains for me to exemplify is the occurrence in it of visions4 ,perhaps the following may be taken as an instance3-- ,henry ,engelbrecht1 as we learn in a pamphlet published by him in #afci1 after an ascetic life1 during which he had experienced sensorial illusions1 fell into the deepest form of trance1 which he thus describes3 ,in the year #afbc1 exhausted by intense mental excitement of a religious kind1 and by abstinence from food1 after hearing a sermon which strongly affected him1 he felt as if he could combat no longer2 so he gave in and took to his bed4 ,there he lay a week1 without tasting any thing but the bread and wine of the sacrament4 ,on the eighth day1 he thought he fell into the death-struggle4 ,death seemed to invade him from below upwards4 ,his body became to his feelings rigid2 his hands and feet insensible2 his tongue and lips incapable of motion2 gradually his sight failed him4 ,but he still heard the laments and consultations of those around him4 ,this gradual demise lasted from mid-day till eleven at night1 when he heard the watchmen4 ,then he wholly lost sensibility to outward impressions4 ,but an elaborate vision of immense detail began2 the theme of which was1 that he was first carried down to hell1 and looked into the place of torment2 from whence1 after a time1 quicker than an arrow he was borne to ,paradise4 ,in these abodes of suffering and happiness1 he saw and heard and smelt things unspeakable4 ,these scenes1 though long in apprehension1 were short in time2 for he came enough to himself1 by twelve o'clock1 again to hear the watchmen4 ,it took him another twelve hours to come round entirely4 ,his hearing was first restored2 then his sight2 feeling and power of motion followed2 as soon as he could move his limbs1 he rose4 ,he felt himself stronger than before the trance4 ,,ii4 ,trance-coma4--,the appearance of a person in trance-coma is that of one in profound sleep4 ,the breathing is regular1 but extremely gentle2 the action of the heart the same2 the frame lies completely relaxed and flexible1 and1 when raised1 falls in any posture1 like the body of one just dead1 as its weight determines4 ,the bodily temperature is natural4 ,the condition is distinguishable from common sleep by the total insensibility of the entranced person to all ordinary stimulants3 besides1 the pupil of the eye1 instead of being contracted to a minute aperture1 as it is in common sleep1 is usually dilated2 at all events it is not contracted1 and it is fixed4 ,perhaps the commonest cause of trance-coma is hysteria2 or by hysteria is meant a highly irritable state of the nervous system1 most commonly met with in young unmarried women4 ,there seems to be present1 as its proximate cause1 an excessive nervous vitality2 and that excess1 in its simplest manifestation1 breaks out in fits of sobbing and crying1 alternating often with laughter--a physical excitement of the system which yet fatigues and distresses the patient's mind1 who cannot resist the unaccountable impulses4 ,it is at the close of such a paroxysm of hysteria that trance-coma of a few hours' duration not unfrequently supervenes4 ,it is almost a natural repose after the preceding stage of excitement4 ,hysteria1 besides giving origin to a peculiar class of local ailments1 is further the fruitful mother of most varieties of trance4 ,trance-coma sometimes supervenes on fever1 and the patient lies for hours or days on the seeming verge of death4 ,i have known it ensue after mesmeric practice carried to an imprudent excess4 ,religious mental excitement will bring it on4 ,in the following instance1 which ,i quote from the ,rev4 ,george ,sandby's sensible and useful work on ,mesmerism1 the state of trance so supervening was probably trance-coma3 8,george ,fox1 the celebrated father of ,quakerism1 at one period lay in a trance for fourteen days1 and people came to stare and wonder at him4 ,he had the appearance of a dead man2 but his sleep was full of divine visions of beauty and glory40 ,here is another instance1 wherein the prevailing state must have been trance-coma4 ,i quote it from the letter of an intelligent friend4 ,it will help the reader to realize the general conception ,i wish to raise in his mind3-- 8,i heard10 says my correspondent1 8through the newspapers1 of a case of trance ten miles from this place1 and immediately rode to the village to verify it1 and gain information about it4 ,with some difficulty ,i persuaded the mother to allow me to see the entranced girl4 ,her name is ,ann ,cromer2 she is daughter of a mason at ,faringdon ,gournay1 ten miles from ,bristol4 ,she was lying in a state of general but not total suspension of the symptoms of life4 ,her breathing was perceptible by the heaving of the chest1 and at times she had uttered low groans4 ,her jaws are locked1 and she is incapable of the slightest movement1 so as to create no other wrinkle in her bed-clothes but such as a dead weight would produce4 ,when ,i saw her1 she had not been moved for a week4 ,upon one occasion1 when asked to show1 by the pressure of the hand1 if she felt any pain1 a slight squeeze was perceptible4 ,a very small portion of fluid is administered as food from time to time1 but ,i neglected to discover how4 ,her hands are warm1 and her mother thinks that she is conscious4 ,three days before ,i saw her1 she spoke 7incoherently7 for the first time since her trance commenced4 ,she repeated the ,lord's prayer1 and asked for an aunt2 but she rapidly relapsed1 and her locked-jaw returned4 ,her mother considered this revival a sign of approaching death4 ,the most remarkable feature in the case is the length of time that the girl has remained entranced4 ,she was twelve years old when the fit supervened1 and the locked-jaw followed in sixteen weeks afterwards4 ,she is now twenty-five years of age1 and will thus1 in a month1 if alive1 have been in this condition for thirteen years4 ,in the mean while she has grown from a child to a woman1 though her countenance retains all the appearance of her former age4 ,she is little else than skin and bone1 except her cheeks1 which are puffy4 ,she is as pale as a corpse1 and her eyes are sunk deep in the sockets40 ,,iii4 ,simple or ,initiatory ,trance4--,in the lightest form of trance-sleep1 the patient1 though perfectly insensible to ordinary impressions1 is not necessarily recumbent4 ,if he is sitting when taken1 he continues sitting2 if previously lying1 he will sometimes raise himself up when entranced4 ,his joints are neither relaxed nor rigid3 if you raise his arm1 or bend the elbow1 you experience a little resistance2 and immediately after1 probably1 the limb is restored to its former posture4 ,such is the ordinary degree of muscular tone present2 but either cataleptic immobility1 or catochus1 may accidentally co-exist with initiatory trance4 ,the patient may even remain standing rapt in his trance4 ,i quote the following classic instance from the ,edinburgh ,review3--8,there is a wonderful story told of ,socrates4 ,being in military service in the expedition to ,potidea1 he is reported to have stood for twenty-four hours before the camp1 rooted to the same spot and absorbed in deep thought1 his arms folded and his eyes fixed upon one object1 as if his soul were absent from his body40 ,it is not my intention to dwell more on this form of trance at present4 ,various cases1 exemplifying its varieties1 will be found in the letter on ,religious ,delusions4 ,it is the commonest product of fanatical excitement4 ,i have called this form initiatory trance1 because1 in day-somnambulism1 it always precedes the half-waking which constitutes that state2 and because it is the state into which mesmeric manipulators ordinarily first plunge the patient4 ,out of this initiatory state ,i have seen the patient thrown into trance-coma2 but the ordinary progress of the experiment is to conduct him in the other direction--that is1 towards trance-waking4 ,,letter ,,vii4 ,,half-,,waking ,,trance ,,or ,,somnambulism4--,the same thing with ordinary sleep-walking--,its characteristic feature1 the acting of a dream--,cases1 and disquisition4 ,a curious fate somnambulism has had4 ,while other forms of trance have been either rejected as fictions1 or converted to the use of superstition1 somnambulism with all its wonders1 being at once undeniable and familiar1 has been simply taken for granted4 ,while her sisters have been exalted into mystical phenomena1 and play parts in history1 somnambulism has had no temple raised to her1 has had no fear-worship1 at the highest has been promoted to figure in an opera4 ,of a quiet and homely nature1 she has moved about the house1 not like a visiting demon1 but as a maid of all work4 ,to the public the phenomenon has presented no more interest than a soap-bubble1 or the fall of an apple4 ,somnambulism1 as the term is used in ,england1 exactly comprehends all the phenomena of half-waking trance4#e ,footnote #e3 ,many writers employ the term somnambulism to denote indiscriminately several forms of trance1 or trance in general4 ,i prefer restricting it to the peculiar class of cases commonly known as sleep-walking4 ,the seizure mostly comes on during common sleep4 ,but it may supervene in the daytime2 in which case the patient first falls into the lightest form of trance-sleep4 ,after a little1 still lost to things around him1 he manifests one or more of three impulses3 one1 to speak1 but coherently and to a purpose2 a second1 to dress1 rise1 and leave his room with an evident intention of going somewhither2 a third1 to practise some habitual mechanical employment4 ,in each case he appears to be pursuing the thread of a dream4 ,if he speaks1 it is a connected discourse to some end4 ,if he goes out to walk1 it is to a spot he contemplates visiting2 his general turn is to climb ascents1 hills1 or the roofs of houses3 in the latter case he sometimes examines if the tiles are secure before he steps on them4 ,if he pursues a customary occupation1 whether it be cleaning harness or writing music1 he finishes his work before he leaves it4 ,he is acting a dream1 which is connected and sustained4 ,the attention is keenly awake in this dream1 and favours its accomplishment to the utmost4 ,in the mean time the somnambulist appears to be insensible to ordinary impressions1 and to take no cognisance of what is going on around him--a light maybe held so close to his eyes as to singe his eyebrows without his noticing it--he seems neither to hear nor to taste--the eyelids are generally closed1 otherwise the eyes are fixed and vacant4 ,nevertheless he possesses some means of recognising the objects which are implicated in his dream2 he perceives their place1 and walks among them with perfect precision4 ,let me narrate some instances4 ,the first1 one of day-somnambulism1 exemplifies1 at the same time1 the transitions to full waking1 which manifest themselves occasionally in the talking form of the trance4 ,the case is from the ,acta ,vratisv4 ann4 #agbb4 ,a girl1 seventeen years of age1 was used to fall into a kind of sleep in the afternoon1 in which it was supposed1 from her expression of countenance and her gestures1 that she was engaged in dreams that interested her4 7,she was then in light trance-sleep1 initiatory trance47 ,after some days she began to speak when in this state4 ,then if those present addressed remarks to her1 she replied very sensibly1 but then fell back into her dream discourse1 which turned principally upon religious and moral topics1 and was directed to warn her friends how a female should live--,christianly1 well governed1 and so as to incur no reproach4 ,when she sang1 which often happened1 she heard herself accompanied by an imaginary violin or piano1 and would take up and continue the accompaniment upon an instrument herself4 ,she sewed1 did knitting1 and the like4 ,she imagined1 on one occasion1 that she wrote a letter upon a napkin1 which she folded for the post4 ,upon waking1 she had not the slightest recollection of any thing that had passed4 ,after a few months she recovered4 ,the following case is from the ,hamburgh ,zeitschrift fr die gesammte ,medicin1 #ahdh3-- ,a lad of eleven years of age1 at school at ,tarbes1 was surprised several mornings running at finding himself dressed in bed1 though he had undressed himself overnight4 ,then on the #c;d of ,may he was seen by a neighbour1 soon after three in the morning1 to go out dressed with his cloak and hat on4 ,she called to him1 but he did not answer2 and she concluded that he was going to ,bagnres with his father4 ,in fact that was the road he took2 and he was afterwards seen by several persons near ,bagnres1 trudging after a carriage4 ,it rained hard2 and they were surprised to see so young a lad travelling at so early an hour2 but they thought he probably belonged to the people in the carriage4 ,he reached ,bagnres at half past five1 having done the distance of five post leagues in two hours and a quarter4 ,he went to the hotel of ,m4 ,lafargue1 which he had on a former occasion visited with his father1 and entered the eating-room4 ,the people of the hotel addressed him4 ,he told them that he had come with his father in a post-chaise1 and that they would find his father in the yard busied with the carriage4 ,m4 ,lafargue went out to look for him4 ,in the mean time the people of the house observed that the boy's remarks were incoherent2 so they took off his cloak and cap1 when they found that his eyelids were closed1 and that he was fast asleep4 ,they led him towards the stove1 took off his wet things and his boots without awakening him2 but before they had completely undressed him to put him to bed he awoke4 ,the impressions of his dream did not desert him4 ,he complained of having had a bad night2 and asked for his father4 ,they told him his father had been obliged to set off again immediately4 ,they put him to bed1 and he slept4 ,they sent intelligence to his father1 who came to ,bagnres4 ,the boy believed1 and believes still1 that he came to ,bagnres with his father in a chaise that was driven very slowly4 ,being asked what he had seen on the road1 he described having passed a number of monks and priests in procession4 ,he said there was one good-looking young man who did not leave him1 but was always saying1 8,good day1 ,joseph2 ,adieu1 ,joseph40 ,he said that what had most annoyed him was the burning heat of the sun1 which was so intense that he had been obliged to wrap himself up in his cloak2 that he could not bear its bright light4 ,the following case of somnambulism1 allied with ,st4 ,vietz's dance1 is given by ,lord ,monboddo3-- ,the patient1 about sixteen years of age1 used to be commonly taken in the morning a few hours after rising4 ,the approach of the seizure was announced by a sense of weight in the head and drowsiness1 which quickly terminated in sleep1 7trance-sleep17 in which her eyes were fast shut4 ,she described a feeling beginning in the feet1 creeping like a gradual chill higher and higher1 till it reached the heart1 when consciousness left her4 ,being in this state1 she sprang from her seat about the room1 over tables and chairs1 with astonishing agility4 ,then1 if she succeeded in getting out of the house1 she ran1 at a pace with which her elder brother could hardly keep up1 to a particular spot in the neighbourhood1 taking the directest but the roughest path4 ,if she could not manage otherwise1 she got over the garden wall1 with astonishing rapidity and precision of movement4 ,her eyelids were all the time fast closed4 ,the impulse to visit this spot she was often conscious of during the approach of the paroxysm1 and afterwards she sometimes thought that she had dreamed of going thither4 ,towards the termination of her indisposition1 she dreamed that the water of a neighbouring spring would do her good1 and she drank much of it4 ,one time they tried to cheat her by giving her water from another spring1 but she immediately detected the difference4 ,near the end1 she foretold that she would have three paroxysms more1 and then be well2 and so it proved4 ,the next case is from a communication by ,m4 ,pigatti1 published in the ,july number of the ,journal ,encyclopedique of the year #affb4 ,the subject was a servant of the name of ,negretti1 in the household of the ,marquis ,sale4 ,in the evening ,negretti would seat himself in a chair in the ante-room1 when he commonly fell asleep1 and would sleep quietly for a quarter of an hour4 ,he then righted himself in his chair so as to sit up4 ,then he sat some time without motion1 looking as if he saw something4 ,then he rose and walked about the room4 ,on one occasion he drew out his snuff-box1 and would have taken a pinch1 but there was little in it2 whereupon he walked up to an empty chair1 and1 addressing by name a cavalier1 whom he supposed to be sitting in it1 asked him for a pinch4 ,one of those who were watching the scene1 here held towards him an open box1 from which he took snuff4 ,afterward he fell into the posture of a person who listens2 he seemed to think that he heard an order1 and thereupon hastened with a wax candle in his hand to a spot where a light usually stood4 ,as soon as he imagined that he had lit the candle1 he walked with it in the proper manner1 through the salle1 down the steps1 turning and waiting from time to time as if he were lighting some one down4 ,arrived at the door he placed himself sideways1 in order to let the imaginary persons pass2 and he bowed as he let them out4 ,he then extinguished the light1 returned up stairs1 and sat himself down again in his place1 to play the same farce once or twice over again the same evening4 ,when in this condition he would lay the table-cloth1 place the chairs1 which he sometimes brought from a distant room1 opening and shutting the doors as he went with exactness2 would take decanters from the buffet1 fill them with water at the spring1 put them down on a waiter1 and so on4 ,all the objects that were concerned in these operations he distinguished1 when they were before him1 with the same precision and certainty as if he had been in the full use of his senses4 ,otherwise he seemed to observe nothing2 so1 on one occasion in passing a table1 he threw down a waiter with two decanters upon it1 which fell and broke without attracting his attention4 ,the dominant idea had entire possession of him4 ,he would prepare a salad with correctness1 and sit down and eat it4 ,if they changed it1 the trick escaped his notice4 ,in this manner he would go on eating cabbage1 or even pieces of cake1 without observing the difference4 ,the taste he enjoyed was imaginary1 the sense was shut4 ,on another occasion1 when he asked for wine they gave him water1 which he drank for wine1 and remarked that his stomach felt the better for it4 ,on a fellow-servant touching his legs with a stick1 the idea arose in his mind that it was a dog1 and he scolded to drive it away2 but the servant continuing his game1 ,negretti took a whip to beat the dog4 ,the servant drew back1 when ,negretti began whistling and coaxing to get the dog near him2 so they threw a muff against his legs1 which he belaboured soundly4 ,m4 ,pigatti watched these proceedings with great attention1 and convinced himself by many experiments that ,negretti did not use his ordinary senses4 ,he did not hear the loudest sound when it lay out of the circle of his dream-ideas4 ,if a light was held close to his eyes1 near enough to singe his eyebrows1 he did not appear to be aware of it4 ,he seemed to feel nothing when they inserted a feather into his nostrils4 ,perhaps the most interesting case of somnambulism on record is that of a young ecclesiastic1 the narrative of which1 from the immediate communication of the ,archbishop of ,bordeaux1 is given under the head of ,somnambulism1 in the ,french ,encyclopedia4 ,this young ecclesiastic1 when the archbishop was at the same seminary1 used to rise every night1 and write out either sermons or pieces of music4 ,to study his condition1 the archbishop betook himself several nights consecutively to the chamber of the young man1 where he made the following observations3-- ,the young man used to rise1 take paper1 and begin to write4 ,before writing music1 he would take a stick and rule the lines with it4 ,he wrote the notes1 together with the words corresponding to them1 with perfect correctness2 or when he had written the words too wide1 he altered them4 ,the notes that were to be black he filled in after he had written the whole4 ,after completing a sermon1 he would read it aloud from beginning to end4 ,if any passage displeased him1 he erased it1 and wrote the amended passage correctly over the other4 ,on one occasion he had substituted the word 8adorable0 for 8divin20 but he did not omit to alter the preceding 8ce0 into 8cet10 by adding the letter 8t0 with exact precision to the word first written4 ,to ascertain whether he used his eyes1 the archbishop interposed a sheet of pasteboard between the writing and his face4 ,the somnambulist took not the least notice1 but went on writing as before4 ,the limitation of his perceptions to what he was thinking about was very curious4 ,a bit of aniseed cake1 that he had sought for1 he ate approvingly2 but when1 on another occasion1 a piece of the same cake was put into his mouth1 he spat it out without observation4 ,the following instance of the dependence of his perceptions upon his preconceived ideas is truly wonderful4 ,it is to be observed that he always knew when his pen had ink in it4 ,likewise1 if they adroitly changed his papers when he was writing1 he knew it1 if the sheet substituted was of a different size from the former1 and he appeared embarrassed in that case4 ,but if the fresh sheet of paper1 which was substituted for that written on1 was exactly of the same size with it1 he appeared not to be aware of the change4 ,and he would continue to read off his composition from the blank sheet of paper1 as fluently as when the manuscript lay before him2 nay more1 he would continue his corrections1 and introduce an amended passage1 writing it upon exactly the place in the blank sheet corresponding with that which it would have occupied on the written page4--,such are the feats of somnambulists4 ,at first sight1 the phenomena thus exemplified appear strange and unintelligible enough4 ,but upon a careful consideration of them1 much of the marvellous disappears4 ,the most curious features seem1 in the end1 to be really the least deserving of wonder4 ,the simplest of the phenomena are alone the inexplicable ones4 ,i have1 however1 advanced this group of cases as instances of trance1 in which1 therefore1 ,i assume that an abnormal relation exists between the mind and body1 in which the organs of sensation are partially or entirely deserted by their functions1 and in which new perceptive powers manifest themselves4 ,then an opponent might argue3-- 8,i know nothing about your trance4 ,what ,i see is first a person asleep1 then the same person half or partially awake1 occupied with a dream or vivid conception of an action2 which1 being partially awake1 and therefore having partially resumed his power of attention1 he is capable of realizing4 ,he appears to be insensible2 but this may be deceptive2 for he is still asleep1 and therefore notices not things around him2 and his attention is partly still suspended as in sleep1 partly more useless still for general purposes through intent preoccupation4 8,he goes about the house in his rapt state1 and finds his way perfectly2 but the house is familiar to him2 every thing in it is distinctly before his conception2 he has1 too1 the advantage of perfect confidence2 and besides1 being partially awake1 he partially1 vaguely perhaps1 uses customary sensations in reference to the objects which his dream contemplates his meeting4 8,the ecclesiastic1 indeed1 seems at first to see through a sheet of pasteboard4 ,but the concluding interesting fact in his case shows that he really used his perception only to identify the size and place of the sheet of paper4 ,his writing upon it was the mechanical transcript of an act of mental penmanship4 ,the corrections fell into the right places upon the paper1 owing to the fidelity with which he retained the mental picture4 ,the clearness and vividness of the picture1 again1 is not so very surprising1 when it is considered that the attention was wholly and exclusively concentrated on that one operation40 ,the observations of my imaginary opponent might sufficiently account for the more striking phenomena in the preceding cases1 and are doubtless near the truth as regards the principal parts of the young ecclesiastic's performance4 ,still there remains the commoner instance of the lad going about with precision with his eyes shut4 ,i see no mode of accounting for that on common principles4 ,and besides1 it may be presumed that1 if more decisive experiments as to their sensibility had been made upon all these subjects1 they would have been found really without sight and feeling4 ,for1 in general character1 persons in somnambulism exactly resemble other entranced persons1 who certainly feel nothing2 for they have borne the most painful surgical operations without the smallest indication of suffering4 ,so ,i have little doubt that the insensibility1 which the observers imputed to the somnambulists1 really existed1 although they may have failed to establish the fact by positive evidence4 ,the question as to the development of a new power of perception1 such as ,i conjecture the lad used in his walk from ,tarbes to ,bagnres1 will be found to be resolved1 or1 at any rate1 to be attended with no theoretical difficulties1 when the performances of full-waking in trance1 which ,i propose to describe in the next letter1 shall have been laid before the reader4 ,,letter ,,viii4 ,,trance-,,waking4--,instances of its spontaneous occurrence in the form of catalepsy--,analysis of catalepsy--,its three elements3 double consciousness1 or pure waking-trance2 the spasmodic seizure2 the new mental powers displayed--,cases exemplifying catalepsy--,other cases unattended with spasm1 but of spontaneous occurrence1 in which new mental powers were manifested--,oracles of antiquity--,animal instinct--,intuition4 ,under this head are contained the most marvellous phenomena which ever came as a group of facts in natural philosophy before the world2 and they are reaching that stage towards general reception when their effect is most vivid and striking4 ,five-and-twenty years ago no one in ,england dreamed of believing them1 although the same positive evidence of their genuineness then existed as now4 ,five-and-twenty years hence the same facts will be matters of familiar knowledge4 ,it is just at the present moment 7or am ,i anticipating the march of opinion by half a century87 that their difference1 and distinctness1 and abhorrence even1 from our previous conceptions are most intensely felt2 and that the powers which they promise eventually to place within human control excite our irrepressible wonder4 ,i shall narrate the facts which loom so large in the dawning light1 very simply and briefly1 as they are manifested in catalepsy4 ,an uninformed person being in the room with a cataleptic patient1 would at first suppose her1 putting aside the spasmodic affection of the body1 to be simply awake in the ordinary way4 ,by-and-by her new powers might or might not catch his observation4 ,but a third point would certainly escape his notice4 ,i refer to her mental state of waking trance1 which gives1 as it were1 the local colouring to the whole performance4 ,to elucidate this element1 ,i may avail myself of a sketch ready prepared by nature1 tinted with the local colour alone--the case of simple trance-waking1 unattended by fits or by any marvellous powers1 as far as it has been yet observed1 which is known to physicians under the name of double consciousness4 ,a single fit of the disorder presents the following features3--,the young person 7for the patient is most frequently a girl7 seems to lose herself for a moment or longer1 then she recovers1 and seems to be herself again4 ,the intervening short period1 longer at first1 and by use rendered briefer and briefer1 is a period of common initiatory trance4 ,when1 having lost1 the patient thus finds herself again1 there is nothing in her behaviour which would lead a stranger to suppose her other than naturally awake4 ,but her friends observe that she now does every thing with more spirit and better than before--sings better1 plays better1 has more readiness1 moves even more gracefully1 than in her usual state4 ,she manifests an innocent boldness and disregard of little conventionalisms1 which impart a peculiar charm to her behaviour4 ,her mode of speaking is perhaps something altered2 a supernumerary consonant making its undue appearance1 but upon a regular law1 in certain syllables4 ,but the most striking thing is1 that she has totally forgotten all that has passed during the morning4 ,inquire what her last recollections are1 they leave off with the termination of her last fit of this kind2 the intervening period is for the present lost to her4 ,she was in her natural state of waking when ,i introduced her to your notice2 she lost herself for a few seconds1 found herself again2 but found herself not in her natural train of recollections1 but in those of the last fit4 ,these fits occur sometimes at irregular intervals1 sometimes periodically and daily4 ,in her ordinary waking state1 she has her chain of waking recollections4 ,in her trance-waking state1 she has her chain of trance-waking recollections4 ,the two are kept strictly apart4 ,hence the ill-chosen term1 double-consciousness4 ,so at the occurrence of her first fit1 her mental existence may be said to have bifurcated into two separate routes1 in either of which her being is alternately passed4 ,it is curious to study1 at the commencement of such a case1 with how much knowledge derived from her past life the patient embarks on her trance-existence4 ,the number of previously realized ideas retained by different patients at the first fit is very various4 ,it has happened that the memory of facts and persons has been so defective that the patient has had to learn even to know and to love her parents4 ,to most of her acquaintances she is observed to give new names1 which she uses to them in the trance-state alone4 ,but her habits remain2 her usual propriety of conduct3 the mind is singularly pure in trance4 ,and she very quickly picks up former ideas1 and restores former intimacies1 but on a supposed new footing4 ,to complete this curious history1 if the fits of trance recur frequently1 and through some accidental circumstance are more and more prolonged in duration1 so that most of her waking existence is passed in trance1 it will follow that the trance-development of her intellect and character may get ahead of their development in her natural waking4 ,being told this1 she may become anxious to continue always in her entranced state1 and to drop the other3 and ,i knew a case in which circumstances favoured this final arrangement1 and the patient at last retained her trance-recollections alone1 from long continuance in that state having made it1 as it were1 her natural one4 ,her only fear was--for she had gradually learned her own mental history1 as she expressed it to me--that some day she should of a sudden find herself a child again1 thrown back to the point at which she ceased her first order of recollections4 ,this is1 indeed1 a very extreme and monstrous case4 ,ordinarily1 the recurrence of fits of simple trance-waking does not extend over a longer period than three or four months or half a year1 after which they never reappear2 and her trance acquirements and feelings are lost to the patient's recollection for good4 ,i will cite a case1 as it was communicated to me by ,dr4 ,g4 ,barlow1 exemplifying some of the points of the preceding statement4 8,this young lady has two states of existence4 ,during the time that the fit is on her1 which varies from a few hours to three days1 she is occasionally merry and in spirits2 occasionally she appears in pain1 and rolls about in uneasiness2 but in general she seems so much herself1 that a stranger entering the room would not remark any thing extraordinary3 she amuses herself with reading or working1 sometimes plays on the piano--and better than at other times--knows every body1 and converses rationally1 and makes very accurate observations on what she has seen and read4 ,the fit leaves her suddenly1 and she then forgets every thing that has passed during it1 and imagines that she has been asleep1 and sometimes that she has dreamed of any circumstance that has made a vivid impression upon her4 ,during one of these fits she was reading ,miss ,edgeworth's ,tales1 and had in the morning been reading a part of one of them to her mother1 when she went for a few minutes to the window1 and suddenly exclaimed1 8,mamma1 ,i am quite well1 my headache is gone40 ,returning to the table1 she took up the open volume1 which she had been reading five minutes before1 and said1 8,what book is this80 ,she turned over the leaves1 looked at the frontispiece1 and replaced it on the table4 ,seven or eight hours afterwards1 when the fit returned1 she asked for the book1 went on at the very paragraph where she had left off1 and remembered every circumstance of the narrative4 ,and so it always is2 she reads one set of books during one state1 and another during the other4 ,she seems to be conscious of her state2 for she said one day1 8,mamma1 this is a novel1 but ,i may safely read it2 it will not hurt my morals1 for1 when ,i am well1 ,i shall not remember a word of it400 ,to form a just idea of a case of catalepsy1 the reader has to imagine such a case as ,i have just instanced1 with the physical feature added1 that the patient1 when entranced1 is motionless and fixed as a statue2 the spasmodic state1 however1 not confining itself closely to one type1 but running into catochus1 or into partial rigid spasm1 or into convulsive seizures1 7see ,letter ,v47 capriciously4 ,the psychical phenomena exhibited by the patient when thus entranced1 are the following3-- #a4 ,the organs of sensation are deserted by their natural sensibility4 ,the patient neither feels with the skin1 nor sees with the eyes1 nor hears with the ears1 nor tastes with the mouth4 #b4 ,all these senses1 