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EXPERIMENTAL SPIRITISM. 
 
 - > 
 
 
 
 $0flk 0tt fSrthtms; 
 
 OR, 
 
 GUIDE FOR MEDIUMS AND INVOCATORS: 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 THE SPECIAL INSTRUCTION OF THE SPIRITS ON THE THEORY 
 OF ALL KINDS OF MANIFESTATIONS; THE MEANS OF 
 COMMUNICATING WITH THE INVISIBLE WORLD ; THE 
 DEVELOPMENT OF MEDIUMSHIP ; THE DIFFI- 
 CULTIES AND THE DANGERS THAT ARE 
 TO BE ENCOUNTERED IN THE 
 PRACTICE OF SPIRITISM. 
 
 BY 
 
 ALLAN KARDEC. 
 
 TRANSLATED BY EMMA A. WOOD. 
 
 BOSTON : 
 
 COLBY AND RICH, PUBLISHERS, 
 * 9 Montgomery Place. 
 
 is 74 . 
 
& 
 
 ,# 
 
 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, 
 
 By COLBY AND RICH, 
 
 In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 
 
 Stereotyped at the Boston Stereotype Foundry, 
 No. l'J Spring .baue. 
 
TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 In offering to the public a translation of a work of 
 so celebrated an author as Allan Kardec, and one so 
 much beloved among spiritists in foreign countries, not 
 only for his scientific attainments i'n spirit studies, but for 
 his purity of life and character, I feel my own incom- 
 petency for the task — my own incompetency but for 
 the assistance received from the Spirits who are inter- 
 ested in my undertaking. I have endeavored to ren- 
 der faithfully the exact meaning of the original, and I 
 can truly say the work of translating has been a labor 
 of love, to be fully repaid to me. by the good I am 
 sure it will perform among our own people. 
 
 E. A. W. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAG8 
 
 INTRODUCTION . 7 
 
 PART FIRST. 
 
 PRELIMINARY IDEAS. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 ARE THERE SPIRITS ? 13 
 
 Chapter II. 
 THE MARVELLOUS AND SUPERNATURAL . . 21 
 
 Chapter III. 
 METHOD 33 
 
 Manner of proceeding with Materialists. — Materialists from System, and 
 Materialists from Want of something Better. — Skeptics from Ignorance, from 
 Ill-will, from Interest and Insincerity, from Pusillanimity, from Religious 
 Scruples, from Deceptions. — Three Classes of Spiritists : Experimental 
 Spiritists, Imperfect Spiritists, Christian or True Spiritists. — Order in Spirit 
 Studies. 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 SYSTEMS 48 
 
 Different Modes of Viewing Spiritism. — Negative Systems: Charlatan- 
 ism, Insanity, Hallucination, Muscle Cracking, Physical Causes, Reflex 
 Action. — Affirmative Systems: System of the Co^ective Soul ; Somnambulic, 
 Pessimist, Diabolic or Demoniac, Optionist, Unispirit or Monospirit, Mul- 
 tispirit or Polyspirit Systems ; System of the Material Soul. 
 
 PART SECOND. 
 SPIRIT MANIFESTATIONS. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER 69 
 
 Chapter II. 
 PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. — TURNING TA- 
 BLES 76 
 
 3 ' 
 
4 CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter J 1 1. 
 INTELLIGENT MANIFESTATIONS 80 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS . . 84 
 
 Movements and Levitations. — Noises. — Increase and Diminution of 
 the Weight of Bodies. 
 
 Chapter V. 
 SPONTANEOUS PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS . 99 
 
 Noises, Racket, and Disturbances. — Objects thrown. — Phenomenon of 
 Materialization. — Dissertation of a Spirit on Materialization. 
 
 Chapter VI. 
 VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS 127 
 
 Questions on Apparitions. — Theoretic Essay on Apparitions. — Globular 
 Spirits. — Theory ot Hallucination. 
 
 Chapter VII. 
 BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION . . 151 
 
 Apparitions of the Spirit of the Living. — Double Men. — St. Alphonse 
 de Liguori and St. Antoine of Padua. — Vespasian. — Transfiguration. — In- 
 visibility. 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD . . 162 
 
 Clothing of Spirits. — Spontaneous Formation of Tangible Objects. — 
 Modification of the Properties of Matter. — Magnetic Curative Action. 
 
 Chapter IX. 
 HAUNTED PLACES 172 
 
 Chapter X. 
 NATURE OF COMMUNICATIONS 178 
 
 Gross, Frivolous, Serious, or Instructive Communications. 
 
 Chapter XL 
 SEMATOLOGY AND TYPTOLOGY 183 
 
 Language of Signs and Rappings. — Alphabetic Typtology. 
 
 Chapter XII. 
 
 PNEUMATOGRAPHY, OR DIRECT WRITING.— 
 PNEUMATOPHONY 190 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter XIII. 
 PSYCHOGRAPHY 196 
 
 Indirect Psychography : Baskets and Planchettcs. — Direct or Manual 
 Psychography. 
 
 Chapter XIV. 
 OF MEDIUMS 201 
 
 Mediums for Physical Effects. — Electrical Persons. — Sensitive or Im- 
 pressible Mediums. — Auditive Mediums. — Speaking Mediums. — Seeing 
 Mediums. — Somnambulic Mediums. — Healing Mediums. — Pneumato- 
 graphic Mediums. 
 
 Chapter XV. 
 WRITING OR PSYCHOGRAPHIC MEDIUMS . . 219 
 
 Mechanical ; Intuitive ; Semi-mechanical ; Inspired or Involuntary Me- 
 diums, and Mediums for Presentiments. 
 
 Chapter XVI. 
 SPECIAL MEDIUMS 225 
 
 Special Aptitudes of Mediums. — Synoptical List of the Different Varieties 
 of Mediums. 
 
 Chapter XVII. 
 FORMATION OF MEDIUMS 246 
 
 Development of Mediumship. — Change of Writing. — Loss and Suspen- 
 sion of Mediumship. 
 
 Chapter XVIII. 
 
 INCONVENIENCES AND DANGERS OF MEDI- 
 UMSHIP 265 
 
 Influence of the Exercise of Mediumship on the Health ; on the Brain ; 
 on Children. 
 
 Chapter XIX. 
 
 ROLE OF THE MEDIUM IN SPIRIT COMMUNI- 
 CATIONS 269 
 
 Influence of the Personal Spirit of the Medium. — System of Inert Me- 
 diums. — Aptitude of some Mediums for Things they do not know : the 
 Languages, Music, Drawing, &c. — Dissertation of a Spirit on the Role of 
 Mediums. 
 
 Chapter XX. 
 MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM ... 285 
 
 Various Questions. — Disscrtt.tu n of a Spirit on Moral Influence. 
 
 Chapter XXI. 
 INFLUENCE OF THE SURROUNDINGS. . . . 296 
 
6 CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter XXII. 
 OF MEDIUMSHIP IN ANIMALS 300 
 
 Chapter XXIII. 
 OF OBSESSION 308 
 
 Simple Obsession. — Fascination. — Subjugation. — Causes of Obsession. 
 — Means of combating it. 
 
 Chapter XXIV. 
 IDENTITY OF SPIRITS 328 
 
 Possible Proofs of Identity. — Distinction of Good and Bad Spirits. — 
 Questions on the Nature and Identity of Spirits. 
 
 Chapter XXV. 
 ON INVOCATIONS 353 
 
 General Considerations. — Spirits who may be invoked. — Language to 
 hold with Spirits. — Utility of Special Invocations. — Questions on Invoca- 
 tions. — Invocations of Animals. — Invocations of Living Persons. — Human 
 Telegraphy. 
 
 Chapter XXVI. 
 
 QUESTIONS THAT MAY BE ASKED OF THE 
 SPIRITS 386 
 
 Preliminary Observations. — Questions Sympathetic or Antipathetic to 
 Spirits. — Questions on the Future. — On Past and Future Existences. — On 
 Moral and Material Interests. — On the Fate of Spirits. — On the Health. — 
 On Inventions and Discoveries. — On Hidden Treasure. — On other Worlds. 
 
 Chapter XXVII. 
 ON CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS 407 
 
 Chapter XXVIII. 
 CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY 420 
 
 Interested Mediums. — Spiritist Frauds. 
 
 Chapter XXIX. 
 REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES . . .434 
 
 Of Reunions in General. — Of Societies so called. — Subjects of Study. — 
 Rivalry among Societies. 
 
 NOTES 457 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Daily experience confirms us in this opinion, that 
 
 the difficulties and disappointments met in the prac- 
 
 ; tice of Spiritism have their source in ignorance of 
 
 the principles of that science ; and we are happy in 
 
 ' bein£r able to state, that what we have written to 
 
 . . . 
 
 I caution believers against the dangers of a novitiate 
 
 has borne its fruits, and that many have owed their 
 power to avoid them to the attentive perusal of this 
 work. 
 
 A very natural desire with persons who engage in 
 Spiritism is, to be able themselves to enter into com- 
 munication with spirits. This work is intended to 
 smooth their road, by allowing them to profit by our 
 long and laborious studies ; for it would be a very 
 1 false idea to think that, in order to be expert in this 
 i matter, it is only- necessary to know how to pose the 
 j fingers on a table to make it turn, or to hold a pencil 
 I to write. 
 
 One would be equally deceived expecting to find in 
 | this work a universal and infallible recipe to form 
 ; mediums. Although every one possesses within him- 
 
 7 
 
8 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 self the germ of the qualities necessary to become a 
 medium, these qualities exist in very different degrees, 
 and their development is linked to causes which no 
 one can command at will. The rules of poetry, paint- 
 ing, and music make neither poets, painters, nor 
 musicians of those who have not the genius. They 
 guide in the employment of the natural faculties. It 
 is the same with our work ; its object is to indicate the 
 means of developing the mediumistic faculty, as far as 
 each one's disposition permits, and, above all, to direct 
 its employment in a useful manner, when the faculty 
 exists. But that is not the only end we propose to 
 ourselves. 
 
 Besides mediums proper, there is the daily increas- 
 ing crowd of persons who interest themselves in spirit 
 manifestations : to guide them in their observations, 
 to point out to them the stumbling-blocks they will 
 and must necessarily encounter in a new thing, to 
 initiate them into the manner of conversing with 
 spirits, to indicate to them the means of having good 
 communications, — such is the circle we must embrace, 
 under, penalty of making an incomplete work. Be 
 not,, then, surprised to find in our book information 
 which, at first sight, may appear foreign to it : experi- 
 ence will show its utility. After having studied it 
 with care, the effects that may be witnessed will be 
 better understood ; the language of certain spirits will 
 appear less strange. As practical instruction, it does 
 not address itself exclusively to mediums, but to all 
 those who desire to see and observe the spirit phe- 
 nomena. 
 
INTRODUCTION, 9 
 
 Some persons have desired that we should publish 
 a very succinct practical manual, containing in few 
 words the processes to follow in order to enter into 
 communication with spirits. They think that a small 
 book of this nature could, from the modesty of its 
 price, be more extensively diffused, and would be a 
 powerful means of propagandism in multiplying me- 
 diums : for our own part, we should regard such a 
 work as more hurtful than useful, at least for the 
 present. v"The practice of Spiritism is surrounded by 
 many difficulties, and is not always exempt from dan- 
 gers, which a serious and complete study alone can 
 prevent. It might, then, readily be feared, that a too 
 succinct indication would induce only experiments 
 made with levity, and which might be bitterly re- 
 pented : these are things with which it is neither 
 proper nor prudent to make sport, and we should con- 
 sider ourselves as rendering an ill service in putting 
 them at the disposal of the first giddy-pated mortal 
 who might find it agreeable to talk with the dead. 
 We address ourselves to those who see in Spiritism 
 a serious end, who comprehend all its gravity, and do 
 not make a sport of communications from the invisible 
 world. 
 
 We had published a "Practical Instruction," to guide 
 mediums ; this work is out of print, and though written 
 with an eminently grave and serious design, we shall 
 not reprint it, because we do not find it sufficiently 
 complete to shed light on the difficulties that may be 
 encountered. We have replaced it by this, in which 
 
IO INTRODUCTION. 
 
 we have combined all the advantages that a long expe- 
 rience and a conscientious study have enabled us to 
 acquire. It will contribute — at least we hope so — 
 to give to Spiritism the serious character which is its 
 essence, and to prevent its being viewed as a subject 
 of frivolous occupation and amusement. 
 
 To these considerations we will add one very im- 
 portant ; this is the bad impression produced on nov- 
 ices and ill-disposed persons by the sight of experi- 
 ments made with levity and without any especial 
 cause : they give a very false idea of the world of 
 spirits, and open the way to raillery and to criticism 
 often too well founded ; this is why skeptics are 
 rarely convinced in those reunions, and are so little 
 disposed to see anything serious in Spiritism. The 
 ignorance and levity of some mediums have done 
 more harm than they would believe. 
 
 Spiritism has made great progress within a few 
 years, but far greater since it has entered the philo- 
 sophic plane, because it has been appreciated by 
 enlightened people. To-day it is no longer a specta- 
 cle ; it is a doctrine at which those who made a jest 
 of table-turning no longer laugh. In making our 
 efforts to bring it on this ground, and maintain it 
 there, we feel convinced that we shall conquer for 
 it more useful partisans than were we to draw out at 
 random manifestations that might be abused. We 
 have the daily proof of this in the number of believ- 
 ers which the mere perusal of the Book on Spirits 
 has made. 
 
INTRO D UCTION. 1 1 
 
 After having, in the Book on Spirits, exhibited the 
 philosophical part of spirit science, we give in this 
 work the practical part for the use of those who 
 desire either to engage in manifestations themselves, 
 or to take into consideration the phenomena they may- 
 be called upon to witness. They will here see the 
 dangers they must encounter, and will thus have a 
 means of avoiding them. These two works, though 
 forming a series, are, up to a certain point, independent 
 of each other ; but to those who would seriously apply 
 themselves to this matter, we will say, Read first the 
 Book on Spirits, because it contains the fundamental 
 principles without which certain parts of this would 
 be difficult of comprehension. 
 
 Important alterations have been made in this sec- 
 ond edition, much more complete than the first. It 
 has been corrected with especial care by the spirits, 
 who have added to it a very great number of remarks 
 and instructions of the utmost interest. As they 
 have reviewed it entirely, approved or modified it at 
 their will, it may be said to be, in a great measure, 
 their work ; for their intervention is not limited to 
 some signed articles : we have indicated the names 
 only when it has seemed necessary to characterize 
 certain somewhat extended citations as coming from 
 them word by word ; otherwise we must have quoted 
 them on almost every page, especially in all the 
 answers given to propounded questions, which seemed 
 scarcely necessary. Names, as every one knows, are 
 of small moment in such matters ; the essential thing 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 is, that the entire work shall answer to the proposed 
 end. The welcome given to the first, though imper- 
 fect edition, encourages us to hope that this will be 
 received with no less favor. 
 
