Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 3.djvu/637

Rh and now, indeed, his crooked tail high in the air, he places himself on his head, and remains motionless, as if asleep, in this forced and unnatural position; while he finds his support in his feelers and two under claws.

It is really a surprising sight! While we then, as now, saw the conclusion of the experiment with satisfaction and interest, I, on my part, had seized an animal with the intention of endeavoring to place it on its head, without the magnetic strokes, and thereby to remove the reasonable thought of a secret "magnetic" influence contained in the strokes.

And see!—my crawfish, after in vain struggling in my firm grasp, actually stood just as motionless on its head as the one which my compainion had magnetized, and as this one here which I have placed before you on its head, without all that deceptive magnetism. And how was it with the opposite strokes, beginning from the head? My friend worked zealously with these strokes upon his crawfish, while I represented the opposite experiment. It lasted some time, until the crawfish began to move, and at last fell over and crawled away.

You see that my strokes here with this crawfish have so far no result, and I fear you will lose all patience. Indeed, let us confidently interrupt this opposite manipulation, and let us rather place the rest of the crawfish, without magnetism, on their heads, in order to confirm this striking circumstance again. The longer we wait before resuming the magnetic strokes from the head, the more sure we are at last to reap the benefit. It is the same with this as with the solemn request of a Catholic parish in Austria to their priest, which was, to send rain from heaven upon their parched fields, to which, however, the enlightened "Joseph," in order to postpone it a little, said: "Yes, willingly, children!—but not just yet, the barometer has been much too high for some time past!" Let us then follow the good advice of the wise pastor; you will see yourselves, if you wait, that gradually all the crawfish, standing motionless on their heads, move again of their own accord, without any mysterious manipulation! In regard to the influence of the other motion, it is nothing at all. We are able to act upon the altered nervous system of the crawfish by mechanical means, through the influence of a stream of air, through a sudden coolness or warmth, or through the natural disturbance previous to the awakening; that is, the restoration of the normal functional capacities.

You also see, gentlemen, our experiment then and now has terminated exactly as I predicted, and I hope that you will now be convinced, as my companion was, that the so-called "magnetizing" of the crawfish is an actual event; but, as I say, one "viewed unequally," and, therefore, not one! At the same time, the idea will become clear and distinct to you, which I have associated with the description of "events viewed unequally," and the reason that I have chosen this particular description, to demonstrate something which is not an event at all, will be apparent to you.