however1 are not lost4 ,sight and hearing1 if not smell and taste1 reappear in some other part--at the pit of the stomach1 for instance1 or the tips of the fingers4 #c4 ,the patient manifests new perceptive powers4 ,she discerns objects all around her1 and through any obstructions1 partitions1 walls or houses1 and at an indefinite distance4 ,she sees her own inside1 as it were1 illuminated1 and can tell what is wrong in the health of others4 ,she reads the thoughts of others1 whether present or at indefinite distances4 ,the ordinary obstacles of space and matter vanish to her4 ,so likewise that of time2 she foresees future events4 ,such and more are the capabilities of cataleptic patients1 most of whom exhibit them all--but there is some caprice in their manifestation4 ,i first resigned myself to the belief that such statements as the above might be true1 upon being shown by the late ,mr4 ,bulteel letters from an eminent provincial physician in the year #ahch1 describing phenomena of this description in a patient the latter was attending4 ,in the spring of #ahci1 ,mr4 ,bulteel told me that he had himself in the interim often seen the patient1 who had allowed him to test in any way he pleased the reality of the faculties she possessed when entranced4 ,as usual1 in the hours which she passed daily in her natural state1 she had no recollection of her extraordinary trance performances4 ,the following are some of the facts1 which ,mr4 ,bulteel told me he had himself verified4 ,when entranced1 the patient's expression of countenance was slightly altered1 and there was some peculiarity in her mode of speaking4 ,to each of her friends she had given a new name1 which she used only when in the state of trance4 ,she could read with her skin4 ,if she pressed the palm of her hand against the whole surface of a printed or written page deliberately1 as it were1 to take off an impression1 she became acquainted verbally with its contents1 even to the extent of criticising the type or the handwriting4 ,one day1 after a remark made to put her off her guard1 a line of a folded note was pressed against the back of her neck2 she had read it4 ,she called this sense-feeling--contact was necessary for its manifestation4 ,but she had a general perceptive power besides4 ,she used to tell that persons1 whom she knew1 were coming to the house1 when they were yet at some distance4 ,persons sitting in the room with her playing chess1 to whom her back was turned1 if they made intentionally false moves1 she would ask them what they possibly could do that for4 ,the next three cases which ,i shall describe are from a memoir on catalepsy 7#aghg7 by ,dr4 ,petetin1 an eminent civil and military physician at ,lyons4 ,m4 ,petetin attended a young married lady in a sort of fit4 ,she lay seemingly unconscious2 when he raised her arm1 it remained in the air where he placed it4 ,being put to bed1 she commenced singing4 ,to stop her1 the doctor placed her limbs each in a different position4 ,this embarrassed her considerably1 but she went on singing4 ,she seemed perfectly insensible4 ,pinching the skin1 shouting in her ear1 nothing aroused her attention4 ,then it happened that1 in arranging her1 the doctor's foot slipped2 and1 as he recovered himself1 half leaning over her1 he said1 8,how provoking we can't make her leave off singing60 8,ah1 doctor10 she cried1 8don't be angry6 ,i won't sing any more10 and she stopped4 ,but shortly she began again2 and in vain did the doctor implore her1 by the loudest entreaties1 addressed to her ear1 to keep her promise and desist4 ,it then occurred to him to place himself in the same position as when she heard him before4 ,he raised the bed-clothes1 bent his head towards her stomach1 and said1 in a loud voice1 8,do you1 then1 mean to sing for ever80 8,oh1 what pain you have given me60 she exclaimed2 8,i implore you speak lower40 ,at the same time she passed her hand over the pit of her stomach4 8,in what way1 then1 do you hear80 said ,dr4 ,petetin4 8,like any one else10 was the answer4 8,but ,i am speaking to your stomach40 8,is it possible60 she said4 ,he then tried again whether she could hear with her ears1 speaking even through a tube to aggravate his voice--she heard nothing4 ,on his asking her1 at the pit of her stomach1 if she had not heard him1--8,no10 said she1 8,i am indeed unfortunate40 ,a cognate phenomenon to the above is the conversion of the patient's new sense of vision in a direction inwards4 ,he looks into himself1 and sees his own inside as it were illuminated or transfigured3 that is to say1 his visual power is turned inwards1 and he sees his organs possibly by the ,od-light they give out4 ,a few days after the scenes just described1 ,dr4 ,petetin's patient had another attack of catalepsy4 ,she still heard at the pit of her stomach1 but the manner of hearing was modified4 ,in the mean time her countenance expressed astonishment4 ,dr4 ,petetin inquired the cause4 8,it is not difficult10 she answered1 8to explain to you why ,i look astonished4 ,i am singing1 doctor1 to divert my attention from a sight which appals me4 ,i see my inside1 and the strange forms of the organs1 surrounded with a network of light4 ,my countenance must express what ,i feel--astonishment and fear4 ,a physician who should have my complaint for a quarter of an hour would think himself fortunate1 as nature would reveal all her secrets to him4 ,if he was devoted to his profession1 he would not1 as ,i do1 desire to be quickly well40 8,do you see your heart80 asked ,dr4 ,petetin4 8,yes1 there it is2 it beats at twice1 the two sides in agreement2 when the upper part contracts1 the lower part swells1 and immediately after that contracts4 ,the blood rushes out all luminous1 and issues by two great vessels1 which are but a little apart40 ,one morning 7to quote from the latter part of this case7 the access of the fit took place1 according to custom1 at eight o'clock4 ,petetin arrived later than usual2 he announced himself by speaking to the fingers of the patient1 7by which he was heard47 8,you are a very lazy person this morning1 doctor10 said she4 8,it is true1 madam2 but if you knew the reason1 you would not reproach me40 8,ah10 said she1 8,i perceive you have had a headache for the last four hours3 it will not leave you till six in the evening4 ,you are right to take nothing2 no human means can prevent it running its course40 8,can you tell me on which side is the pain80 said ,petetin4 8,on the right side2 it occupies the temple1 the eye1 the teeth3 ,i warn you that it will invade the left eye1 and that you will suffer considerably between three and four o'clock2 at six you will be free from pain40 ,the prediction came out literally true4 8,if you wish me to believe you1 you must tell me what ,i hold in my hand40 8,i see through your hand an antique medal40 ,petetin inquired of his patient at what hour her own fit would cease3 8,at eleven40 8,and the evening accession--when will it come on80 8,at seven o'clock40 8,in that case it will be later than usual40 8,it is true2 the periods of its recurrence are going to change to so and so40 ,during this conversation1 the patient's countenance expressed annoyance4 ,she then said to ,m4 ,petetin1 8,my uncle has just entered2 he is conversing with my husband behind the screen2 his visit will fatigue me2 beg him to go away40 ,the uncle1 leaving1 took with him by mistake her husband's cloak1 which she perceived1 and sent her sister-in-law to reclaim it4 ,in the evening there were assembled1 in the lady's apartment1 a good number of her relations and friends4 ,petetin had1 intentionally1 placed a letter within his waistcoat1 on his heart4 ,he begged permission1 on arriving1 to wear his cloak4 ,scarcely had the lady1 the access having come on1 fallen into trance1 when she said--8,and how long1 doctor1 has it come into fashion to wear letters next the heart80 ,petetin pretended to deny the fact3 she insisted on her correctness2 and1 raising her hands1 designated the size1 and indicated exactly the place of the letter4 ,petetin drew forth the letter1 and held it1 closed1 to the fingers of the patient4 8,if ,i were not a discreet person10 she said1 8,i should tell the contents2 but to show you that ,i know them1 they form exactly two lines and a-half of writing20 which1 on opening the letter1 was shown to be the fact4 ,a friend of the family1 who was present1 took out his purse1 and put it in ,dr4 ,petetin's bosom1 and folded his cloak over his chest4 ,as soon as ,petetin approached his patient1 she told him that he had the purse1 and named its exact contents4 ,she then gave an inventory of the contents of the pockets of all present1 adding some pointed remark when the opportunity offered4 ,she said to her sister-in-law that the most interesting thing in her possession was a letter2--much to her surprise1 for she had received the letter the same evening1 and had mentioned it to no one4 ,the patient1 in the mean time1 lost strength daily1 and could take no food4 ,the means employed failed of giving her relief1 and it never occurred to ,m4 ,petetin to inquire of her how he should treat her4 ,at length1 with some vague idea that she suffered from too great electric tension of the brain1 he tried1 fantastically enough1 the effect of making deep inspirations1 standing close in front of the patient4 ,no effect followed from this absurd proceeding4 ,then he placed one hand on the forehead1 the other on the pit of the stomach of the patient1 and continued his inspirations4 ,the patient now opened her eyes2 her features lost their fixed look2 she rallied rapidly from the fit1 which lasted but a few minutes instead of the usual period of two hours more4 ,in eight days1 under a pursuance of this treatment1 she entirely recovered from her fits1 and with them ceased her extraordinary powers4 ,but1 during these eight days1 her powers manifested a still greater extension2 she foretold what was going to happen to her2 she discussed with astonishing subtlety1 questions of mental philosophy and physiology2 she caught what those around her meant to say before they expressed their wishes1 and either did what they desired1 or begged that they would not ask her to do what was beyond her strength4 ,a young lady1 after much alarm during a revolutionary riot1 fell into catalepsy4 ,in her fits she appeared to hear with the pit of the stomach2 and most of the phenomena described in the preceding case were again manifested4 ,she improved in health1 under the care of ,dr4 ,petetin1 up to the #bith of ,may1 #agij1 the memorable day when the inhabitants of ,lyons expelled the wretches who were making sport of their fortunes1 their liberties1 and their lives4 ,at the report of the first cannon fired1 ,mdlle4 ---- fell into violent convulsions1 followed by catalepsy and tetanus4 ,when in this state she discerned ,petetin distinguishing himself under the fire of a battery2 and she blamed him the following day for having so rashly exposed his life4 ,in the progress of the complaint1 during the attacks of catalepsy1 the occurrences of which she exactly foresaw1 she likewise predicted the bloody day of the #bith of ,september1 the surrender of the city on the #gth of ,october1 the entrance of the republican troops on the #hth1 and the cruel proscriptions issued by the ,committee of ,public ,safety4 ,the third case given by ,petetin is that of ,madame de ,saint ,paul1 who was attacked with catalepsy a few days after her marriage1 in consequence of seeing her father fall down in a fit of apoplexy at table4 ,the general features of her lucidity are the same as in the former cases4 ,i shall1 therefore1 content myself with quoting some observations made by ,dr4 ,prost1 author of ,la ,mdecine claire par l',observation et l',anatomie pathologique1 on the authority of ,dr4 ,foissac1 to whom he communicated them4 ,dr4 ,prost had studied this case assiduously during nine months4 8,her intellectual faculties10 observed ,dr4 ,prost1 8acquired a great activity1 and the richness of her fancy made itself remarked in the picturesque images which she threw into her descriptions4 ,as she was telling her friends of an approaching attack of catalepsy1 suddenly she exclaimed1--#8,i no longer see or hear objects in the same manner2 every thing is transparent round me1 and my observation extends to incalculable distances4' ,she designated1 without an error1 the people who were on the public promenade1 whether near the house1 or still a quarter of an hour's walk distant4 ,she read the thoughts of every one who came near her2 she marked those who were false and vicious2 and repelled the approach of stupid people1 who bored her with their questions and aggravated her malady4 #8,just as much as their pates excite my pity1' said she1 do the heads of men of information and intelligence1 all whose thoughts ,i look into1 fill me with delight4'0 ,the following facts ,i cite corroboratively1 from one of several cases of hysteria communicated by ,dr4 ,delpit1 inspecting physician of the waters at ,barges4--7,bibliotheque ,mdicale1 t4 lvi4 p4 #cjh47 ,mdlle4 ,v----1 aged thirteen1 after seeing the cur administer extreme unction1 fainted away4 ,there followed extreme disgust towards food4 ,during eighteen days she neither ate nor drank2 there was no secretion2 her breathing remained tranquil and regular2 the patient preserved her embonpoint and complexion4 ,during this complete suspension of the functions of digestion1 the organs of sensation would be alternately paralyzed4 ,one day the patient became blind2 on the next1 she could see1 but could not hear2 another day she lost her speech4 ,the mutations were noticed generally in the night1 upon her waking out of sleep4 8,nevertheless10 says ,m4 ,delpit1 8her intellect preserved all its vivacity and force1 and1 during the palsy of the organs of sensation1 nature supplied the loss in another way2 when1 with her eyes1 ,mdlle4 ,caroline could not distinguish light1 she yet read1 and read distinctly1 by carrying her fingers over the letters4 ,i have made her thus read1 in the daytime and in the profoundest darkness1 either printed pages out of the first book that came to hand1 or written passages that ,i had previously prepared40 ,in this1 the alternation of different states of recollections is not described as having been observed4 ,but ,i have little doubt that double consciousness was really present4 ,i believe that feature to be essential to waking trance4 ,i have little doubt1 likewise1 that double consciousness is attended by more or less trance-perception4 ,the co-existence of spasm1 necessary to constitute the case one of catalepsy1 is accidental4 ,sensorial illusions occasionally occur in catalepsy1 but not frequently2 they are commoner in the inferior grades of trance4 ,the daimon of ,socrates was1 no doubt1 a hallucination of this kind4 ,the trance-daimon1 or sensorial illusion mixing itself with trance1 is exemplified in the following case of catalepsy1 which occurred in the person of the adopted daughter of the ,baron de ,strombeck4 ,besides the ordinary features1 on which ,i will not again dwell1 at one time it was her custom to apply to an imaginary being for directions as to the treatment of her own case4 ,subsequently1 she one day observed--8,it is not a phantom2 ,i was in error in thinking it so2 it is a voice which speaks within me1 and which ,i think without me4 ,this apparition comes because my sleep is less perfect4 ,in that case1 ,i seem to see a white cloud rise out of the earth1 from which a voice issues1 the echo of which reverberates within me40 ,this patient had quintuple consciousness1 or four morbid states1 each of which kept its own recollections to itself4 ,a final case ,i will quote1 the authority of which is the ,baron de ,fortis4 ,it was treated by ,dr4 ,despine of ,aix-les-,bains4 ,the patient had had epilepsy1 for the cure of which she went to ,aix4 ,there she had all sorts of fits and day-somnambulism1 during which she waited at table1 with her eyes shut1 perfectly4 ,she likewise saw alternately with her fingers1 the palm of her hand1 and her elbow1 and would write with precision with her right hand1 superintending the process with her left elbow4 ,these details are peculiarly gratifying to myself1 for in the little ,i have seen1 ,i yet have seen a patient walk about with her eyes shut1 and well blinded besides1 holding the knuckles of one hand before her as a seeing lantern4 ,however1 the special interest of this case is1 that the patient was differently affected by different kinds of matter2 glass appeared to burn her1 porcelain was pleasantly warm1 earthenware felt cold4 ,what comment can ,i make on the preceding wondrous details8 ,those to whom they are new must have time to become familiar with them2 in order1 reversing the process by which the eye gets to see in the dark1 to learn to distinguish objects in this flood of excessive light4 ,those who are already acquainted with them will1 ,i think1 agree with me that the principle which ,i have assumed--the possibility of an abnormal relation of the mind and body allowing the former1 either to shift the place of its manifestations in the nervous system1 or partially to energize as free spirit--is the only one which at present offers any solution of the new powers displayed in catalepsy4 ,one regrets that more was not made of the opportunities of observation which ,petetin enjoyed4 ,but there are means1 which ,i shall by-and-by have occasion to specify1 through which1 in the practice of medicine1 and in the proper treatment of various disorders1 like instances may be artificially multiplied and modified so as to meet the exigencies of inductive science4 ,in the mean time1 let me append one or two corollaries to the preceding demonstration4 ,i4 ,it is evident that the performances of catalepsy reduce the oracles of antiquity to natural phenomena4 ,let us examine the tradition of that of ,delphi4 ,diodorus relates1 that goats feeding near an opening in the ground were observed to jump about in a singular manner1 and that a goatherd approaching to examine the spot was taken with a fit and prophesied4 ,then the priests took possession of the spot and built a temple4 ,plutarch tells us that the priestess was an uneducated peasant-girl1 of good character and conduct4 ,placed upon the tripod1 and affected by the exhalation1 she struggled and became convulsed1 and foamed at the mouth2 and in that state she delivered the oracular answer4 ,the convulsions were sometimes so violent that the ,pythia died4 ,plutarch adds1 that the answers were never in error1 and that their established truth filled the temple with offerings from the whole of ,greece1 and from barbarian nations4 ,without supposing it to have been infallible1 we must1 ,i think1 infer that the oracle was too often right to have been wholly a trick4 ,the state of the ,pythia was probably trance with convulsions1 the same with that in which cataleptic patients have foreseen future events4 ,the priestess was of blameless life1 which suits the production of trance1 the fine susceptibility of which is spoilt by irregular living4 ,finally1 from what we know of the effects of the few gases and vapours of which the inhalation has been tried1 it is any thing but improbable that one or other gaseous compound should directly induce trance in predisposed subjects4 ,,ii4 ,the performances of ,zschokke are poor by the side of those of a cataleptic4 ,but then he was not entranced4 ,nevertheless1 an approach to that state manifested itself in his losing himself when inspecting his visiter's brains4 ,so again1 those who had the gift of second-sight are represented to have been subject to fits of abstraction1 in which they stood rapt4 ,the prternatural gifts of ,socrates were probably those of a ,highland seer2 in which character he is reported to have foretold the death of an officer1 if he pursued a route he contemplated4 ,the officer would not change his plans1 and was met by the enemy1 and slain accordingly4 ,in all these cases1 the mind seems to have gone out to seek its knowledge4 ,two of ,mr4 ,williamson's lucid patients1 of whom more afterwards1 told him that their minds went out at the backs of their heads1 in starting on these occasions4 ,they pointed to the lower and back part of the head1 opposite to the medulla oblongata4 ,in prophetic1 and in true retrospective dreams1 one may imagine the phenomena taking the same course2 most likely the dreamers have slipt in their sleep into a brief lucid somnambulism4 ,in the cases of ghosts and of dreams1 coincident with the period of the death of an absent person1 it seems simpler to suppose the visit to have come from the other side4 ,so the ,vampyr-ghost was probably a visit made by the free part of the mind of the patient who lay buried in death-trance4 ,the visit was fatal to the party visited1 because trance is contagious4 ,,iii4 ,the wonderful performances attributed to instinct in animals appear less incomprehensible when viewed in juxtaposition with some of the feats of lucid cataleptics4 ,the term instinct is a very vague one4 ,it is commonly used to denote the intelligence of animals as opposed to human reason4 ,instinct is1 therefore1 a compound phenomenon2 and ,i must begin by resolving it into its elements4 ,they are three in number3-- #a4 ,observation and reasoning of the same kind with that of man1 but limited in their scope4 ,they are exercised only in immediate self-preservation1 and in the direct supply of the creature's bodily wants or simple impulses4 ,a dog will whine to get admission into the house1 will open the latch of a gate2 one rook will sit sentry for the rest2 a plover will fly low1 and short distances1 as if hurt1 to wile away a dog from her nest4 ,but in this vein of intelligence1 animals make no further advance4 ,reflection1 with the higher faculties and sentiments which minister to it1 and with it constitute reason1 is denied them4 ,so they originate no objects of pursuit in the way that man does1 and have no source of self-improvement4 ,but1 in lack of human reflection1 some animals receive the help of-- #b4 ,special conceptions1 which are developed in their minds at fitting seasons4 ,of this nature1 to give an instance1 is the notion of nest-building in birds4 ,it may be observed of these conceptions that they appear to us arbitrary1 though perfectly suited to the being of each species3 thus1 in the example referred to1 we may suppose that the material and shape of the nest might be varied without its object being the less perfectly attained1--at least1 as far as we can see4 ,the conception spontaneously developed in the mind of the bird is then carried out intelligently1 through the same quick and just observation1 in a little way1 which habitually ministers to its appetites1 as ,i explained in a preceding paragraph4 ,the special conception is sometimes characterized by the utmost perfectness of mechanical design4 ,here1 however1 is nothing to surprise us4 ,the supreme wisdom which preordained the development of an idea in an insect's mind1 might as easily as not have given it absolute perfectness4 ,but-- #c4 ,some animals have the power of modifying the special conception1 when circumstances arise which prevent its being carried out in the usual way2 and of realizing it in a great many different ways1 on as many different occasions4 ,and their work1 on each of these occasions1 is as perfect as in their carrying out the ordinary form of the conception4 ,i beg leave to call the principle1 by which they see thus how to shape their course so perfectly under new circumstances--intuition4 ,to instance it1 there is a beetle called the rhynchites betul4 ,its habit is1 towards the end of ,may1 to cut the leaves of the betula alba1 or betula pubescens1 into slips1 which it rolls up into funnel-shaped chambers1 which form singularly convenient cradles for its eggs4 ,this is done after one pattern2 and one may suppose it the mechanical realization of an inborn idea1 as long as the leaf is perfect in shape4 ,but if the leaf is imperfect1 intuition steps upon the scene to aid the insect to cut its coat after its cloth4 ,the sections made are then seen to vary with the varying shape of the leaf4 ,many different sections made by the insect were accurately drawn by a ,german naturalist1 ,dr4 ,debey4 ,he submitted them for examination to ,professor ,heis of ,aix-la-,chapelle4 ,upon carefully studying them1 ,dr4 ,heis found these cuttings of the leaves1 in suitableness to the end proposed1 even to the minutest technical detail1 to be in accordance with calculations compassable only through the higher mathematics1 which1 till modern times1 were unknown to human intelligence4 ,such is the marvellous power of 8intuition10 displayed by certain insects4 ,i know not how to define it but as a power of immediate reference to absolute truth1 evinced by the insect in carrying out its little plans4 ,it is evident that the insect uses the same power in realizing its ordinary special conception1 when the result displays equal perfectness4 ,and the question even crosses one's mind1 ,are the seemingly arbitrary plans really arbitrary8--may they not equally represent a highest type of design8 ,but1 be that as it may1 the intuition of insects1 as we now apprehend it1 no longer stands an isolated phenomenon4 ,the lucid cataleptic cannot less directly communicate with the source of truth1 as she proves by foreseeing future events4 ,,iv4 ,the speculations of ,berkeley and ,boscovich on the non-existence of matter2 and of ,kant and others on the arbitrariness of all our notions1 are interested in1 for they appear to be refuted by1 the intuitions of cataleptics4 ,the cataleptic apprehends or perceives directly the objects around her2 but they are the same as when realized through her senses4 ,she notices no difference2 size1 form1 colour1 distance1 are elements as real to her now as before4 ,in respect again to the future1 she sees it1 but not in the sense of the annihilation of time2 she foresees it2 it is the future present to her2 time she measures1 present and future1 with strange precision1--strange1 yet an approximation1 instead of this certainty1 would have been still more puzzling4 ,so that it appears that our notions of matter1 force1 and the like1 and of the conditions of space and time1 apart from which we can conceive nothing1 are not figments to suit our human and temporary being1 but elements of eternal truth4 ,,letter ,,ix4 ,,religious ,,delusions--,the seizures giving rise to them shown to have been forms of trance brought on by fanatical excitement--,the ,cevennes--,scenes at the tomb of the ,abb ,paris--,revivals in ,america--,the ,ecstatica of ,caldaro--,three forms of imputed demoniacal possession--,witchcraft2 its marvels1 and the solution4 ,there have been occasions1 when much excitement on the subject of religion has prevailed1 and when strange disorders of the nervous system have developed themselves among the people1 which have been interpreted as immediate visitings of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,the interpretation was delusive1 the belief in it superstition4 ,the effects displayed were neither more nor less than phenomena of trance1 the physiological consequences of the prevailing excitement4 ,the reader who has attentively perused the preceding letters will have no difficulty in identifying forms of this affection in the varieties of religious seizures1 which1 without further comment1 ,i proceed to exemplify4 ,every one will have met with allusions to some extraordinary scenes which took place in the ,cevennes1 at the close of the seventeenth century4 ,it was towards the end of the year #afhh that a report was first heard of a gift of prophecy which had shown itself among the persecuted followers of the ,reformation1 who1 in the south of ,france1 had betaken themselves to the mountains4 ,the first instance was said to have occurred in the family of a glass-dealer of the name of ,du ,serre1 well known as the most zealous ,calvinist of the neighbourhood1 which was a solitary spot in ,dauphin1 near ,mount ,peyra4 ,in the enlarging circle of enthusiasts1 ,gabriel ,astier and ,isabella ,vincent made themselves first conspicuous4 ,isabella1 a girl of sixteen years of age1 from ,dauphin1 who was in the service of a peasant1 and tended sheep1 began in her sleep to preach and prophesy1 and the ,reformers came from far and near to hear her4 ,an advocate of the name of ,gerlan describes the following scene1 which he had witnessed4 ,at his request1 she had admitted him and a good many others1 after nightfall1 to a meeting at a chateau in the neighbourhood4 ,she there disposed herself upon a bed1 shut her eyes1 and went to sleep4 ,in her sleep she chanted1 in a low tone1 the ,commandments and a psalm4 ,after a short respite she began to preach1 in a louder voice--not in her own dialect1 but in good ,french1 which hitherto she had not used4 ,the theme was an exhortation to obey ,god rather than man4 ,sometimes she spoke so quickly as to be hardly intelligible4 ,at certain of her pauses she stopped to collect herself4 ,she accompanied her words with gesticulations4 ,gerlan found her pulse quiet1 her arm not rigid1 but relaxed1 as natural4 ,after an interval1 her countenance put on a mocking expression1 and she began anew her exhortation1 which was now mixed with ironical reflections upon the ,church of ,rome4 ,she then suddenly stopped1 continuing asleep4 ,it was in vain they stirred her4 ,when her arms were lifted and let go1 they dropped unconsciously4 ,as several now went away1 whom her silence rendered impatient1 she said in a low tone1 but just as if she was awake1--8,why do you go away8--why do not you wait till ,i am ready80 ,and then she delivered another ironical discourse against the ,catholic ,church4 ,she closed the scene with prayer4 ,when ,bouchier1 the intendant of the district1 heard of the performances of ,isabella ,vincent1 he had her brought before him4 ,she replied to his interrogatories1 that people had often told her that she preached in her sleep1 but that she did not herself believe a word of it4 ,as the slightness of her person made her appear younger than she really was1 the intendant merely sent her to an hospital at ,grenoble2 where1 notwithstanding that she was visited by persons of the ,reformed persuasion1 there was an end of her preaching--she became a ,catholic6 ,gabriel ,astier1 who had been a young labourer1 likewise from ,dauphin1 went1 in the capacity of a preacher and prophet1 into the valley of ,bressac1 in the ,vivarais4 ,he had infected his family3 his father1 mother1 elder brother1 and sweetheart1 followed his example1 and took to prophesying4 ,gabriel1 before he preached1 used to fall into a kind of stupor in which he lay rigid4 ,after delivering his sermon1 he would dismiss his auditors with a kiss1 and the words--8,my brother1 or my sister1 ,i impart to you the ,holy ,ghost40 ,many believed that they had thus received the ,holy ,ghost from ,astier1 being taken with the same seizure4 ,during the period of the discourse1 first one1 then another1 would fall down3 some described themselves afterwards as having felt first a weakness and trembling through the whole frame1 and an impulse to yawn and stretch their arms2 then they fell1 convulsed and foaming at the mouth4 ,others carried the contagion home with them1 and first experienced its effects1 days1 weeks1 or months afterwards4 ,they believed--nor is it wonderful they did so--that they had received the ,holy ,ghost4 ,not less curious were the seizures of the ,convulsionnaires at the grave of the ,abb ,paris1 in the year #agbg4 ,these ,jansenist visionaries used to collect in the churchyard of ,st4 ,mdard1 round the grave of the deposed and deceased deacon2 and before long1 the reputation of the place for working miracles getting about1 they fell in troops into convulsions4 ,they required1 to gratify an internal impulse or feeling1 that the most violent blows should be inflicted upon them at the pit of the stomach4 ,carr de ,montgeron mentions that1 being himself an enthusiast in the matter1 he had inflicted the blows required with an iron instrument1 weighing from twenty to thirty pounds1 with a round head4 ,and as a convulsionary lady complained that he struck too lightly to relieve the feeling of depression at her stomach1 he gave her sixty blows with all his force4 ,it would not do1 and she begged to have the instrument used by a tall1 strong man1 who stood by in the crowd4 ,the spasmodic tension of her muscles must have been enormous2 for she received one hundred blows1 delivered with such force that the wall shook behind her4 ,she thanked the man for his benevolent aid1 and contemptuously censured ,de ,montgeron for his weakness1 or want of faith1 and timidity4 ,it was1 indeed1 time for issuing the mandate1 which1 as wit read it1 ran-- 8,de par le roi--,dfense ,dieu1 ,de faire miracle en ce lieu40 ,in the revivals of modern times1 scenes parallel to the above have been renewed4 8,i have seen10 says ,mr4 ,le ,roi ,sunderland1 himself a preacher1 7,zion's ,watchman1 ,new ,york1 ,oct4 #b1 #ahdb17 8persons often #8lose their strength1' as it is called1 at camp-meetings and other places of great religious excitement2 and not pious people alone1 but those1 also1 who were not professors of religion4 ,in the spring of #ahbd1 while performing pastoral labour in ,dennis1 ,massachusetts1 ,i saw more than twenty affected in this way4 ,two young men1 of the name of ,crowell1 came one day to a prayer-meeting4 ,they were quite indifferent4 ,i conversed with them freely1 but they showed no signs of penitence4 ,from the meeting they went to their shop1 7they were shoemakers17 to finish some work before going to the meeting in the evening4 ,on seating themselves1 they were both struck perfectly stiff4 ,i was immediately sent for1 and found them sitting paralyzed0 7he means taken with the initiatory form of trance-sleep1 and possibly cataleptic7 8on their benches1 with their work in their hands1 unable to get up1 or to move at all4 ,i have seen scores of persons affected the same way4 ,i have seen persons lie in this state forty-eight hours4 ,at such times they are unable to converse1 and are sometimes unconscious of what is passing round them4 ,at the same time1 they say they are in a happy state of mind40 ,the following extract from the same