 As we have added to it many things, and several 
 entire chapters, so we have suppressed some articles 
 which made double work, among others the Spirit 
 Scale, which had already been given in the Book on 
 Spirits. We have also suppressed the Vocabulary, 
 which did not specially come within the scope of this 
 work, and which is usefully replaced by more practi- 
 cal things. Besides, the Vocabulary was not suffi- 
 ciently complete; we shall publish it separately by 
 and by, in the form of a small dictionary of spiritual 
 philosophy : we have retained here only the new 
 words, or those specially relating to the object in 
 which we are engaged. 
 
EXPERIMENTAL SPIRITISM, 
 
 PART FIRST. 
 
 PRELIMINARY IDEAS. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 ARE THERE SPIRITS? 
 
 i. The doubt respecting the existence of spirits 
 has for its first cause ignorance of their true nature. 
 They are usually thought of as beings apart in the 
 creation, and whose necessity is not demonstrated. 
 Many know them only by the fantastic tales heard in 
 their childhood, almost as one knows history by ro- 
 mances : without seeking to find whether these tales, 
 stripped of ridiculous accessories, rest on a foundation 
 of truth, the absurd side alone strikes them : not taking 
 the trouble to strip off the bitter bark to find the 
 almond, they reject the whole ; as, in religion, some 
 persons, shocked by certain abuses, confound all in 
 the same reprobation. 
 
 Whatever may be one's idea of spirits, this belief is 
 necessarily founded on the existence of an intelligent 
 principle outside of matter : it is incompatible with 
 the absolute negation of this principle. We take, 
 then, our point of departure from the existence, the 
 
 13 
 
14 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 survival, and the individuality of the soul, of which 
 Spiritualism is the theoric and dogmatic demonstra- 
 tion, and Spiritism the manifestation. Let us for a 
 moment make an abstraction of the manifestations, 
 properly so called, and, reasoning by induction, let us 
 see to what consequences we shall arrive. 
 
 2. From the moment that the existence of the soul 
 is admitted, and its individuality after death, it must 
 also be admitted, first, that it is of a different nature 
 from the body, since, once separated, it no longer has 
 the properties of the latter : secondly, that it enjoys a 
 consciousness of itself, since to it is attributed happi- 
 ness or suffering ; otherwise it would be an inert 
 being, and of no use for us to have one. This admit- 
 ted, this soul goes somewhere. What becomes of it, 
 and where does it go ? According to the common 
 belief it goes to heaven or hell. But where are heaven 
 and hell ? It was said, in other times, that heaven was 
 above and hell below : but what is above and what is 
 below in the universe since the roundness of the earth 
 is known ; the movement of the stars, which makes 
 what is above at one given moment become below in 
 twelve hours ; the infinity of space, into which the 
 eye plunges to immeasurable distances ? It is true 
 that by low places we also understand the depths of 
 the earth ; but what has become of those depths since 
 they have been searched into by geology ? What, 
 too, of those concentric spheres, called " heaven of 
 fire," " heaven of stars " ? since it is known that the 
 earth is not the center of the worlds, that our sun 
 itself is only one of the millions of suns which shine 
 in space, and of which each is the center of a plan- 
 etary system. What becomes of the importance of 
 the earth, lost in this immensity ? By what unjus- 
 
ARE THERE SPIRITS t 15 
 
 tifiablc privilege should this imperceptible grain of 
 sand, distinguished neither by its size, its position, nor 
 any particular character, be alone peopled with reason- 
 able beings ? 
 
 Reason refuses to admit this inutility of the infinite, 
 and everything tells us that these worlds are inhab- 
 ited. If they are peopled, then they furnish their pro- 
 portion to the world of souls : but again, what becomes 
 of these souls, since astronomy and geology have de- 
 stroyed the dwellings that were assigned them ? and, 
 above all, since the so rational theory of the plurality 
 of worlds has multiplied them to infinity. 
 
 The doctrine of the localization of souls not a<rree- 
 ing with the facts of science, another more logical 
 doctrine assigns to them as domain/not a determined 
 and circumscribed spot, but universal space : it is an 
 entire invisible world, in the midst of which we live, 
 which surrounds us, and is always in close contact 
 .with us. Is there in that an impossibility — anything 
 repugnant to reason ? Not at all ; on the contrary, 
 everything tells us it can not be otherwise. 
 
 But, then, future pains and rewards, — what becomes 
 of them, if you take away their special places ? Re- 
 mark that incredulity as to the place of these pains 
 and rewards is generally excited because they are pre- 
 sented in inadmissible conditions : but say, instead, 
 that the souls find their happiness or misery within 
 themselves, that their lot is subordinated to their 
 moral state ; that the reunion of good and sympa- 
 thetic souls is a source of felicity ; that, according to 
 the degree of their purification, they penetrate and see 
 into things that vanish before gross souls, — and every 
 one will understand it without trouble. Say, again, 
 that souls reach the supreme degree only through the 
 
I 
 
 1 6 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 efforts they make for self-improvement, and after a 
 series of trials which serve for their purification ; that 
 the angels are souls that have reached the highest 
 degree, which all may attain by effort ; that the angels 
 are God's messengers, charged to watch over the exe- 
 cution of his designs throughout the universe ; that 
 they are happy in these glorious missions, — and you 
 give to their felicity a more useful and attractive 
 object than that of a perpetual contemplation, which 
 would be nothing more than a perpetual uselessness. 
 Say, again, that demons are but the souls of the wick- 
 ed, not yet purified, but which can be, like the others ; 
 and that will appear more conformable to the justice 
 and to the goodness of God than the doctrine of being 
 created for evil, and perpetually devoted to evil. Still 
 again, this is what the severest reason, the most exact 
 logic, in a word, good sense, can admit. 
 
 But these souls that people space are precisely what 
 are called spirits : spirits, then, are but the souls of. 
 men stripped of their corporeal envelope. If spirits 
 were beings apart, their existence would be more hy- 
 pothetical ; but if we admit that there are souls, we 
 must also admit spirits, who are naught else but souls : 
 if we admit that souls are everywhere, we must equally 
 admit that spirits are everywhere. The existence of 
 spirits, then, cannot be denied without denying the 
 existence of souls. 
 
 3. This, it is true, is only a theory, more rational 
 than the other : but it is much to have a theory con- 
 tradicted neither by reason nor science : still more, if 
 it is corroborated by facts, it has for itself the sanction 
 of reasoning and experience. We find these facts in 
 the phenomena of spiritual manifestations, which thus 
 are the proofs patent of the existence of the soul, and 
 
ARE THERE SPIRITS? 1 7 
 
 its survival of the earthly body. But with many per- 
 sons belief stops short at that point ; they fully admit 
 the existence of souls, and, consequently, of spirits ; 
 but they deny the possibility of communicating with 
 them, for the reason, they say, that immaterial beings 
 cannot act on matter. This doubt is founded on 
 ignorance of the true nature of spirits, of which a very 
 false idea is generally conceived ; for they are wrongly 
 imagined to be abstract, vague, and indefinite beings, 
 which they are not. 
 
 Lei us first speak of the spirit in its union with the 
 body. The spirit is the principal being, since it is the 
 being that thinks and survives ; the body is, then, only 
 an accessory of the spirit — an envelope, a clothing, 
 which it abandons when worn out. Besides this mate- 
 rial envelope, the spirit has a second, semi-material, 
 which' unites it to the first : at death, the spirit strips 
 off the first, but not the second, to which we give the 
 name of perisprit '. This semi-material envelope in the 
 human form constitutes for the spirit a fluidic vapor- 
 ous body, but which, invisible to us in its normal state, 
 does not the less possess some of the properties of 
 matter. The spirit, then, is not a point, an abstrac- 
 tion, but a being, limited and circumscribed, to whom 
 is wanting only the properties of being visible and 
 palpable to resemble human beings. Why, then, can it 
 not act upon matter ? Is it because its body is fluidic ? 
 But is it not among the most rarefied of fluids, those 
 even regarded as imponderable, — electricity, for in- 
 stance, — that man finds his most powerful motors ? 
 Does not imponderable light exercise a chemical ac- 
 tion on ponderable matter ? We do not know the 
 specific nature of the perisprit ; but let us suppose it 
 formed of electrical matter, or some other equally sub- 
 2 
 

 1 8 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 tile, why should it not possess the same property when 
 directed by a will ? 
 
 4. The existence of a soul, and that of God, — the 
 consequence one of the other, — being the base of the 
 whole superstructure, before entering into a spiritual 
 discussion it is necessary to assure ourselves if the 
 interlocutor admits this base. 
 
 If to these questions, — 
 
 Do you believe in God ? 
 
 Do you believe you have a soul ? 
 
 Do you believe in the survival of the soul after 
 death ? — he answers negatively, or even if he simply 
 says, "I dorit know ; I hope it may be so, but I am not 
 sine" — the most frequent equivalent to a polite nega- 
 tion, disguised under less offensive form to avoid 
 shocking too abruptly what are called respectable 
 prejudices, — it would be equally as useless to go fur- 
 ther, as to undertake to demonstrate the properties of 
 light to a blind man, who would not admit the exist- 
 ence of light ; for, finally, spiritual manifestations are 
 naught else but the effects of the properties of the 
 soul : with such a person quite another order of ideas 
 should be entered upon, if one would not lose one's 
 time. 
 
 If the base is admitted, not as a probability, but as 
 a positively declared, incontestable thing, the existence 
 of spirits naturally flows from it. 
 
 5. There now remains the question to know if the 
 spirit can communicate with man ; that is to say, if he 
 can exchange ideas with man. And why not ? What 
 is man, if not a spirit imprisoned in a body ? Why 
 should not the free spirit communicate with the cap- 
 tive spirit, as the free man with one who is enchained? 
 While you admit the survival of the soul, is it rational 
 
ARE THERE SPIRITS t IQ 
 
 not to admit the survival of the affections ? Since 
 souls are everywhere, is it not natural to think that 
 the soul of a being who has loved us during his life 
 should come near to us, and should use for that pur- 
 pose the means at his disposal ? During his life did 
 he not act on the matter of his body ? Was it not he 
 who directed its movements ? Why, then, after his 
 death, being in accord with another spirit bound to a 
 body, should he not borrow this body to manifest his 
 thought, as a dumb person uses a speaker to make 
 himself understood ? 
 
 6. Let us for a moment make an abstract of the 
 facts which, for us, render the thing incontestable ; let 
 us admit it in the shape of a simple hypothesis ; we 
 ask that the skeptical prove to us, not by a simple 
 negation, — for their personal opinion does not make 
 a law, — but by peremptory reasons, that it cannot be. 
 
 We plant ourselves on their ground, and since they 
 wish to appraise spiritual facts by the aid of material 
 laws, let them draw from that arsenal some mathemat- 
 ical, physical, chemical, mechanical, physiological dem- 
 onstration, and prove by a plus b, always beginning 
 from the principle of the existence and survival of the 
 soul, — 
 
 First. That the being who thinks in us during life 
 should think no longer after death. 
 
 Second. That if he thinks, he should not think of 
 those he has loved. 
 
 Third. That if he thinks of those he has loved, he 
 should not wish to communicate with them. 
 
 Fourth. That if he can be everywhere, he cannot 
 be by our side. 
 
 Fifth. That if he is by our side, he cannot commu- 
 nicate with us. 
 
20 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Sixth. That by his fluidic envelope he cannot act on 
 inert matter. 
 
 Seventh. That if he can act on inert matter, he can- 
 not act on an animated being. 
 
 Eighth. That if he can act on art animated being, 
 he cannot direct his hand to make him write. 
 
 Ninth. That, being able to make him write, he can- 
 not answer his questions, and transmit to him his 
 thoughts. 
 
 When the adversaries of Spiritism shall have de- 
 monstrated to us that this cannot be, by reasons as 
 patent as those by which Galileo demonstrated that it 
 is not the sun that turns around the earth, then we 
 shall be able to say their doubts are well founded. 
 Unhappily, up to this day all their arguments are com- 
 prised in these words \" I do not believe it ; therefore 
 it is impossible!* They will, doubtless, say that it is 
 for us to prove the reality of the manifestations. We 
 prove it to them by reasoning and by facts : if they 
 admit neither one nor the other, if they deny even 
 what they see, it is for them to prove that our reason- 
 ing is false, and our facts impossible. 
 
Chapter II. 
 
 THE MARVELOUS AND SUPERNATURAL. 
 
 7. If the belief in spirits and in their manifestations 
 were an isolated conception, the product of a system, 
 it could, with some appearance of reason, be suspected 
 of illusion ; but we should like to be told why it is 
 constantly found so strongly impressed among all 
 people, ancient and modern, in holy books and in all 
 known religions ? It is, say some critics, because 
 man, in all times, has loved the marvelous. What, 
 then, do you consider the marvelous ? Whatever is 
 supernatural. What do you understand by supernat- 
 ural ? Whatever is contrary to the laws of nature. 
 You are, then, so thoroughly acquainted with these 
 laws, that it is possible for you to assign a limit to the 
 power of God ? Well, prove, then, that the existence 
 of spirits and their manifestations are contrary to the 
 laws of nature ; that it is not, and can not be, one of 
 these laws. Follow the spirit doctrine, and see if it 
 has not all the characteristics of an admirable law, 
 which solves all that the laws of philosophy have, 
 until now, been unable to solve. 
 
 Thought is one of the attributes of the spirit ; the 
 possibility of acting on matter, of making an impres- 
 sion on our senses, and, consequently, of transmitting 
 his thought, -results, if we may so express ourselves, 
 from his physiological constitution ; then there is 
 nothing in this fact either supernatural or marvelous. 
 
 21 
 
22 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 When a man dead, thoroughly dead, revives corpore- 
 ally, — when his dispersed members re-unite to re-form 
 his body, — that is something marvelous, supernatu- 
 ral, fantastical ; that would be a veritabLe derogation, 
 which God could accomplish only by a miracle ; but 
 there is nothing of the kind in the spirit doctrine. 
 
 8. Nevertheless you admit, it will be said, that a 
 spirit can raise a table, and maintain it in space with- 
 out support ; is not this a derogation of the law of 
 gravity? Yes, to the known law ; but has Nature said 
 her last word ? Before the ascensional force of certain 
 gases had been discovered, who would have said that a 
 heavy machine, carrying several men, could triumph 
 over the force of attraction ? Would not this seem 
 to the eyes of the crowd marvelous, diabolical ? A 
 hundred years ago, a person who should have pro- 
 posed to transmit a despatch five hundred leagues and 
 receive an answer in a few minutes, would have been 
 called a fool : had he done it, it would have been 
 thought he had the devil under his orders ; for at that 
 time the devil alone was capable of traveling so rap- 
 idly. Why, then, should not an unknown fluid have 
 the property, under given circumstances, to counter- 
 balance the effect of weight, as hydrogen counterbal- 
 ances the weight of the balloon ? 
 
