Page:Blackwood's Magazine volume 070.djvu/77

. And—this is important, that I may not step beyond the ground on which I am made to stand by the mesmerisers themselves, I will state what was asserted for Adolphe himself on the evening spoken of; and this will supersede the need of entering into the particulars of his exhibition.

It was given out at the conclusion of the evening, that Adolphe would be "at home"—to receive patients—to cure their diseases, and with as much infallibility as is ever claimed, by a kind of entering into the bodies of those patients; and then by a knowledge—instinctive or mesmeric, for lack of a term—not acquired by study of medicine or anatomy, of telling the exact drug or remedy for whatever disease the patient may have.

That he would likewise be "at home," (or consultation on the private affairs of persons, to inform them of extreme minutia of circumstances relating to them and their concerns, whether past, present, or to come—as, for instance, for the recovery of lost papers and documents, whereby they may be enabled to recover estates, to retrieve their affairs, and to know all combinations of circumstances, making for or against their interests. I do not think that any one present will deny that such is the substance of the promises held out to all who might be disposed thereby to visit Adolphe "at home for consultation."

Now, granting for a moment that be has this power, it necessarily follows he must be in spirit only, not in body, which is in the presence of the consultor, wherever the required documents are to be found, or where the personages are who are acting and designing for or against the interests to be speculated upon. And here a previous knowledge as to all the whereabouts must be supposed; and this is a power of being anywhere or everywhere, and of knowing every thing relating to the persons or matters to be inquired into, which is in its kind and its degree—for in human hands we may even here admit degrees—both omniscience and omnipresence

I asserted that these powers are not impeded by solid or opaque bodies intervening: let me show that this also is claimed for our belief. I do so, not only by asserting that it must necessarily be inferred from the nature of the things with regard to hidden documents, and persons at distances from the operating process—not only as to rooms, but of towns or countries ; but I will show it by this common mesmeric exhibition, and such was shown that evening. The mesmerised takes the hand of a person, and by so doing, as it is said, travels with him in mind; but I shall show he does more. In the instance exhibited, he " travelled" to a foreign country—that is, he crossed the sea; he entered into a home, described its furniture, its position, its form, &c. And here he could not be said to travel in the thought of the person with whom he was in "rapport," for he described a picture, which the gentleman did not think about, nor knew was there. This one fact, therefore, puts the affair out of, and beyond the category of thought-communicative-travelling or ubiquity. Now, I remember a week or two ago, seeing a letter quoted from Dr Elliotson, in which ho denied that certain persons could see through solid substances; but did not Adolphe in this case assume to travel through solid substances? For there is one kind of solid substance which, bodily or spiritually, must be passed through—the solid substance of this earth itself. For you will observe, here is a very serious obstacle, it being out of all possible rule of perspective to reach, say for instance Edinburgh, from this place, through the rotundity of the globe, without passing through a portion of its solidity; that is, if the organs, outward or inward, have anything whatever to do with the affair. If they have not, there is a presence of another kind—an ubiquity of spirit, knowing all and seeing all at one and the same time; so that, as I said, solid substances intervening are no obstacle. Nor do I say that the somnambulist always succeeds; the powers are said to be sometimes weak. All I require is to have the position of the powers established; and for that purpose, it is sufficient if the somnambulist ever succeeds, and if the success is not attributable to coincidence and chance.