journal portrays another kind of nervous seizure1 as it was manifested at the great revival some forty years ago1 at ,kentucky and ,tennessee4 8,the convulsions were commonly called #8the jerks4' ,a writer1 7,m',neman7 quoted by ,mr4 ,power1 7,essay on the ,influence of the ,imagination over the ,nervous ,system17 gives this account of their course and progress3 8,at first appearance these meetings exhibited nothing to the spectator but a scene of confusion that could scarcely be put into language4 ,they were generally opened with a sermon1 near the close of which there would be an unusual outcry1 some bursting out into loud ejaculations of prayer1 c4 8,the rolling exercise consisted in being cast down in a violent manner1 doubled with the head and feet together1 or stretched in a prostrate manner1 turning swiftly over like a dog4 ,nothing in nature could better represent the jerks1 than for one to goad another alternately on every side with a piece of red-hot iron4 ,the exercise commonly began in the head1 which would fly backwards and forwards1 and from side to side1 with a quick jolt1 which the person would naturally labour to suppress1 but in vain4 ,he must necessarily go on as he was stimulated1 whether with a violent dash on the ground1 and bounce from place to place1 like a foot-ball2 or hopping round1 with head1 limbs1 and trunk twitching and jolting in every direction1 as if they must inevitably fly asunder1'0 c4 ,the following sketch is from ,dow's journal4 ,in the year #ahje he preached at ,knoxville1 ,tennessee1 before the governor1 when some hundred and fifty persons1 among whom were a number of ,quakers1 had the jerks4 8,i have seen10 says the writer1 8all denominations of religion exercised by the jerks--gentleman and lady1 black and white1 young and old1 without exception4 ,i passed a meeting-house1 where ,i observed the undergrowth had been cut down for camp-meetings1 and from fifty to a hundred saplings were left for the people who were jerked to hold by4 ,i observed where they had held on they had kicked up the earth1 as a horse stamping flies40 ,a widely different picture to the above is given in a letter from the ,earl of ,shrewsbury to ,a4 ,m4 ,phillips1 ,esq41 published in #ahda1 and describing the state of two religieuses1 7the ,ecstatica of ,caldaro1 and the ,addolorata of ,capriana17 who were visited by members of their own communion1 in the belief that they lay in a sort of heavenly beatitude4 ,to this idea their stillness1 the devotional attitude of their hands and expression of their countenances1 together with their manifestation of miraculous intuition1 contributed4 ,but ,i am afraid that1 to the eye of a physician1 their condition would have been simple trance4 ,however1 while the absence of reasonable enlightenment in the display is to be regretted1 one agreeably recognises the influence of the humanity of modern times4 ,had these young women lived two centuries ago1 they would have been the subjects of other discipline1 and their history1 had ,i possessed it to quote1 must have been transferred to the darker section which ,i have next to enter on4 ,the belief in possession by devils1 which existed in the middle ages and subsequently1 embraced several dissimilar cases4 ,the first of them which ,i will exemplify would have included individuals in the state of the religieuses described by ,lord ,shrewsbury4 ,behaviour and powers which the people could not understand1 even if exhibited by good and virtuous persons1 and only expressive of or used for right purposes1 were construed into the operation of unholy influences4 ,the times were the reign of terror in religion4 ,i give the following instance3--,marie ,bucaille1 a native of ,normandy1 became1 towards the year #agjj1 the subject of fits1 which ordinarily lasted three or four hours4 ,it appears1 by the depositions of persons of character on her trial1 that ,marie had effected many cures seemingly by her prayers2 that she comprehended and executed directions given to her mentally2 that she read the thoughts of others4 ,when in the fit1 the ,cur of ,golleville placed in the hands of ,marie a folded note4 ,without opening the note1 she replied to the questions which it contained2 and1 without knowing the writer1 she accurately described her person4 ,although ,marie only employed her powers to cure the sick and in the service of religion1 she was not the less condemned to death by the parliament of ,valogne4 ,the parliament of ,rouen mitigated her punishment to whipping and public ignominy4 ,a second class1 who came nearer to the exact idea of being possessed by devils1 were persons who were deranged1 and entertained something of that impression themselves1 and avowed it4 ,i am not speaking of single instances1 but of an extensive popular delusion1 or frenzy rather1 which prevailed in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in parts of ,europe as an epidemic seizure4 ,it was called the wolf-sickness4 ,those affected betook themselves to the forests as wild beasts4 ,one of these1 who was brought before ,de ,lancre1 at ,bordeaux1 in the beginning of the sixteenth century1 was a young man of ,besanon4 ,he avowed himself to be huntsman of the forest lord1 his invisible master4 ,he believed that1 through the power of his master1 he had been transformed into a wolf2 that he hunted in the forest as such2 and that he was often accompanied by a bigger wolf1 whom he suspected to be the master he served2 with more details of the same kind4 ,the persons thus affected were called ,wehrwolves4 ,their common fate was the alternative of recovering from their derangement1 under the influence of exorcism and its accessories1 or of being executed4 ,the third and proper type of possession by devils presented more complicated features4 ,the patient's state was not uniform4 ,often1 or for the most part1 his appearance and behaviour were natural2 then paroxysms would supervene1 in which he appeared fierce1 malignant1 demoniacal1 in which he believed himself to be possessed1 and acted up to the character1 and in which powers1 seemingly superhuman1 such as reading the thoughts of others1 were manifested by the possessed4 ,the explanation of these features is happily given by ,dr4 ,fischer of ,basle1 author of an excellent work on ,somnambulism4 ,he resolves them1 with evident justice1 into recurrent fits of trance--the patient1 when entranced1 being at the same time deranged2 and he exemplifies his hypothesis by the case of a ,german lady who had fits of trance1 in which she fancied herself a ,french emigre3 it would have been as easy for her1 had it been the mode1 to have fancied herself1 and to have played the part of being1 possessed by the fiend4 ,the case is this3 ,gmelin1 in the first volume of his ,contributions to ,anthropology1 narrates that1 in the year #aghi1 a ,german lady1 under his observation1 had daily paroxysms1 in which she believed herself to be1 and acted the part of1 a ,french ,emigrant4 ,she had been in distress of mind through the absence of a person she was attached to1 and he was somehow implicated in the scenes of the ,french ,revolution4 ,after an attack of fever and delirium1 the complaint regulated itself1 and took the form of a daily fit of trance-waking4 ,when the time for the fit approached1 she stopped in her conversation1 and ceased to answer when spoken to2 she then remained a few minutes sitting perfectly still1 her eyes fixed on the carpet before her4 ,then1 in evident uneasiness1 she began to move her head backwards and forwards1 to sigh and to pass her fingers across her eyebrows4 ,this lasted a minute2 then she raised her eyes1 looked once or twice round with timidity and embarrassment1 then began to talk in ,french1 when she would describe all the particulars of her escape from ,france1 and1 assuming the manner of a ,french woman1 talk purer and better accented ,french than she had been known to be capable of talking before1 correct her friends when they spoke incorrectly1 but delicately1 and with a comment on the ,german rudeness of laughing at the bad pronunciation of strangers3 and if led herself to speak or read ,german1 she used a ,french accent1 and spoke it ill2 and the like4 ,we have by this time had intercourse enough with spirits and demons to prepare us for the final subject of witchcraft4 ,the superstition of witchcraft stretches back into remote antiquity1 and has many roots4 ,in ,europe it is partly of ,druidical origin4 ,the ,druidesses were part priestesses1 part shrewd old ladies1 who dealt in magic and medicine4 ,they were called allrune1 all-knowing4 ,there was some touch of classical superstition mingled in the stream which was flowing down to us2 so an edict of a ,council of ,trves1 in the year #acaj1 has this injunction3--8,nulla mulierum se nocturnis horis equitare cum ,dian profiteatur2 hc enim dmoniaca est illusio40 ,but the main source from which we derived this superstition is the ,east1 and traditions and facts incorporated in our religion4 ,there were only wanted the ferment of thought of the fifteenth century1 the energy1 ignorance1 enthusiasm1 and faith of those days1 and the papal denunciation of witchcraft by the ,bull of ,innocent the ,eighth1 in #adei1 to give fury to the delusion4 ,and from this time1 for three centuries1 the flames at which more than a hundred thousand victims perished cast a lurid light over ,europe4 ,but the fires are out--the superstition is extinct--and its history is trite1 and has lost all interest2 so ,i will hasten to the one point in it which deserves1 which indeed requires1 explanation4 ,i do not advert to the late duration of the belief in witchcraft--so late1 that it is but a century this very month of ,january since the last witch1 a lady and a sub-prioress1 whose confession ,i will afterwards give1 was executed in ,germany2 while1 at the same period1 a strong effort was made in ,scotland1 by good and conscientious1 and otherwise sensible persons1 to reanimate the embers of the delusion1 as is shown by the following evidence4 ,in ,february1 #agdc1 the ,associate ,presbytery1 meaning the ,presbytery of the ,secession or ,seceders1 7from the ,scottish ,established ,church17 passed1 and soon thereafter published1 an act for renewing the ,national ,covenant1 in which there is a solemn acknowledgment of sins1 and vow to renounce them2 among which sins is specified 8the repeal of the penal statutes against witchcraft1 contrary to the express laws of ,god1 and for which a holy ,god may be provoked1 in a way of righteous judgment1 to leave those who are already ensnared to be hardened more and more1 and to permit ,satan to tempt and seduce others to the same wicked and dangerous snare40--7,note1 ,edinburgh ,review1 ,january1 #ahdg47 ,nor is the marvel in the absolute belief of the people in witchcraft only two centuries ago3 what could they do but believe1 when the witches and sorcerers themselves1 before their execution1 often avowed their guilt and told how they had laid themselves out to league with the evil spirit2 how they had gone through a regular process of initiation in the black art2 how they had been rebaptized with the support of regular witch-sponsors2 how they had abjured ,christ1 and had entered1 to the best of their belief1 into a compact with the ,devil1 and had commenced accordingly a suitable course of bad works1 poisoning and bewitching men and cattle1 and the like8 ,nor is the wonder in the unfairness with which those accused of witchcraft were treated4 ,so at ,lindheim1 ,horst reports on one occasion six women were implicated in a charge of having disinterred the body of a child to make a witchbroth4 ,as they happened to be innocent of the deed1 they underwent the most cruel tortures before they would confess it4 ,at length they saw their cheapest bargain was to admit the crime1 and be simply burned alive1 and have it over4 ,they did so4 ,but the husband of one of them procured an official examination of the grave1 when the child's body was found in its coffin safe and sound4 ,what said the ,inquisitor8 8,this is indeed a proper piece of devil's work3 no1 no1 ,i am not to be taken in by such a gross and obvious imposture4 ,luckily the women have already confessed the crime1 and burned they must and shall be1 in honour of the ,holy ,trinity1 which has commanded the extirpation of sorcerers and witches40 ,the six women were burned alive accordingly2 for the people had fits of frenzied terror1 which required to be allayed by the sacrifice of a victim or two1 and ,justice became confused3 to be sure1 in those days her head was never very clear1 and threw by mistake the odium of the crime into the accusing scale2 the other flew up significantly of the full extent to which mercy could interfere to temper the law4 ,a curious instance of an epidemic attack of the belief in witchcraft occurred at ,salzburg between the years #afbg and #afbi1 originating in a sickness among the cattle in the neighbourhood4 ,the sickness was unluckily attributed to witchcraft1 and an active inquiry was set on foot to detect the participators in the crime4 ,it was very successful2 for we find in the list of persons burned alive on this occasion1 besides children of #ad1 #ab1 #aa1 #aj1 #i years of age1 fourteen canons1 four gentlemen of the choir1 two young men of rank1 a fat old lady of rank1 the wife of a burgomaster1 a counsellor1 the fattest burgess of ,wrtzburg1 together with his wife1 the handsomest woman in the city1 and a midwife of the name of ,shiekelte1 with whom 7according to a ,n4 ,b4 in the original report7 the whole of the mischief originated4 ,the marvel in witchcraft is the belief entertained by the sorcerers and witches themselves of its reality4 ,that many of these persons1 shrewd and unprincipled1 should have pretended an implicit belief in their art1 till they were brought to justice1 is only what is still occasionally done in modern times4 ,but that they should1 as it is proved by some of their confessions previous to execution1 have been their own dupes1 and have entertained no doubt whatsoever of the reality of their intercourse with the devil1 is surprising enough to deserve explanation4 ,a single crucial instance will bring us upon the trail of the solution4 ,a little maid1 twelve years of age1 used to fall into fits of sleep2 and afterwards she told her parents and the judge how an old woman and her daughter1 riding on a broomstick1 had come and taken her out with them4 ,the daughter sat foremost1 the old woman behind1 the little maid between4 ,they went away through the roof of the house1 over the adjoining houses and the towngate1 to a village some way off4 ,upon arriving there1 the party went down the chimney of a cottage into a room1 where sat a black man and twelve women4 ,they eat and drank4 ,the black man filled their glasses from a can1 and gave each of the women a handful of gold4 ,she herself had received none1 but she had eaten and drunk with them4 ,see how much this example displays4 ,i mean not that the superstition was imbibed in childhood1 though that would do much to establish the belief in it1 but that it had power to disturb the mind sufficiently to produce trance-sleep2 for such were evidently the fits of sleep this child described2 and trance-sleep1 with its special character of visions1 of dreams vivid1 coherent1 continuous1 realizing the ideas which had driven the mind into trance4 ,elder persons1 it is to be presumed1 were occasionally similarly wrought upon4 ,and the witches seemed to have known and availed themselves of the confidence in their art that could be thus promoted2 and by witchbroths1 of which narcotics formed an ingredient1 they would induce in themselves and in their pupils a heavy stupor1 which so far resembles trance that vivid and connected dreams occur in it4 ,here was the seeming reality necessary for absolute belief4 ,it lay in not understood trance-phenomena4 ,other evidence from the same source came in to support the first4 ,some of the witch-pupils in their trances would show a strange knowledge2 some of the victims1 on whose fears or persons they had wrought1 would become possessed--proving their art to be not less real than they believed thus the elementary part to be of their personal communication with the fiend4 ,these remarks explain collaterally why witches and sorceresses were more numerous than sorcerers and magicians4 ,insufficient occupation and other causes helped probably to dispose women to seek a resource in the intense excitement of this crime2 but besides1 trance stood at their service1 which men seldomer experience4 ,i will conclude with two pictures4 ,one1 the confession--interesting1 however1 from its relation to the child's early vision--of vulgar and ordinary witches2 the other1 the substance of the confession of a lady-witch1 which1 in itself1 tells the whole curious tale of this disease4 ,at ,mora1 in ,sweden1 in #affi1 of many who were put to the torture and executed1 seventy-two women agreed in the following avowal3 ,that they were in the habit of meeting at a place called ,blocula4 ,that on their calling out 8,come forth10 the ,devil used to appear to them in a gray coat1 red breeches1 gray stockings1 with a red beard1 and a peaked hat with parti-coloured feathers on his head4 ,he then enforced upon them1 not without blows1 that they must bring him1 at nights1 their own and other people's children1 stolen for the purpose4 ,they travel through the air to ,blocula either on beasts1 or on spits1 or broomsticks4 ,when they have many children with them1 they rig on an additional spar to lengthen the back of the goat or their broomstick1 that the children may have room to sit4 ,at ,blocula they sign their name in blood1 and are baptized4 ,the ,devil is a humorous1 pleasant gentleman2 but his table is coarse enough1 which makes the children often sick on their way home1 the product being the so-called witch-butter found in the fields4 ,when the ,devil is larky1 he solicits the witches to dance round him on their brooms1 which he suddenly pulls from under them1 and uses to beat them with1 till they are black and blue4 ,he laughs at this joke till his sides shake again4 ,sometimes he is in a more gracious mood1 and plays to them lovely airs upon the harp2 and occasionally sons and daughters are born to the ,devil1 which take up their residence at ,blocula4 ,the following is the history of the lady-witch4 ,she was1 at the time of her death1 seventy years of age1 and had been many years sub-prioress of the convent of ,unterzell1 near ,wrtzburg4 ,maria ,renata took the veil at nineteen years of age1 against her inclination1 having previously been initiated in the mysteries of witchcraft1 which she continued to practise for fifty years1 under the cloak of punctual attendance to discipline and pretended piety4 ,she was long in the station of sub-prioress1 and would1 for her capacity1 have been promoted to the rank of prioress1 had she not betrayed a certain discontent with the ecclesiastical life1 a certain contrariety to her superiors1 something half expressed only of inward dissatisfaction4 ,renata had not ventured to let any one about the convent into her confidence1 and she remained free from suspicion1 notwithstanding that1 from time to time1 some of the nuns1 either from the herbs she mixed with their food1 or through sympathy1 had strange seizures1 of which some died4 ,renata became at length extravagant and unguarded in her witch-propensities1 partly from long security1 partly from desire of stronger excitement--made noises in the dormitory1 and uttered shrieks in the garden2 went at nights into the cells of the nuns to pinch and torment them1 to assist her in which she kept a considerable supply of cats4 ,the removal of the keys of the cells counteracted this annoyance2 but a still more efficient means was a determined blow1 on the part of a nun1 struck at the aggressor with the penitential scourge one night1 on the morning following which ,renata was observed to have a black eye and cut face4 ,this event awakened suspicion against ,renata4 ,then one of the nuns1 who was much esteemed1 declared1 believing herself upon her death-bed1 that1 8as she shortly expected to stand before her ,maker1 ,renata was uncanny2 that she had often at nights been visibly tormented by her1 and that she warned her to desist from this course40 ,general alarm arose1 and apprehension of ,renata's arts2 and one of the nuns1 who previously had had fits1 now became possessed1 and1 in the paroxysms1 told the wildest tales against ,renata4 ,it is only wonderful how the sub-prioress contrived to keep her ground so many years against these suspicions and incriminations4 ,she adroitly put aside the insinuations of the nun as imaginary1 or of calumnious intention1 and treated witchcraft and possession of the ,devil as things which enlightened people no longer believed in4 ,as1 however1 five more of the nuns1 either taking the infection from the first1 or influenced by the arts of ,renata1 became possessed of devils1 and unanimously attacked ,renata1 the superiors could no longer avoid making a serious investigation of the charges4 ,renata was confined to a cell alone1 whereupon the six devils screeched in chorus at being deprived of their friend4 ,she had begged to be allowed to take her papers with her2 but this being refused1 and thinking herself detected1 she at once avowed to her confessor and the superiors that she was a witch1 had learned witchcraft out of the convent1 and had bewitched the six nuns4 ,they determined to keep the matter secret1 and to attempt the conversion of ,renata4 ,and1 as the nuns still continued possessed1 they despatched her to a remote convent4 ,here1 under a show of outward piety1 she still went on with her attempts to realize witchcraft1 and the nuns remained possessed4 ,it was decided at length to give ,renata over to the civil power4 ,she was accordingly condemned to be burned alive2 but in mitigation of punishment1 her head was first struck off4 ,four of the possessed nuns gradually recovered1 with clerical assistance--the other two remained deranged4 ,renata was executed on the #bast ,january1 #agdi4 ,renata stated1 in her voluntary confession1 that she had often1 at night1 been carried bodily to witch-sabbaths1 in one of which she was first presented to the ,prince of ,darkness1 when she abjured ,god and the ,virgin at the same time4 ,her name1 with the alteration of ,maria into ,emma1 was written in a black book1 and she herself was stamped on the back as the ,devil's property2 in return for which she received the promise of seventy years of life1 and of all she might wish for4 ,she stated that she had often at night gone into the cellar of the chateau and drank the best wine2 in the shape of a sow had walked on the convent walls2 on the bridge had milked the cows as they passed over2 and several times had mingled with the actors in the theatre in ,london4 ,,letter ,x4 ,,mesmerism4--,use of chloroform--,history of ,mesmer--,the true nature and extent of his discovery--,its applications to medicine and surgery--,various effects produced by mesmeric manipulations--,hysteric seizures--,st4 ,veitz's dance--,nervous paralysis--,catochus--,initiatory trance--,the order in which the higher trance phenomena are afterwards generally drawn out4 ,can no further use be made of the facts and principles we have thus seen verified and established1 than to explain a class of delusions which prevailed in times of ignorance8 ,the powers which we have seen successfully employed to shake the nerves and unsettle the mind in the service of superstition1 can they not be skilfully turned to some purpose beneficial to society8 ,a satisfactory answer to the question may be found in the invention of ether-inhalation1 and in the history of mesmerism4 ,the witch narcotized her pupils in order to produce in them delusive visions2 the surgeon stupefies his patient to annul the pain of an operation4 ,the fanatic preacher excites convulsions and trance in his auditory as evidence of the working of the ,holy ,spirit2 ,mesmer produced the same effects in his patients as a means of curing disease4 ,it occurred to ,mr4 ,jackson1 a chemist of the ,united ,states1 that it might be possible harmlessly to stupefy a patient through the inhalation of the vapour of sulphuric ether1 to such an extent that a surgical operation would be unfelt by him4 ,he communicated the idea to ,mr4 ,morton1 a dentist1 who carried it into execution with the happiest results4 ,the patient became insensible2 a tooth was extracted2 no pain seemed felt at the time1 or was remembered afterwards1 and no ill consequences followed4 ,led by the report of this success1 in the course of the autumn of #ahdf1 ,messrs4 ,bigelow1 ,warren1 and ,heywood1 ventured to employ the same means in surgical operations of a more serious description4 ,the results obtained on these occasions were not less satisfactory than the first had been4 ,since then1 in ,england1 ,france1 and ,germany1 the same interesting experiment has been repeated many hundred times1 and the adoption of this1 or of a parallel method1 has become general in surgery4 ,i withdraw from the present ,letter a sketch which ,i had made from the 8report0 of ,dr4 ,heyfelder1 of the phenomena of etherization2 for a year had barely elapsed1 when the narcotizing agent recommended by ,mr4 ,jackson was superseded by another1 suggested and brought into use by ,professor ,simpson of ,edinburgh4 ,the inhalation of chloroform is found to be more rapid1 uniform1 and certain in its effects1 and compassable in a simpler manner1 than the inhalation of ether4 ,its brief phenomena are wound up by the production of stupor2 they are remotely comparable to those produced by alcohol4 ,alas6 the time is passed when ,i enjoyed the means of looking through1 and forming a practical judgment upon discoveries like the present4 ,not the less1 however1 do ,i hail the advent of this as a boon to the art of surgery4 ,the conception was original1 bold and reasonable2 its execution neat and scientific2 its success wonderful4 ,it established in the year #ahdg1 to the satisfaction of the public and of the medical profession1 that the exclusion of pain from surgical operations is a practicable idea1 and the attempt to realize it a legitimate pursuit4 ,then1 what is ,mesmerism8 ,the object of the inventor of the art was to cure diseases through the influence of a new force brought by him to bear upon the human frame4 ,talent1 for philosophy or business1 is the power of seeing what is yet hidden from others4 ,as the eyes of some animals are fitted to see best in the dark1 so the mental vision of some original minds prefers exercising itself on obscure and occult subjects4 ,whoever indulges this turn will certainly pass for a charlatan2 most likely he will prove one4 ,mesmer had it1 and indulged it1 in a high degree4 ,the body of science which ,i have unfolded in the preceding ,letters was wholly unknown in his time1 7he was born in #agcd27 but he was led by his wayward instinct to grope after it in the dark1 and he seized and brought to upper light fragmentary elements of strange capabilities1 which he strove to interpret and to use4 ,he had early displayed a bias towards the mystical4 ,when a student at ,vienna1 7he was by birth a ,swiss17 his principal study was astrology4 ,he sought in the stars a force which1 extending throughout space1 might influence the beings living upon our planet4 ,in the year #agff he published his lucubrations4 ,in attempting to identify his imaginary force1 ,mesmer first supposed it to be electricity4 ,afterwards1 about the year #aggc1 he adopted the idea that it must be magnetism4 ,so at ,vienna1 from #aggc to #agge1 he employed the practice of stroking diseased parts of the body with magnets4 ,but in #aggf1 happening to be upon a tour1 he fell in with a mystical monk of the name of ,gassner1 who was then occupied in curing the ,prince-,bishop of ,ratisbon of blindness1 by exorcism4 ,then ,mesmer observed that1 without magnets1 ,gassner produced much the same effects on the living body which he had produced with them4 ,the fact was not lost upon him3 he threw aside his magnets1 and operated mostly afterwards with the hand alone4 ,it appears that he was often successful in curing disease1 or that his patients not only experienced sensible effects from his procedures1 but frequently recovered from their complaints4 ,but in #aggg1 his reputation1 which must have always hung upon a very slender thread1 broke down through a failure in the case of the musician ,paradies4 ,so ,mesmer left ,vienna1 and in the following year betook himself to ,paris4 ,there he obtained a success which quickly drew upon him the indignation1 perhaps the jealousy1 of the ,faculty1 who failed not to stigmatize him as a charlatan4 ,they exclaimed against him for practising an art which he would not divulge2 and when he offered to display it1 averred that he threw difficulties in the way of their investigations4 ,perhaps he suspected them of want of fairness in their inquiries2 perhaps he was really unwilling to part with his secret4 ,he refused an offer from the ,government of #bj1jjj francs if he would disclose it2 but he communicated freely to individuals1 under a pledge of secrecy1 all he knew for a hundred louis4 ,his practice itself gave most support to the allegations against him4 ,his patients were received with an air of mystery and studied effect4 ,the apartment1 hung with mirrors1 was dimly lighted4 ,a profound silence was observed1 broken only by strains of music1 which occasionally floated through the rooms4 ,the patients were seated round a sort of vat1 which contained a heterogeneous mixture of chemical ingredients4 ,with this1 and with each other1 they were placed in relation by means of cords1 or jointed rods1 or by holding hands2 and among them slowly and mysteriously moved ,mesmer himself1 affecting one by a touch1 another by a look1 a third by passes with his hand1 a fourth by pointing with a rod4 ,what followed is easily conceivable from the scenes referred to in my last letter as witnessed at religious revivals4 ,one person became hysterical1 then another2 one was seized with catalepsy2 others with convulsions2 some with palpitations of the heart1 perspirations1 and other bodily disturbances4 ,these effects1 however various and different1 went all by the name of 8salutary crisis40 ,the method was supposed to provoke in the sick person exactly the kind of action propitious to his recovery4 ,and it may easily be imagined that many a patient found himself the better after a course of this rude empiricism1 and that the effect made by these events passing daily in ,paris must have been very considerable4 ,to the ignorant the scene was full of wonderment4 ,to ourselves1 regarding it from our present vantage-ground1 it presents no marvellous characters4 ,the phenomena were the same which we have been recently contemplating--a group of disorders of the nervous system4 ,the causes which were present are not less familiar to us1 nor their capability of producing such effects2 they were--mental excitement1 here consisting in raised expectation and fear2 the contagiousness of hysteria1 convulsions1 and trance1 its force increased by the numbers and close-packing of the patients2 the ,od force1 developed by the chemical action in the charged caldron1 developed by each of the excited bodies around1 its action first favoured by the absolute stillness observed1 then by the increasing sensibility of the patients as their nerves became more and more shaken4 ,it is remarkable that ,jussieu--the most competent judge in the commission of inquiry into the truth of mesmerism1 set on foot at ,paris in #aghd1 of which ,franklin was a member1 and which condemned mesmerism as an imposture--was so struck with what he saw1 that he strongly recommended the subject to the attention and study of physicians4 ,his objections were against the theory alone4 ,he laid it down in the separate report which he gave in1 that no physical cause had been proved to be in operation beyond animal heat6 curiously overlooking the fact that common heat would not produce the effects observed2 and1 therefore1 that the latter must have been owing to that something which animal heat1 or the radiating warmth of a living body1 contains1 in addition to common heat4 ,that something we now know1 but only since #ahde1 to be the ,od force4 ,the ,od force is so new1 so young in science1 that ,mesmer's reputation has not yet been credited with the honour thence reflected upon it4 ,i will not say that ,mesmer's astral force was a distinct anticipation of ,von ,reichenbach's discovery1 which was noways suggested by the former1 and was from first to last an effort of inductive observation4 ,but the guess of the mystic had certainly a most happy parallelism to the truth1 which a different sort of mind tracked in the same field2 for the ,od force reaches us even from the stars1 and the sun and the fixed stars are ,od-negative2 and the planets and the moon ,od-positive4 ,it is unnecessary to follow ,mesmer through his minor performances4 ,the relief sometimes obtained by stroking diseased parts with the hand--that is1 the effects obtained through the local action of ,od--had been before proclaimed by ,dr4 ,greatrex1 whose pretensions had had no less an advocate than the ,honourable ,robert ,boyle4 ,the extraordinary tales of ,mesmer's personal power over individuals are probably part exaggeration1 part real results of his confidence and skill in the use of the means he wielded4 ,mesmer died in #ahae4 ,among his pupils1 when at the zenith of his fame1 was the ,marquis de ,puysgur4 ,returning from serving at the siege of ,gibraltar1 this young officer found mesmerism the mode at ,paris1 and appears to have become1 for no other reason1 one of the initiated4 ,at the end of a course of instruction1 he professed himself to be no wiser than when it began2 and he ridiculed the credulity of his brothers1 who were stanch adherents of the new doctrine4 ,however1 he did not forget his lesson2 and on going the same spring to his estate at ,besancy1 near ,soissons1 he took occasion to mesmerize the daughter of his agent and another young person1 for the toothache1 and they declared themselves1 in a few minutes1 cured4 ,this questionable success was sufficient to lead ,m4 de ,puysgur1 