 This, let us remark, en passant, is a comparison, but 
 not an assimilation, and simply to show, by analogy, 
 that the fact is not physically impossible. Now, it is 
 precisely when the learned, in the observation of these 
 phenomena, have wished to proceed by assimilation 
 that they have been led astray. As to the rest, the 
 fact is there : all the denials can not make it not be ; 
 for to deny is not to prove. For ourselves, there is in it 
 nothing supernatural; that is all we can say at present. 
 
77/ A" MARVELOUS AND SUPERNATURAL. 23 
 
 9. If the fact is verified, it may be said we accept it ; 
 we accept even the cause you have assigned* — that 
 of an unknown fluid, — but what proves the interven- 
 tion of spirits ? There lies the marvelous, the super- 
 natural. 
 
 An entire demonstration would be necessary here, 
 which would not be in place, and besides, would make 
 double work ; for it will be found throughout the 
 other parts of the book. Only we will say, to sum it 
 up in a few words, that it is founded, in theory, on this 
 principle — all intelligent effect should have an intelli- 
 gent cause ; in practice, on this observation — that the 
 phenomena called spiritual, having given proofs of in- 
 telligence, should have their cause outside of matter ; 
 that this intelligence, not being that of the assistants, 
 — this is a result of experience, — must be outside of 
 them : since the acting being can not be seen, it musx 
 be an invisible being. It is thus that, from observa' 
 tion to observation, we have learned that this invisible 
 being, to which we have given the name of spirit, is 
 no other tharfthe soul of those who have lived corpo- 
 really, and whom death has stripped of their gross, 
 visible envelope, leaving them only an ethereal enve- 
 lope, invisible in its normal state. Here, then, are the 
 marvelous and the supernatural reduced to their sim- 
 plest expression. 
 
 The existence of invisible beings once proved, their 
 action on matter results from the nature of their fluidic 
 envelope : this action is intelligent, because, in dying, 
 they have lost only their body, but have retained intel- 
 ligence, which is their essence ; that is the key to all 
 the phenomena erroneously reported supernatural. 
 The existence of spirits is not, then, a preconceived 
 system, an imagined hypothesis to explain facts ; it 
 
24 BOOK ON MEDIUMS, 
 
 is a result of observations, and the natural consequence 
 of the existence of the soul : to deny this cause is to 
 deny the soul and its attributes. Those who may 
 think they can give a more rational solution of these 
 intelligent effects, — above all, giving a reason for all 
 the facts, — let them do so, and then the merits of 
 each may be discussed. 
 
 io. To the eyes of those who regard matter as the 
 sole power in nature, all that ca7i not be explained by 
 the laws of matter is marvelous or supernatural, and 
 for them, marvelous is synonymous with superstitious. 
 To such persons, religion founded on the existence of 
 an immaterial principle would be a tissue of super- 
 stitions ; they dare not say it aloud, but say it softly, 
 and think to save appearances by conceding that 
 there needs a religion for the people and to make chil- 
 dren good ; but one of two things, either the religious 
 principle is true or it is false ; if true, it is so for all 
 the world ; if false, it is no better for the ignorant 
 than for the enlightened. 
 
 ii. Those who attack. Spiritism, under the name 
 of the marvelous, generally rest on the materialistic 
 principle ; since, in the very denying of all extra ma- 
 terial effect, they deny the existence of the soul : go 
 to the very bottom of their thought, scrutinize well 
 the sense of their words, and you will almost always 
 see this principle, if not categorically formulated, peep 
 from under the pretended rational philosophy with 
 which they cover it. 
 
 Thus, in rejecting, on the score of marvelous, all 
 that flows from the existence of the soul, they are con- 
 sistent with themselves ; not admitting the cause, they 
 can not admit the effects : thence a preconceived opin- 
 ion, that incapacitates them from judging soundly of 
 
THE MARVELOUS AND SUPERNATURAL. 2$ 
 
 Spiritism, because they start on a principle of nega- 
 tion for all that is not material. As for us, while we 
 admit all the effects which are the consequence of the 
 existence of the soul, does it follow that we should 
 accept all the facts called marvelous ? that we should 
 be the champions of all dreamers, skilled in all Utopi- 
 an projects/all systematic eccentricities ? One must 
 know very little of Spiritism to think so ; but our 
 adversaries do not look at it so closely ; the necessity 
 of knowing what they talk of is the least of their 
 care. According to them, the marvelous is absurd ; 
 Spiritism rests on marvelous facts ; hence Spiritism is 
 absurd: this is, for them, a judgment without appeal. 
 They think to offer an unanswerable argument when, 
 after having made erudite researches among the 
 convulsionaries of St. Medard, the camisards of the 
 caverns, the nuns of Loudun, they have discovered 
 patent evidences of fraud, which no one denies ; but 
 are these histories the evangel of Spiritism ? Have 
 its partisans denied that charlatanism has used certain 
 facts for its profit ? that the imagination has created, 
 and fanaticism exaggerated much of it ? It i«s no more 
 responsible for the extravagances committed in its 
 name, than true science for the abuses of ignorance, 
 and true religion for the excesses of fanaticism. 
 
 Many critics judge Spiritism only by fairy tales and 
 popular legends, which are its fictions : as well judge 
 history by historical romances or tragedies. 
 
 12. In elementary logic, to discuss a thing, one 
 must know it ; for the opinion of a critic has a value 
 only as he speaks in perfect knowledge of cause ; then, 
 only, his opinion, were it erroneous, can be taken into 
 consideration : but of what weight is it on a matter 
 of which he knows nothing ? The true critic should 
 
26 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 give proof, not only of erudition, but of profound 
 knowledge of the parts of the subject-matter, of a 
 sound judgment, and of impartiality in every trial ; 
 otherwise any fiddler could arrogate to himself the 
 right to judge of Rossini, and a dauber that of censur- 
 ing Raphael. 
 
 13. Spiritism, then, does not accept all the facts re- 
 puted marvelous or supernatural ; far from that, it 
 demonstrates the impossibility of a great number, and 
 the absurdity of certain beliefs which constitute, prop- 
 erly speaking, superstition. It is true that in what it 
 admits there are things that, for the skeptic, are of 
 the purely marvelous, otherwise called superstition. 
 So be it ; but at least discuss only those points, for on 
 the others it has nothing to say, and you preach to the 
 converted. In attacking what refutes itself, you prove 
 your ignorance of the matter, and your arguments fall 
 to the ground. But, it may be said, where does the 
 belief of Spiritism stop ? Read, observe, and you will 
 know. No science is acquired without time and study ; 
 and Spiritism, which touches on the gravest questions 
 of philosophy, on all the branches of social order, 
 which embraces at the same time man physical and 
 man moral, is itself an entire science, an entire philos- 
 ophy, which can no more be learned in a few hours 
 than any other science. There would be as much pue- 
 rility in seeing the whole of Spiritism in table-turning 
 as to see the whole of physics in certain toys. / For 
 whoever would penetrate beyond the surface, there are 
 not hours, but months and years, required to probe all 
 its mysteries. Judge by that of the degree of knowl- 
 edge, and of the value of the opinion of those who 
 arrogate to themselves the right of judging, because 
 they have witnessed one or two experiments, most 
 
THE MARVELOUS AND SUPERNATURAL. 2J 
 
 often only by way of distraction or pastime. They 
 will, doubtless, say they have not the leisure to give 
 all the time necessary to this study. So be it ; noth- 
 ing constrains them ; but, then, when they have not 
 the time to learn a thing, let them not speak on it, 
 still less judge it, if they would not be accused of fri- 
 volity ; the more exalted a position one occupies in 
 science, the less excusable is it to treat lightly a sub- 
 ject one does not know. 
 
 14. We sum up in the following propositions : — 
 
 First. All the spiritual phenomena have for their 
 principle the existence of the soul, its survival of the 
 body, and its manifestations. 
 
 Second. These phenomena, being founded on a law 
 of nature, have in them nothing marvelous or super- 
 natural, in the ordinary acceptation of these words. 
 
 Third. Many facts are reputed supernatural only 
 by reason of their cause not being known. Spiritism, 
 in assigning their cause, brings them into the domain 
 of natural phenomena. 
 
 Fourth. Among the facts called supernatural, there 
 are many of which Spiritism demonstrates the impos- 
 sibility, and which it places among superstitious beliefs. 
 
 Fifth. While Spiritism recognizes in many popular 
 beliefs a foundation of truth, it refuses positively the 
 responsibility of all the fantastic tales created by the 
 imagination. 
 
 Sixth. To judge Spiritism by what it does not admit, 
 is a proof of ignorance, and destroys all the value of a 
 person's opinion. 
 
 Seventh. The explication of the facts admitted by 
 Spiritism, their causes and moral consequences, con- 
 stitute a whole science, a whole philosophy, which 
 requires a serious, persevering, and searching study. 
 
28 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Eighth. Spiritism can regard as a serious critic only 
 him who may have seen all, studied all, explored all, 
 with the patience and perseverance of a conscientious 
 observer ; who may know as much on this subject as 
 the most enlightened believer ; who, consequently, will 
 have drawn his knowledge from elsewhere than the 
 romances of the science ; to whose attention no fact 
 can be brought with which he is not acquainted, no 
 argument that he has not studied ; let him refute, not 
 by negations, but by other arguments more perempto- 
 ry ; in a word, who can assign a more logical cause 
 for the averred facts. Such a critic is yet to be 
 found. 
 
 15. We mentioned the word mi7-acle : a short obser- 
 vation on this subject will not be out of place in this 
 chapter on the marvelous. 
 
 In its primitive acceptation, and by its etymology, 
 the w r ord miracle signifies extraordinary tiling ; thing 
 admirable to see ; but this word, like many others, has 
 wandered from its original sense, and now it is, accord- 
 ing to the Academy, an act of the divine power coiitra- 
 ry to the common laws of nature. Such is, in fact, its 
 usual acceptation, and it is now only by comparison, 
 and by metaphor, that it is applied to common things 
 which surprise us, and whose cause is unknown. It 
 enters not into our views to examine if God has judged 
 it useful, under certain circumstances, to set aside the 
 laws established by himself ; our aim is only to demon- 
 strate that the spiritual phenomena, however extraor- 
 dinary they may be, do not set aside these laws — 
 have nothing of a miraculous character ; neither are 
 they marvelous or supernatural. A miracle cannot be 
 explained ; the spiritual phenomena, on the contrary, 
 are explained in the most rational manner ; they are 
 
THE MARVELOUS AND SUPERNATURAL. 29 
 
 not then miracles, but simple effects, which have their 
 cause in general laws. A miracle has still another 
 character ; it is that of being insulated and isolated. 
 But from the moment a fact is reproduced, so to say, at 
 will, and by different persons, it cannot be a miracle. 
 
 Science every day performs miracles in the eyes of 
 the ignorant ; this is why, formerly, those who knew 
 more than the common herd passed for sorcerers, and, 
 as it was thought all super-human science came from the 
 devil, they burned them. Now, when people are much 
 more civilized, they content themselves with sending 
 them to the mad-house. 
 
 That a man really dead, as we said in the beginning, 
 should be recalled to life by divine intervention, — that 
 is a real miracle, because it is contrary to the laws of 
 nature. But if the man had only the appearance of 
 death, if there remained in him some latent vitality, 
 and science, or magnetic action, should succeed in re- 
 animating him, this, in the eyes of enlightened persons, 
 is a natural phenomenon ; but in the eyes of the igno- 
 rant, the fact will pass for miraculous, and the author 
 will be pursued with stones or venerated, according to 
 the character of the individuals. In some countries, 
 should a natural philosopher let fly an electrical paper 
 kite, and cause the thunderbolt to strike a tree, this 
 new Prometheus would be looked upon as armed with 
 diabolic power ; and it may be said, in passing, Pro- 
 metheus seems to us singularly to have forestalled 
 Franklin ; but Joshua arresting the movement of the 
 sun, or, rather, of the earth, — this is a real miracle ; 
 for we know of no magnetizer endowed with sufficient 
 power to perform such a prodigy. Of all the spiritual 
 phenomena, one of the most extraordinary is, without 
 contradiction, that of direct writing, and the one that 
 
30 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 shows, in the most evident manner, the action of occult 
 intelligences ; but, as the phenomenon is produced by 
 invisible beings, it is no more miraculous than all the 
 other phenomena due to invisible agents, because 
 these occult beings, who people space, are one of 
 the powers of nature — a power whose action is 
 incessant on the material, as well as on the moral 
 world. ' 
 
 Spiritism, in shedding light on this power, gives us 
 the key to a crowd of things unexplained and inexpli- 
 cable by all other means, and which have, in times 
 past, passed for prodigies : like magnetism, it reveals 
 a law, if not unknown, at least scarcely comprehend- 
 ed ; or, to better express it, the effects are known, for 
 they have been produced through all time ; but the 
 law was not known, and it is the ignorance of this law 
 that has engendered superstition. The law known, 
 the marvelous disappears, and the phenomena reenter 
 the natural order of things. This is why spirits no 
 more perform a miracle in turning a table, or in writ- 
 ing, than the doctor in reviving a dying man, or the 
 natural philosopher in causing the fall of the thunder- 
 bolt. He who should pretend, by the aid of this sci- 
 ence, to perform miracles, would be either ignorant of 
 the thing or an impostor. 
 
 16. Before the causes were known, spiritual phe- 
 nomena, as well as magnetic phenomena, might read- 
 ily have passed for prodigies ; but as the skeptics, the 
 free-thinkers, — that is, those who have the exclusive 
 privilege of reason and good sense, — believe nothing 
 possible which they cannot understand, all facts re- 
 puted wonderful are the object of their ridicule, and 
 as religion contains a great number of facts of this 
 kind, they do not believe in religion ; and from thence 
 
THE MARVELOUS AND SUTERNATLRAL. 3 1 
 
 to absolute skepticism is but a step. Spiritism, in ex- 
 plaining- the greater part of these facts, assigns them 
 a cause. It comes, then, to the aid of religion in 
 demonstrating certain facts, which, though no longer 
 possessing a miraculous character, are not the less 
 extraordinary ; and God is no less grand, no less pow- 
 erful, for not having set aside his laws. Of what jests 
 have not the suspensions of St. Cupertin been the ob- 
 ject ! But the ethereal suspension of heavy bodies is a 
 fact explained by spirit law : we have been personally 
 eye-witnesses, and Mr. Home, as well as other persons 
 of our acquaintance, have, at various times, reproduced 
 St. Cupertin's phenomenon. Thus this phenomenon 
 enters into the order of natural things. 
 
