WHAT IS MESMERISM?
Sir,—I was invited some weeks ago to an exhibition of Mesmerism, to witness its extraordinary powers in the person of "Adolphe." There was a preliminary lecture, in bad taste enough, vulgarly offensive, in a tone of defiance of the members of the medical profession, whom the lecturer—having invited all to be present to hear the vituperation—seemed to consider as generally unbelievers in the science.
This was not judicious, for medical men ought to be more able than others to test the physical facts of Mesmerism; and it should have been remembered that some eminent men of the profession are, if not inventors or discoverers, at least the great promoters of the science.
A shrewd quack doctor, in a country town, having told the gaping clowns that some of them—fixing his eyes on the proper objects—were in danger from dreadful diseases, which he alone could cure, saw an eminent regular physician approaching in his carriage. "I will appeal," said he, "to Dr——, if it be not so." He stopped the carriage, and thus addressed the physician,—" I have been telling these good men that they are labouring under dreadful diseases," which he named in awful Latin, and added—"Qui vult decepi decipiatur: be so good, Doctor——, to say if that be not the truth." The Doctor bowed, and said "Undoubtedly." The infallible cure pills were soon all sold.
I confess this manner of the lecturer told with me thus: He rather wishes to keep away the profession, fearing their scrutiny; or, in case of their being sceptical, to cast contempt upon their knowledge. I think it would have been wiser to have conciliated them. The manner was not calculated to induce belief; nevertheless, mesmerism may be true: it may be a wonderful secret of nature. For my own part, neither believing nor disbelieving, but holding my judgment in abeyance, I desire to examine the science, or whatever it might be called, by the consistency of its facts. To do this, it is necessary first to lay down accurately what is claimed for it—not vaguely, as I find it in letters and lectures, where that which is asserted at one time as its power is denied at another; but to speak clearly of its congruent powers or asserted powers, without vacillation; then to follow these powers to their consequences—their necessary consequences—if they be powers at all; and to draw conclusions arising from the two natures upon which it works, or perhaps is worked upon—materiality and spirituality.
As to its claims. And here it is as well to make a preliminary remark—that a scientific vocabulary is wanted; for we are bewildered and misled by terms belonging only to our organs, which organs have nothing whatever to do with the phenomena of mesmerism. For instance, if the eye be closed effectually, it would be better not to use the word "seeing," and so on; and this is necessary, because while it is asserted that the organ is useless—and if so, the person mesmerised may as well have the object behind as before him—I generally notice, that the object to be known is put as near to the eye, as to the nose and mouth: but of this presently. I now only wish to lay down what is claimed as the powers. We might almost limit these to a few words, but fear to shock the reader, though in effect it must come to pretty much the same thing—that is, supposing the science not to be yet advanced to its extent—we will say then only a kind of
Omnipresence,
Omniscience,
not impeded by intervening solid or opaque substances, and equally valid (perhaps more valid) over the spiritual as over the material world. I speak here of a kind of—aware that it may be said that there are limits—which I am justified in doing, as no limits are defined; and the phenomena which do not succeed at one time and do succeed at another, according to the operation of the mesmeric influence, are really of the nature belonging to, and the property of omniscience and om-