a few days after1 to try his hand on a young peasant of the name of ,victor1 who was suffering with a severe fluxion on his chest4 ,what was ,m4 de ,puysgur's surprise1 when1 at the end of a few minutes1 ,victor went off into a kind of tranquil sleep1 without crisis or convulsion1 and in that sleep began to gesticulate and talk1 and enter into his private affairs4 ,then he became sad2 and ,m4 de ,puysgur tried mentally to inspire him with cheerful thoughts2 he hummed a lively tune to himself inaudibly1 and immediately ,victor began to sing the air4 ,victor remained asleep for an hour1 and awoke composed1 with his symptoms mitigated4 ,the case of ,victor revolutionized the art of mesmerism4 ,the large part of his life1 in which ,m4 de ,puysgur had nothing to do but to follow this vein of inquiry1 was occupied in practising and advocating a gentle manipulation to produce sleep1 in preference to the more exciting means which led to the violent crises in ,mesmer's art4 ,i have no plea for telling how ,m4 de ,puysgur served in the first ,french revolutionary armies2 how he quitted the service in disgust2 how narrowly he escaped the guillotine2 how he lived in retirement afterwards1 benevolently endeavouring to do good to his sick neighbours by means of mesmerism2 how he survived the ,restoration2 and how1 finally1 he died of a cold caught by serving in the encampment at ,rheims1 at the coronation of ,charles ,x4 ,for he had fulfilled his mission the day that he put ,victor to sleep4 ,he had made a vast stride in advance of his teacher4 ,not but that ,mesmer must frequently have induced the same condition2 but he had passed it by unheeded as one only of numerous equivalent forms of salutary crises2 or that ,m4 de ,puysgur himself estimated1 or had the means of estimating1 the real nature and value of the step which he had made4 ,to himself he appeared to be winning a larger domain for mesmerism1 when in fact he had emerged into an independent field1 into which mesmerism happened to have a gate4 ,the state which he had induced in ,victor was common trance1 the initiatory sleep1 followed by half-waking4 ,he had obtained this result by using the ,od force with quietness and gentleness1 leaving out the exciting mental agencies to which the mixture of violent seizures in ,mesmer's practice is attributable4 ,the gentler method has been adopted and practised by the successors of ,m4 de ,puysgur1 by ,deleuze1 ,bertrand1 ,georget1 ,rostan1 ,foissac1 ,elliotson1 and others4 ,to ,dr4 ,elliotson1 the most successful probably1 certainly the most scientific employer of the practice of mesmerism1 the credit is due of having introduced its use into ,england3 the credit1--for it required no little moral courage to encounter the storm of opposition with which his honest zeal in the advocacy of an unpopular practical truth was met4 ,it is but fair to add1 that though his theory has been superseded1 and his method changed1 to ,mesmer belongs the merit of having first tracked out and realized this path of discovery4 ,the golden medal is his4 ,the modern practice of mesmerism contemplates two objects3 one1 the application of the ,od force to produce local effects2 the other1 its employment to induce trance4 ,in the present slight sketch ,i shall say nothing on the first subject2 but let me describe how trance is induced4 ,it is to be observed1 that attention to certain conditions favours very much the success of the experiment4 ,the room should not be too light2 very few persons should be present2 the patient and the operator should be quiet1 tranquil1 and composed2 the patient should be fasting4 ,the operator has then only to sit down before the patient1 who is likewise sitting with his hands resting on his knees1 and gently closed1 with the thumbs upwards4 ,the operator then lays his hands half-open upon the patient's1 pressing the thumbs against those of the patient1 as it were taking thumbs3 this is a more convenient attitude than taking hands in the ordinary way4 ,the operator and patient have then only to sit still4 ,an ,od-current is established2 and if the patient is susceptible1 he will soon become drowsy1 and perhaps be entranced at the first sitting4 ,instead of this1 the two hands of the operator may be held horizontally with the fingers pointed to the patient's forehead1 and either maintained in this position1 or brought downwards in frequent passes opposite to the patient's face1 shoulders1 arms2 the points of the fingers being held as near the patient as possible without touching4 ,it is easy1 theoretically1 to explain the beneficial results which follow from the daily induction of trance for an hour or so1 in various forms of disorder of the nervous system1--in epilepsy1--in tic-doloreux1--in nervous palsy1 and the like4 ,as long as the state of trance is maintained1 so long is the nervous system in a state of repose4 ,it is more or less completely put out of gear4 ,it experiences the same relief which a sprained joint feels when you dispose it in a relaxed position on a pillow4 ,a chance is thus given to the strained nerves of recovering their tone of health2 and it is wonderful how many cases of nervous disorder get well at once through these simple means4 ,as it is certain that there is no disease in which the nervous system is not primarily or secondarily implicated1 it is impossible to foresee what will prove the limit to the beneficial application of mesmerism in medical practice4 ,in operative surgery the art is not less available4 ,in trance the patient is insensible1 and a limb may be removed without the operation exciting disturbance of any kind4 ,and what is equally important1 in all the after-treatment1 at every dressing1 the process of mesmerizing may be resorted to again1 with no possible disadvantage1 but being rather soothing and useful to the patient1 independently of the extinction of the dread and suffering of pain4 ,the first instance in which an operation was performed on a patient in this state was the celebrated case of ,madame ,plantin4 ,it occurred twenty years ago4 ,the lady was sixty-four years of age1 and laboured under scirrhus of the breast4 ,she was prepared for the operation by ,m4 ,chaplain1 who on several successive days threw her into trance by the ordinary mesmeric manipulations4 ,she was then like an ordinary sleep-walker1 and would converse with indifference about the contemplated operation1 the idea of which1 when she was in her natural state1 filled her with terror4 ,the operation of removing the diseased breast was performed at ,paris on the #abth of ,april1 #ahbi1 by ,m4 ,jules ,cloquet2 it lasted from ten to twelve minutes4 ,during the whole of this time the patient1 in her trance1 conversed calmly with ,m4 ,cloquet1 and exhibited not the slightest sign of suffering4 ,her expression of countenance did not change2 nor was the voice1 the breathing1 or the pulse at all affected4 ,after the wound was dressed1 the patient was awakened from the trance1 when on learning that the operation was over1 and seeing her children round her1 ,madame ,plantin was affected with considerable emotion1 whereupon ,m4 ,chaplain1 to compose her1 put her back into the state of trance4 ,i copy the above particulars from ,dr4 ,foissac's ,rapports et ,discussions de l',acadmie ,royale de ,mdecine sur le ,magnetism ,animal4--,paris1 #ahcc4 ,my friend1 ,dr4 ,warren1 of ,boston1 informed me that1 being at ,paris1 he had asked ,m4 ,jules ,cloquet if the story were true4 ,m4 ,cloquet answered1 8,perfectly40 8,then why10 said ,dr4 ,warren1 8have you not repeated the practice80 ,m4 ,cloquet replied 8that he had not dared2 that the prejudice against mesmerism was so strong at ,paris that he probably would have lost his reputation and his income by so doing40 ,it has been mentioned that in ordinary trance the mind appears to gain new powers4 ,for a long time we had to trust to the chance turning up of cases of spontaneous trance1 in the experience of physicians of observation1 for any light we could hope would be thrown on those extraordinary phenomena2 now we possess around us1 on every side1 adequate opportunities for completely elucidating these events1 if we please to employ them4 ,the philosopher1 when his speculations suggest a new question to be put1 can summon the attendance of a trance as easily as the ,jupiter of the ,iliad summoned a dream2 or1 looking out for two or three cases to which the induction of trance may be beneficial1 the physician may have in his house subjects for perpetual reference and daily experiment4 ,a gentleman1 with whom ,i1 have long been well acquainted1 for many years chairman of the ,quarter ,sessions in a northern county1 of which during a late year he was high sheriff1 has1 like ,m4 de ,puysgur1 amused some of his leisure hours1 and benevolently done not a little good1 by taking the trouble of mesmerizing invalids1 whom he has thus restored to health4 ,in constant correspondence with1 and occasionally having the pleasure of seeing this gentleman1 ,i have learned from him the common course in which the new powers of the mind1 which belong to trance1 are developed under its artificial induction4 ,the sketch which ,i propose to give of this subject will be taken from his descriptions1 which1 ,i should observe1 tally in all essential points with what ,i meet with in ,french and ,german authors4 ,the little that ,i have myself seen of the matter1 ,i will mention preliminarily4 ,in some1 instead of trance1 a common fit of hysterics is produced2 in others1 slight headache1 and a sense of weight on the eyebrows1 and difficulty of raising the eyelids1 supervene4 ,in one young woman1 whom ,i saw mesmerised for the first time by ,dupotet1 nothing resulted but a sense of pricking and tingling wherever he pointed with his hand2 and her arm1 on one or two occasions1 jumped in the most natural and conclusive manner when1 her eyes being covered1 he directed his outstretched finger to it4 ,a gentleman1 about thirty years of age1 when the mesmeriser held his outstretched hands pointed to his head1 experienced no disposition to sleep2 but in two or three minutes he began to shake his head and twist his features about2 at last1 his head was jerked from side to side1 and forwards and backwards1 with a violence that looked alarming4 ,but he said1 when it was over1 that the motion had not been unpleasant2 that he had moved in a sort voluntarily--although he could not refrain from it4 ,if the hands of the operator were pointed to his arm instead of his head1 the same violent jerks ensued1 and gradually extended to the whole body4 ,i asked him to try to resist the influence1 by holding his arm out in strong muscular tension4 ,this had the effect of retarding the attack of the jerks1 but1 when it came on1 it was more violent than usual4 ,i have lately seen another similar case4 ,the seizure is evidently a form of ,st4 ,veitz's dance brought out by the operation of the ,od force4 ,in neither of these two cases could trance be induced4 ,a servant of mine1 aged about twenty-five1 was mesmerized by ,lafontaine1 for a full half-hour1 and1 no effect appearing to be produced1 ,i told him he might rise from the chair and leave us4 ,on getting up he looked uneasy1 and said his arms were numb4 ,they were perfectly paralyzed from the elbows downwards1 and numb to the shoulders4 ,this was the more satisfactory1 that neither the man himself1 nor ,lafontaine1 nor the four or five spectators1 expected this result4 ,the operator triumphantly drew a pin and stuck it into the man's hand1 which bled1 but had no feeling4 ,then heedlessly1 to show it gave pain1 ,lafontaine stuck the pin into the man's thigh1 whose flashing eye1 and half suppressed growl1 denoted that the aggression would certainly have been returned by another1 had the arm which should have done it not been really powerless4 ,however1 ,m4 ,lafontaine made peace with the man1 by restoring him the use and feeling of his arms4 ,this was done by dusting them1 as it were1 by quick transverse motions of his extended hands4 ,in five minutes nothing remained of the palsy but a slight stiffness1 which gradually wore off in the course of the evening4 ,occasionally partial tonic spasm 7improperly termed catalepsy1 for it is of the nature of catochus1 and the rigidity attending it is absolute7 supervenes as the only consequence of mesmerising a limb4 ,this result1 which is not less alarming to the patient who has not been led to expect it than the preceding1 may be got rid of in the same way4 ,if you point with your fingers to the rigid muscles1 or again1 as it were1 dust the limb with brisk transverse passes1 or breathe upon it1 the stiffness is thawed and disappears4 ,trance is seldom induced by mesmeric passes without more or less partial muscular rigidity of this kind supervening2 it always yields to the means which have been mentioned4 ,genuine and ordinary trance ,i have seen produced by the same manipulations in from three minutes to half-an-hour4 ,the patient's eyelids have dropped1 he has appeared on the point of sleeping1 but he has not sunk back upon his chair2 then he has continued to sit upright--seemingly perfectly insensible to the loudest sounds1 or the acutest and most startling impressions on the sense of touch4 ,the pulse is commonly a little increased in frequency2 the breathing is sometimes heavier than usual4 ,occasionally1 as in ,victor's case1 the patient quickly and spontaneously emerges from the state of trance-sleep into trance half-waking--a rapidity of development which ,i am persuaded occurs much more frequently among the ,french than with the ,english or ,germans4 ,english patients1 especially1 for the most part require a long course of education1 many sittings1 to have the same powers drawn out4 ,and these are by far the most interesting cases4 ,i will describe1 from ,mr4 ,williamson's account1 the course he has usually followed in developing his patient's powers1 and the order in which they have manifested themselves4 ,on the first day1 perhaps1 nothing can be elicited4 ,but after some minutes1 the stupor seems1 as it were1 less embarrassing to the patient1 who appears less heavily slumbrous1 and breathes lighter again3 or it may be the reverse1 particularly if the patient is epileptic2 after a little1 the breathing may be deeper1 the state one of less composure4 ,pointing with the hands to the pit of the stomach1 laying the hands upon the shoulders1 and slowly moving them along the arms down to the hands1 the whole with the utmost quietude and composure on the part of the operator1 will dispel this oppression4 ,and the interest of the first sitting is confined to the process of awakening the patient1 which is one of the most marvellous phenomena of the whole4 ,the operator lays his two thumbs on the space between the eyebrows1 and as it were vigorously smooths or irons the eyebrows1 rubbing them from within outwards seven or eight times4 ,upon this1 the patient probably raises his head and his eyebrows1 and draws a deeper breath1 as if he would yawn2 he is half awake1 and blowing upon the eyelids1 or the repetition of the previous operation1 or dusting the forehead by smart transverse wavings of the hand1 or blowing upon it1 causes the patient's countenance to become animated2 the eyelids open1 he looks about him1 recognises you1 and begins to speak4 ,if any feeling of heaviness remains1 any weight or pain of the forehead1 another repetition of the same manipulations sets all right4 ,and yet this patient would not have been awakened if a gun had been fired at his ear1 or his arm had been cut off4 ,at the next sitting1 or the next to that1 the living statue begins to wake in its tranced life4 ,the operator holds one hand over the opposite hand of his patient1 and makes as if he would draw the patient's hand upwards1 raising his own with short successive jerks1 yet not too abrupt4 ,then the patient's hand begins to follow his2 and1 often having ascended some inches1 stops in the air catochally4 ,this fixed state is always relieved by transverse brushings with the hand1 or by breathing in addition1 on the rigid limb4 ,and it is most curious to see the whole bodily frame1 over which spasmodic rigidness may have crept1 thus thawed joint by joint4 ,then the first effect shown commonly is this motion1 the patient's hand following the operator's4 ,at the same sitting he begins to hear1 and there is intelligence in his countenance when the operator pronounces his name3 perhaps his lips move1 and he begins to answer pertinently1 as in ordinary sleep-walking4 ,but he hears the operator alone best1 and him even in a whisper4 ,your voice1 if you shout1 he does not hear3 unless you take the operator's hand1 and then he hears you too4 ,in general1 however1 now the proximity of others seems in some way to be sensible to him2 and he appears uneasy when they crowd close upon him4 ,it seems that the force of the relation between the operator and his patient naturally goes on increasing1 as the powers of the sleep-walker are developed2 but that this is not necessarily the case1 and depends upon its being encouraged by much commerce between them1 and the exclusion of others from joining in this trance-communion4 ,and now the patient--beginning to wake in trance1 hearing and answering the questions of the operator1 moving each limb1 or rising even1 as the operator's hand is raised to draw him into obedient following--enters into a new relation with his mesmeriser4 ,he adopts sympathetically every voluntary movement of the other4 ,when the latter rises from his chair1 he rises2 when he sits down1 he sits down3 if he bows1 he bows2 if he makes a grimace1 he makes the same4 ,yet his eyes are closed4 ,he certainly does not see4 ,his mind has interpenetrated to a small extent the nervous system of the operator2 and is in relation with his voluntary nerves and the anterior half of his cranio-spinal chord4 7,these are the organs by which the impulse to voluntary motion is conveyed and originated47 ,further into the other's being he has not yet got4 ,so he does not what the other thinks of1 or wishes him to do3 but only what the other either does1 or goes through the mental part of doing4 ,so ,victor sang the air which ,m4 de ,puysgur only mentally hummed4 ,the next strange phenomenon marks that the mind of the entranced patient has interpenetrated the nervous system of the other a step farther1 and is in relation besides with the posterior half of the cranio-spinal chord and its nerves4 ,for now the entranced person1 who has no feeling1 or taste1 or smell of his own1 feels1 tastes1 and smells every thing that is made to tell on the senses of the operator4 ,if mustard or sugar be put in his own mouth1 he seems not to know that they are there2 if mustard is placed on the tongue of the operator1 the entranced person expresses great disgust1 and tries as if to spit it out4 ,the same with bodily pain4 ,if you pluck a hair from the operator's head1 the other complains of the pain you give him4 ,to state in the closest way what has happened3 ,the phenomena of sympathetic motion and sympathetic sensation thus displayed are exactly such as might be expected to follow1 if the mind or conscious principle of the entranced person were brought into relation with the cranio-spinal chord of the operator and its nerves1 and with no farther portion of his nervous system4 ,later1 it will be seen1 the interpenetration can extend farther4 ,but1 before this happens1 a new phenomenon manifests itself1 not of a sympathetic character4 ,the operator contrives to wake the entranced person to the knowledge that he possesses new faculties4 ,he develops in him new organs of sensation1 or rather helps to hasten his recognition of their possession4 ,it is to be observed1 however1 that several who can be entranced cannot be brought as far as the present step4 ,others make a tantalizing half-advance towards reaching it thus1 and then stop4 ,they are asked1--8,do you see any thing80 ,after some days1 at length they answer 8,yes40 8,what80 8,a light40 8,where is the light80 ,then they intimate its place to be either before them1 or to one side1 or above or behind them4 ,and they describe the colour of the light1 which is commonly yellowish4 ,and each day it is pointed to in the same direction1 and is seen equally whether the room be light or dark4 ,their eyes in the mean time are closed4 ,and here with many the phenomenon stops4 ,others in this light now begin to discern objects held in the direction in which they see it4 ,the range of this new visual organ1 and the conditions under which it acts1 are different in different instances4 ,sometimes the object must be close1 sometimes it is best seen at a short distance2 but seen it is4 ,the following experiment1 which is decisive1 was made at my suggestion3 ,a gentleman standing behind the entranced person held behind him a pack of cards1 from which he drew several in succession1 and1 without seeing them himself1 presented them to the new visual organ of the patient4 ,in each case she named the card right4 ,the degree of light suited to this new mode of vision is variable3 sometimes bright daylight is best2 sometimes they prefer a moderate light4 ,some distinguish figure and colour when the room is so dark that the bystanders can distinguish neither4 ,these observations1 which are1 however1 only in conformity with similar evidence from many other quarters1 ,i give on the authority of ,mr4 ,j4 ,w4 ,williamson of ,wickham1 the gentleman to whom ,i have before alluded4 ,the following accidental features1 attending the manifestation of transposed senses1 were further observed by ,mr4 ,williamson3-- ,in most of the persons in whom ,mr4 ,williamson has brought out transposed vision1 the faculty has been located in a small surface of the scalp behind the left ear2 and to see objects well1 the patient has held them at the distance of five or six inches from and opposite to this spot4 ,one young woman1 who had been temporarily set aside under affliction for the loss of a relative1 on the experiments being resumed1 saw from all parts of the head1 but confusedly1 a broken and incomplete picture4 ,on a subsequent day1 she saw with the right side of her head4 ,afterwards the visual sense returned to its first place4 ,in one young person1 the new sentient organ was on the top of her head1 and to see objects she required them to be brought into contact with it4 ,once that she had a rheumatic cold and tenderness of the scalp1 she said1 when entranced1 putting her hand to the crown of her head1 that the cold had made her eyes sore4 ,one person saw objects best when placed behind her at the distance of seven or eight feet4 ,the governess in a neighbouring family was mesmerised for tic-doloureux4 ,in seven sittings she was cured4 ,at the second sitting1 in her trance she exhibited displaced sensation4 ,she could read with her finger-ends2 her way was to hold the book open against her chest1 the back of the book towards her1 with one hand2 then she passed a finger of the other hand slowly over each word1 to read it4 ,the part-physical character of these phenomena is shown by an observation of ,dr4 ,petetin's on the first of his cataleptic patients4 ,at the time that the patient heard with the pit of her stomach1 he found that if with the fingers of one1 say the left hand1 he touched the pit of her stomach1 and whispered to the fingers of his right hand1 the patient heard him2 but if the left hand was removed to the smallest possible distance from the patient1 the contact being interrupted1 she no longer heard him4 ,then he made a chain of seven persons1 holding each other's hands4 ,the nearest to the patient was her sister1 who touched the pit of her stomach2 at the other end was ,dr4 ,petetin1 who whispered to his fingers1 and was heard4 ,a cane was then introduced as part of the circuit--the patient still heard2 but if a stick of sealing-wax1 or a glass rod1 was substituted for it1 or if one of the party wore silk gloves1 the patient could no longer hear ,dr4 ,petetin4 ,without close observation1 what is physical in the phenomena which have thus engaged us is liable to be overlooked2 and the bystander may class them as examples of lucidity1 which they are not4 ,organic co-operation may be traced in them all4 ,thus1 among ,mr4 ,williamson's earlier experiments1 he tried1 sitting before the entranced person1 7who had shown no lucidity17 by imaging strongly to himself a white horse1 to force the image into her mind4 ,when1 being awakened1 she had left the room1 on her way she said to her fellow-servant1 8,what was it master said to me about a white horse8 ,i am sure he said something40 ,mr4 ,williamson1 on learning the maid's remark1 supposed his mental operation had been successful4 ,but the same experiment1 when repeated1 mostly failed4 ,at last he found out why3 ,it only succeeded when1 in his mental urgency1 he half made in his own throat the motions of the sounds that expressed the mental image4 ,then1 and then only1 the patient caught it4 ,for her mind could not read his thoughts1 but as yet had penetrated the inferior part of the nervous system only1 the cranio-spinal cord2 and1 being there1 had adopted sympathetically the voluntary impulses that were there performed2 so she half-moved the muscles of her own vocal organs to express the idea1 and from that--its imperfect expression--received it into her thoughts4 ,no doubt the phenomenon of ,victor's singing the words to ,m4 de ,puysgur's mentally hummed air was the same with the above1 and not one of mesmeric lucidity1 the subject which we are now approaching4 ,but ,i pause2--and go no further4 ,for my object in these ,letters1 generally1 has been to establish principles4 ,and the phenomena of lucidity developed in artificial trance have been only the same as1 and have not been as yet made more of than1 the lucidity of catalepsy4 ,no further principle has yet emerged from their study2 and my special object in this ,letter has been to persuade the opponents of mesmerism to do it justice2 and ,i think ,i am most likely to attain my end by not attempting to prove too much4 ,so that nothing remains for me to do1 but to observe the form in which these ,letters were originally shaped1 in recollection of the pleasant hours which the residence of your family at ,boppard1 during the winter of #ahdd-e1 caused me1 and to say finally1 ,,dear ,,archy1 ,farewell4 ,,letter ,,xi4 ,,supplemental4--,abnormal neuro-psychical relation---,cautions necessary in receiving trance communications--,trance-visiting--,mesme rising at a distance1 and by the will--,mesmeric diagnosis and treatment of disease--,prevision--,ultra-vital vision4 ,the principal alterations made in 8the ,letters0 for the present edition comprise an expansion of my account of 8trances of spontaneous occurrence10 and the introduction of greater precision into our elementary conceptions of the relations of the mind and nervous system4 ,letters ,v41 ,,vi41 ,,vii41 and ,,viii41 establish that the most startling phenomena in popular superstitions1 and the most wonderful performances by mesmerised persons1 are but repetitions of events1 the occurrence of which1 as symptoms of1 or as constituting1 certain rare forms of nervous attacks1 have been independently authenticated and put on record by physicians of credit4 ,letters ,,ii4 and ,,ix4 exemplify the mode in which superstition has dressed up trance-phenomena2 as letters ,,iii4 and ,,iv4 display the contributions she has levied on sensorial illusions1 the ,od force1 and normal exoneural psychical phenomena4 ,letter ,x4 describes the method of inducing trances artificially1 whereby they may be reproduced at pleasure1 either in the interests of philosophical inquiry1 or for important practical purposes4 ,i dedicate the present ,letter to the reconsideration of the most knotty points already handled1 and to the investigation of a few other questions1 the solution of which is not less difficult4 ,i4 ,hypothesis of an ,abnormal ,psychico-neural ,relation as the essence of trance4--,i admit that it is a very clumsy expedient to assume that the mind can1 as it were1 get loose in the living body1 and1 while remaining there in a partially new alliance1 exercise some of its faculties in unaccustomed organs--which organs lose1 for the same time1 their normal participation in consciousness2 and farther1 that the mind can1 partially indeed1 but so completely disengage itself from the living body1 that its powers of apprehension may range with what we are accustomed to consider the properties of free spirit1 unlimitedly as to space and time4 ,i adopt the hypothesis upon compulsion--that is to say1 because ,i see no other way of accounting for the most remarkable trance-phenomena4 ,in due time1 it is to be expected that a simple inductive expression of the facts will take the place of my hypothetical explanation4 ,but not the less may the latter1 crude as it is1 prove of temporary use1 by bringing together in a connected view many new and diversified phenomena1 and planting the subject in a position favourable for scientific scrutiny4 ,let me arrange1 in their most persuasive order1 the facts which seem to justify the hypothesis above enunciated4 #a4 ,in many cases of waking-trance1 the patient does not see with his eyes1 hear with his ears1 nor taste with his tongue1 and the sense of touch appears to have deserted the skin4 ,at the same time1 the patient sees1 hears1 and tastes things applied to the pit of the stomach1 or sees and hears with the back of the head1 or tips of the fingers4 #b4 ,in the first imperfect trance-waking from initiatory trance1 the patient's apprehension of sensuous impressions often appears to have entirely deserted his own body1 and to be in relation with the sentient apparatus in his mesmeriser's frame--for1 if you pull his hair1 or put mustard in his mouth1 he does not feel either2 but he is actually alive to the sensations which these impressions excite1 if the hair of the mesmeriser is pulled1 or mustard placed on the mesmeriser's tongue4 ,the sensations excited thus in the mesmeriser1 and these alone1 the entranced person realizes as his own sensations4 #c4 ,about the same time1 the entranced person displays no will of his own1 but his voluntary muscles execute the gestures which his mesmeriser is making1 even when standing behind his back4 ,his will takes its guidance from sympathy with the exerted will of the other4 #d4 ,presently1 if his trance-faculties continue to be developed1 the entranced person enters into communication with the entire mind of his mesmeriser4 ,his apprehension seems to penetrate the brain of the latter1 and is capable of reading all his thoughts4 #e4 ,in the last three steps1 the apprehension of the entranced person appears to have left his own being to the extent described1 and to have entered into relation with the mind or nervous system of another person4 ,now1 if the patient become still more lucid1 his apprehension seems to range abroad through space1 and to identify material objects1 and penetrate the minds of other human beings1 at indefinite distances4 #f4 ,at length the entranced person displays the power of revealing future events--a power which1 as far as it relates to things separate from his own bodily organization1 or that of others1 seems to me to show that his apprehension is in relation with higher spiritual natures1 or with the ,fountain of ,truth itself4 ,in the following pages ,i have given examples of those of the powers here attributed to very lucid clairvoyantes1 which ,i have not previously instanced4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,ii4 ,transposition of the ,senses4--,no doubt these phenomena1 irregular as they seem at present1 follow a definite law1 which has to be determined by future observations and experiments4 ,mr4 ,williamson found some of his clairvoyantes see with the back of the head1 some with the side of the head--some best at seven inches1 others at as many feet off4 ,in the case which ,mr4 ,bulteel reported to me1 the lady read with her hand and fingers2 even when he pressed a note against the back of her neck1 she read it instantly3 but in this case actual contact was necessary4 ,in the case of a governess1 artificially brought to the state of waking-trance by ,mr4 ,williamson1 the same faculty was observed4 ,with one hand she used to hold open the book to be read1 resting it against her chest1 the pages being turned away from her3 the contents of these she read fluently1 touching the words with the forefinger of the other hand4 ,in one very interesting case1 which ,i witnessed here in the autumn of #ahdi1 the young lady1 clairvoyant through mesmerism1 sitting in the corner of a sofa1 something reclined1 would have seen1 had she peeped through a linear aperture between her seemingly closed eyelids1 the lower half of things only4 ,as it was1 the reverse was the fact2 and when we asked her what she saw1 she told us the cornice and upper part of the room4 ,then1 without saying any thing1 ,i raised my cap upon my stick to within her declared range of trance-vision2 she exclaimed1 8,ah1 ,guilleaume ,tell60 ,her mother1 whom she heard speak1 but had not hitherto seen1 in this trance1 she recognised at once1 when she stood up upon a chair4 ,to read1 in this trance1 appeared a very painful effort to her2 but she was certainly able to make out some words when she pressed a written paper against her forehead4 ,it was evident that she could now visually discern things by some new faculty of apprehension localized there4 ,to enable her to see things at a few feet distance1 they had equally to be placed opposite to her forehead4 ,in another case1 in which the girl1 when entranced1 certainly saw with the knuckles of one hand1 on smearing the back of that hand with ink1 she could no longer see with it4 ,the above instances show how various are the features attending the transposition of one sense alone in waking trance2 and they suggest a multitude of experiments4 ,i remember1 in #ahch1 on communicating facts of this kind to a clear-headed practical man1 he raised this objection to their credibility3 8,if we can see without eyes1 why has the ,creator given us eyes60 ,the objection is specious enough1 but it admits of an obvious answer4 ,the state of trance is one of disease1 transient and temporary2 it is during its persistence only that this