 17. Among the number of facts of this kind, appa- 
 ritions must be placed in the front rank, because they 
 are most frequent. That of La Salette, about which 
 even the clergy are divided, is not for us an isolated 
 fact. Assuredly we cannot affirm that it took place, 
 because we have no material proof of it ; but for us it 
 is possible, insomuch as millions of recent analogous 
 facts are known to us ; we believe in them, not only 
 because their reality is proved to us, but because we 
 know perfectly the manner in which they are pro- 
 duced. Let any one look well into the theory we give, 
 further on, of apparitions, and it will be seen that this 
 phenomenon becomes as simple and as plausible as a 
 host of physical phenomena which are wonderful only 
 because the key to them is unknown. As to the per- 
 son who presented himself at La Salette, that is anoth- 
 er question ; his identity is not at all demonstrated : 
 we simply state that an apparition could take place ; 
 with the rest we have nothing to do. Every one, in 
 this respect, may have his own convictions. Spiritism 
 

 32 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 is not obliged to meddle with them ; we say only that 
 the facts produced by Spiritism reveal to us new laws, 
 and give us the key to a host of things that appear 
 supernatural : if some of those which pass for miracu- 
 lous find here a logical explanation, it is one reason 
 why we should not be in haste to deny what we do 
 not understand. 
 
 Spiritual phenomena are contested by some persons 
 precisely because they appear to be outside of the 
 common law, and they cannot explain them to them- 
 selves. Give them a rational basis, and the doubt 
 ceases. Explanation in this age, when words do not 
 satisfy, is, then, a powerful motive for conviction. Thus 
 we see, every day, persons who have never witnessed 
 a single act, have never seen a table turn, nor a medi- 
 um write, and who are as convinced as ourselves, only 
 because they have read and comprehended. If one 
 should only believe what one has seen with the eyes, 
 one's convictions would be reduced to very little. 
 
Chapter III. 
 
 METHOD. 
 
 1 8. The very natural and praiseworthy desire of 
 every believer — a desire that cannot be too much 
 encouraged — is to make proselytes. It is with the 
 view of facilitating their task that we propose to exam- 
 ine here the surest way, according to our ideas, to 
 attain this end, in order to spare them useless efforts. 
 
 We have said that Spiritism is an entire science, an 
 entire philosophy : he who would seriously know it 
 should, then, as a first condition, compel himself to a 
 serious study, and persuade himself that no more than 
 any other science can it be learned by sport. Spirit- 
 ism, we have said, touches on all the questions that 
 interest humanity ; its field is immense, and it is most 
 especially in its consequences that we should view it. 
 Belief in spirits, doubtless, forms its basis ; but that 
 belief no more suffices to make an enlightened spirit- 
 ist, than the belief in God suffices to make a theolo- 
 gian. Let us see, then, what is the fittest mode of 
 procedure, in these instructions, to lead most surely 
 to conviction. 
 
 Let not believers be frightened by this word instruc- 
 tion ; there is other teaching than that given from the 
 pulpit or the tribunal ; there is also that of simple 
 conversation. Every person who seeks to persuade 
 another, whether by way of explanations or by experi- 
 ments, instructs : what we desire is, that his trouble 
 3 33 
 
BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 shall bear fruit, and it is for that purpose we give some 
 advice, by which those who wish to instruct themselves 
 may also profit ; they will here find the means of more 
 certainly and quickly reaching their end. 
 
 19. It is generally believed that, in order to con- 
 vince, it suffices to show facts. This seems, indeed, 
 the most logical way, and yet experience shows that 
 it is not always the better ; for we often see persons 
 whom the most palpable facts can never convince. 
 Why is this ? We shall try to demonstrate. 
 
 In Spiritism the question of spirits is secondary and 
 consecutive ; it is not the point of departure ; and 
 there, precisely, is the error into which we fall, and 
 which causes us to fail with certain persons. Spirits 
 being naught else but the souls of men, the true point 
 of departure, then, is the existence of the soul. But 
 how can a materialist admit that beings exist outside 
 of the material world, when he believes himself to be 
 but matter ? How can he believe in spirits outside of 
 himself, when he does not believe he has one within ? 
 In vain would you accumulate before his eyes the 
 most palpable proofs ; he would question them all, be- 
 cause he does not admit the principle. All methodical 
 teaching should proceed from the known to the un- 
 known : with the materialist the known is matter ; 
 begin, then, with matter, and try, above all, in making 
 him observe it, to convince him that there is within 
 him something that escapes the laws of matter ; in a 
 word, before making him a spiritist, try to make him 
 a spiritualist. But for that an entirely different order 
 of facts is requisite, a teaching wholly special, in which 
 we must proceed by other means. To talk to him 
 of spirits, before he is convinced of having a soul, is 
 to begin at the end, for he cannot admit the conclu- 
 
METHOD. 35 
 
 sion if he admit not the premises. Thus, before 
 undertaking to convince the skeptic, even by facts, it 
 is necessary to be assured of his opinion in regard to 
 the soul ; that is, if he believe in its existence, its sur- 
 vival of the body, its individuality after death ; if his 
 answer is in the negative, it will be trouble wasted to 
 talk to him of spirits. This is the rule : we do not 
 say there is no exception, but then there are probably 
 other causes which make him less refractory. 
 
 20. Among materialists are two classes. In the 
 first we place those who are such from system ; with 
 them it is not doubt, but absolute negation, reasoned 
 after their own manner ; in their eyes man is a ma- 
 chine, which goes as long as it is wound up, which 
 gets out of order, and of which, after death, there re- 
 mains but the carcass. Their number is, happily, very 
 restricted, and nowhere constitutes a boldly-avowed 
 school ; it is not necessary to insist on the deplorable 
 results to social order from popularizing such a doc- 
 trine ; we have said enough on that subject in the 
 Book 011 Spirits (No. 147 and conclusion, § iii.). 
 
 When we say that doubt ceases with the skeptic in 
 presence of a rational explanation, we must except 
 pure materialists — those who deny all power and all 
 intelligent principle outside of matter : the greater 
 part confirm themselves in their opinion through 
 pride, and consider their self-love engaged to persist 
 in it. This they do in the face of and against all con- 
 trary proofs, because they do not want to yield. With 
 such people nothing can be done ; we must not even 
 be taken by the false seeming of sincerity of those 
 who say, Make me see, and I will believe. Some are 
 more frank, and say plainly, I should like to see what 
 I will not believe. 
 
36 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 21. The second class of materialists, and by far the 
 most numerous, — for a real materialism is an unnatu- 
 ral sentiment, — comprises those who are such through 
 indifference, and one might say, for want of better, they 
 are not such from deliberate purpose, and ask nothing 
 better than to believe, for uncertainty is a torment 
 to them. There is within them a vague aspiration 
 toward the future ; but this future has been present- 
 ed to them under colors their reason cannot accept ; 
 from thence doubt, and, as a consequence of doubt, 
 skepticism. With them disbelief is not a system ; 
 show -them something rational, and they accept it 
 eagerly ; such persons can understand us, for they are 
 nearer to us than they themselves suppose. With the 
 former talk neither of revelation, nor angels, nor para- 
 dise ; they would not comprehend you ; but place your- 
 self on their ground, prove to them, first, that the laws 
 of physiology are powerless to give a reason for every- 
 thing ; the rest will follow. It is otherwise when 
 skepticism is not confirmed, for then belief is not abso- 
 lutely null-; it is a latent germ, filled with ill weeds, 
 but which a spark can reanimate ; it is the blind to 
 whom one can give sight, and who is joyful in once 
 more seeing the light of day ; it is the shipwrecked to 
 whom one may extend a plank of safety. 
 
 22. Besides materialists, properly so called, there is 
 a third class of unbelievers, who, though spiritualists 
 without the name, are not the less very refractory ; 
 these are intentional disbelievers. They would be 
 sorry to believe, because that would disturb their 
 quiet in material enjoyments ; they fear to see the" con- 
 demnation of their ambition, of their egotism, and of 
 the human vanities that constitute their delights ; they 
 
METHOD. 37 
 
 close their eyes that they may not see, their ears that 
 they may not hear. One can only pity them. 
 
 23. We will speak only from memory of a fourth 
 category, whom we shall call interested unbelievers, or 
 those from insincerity. These very well understand 
 Spiritism, but ostensibly they condemn from motives 
 of .personal interest. Of them there is nothing to be 
 said, as there is nothing to be done with them. If the 
 real materialist deceive himself, there is at least the 
 excuse of sincerity ; he can be redeemed by being 
 shown his error : here it is a thing settled, against 
 which all arguments come to naught ; time will open 
 their eyes, and show them, perhaps to their cost, 
 wherein their true interest consisted ; for not being 
 able to hinder the spread of the truth, they will be 
 carried away by the torrent, and with them the inter- 
 ests they thought to save. 
 
 24. In addition to these various categories of oppo- 
 nents there is an infinity of shades, among which may 
 be reckoned the skeptical from pusillanimity ; cour- 
 age will come to them when they see others are not 
 burned; the skeptical from religious scruples ; an en- 
 lightened study will teach them that Spiritism rests 
 on the fundamental basis of religion, and that it re- 
 spects all beliefs ; that one of its effects is to give 
 religious sentiments to those who have them not, to 
 fortify them with those who are wavering : then come 
 the skeptical from pride, from the spirit of contradic- 
 tion, from indifference, from frivolity, &c, &c. 
 
 25. We cannot omit a class which we shall call that 
 of t lie skeptical from deception. It comprises persons 
 who have passed from an exaggerated confidence to 
 skepticism, because they have experienced disappoint- 
 ments ; then, discouraged, they have abandoned all, 
 
38 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 rejected all. They are in the position of him who 
 denies all sincerity because he has been deceived. 
 Again, it is the result of an incomplete study of Spir- 
 itism, and of a defect of experience. He who is mys- 
 tified by the spirits is, generally, he who asks of them 
 what they ought not or cannot tell, or because he is 
 not sufficiently clear on the subject to distinguish 
 truth from imposture. Besides, many see in Spiritism 
 only a new means of divination, and imagine that spir- 
 its are made for fortune-tellers ; so light and mocking 
 spirits are not to blame if they amuse themselves at 
 their expense. In this way they predict husbands to 
 young girls, honors, inheritances, hidden treasures, 
 &c, to the ambitious ; from thence often arise disa- 
 greeable deceptions, from which a serious and prudent 
 man always knows how to preserve himself. 
 
 26. A very numerous class, the most numerous of 
 all, indeed, but which cannot be placed among oppo- 
 nents, is that of the uncertain ; they are usually spirit- 
 ualists in principle ; with the most of them there is 
 a vague intuition of the spirit idea, an aspiration 
 toward something they cannot define ; it is only neces- 
 sary that their thoughts should be regulated and for- 
 mulated ; for them Spiritism is like a flash of light ; 
 it is the daylight that disperses the fog ; thus they 
 seize it eagerly, because it delivers them from the ago- 
 nies of uncertainty. 
 
 27. If, now, we cast a glance on the various classes 
 of believers, we shall find, first, the spiritists without 
 knowing it : it is, properly speaking, a variety or a 
 shade of the preceding class. Without ever having 
 heard of the spirit doctrine, they have the innate sen- 
 timent of the grand principles that flow from it, and 
 this sentiment is reflected in certain passages of their 
 
METHOD. 39 
 
 writings and discourses to such an extent, that, in lis- 
 tening to them, one would suppose them thoroughly 
 initiated. We find numerous examples of them in 
 sacred and profane writers, in poets, orators, moralists, 
 in ancient and modern philosophers. 
 
 28. Among those whom a direct study has con- 
 vinced, we may distinguish, — 
 
 First. Those who believe purely and simply in the 
 manifestations. Spiritism is for them a simple science 
 of observation, a series of facts more or less curious : 
 we shall call them experimental spiritists. 
 
 Second. Those who see in Spiritism something 
 besides facts ; who comprehend its philosophy, admire 
 the morality that flows from it, but do not practice it. 
 Its influence on their character is insignificant or null ; 
 they change nothing of their habits, neither deprive 
 themselves of a single enjoyment ; the miser remains 
 sordid, the proud full of himself, the envious and jeal- 
 ous always hostile ; to them Christian charity is but a 
 beautiful maxim : these are imperfect spiritists. 
 
 Third. Those who are not contented with admiring 
 spirit morality, but who practice it and accept all its 
 consequences. Convinced that the terrestrial exist- 
 ence is a passing trial, they try to put to profit these 
 short moments, to walk in the road of progress which 
 alone can elevate them in the hierarchy of the world 
 of spirits, forcing themselves to do good, and to repress 
 their evil inclinations. What they relate is always 
 true, for their convictions take from them all thought 
 of evil. Charity is in all things the rule of their con- 
 duct. These are the true spiritists, or, better still, 
 Christian spiritists. 
 
 Fourth. Finally, there are exalted spiritists. The 
 human species would be perfect, if it would take only 
 
40 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the good side of things. Exaggeration in anything 
 is injurious ; in Spiritism it gives too blind and 
 childish a confidence in the things of the invisible 
 world, and causes the too easy acceptation of what re- 
 flection and examination show to be absurd or impos- 
 sible ; but enthusiasm does not reflect — it dazzles. 
 This kind is more injurious than useful to the cause 
 of Spiritism ; they are the less easy to convince be- 
 cause they doubt, and with reason, their own judg- 
 ment ; they are very sincere dupes, whether it be of 
 mystifying spirits, or of men who wish to play upon 
 their credulity. If they alone were to suffer the con- 
 sequences, the evil would be but half ; the worst is, 
 that, without wishing it, they arm the skeptical, who 
 are always seeking occasions to impute to all the folly 
 of some. This is, doubtless, neither just nor rational ; 
 but, it is well known, the adversaries of Spiritism rec- 
 ognize only their own reason as being good gold, and 
 to know thoroughly the subject on which they speak 
 is the least of their cares. 
 
 29. The means of conviction vary exceedingly, ac- 
 cording to individuals ; what persuades one is nothing 
 to another ; some are convinced by certain material 
 manifestations, others by intelligent communications ; 
 the greater part by reasoning. We might even say 
 that, for the greater part of those not prepared by 
 reasoning, the material phenomena are of little weight. 
 The more extraordinary these phenomena, and the fur- 
 ther removed from known laws, the more opposition 
 they meet, and for a very simple reason, — that one is 
 naturally inclined to doubt a thing not having a ration- 
 al sanction ; each sees it from his own stand-point, 
 and explains it after his own fashion : the materialist 
 sees in it a purely physical cause, or a superstition ; 
 
METHOD. 41 
 
 the ignorant and the superstitious sec a diabolical or 
 supernatural cause ; while a true explanation destroys 
 these preconceived ideas, and shows, if not the reality, 
 at least the possibility ; they understand before seeing 
 it ; and from the moment its possibility is recognized, 
 conviction is three quarters accomplished. 
 