new power of apprehension is manifested4 ,in our natural state1 the mind is intended to operate and try experiences in subordination to matter1 and through definite material organs1 in which it is1 in truth1 imprisoned4 ,such is the law of our normal mortal being4 ,accordingly1 when the trance is over1 and the mind has returned to its normal relations with the body1 all its trance-apprehensions are forgotten by it--they form no part of our moral life4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,iii4 ,sources of ,error in the communications of entranced persons4--,i put aside cases of deliberate deception2 but when persons are really entranced1 they are liable1 in various ways1 to be deceived themselves1 and to deceive others1 as to the value of their revealments4 ,there is often1 in waking trance1 a great vivacity and disposition to be communicative from the first4 ,those1 again1 who have frequently been thrown into trance1 and have become familiar with their new condition1 are generally anxious to shine in it1 and make a display4 ,this disposition is further heightened when the entranced person expects to be rewarded for his performance4 #a4 ,when indulging their lively fancy1 they are liable to have a sort of waking dream1 during which they describe imaginary scenes with the precision and minuteness of reality1 and represent them as actual1 passing at some place they name4 #b4 ,they are liable to recall past impressions1 and to deliver bits of old conclusions for intuitions4 #c4 ,they are liable to adopt the thoughts of others who may be near them1 especially those of their mesmeriser1 and to deliver them as trance-revelations4 #d4 ,in one instance which came to my knowledge1 a young lady1 previously unacquainted with mathematics or astronomy1 would1 when entranced1 and sitting with her mother and sister1 write fluently off pages of an astronomical treatise1 calculations1 diagrams1 and all4 ,she averred and believed in her entranced state--for1 when awake1 it was all a mystery to her--that this performance was the product of an intuition4 ,her manuscript was afterwards found to run word for word with an article in the ,encyclopdia ,britannica4 ,that book1 however1 stood in the library1 in a remote part of the house4 ,she certainly had it not with her when she used to scribble its contents2 nor did she remember ever having looked into it1 awake or asleep4 ,she said--when entranced1 and this had been found out--that she believed she read the book as it stood in the library4 #e4 ,with some imperfectly lucid patients1 the exercise of their new faculties appears to be fatiguing1 and to call for great exertion4 ,so they are occasionally with difficulty led to answer at all2 and then when inconsiderately pressed1 they are tempted to say any thing1 just to be left tranquil4 ,it is difficult to say how the preceding sources of error are to be effectually guarded against4 ,possibly1 by rigid training from the first1 the patient might be brought to distinguish false promptings from genuine intuitions4 ,but even the latter vary in lucidity and certainty4 ,this admission was made to a friend of mine by ,m4 ,alexis1 the celebrated ,parisian clairvoyante4 ,the reader cannot fail to be interested by the following account1 given by ,m4 ,alexis when entranced1 of his own powers1 and their mode of operation3-- 8,pour voir des objets loigns10 observed ,m4 ,alexis1 8mon me ne se dgage pas de mon corps4 ,c'est ma volont qui drige mon me1 mon esprit1 sans sortir de cette chambre o je suis4 ,si mon me sortit1 je serais mort2 c'est ma volont4 ,ma volont suffit pour anantir pour quelque tems la matire4 ,ainsi quand cette volont est en jeu1 la boite matrielle de mon individu n'est plus4 ,les murs1 l'espace1 et mme le tems1 n'existent plus4 ,mais ce n'est qu'un rve plus ou moins lucide4 ,quelquefois ma vue est meilleure qu' d'autres4 ,ma vue n'est jamais la mme4 ,une fois je suis dispos pour voir une sorte de choses1 et une autre fois une autre sorte4 ,en regardant votre chambre dans un quartier loign d'ici1 je ne vois pas les rues ni les maisons intermdiaires4 ,la seule chose 7alors7 qui est dans la pense est la personne qui me parle4 ,je vois les objets d'une manire plus incomplte que par mes sens1 moins sure4 ,il serait impossible de fair comprendre comment je vois4 ,plus il y a de l'attraction--plus j'prouve de l'attraction aux objets que je veux voir1 ou qui me touche--plus il y a de lumire2 plus j'prouve de rpulsion1 plus il y a de tnbres40 99 99 99 99 99 ,,iv4 ,of the ,different ,qualities of ,od in different individuals4--,von ,reichenbach observed the ,od light to have different colours under different circumstances1 and that1 while ,od-negative produces the sensation of a draft of cool air1 ,od positive produces a sense as of a draft of warm air4 ,an easy way to verify the last phenomenon is to beg some one to hold the forefinger of the right hand pointed to your left palm1 at a quarter of an inch distance1 and afterwards his left forefinger to your right palm1 when the two sensations1 and their difference1 are appreciable by the majority of persons4 ,persons entranced by mesmeric procedures are often keenly alive to the above impressions4 ,they see light emanating from the finger-tips of the mesmeriser1 and feel an agreeable afflatus from his manipulations4 ,others who approach them affect them in different ways--some not disagreeably1 while others excite a chilly1 shivering feeling1 and the patient begs they will keep off from him4 ,a gentleman narrated to me the following case4 ,he had been for months in anxious attendance upon a brother who was in very delicate health1 and exquisitely sensitive to mesmerism4 ,my friend used himself to mesmerise his brother2 but he found it necessary1 in order to soothe and not excite him by the passes1 to cover the patient with a folded blanket1 so as to dull the agency of his ,od-emanation4 ,there was but another person1 of several who had been tried1 whose hand the brother could bear at all2 this was a maid-servant1 who herself was highly susceptible1 and became entranced4 ,she said that she perceived1 when entranced1 the suitableness of her influence1 and that of the brother1 to the patient2 and she used the singular expression1 that they were nearly of a colour4 ,she said that the patient's ,od-emanation was of a pink colour1 and that the brother's was a brick colour--a flatter1 deeper1 red2 and she endeavoured to find some one else with the same coloured ,od to suit her master4 ,in some experiments made at ,dr4 ,leighton's house in ,gower ,street1 ,i remember it was distinctly proved that each of the experimenters produced different effects on the same person4 ,the patient was one of the ,okeys1 of mesmeric celebrity4 ,the party consisted of ,dr4 ,elliotson1 ,mr4 ,wheatstone1 ,dr4 ,grant1 ,mr4 ,kiernan1 and some others4 ,mr4 ,wheatstone tabulated the results4 ,each of us mesmerised a sovereign2 and it was found that on each trial the trance-coma1 which contact with the thus mesmerised gold induced1 had a characteristic duration for each of us4 ,is it possible that each living person has his distinguishable measure of ,od1 either in intensity or quality8 99 99 99 99 99 ,v4 ,the ,od-,force is the usual channel of establishing mesmeric relation4--,i take it for granted that the ,od-force--the existence and some of the properties of which have been inductively ascertained by ,von ,reichenbach--is the same agent with that which ,mesmer assumed to be the instrument in his operations4 ,then1 in support of the above proposition1 ,i cite two instances4 ,mr4 ,williamson1 at my request1 mesmerised and entranced the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,fox at ,weilbach1 in the autumn of #ahdg4 ,it was the second sitting1 and ,mr4 ,fox was beginning to pass from the initiatory stage of trance into trance half-waking4 ,mr4 ,williamson addressed him1 and he returned an answer4 ,other parties in the room1 including myself1 then addressed ,mr4 ,fox1 and he seemed not to hear one of us4 ,then ,mr4 ,williamson gave me his hand1 and ,i again spoke to ,mr4 ,fox2 he then heard me1 and spoke in answer4 ,when1 having left go ,mr4 ,williamson's hand1 ,i spoke again to ,mr4 ,fox1 he heard me not4 ,on my renewing contact with ,mr4 ,williamson1 ,mr4 ,fox heard me again4 ,he heard me as long as ,i was brought into relation with him1 and that relation was clearly due to the establishment of an ,od-current between myself and ,mr4 ,williamson1 with whom ,mr4 ,fox was already in trance-relation4 ,every one who has seen something of ,mesmerism will recognise in the above story one of its commonest phenomena4 ,but a more conclusive instance still has been already mentioned in ,letter ,x4 ,m4 ,petetin made a chain of seven persons holding hands1 the seventh holding the hand of a cataleptic patient1 who at that time heard by her fingers only4 ,when ,dr4 ,petetin spoke to the fingers of the first1 i4 e4 the most remote1 person of the chain1 the cataleptic person heard him as well as if he had spoken to her own fingers4 ,even when a stick was made to form part of the circuit1 the cataleptic still heard ,dr4 ,petetin's whisper1 uttered at the other end of the chain4 ,not so1 however1 if one of the parties forming the chain wore silk gloves4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,vi4 ,trance-,identification of persons at a distance by means of material objects4--,a very lucid clairvoyante1 her eyes being bandaged1 recognises not the less1 without preparation or effort1 every acquaintance present in the room2 describes their dress1 the contents of their purses1 or of letters in their pockets1 and reads their innermost thoughts4 ,an ordinary clairvoyante usually requires the contact of the party's hand with whom it is proposed to bring her into trance-relation2 then only does she first know any thing about her new patient4 ,it cannot be doubted that1 in the latter case1 it is the establishment of an ,od-current between the two that enables the mind of the clairvoyante to penetrate the interior being of the visiter1--just as1 in the humblest effects of common mesmerism1 a relation is sensibly established between the party entranced and her mesmeriser1 through the ,od-current which he had previously directed upon her1 in order to produce the trance4 ,so far1 all is theoretically clear enough4 ,but how is the establishment of the same relation between the clairvoyante and a party wholly unknown to her1 and residing many miles off1 to be explained1 when the only visible medium of physical connexion employed has been a lock of hair or a letter written by the distant party1 and placed in the hands of the clairvoyante8 ,let me begin by giving the explanation1 and afterwards exemplify the phenomenon out of my own experience4 ,i conceive that the lock of hair1 or the letter on which his hand has rested1 is charged with the ,od-fluid emanating from the distant person2 and that the clairvoyante measures exactly the force and quality of this dose of ,od1 and1 as it were1 individualizes it4 ,then1 using this clue1 distance being annihilated to the entranced mind1 it seeks for1 or is drawn towards1 whatever there is more of this same individual ,od quality any where in space4 ,when that is found1 the party sought is identified1 and brought into relation with the clairvoyante1 who proceeds forthwith to tell all about him4 ,now for an exemplification of this marvellous phenomenon4 ,being at ,boppard1 a letter of mine addressed to a friend in ,paris was by him put into the hands of ,m4 ,alexis1 who was asked to describe me4 ,m4 ,alexis told at once my age and stature1 my disposition1 and my illness2 how that ,i am entirely crippled1 and at that time of the day1 half-past eleven1 ,a4,m4 was in bed4 ,all this1 to be sure1 ,m4 ,alexis might have read in my friend's mind1 without going farther4 ,but1 he added1 this gentleman lives on the sea-coast4 ,my friend denied the assertion2 but ,m4 ,alexis continued very positive that he was right4 ,now1 most oddly1 the ,rhine1 on the banks of which ,i resided then1 is at ,boppard the boundary of ,prussia2 and ,i never cross it1 or visit ,nassau1 but ,i am in the habit of sitting on the bank1 listening to the breaking of the surge1 which the passing steamers create1 and which exactly resembles the murmur of the sea4 ,this very mistake of ,m4 ,alexis helped to convince me that this performance of his was genuine4 ,however1 being stoutly contradicted by my friend1 ,m4 ,alexis reconsidered the matter1 and said1 8,no2 he does not live on the sea-coast1 but on the ,rhine1 twenty leagues from ,frankfort40 ,this answer was exact4 ,but there was another point which ,m4 ,alexis hit with curious felicity4 ,i should observe that this friend was one of a few months' date1 who had no means of comparing what ,i am with what ,i was formerly4 ,but it had happened that ,i had written1 not to him1 but to a friend resident in ,england1 about the same time1 that1 ill as ,i was1 my mind was singularly clear and active1 and that ,i regarded the fact as a sign my end was at hand2 that the mental brightness probably resembled the flaring-up of a rushlight before it goes out4 ,well1 ,m4 ,alexis1 adverting to my condition1 observed that ,i was extremely weak1 and had suffered much from irritation of the nerves2--facts true enough1 but which certainly would not have led him to infer the existence of that clearness of mind which ,i had myself remarked4 ,nevertheless1 strangely added ,m4 ,alexis1 8,le morale n'en est pas atteint2 au contraire1 l'esprit est plus dgag et plus vif qu'auparavant40 ,i can therefore entertain no doubt1 that at four hundred miles' distance1 merely by handling a recent letter from me1 ,m4 ,alexis had identified me as its writer1 through the ,od-fluid the letter conveyed2 and had truly penetrated my physical and mental being so completely1 that most that was important in my story lay distinctly revealed before him4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,vii4 ,mental ,travelling by clairvoyantes4--,let me begin with an instance4 ,the following extract from the ,zoist contains a very interesting narrative by ,lord ,ducie1 which is exactly to the point3 8,in the highest departments or phenomena of mesmerism1 he for a long time was a disbeliever1 and could not bring himself to believe in the power of reading with the eyes bandaged1 or of mental travelling2 at length1 however1 he was convinced of the truth of those powers1 and that1 too1 in so curious and unexpected a way1 that there could have been no possibility of deception4 ,it happened that he had to call upon a surgeon on business1 and when he was there the surgeon said to him1 #8,you have never seen my little clairvoyante4' ,he replied that he never had1 and should like to see her very much4 ,he was invited to call the next day1 but upon his replying that he should be obliged to leave town that evening1 he said1 #8,well1 you can come in at once4 ,i am obliged to go out2 but ,i will ring the bell for her1 and put her to sleep1 and you can ask her any questions you please4' ,he 7,lord ,ducie7 accordingly went in4 ,he had never been in the house in his life before1 and the girl could have known nothing of him4 ,the bell was rung2 the clairvoyante appeared3 the surgeon1 without a word passing1 put her to sleep1 and then he put on his hat and left the room4 ,he 7,lord ,ducie7 had before seen something of mesmerism1 and he sat by her1 took her hand1 and asked her if she felt able to travel4 ,she replied1 #8,yes2' and he asked her if she had ever been in ,gloucestershire1 to which she answered that she had not1 but should very much like to go there1 as she had not been in the country for six years3 she was a girl of about seventeen years old4 ,he told her that she should go with him1 for he wanted her to see his farm4 ,they travelled 7mentally7 by the railroad very comfortably together1 and then 7in his imagination7 got into a fly and proceeded to his house4 ,he asked her what she saw2 and she replied1 #8,i see an iron gate and a curious old house4' ,he asked her1 #8,how do you get to it8' she replied1 #8,by this gravel-walk2' which was quite correct4 ,he asked her how they went into it2 and she replied1 ,i see a porch--a curious old porch4#8 ,it was probably known to many1 that his house1 which was a curious old ,elizabethan building1 was entered by a porch1 as she had described4 ,he asked her what she saw on the porch1 and she replied1 truly1 that it was covered with flowers4 ,he then said1 ,now1 we will turn in at our right hand2 what do you see in that room8' ,she answered with great accuracy1 #8,i see a book case1 and a picture on each side of it4' ,he told her to turn her back to the book case1 and say what she saw on the other side2 and she said1 #8,i see something shining1 like that which soldiers wear4' ,she also described some old muskets and warlike implements which were hanging in the hall2 and upon his asking her how they were fastened up1 7meaning by what means they were secured17 she mistook his question1 but replied1 #8,the muskets are fastened up in threes1' which was the case4 ,he then asked of what substance the floors were built2 and she said1 #8,of black and white squares1' which was correct4 ,he then took her to another apartment1 and she very minutely described the ascent to it as being by four steps1 ,he 7,lord ,ducie7 told her to enter by the right door1 and say what she saw there2 she said1 #8,there is a painting on each side of the fire-place4' ,upon his asking her if she saw any thing particular in the fire-place1 she replied1 #8,yes2 it is carved up to the ceiling1' which was quite correct1 for it was a curious old ,elizabethan fire-place4 ,there was at ,totworth-court a singular old chestnut-tree2 and he told her that he wished her to see a favourite tree1 and asked her to accompany him4 ,he tried to deceive her by saying1 #8,let us walk close up to it2' but she replied1 #8,we cannot1 for there are railings round it4' ,he said1 #8,yes1 wooden railings2' to which she answered1 #8,no1 they are of iron1' which was the case4 ,he asked1 #8,what tree is it8' and she replied that she had been so little in the country that she could not tell2 but upon his asking her to describe the leaf1 she said1 #8,it is a leaf as dark as the geranium-leaf1 large1 long1 and jagged at the edges4' ,he 7,lord ,ducie7 apprehended that no one could describe more accurately than that the leaf of the ,spanish chestnut4 ,he then told her he would take her to see his farm1 and desired her to look over a gate into a field which he had in his mind1 and tell him what she saw growing2 she replied that the field was all over green1 and asked if it was potatoes1 adding that she did not know much about the country4 ,it was not potatoes1 but turnips4 ,he then said1 #8,now look over this gate to the right1 and tell me what is growing there4' ,she at once replied1 #8,there is nothing growing there2 it is a field of wheat1 but it has been cut and carried4' ,this was correct2 but knowing that1 in a part of the field1 grain had been sown at a different period1 he asked her if she was sure that the whole of it had been cut4 ,she replied1 that she could not see the end of the field1 as the land rose in the middle1 which in truth it did4 ,he then said to her1 #8,now we are on the brow1 can you tell me if it is cut8' ,she answered1 #8,no1 it is still growing here4' ,he then said to her1 ,now1 let us come to this gate--tell me where it leads to4#8 ,she replied1 ,into a lane4' ,she then went on and described every thing on his farm with the same surprising accuracy2 and upon his subsequently inquiring1 he found that she was only in error in one trifling matter1 for which error any one who had ever travelled 7mentally7 with a clairvoyante could easily account1 without conceiving any breach of the truth40 ,if the preceding example stood alone1 or if1 in parallel cases1 no further phenomena manifested themselves1 nothing more would be required to explain the facts than to suppose that the mental fellow-traveller reads all your thoughts1 and adopts your own imagery and impressions4 ,but there are not wanting cases in which the fellow-traveller has seen what was not in his companion's mind1 and was at variance with his belief2 while subsequent inquiry has proved that the clairvoyante's unexpected story was true4 ,these more complicated cases prove that the clairvoyante actually pays a mental visit to the scene4 ,but she can do more2 she can pass on to other and remoter scenes and places1 of which her fellow-traveller has no cognizance4 ,for example1 a young person whom ,mr4 ,williamson mesmerised became clairvoyant4 ,in this state she paid me a mental visit at ,boppard2 and ,mr4 ,williamson1 who had been a resident there1 was satisfied that she realized the scene4 ,afterwards ,i removed to ,weilbach1 where ,mr4 ,williamson had never been4 ,then he proposed to the clairvoyante to visit me again4 ,she reached1 accordingly1 in mental travelling1 my former room in ,boppard2 and expressed surprise and annoyance at not finding me there1 and at observing others in its occupation4 ,mr4 ,williamson proposed that she should set out1 and try to find me4 ,she said1 8,you must help me40 ,then ,mr4 ,williamson said1 8,we must go up the river some way1 till we come to a great town10 7,mainz47 ,the clairvoyante said she had got there4 8,then10 said ,mr4 ,williamson1 8we must now go up another river1 7the ,maine17 which joins our river at this town1 and try and find ,dr4 ,mayo on its banks somewhere40 ,then the clairvoyante said1 8,oh1 there is a large house2 let us go and see it2 no1 there are two large houses--one white1 the other red40 ,upon this1 ,mr4 ,williamson proposed that she should go into one of the two houses1 and look about2 she quickly recognised my servant1 went mentally into my room1 found me1 and described a particular or two1 which were by no means likely to be guessed by her4 ,when ,mr4 ,williamson subsequently came to visit me at ,weilbach1 he was forcibly struck with the appearance of the two houses1 which tallied with the account given beforehand by the mental traveller4 ,i have not the smallest doubt she mentally realized my new abode4 ,then1 how did she do all this8 ,the first question is1 how does the clairvoyante realize scenes which are familiar to her fellow-traveller8 ,i cannot help inclining to the belief that1 in the ordinary perception of a place or person1 the mind acts exoneurally2 and that our apprehension 7as ,i have ventured to conjecture in ,letter ,v47 comes thus always into a direct relation with the place or person4 ,there is a peculiar vividness in a first impression1 which every one must have observed2 there is no renewing that force of impression again4 ,this fact helps my hypothesis4 ,it will be remembered again1 that in ,zschokke's narrative of his seer-gift1 he never penetrated the minds of his visiters unless at their very first visit4 ,it is the same1 even to a certain extent1 with mesmeric inspection of the mind4 ,my friend1 who consulted ,m4 ,alexis for me1 consulted him likewise for himself more than once4 ,at the first visit1 ,m4 ,alexis traced an aggravation of his illness1 a year before1 to distress occasioned by the death of two younger brothers at a short interval4 ,on my friend's subsequent visits1 ,m4 ,alexis marked no knowledge at all of the latter occurrence4 ,slightly as these facts are connected1 they concurrently strengthen my notion of the occurrence of an exoneural act of the mind in common perception4 ,i suspect1 ,i repeat1 that1 in visiting new places1 the mind establishes a direct relation with the scenes or persons4 ,then1 in the simplest case of mental visiting1 where the scene visited is familiar to the other party1 ,i presume that the clairvoyante's mind1 being in communion with the mind of the other1 realizes scenes which the latter has previously exoneurally realized4 ,arriving thus at the scene itself1 the clairvoyante observes for herself1 and sees what may be new in it1 and unknown to her fellow-traveller2 and in the same way may pursue1 as in the mental visit made to myself at ,weilbach1 suggested features of the locality1 and be thus helped to beat about in space for new objects1 and at length to recognise among them1 and mentally identify1 persons with whom she has already arrived at a mental mesmeric relation4 ,,viii4 ,mesmerising at a ,distance4 ,mesmerising by the ,will4--,i have not heard of a case in which a person has been for the first time mesmerised with effect by one out of the room4 ,generally the mesmeriser is very near to his patient at the first sitting1 often actually holding his hand--at all events so near that the ,od-emanation of his person might be expected to reach the patient4 ,and the patient is often sensible of new sensations1 which he is disposed to attribute to the physical agency of the operator on him4 ,in ,mr4 ,braid's cases1 it seemed to me clear that the effects were mainly brought about1 as in common mesmerism1 by his personal influence4 ,afterwards1 when a patient has by use become highly sensitive to ,od1 and disposed to fall into trance1 ,i have myself1 by making passes in the next room1 succeeded in producing the sleep4 ,and ,i have seen1 with open doors1 mesmeric effects produced by passes at the distance of ninety feet4 ,but with persons rendered through use extremely susceptible of mesmeric impression1 an effect may be produced by the habitual mesmeriser of the patient at almost unlimited distances4 ,the following instance is given by ,dr4 ,foissac in his valuable work on mesmerism1 entitled ,rapports et ,discussions sur le ,magntisme ,animal1 7,paris1 #ahch47 ,dr4 ,foissac speaks1 in the first person1 of an experiment made by himself on a patient of the name of ,paul ,villagrand1 whom he had been in the habit of mesmerising in the usual way at ,paris1 where both resided4 8,in the course of the ,june ensuing10 says ,dr4 ,foissac1 8,paul expressed the wish to pass some days in his native place1 ,magnac-,laval1 ,haute ,vienne4 ,i provided him with the means1 and proposed to turn his journey to scientific account by attempting to entrance him at the distance of a hundred leagues4 ,he was not to know my intention before the time came2 but on the #b;d of ,july1 at half-past five ,p4,m41 his father was to give him a note from me1 which ran thus--#8,i am magnetising you at this moment2 ,i will awake you when you have had a quarter of an hour's sleep4' ,m4 ,villagrand made the success of the experiment the more decisive by not handing over my letter to his son1 and so disregarding my instructions4 ,nevertheless1 at ten minutes before six1 ,paul being in the midst of his family1 experienced a sensation of heat1 and considerable uneasiness4 ,his shirt was wet through with perspiration2 he wished to retire to his room2 but they detained him4 ,in a few minutes he was entranced4 ,in this state he astonished the persons present1 by reading with his eyes shut several lines of a book taken at hazard from the library1 and by telling the hour upon a watch they held to him4 ,he awoke in a quarter of an hour40 ,one naturally doubts whether the physical influence of the ,od force can extend to this enormous distance2 whether the agency ought not to be regarded as purely psychical2 whether1 in short1 the will of the speaker may not have been the exclusive agent employed4 ,i think that there is a disposition1 among experimenters in mesmerism1 to attribute too much to the agency of the will4 ,there was with me in the autumn of #ahdi a young lady1 who was extremely susceptible of mesmerism4 ,a gentleman who came with the family had been in the habit of entrancing her daily1 and at last she was so sensitive that a wave of his hand would fix her motionless4 ,his presence even in the room affected her2 and if he then tried to mesmerise her sister1 she herself invariably became entranced4 ,the operator was a person of remarkable mesmeric power4 ,then at my request1 made unknown to her1 he went to the end window of the room1 and1 looking out upon the ,rhine1 tried at the same time with the most forcible mental efforts to will her into sleep4 ,the attempt failed entirely4 ,another day that he was in my room1 about fifty feet from the room in which the young lady was sitting1 he tried again by the will to entrance her4 ,but it was all in vain4 ,therefore1 if the will ever acts independently of ,od influence1 ,i am disposed to think that its action in producing trance must be infinitely feebler than the direct use of ,od4 ,however1 some are convinced of the positive agency of the will in mesmerising4 ,the following statement by ,mr4 ,h4 ,s4 ,thompson of ,fairfield1 made in a letter to ,dr4 ,elliotson1 published in the ,zoist1 admits the inferiority in force of the will to the material agency of ,od1 at the same time that it goes far to prove its efficiency4 8,i have succeeded10 says ,mr4 ,thompson1 8in arresting spasms1 and taking away every species of pain1 and in producing intense heat and perspiration1 by the will only2 and in many instances without the knowledge of the patients1 who have been all unconscious of the power ,i have been exerting1 until after the results have occurred4 ,at the same time1 ,i have generally found that the passes in combination with the will1 or attention1 most readily produce the effects we desire2 and that manipulations are much less fatiguing to the operator than the exertion of the will40 ,of an extremely sensitive patient1 who was suffering with rheumatic pains1 ,mr4 ,h4 ,s4 ,thompson observes1 8,a few passes put her to sleep1 though she was moaning as in great pain1 and scarcely seemed to notice what ,i was doing4 ,after sleeping for a few minutes1 her face became composed1 and she showed no symptoms of pain2 but as ,i could not get her to speak in her sleep1 ,i awakened her4 ,she looked very much surprised1 and said that she felt very comfortable and free from pain4 ,i told my friend that she was so sensitive that ,i thought that she might be put to sleep by the will in a few minutes4 ,the bed-curtains were drawn1 so that she could not see or know what was going on4 ,i fixed my attention upon her1 wishing her to go to sleep4 ,when we looked at her two minutes afterwards1 she was fast asleep4 ,it was agreed that the following day1 though ,i should be thirty miles off1 the experiment should be tried again4 ,a lady went at the time fixed on4 ,i purposely postponed the time half-an-hour1 thinking that the woman might have become acquainted with my intention1 and go to sleep through the power of the imagination4 ,the lady's account was1 that she called upon the woman at the time agreed on1 and at first thought that the experiment was going to fail1 as she saw no symptoms of sleep2 but that in half-an-hour afterwards the patient went into a deep sleep1 which lasted some time4 ,after this she went to sleep every day for a fortnight at the same time1 though ,i did not will her to sleep4 ,she says that she felt in a dreamy and happy state for some days after40 ,i might add many similar facts to the above interesting observations4 ,the mass of evidence existing on the subject establishes beyond all doubt that patients have been thrown into trances by persons who have previously mesmerised them in the common way1 at distances which seem to preclude the idea of any physical agent having been the medium of communication between the two parties4 ,the operation seems to have been in those instances mental4 ,then how is such a result to be explained8--or by what expression can it be brought to tally with the principles ,i am endeavouring to substantiate8 ,i shape the answer thus3-- ,the first step is ordinary mesmerising2 in other words1 the operator directs an ,od-current upon the patient1 the ,od in whose system is thereby disturbed2 and initiatory trance ensues as the consequence4 ,secondly1 ,the mind of the patient thus entranced enters into relation with1 or is attracted towards1 the mind or person of the mesmeriser4 ,i remember witnessing a most decisive instance in which the operation of this attraction was singularly manifested4 ,the place was ,dr4 ,elliotson's waiting-room2 the patient1 a young man whom ,mr4 ,simpson had entranced4 ,mr4 ,simpson then moved about the room1 standing still at several points in it in succession4 ,the young man seemed attracted towards ,mr4 ,simpson1 to whom he drew near each time he stopped2 then he pressed against ,mr4 ,simpson1 jostling him out of his place1 which he planted himself in--his countenance bearing an expression of huge delight at what he had achieved4 ,but in half a minute he began to look anxious and uneasy2 and again--his eyes being shut all the while--he set off in search of ,mr4 ,simpson1 and repeated the same scene4 ,there exists1 it would appear1 an attraction between the 7mind of the87 entranced person and 7that of87 his mesmeriser1 or 7that of87 any other person with whom the entranced person has secondarily come into relation4 ,then1 thirdly1 ,it may be presumed that1 in phenomena which are purely mental1 space and distance go for nothing4 ,but if this supposition be admitted1 it would be as easy for a mesmeriser to entrance by a mental effort a sensitive and habituated patient at a hundred miles off as at the end of the same room4 ,the phenomenon thus viewed is wholly exoneural4 ,the one mind is supposed to be actually sensitive to the influence of the other4 ,each of the two minds1 though in different degrees1 energizes1 it may be imagined1 beyond its bodily frame4 ,and the mind of the patient feels the force of the mesmeriser's will acting upon it1 and slips as it were at once1 by the accustomed track1 out of the normal into the abnormal psychico-neural relation4 ,still ,i cannot get rid of a lurking notion that1 in the phenomena last considered1 the ,od-force contributes an element of physical or physico-dynamic influence4 ,for1 putting for the moment aside the idea of mental action1 what is to prevent two living bodies1 that may be in ,od-relation1 or in exact ,od-unison1 from physically influencing one another at indefinite distances8 ,,ix4 ,trance-,diagnosis4--,from ,boppard1 where ,i was residing in the winter of #ahde-f1 ,i sent to an ,american gentleman residing in ,paris a lock of hair1 which ,col4 ,c--1 an invalid then under my care1 had cut from his own head1 and wrapped in writing-paper from his own writing-desk4 ,col4 ,c--was unknown even by name to this ,american gentleman1 who had no clue whatever whereby to identify the proprietor of the hair4 ,and all that he had to do and did was to place the paper1 enclosing the lock of hair1 in the hands of a noted ,parisian somnambulist4 ,she stated1 in the opinion she gave on the case1 that ,col4 ,c--had partial palsy of the hips and legs1 and that for another complaint he was in the habit of using a surgical instrument4 ,the patient laughed heartily at the idea of the distant somnambulist having so completely realized him4 ,the mesmeric discrimination of disease involves three degrees4 ,first1 the clairvoyante placed in relation with the patient1 either by taking his hand1 or by handling a lock of his hair1 or any thing impregnated with his ,od1 feels all his feelings1 realizes his sensations1 and describes what he sensibly labours under4 ,her account of the case thus obtained will be more or less happy1 according to the extent of her previous knowledge respecting ordinary disease4 ,secondly1 the clairvoyante1 if in a higher state of lucidness1 actually sees and inspects the interior bodily construction of the patient1 whose inward organs are1 as it would seem1 lit with ,od-light1 for her examination4 ,or she sees them by their ,od-light1 being in mesmeric relation with the internal frame of the patient4 ,thirdly1 the clairvoyante1 if still more lucid1 foresees what will be the progress of the malady2 what further organic changes are threatened2 what will be the patient's fate4 ,the first two points require no further comment4 ,i reserve my comments upon the last for another head4 ,x4 ,mesmeric ,treatment4--,let me first advert to the use of artificial trance as an ansthetic agent in the service of surgery4 ,there is no doubt that1 when a patient can thus be deprived of ordinary sensibility1 the resource is preferable to the employment of chloroform4 ,not only is it absolutely free from risk1 but its direct effect is to soothe and tranquillize2 whereas chloroform is but a powerful narcotic1 the effects of which are obtained through a brief stage of violent physical excitement4 ,then1 at each dressing--at any moment1 in short1 when advisable--mesmerism may be again resorted to1 which chloroform cannot4 ,the honour of having been the first to employ mesmerism systematically1 as an ansthetic agent1 belongs to ,james ,esdale1 ,m4 ,d41 ,presidency ,surgeon at ,calcutta4 ,the reports of his success1 in a vast body of cases1 many of the most serious description1 are given in the ,zoist4 ,a second point is the employment of artificial trance as a universal sedative2 as a means from which1 in all cases purely nervous1 the most admirable results may be expected and are realized2 and from which1 in disease in general1 singular and beneficial effects have been obtained4 ,this success was confidently to be anticipated1 the instant that the real nature of mesmeric phenomena was appreciated4 ,a third point is the employment of mesmeric passes1 without the intention or power to produce trance1--simply as a local means of tranquillizing the nervous sensibility of a diseased part1 and allaying the morbid phenomena which depend upon local nervous irritation4 ,there is a fourth point under this head which will be regarded as more questionable1 viz4 the power attributed to clairvoyantes of prescribing treatment for themselves and others4 ,nevertheless1 in their own cases1 where the prescriptions have been limited to baths1 and bleeding1 and mesmerism itself1 the boldness and precision of their practice1 and its success1 have been such as to excite our wonder1 and almost to command our confidence4 ,it does not1 however1 seem that the treatment prescribed by clairvoyantes to others is equally certain2 and when they recommend drugs1 it is clear that1 adopting the fashion of the time and country in medicine1 they are only prescribing by guess1 like other doctors4 ,but they sometimes guess very cleverly4 ,,xi4 ,phreno-,mesmerism4--,how great is my regret that ,i can no longer take an active part in physiological inquiry6 ,how great is my regret that1 in former years1 when ,i worked at the physiology of the nervous system1 ,i undervalued phrenology6 ,prejudiced against it by the writings of the late ,dr4 ,gordon1 by the authority of my early instructors1 by the puerile mode in which craniology was generally advocated1 by the superficial quality of the cerebral anatomy of ,gall1 ,i confined my attention to what ,i considered sounder objects of investigation4 ,but now ,i have no doubt1 not only that the metaphysical speculations of ,gall were in the main just1 but1 likewise1 that a great part of his craniological chart is accurately laid down4 ,to connect phrenology with severe anatomical research1 to endeavour to determine the organic conditions which interfere with the application of the science to practical purposes1 would be a task worthy the efforts of the best physiological labourer4 ,then1 if phrenology be true1 and the organology in the main correct1 what is more likely than that directing an ,od current upon the cerebral seat of a mental faculty should bring it into activity8 ,i have myself witnessed the repetition of this now common experiment1 in a very unexceptionable instance2 and the success was perfect4 ,the organs of veneration1 of combativeness1 of alimentiveness1 were successively excited2 and in each case a brilliant piece of acting followed4 ,i must confess1 however1 that ,i could not divest myself of the impression that1 whatever pains we took to conceal our plans1 the clairvoyant young lady really knew beforehand what was expected of her1 and performed accordingly4 ,i speak in reference to the single instance which ,i have myself witnessed4 ,i cannot1 however1 refuse to credit the testimony of good observers--such as ,dr4 ,elliotson--to facts which seem to establish the genuineness of phreno-mesmerism4 ,in its double relation to phrenology and mesmerism1 this inquiry well merits attention4 ,,xii4 ,rapport4 ,mesmeric ,relation4 ,psychical ,attraction4--,without presuming to place absolute confidence in the preceding speculations1 but1 on the contrary1 apologizing for their hypothetical character1 on the plea that any theory is better than none1 let me now recapitulatorily put in array the facts and principles to which the terms at the head of this section refer3-- #a4 ,i hold that the mind of a living person1 in its most normal state1 is always1 to a certain extent1 acting exoneurally1 or beyond the limit of the bodily person2 but1 possibly1 always in conjunction with some ,od-operation4 #b4 ,i suppose that there must be laws of neuro-psychical attraction1 or that there are definite circumstances which determine our exoneural apprehension to direct itself upon this or that object or person4 ,so1 in common perception1 the exoneural apprehension probably moves back along the lines of material impression1 to reach the object perceived1 which so attracts it4 ,so1 in sudden liking or aversion at first sight--or1 more properly1 on all occasions of meeting strangers--an exoneural mingling of reciprocal appreciation takes place2 different persons being differently gifted with intuitive discernment1 as others or the same with powers of pleasingly affecting most they meet4 ,so ,zschokke's seer-gift would have been but the result of a greater exoneural mobility of his mind1 whereby he was occasionally drawn to such mental affinity with a stranger1 that he knew his whole life and circumstances4 ,so in panic fears1 in all cases where impressions seem heightened by the sympathy of many1 the power of psychical attraction we may presume to be increased by its concentration on one subject1 and the participation of all in one thought4 ,the ,rev4 ,hare ,townshend1 in his interesting work on mesmerism1 declares that he has more than once succeeded in the following fact of sympathetic mental influence4 ,all the members of a party then present have conspired against an expected visiter2 and when he came--carefully1 at the same time1 abstaining from alluding to some special subject agreed on--they have striven silently and mentally to drive it into his thoughts2 and in a short time he has spoken of it4 #c4 ,for the most lucid persons in waking-trance 7either of spontaneous occurrence1 as in catelepsy1 or when induced by mesmerism7 the exoneural apprehension seems to extend to every object and person round1 and to be drawn into complete intelligence of or with them4 ,such a patient is 8en rapport10 or in trance-mental relation with any or every thing around1 in succession or simultaneously4 #d4 ,in persons slowly waking in the most measured course of things out of artificial initiatory trance into somnambulism1 the mind is at first exoneurally attracted to the mesmeriser alone4 ,as a next step1 the mesmeriser1 by putting himself in ,od-relation with a third person1 can make him participator in the same attraction4 ,i do not here discuss ,mr4 ,braid's views1 which are more fully considered in a subsequent ,letter4 ,i have analyzed trance in its character of a spontaneous pathological phenomenon4 ,i have examined its principal features as they present themselves when it is induced by mesmerism4 ,but facts have been brought forward by ,mr4 ,braid1 which seem to establish that1 in some highly susceptible persons1 trance may be brought on at will in another way1 by their own indirect efforts1 apart from external influences3--as1 for instance1 by straining the eyes upwards1 the attention being kept some time concentrated on the object or the effort4 ,certainly1 doing this makes the head feel uncomfortable and giddy1 and seems as if it would lead to some kind of fit if indefinitely prolonged4 ,,xiii4 ,trance-,prevision4--,instances of trance-prevision are referrible to three different heads4 #a4 ,the simplest trance-prevision is that of epileptic patients 7artificially entranced7 who name1 at the distance of weeks beforehand1 the exact hour1 nay1 minute1 at which the next fit will occur4 ,the case of ,cazot1 7mentioned by ,dr4 ,foissac17 who was in the habit of predicting the accession of his fits with unerring precision1 terminated1 however1 in the following manner3 ,cazot had predicted1 as usual1 when he should be next attacked3 before the time came round1 however1 he was thrown from a horse and killed4 ,but no doubt can be entertained that1 had he not met with this accident1 the next fit would have occurred at the hour predicted4 ,this is the simplest and narrowest form of prevision3 the clairvoyante can tell1 in reference to himself1 or to any one with whom he is placed in relation1 what will be the course of his health4 ,he can see forward what the progress of his living economy will be1 other things continuing the same4 #b4 ,the next feat is greater4 ,dr4 ,teste1 in his most interesting ,manuel de ,magntisme ,animal1 gives the case of a lady1 his patient1 who1 when entranced1 foretold the day and hour when an accident1 the nature of which she could not foresee1 was to befall her1 and from it a long series of illness was to take its rise4 ,dr4 ,teste and the lady's husband were staying with her when the fatal moment approached4 ,then she rose1 and1 making an excuse1 left the room1 followed by her husband2 when1 on opening a door1 a great gray rat rushed out1 and she sank down in a fit of terror1 and the predicted illness ensued4 ,in this most decisive case1 the prevision extended to an extraneous and accidental circumstance1 to which no calculation or intuition of her natural bodily changes could have led her4 #c4 ,but there are instances which reach yet farther4 ,dr4 ,foissac narrates the case of a ,mdlle4 ,cline1 who1 when entranced1 predicted that she would be poisoned on a certain evening1 at a given hour4 ,what would be the vehicle of the poison she could not foresee1 either at the time when she first uttered the prediction1 or on an occasion or two afterwards1 when1 being again entranced1 she recurred to the subject4 ,however1 shortly before the day she was to be poisoned1 being questioned in trance as to the possibility of averting her fate1 she said1 8,throw me into the sleep a little before the time ,i have named1 and then ask me whether ,i can discern where the danger lies40 ,this was done1 and ,mdlle4 ,cline at once said that the poison was in a glass at her bed-side--they had substituted for quinine an excessive dose of morphine4 ,thus it appears that persons in waking trance can1 first1 calculate what is naturally to follow in their own health1 or in that of persons with whom they are in mesmeric relation2 can1 secondly1 foretell the occurrence of fortuitous external events1 without seeing how to prevent them2 can1 thirdly1 when endowed with more lucidity1 discern enough to enable them occasionally to counteract the natural course of external events4 ,fate thus becomes a contingency of certainties4 ,there is a true series of consequences to be deduced from whatever partial premises the clairvoyante may happen to be acquainted with4 ,when she has more data1 she makes a wider calculation1 certain as far as it goes4 ,but other premises1 influencing the ultimate result1 may still have escaped her4 ,so the utmost reach of genuine trance-prevision is but the announcement of a probability1 which unforeseen events may counteract4 ,i will conclude this head by introducing ,m4 ,alexis's account of his own powers of mesmeric prevision1 in which the reader will see that his experience has led him to view his conclusions as calculations upon certain positive elements2 yet he admits the possibility of powers greater than his own3 8,on peut prvoir l'avenir10 said ,m4 ,alexis2 8mais lorsque cet avenir a des fondations positives4 ,mais annoncer un fait isol1 un accident1 une catastrophe1 non4 ,cependant quelquefois cela est arriv aux individus1 mais c'taient des instruments de la ,divinit3 ces hommes sont rares4 ,etant une maison de jeu1 je saurais d'avance la couleur gagnante1 surtout aux cartes4 ,mais la roulette cela me semble trs difficile4 ,cela est de l'avenir4 ,les cartes1 au contraire1 sont dans les mains d'un homme quelques minutes4 ,cependant si l'on voulait appliquer la clairvoyance une exploitation semblable1 je suis materiellement et moralement certain que la vue ferait faute40 ,,xiv4 ,ultra-terrestrial ,vision4--,if a clairvoyante can discern what is passing at the distance of one hundred leagues1 why should not his perception extend to material objects beyond our sphere8 ,mr4 ,williamson tried to conduct one of his clairvoyantes mentally to the moon2 but1 having got some way1 she declared the moon was so intolerably bright1 that the effort pained and distressed her1 and accordingly ,mr4 ,williamson relinquished the experiment1 and happened not to renew it4 ,m4 ,alexis1 when entranced1 in answer to my inquiries1 declared himself cognizant of the condition of the planets4 ,he said that they were inhabited1 with the exception of those which are either too near to1 or too remote from the sun4 ,he said that the inhabitants of the different planets are very diverse2 that the earth is the best off1 for that man has double the intelligence of the ruling animals in the other planets4 ,it would be the height of credulity to regard this communication as more than a clever guess2 yet a plausible guess it is1 for if the other planets are composed of the same material elements with the earth1 it is evident that the temperature of our planet must render these same materials more generally available for life and economic purposes on it than they would be in ,mercury or ,saturn4 ,,xv4 ,ultra-vital ,vision4--,the following is ,m4 ,alexis's trance-revelation as to the state of the soul after death4 ,i presume it is no more than an ingenious play of his fancy2 but a young clergyman of some acumen1 to whom ,i communicated it1 was half disposed to give it more credit1 and observed1 with logical precision1 that1 viewing the statement as an intuition1 it would show the necessity of the resurrection of the body4 8,l'me ne change jamais4 ,aprs la mort elle retourne la ,divinit4 ,dieu a voulu attacher l'me au corps1 qui est un prison o ,dieu a voulu enfermer l'me pendant qu'elle est sur la terre4 ,l'me ne perd jamais son individualit4 ,aprs la mort1 nos souvenirs ne nous restent pas40 ,the last sentence is that to which my friend's remark principally referred4 ,,xvi4 ,nature of the ,supreme ,being4--,the following striking expressions were made use of by ,m4 ,alexis1 when entranced1 in answer to a string of questions which ,i had sent to him on this subject4 ,he declared1 at the same time1 that he had never before been led to consider it in his mesmeric state4 ,i presume1 therefore1 that in his ordinary waking state he is a ,spinozist1 and that1 in place of an intuition1 he simply delivered an oracular announcement of his preconceived notions3-- 8,il n'y a pas de parole humaine qui peut donner une ide de la ,divinit4 ,dieu c'est tout4 ,il n'a pas de personalit4 ,dieu est partout et nulle part4 ,dieu est le foyer qui allume la nature4 ,dieu est un foyer universel1 dont les hommes ne sont que la vapeur la plus loigne1 la plus faible4 ,chaque homme est l'extremit d'un rayon de ,lui-mme4 ,il n'existe que ,dieu40 ,,letter ,,xii4 ,,the ,,odometer ,,or ,,divining-,,ring4--,how come upon by the author--,his first experiments--,the phenomena an objective proof of the reality of the ,od-force4 8,qualis ab incepto0 shall be the motto of this twelfth letter1 the materials of which were undreamt of by me1 when some three months ago ,i remitted the new and corrected edition of 8the ,letters0 to ,england4 ,the occasion which led me to the knowledge of the facts ,i have to mention1 and their bearing1 tally curiously with what has gone before4 ,for it is again winter1 with its long1 solitary evenings1 against the tedium of which ,i had to seek a resource2 and ,i bethought me1 this time1 of occupying myself with looking into the higher mathematics4 ,accordingly ,i sent to ,herr ,caspari1 professor of mathematics in the gymnasium at ,boppard1 to solicit him to give me the instruction and assistance which ,i needed4 ,and he obligingly came1 in the evening of the #cast of ,december1 to sit by my side and converse with me4 ,and ,i went over preliminarily my schoolboy recollections of the elements of mathematics1 and was pleased at finding the remembered difficulties vanish before the explanations of my well-informed tutor4 ,and ,i learned1 to my vast delight1 that the inability under which asymptotes labour to touch hyperbolas is a purely arbitrary one1 like the legislative prohibition not to marry with one's deceased wife's sister2 but that1 unlike the latter1 it can be evaded2 inasmuch as an asymptote1 by changing its name and forfeiting its properties1 may at any time unite itself with the object to which it had before been infinitely near4 ,again1 ,i found my boyish distrust and disbelief in sines and cosines replaced by an intelligent and well-satisfied acquaintance with them4 ,and ,i even obtained a glimpse of the higher analysis itself1 pointing with its unerring finger to the exact height1 else unmeasurable1 at which my candle should stand in the centre of my round table1 to shed upon it its maximum of illumination4 ,a liberal hour being over1 and my dolphin-like recreation ended1 my new friend entered into desultory chat1 and asked me1 among other things1 if ,i had not written something on the divining-rod4 ,i replied to his question by giving him the copy ,i had of 8the ,letters20 and promised1 as a ,new-,year's gift for the morrow1 to present him with the implement itself4 ,and ,i lent him ,von ,reichenbach's book on ,od1 with which he was unacquainted4 ,then he told me that there were two or three experiments1 possibly akin to trials with the divining-rod1 with which he had been familiar for years1 and which he had shown to many without receiving an explanation of them4 ,he said that as far as he knew they were original and his own2 and that he would willingly show them to me4 ,he wanted only for that purpose a piece of silver1 a gold ring1 and a bit of silk4 ,these were easily found4 ,and he attached the silk to the ring1 which he then held suspended by the silk over a silver spoon1 at a distance of half an inch4 ,shortly the ring shaped its first vague movements into regular oscillations in a direction to and fro1 or towards and from1 ,herr ,caspari4 ,i will call such oscillations longitudinal4 ,it was evident to me1 that this phenomenon must be akin to the motion of the divining-rod4 ,then1 at ,herr ,caspari's suggestion1 ,i summoned the maid1 who was directed to place her hand in ,herr ,caspari's disengaged hand4 ,on her doing so1 the oscillations of the ring became transverse4 ,how pregnant was this fact6 ,an ,od-current had been established between the two experimenters2 and the apparent influence of the two metals on each other had been modified4 ,herr ,caspari told me that1 as far as he knew1 these experiments would only succeed when made with silver and gold1 and a bit of silk4 ,but he said that he had still another experiment to show me1 which he did the following day4 ,he said he had a little pea-like bit of something1 which he had been told was schwefel-kies1 that exhibited another motion3 when held suspended by silk over either of the fingers1 it rotated one way2 when held suspended over the thumb1 it rotated in the contrary direction4 ,herr ,caspari left me1 after agreeing to assist me in the further examination of these phenomena2 and the ,new ,year coming in found me in busy thought how to elicit1 through variations of ,herr ,caspari's experiments1 some important physical evidence as to the reality and agency of ,von ,reichenbach's ,od-force4 ,in ten days we have succeeded in disentangling the confused results which attended our first experiments2 and as ,i see no likelihood of extending them at present in any new direction1 ,i present them to the reader now1 as complete as ,i can at present render them4 ,i have used the term 8divining-ring10 partly because ,i have a vague idea of having seen ,herr ,caspari's first facts adverted to in some publication under that name2 partly because it is really thus far deserved3--,if you place a piece of silver on a table1 and lay over the table and it an unfolded silk pocket-handkerchief1 you can discover where the silver lies by trying with the suspended ring each part of the surface4 ,the ring will only oscillate when held over the silver4 ,but now ,i have to substitute another name for the sake of precision4 ,a fragment of any thing1 of any shape1 suspended either by silk or cotton thread1 the other end of which is wound round the first joint either of the forefinger or of the thumb1 ,i will call an ,odometer4 ,the length of the thread does not matter4 ,it must be sufficient to allow the ring1 or whatever it is1 to reach to about half an inch from the table1 against which you rest your arm or elbow to steady your hand4 ,if there be nothing on the table1 the ring or its equivalent soon becomes stationary4 ,then you test the powers of the odometer by placing upon the table under it what substances you please4 ,these ,i would call ,od-subjects4 ,to obtain uniform results with the ,odometer1 it is important to attach the sustaining thread always to the same finger of the same hand1--best to the forefinger of the right hand4 ,it is evident that this rule is not to prevent the experimenter1 when he has succeeded in thus obtaining a series of consistent results1 from trying what will come of substituting his other digits for that first employed4 ,i have armed the odometer with gold1 silver1 lead1 zinc1 iron1 copper2 with coal1 bone1 horn1 dry wood1 charcoal1 cinder1 glass1 soap1 wax1 sealing-wax1 shell-lac1 sulphur1 earthenware4 ,as ,od-subjects ,i have likewise tried most of the substances above enumerated4 ,all do not go equally well1 or perform exactly the same feats1 with each odometer4 ,for example1 an odometer of dry wood remains stationary over gold2 while it oscillates with great vivacity over glass4 ,the respective habitudes of different odometers to different ,od-subjects is one of the simplest points of investigation which the facts ,i am narrating suggest4 ,a gold ring with a plain stone in it was the first odometer which ,i employed1 and it is one of the most largely available4 ,and gold forms in general the most successful ,od-subject4 ,sulphur likewise displays very lively motions in the odometer4 ,but the material which ,i finally employed to verify the following phenomena was shell-lac1 a portion a full inch long1 broader towards the lower end1 then cut to be lancet-shaped4 ,the odometer moves more sluggishly with some than with others1 and in the same hand on different days2 and doubtless is capable of manifesting a greater variety of effects than ,i have yet elicited from it4 ,i can only pledge myself to the certainty of my being always now able to obtain with the shell-lac odometer all the results mentioned in the ,,xxvii4 experiments which first follow4 ,over rock-crystal1 however1 the shell-lac odometer acts very feebly2 but a glass odometer moves with brilliant vivacity4 ,i would besides advise the reader to try a gold-ring odometer1 in preference1 for experiments ,x41 ,,xi41 ,,xii41 ,,xiii4 ,then here are the results3-- ,i4 ,odometer 7we will suppose armed with shell-lac7 held over three sovereigns heaped loosely together to form the ,od-subject2 the odometer suspended from the right forefinger of a competent person of the male sex4 ,result--,longitudinal oscillations4 ,,ii4 ,let the experimenter1 continuing experiment ,i41 take with his unengaged hand the hand of a person of the opposite sex4 ,result--,transverse oscillations of the odometer4 ,,iii4 ,then1 the experiment being continued1 let a person of the sex of the experimenter take and hold the unengaged hand of the second party4 ,result--,longitudinal oscillations of the odometer4 ,,iv4 ,repeat experiment ,i41 and1 the longitudinal oscillations being established1 touch the forefinger which is engaged in the odometer with the forefinger of your other hand4 ,result--,the oscillations become transverse4 ,v4 ,repeat experiment ,i41 and1 the longitudinal oscillations being established1 bring the thumb of the same hand into contact with the finger implicated in the odometer4 ,result--,the oscillations become transverse4 ,,vi4 ,then1 continuing experiment ,v41 let a person of the same sex take and hold your unengaged hand4 ,result--,the oscillations become again longitudinal4 ,,vii4 ,experiment ,i4 being repeated1 take and hold in your disengaged hand two or three sovereigns4 ,result--,the oscillations become transverse4 ,,viii4 ,continuing experiment ,,vii41 let a person of the same sex take and hold your hand which holds the sovereigns4 ,result--,the oscillations become longitudinal4 ,,ix4 ,if the odometer be attached to the thumb instead of to the forefinger1 it oscillates longitudinally2 but on approaching the thumb so as to touch the forefinger1 the oscillations become of course transverse4 ,x4 ,repeat experiment ,i41 but let the ,od-subject be a double row of five sovereigns1 each disposed longitudinally from you1 and hold the odometer over the middle of the double row of sovereigns4 ,result--,longitudinal oscillations1 but the excursions are inordinately long4 ,still1 on touching the forefinger with the thumb1 the oscillations become either transverse1 or the odometer moves in an ellipse1 of which the long axis corresponds with the axis of the double line of sovereigns4 ,,xi4 ,dispose ten sovereigns longitudinally from you in two parallel rows1 an inch and a half apart1 and hold the odometer over the middle of the interval4 ,result--,longitudinal oscillations4 ,,xii4 ,modify experiment ,,xi4 by holding the odometer not midway1 but nearer one of the rows of sovereigns4 ,result--,oblique oscillations4 ,,xiii4 ,dispose ten sovereigns heaped in a short longitudinal group1 and hold the odometer over the table half an inch to one side of the middle of the heap4 ,result--,transverse oscillations4 ,from the latter experiments and their modifications1 it became evident that the magnitude and shape of the ,od-subject have each a direct influence on the result4 ,a greater force of attraction evidently exists towards the greater mass4 ,,xiv4 ,odometer held over the northward pole of a magnetic needle contained in a compass-box under glass4 ,result--,rotatory motion in the direction of the hands of a watch4 ,,xv4 ,odometer held over the southward pole4 ,result--,rotatory motion in the direction contrary to the motion of the hands of a watch4 ,,xvi4 ,repeat experiments ,,xiv4 and ,,xv41 with the difference of touching the forefinger implicated in the odometer with the thumb of the same hand4 ,results--,the rotatory motions observed in the two experiments referred to become exactly reversed4 ,,xvii4 ,hold the odometer over the centre of the needle4 ,result--,oscillations at right angles1 or transverse1 to the axis of the needle4 ,,xviii4 ,hold the odometer over1 and half an inch to one side of1 the centre of the needle4 ,result--,oscillations parallel to the axis of the needle4 ,,xix4 ,repeat experiment ,,xiv4 ,then1 during its continuance1 place a pile of three sovereigns on the compass-box1 in front of the northward pole of the needle1 and about an inch from it4 ,result--,direction of original rotatory motion reversed4 ,then follow experiments with results exactly parallel to the preceding1 having the greatest physiological interest4 ,,xx4 ,hold the odometer over the tip of the forefinger of your disengaged hand4 ,result--,rotatory motion in the direction of the hands of a watch4 ,,xxi4 ,hold the odometer over the thumb of your disengaged hand4 ,result--,rotatory motion against that of the hands of a watch4 ,,xxii4 ,hold up the forefinger and thumb of the disengaged hand1 their points being at two and a half inches apart4 ,hold the odometer in the centre of a line which would join the points of the finger and thumb4 ,result--,oscillations transverse to the line indicated4 ,,xxiii4 ,modify the preceding experiment by holding the odometer half an inch to one side of1 and over1 the middle of the line indicated4 ,result--,oscillations parallel to the said line4 ,,xxiv4 ,modify experiment ,,xxiii4 by approximating the ends of the forefinger and thumb of the disengaged hand1 so that they touch4 ,result--,the odometer no longer moves4 ,,xxv4 ,forefinger and thumb of the disengaged hand held upwards and apart1 sustaining a short file longwise between them4 ,odometer then held over the last joint of the finger4 ,result--,odometer stationary4 ,odometer then held over the last joint of the thumb4 ,result--,odometer stationary4 ,,xxvi4 ,odometer held over the northward pole of the magnetic needle1 and its consequent rotatory motion in the direction of that of the hands of a watch established4 ,then advance the finger or the thumb of the other hand towards the odometer4 7,the odometer should be held in these experiments half an inch above1 and a little wide of1 or before1 the apex of the needle47 ,the finger1 or the thumb1 is then to be brought as near to the odometer as is consistent with not touching it in its rotation4 ,result--,direction of the rotation reversed4 ,then join the finger and thumb1 and hold the two thus brought into contact in the same proximity to the odometer4 ,result--,the rotation returns to the former direction2 that is1 to the direction of the motion of the hands of a watch4 ,,xxvii4 ,odometer held over the radial 7or thumb7 edge of the wrist4 ,result--,the same as when held over thumb4 ,odometer held over the little-finger edge of the wrist4 ,result--,the same as when held over either of the fingers4 ,this difference in result extends a third the length of the fore-arm1 over the middle of which the odometer becomes stationary4 ,,xxviii4 ,a portion of rock-crystal five inches long1 about two wide and deep1 placed on the table with its long axis transverse to the operator4 ,glass odometer held over the middle of the upper plain surface4 ,result--,oscillations parallel to the axis of the crystal4 ,position of the crystal shifted1 so as to make its axis point from the operator4 ,result--,oscillations as before parallel to the axis of the crystal1 but longitudinal to the operator4 ,then the thumb applied to the forefinger4 ,result--,transverse oscillations4 ,,xxix4 ,glass odometer held suspended over one apex of the crystal4 ,result--,rotatory motion in the direction of the hands of a watch4 ,odometer held over the opposite end4 ,result--,rotation in the direction contrary to that of the hands of a watch4 ,,xxx4 ,the last experiment repeated4 ,the forefinger of the operator's unengaged hand brought near to the odometer in each of its two varieties4 ,result--,the previous rotatory motion reversed4 ,then the point of the thumb brought into contact with the odometer finger4 ,result--,the original rotatory motion re-established4 ,i will add in reference to the first and simplest experiments1 that the interposition of several folds of silk between the ,od-subject and the odometer renders the motions of the latter less brisk4 ,the development which ,i have thus given to the few1 isolated1 and long-hoarded experiments of ,herr ,caspari1 was not so simple an affair as it may seem to be4 ,for several days ,i was in doubt as to the genuineness of the results1 so capricious and contradictory were they4 ,it was only when ,i had discovered1 first1 the reversing effect of touching the odometer finger with the thumb of the same hand1 and1 secondly1 that approaching the thumb towards the odometer finger1 or even allowing the other fingers of the odometer hand to close upon the ball of the thumb1 has the same effect with bringing the point of the thumb into contact with the odometer finger1 that ,i succeeded in obtaining unvarying results4 ,the interest of these experiments is unquestionably very considerable4 ,they open a new vein of research1 and establish a new bond of connexion between physical and physiological science1 which cannot fail to promote the advancement of both4 ,they contribute a mass of objective and physical evidence to give support and substantiality to the subjective results of ,von ,reichenbach's experiments4 ,they tend to prove the existence of some universal force1 such as that