 30. Is it worth while to try to convince an obstinate 
 unbeliever ? We have said that it depends on the 
 causes and nature of his disbelief; often the persistent 
 efforts made to persuade one strengthen within him 
 the idea of his personal importance, and become a rea- 
 son for his increased obstinacy. If one is convinced 
 neither by reasonings nor by facts, it shows that he 
 must still suffer the trial of skepticism ; we must leave 
 to Providence the care of bringing together circum- 
 stances more favorable for him : there are plenty of 
 people asking to receive the light ; it is. not worth 
 while to waste time on those who reject \tJ Address 
 yourselves, then, to the willing, whose number is great- 
 er than is supposed ; and their example, being multi- 
 plied, will overcome more resistance than words. The 
 true spiritist will never lack good to do — afflicted 
 hearts to soothe, consolations to give, despair to calm, 
 moral reforms to effect : this is his mission ; here, 
 also, he will find his true satisfaction. Spiritism is in 
 the air ; it spreads by the law of events, and because 
 it makes 'those happy who profess it. When its sys- 
 tematic adversaries shall hear it resound about them, 
 even among their friends, they will realize their own 
 isolation, and will be forced to be silent, or yield 
 assent. 
 
 31. To proceed: in the teaching of Spiritism, as in 
 that of the ordinary sciences, the whole series of phe- 
 nomena that can be produced should be passed in re- 
 
42 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 view, beginning with the most simple, and reaching, 
 by successive stages, the most complicated ; but this 
 cannot be done, for it would be impossible to give a 
 course of experimental Spiritism, as one would a 
 course of physics or chemistry. In the natural sci- 
 ences we operate on brute matter, manipulating it at 
 will, and are nearly always sure of being able to regu- 
 late the effects ; in Spiritism we have to do with intel- 
 ligences that are free, and prove to us at every instant 
 that they are not bound to obey our caprices ; we 
 must then observe, await the results, seize them 'in 
 passing : so we here announce that whoever would 
 flatter himself to obtain them at will must be either 
 an ignoramus or an impostor. This is why true Spir- 
 itism never makes a spectacle of itself, and never 
 mounts the rostrum. Besides, there is something 
 illogical in supposing that spirits come to make a 
 parade, and submit to investigation, as objects of curi- 
 osity. The phenomena, therefore, may either fail alto- 
 gether when we want them, or be presented in an 
 entirely different order from what we desire. Add, 
 again, that to obtain them we require persons en- 
 dowed with special faculties, and that these faculties 
 vary infinitely, according to the aptitude of individu- 
 als ; and as it is extremely rare that one person should 
 possess all the aptitudes, it is one difficulty the more, 
 for we should need to have always at hand a veritable 
 collection of mediums, which is scarcely possible. 
 
 The means of obviating this inconvenience is very 
 simple, — it is to begin with the theory ; there all the 
 phenomena are passed in review ; they are explained, 
 can be accounted for, their possibility understood, the 
 conditions under which they can be produced and the 
 obstacles they may meet can be known ; then, what- 
 
METHOD. 43 
 
 ever may be the order into which they may be led by 
 circumstances, there will be nothing in them to create 
 surprise. This method offers still another advantage 
 — that of sparing the operator numberless disappoint- 
 ments ; forewarned against the difficulties, he can be 
 on his guard, and avoid acquiring experience at too 
 great expense. 
 
 Since we have been engaged with Spiritism, it would 
 be hard to tell the number of persons who have come 
 to us, and among them how many we have seen re- 
 main indifferent or skeptical, in presence of the most 
 glaring facts, and who have afterward been convinced 
 only by a reasonable explanation ; how many others 
 who have been predisposed to conviction by reasoning ; 
 how many, also, who have been persuaded without 
 seeing, but simply because they understood. Thus we 
 speak from experience, when we say that the better 
 method of teaching Spiritism is to address the reason 
 before addressing the eyes. It is the one we follow in 
 our lessons, and we can only praise it. 
 
 32. The previous study of the theory has another 
 advantage ; it shows at one view the grandeur of the 
 end, and the sweep of the science. He who begins by 
 seeing tables turned or rapped, is more disposed to 
 ridicule, because he can scarcely imagine that out of a 
 table can come a regenerating doctrine for humanity. 
 We have always remarked that those who believe 
 without having seen, but because they have read and 
 understood, far from being superficial, are, on the con- 
 trary, the ones who reflect the most ; resting more on 
 the fundamental principles than on the form, to them 
 the philosophical part is the principal, the phenomena 
 but the accessories ; and they say to themselves that 
 even did these phenomena not exist, there would not 
 
44 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the less remain a philosophy that alone can solve prob- 
 lems hitherto insoluble ; which alone gives the most 
 rational theory of man's past and future ; they prefer 
 a doctrine that explains, to one that explains not at 
 all, or explains badly. A thoughtful person will readily 
 comprehend that the manifestations might be wholly 
 done away with, and the doctrine none the less remain ; 
 the manifestations corroborate, confirm it, but are not 
 its essential basis ; the serious observer does not re- 
 ject them, on the contrary, but he awaits circum- 
 stances favorable to his being a witness of them. The 
 proof of what we advance is, that, before having heard 
 of the manifestations, very many persons have had an 
 intuition of this doctrine, which has but. given a body, 
 a unity, to their ideas. 
 
 33. At the same time it would not be strictly true 
 to say that those who begin with the theory lack sub- 
 jects for practical observation ; on the contrary, they 
 have plenty which should possess greater weight in 
 their estimation, than those that might be produced 
 before their eyes : these are the numerous facts of 
 spontaneous manifestations, of which we shall speak in 
 the following chapters. 
 
 There are few persons who have not some knowl- 
 edge of them, if only by hearsay ; many have them- 
 selves had experiences to which they have given but 
 slight attention. The theory has this effect — it explains 
 them ; and we say that these facts have great weight 
 when they rest on invincible testimony, because then 
 neither preparation nor connivance can be supposed. 
 If the induced phenomena did not exist, the spontane- 
 ous phenomena would none the less be present, and 
 Spiritism, should it have no result but to give a ration- 
 al solution of them, would be doing much. Thus, most 
 
METHOD. 45 
 
 of those who read recall these facts, thereby confirm- 
 ing the theory. 
 
 34. Our ideas would be strangely misunderstood, 
 were it supposed that we advise a neglect* of facts ; it 
 is by the facts that we have arrived at the theory ; it 
 is true that assiduous labor for several years, and thou- 
 sands of observations, have been necessary ; but since 
 the facts have served us, and do serve us daily, we 
 should be inconsistent to deny their importance, espe- 
 cially as we are writing a book for. the purpose of 
 making them known. We only say that, without 
 reasoning, they would not suffice to produce con- 
 viction ; that a previous explanation, by destroying 
 prejudices, and showing that there is nothing in them 
 contrary to reason, disposes one for their acceptance. 
 This is so true that, of ten persons, complete novices, 
 who may assist at an experimental seance, were it the 
 most satisfying one to believers, nine would leave it 
 unconvinced, some more incredulous than before, be- 
 cause the experiments will not have answered their 
 expectations. It would be quite otherwise with those 
 who could understand them from a previous theoretic 
 knowledge ; it is a means of criticising, but nothing 
 surprises them, not even want of success, because they, 
 know in what conditions the facts are produced, and 
 that they must not ask what cannot be given. The 
 previous knowledge of the facts thus enables them to 
 judge of all anomalies, but, above all, permits them to 
 catch a multitude of details, often of very delicate 
 shades, which arc, for them, means of conviction, and 
 which escape the ignorant observer. Such are the 
 motives for admitting to our experimental seances only 
 persons possessing preparatory notions enough to 
 understand what is being done, persuaded that any 
 
46 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 others wouLd lose their time, and cause us to lose 
 ours. 
 
 35. To those who would desire to acquire the pre- 
 liminary knowledge by reading our works, we would 
 advise the following order: — 
 
 First. What is Spiritism ? This tract, of a hun- 
 dred pages only, is a summary exposition of the prin- 
 ciples of the spirit doctrine, a general glance, which 
 permits us to embrace the whole in a brief outline. In 
 a few words we see the end, and can judge of its 
 range. Above all, here may be found answers to the 
 principal questions, or objections, which novices are 
 disposed to make. 
 
 This first, which calls for little time, is an introduc- 
 tion which facilitates a more profound study. 
 
 Second. The Book 011 Spirits. It contains the 
 doctrine complete, dictated by the spirits themselves, 
 with all its philosophy, and all its moral consequences ; 
 it is the destiny of man unvailed, the initiation into 
 the nature of spirits, and into the mysteries of the life 
 beyond the grave.- In reading this it will be seen that 
 Spiritism has a serious aim, and is not a frivolous 
 pastime. 
 
 Third. The Book on Mediums, intended to direct in 
 the practice of manifestations, by the knowledge of 
 the proper means of communicating with spirits ; it is 
 a guide either for mediums or invocators, and is the 
 complement of the Book on Spirits. 
 
 Fourth. The Spirit Reviewed. This is a varied col- 
 lection of facts, of theoretic explanations and detached 
 fragments, which complete what is said in the two 
 preceding works, and of which it is in some sort the 
 application. It may be read at the same time, but 
 will be more profitable and more intelligible, particu- 
 
METHOD. 47 
 
 larly after the Book on Spirits. This is all we can 
 say. Those who desire to understand a science thor- 
 oughly must, necessarily, read all that is written on 
 the subject, or, at least, the principal things, and not 
 limit themselves to a single author ; they should 
 even read the for and against, the critics as well as 
 the apologists, to know the different systems, to be 
 able to judge by comparison. In this connection we 
 neither extol nor criticise any work, desiring in noth- 
 ing to influence the opinion that may be formed ; 
 bringing our stone to the edifice, we place ourselves 
 in the ranks : it does not pertain to us to be judge 
 and client, and we make not the absurd pretension of 
 being sole dispenser of the light ; it is for the reader 
 to distinguish between the good and the bad, the 
 true and the false. 
 
Chapter IV. 
 SYSTEM S. 
 
 36. When the strange phenomena of Spiritism 
 began to be produced, or rather reproduced in these 
 latter times, the first sentiment they excited was 
 doubt even of their reality, and still greater of their 
 cause. When they were proved by indubitable evi- 
 dence, and by the experiments every one could make 
 for himself, each one interpreted them after his own 
 fashion, according to his personal ideas, beliefs, or pre- 
 conceptions ; from thence have arisen several systems, 
 which a more attentive observation must reduce to 
 their just value. 
 
 The adversaries of Spiritism have thought to find 
 an argument in this difference of opinion, saying that 
 the spiritists do not agree among themselves. This 
 is a very poor argument, when one reflects that the 
 steps of all newly-born science are necessarily uncer- 
 tain, until time is given to bring together and make 
 co-ordinate the facts that may fix opinion : in propor- 
 tion as the facts become complete, and are better 
 observed, the premature ideas are effaced, and unity 
 established, at least on the fundamental points, if not 
 in all the details. This is what has taken place for 
 Spiritism ; it could not escape the common law, and 
 must, by its very nature, lend itself more than any 
 other to diversity of interpretations. One might even 
 say that in this respect it has advanced more rapidly 
 
 48 
 
SYSTEMS. 49 
 
 than other sciences, its elders ; medicine, for instance, 
 which still divides the most learned. 
 
 37. In methodical order, to follow the progressive 
 march of ideas, we may place at the head of the list 
 those that may be called systems of negation, those of 
 the adversaries of Spiritism. We have refuted their 
 objections in the introduction and in the conclusion 
 of the Book on Spirits, also in the little work entitled 
 
 What is Spiritism ? It would be superfluous to enter 
 into it again ; we will simply recall, in a few words, the 
 bases on which they stand. Spirit phenomena are 
 of two kinds, physical and intelligent effects. Not 
 admitting the existence of spirits, for the reason that 
 they admit nothing outside of matter, it may be readi- 
 ly conceived that they deny the intelligent effects, they 
 comment upon them from their own stand-point, and 
 their arguments may be summed up in the following 
 systems : — 
 
 38. System of Charlatanism. Among our antago- 
 nists many attribute these effects to fraud, because 
 some of them have been imitated. This supposition 
 would transform all spiritists into dupes, all mediums 
 into cheats? without regard to the position, thecharac- 
 ter, knowledge, and reputation of the persons. If this 
 deserved an answer, we might say that certain phe- 
 nomena of physics have also been imitated by jugglers, 
 and that it proves nothing against the real science. 
 Besides, there are persons whose characters are beyond 
 all suspicion of fraud, and one must be wanting in 
 every vestige of good breeding and urbanity to dare 
 to say to them that they are the accomplices of char- 
 latanism. In a very respectable parlor, a gentleman, 
 otherwise well bred, having permitted himself to make 
 a reflection of this nature, the lady of the house said 
 
 4 
 
50 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 to him, " Since you are not content, sir, your money 
 will be returned to you at the door," and, with a ges- 
 ture, made him understand what he would better do. 
 Is that to say that there are no abuses in it? To 
 think that we must admit men to be perfect. 
 
 Everything is abused, even the most sacred things ; 
 why, then, should not Spiritism be abused ? But the 
 bad use that may be made of a thing should cause no 
 prejudice against the thing itself; the only way by 
 which we can judge of men's sincerity is by the mo- 
 tives from which they act. Where there is no specula- 
 tion, charlatanism can find no place. 
 
 39. System of Insanity. Some persons condescend- 
 ingly wish to do away with the suspicion of fraud, and 
 pretend that those who do not make dupes are them- 
 selves dupes ; which is as much as to say they are 
 insane. When skeptics speak without ceremony, they 
 say, " O, they are crazy ! " thus arrogating to them- 
 selves alone the privilege of good sense. This is the 
 great argument of those who have no good reason to 
 bring forward. This mode of attack has so long served 
 that it has become ridiculous, and does not deserve that 
 time should be wasted in refuting it. Besides, spirit- 
 ists scarcely trouble themselves about it ; they bravely 
 take their stand and console themselves in the knowl- 
 edge that they have, as companions in the misfortune, 
 plenty of people whose merits cannot be disputed. It 
 must be agreed that this insanity, if insanity it be, has 
 a very singular character, which is that, by preference, 
 it attacks the enlightened class, among whom Spirit- 
 ism has hitherto reckoned the immense majority of 
 its believers. If among the number we find some 
 eccentric, it proves no more against the doctrine than 
 the crazy religious prove against religion, the crazy 
 
SYSTEAfS. 5 * 
 
 music-lovers against music, the crazy mathematicians 
 against mathematics. All ideas have found exagger- 
 ated fanatics, and one must be endowed with a very 
 obtuse judgment to confound the exaggeration of a 
 thing with the thing itself. We refer, for more en- 
 larged explanation of this subject, to our tract, What 
 is Spiritism ? to the Book oti Spirits (Introduction, 
 par. XV.). 
 