to which he has given theoretical form and consistence under the designation of ,od4 ,and such a universal force1 what other can we deem it to be than the long-vilipended influence of ,mesmer1 rendered bright and transparent and palatable by passing through the filter of science8 ,,letter ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,solution4--,examination of the genuineness of the phenomena--,od-motions produced by bodies in their most inert state--,analysis of the forces which originate them--,od-motions connected with electrical1 magnetic1 chemical1 crystalline1 and vital influences--,their analysis4 ,the present letter might be entitled 8,an account of some motions recently discovered1 to the manifestation of which an influence proceeding from the living human body is necessary40 ,the contrivance by which these motions are elicited ,i have called an ,odometer1 from the conviction that the force which sets it in movement is no other than the ,od-force of ,von ,reichenbach4 ,for the same reason ,i have called the objects with which it is tested ,od-subjects1 and the motions themselves ,od-motions4 ,the odometer is a pendulum1 formed of a ring1 or other small body attached to a thread1 the other end of which is wound round a finger or the thumb4 ,the odometer employed in the following experiments was a light gold ring1 having a greater mass of metal on the unattached side1 and suspended to the last joint of the right forefinger1 the suspending medium being either silk1 or fine cotton1 or the hair of a horse4 ,the experiments were made by myself4 ,in order to avoid the confusion resulting from a multiplicity of details1 ,i shall state the results obtained through testing a limited number only of ,od-subjects1 so selected as to represent the leading divisions of the provinces of nature1 and of dynamics4 ,with some of the principal the reader will be already acquainted through ,letter ,,xii41 the contents of which will have prepared him for1 and probably suggested to him1 the following question1 as a desirable subject of preliminary consideration4 ,i4 ,are the motions referred to worth examining at all8 ,are they more than the simple results of impulses conveyed to the pendulum by movements of the hand or wrist1 or some general sway of the experimenter's person1 unintentionally going with the expectation or conception of this or that motion of the ring8 ,such a solution of the phenomena is not wanting in probability4 ,it is metaphysically and physically certain1 that when we maintain one and the same bodily posture or gesture1 as in standing1 sitting1 or holding out the hand1 whatever be the seeming continuousness and unity of the effort1 the posture or gesture is really maintained only by a series of rapidly succeeding efforts4 ,what is more likely than that1 in such a continual renewing of voluntary actions1 our fancy1 or the sympathy between our will and our thoughts1 should give a bias to the results1 even when we most try to neutralize its influence8 ,the fact which ,i propose first to mention is in complete agreement with this view4 ,i can at will cause the odometer to move exactly as ,i please4 ,although ,i hold my hand as steadily as possible by leaning the arm against a table1 and endeavour to keep my person absolutely still1 yet ,i have only to form a vivid conception of a new path for the odometer1 and a motion in the so-imagined direction is almost immediately substituted for that which was before going on4 ,in like manner1 ,i have only to conceive the cessation of motion1 and the odometer gradually stops4 ,i must farther admit that my first trials of the odometer were made under the full expectation that the results which ensued would follow4 ,and ,i cannot say that it is impossible1 that when other and new motions emerged1 they were not often either realizations of a previous guess1 or repetitions on the same principle of what occurred at first as an accident4 ,on the other hand1 ,i am not unprepared with an array of facts which seem to me capable not only of neutralizing the force of the preceding argument1 but of making it appear1 most likely1 that some other influence than that of the experimenter's mind is often in operation in bringing about these results2 an influence sufficiently curious1 as ,i think1 to justify me in continuing this investigation and the present letter4 ,i beg the reader's candid construction of the following statements4 ,if1 when trying the odometer1 ,i have caused it1 by conceiving a different motion1 to change its path and move in a wrong direction1 ,i now endeavour to divert my mind from considering its motion at all1 the odometer invariably resumes its previous right movement4 ,it is1 indeed1 difficult to observe a strict mental neutrality in this instance4 ,for the odometer moves imperfectly and uncertainly1 unless ,i frequently look at its performance4 ,or1 as ,i interpret the fact1 unless ,i keep my attention fixed to a certain extent on what ,i am doing1 my hand loses its steadiness1 and communicates all sorts of distracting impulses to the pendulum4 ,and the uncertainty hence arising admits1 it appears to me1 of being obviated by the comparison of numerous careful repetitions of the experiments4 ,many of the motions which ,i at first thought were genuine ,od-results1 ,i afterwards found out ,i had been mistaken in4 ,and the correction of these errors was mostly due to frequent and careful repetitions of the experiments1 unattended by an expectation of finding the results reversed or otherwise modified1 and instituted simply to secure their genuineness and certainty4 ,then there was one result which at one time ,i confidently anticipated2 but it never came up4 ,i had found the ring make gyrations in the direction of those of the hands of a watch1 when held over the small end of a living unincubated egg4 ,opposite gyrations were obtained over the big end4 ,i thought this might have to do with the sex of the embryo4 ,and ,i tried1 accordingly1 a dozen eggs1 expecting that in some the direction of the gyrations at the two ends would be reversed4 ,but this event never occurred1 much as ,i laid myself out for it4 ,if my fancy could have decided the matter in spite of my care to prevent its interference1 ,i am clear that for a time1 at least1 ,i should have obtained in these experiments upon the egg a double set of results4 ,i was much delighted two months later at coming upon the explanation of the question1 why gyration like that of the hands of a watch is manifested at the little end of the egg4 ,i had known from nearly the first that this direction of the rotatory ,od-motion is manifested when the pendulum is swung over the right side of the human body4 ,then ,i fell upon an old physiological reminiscence1 7and found a drawing of the fact in my outlines of ,physiology17 that the embryo chick lies in the egg transversely upon its face1 with its right side towards the little end4 ,then there were two other results1 which were directly at variance with my anticipations1 but which never failed to present themselves4 ,i made a voltaic arrangement by means of two plates1 one of zinc1 the other of copper1 fixed in contact in a solution of salt in water4 ,now1 when held opposite the middle of the zinc disc1 the odometer always rotated like the hands of a watch2 while over the copper disc the phenomenon was reversed4 ,these results are constant4 ,but ,i have had the satisfaction of lately discovering that1 if ,i present the ring to any part of the circumference of the two discs1 its motion is the opposite1 and in accordance with theory4 ,one of the tests on which ,i have much relied in determining whether the motions ,i obtained were genuine ,od-motions1 consisted in producing their reversal by altering the ,od-relations of my hand or of my person4 ,what gives particular value to this test is1 that the versed or complimentary motion is subject to different laws4 ,one set of secondary oscillations changes into oscillations in a plane at right angles to the plane of the primary oscillations4 ,in another series the motion continues in the same plane2 but the excursions1 which were before longest in one direction1 are now longest in the opposite1 as if a repellent current had been substituted for an attracting one4 ,the ,od-oscillations1 it may be observed1 are always dependent upon the action of a constant rectilinear force counteracted by the gravitation of the pendulum4 ,the means ,i usually employ to reverse the primary ,od-motions is1 bringing the end of the right thumb into contact with the odometer-finger1 where the thread is wound round it4 ,but the experimenter cannot be too careful not to bring the thumb even near to the odometer finger1 or to allow his other fingers to close upon the ball of the thumb1 for the phenomena are thus again liable to be reversed4 ,the other means of reversing the results of the experiments are3-- a4 ,to substitute a hair of a mare for the suspending media above-named4 b4 ,to hold a sovereign in the left hand4 c4 ,to apply the forefinger of the left hand to the odometer finger4 d4 ,to have either hand of a person of the same sex laid on your right hand or right ear4 e4 ,to have either hand of a person of the opposite sex laid upon your left hand or left ear4 ,the various substances employed as ,od-subjects admit of being divided into two great classes2 one consisting of unorganized or organized bodies in which a minimum of internal activity is present2 the other1 of bodies of both classes1 in which the more energetic properties of matter are at work4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i4 ,let me first notice the results obtained with the first class of bodies4 ,these1 again1 are reducible to two forms4 ,the ,od-subject may either be of a regular figure and equal thickness throughout--as a piece of money1 for instance2 or it may be of an irregular figure1 with an unequal mass of matter at one part--as1 for instance1 when it consists of an aggregate of several pieces of money variously arranged4 ,i shall first treat of the first and simpler case4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it does not matter how you face in making these experiments4 ,the influence of your person makes the various meridians of the ,od-subject4 ,the movements which we have first to examine are the results of holding the odometer over the middle of various uniform discs1 such as ,i have supposed4 ,they consist of two series of oscillations--one directed longitudinally to and from the experimenter2 the other transversal1 or in a plane at right angles to the plane of the first series of oscillations4 ,then it is highly convenient to have terms denoting the four cardinal points at which these oscillations cut the edge of the circular disc4 ,these points may be termed distal1 proximal1 dextral1 sinistral4 ,it will likewise be found convenient to have terms to denote the direction of the motions manifested4 ,the terms distad1 proximad1 dextrad1 sinistrad1 will serve our purpose4 ,these terms refer to the person of the experimenter4 ,two other terms are still wanting2 sometimes rotatory motion supervenes1 which maybe either in the direction of the motion of the hands of a watch1 or the reverse4 ,i call the first of these two motions clock-rotation1 the second versed-rotation4 ,the present class of ,od-subjects present the following remarkable differences among themselves3-- ,over one class1 including gold1 zinc1 and polished glass1 a circular mass of bicarbonate of soda1 the odometer primarily oscillates longitudinally4 ,with the other class1 which includes pearl1 ground glass1 copper1 a circular mass of tartaric acid1 the odometer held over the centre primarily oscillates transversely4 ,over polished glass1 an odometer of resin oscillates transversely2 over ground glass longitudinally4 ,each of these movements is replaced by the other1 when the thumb is brought into contact with the odometer-finger4 7,see figs4 #a and #b1 in which the continuous line represents the primary motion2 the dotted line1 the secondary or complementary or reversed motion47 99 99 99 99 99 ,,ii4 ,analysis of the forces1 or currents conducing to1 or implicated in the movements of the odometer just described4 ,it has been said that the above movements manifest themselves when the odometer is held over the centre of the ,od-subject4 ,let us now examine the consequences of holding the odometer extra-marginally to1 or beyond the edge of1 the ,od-subject4 ,illustration3 ,diagram showing figs4 #a-h ,illustration3 ,diagram showing figs4 #i-ad a4 ,let the odometer be held a quarter of an inch away from1 and over each cardinal point of a sovereign1 or zinc circular disc1 in succession4 ,result--,held near the distal point1 its motion is proximad4 ,held near the proximal point1 its motion is proximad4 ,held near the dextral point1 its motion is sinistrad4 ,held near the sinistral point1 its motion is sinistrad4 7,see fig4 #c47 ,but the first two impulses thus attained correspond with the direction of the primary oscillations of the odometer1 the last two with its complementary oscillations2 and if the odometer be held now over different points in succession of the two diametral lines1 suspended1 of course1 by the finger alone over the first series of points1 and by the finger touched by the thumb over the second1 it will be found that the primary oscillations originated over every point of the longitudinal diameter of the zinc disc are proximad2 and that those obtainable over any part of the transverse diameter of the zinc disc are sinistrad4 ,then the forces or currents are made manifest by which the two sets of oscillations are produced2 and the marvel of the prompt substitution of one for the other is at an end2 for it is evident that these two forces1 whether produced or only revealed by the presence of the odometer1 co-exist2 and that the changed ,od-relations of the experimenter to the odometer1 7effected by disjoining the thumb from1 or joining it to1 the forefinger17 simply act by giving temporary predominance to one of the two co-existent currents4 ,if these experiments be made at the edge of the copper disc1 they elicit opposite but parallel results4 7,see fig4 #d47 ,they evince the existence of two currents1 one dextrad1 the other sinistrad1 from which the same conclusions may be deduced4 ,it is important to notice1 that in all this class of the experiments1 the distad and dextrad currents are manifested in combination2 and in like manner the proximad and sinistrad4 ,this combination is further exemplified in the next experiment1 which ,i shall describe4 b4 ,excite the above extra-marginal motions of the odometer held near the two plates in succession2 and then apply the thumb to the finger in each experiment4 ,result--,tangential motions are manifested parallel to the diametral motions before displayed4 7,see figs4 #e and #f47 ,we cannot1 however1 suppose these extra-marginal tangential motions to be the lateral limits of the four great currents1 inasmuch as they are obtained by the versed process to that which obtains the central motion2 and the question arises1 what then are the limits of the central currents8 c4 ,hold the odometer over the zinc disc at its centre2 of course1 longitudinal oscillations determined by the proximad current manifest themselves4 ,then shift its place on the transverse diameter more and more to the left4 ,first ,result--,for something more than a quarter of the whole diameter1 the motion continues longitudinal1 proving that the central current has a breadth at least something exceeding half the diameter4 ,same result on the other side of the centre4 ,second ,result--,when the odometer nears the sinistral cardinal point of the zinc disc1 its longitudinal proximad motion is replaced by the motion ,i have called clock-rotation4 ,when it is held near the dextral cardinal point1 versed rotation manifests itself4 ,this second result establishes that the longitudinal proximad current extends laterally to the edges of the disc2 but that1 when near to them1 the force of the co-existing transverse current asserts itself1 driving the odometer 7on the left7 off in a sinistro-proximad diagonal1 which ends in the establishment of clock-rotation2 on the right driving the central current off1 in a dextro-proximad diagonal1 resulting in versed rotation4 7,see fig4 #g47 ,parallel and opposite results are obtained by the odometer when these experiments are repeated with the copper disc2 and necessarily the clock-rotation appears near the proximad margin of the disc1 the versed rotation near the distal edge4 ,therefore it is evident that the great longitudinal and transverse currents extend over the whole disc1 but not beyond it4 ,experiment a1 section ,,ii41 and figs4 #c and #d1 show that1 immediately beyond the cardinal points1 single forces are in operation4 ,other interesting results follow from trying with the odometer the extra-marginal spaces between the cardinal points4 d4 ,first let the central points between each pair of cardinal points be tried with the zinc disc4 ,result--7see fig4 #i17--;a dextro-proximad current is manifested between the sinistral and distal points1 and between the proximal and dextral points2 a sinistro-proximad current is manifested between the dextral and distal1 and between the proximal and sinistral points--giving the impression that there exist two diagonal forces1 comparable to the longitudinal and transverse forces4 ,fig4 #aj gives the corresponding1 but opposite1 results obtained upon the copper disc4 ,it is1 however1 doubtful whether these currents traverse the whole disc4 ,for if the experiment is made of following each upon the disc1 their influence disappears at less than a quarter of the diameter1 where the odometer is found to obey on the zinc disc the proximad current1 on the copper disc the dextrad current4 ,or1 probably1 these currents are the simple expression of the action of two equal forces moving the body operated on by them 7at right angles to each other7 in the diagonal4 ,these effects thus form a remarkable contrast with the results given in figs4 #g and #h1 wherein rotatory movements are manifested2 and they seem to show that an essential element in these rotatory movements is1 that one of the two currents acting on the odometer must1 in the latter case1 be of superior force to the other4 e4 ,repeat the last experiments versed1 or with the thumb applied to the forefinger4 ,results--7see figs4 #aa and #ab7--,tangential forces are developed1 the directions of which are opposite1 as obtained over the zinc and over the copper discs4 f4 ,repeat the extra-marginal trials of the odometer in all the halves of the inter-cardinal spaces1 both with the zinc and with the copper discs4 7,see figs4 #ac and #ad47 ,result--,a complicated series of rotatory movements1 eight for each disc2 four in each case showing clock-rotation--four versed rotation--but opposite in the corresponding spaces of the two discs4 ,on applying the thumb to the odometer finger1 the rotations become exactly inverted so that1 in that case2 fig4 #ad represents what is now manifested in the zinc disc1 fig4 #ac what is now manifested in the copper disc4 ,,iii4 ,motions of the odometer obtained over the same class of substances1 when of irregular figure and unequal thickness4 a4 ,let the odometer be held over the middle of a line of four sovereigns disposed either longitudinally1 transversely1 or obliquely4 ,result--,long oscillations over the axis of the line of sovereigns4 ,but the oscillations are not of equal length4 ,at one end of the line they extend to the edge of the fourth sovereign4 ,at the other1 they pass an inch beyond it4 b4 ,repeat the experiment1 touching the odometer-finger with the right thumb4 ,result--,axial oscillations as before1 and unequal as before1 but in the contrary direction4 c4 ,dispose four sovereigns in a line2 then place two others upon any one of the four1 and hold the odometer over the table at three inches to one side of the middle of the line4 ,result--,the odometer swings in each instance towards that sovereign on which the two additional are placed--but unequally4 ,we will suppose that it has swung with sufficient strength to reach the disc of the loaded sovereign1--the oscillation in the contrary direction is but two inches in length4 d4 ,repeat the experiment1 with the thumb applied4 ,results--,oscillations ensue of the same length1 and they are again unequal1 but in the contrary direction4 ,now they do not reach the pile of sovereigns by an inch1 but they pass three inches in the opposite direction4 ,illustration3 ,diagram showing figs4 #ae-bd ,illustration3 ,diagram showing fisg #be-bi ,thus a force is brought into view having this new quality3 when the ,od-relations of the experimenter are versed1 a change ensues1 not into motion in a plane transverse to the former one1 but the direction of the new motion is simply the opposite of the first1 or the odometer appears to be attracted or repelled towards the ,od-subject alternately4 e4 ,try the same experiment with a single sovereign1 or with the zinc disc4 ,result--,the odometer held at four inches distance is attracted and repelled just as in the preceding instance4 ,then an irregular form of the ,od-subject1 or its unequal mass at different parts1 have nothing to do with this new motion2 and it is evident that the relation of the latter to the former class of oscillatory motions will be easily determinable4 f4 ,lay the proper disc before you 7see fig4 #ae17 and hold the odometer over the production in each direction of its transversal line beyond the limits of the disc4 ,results--,when held near the right edge of the disc1 as before mentioned1 a dextrad motion is developed2 that is to say1 the odometer moves off from the dextral cardinal point of the disc1 oscillatively4 ,this movement1 or those oscillations outward1 are fainter and fainter1 as the odometer is held over points more and more remote from the disc4 ,at length1 at the distance of an inch and a half1 the odometer becomes absolutely stationary4 ,when moved1 however1 still farther off1 motion begins again1 which is very lively at four to five inches distance from the disc1 its direction being sensibly toward the disc4 ,moved farther off1 still the same motion continues1 and is detectable ten to twelve inches off the ,od-subject4 ,when the same experiments are made on the left edge of the ,od-subject1 phenomena just the reverse are manifested for the same distance4 ,the extra-marginal dextrad motion is transverse for an inch and a half4 ,then there occurs a point of quiescence2 on the other side of which the odometer swings in free and long sinistrad or repelled oscillations4 g4 ,repeat these experiments 7fig4 #af17 with the thumb applied4 ,result--,on the left side the near extra-marginal dextrad motion is replaced by a tangential proximad motion2 and the centrifugal oscillations beyond the point of quiescence are replaced by centripetal oscillations4 ,on the right side again1 the near dextrad extra-marginal oscillations are replaced by a proximad tangential current3 while beyond the point of quiescence1 the remote centripetal oscillations are reversed into centrifugal ones4 ,effects parallel to these are attained at each of the cardinal and inter-cardinal points of the whole circumference1 upon the zinc or copper disc1 but as usual always reversed4 ,opposite to the eight intervening spaces1 the character of the remote motion is changed4 ,there it is a rotatory motion in a direction the reverse of the rotatory motion shown in figs4 #ae and #af4 ,thus1 there exists all round the disc1 at a distance of about an inch and a half1 a circle of complete repose4 ,within this the proper1 or near1 extra-marginal movements of the odometer are manifested3 without it1 the motions of the second and remote force last described4 ,but to return to the facts mentioned at the beginning of this section4 ,the movements of the odometer over a line of sovereigns1 or from a distance towards its centre of gravity1 are evidently the consequences of this remote force coming into operation2 the long and forcible oscillations caused by which toward or from a remote point override the smaller near extra-marginal1 and the super-discal forces of the ,od-subject4 ,,iv4 ,i have next to deal with the effects obtained by trying the odometer with mineral bodies1 in which electric1 chemical1 or magnetic forces are energizing1 or that force on which crystalline structure depends1 and with organized bodies in possession of life4 ,in this section1 ,i propose to describe the simple resultants1 analogous to the two diametral movements1 obtained when the odometer is held over a sovereign4 ,it will be remembered that1 of these two1 one only manifested itself at a time2 and that their meridians were determined by the person of the experimenter4 ,one movement was either in the direction of the mesial plane of his person1 or in one parallel to it--namely1 the longitudinal oscillations2 the other was in a plane at right angles to the first4 ,the corresponding movements of the odometer with the class of bodies now to be considered are rotatory2 and two1 at least1 are always simultaneously manifested--one a clock rotation1 the other a versed rotation4 ,these opposite rotations are likewise always manifested on opposite sides or opposite ends of the ,od-subject1 indicating the development of polarity4 ,finally1 the force of this polarity is such as to render the influence of the person of the experimenter nugatory as to the direction of the forces4 ,accordingly1 if a horse-shoe magnet is laid in any position in reference to the experimenter1 clock-rotation is always obtained by holding the odometer half an inch above1 and beyond its northward pole2 and versed rotation is invariably obtained in like manner at its southward pole4 ,the effect of touching the odometer-finger with the thumb is exactly to reverse the two rotations4 ,i will now describe the individual instances in which these rotations are manifested2 or the parts of each ,od-subject over which the odometer rotates in opposite directions4 ,,clock-,,rotation4 ,,versed-,,rotation4 a4 ,a stick of sealing-wax excited ,a glass tube similarly excited4 by friction with flannel or silk4 ,a glass tube excited by rubbing it with fur4 b4 ,the zinc disc of an arrangement ,the copper disc of the same1 the of two zinc and copper discs odometer being held over against moistened with salt and water1 the the surface of the copper disc2 odometer being held opposite to the for again1 if it be held to the middle of the zinc disc2 for if it edge of the copper disc1 the be held beyond the disc1 half an opposite result follows1 and the inch from and on the exact level rotation is clock-rotation4 of the zinc disc1 versed-rotation is manifested round the whole circumference4 c4 ,a mixture of half a drachm of ,a mixture of half a drachm of bicarbonate of soda and five grains tartaric of bicarbonate acid and five grain of tartaric acid1 of soda4 when effervescing upon a plate after the addition of water4 d4 ,the northward pole of a horse-shoe ,the southward pole of the same4 magnet1 or of a magnetic needle freely suspended4 e4 ,one pole of a large crystal1 which1 ,the opposite pole4 is to be found out by this experiment4 f4 ,the root of a garden weed freshly ,the leaves of the same4 taken from the ground4 g4 ,the stalk end of an orange1 and ,the opposite points of the same4 of an apple1 and of an orange pip4 h4 ,the small end of an egg4 ,the large end of the same4 i4 ,the tips of the fingers on either ,the top of the thumb and great hand1 and of the toes of either toe4 foot4 k4 ,right side of the head of a ,left side4 sparrow4 ,the last holds likewise with the greater part of the human body2 but the results of trying the odometer with the human frame are so complicated1 that ,i shall reserve their consideration for a separate section4 ,v4 ,the mechanical solution of these phenomena is simple enough4 ,the odometer must be under the influence of two constant and unequal rectilinear forces1 operating at right angles to each other on the gold ring1 the effects of which are modified by the centripetal force of its gravitation4 ,all that is required is1 to determine by observation the place1 direction1 and limits of the two forces4 ,it will render the description which follows easier1 to suppose that the pole of the ,od-subject which causes clock-rotation be turned directly from the experimenter2 for example1 that an egg be placed longways to the experimenter with its small end from him1 or a bar magnet with its northward pole from him4 ,in the case of a horse-shoe magnet1 both poles are then turned from you4 ,so1 too1 in the case of the hand1 the fingers and thumbs are both to be turned away4 a4 ,odometer held immediately before1 and a quarter of an inch from1 the small end of an egg4 ,result--,distad motion1 or motion in the direction of the long axis of the egg1 from the egg4 b4 ,odometer similarly held to the great end4 ,result--,proximad motion of the odometer--that is1 again1 motion directly from the axis of the egg4 c4 ,hold the odometer near either side of the egg1 one-fifth of the distance from either end4 ,results--,transverse sinistrad oscillations4 ,the same current may be detected above the egg on the same parallels4 ,the effects described are given in fig4 #ag4 ,then here are1 at either end of the egg1 two rectilinear currents acting at right angles to each other4 ,fig4 #ah represents the complementary motions to the above1 which are obtained by touching the odometer finger with the thumb4 ,a parallel combination of rectilinear motions is produced1 but in another way4 ,the next three figures exemplify the composition of forces necessary to produce the rotatory motion of the odometer4 ,figs4 #ai and #bj are intended to represent the large ends of two eggs1 so placed that the axial currents of the two shall cross at right angles1 at a point equidistant1 let us say at half an inch exactly1 from the end of each egg4 ,if the ring be suspended exactly at the point of meeting of the two forces1 it will be driven off in the diagonal1 and continue simply to oscillate in the line ,a ,b4 ,but if either of the eggs is moved back to double its former distance from the point of intersection of the two forces1 the forces will be rendered unequal1 and new results will ensue4 ,the two experiments by which the results of this arrangement may be tried are represented in figs4 #ba1 #bb1 and figs4 #bc1 #bd4 ,the longer current is necessarily thereby the weaker of the two in each combination4 ,accordingly1 rotatory motion supervenes in each case instead of diagonal oscillation2 and the direction of the rotation is from the stronger towards the weaker current4 ,figure #be represents the various motions which may be elicited by holding the odometer at the sides or over different parts of a horse-shoe magnet4 ,the continued lines in all the diagrams represent the primary motions1 the dotted lines their complementary motions4 ,figures #bf and #bg represent1 in the same way1 the primary and secondary oscillations obtainable over the centre of1 or parallel to the needle4 ,figures #bh and #bi represent the motions displayed by the odometer1 when it is held above various points in the interval between two sovereigns1 placed upon the table an inch and a half asunder4 ,compound effects follow1 produced by the joint influence of the two bodies4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,vi4 ,i will finally describe the phenomena elicited by the odometer from the living human frame1 including those which are dependent on difference of sex4 ,parties to experiments with the odometer may be in the position either of ,od-subjects1 or of reversers of its effects in the hands of others1 or they may be themselves components of the odometer4 ,i can discover absolutely no difference in the results obtained by the odometer on men and women1 when treated as ,od-subjects4 ,the following results appear to me equally obtainable with persons of both sexes4 ,with the exception of the arms below the elbows1 the wrists and hands1 and of the legs below the knees1 the ankles and feet1 the two sides of the person display the polar differences already noticed4 ,if the odometer be held over the right side of the head1 7either front or back17 over the right side of the face1 over the right shoulder or elbow1 or right knee1 it exhibits clock-rotation4 ,held over the same parts on the left side1 it exhibits versed-rotation4 ,on touching the odometer-finger with the thumb1 these effects are of course reversed4 ,if the odometer be held over the middle and outside of either arm1 or over the middle and back of either fore-arm or hand1 it oscillates longitudinally and towards the hand or foot4 ,on reapplying the thumb1 these longitudinal oscillations are replaced by transverse oscillations1 having a direction outwards--i4 e41 away from the mesial plane of the frame4 ,the phenomena last described show that the primary idea of a transverse polarity for the whole frame is still verifiable1 even in the extreme parts of either limb4 ,but below the elbows and knees a second polarity is superinduced upon the former4 ,below the elbows and knees1 one side of each limb repeats the phenomena of the right side of the body1 the other those of the left4 ,the odometer held over the tips of the fingers of either hand exhibits clock-rotation1 over the thumb of either hand versed-rotation2 and with these1 as ,i have mentioned1 all the other effects that can be elicited out of the two limbs of a horse-shoe magnet4 ,the same rotatory movements may likewise be obtained by holding the odometer near the two edges of the hand1 wrist1 fore-arm4 ,the latter singularity1 which contrasts with the simpler effects on the upper arm1 must result from the combination of the two polarities--the systemic and the submembral one4 ,the odometer1 held over the back of the neck or throat1 oscillates transversely4 ,when versed1 longitudinally4 ,it appears to me now that women generally are incapable of eliciting the movements of the odometer when held by themselves1 without touching a second party4 ,i have already1 in the introductory part of this letter1 given a summary of all the modes ,i am acquainted with of reversing the motions of the odometer4 ,perhaps ,i have presumed too much in heading this