 40. System of Hallucination. Another opinion, less 
 offensive, inasmuch as it has a little scientific color, 
 consists in placing all the phenomena to the account 
 of illusion of the senses ; thus the observer is perfectly 
 sincere, only he thinks he sees what he does not see. 
 When he sees a table rise, and sustain itself in the air 
 without support, the table has not really left its place ; 
 he sees it in the air by a kind of mirage, or an effect of 
 refraction, as one would see a star or an object in the 
 water, out of its real place. That might possibly be, 
 but those who have witnessed this phenomenon have 
 verified the isolation by passing under the suspended 
 table, which would seem to be difficult to do if it had 
 not left the ground. On the other hand, it has many 
 times happened that, in coming down, the table has 
 broken : would this also be called an optical delusion ? 
 
 A well-known physiological cause can, without 
 doubt, make one believe he sees a thing turn that 
 does not stir, or make one think one's self turning. when 
 one is not moving ; but when several persons around 
 a table arc carried along by so rapid a movement, 
 that they can scarcely follow it, that some are often 
 thrown to the ground, will they say that all of them 
 are taken with a kind of vertigo, like that of the 
 drunkard, who thought he saw his house moving away 
 from before him ? 
 
52 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 41. System of Muscle-cracking. If it might be thus 
 for the sight, it cannot be the same for the hearing, 
 and when blows struck are heard by a whole assem- 
 bly, they cannot reasonably be attributed to illusion. 
 Understand, we set aside all idea of fraud, and sup- 
 pose that attentive observation has proved that they 
 are owing to no accidental or material change. It is 
 true that a learned physician has given a positive 
 explanation : he says (Note 1), "The cause of it is in 
 the voluntary or involuntary contractions of the ten- 
 don of the muscle of the ankle joint." In connection 
 with this subject he enters into the most complete an- 
 atomical details, to demonstrate by what mechanism 
 this tendon can produce these sounds, imitate the 
 beating of the drum, and even execute rhythmic airs ; 
 from whence he concludes that those who think they 
 hear blows struck in a table are dupes either of mysti- 
 fication or illusion. The fact, in itself, is not new ; 
 unhappily for the author of this pretended discovery, 
 his theory does not hold in all cases. Let us first say 
 that those who enjoy the singular faculty of making 
 the ankle joint, or any other muscle, crack at will, or 
 play tunes by this means, are exceptional subjects, 
 while those who cause table rapping are very common, 
 and that those who possess the last faculty scarcely 
 ever enjoy the first. In the second place, this learned 
 doctor has forgotten to explain how the muscular 
 cracking of a person, immovable and isolated from the 
 table, can produce therein vibrations sensible to the 
 touch ; how this sound can be thrown, at the will of 
 the assistants, into different parts of the table, into 
 other furniture, against the walls, the ceiling, &c. ; how, 
 finally, the action of this muscle can extend to a table 
 that is not touched, and make it move. This explana- 
 
SYSTEMS. 53 
 
 Hon, if indeed it were one, could only invalidate the phe- 
 nomenon of the rapping, but does not concern all the 
 other modes of communication. Let us conclude that 
 he has judged without having seen, or, without having 
 thoroughly or well seen. It is always to be regretted 
 that scientific men should give a hasty opinion on 
 what they do not understand, when the facts can give 
 the lie to their explanations. Their knowledge, at 
 least, should make them as much more circumspect in 
 their judgments as it removes for them the limits of 
 the unknown. 
 
 42. System of Physical Causes. Here we leave the 
 system of absolute negation. The reality of the phe- 
 nomena being proved, the first thought that naturally 
 entered the minds of those who saw them was to 
 attribute the movements to magnetism, to electricity, 
 or to the action of some kind of fluid ; in a word, to a 
 cause entirely physical and material. In this opinion 
 there was nothing irrational, and it would have pre- 
 vailed had the phenomena been limited to purely 
 physical effects. One circumstance seemed to corrob- 
 orate it ; in certain cases, the increase of the power 
 according to the number of persons ; each one of 
 them might thus be considered as one of the elements 
 of a human electric pile. What characterizes a true 
 theory, we have said, is the power of giving a reason 
 for everything ; but if a single fact comes to contra- 
 dict it, it must be false, incomplete, or too absolute. 
 This has happened in this instance. These move- 
 ments and these rappings have given signs of intelli- 
 gence, in obeying the will and answering to the 
 thought ; they must, then, have an intelligent cause. 
 As soon as the effect ceases to be purely physical, 
 the cause, for that very reason, must have another 
 
54 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 source : thus the system of the exclusive action of a 
 material agent was abandoned, and is only found 
 among those who judge a priori, and without having 
 seen. The main point, then, is to verify the intelli- 
 gent action ; and of this any one, who will take the 
 trouble to observe, may be convinced. 
 
 43. System of Reflex Action. Intelligentactionor.ee 
 recognized, the source of this intelligence remained to 
 be accounted for. It was thought it might be the 
 medium or the assistants who were reflected like the 
 light, or the rays of sound. That was possible ; ex- 
 perience alone could decide. But, first, let us remark, 
 that this system completely sets aside the purely ma- 
 terialistic idea, for, in order that the intelligence of the 
 assistants should be able to be reproduced in an indi- 
 rect way, we must admit a principle within man beyond 
 the organism. If the thought expressed had always 
 been that of the assistants, the reflex theory might 
 have been confirmed ; but was not the phenomenon, 
 even reduced to that proportion, of the highest inter- 
 est ? Thought being reflected into an inert body, and 
 being translated by movement and sound, — was not 
 this a very remarkable thing? Was there not in it 
 something to pique the curiosity of the learned ? 
 Why, then, did they disdain it, — they who exhaust 
 themselves on the search of a nerve fiber ? 
 
 Experience alone, we say, could show the falsity or 
 truth of this theory ; and experience has shown its fal- 
 sity ; for it demonstrates, at every moment, and by the 
 most positive facts, that the thought expressed can be 
 not only foreign to that of the assistants, but often 
 exactly contrary ; that it comes to contradict all pre- 
 conceived ideas, baffle all foresight ; in fact, when I 
 think white, and am answered black, it is difficult to 
 
SYSTEMS. 55 
 
 make me believe that the answer comes from myself. 
 The argument is founded on some cases of identity 
 between the thought expressed and that of the assist- 
 ants ; but what does that prove, except that the assist- 
 ants may think the same as the intelligence that com- 
 municates ? It has not been said that they must 
 always be of the opposite opinion. When, in course 
 of conversation, the interlocutor expresses a thought 
 analogous to your own, will you, for that reason, say it 
 comes from yourself? It is sufficient to have some 
 contrary examples well verified, to prove that this 
 theory cannot be absolute. Besides, how explain, by 
 reflection of thought, the writing produced by persons 
 who know not how to write ; the answers of the high- 
 est philosophical bearing obtained through illiterate 
 persons — answers that are given to mental questions, 
 or in a language unknown to the medium, and thou- 
 sands of other facts which can leave no doubt of the 
 independence of the intelligence which is manifested ? 
 The contrary opinion can be only the result of a defect 
 of observation. If the presence of a foreign intelli- 
 gence is morally proved by the nature of the answer, 
 it is materially proved by the fact of direct writing ; 
 that is, by writing spontaneously obtained, without pen 
 or pencil, without contact, and in spite of all the pre- 
 cautions taken as a guarantee against subterfuge. 
 The intelligent character of the phenomenon cannot 
 be doubted ; then there is something besides a fluidic 
 action. Finally, the spontaneity of the thought ex- 
 pressed without expectation, without proposed ques- 
 tion, does not permit us to see in it a reflection of that 
 of the assistants. The system of reflex action is suffi- 
 ciently disobliging in some instances, when, in a re- 
 union of well-bred persons, there comes inopportunely 
 
56 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 one of those communications revolting for their gross- 
 ness ; it would be a very poor compliment to the assist- 
 ants to pretend it comes from one of them, and it is 
 probable that each one would hasten to repudiate it. 
 (See Book on Spirits, Introduction, par. XVI.) 
 
 44. System of the Collective Soul. This is a varia- 
 tion of the preceding. According to this system, the 
 soul alone of the medium is manifested ; but it is 
 identified with that of several others living, either 
 present or absent, and forms a collective whole, unit- 
 ing the aptitude, intelligence, and knowledge of each. 
 Though the tract in which this theory is put forth be 
 entitled the light (?), it seems to us to be of a very 
 obscure style. We confess to have hardly compre- 
 hended it, and speak of it only from memory. It is, 
 besides, like many others, an individual opinion, which 
 has made few proselytes. The name Emah Tirpse is 
 that taken by the author to designate the collective 
 being he represents. He takes for motto, There is 
 nothing hidden that shall not be known. This propo- 
 sition is evidently false, for there are many things that 
 man cannot and ought not to know : it would be very 
 presumptuous in him to pretend to penetrate into the 
 secrets of God. 
 
 45. Somnambulic System. This system has had 
 more partisans, and even yet counts some. Like the 
 preceding it admits that all the intelligent communica- 
 tions have their source in the soul or spirit of the me- 
 dium ; but_in order to explain his aptitude to treat of 
 subjects beyond his knowledge, instead of supposing a 
 multiple soul, it attributes his power to a temporary 
 excitement of the mental faculties, to a kind of som- 
 nambulistic or ecstatic state, which exalts and devel- 
 ops his intelligence. It cannot be denied that some 
 
SYSTEMS. 57 
 
 cases are influenced by this cause ; but after having 
 seen a great number of mediums, any one will be con- 
 vinced that it will not solve all the facts, and that it 
 forms the exception, and not the rule. It might be 
 thought so if the medium had always the air of an 
 inspired or ecstatic person — an appearance that he 
 certainly could always simulate, if he wished to act a 
 part ; but how believe in inspiration, when the medium 
 writes like a machine, without having the least con- 
 sciousness of what he is writing, without the least 
 emotion, without thinking of what he is doing, laugh- 
 ing or talking of one thing and another. Excite- 
 ment may be imagined in the case of ideas, but it is 
 not easy to understand how it can make a person write 
 who does not know how to write, and still less when 
 the communications are transmitted by rappings, or. 
 by the aid of a planchette or a basket. We shall see, 
 at the end of this work, the part we must assign to 
 the influence of the medium's ideas ; but the cases in 
 which a foreign intelligence is revealed by incontesta- 
 ble signs, are so numerous and so evident, that they 
 can leave no doubt in this respect. The fault in most 
 of the hashed-up systems of the origin of Spiritism, is 
 having drawn general conclusions from a few isolated 
 facts. 
 
 46. Pessimist, Diabolic, or Demoniac System. Here 
 we enter another order of ideas. The intervention of 
 a foreign intelligence being admitted, it was necessary 
 to know the nature of this intelligence. Doubtless 
 the most simple means was to ask it of itself; but 
 some persons did not find that a sufficient guarantee, 
 and saw in the manifestations only a diabolic work ; 
 according" to their opinion, only the devil or demons 
 can communicate. Although this system finds few 
 
58 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 echoes nowadays, it at least enjoyed a momentary 
 credit from the character of those who sought to make 
 it prevail. We must always understand that the parti- 
 sans of the demoniac system should not be considered 
 among the adversaries of Spiritism ; quite the contrary. 
 Let the beings who communicate be demons or angels, 
 they are incorporeal : to admit the manifestation of 
 demons is always to admit the possibility of communi- 
 cating with the invisible world, the same as with a 
 person in this world. 
 
 The belief in the exclusive communication of de- 
 mons, however irrational it may be, could not seem 
 impossible when spirits were looked upon as having 
 been created outside of humanity ; but since we know 
 that spirits are naught but the souls of those who have 
 lived, it has lost all its prestige, and, one might say, 
 all probability ; for it would follow that all these souls 
 are demons, were they those of a father, a son, or a 
 friend, and that we ourselves, in dying, would become 
 demons, — a doctrine neither very flattering, nor consol- 
 ing to most people. It will be difficult to persuade a 
 mother that the cherished child she has lost, and which 
 comes after its death to give her proofs of its affection 
 and its identity, may be an agent of Satan. It is true 
 that among the spirits are some very bad ones, worth 
 not much more than those we call demons, for the very 
 simple reason that there are very bad men, and death 
 does not make them immediately better ; the question 
 is, to know if these are the only ones that can com- 
 municate. To those who think so we will address the 
 following questions : — 
 
 First. Are there good and bad spirits ? 
 
 Second. Is God more powerful than the bad spirits, 
 or than the demons, if you desire so to call them ? 
 
SYSTEMS. 59 
 
 Third. To affirm that the bad alone communicate, 
 is to say that the good cannot : if this be so, then one 
 of two things : it takes place either by the will, or 
 against the will, of God. If against His will, the bad 
 spirits must be more powerful than He ; if by His 
 will, why, in His loving kindness, would He not per- 
 mit the good to counterbalance the influence of the 
 others ? 
 
 Fourth. What proof can you give of the powerless- 
 ness of good spirits to communicate ? 
 
 Fifth. When the knowledge displayed in some com- 
 munications is cited against your theory, you answer 
 that the demon assumes all masks, the better to betray. 
 We know there are hypocritical spirits, who give to 
 their language a false varnish of goodness ; but do you 
 admit that ignorance can counterfeit true knowledge, 
 and a bad nature counterfeit true virtue, so that noth- 
 ing will be seen to disclose the fraud ? 
 
 Sixth. If the demon alone can communicate, as he 
 is the enemy of God and of men, why does he recom- 
 mend us to pray to God, to submit to His will, to 
 endure the tribulations of life without a murmur, to 
 desire neither honors nor riches, to practice charity, 
 and all the maxims of the Christ ; in a word, to do all 
 that is necessary to destroy his own empire ? If it be 
 the demon who gives such advice, we must agree that, 
 cunning as he is, he is very unskillful to furnish arms 
 against himself. ( 3 ) 
 
 Seventh. As spirits communicate, it is because God 
 permits them ; seeing the good and the bad commu- 
 nications, is it not more logical to think that God 
 permits the bad to try us, and the good to advise us ? 
 
 Eighth. W T hat would you think of a father who 
 would leave his child at the mercy of pernicious exam- 
 
60 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 pies and advice, and who should take from him and 
 forbid him to see those who could turn him from 
 evil ? What a good father would not do, must we 
 think that God, who is the perfection of goodness, 
 would do ? 
 
 Ninth. The church recognizes as authentic certain 
 manifestations of the Virgin and other saints, in appa- 
 ritions,, visions, oral communications, &c. ; is not this 
 belief at variance with the exclusive communication 
 of demons ? We believe that some persons have sin- 
 cerely professed this belief; but we also believe that 
 many have pretended it, solely with a view to prevent 
 people from occupying themselves with these things, 
 because of the bad communications that they are liable 
 to receive ; saying that the devil alone manifests, they 
 would terrify them, as we tell a child, "Don't touch 
 that ; it will burn." The intention may be praisewor- 
 thy, but the end is lost ; for the prohibition excites 
 curiosity, and the fear of the devil restrains very few ; 
 they would like to see him, if only to see how he is 
 made, and are very much astonished to find him not 
 half so black as they thought. 
 
 Could we not also see another motive for this 
 theory ? 
 
 There are persons who think every one in the 
 wrong who is not of their opinion ; so are not those 
 who pretend that all communications are the work of 
 the demon, moved by the fear of not finding the spirits 
 agree with them on all points — onthose that concern 
 the interests of this world still more than those of the 
 other ? Not being able to deny the facts, they desire 
 to present them in a terrifying manner ; but this 
 means has arrested it no more than the others. Where 
 
SYSTEMS. 6 1 
 
 the fear of ridicule is powerless, we must be resigned 
 to let matters take their course. 
 
 The Mussulman who should hear a spirit speak 
 against the Koran, would assuredly think it a bad 
 spirit ; it would be the same with a Jew as to what 
 respects certain laws of Moses. As to the Catholics, 
 we heard one affirm that the communicating spirit 
 could only be the devil, because it disagreed with him 
 as to the temporal power, though, at the same time, 
 preached only charity, tolerance, love of the neighbor, 
 and the abnegation of the things of this world — all 
 maxims taught by the Christ. 
 
 Spirits being only the souls of men, and men not 
 being perfect, it thence results that there are imperfect 
 spirits, whose character is reflected in their communi- 
 cations. It is an incontestable fact, that there are 
 among them bad, crafty, and profoundly hypocritical 
 spirits, and against these we must be on our guard ; 
 but because we meet in the world with bad men, is it 
 a reason for withdrawing ourselves from society ? God 
 has given us reason and judgment to appreciate spirits 
 as well as men. The better means to provide against 
 the dangers which the practice of Spiritism may pre- 
 sent, is not to forbid it, but to make it understood. 
 An imaginary fear impresses but for a moment, and 
 affects but few ; the reality, clearly demonstrated, is 
 understood by all. 
 
 47. Optimist System. By the side of those who see 
 in the phenomena only the action of demons, are oth- 
 ers, who see in them only that of good spirits. They 
 supposed, the soul being disengaged from matter, no 
 vail existed for it ; that it must have sovereign science 
 and sovereign wisdom. Their blind confidence in 
 this absolute superiority of the beings of the invisible 
 
62 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 world, has been a great source of many of the decep- 
 tions ; they have learned, to their cost, to beware of 
 certain spirits as well as of certain men. 
 
 48. Unisprit or Monosprit System. A variety of 
 the optimist system consists in the belief that one 
 single spirit communicates to men, and that this spirit 
 is the Christ, who is the protector of the world. When 
 we see communications of the most trifling kind, of a 
 revolting grossness, full of malevolence and wicked- 
 ness, it would be profanation and impiety to suppose 
 they could emanate from the spirit of perfect good- 
 ness. If those who believe it had never had any save 
 irreproachable communications, one might conceive 
 their illusion ; but most of them admit having had 
 very bad ones, which they explain by saying that dic- 
 tating to them absurd things is a trial the good spirit 
 causes them to undergo : thus, while some attribute all 
 communications to the devil, who may say good things 
 to tempt them, others think Jesus alone is manifested, 
 who may say bad things to try them. Between these 
 two so opposite opinions, who will decide ? Good 
 sense and experience. We say experience, because it 
 is impossible that- those who express ideas so exclusive 
 can have thoroughly viewed all sides. 
 
 When we bring forward the facts of identity, which 
 show the presence of relations, friends, or acquaint- 
 ances, by the manifestations, written, visual, or other- 
 wise, they answer that it is always the same spirit, — 
 the devil, according to some, the Christ, according to 
 others, — who takes all forms; but they do not tell 
 us why the other spirits cannot communicate — with 
 what motive the Spirit of Truth should present him- 
 self under false appearances, to deceive a poor mother, 
 making her falsely believe it is the child she laments. 
 
SYSTEMS. 63 
 
 Reason refuses to admit that the Holy Spirit should 
 be degraded to play such a comedy. Besides, is it not 
 taking from Spiritism its greatest charm, the consola- 
 tion of the a^fflicted, to deny the possibility of all other 
 communication ? Let us simply say that such a sys- 
 tem is irrational, and cannot sustain a serious exami- 
 nation. 
 
 49. Multisprit or Poly sprit System. All the sys- 
 tems we have passed in review, without excepting 
 those in the negative, rest on some observation, though 
 incomplete and badly interpreted. If a house is red 
 on one side and white on the other, they who have 
 seen only one side will affirm that it is white or that 
 it is red ; and they will be wrong and right : but he 
 who has seen it on both sides will say it is red and 
 white, and he alone will be right. The same in regard 
 to the opinion formed of Spiritism ; it may be true in 
 certain lights, and false if we generalize from partial 
 knowledge — if we take for the rule what is only the 
 exception, for the whole what is only a part. This is 
 why we say that whoever would seriously study this 
 science shouFd see much and for a long time : time 
 alone will permit him to seize the details, to catch the 
 delicate shades, to observe a multitude of characteris- 
 tic facts, which will be as rays of light to him ; but if 
 he stops at the surface, he may carry away a prema- 
 ture, and, consequently, an erroneous judgment. Here 
 are the general consequences deduced from a complete 
 observation, and which now form the belief, we may 
 say, of the majority of spiritists, for the restrictive 
 systems are now but isolated opinions. 
 
 First. The spirit phenomena are produced by extra 
 corporeal intelligences ; in other words, by spirits. 
 
 Second. Spirits constitute the invisible world ; they 
 
64 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 are everywhere : space is peopled with them to infini- 
 ty ; there are some always around us, with whom we 
 are in contact. 
 
 Third. Spirits constantly react on the^>hysical and 
 on the moral world, and are one of the powers of 
 nature. 
 
 Fourth. Spirits are not beings apart in nature ; 
 they are the souls of those who have lived on this 
 earth, or in other worlds, and who have laid aside 
 their corporeal envelop ; from whence it follows that 
 the sjuIs of men are incarnated spirits, and that, in 
 dying, we become spirits. 
 
 Fifth. There are spirits of all degrees of goodness 
 and of malice, of knowledge and of ignorance. 
 
 Sixth. They are all subject to the law of progress, 
 and can ail attain to perfection ; but, as they have 
 their free will, the time is more or less long, according 
 to their efforts or otherwise. 
 
 Seventh. They are happy or unhappy according to 
 the good or evil they have done during this life, and 
 the degree of advancement they have reached. Hap- 
 piness, perfect and without alloy, is ttte lot of those 
 spirits only who have reached the supreme degree of 
 perfection. 
 
 Eighth. All spirits, under given circumstances, can 
 manifest themselves to men : the number of those who 
 can communicate is indefinite. 
 
 Ninth. Spirits communicate through the interven- 
 tion of mediums, who serve them as instruments and 
 interpreters. 
 
 Tenth. The superiority or inferiority of spirits is 
 recognized by their language : the good counsel only 
 good, and say only good things ; everything about 
 
SYSTEMS. 65 
 
 them proves elevation ; the bad deceive, and all their 
 words bear the marks of imperfection and ignorance. 
 
 The different degrees through which spirits pass are 
 indicated in the Spirit Scale (Book on Spirits, Book 2, 
 Chap. 1, No. 100). The study of this classification is 
 indispensable to appreciate the nature of the spirits 
 who manifest themselves, their good and bad qualities. 
 
 50. System of the Material Soul consists only in 
 a peculiar opinion on the inmost nature of the soul. 
 According to this opinion, the soul and the perisprit 
 are not distinct things ; or, to speak more plainly, the 
 perisfrit is only the soul itself gradually purified by 
 various transmigrations, — as alcohol is purified by va- 
 rious distillations, — while the spirit doctrine considers 
 the perisprit only as the fluidic envelope of the soul or 
 spirit. The perisprit being a matter, though very ethe- 
 real, the soul would thus be of a material nature, more 
 or less essential, according to the degree of its purifi- 
 cation. This system invalidates none of the funda- 
 mental principles of the spirit doctrine, for it changes 
 in nothing the destiny of the soul : the conditions of 
 its future happiness remain the same ; the soul and 
 the perisprit forming a whole under the name of spirit, 
 as the germ and perisperm form one under the name 
 of fruit, the whole question being reduced to consider- 
 ing the whole as homogeneous, instead of being found 
 'of two distinct parts. As may be seen, this is of little 
 consequence, and we should not have mentioned it, 
 had we not met persons disposed to see a new school 
 in what is, definitively, but a simple interpretation of 
 words. This opinion, a very restricted one; were it 
 even more general, would no more constitute a schism 
 between spiritists, than the two theories of the emission 
 or the undulations of light make one among physicists. 
 
66 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Those who would form a separate party for so trifling 
 a question, would prove by that alone that they attach 
 more importance to the accessory than to the princi- 
 pal, and that they are pressed to disunion by spirits 
 who cannot be good ; for good spirits never breathe 
 spite and dissension : this is why we entreat all true 
 spiritists to guard against similar suggestions, and not 
 to attach to certain minutiae more importance than 
 they deserve ; the foundation is the essential point. 
 Nevertheless, we will, in a few words, explain on what 
 rests the opinion of those who consider the soul and 
 the perisprit two distinct things. It is founded On the 
 teachings of the spirits, who have never varied in that 
 respect. We speak of enlightened spirits, for among 
 them there are those who know no more about it than 
 men, and some even less, while the contrary theory is 
 a human conception. We have neither invented nor 
 supposed the perisprit to explain the phenomena ; its 
 existence was revealed to us by spirits, and observa- 
 tion has confirmed us in it. (Book on Spirits, No. 93.) 
 It rests also on the study of sensation among spirits 
 (Book on Spirits, No. 257), and particularly on the 
 phenomenon of tangible apparitions, which would in- 
 volve, according to the other opinion, the solidification 
 and the disintegration of the constituent parts of the 
 soul, and, consequently, its disorganization. ■ It would, 
 besides, be necessary to admit that this matter, which - " 
 can come within reach of the senses, is itself the intel- 
 ligent principle, which is no more rational than to con- 
 found the body with the soul, or the clothing with the 
 body. As to the innate nature of the soul, it is un- 
 known to us. When we say it is immaterial, this 
 must be understood in a relative and not an absolute 
 sense, for absolute immateriality would be nothing ; 
 
SYST&MS. • (>7 
 
 but the soul, or spirit, is something ; we would say 
 that its essence is so superior, that it has no analogy 
 with what we call matter, and that so, for us, it is im- 
 material. (Book on Spirits, Nos. 23 and 82.) 
 
 51. Here is the answer given on this subject by a 
 spirit. 
 
 " What some call perisprit is only what others call 
 material fluidic envelope. I will say, to make myself 
 understood in a more logical manner, that this fluid is 
 the perfection of the senses — the extension of sight 
 and ideas. 1 speak here of elevated spirits. As to 
 the inferior spirits, the terrestrial fluids are still com- 
 pletely inherent in them : so it is matter, as you see. 
 From thence the sufferings from hunger, from cold, 
 &c, sufferings which superior spirits do not endure, 
 because the terrestrial fluids are purified around the 
 thought ; that is to say, the soul. The soul, for its 
 progress, always needs an agent ; the soul without an 
 agent is nothing for you, or, rather, cannot be con- 
 ceived by you. The perisprit is, for us wandering 
 spirits, the agent by which we communicate with you, 
 whether indirectly by your body or your perisprit, or 
 directly to your soul ; from thence the infinite shades 
 of mediums and communications. Now remains the 
 scientific stand-point, that is, the very essence of the 
 perisprit itself: this is another affair. Understand, 
 first, morally, there remains only a discussion on the 
 nature of fluids, which is inexplicable at present : sci- 
 ence does not know it, but it will come to it if science 
 will walk hand in hand with Spiritism. The perisprit 
 may vary and change to infinity ; the soul is the 
 thought ; it changes not its nature : in this go no fur- 
 ther ; it is a point which cannot be explained. Think 
 
68 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 you I do not search like you ? You seek the perisprit, 
 we the soul. Wait then. Lamenais." 
 
 Thus spirits, who may be considered advanced, have 
 not yet fathomed the nature of the soul : how can we 
 do it ? It is, then, loss of time to attempt to investi- 
 gate first principles, which, as it is said in the Book on 
 Spirits (Nos. 17, 49), are God's secrets. To pretend, 
 by the aid of Spiritism, to pry into what is not yet 
 within the province of humanity, is to turn it from its 
 true aim ; it is like the child who would know as much 
 as an old man. Let man use Spiritism for his moral 
 development : that is the essential point : anything 
 more is only a sterile, and often vain curiosity, whose 
 satisfaction would not gain him one step in advance ; 
 the only way to advance is to become better. The 
 spirits who dictated the book which bears their name, 
 proved their wisdom, in keeping themselves, in all that 
 concerns the rudiments of things, within the limits 
 which God permits not to be crossed, leaving to sys- 
 tematist and presumptuous spirits the responsibility 
 of erroneous theories more seductive than solid, and 
 which will some day fall before reason like so many 
 others issued from human brains. They have said 
 only exactly what was necessary to make man under- 
 stand the future that awaits him, and by that to en- 
 courage him to good. (See Part 2, Chap. 1, Action 
 of Spirits on Matter) 
 
PART SECOND. 
 
 OF SPIRIT MANIFESTATIONS. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 
 
 52. The materialistic opinion being withdrawn as 
 condemned at once by reason and by facts, the whole 
 question is to know if the soul, after death, can mani- 
 fest itself to the living. The question, thus reduced to 
 its simplest expression, is found to be singularly free. 
 It might be asked, first, why intelligent beings, who 
 live in some way in our very midst, though, by their very 
 nature, invisible, should not attest their presence. 
 Simple reason says there is nothing in it absolutely 
 impossible, and this is something gained. Besides, 
 this belief has the assent of all people, for we find it 
 everywhere, and at all epochs : an intuition could not 
 be so general nor survive time without resting on 
 something. More, it is sanctioned by the testimony 
 of sacred books and by the Fathers of the Church, and 
 it has taken the skepticism and materialism of our age 
 to consign it to superstition ; if we are in error, so 
 are these authorities. 
 