letter with the title of 8,the ,solution40 ,but what is the solution of physical phenomena but the displaying of the forces which compel their sequence8 ,as an inquiry progresses1 a few general expressions take the place of the first imperfect and complicated explanation4 ,but the first step made was still a solution2 and the highest solution ever yet obtained has probably still to be merged in some expression yet more general4 ,so the attraction of gravitation is probably connected with1 or balanced by1 a corresponding repulsive force1 coming into operation at some enormous distance from the centre of each planetary sphere1 and the two may eventually prove to form one law4 ,but ,i had hoped that ,i was not presuming in asserting that the present inquiry has immediate practical applications1 such as seldom fall to the lot of so young an investigation4 ,the odometer may prove a useful test of the presence and qualities of electric1 chemical1 and magnetic actions2 it will probably help to determine the electrochemical qualities of bodies2 and in large or small crystalline masses--in the diamond1 for instance--will serve to show the axes and distinguish the opposite poles4 ,in reference to biology1 it will probably furnish the long-wanted criterion between death and apparent death2 for ,i observe that1 with an egg long kept1 but still alive1 though no longer likely to be very palatable1 the odometer freely moves in the way described in the fourth section4 ,but it treats the freshest egg1 when boiled1 as if it were a lump of zinc4 ,nevertheless ,i am not without certain misgivings4 ,i suspect that the divining-ring will be found to manifest genuine ,od-motions in the hands of as small a number as succeed with the divining-rod4 ,and ,i fear that overhasty confidence in results only seemingly sound1 may lead many astray into a wide field of self-deception4 ,,postscript4 ,an accident has given me the opportunity of making further additions to this little volume1 of which ,i proceed to avail myself2 and1 first1 by communicating my latest experiments with the divining-ring1 ,july #bd4 ,i4 ,i have stated that1 if a fresh egg be placed upon the table1 with the small end directed from me--or a crystal1 with one definite pole so turned from me--or a bar-magnet1 with its northward pole so disposed--and ,i then suspend the divining-ring half an inch above either of the three so averted ends1 and half an inch further off from me1 the ring exhibits clock-rotation in each instance4 ,held in a parallel manner over the opposite ends--that is1 half an inch from1 and half an inch higher than1 the same--the ring exhibits versed-rotation4 ,if the three ,od-subjects be moved round1 so that their hitherto distal ends point to the right1 or if they be further turned1 so as to bring the previously distal ends now to point directly towards me1 the ring continues to exhibit exactly the same motions as in the first instance4 ,if1 these objects being removed1 ,i lay a horse-shoe magnet on the table before me1 with its poles turned directly from me1 the northward limb being on my left hand1 the southward limb-pole on my right1 and experiments parallel to those just described are made1 the results remain the same4 ,if1 near one side of the horse-shoe magnet1 ,i lay my left hand on the table1 the palm downwards1 the thumb held wide of the fingers1 the ring1 if suspended half an inch from and above either of the finger-points1 displays clock-rotation2 suspended similarly before and above the point of the thumb1 versed-rotation4 ,or the fingers of the left hand1 so disposed1 may be compared1 in reference to ,od1 to the northward pole of a horse-shoe magnet1 while the thumb corresponds with its southward pole4 ,if1 removing my left hand1 ,i turn the horse-shoe magnet1 without altering the side on which it rests1 half round1 so that the poles point directly towards me1 the northward pole being now1 of course1 on my right1 the southward pole on my left1 the ring held as before over either of the two poles1 displays the same results4 ,if ,i now move the magnet still nearer to me1 so that its two poles are an inch beyond the edge of the table1 ,i can obtain results which furnish a more precise explanation of the two rotatory movements already described1 than ,i had before arrived at4 ,if ,i now suspend the ring1 with its lowest part on a level with the magnet1 and half an inch from its northward pole--that is1 half an inch nearer me--it begins to oscillate longitudinally1 with a bias towards me1 as if it were repelled from the pole of the magnet4 ,if ,i then suspend the ring an inch vertically above the first point of suspension1 it begins to oscillate transversely1 with a bias towards the right1 or as if impelled by a dextrad current4 ,if ,i then lower the ring half an inch1 the first effect observed is1 that it oscillates obliquely1 being evidently impelled at once to the right and towards me--that is1 in the diagonal of the two forces1 of each of which ,i had before obtained the separate influence4 ,in this third variation of the experiments1 ,i have brought the ring to the limit of the two currents1 where both tell upon it4 ,this oblique oscillation soon1 however1 undergoes a change3 it changes into clock-rotation1 showing that the transverse or dextrad current is stronger than the longitudinal or proximad current4 ,if parallel experiments be made at levels below that of the pole of the magnet1 corresponding but opposite results ensue4 ,if the whole series be repeated upon the south pole of the magnet1 opposite but perfectly corresponding results are again obtained3 and similar results may be obtained with the two poles of an egg4 ,,ii4 ,the mode in which ,i have latterly educed the rotatory movements depending upon galvanism1 has been this4 ,i have laid two discs1 one of zinc1 the other of copper1 one on the other1 having previously moistened their surfaces with salt and water4 ,then1 as ,i mentioned1 the ring held over the middle of the zinc disc 7that being uppermost7 exhibits clock-rotation4 ,held over the middle of the copper disc1 when that is laid uppermost1 versed-rotation4 ,i mentioned1 too1 that if held beyond1 but near the circumference of the same discs1 the direction of the motion of the ring is reversed4 ,the discs which ,i employ are circular1 an inch and a half in diameter1 and about as thick as a sovereign4 ,upon these ,i do not fail to obtain1 when dried and used singly1 the first series of phenomena described in the preceding letter4 ,but it occurred to me to try what would be the result of suspending the ring over the two together1 and alternately laid uppermost1 when they had been well cleaned and dried4 ,this is evidently a still simpler voltaic arrangement than when the salt and water is additionally used4 ,the result was in the highest degree interesting4 ,when ,i suspend the ring half an inch above the centre of the copper disc1 7that being laid uppermost17 the first motion observed is transverse2 but after a few oscillations it becomes oblique--dextrad and proximad combined1 in the diagonal between the primary influences of the zinc and of the copper4 ,this change does not last long2 the transverse force again carries it1 in this instance1 and clock-rotation is permanently established4 ,when the zinc is uppermost1 the corresponding opposite phenomena manifest themselves2 and in either case a reversed movement occurs1 if the ring is held extra-marginally to the discs4 ,,iii4 ,i may say that ,i have now obtained positive evidence that these motions of the odometer do not depend upon my own will1 or the sympathy of my will with existing conceptions in my mind2 for they succeed nearly equally well when the discs are covered with half a sheet of writing-paper4 ,in nine cases out of ten1 when ,i thus manage to be in perfect ignorance which disc1 or what combination of the two1 is submitted to the odometer1 the right results manifest themselves1 and the cause of the occasional failures is generally obvious4 ,let me add upon this topic1 that one day1 the weather being cold and wet1 and myself suffering severely with rheumatism1 the odometer would not move at all in my hand4 ,on another day1 late in the evening it was1 when ,i happened to be much fatigued and exhausted1 the ring moved1 indeed1 but every motion was exactly reversed2 thus my left hand ,i found now obtained exactly the results which1 on other occasions1 ,i got with the right4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,iv4 ,but by what cause1 then--through what mechanism1 so to speak1 are the movements of the odometer immediately produced8 ,early in the inquiry ,i made this experiment4 ,instead of winding the free end of the silk round my finger1 ,i wound it round a cedar-pencil1 and laid the latter upon the backs of two books1 which were made to stand on their edges1 four inches apart1 with the ,od-subject on the table between them1 the ring being suspended half an inch above it4 ,the ring1 of course1 remained stationary4 ,then ,i took hold of the pencil with my finger and thumb1 at the point where the silk was wound round it2 my finger and thumb rested on the silk2 but no motion of the odometer ensued4 ,hence it follows1 that the odometer is1 after all1 always set in motion by the play of my own muscles4 ,i venture then to suppose that my sentient nerves1 unknown to me1 detect on these occasions certain relations of matter--let me call them currents of force--which determine in me reflexly certain sympathetic motions of the very lightest1 and even of an unconscious character4 ,this idea1 which ,i am sure affords the just solution of the matter1 is highly consistent with some observations which ,i have before recounted4 ,it explains how the primary delicate impression should yield to the coarser influence of a strong conception in the mind1 that this or that other motion of the ring is about to follow1 or even to that of a vivid and1 so to say1 abstract conception of another motion4 ,it explains what ,i have several times verified1 that on certain days a person standing behind me with his hand on my ear1 or on my shoulder1 can1 by an effort of his will 7mine not resisting17 make the odometer which ,i am holding move whichever way he happens strongly to image to himself1 without communicating the same to me4 ,it explains to me on what the difference consists between those who can set the divining-ring in motion1 without a conscious effort1 and those who cannot4 ,the former1 it will be found1 are persons of so great nervous mobility1 that any such motions1 if their occurrence be forcibly anticipated by them1 will certainly be realized by their sympathetic frames4 ,among this class should be sought1 and would still remain to be detected by experiment1 those whose impressionability by ,od should prove commensurate with their nervous mobility4 ,finally1 ,i cannot doubt that the view which ,i have thus arrived at respecting the mechanism of the motions of the odometer1 is equally applicable to the explanation of those of the divining-rod4 ,i see that1 through its means1 many before anomalous facts1 with the narrative of which ,i have not bored the reader1 which emerged in my former trials of the divining rod1 made by the hands of others1 lose their obscurity and contradictoriness1 and leave the whole subject in the condition of an intelligible and luminous conception4 ,n4 ,b4--,it is a pity that of the inquirers who now amuse themselves with investigating these subjects1 very few realize in their minds the idea of ,von ,reichenbach1 that ,od1 though often exhibiting the same relations with electricity and magnetism1 is yet an utterly different principle4 ,,letter ,,xiv4 ,,hypnotism4 ,,trance-,,umbra4--,mr4 ,braid's discovery--,trance-faculties manifested in the waking state--,self-induced waking clairvoyance--,conclusion4 ,it is an advantage attending a long and patient analysis of1 and cautious theorizing upon1 a new subject of inquiry1 that when fresh facts and principles emerge in it1 instead of disturbing such solid work as ,i have supposed1 they but enrich and strengthen it1 and find1 as it were1 prepared for them appropriate niches4 ,something of this satisfaction ,i experience1 when ,i have to render tardy justice to ,mr4 ,braid's discovery1 and to give an account of the wonders realized by ,dr4 ,darling1 ,mr4 ,lewis1 and others4 ,or1 ,i have observed1 that trance1 considered in reference to its production1 has a twofold character4 ,it presents itself either as a spontaneous seizure brought on unexpectedly by a continuance of mental or physical excitement or exhaustion2 or as intentionally induced through the systematic direction by some second person1 more or less cognisant what definite effects he can produce1 of certain moral and physical influences upon the party intended to be wrought on4 ,mr4 ,braid has added a third causal difference to the theory of trance4 ,he has shown that trance can be induced by the subject of it himself voluntarily1 by the use of certain means1 which call into operation a special principle4 ,the effects which he obtained by these means1 but which he perhaps studied too much to separate from the effects of mesmerism--these and their principle he denominated ,hypnotism4 ,again1 ,i have shown that all the forms of trance may be1 and require to be1 arranged under five types--viz41 death-trance1 trance-coma1 initial trance1 half-waking trance1 full-waking trance4 ,i mentioned1 besides1 that in the manifestation of ,zschokke's seer-gift1 and in the accounts which we receive of the performances called second-sight1 the extended exoneural perception was introduced by a brief period1 in which the performer was in a degree absorbed and lost1 yet did not pass on into a second and separate phase of consciousness4 ,he was still always himself1 and observed and remembered as parts of his natural order of recollections the impressions which then occurred to him4 ,this same state must be that which ,i have seen described as one peculiarly suited to the exhibition of phreno-mesmerism4 ,mr4 ,braid appears likewise often to have brought it on in his curative applications of hypnotism4 ,but now it has new importance and distinctness conferred upon it1 as being the state in which the wonderful phenomena of 8mental suggestion0 are best displayed1 and in which conscious clairvoyance is manifested4 ,as this state does not amount to complete trance1 but as it is a fore-shadowing of it1 as it were1 ,i venture to propose for it the name of trance-umbra4 ,i4 ,hypnotism4--,mr4 ,braid discovered that if certain sensitive persons fix their sight steadily upon a small bright object1 held near and above the forehead1 or their sight becoming fatigued1 and the eyelids fall1 if they keep their attention strained as if they were still observing the same object1 both in the upward direction of the eye and in their thought1 they lose themselves and go off into a state which1 in its full development1 is1 in fact1 initial trance1 bordering often on trance-coma4 ,the party thus fixed sometimes exhibited many of the humbler performances of ordinarily mesmerised persons4 ,but ,mr4 ,braid shall speak for himself2 ,i quote from his ,neurhypnology1 published in ,london in #ahdc4 8,i requested10 narrates ,mr4 ,braid1 8a young gentleman present to sit down1 and maintain a fixed stare at the top of a wine-bottle1 placed so much above him as to produce a considerable strain on the eyes and eyelids1 to enable him to maintain a steady view of the object4 ,in three minutes his eyelids closed1 a gush of tears ran down his cheeks1 his head drooped1 his face was slightly convulsed1 he gave a groan1 and instantly fell into profound sleep--the respiration becoming slow1 deep1 and sibilant1 the right hand and arm being agitated by slight convulsive movements10 7p4 #ag47 ,again1 7p4 #ah17 8,i called up10 continues ,mr4 ,braid1 8one of my men-servants1 who knew nothing of mesmerism1 and gave him such directions as were calculated to impress his mind with the idea1 that his fixed attention was merely for the purpose of watching a chemical experiment in the preparation of some medicine2 and being familiar with such he could feel no alarm4 ,in two minutes and a half his eyelids closed slowly with a vibrating motion1 his chin fell on his breast1 he gave a deep sigh1 and instantly was in a deep sleep1 breathing loudly4 ,in about one minute after his profound sleep1 ,i roused him1 and pretended to chide him for being so careless1 said he ought to be ashamed of himself for not being able to attend to my instructions for three minutes without falling asleep1 and ordered him down stairs4 ,in a short time ,i recalled this young man and desired him to sit down once more1 but to be careful not to fall asleep again1 as on the former occasion4 ,he sat down with this intention2 but at the expiration of two minutes and a half1 his eyelids closed1 and exactly the same phenomena as in the former experiment ensued40 ,mr4 ,braid adds1 8,i again tried the experiment of causing the first person spoken of to gaze on a different object to that used in the first experiment1 but still1 as ,i anticipated1 the phenomena were the same4 ,i also tried on him ,m4 ,lafontaine's mode of mesmerising with the thumbs and eyes1 and likewise by gazing on my eyes without contact2 and still the effects were the same40 ,it is indeed perfectly obvious that ,mr4 ,braid succeeded in producing a heavy form of initial trance in these cases4 ,nor is it easy to get rid of the impression that the effect was not partly at least owing to his personal ,od-influence4 ,but1 remembering what ,i witnessed of his performances1 and construing candidly all his statements1 ,i am disposed to believe that his method1 adopted by the patient when in a room alone1 upon himself1 would throw susceptible persons into trance4 ,mr4 ,braid appears to me to have the double merit1 first of having discovered the means of self-mesmerising--of so disturbing by very simple and harmless means the nervous system1 that trance would appear without the influence of a second party to aid its supervention--and secondly1 of having1 at an early period1 when prejudice ran very high in ,england against these practices1 availed himself of this disguised mesmerism to do much good in the treatment of disease4 ,mr4 ,braid does not appear to have fallen on any instances of clairvoyance1 but he narrates many observations relating to phreno-mesmerism4 ,,ii4 ,trance-,umbra4--,this is the best title ,i can hit on to designate the peculiar condition1 the study of which promises to exceed in interest that of any of the phases of perfect trance2 inasmuch as in this state the same extraordinary powers are manifested as in trance1 without the condition of an abstracted state of consciousness1 which rendered the possession of those powers useless1 at least1 directly1 to the person who manifested them4 ,it is true that this law could be broken2 the mesmeriser can desire an entranced clairvoyante to remember1 when she awakes1 any particular event or communication made by her4 ,but for this exceptional power a special injunction or permit is necessary4 ,in trance-umbra1 on the contrary1 the subject is throughout himself4 ,when exhibiting the wildest phenomena he is conscious of what he is doing1 and preserves afterwards as accurate a recollection of it as any of the spectators4 ,then1 how is trance-umbra induced8 ,how is it known that the shadow of trance has enveloped the patient1 and that1 though quite himself to all appearance1 he is in a state to manifest the highest trance-faculties8 ,the way to induce trance-umbra1 is to administer a little dose of mesmerism4 ,one operator1 like ,dr4 ,darling1 7,i quote from ,dr4 ,gregory's most instructive and interesting ,letters on ,animal ,magnetism17 directs his patient to sit still with his eyes fixed1 and his attention concentrated on a coin held in his hand1 or on a double-convex bit of zinc with a central portion of copper so held4 ,this is1 in truth1 a gentle dose of hypnotism4 ,the patient looks in quiet repose at a small object held in his hand or his lap1 instead of fatiguing his sensations by straining the eye-balls upwards4 ,suppose a group of a dozen persons sitting thus in a half-darkened1 still room1 preserving a studied quietude1 and concentrating their attention on one point of easy vision2 in from fifteen to twenty minutes one or more is found to be in the state of trance-umbra4 ,mr4 ,lewis 7,i quote again the same authority7 employs a different process4 ,he eyes his patients intently as they sit in a row before him1 still and composed1 with a concentrated will1 and its full outward expression by him1 to influence their psychical condition4 ,in five minutes it often happens that the state of trance-umbra supervenes4 ,in the mean time1 what has marked its arrival8 ,the ,rev4 ,r4 ,s4 ,f4 writes me1 that he had been three times the subject of the first of the two methods3 the operator was ,mr4 ,stone1 ,lecturer at the ,marylebone ,scientific ,institution4 ,the first two experiments were successful1 the third failed4 ,then ,mr4 ,f4 writes1 8,the only circumstance which ,i noticed 7bearing upon the above question7 in myself1 and which ,i afterwards found tallied with the experience of others1 was this3 ,on the two occasions when ,i was affected1 after about ten minutes the coin began to disappear from my sight1 and to reappear a confused1 brilliant substance1 similar to those appearances which remain on the retina after one has been looking towards the sun for a few minutes1 and ,i seemed for the moment to have fallen into a half-dreamy state2 but in the subsequent part of the experiments1 ,i appeared to myself to be in my ordinary state4 ,on the third occasion1 when the experiment failed with myself and with all the others1 7which ,i think might be accounted for by the accidental irregularity of the proceedings17 ,i did not experience the sensations mentioned above40 ,this account tallies with other evidence upon the point2 a brief period of disturbed sensation1 or threatening confusion1 or loss of consciousness1 passes over the patient4 ,the wing of the unseen power1 to speak figuratively1 has cast its shadow upon him4 ,it is evident that this transient psychical disturbance is the same phenomenon with that which ,zschokke experienced whenever his seer-gift was manifested4 ,the agency which thus can at pleasure be used to call forth trance-umbra1 is the same which employed longer1 or more intensely1 produces perfect trance4 ,the little dose thrilling through the system1 without driving sense and apprehension from their usual seats1 seems1 as it were1 to remove their fastenings2 to throw up1 as it were1 the sashes of the body1 so that the soul can now look forth and see1 not as through a glass1 darkly1 but free to grasp directly things out of its corporeal tenement1 whether of the nature of matter or mind4 ,but1 at the same time1 this same loosening of physical bonds renders the mind correspondingly denuded to aggressions from without4 ,we have seen how strangely the entranced mind becomes sympathetically subject to the will1 and the subject of the sensations of the person with whom it has been brought into mesmeric relation4 ,but now a new feature1 or one feebly manifested as yet in trance1 but parallel to the influence of sympathy1 displays itself4 ,the person in trance-umbra is an absolute slave to the spoken1 or even to the unexpressed 8mental suggestions0 of the operator4 ,sense1 memory1 judgment1 give way at his word4 ,the patient believes whatever he is told to believe1--that an apple is an orange1--that he himself is the ,duke of ,wellington1--that the operator standing before him is invisible to him1--and makes fruitless efforts to execute any voluntary movement the moment he is told he cannot4 ,i will quote a passage1 in illustration of the above1 again from ,mr4 ,f4's letter3--8,after a quarter of an hour ,mr4 ,stone came to us1 and looked in our eyes for a few seconds1 and desired us to close them4 ,he then placed his thumb lightly on my forehead1 and said1 peremptorily1 #8,you cannot open your eyes4' ,i had great difficulty in doing so1 but at last succeeded1 with a violent struggle4 ,after ,mr4 ,stone had repeated the order or suggestion once or twice more1 ,i was quite unable to open my eyes4 ,five out of the number1 7about a dozen17 who sat down were affected1 all more than myself4 ,on a succeeding evening1 however1 ,mr4 ,stone was able to proceed so far as to make me forget my name and address1 by the simple assertion1 #8,you cannot remember your name1' c41 though he had before this just asked for them1 and the answer was scarcely out of my mouth when he made me forget it4 ,i think ,i never exerted my will more strongly than in trying to open my eyelids when they had been thus closed2 but it appeared simply impossible to do this till the operator's magic #8,all right1' immediately set them free4 ,on several1 who were highly susceptible1 ,mr4 ,stone proceeded with other experiments4 ,a stick was said to be a rattlesnake1 and believed to be so4 ,the room became a garden at his command1 with wild beasts in it4 ,one was set a-fishing and snow-balling2 another taken up in a balloon4 ,a still more curious instance was when the subject was told that he was in the dark1 and a candle was passed before his eyes1 almost close enough to singe the eyebrows1 without producing any visual impression on the eye1 though the party operated on said he felt the warmth of it40 ,i have preferred giving additional and unpublished evidence of the wonderful control which can thus be 8suggestively0 exercised over the belief of a person in trance-umbra1 to quoting ,professor ,gregory's most interesting cases1 for which the reader must consult his recent valuable work4 ,in the sixth letter in the present volume1 7that on ,somnambulism17 ,i have exemplified the manifestation of the same phenomena in the case of the sleep-walker ,negretti4 ,as a large number of persons can be thrown easily into the state of trance-umbra2 and as then they are totally in the power of the operator1 it is surely most desirable that this and the parallel easily induced conditions of the frame should be made subjects of careful observation and study by many competent persons1 in order that the conditions necessary to their induction may be exactly ascertained1 and made public1 for the protection of society4 ,of equal interest is the discovery that clairvoyance may be manifested in the state of trance-umbra4 ,major ,buckley is spoken of by ,professor ,gregory as a gentleman possessing mesmerising force of a remarkable quality and degree4 ,it appears that he had been long in the habit of producing magnetic sleep1 and clairvoyance in the sleep1 before he discovered that1 in his subjects1 the sleep might be dispensed with4 ,dr4 ,gregory gives the following account of his present method3-- 8,major ,b4 first ascertains whether his subjects are susceptible1 by making1 with his hand1 passes above and below their hands1 from the wrist downwards4 ,if certain sensations1 such as tingling1 numbness1 c41 are strongly felt1 he knows that he will be able to produce the magnetic sleep4 ,but to ascertain whether he can obtain conscious clairvoyance1 he makes slow passes from his own forehead to his own chest4 ,if this produce a blue light in his face1 strongly visible1 the subject will probably acquire conscious clairvoyance4 ,if not1 or if the light be pale1 the subject will only become clairvoyant in the sleep1 7that is1 when in perfect trance47 ,taking those subjects who see a very deep blue light1 he continues to make passes over his own face1 and also over the object--a box or a nut1 for instance--in which written or printed words are enclosed1 which the clairvoyante is to read4 ,some subjects only require a pass or two to be made3 others require many4 ,they describe the blue light as rendering the box or nut transparent1 so that they can read what is inside4 ,this reminds us of the curious fact mentioned by ,von ,reichenbach1 that bars of iron or steel1 seen by conscious sensitives1 without any passes1 shining in the dark with the ,od glow1 appeared to them transparent like glass4 ,if too many passes are made by ,major ,b41 the blue light becomes so deep that they cannot read1 and some reverse passes must be made to render the colour of the light less deep4 ,major ,buckley has thus produced conscious clairvoyance in eighty-nine persons1 forty-four of whom have been able to read mottoes contained in nutshells purchased by other parties for the experiments4 ,the longest motto thus read contained ninety-eight words40 8,a lady1 one of ,major ,buckley's waking clairvoyantes1 read one hundred and three mottoes contained in nuts in one day1 without a pass being made on that occasion4 ,in this and in many other cases1 the power of reading through nuts1 boxes1 and envelopes1 remained1 when once induced1 for about a month1 and then disappeared4 ,the same lady1 after three months1 could no longer read without passes2 and it took five trials fully to restore the power4 ,this may be done1 however1 immediately by inducing the mesmeric sleep and clairvoyance in that state1 when the subjects1 in the hands of ,major ,buckley1 soon acquire the power of waking clairvoyance40 ,but stranger things remain behind--corollaries1 however1 of the preceding1 yet which eclipse these wonders1 if possible4 ,for a knowledge of these1 ,i am exclusively indebted to ,professor ,gregory's recent publication1 and ,i give them on his authority4 ,if the looking intently upon a piece of metal will produce trance and trance-umbra1 why should not the account of the ,egyptian boy-seers be correct8 ,if their performance be often a trick1 may not the protracted gaze on the black spot in their hand sometimes render them waking clairvoyantes8 and why1 on the same showing1 might not the gazing upon magic crystals or mirrors of jet occasionally have thrown the already awe-struck and fitly disposed lookers on them into the state in which either the magician at their side might compel suggestively images into their fancy1 or they1 acting for themselves1 have exercised independent ultravision1 retrovision1 prevision8 ,why1 again1 should not simple concentration of thought upon one uninteresting idea convert a susceptible subject into a soothsayer8 ,then read the following facts recorded by ,dr4 ,gregory2 ,i at least do not question their fidelity4 8,mr4 ,lewis possesses at times the power of spontaneous clairvoyance1 by simple concentration of thought4 ,he finds1 however1 that gazing into a crystal substance produces the state of waking clairvoyance in him much sooner and more easily4 ,on one occasion1 being in a house in ,edinburgh with a party1 he looked into a crystal1 and saw in it the inhabitants of another house at a considerable distance4 ,along with them he saw two strangers1 entire strangers to him4 ,these he described to the company4 ,he then proceeded to the other house1 and there found the two strangers whom he had described40 8,on another occasion he was asked to inspect a house and family1 quite unknown to him1 in ,sloane ,street1 ,chelsea1 he being in ,edinburgh with a party4 ,he saw in the crystal the family in ,london2 described the house1 and also an old gentleman very ill or dying1 and wearing a peculiar cap4 ,all was found to be correct1 and the cap was one which had lately been sent to the old gentleman4 ,on the same occasion ,mr4 ,lewis told a gentleman present that he had lost or mislaid a key of a very particular shape1 which he1 ,mr4 ,l41 saw in the crystal4 ,this was confirmed by the gentleman1 a total stranger to ,mr4 ,lewis40 8,sistimus hic tandem40 ,i think that ,i have tolerably succeeded in establishing the thesis with which these ,letters started1 that every superstition is based on a truth2 and ,i am in hopes that the mass of evidence which ,i have adduced--the very variety of the phenomena described1 joined to their mutual coherence--the theoretical consistency of the whole1 as if it were truly a vast body of living science1 and not the 8disjecta membra0 of a dream--will remove every remaining shade of doubt among candid readers1 that these inquiries are not less sound than they are curious4 ,,conclusion4 ,an acquaintance with the facts which it has been the object of the foregoing pages to assemble1 and to render into philosophy1 suggests one or two serious reflections4 ,we have seen the different results which have ensued when these facts have emerged into day in times of ignorance and in times of enlightenment4 ,on the first occasion they were viewed with terror--became instruments of superstition--were used for bad designs--and even originated new forms of crime1 before which common sense fled1 and justice became blind and iniquitous4 ,on the latter--,i speak of the reception of these facts towards and in the present century--they were recognised by one after another of the most sagacious observers of nature2 by ,jussieu1 for instance1 and by ,cuvier1 to begin with2 and gradually by an increasing host of candid1 well-informed1 and able followers1 as forming a part of natural science1 and as susceptible of important applications4 ,he is ranked among the wisest of mankind1 who announced that 8knowledge is power40 ,divine ,wisdom goes further1 and reveals to us that knowledge is a good and virtuous thing1 while ignorance is stamped by the same seal as sinful2 or how otherwise can we interpret the course of history and human experience1 which proves that1 by the very constitution of our being1 and the laws impressed upon the moral and physical world1 increase of knowledge contributes to promote general and individual well-doing and happiness1 while ignorance never fails to be followed by the contrary penal consequences8 ,therefore it is that those who unite good intentions and good principles1 with sound and well-cultivated abilities--in other words the truly wise--humbly deem1 that among the most acceptable offerings to our common ,maker must be diligence in exploring all the sources of knowledge which he has placed within our reach1 7which were hidden only that we might seek for them17 so as to unveil more and more of the forces and powers of nature1 in publishing the same abroad1 that all may profit by them1 and in striving to bend their agencies towards good1 and high1 and useful purposes4 ,,the ,,end4