 69 
 
70 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 But these are only moral considerations. One 
 cause, above all others, has helped to fortify doubt, in 
 an epoch so positive as ours, where people believe in 
 giving a reason for all, where they want to know the 
 why and the how of everything ; it is ignorance of the 
 nature of spirits, and of the means by which they can 
 manifest themselves. This knowledge acquired, the 
 fact of the manifestations is no longer surprising, and 
 enters into the order of natural facts. 
 
 53. The idea formed of spirits renders, at first sight, 
 the phenomena of the manifestations incomprehensi- 
 ble. These manifestations can take place only by the 
 action of the spirit on matter ; this is why those who 
 believe that spirit is the absence of all matter ask, 
 with some appearance of reason, how it can act 
 materially. But there is the error, for spirit is not an 
 abstraction ; it is a being defined, limited, and circum- 
 scribed. The spirit incarnated in the body constitutes 
 the soul ; when it leaves the body at death, it does 
 not leave it entirely stripped of an envelope. All tell 
 us they preserve the human form, and in fact, when 
 they appear to us it is in the form in which we have 
 known them. 
 
 Observe them attentively at the moment they leave 
 this life ; they are in a troubled state, everything 
 around them is confused ; they see their body, whole 
 or mutilated, according to the kind of death : on the 
 other hand, they see themselves and feel that they are 
 living. Something tells them that body belongs to 
 them, and they do not understand that they may be 
 separated from it. They continue to see themselves 
 under their primitive form, and this sight, with some, 
 produces a singular illusion — that of believing them- 
 selves still living ; experience of their new state is 
 
ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 7 1 
 
 necessary to convince them of the reality. This first 
 troubled moment dissipated, the body becomes for 
 them like an old garment, which they have stripped 
 oft" and no longer regret ; they feel lighter, and as if 
 disencumbered of a burden ; they no longer experi- 
 ence physical pains, and are perfectly happy in the 
 power of elevating themselves, traversing space, as 
 tbey have a thousand times in their dreams while liv- 
 ing. Fourth. In the mean time, spite of the absence 
 of the body, they realize their personality ; they have 
 a form, but a form that neither troubles nor embar- 
 rasses them ; they have the consciousness of their me 
 and of their individuality. What must we conclude ? 
 That the soul does not leave all in the coffin, and that 
 it carries something with it. 
 
 54. Numerous observations and incontestable facts, 
 of which we will speak further on, have led to this 
 conclusion — that there are in men three things : first, 
 the soul or spirit, intelligent principle in which resides 
 the moral sense ; second, the body, gross, material 
 envelope with which it is temporarily clothed, for the 
 accomplishment of certain providential views ; third, 
 the perisprit, semi-material, fluidic envelope serving as 
 a link between the soul and the body. 
 
 Death is the destruction, or rather the disintegration, 
 of the grosser envelope — that which the soul aban- 
 dons ; the other is disengaged, and follows the soul, 
 which thus finds itself always in possession of an 
 envelope ; this last, though fluidic, ethereal, vaporous, 
 invisible to us in its normal state, is not the less matter, 
 though we have not as yet been able to catch and 
 subject it to analysis. 
 
 This second envelope of the soul — the perisprit — 
 exists during the corporeal life ; it is the intermediary 
 
72 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 of all the sensations perceived by the spirit, that by 
 which the spirit transmits its will to the exterior, and 
 acts upon the organs. To make use of a material 
 comparison, it is the conductor, the electric thread, 
 which serves for the reception and transmission of 
 thought ; it is, lastly, that mysterious, unseizable 
 agent, denominated nervous fluid, which plays so great 
 a part in the economy, and of which too little is 
 thought in physiological and pathological phenomena. 
 Medicine, considering only the material, ponderable 
 element, is deprived, in the appreciation of facts, of an 
 incessant cause of action. But this is not the place to 
 examine that question ; we would only remark that the 
 knowledge of the perisprit is the key to a crowd of 
 problems hitherto inexplicable. 
 
 The perisprit is not one of those hypotheses to 
 which recourse is sometimes had in science for the 
 explanation of a fact ; its existence is not revealed 
 solely by the spirits ; it is a result of observations, as 
 we shall have occasion to show. For the present, and 
 not to anticipate facts we shall have to relate, we 
 limit ourselves to say that, whether during its union 
 with the body or after its separation, the soul is never 
 separated from its perisprit. 
 
 55. It has been said that the spirit is a flame, a 
 spark ; this should be understood of the spirit, so called, 
 as intellectual and moral principle, and to which we 
 know not how to attribute a determined form ; but 
 in whatever degree it may be found, it is always clothed 
 with an envelope or p&risprit, whose nature is ethere- 
 alized to the same degree in which it is purified and 
 elevated in the hierarchy ; in such a manner that the 
 idea of form is inseparable from that of spirit, and 
 that we cannot conceive the one without the other. 
 
ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 73 
 
 Thus the perisprit makes an integral part of the spirit, 
 as the body makes an integral part of the man : but 
 the perisprit alone is not the spirit any more than the 
 body alone is the man, for the perisprit does not 
 think ; it is to the spirit what the body is to the man ; 
 it is the agent or instrument of his action. 
 
 56. The form of the perisprit is the human form, 
 and when it appears to us it is usually that under 
 which we have known the spirit during his life. It 
 might be believed from this, that the perisprit, disen- 
 gaged from all the parts of the body, is moulded on it 
 in some sort, and so preserves its imprint ; but it does 
 not appear to be so. The human form, with some 
 shades of difference, and with the organic modifica- 
 tions made necessary by the medium in which the 
 being is called to live, is found among all the inhabit- 
 ants of all the globe ; this, at least, is what the spirits 
 say : it is equally the form of all non-incarnated 
 spirits, who have only the perisprit ; it is that under 
 which, from all time, angels and pure spirits have 
 been represented : from whence we conclude that the 
 human form is the type form of all human beings to 
 whatever degree they may belong. But the subtile 
 matter of the perisprit has neither the tenacity nor 
 the rigidity of the compact matter of the body ; it is, 
 if we may so express , ourselves, flexible and expansi- 
 ble ; this is why the form it takes, though counter- 
 drawn on that of the body, is not absolute ; it changes 
 at the will of the spirit, who can give himself such or 
 such an appearance at his will, while the solid envelope 
 would offer an insurmountable resistance. Disencum- 
 bered of these shackles that compressed it, the perisprit 
 is elongated or contracted, transformed, in a word 
 lends itself to all metamorphoses, according to the will 
 
74 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 that acts on it. It is in consequence of this property 
 of his fluidic envelope, that the spirit who wishes to be 
 recognized can, when it is necessary, take the exact 
 appearance he had when living, nay, even those of the 
 corporeal accidents which may be signs of recognition. 
 Spirits, then, as may be seen, are beings similar to 
 ourselves, forming around us a whole population in- 
 visible in the normal state, because, as we shall see, this 
 invisibility is not absolute. 
 
 57. Let us return to the nature of the perisprit, for 
 that is essential to the explanation we have to give. 
 We have said that, though fluidic, it is not the less a 
 kind of matter ; and this follows from the fact of the 
 tangible apparitions to which we shall return. Under 
 the influence of certain mediums, hands have appeared 
 having all the properties of living hands, which have 
 the heat, could be handled, offer the resistance of a 
 solid body, which could grasp you, and which suddenly 
 vanished like a shade. The intelligent action of these 
 hands, which evidently obey a will in executing certain 
 movements, in even playing airs on an instrument, 
 proves that they are the visible part of an invisible 
 being. Their tangibility, their temperature, in a word 
 the impression they make on the senses, — for they 
 have been known to leave impressions on the skin, give 
 painful blows or caress gently, — prove that they are of 
 some kind of matter : especially does their instantane- 
 ous disappearance prove that this matter is eminent- 
 ly subtile, and is like some substances that can pass 
 alternately from the solid- to the fluid state, and vice 
 versa. 
 
 58. The intimate nature of the spirit, properly so 
 called, — that is to say, of the thinking being, — is entire- 
 ly unknown to us : it is revealed to us only by its action, 
 
ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 75 
 
 and its actions can strike our material senses only by 
 an intermediate material. It has for direct instrument 
 its peris p rit, as a man has his body, and its perisprit 
 is matter, as we shall see. It has, besides, for interme- 
 diary agent, the universal fluid — a sort of vehicle on 
 which it acts, as we act on the air to produce certain 
 effects by the aid of dilatation, comprehension, pro- 
 pulsion, or vibrations. 
 
 Seen by this light, the action of the spirit on matter 
 may be easily conceived : we comprehend from this 
 that all the effects that result from it enter into the 
 order of natural facts, and have nothing of the marvel- 
 ous in them. They appeared supernatural only when 
 the cause was unknown ; the cause known, the marvel- 
 ous disappeared ; and this cause lies entirely in the 
 semi-material properties of the perisprit. It is a new 
 order of facts which a new law comes to explain, and 
 which, in a short time, will no more astonish any one 
 than we are now astonished with correspondence at a 
 distance in a few minutes by electricity. 
 
 59. It may perhaps be asked how the spirit, by the 
 aid of a matter so subtile, can act on heavy and com- 
 pact bodies, raise tables, &c. Assuredly it could not be 
 a man of science who could make such objections ; for, 
 without speaking of the unknown properties this new 
 agent may possess, have we not under our eyes analogous 
 examples ? Is it not in the most rarefied gas, in the 
 most imponderable fluids, that industry finds its most 
 powerful motors ? When we see the air overthrow 
 edifices, steam carry enormous masses, gasified pow- 
 der raise rocks, electricity break trees and pierce walls, 
 what is there more strange in admitting that-the spirit, 
 by the aid of his perisprit, can raise a table ? above all, 
 when we know that this perisprit can become visible, 
 tangible, and behave altogether like a solid body 
 
Chapter II. 
 
 PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. — TURNING 
 TABLES. 
 
 60. The name Physical Manifestations has been 
 given to those shown by sensible effects, such as 
 noises, the movement and displacement of solid bodies. 
 Some are spontaneous, that is, independent of all will; 
 others are evoked. 
 
 We shall speak at present only of these last. 
 
 The simplest effect, and the one among the first 
 observed, consists in the circular movement given to a 
 table. This effect may be produced quite as well on 
 other objects, but the table being that on which it 
 was most frequently exercised, because it was most 
 convenient, the name of turning tables prevailed as 
 the designation of this kind of phenomenon. 
 
 When we say that this effect is one of the first that 
 were observed, we mean in these latter times, for it 
 is very certain that all kinds of manifestations were 
 known from the most remote times, and it could not 
 be otherwise ; since they are natural effects, they must 
 have been produced in all ages. Tertullian speaks, in 
 explicit terms, of tables turning and speaking. 
 
 This phenomenon for some time supplied food for 
 the curiosity of the drawing-room ; then it was left for 
 other amusements, for it was made but a subject of 
 pastime. Two causes contributed to its abandonment 
 — fashion for frivolous persons, who rarely consecrate 
 
 7 6 
 
 
ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 77 
 
 two winters to the same amusement, and who — pro- 
 digious for them ! — have given three or four to this. 
 For grave and observant persons, something serious 
 resulted and prevailed ; if they neglected the turning 
 tables it is because they were occupied with conse- 
 quences otherwise very important in their results ; 
 they have left the alphabet for the science : there is 
 the whole secret of the apparent abandonment on 
 which our deriders place so much stress. However 
 this may be, the turning tables are none the less the 
 starting-point of the spirit doctrine ; and in this re- 
 spect we owe them some developments, the better, 
 also, that, presenting the phenomena in their greatest 
 simplicity, the study of the causes will be easier, and 
 the theory, once established, will give us the key to 
 the most complicated effects. 
 
 61. For the production of the phenomena, the inter- 
 vention of one or several persons, endowed with a 
 special aptitude, and named mediums, is necessary. 
 The number of cooperants is indifferent ; only it may 
 be, in a number, some unknown mediums may be 
 found. As to those whose mediumship is naught, 
 their presence is without result, and even more injuri- 
 ous than useful, from the disposition of mind they often 
 bring with them. 
 
 Mediums often enjoy, in this relation, a power great- 
 er or less, and, consequently, produce effects more or 
 less decided : often one person, a powerful medium, 
 will alone produce more than twenty others united ; it 
 is enough for him to place his hands on the table to 
 make it instantly move, stand up, be thrown over, turn 
 somersaults, or turn round with violence. 
 
 62. There is no index to the medianimic faculty ; 
 experience alone can show it to us. When, in a re- 
 
78 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 union, a trial is desired, it is necessary simply to be 
 seated around a table, and hold the hands flatly above 
 it, without pressure or muscular intensity. In the 
 beginning, being ignorant of the causes of the phe- 
 nomenon, several precautions were indicated, since 
 known to be absolutely useless ; such as, for instance, 
 the alternation of the sexes, or the contact of the lit- 
 tle fingers of the different persons, so as to form an 
 uninterrupted chain. This last precaution appeared 
 necessary while it was attributed to the action of a 
 sort of electric current ; but experience has since 
 demonstrated its inutility. The only prescription 
 which should be rigorously obligatory, is concentra- 
 tion of thought, absolute silence, and, above all, pa- 
 tience, if the effect has to be awaited. It may be 
 produced in a few minutes, or it may be a half hour, 
 or an hour ; that depends on the medianimic power 
 of the co-participants. 
 
 63. Let us say, still further, that the form of the 
 table, the substance of which it is made, the presence 
 of metals, of silk in the garments of the assistants, 
 the days, the hours, obscurity or light, &c, are as in- 
 different as rain or fair weather. The size alone of the 
 table is of some consequence, but only when the medi- 
 animic power may be insufficient to overcome the 
 resistance ; in the contrary case, a single person, a 
 child even, can make a table of a hundred kilometres 
 rise ; though, under less favorable conditions, a dozen 
 persons could not make the smallest stand move. 
 
 Things being in this state, when the effect begins to 
 be manifested, there is usually heard some slight crack- 
 ing of the table, which continues to be moved in vari- 
 ous ways without contact. 
 
 Under some circumstances the table rises and 
 
ACTION OF SPIRITS ON MATTER. 79 
 
 stands, sometimes on one foot, sometimes on another, 
 then gently resumes its natural position. At other 
 times it is balanced, imitating the movement of pitch- 
 ing and rolling. At other times, again, — though this 
 requires considerable medianimic power, — it is en- 
 tirely detached from the floor, and maintained in equi- 
 librium in space, without support ; sometimes rising to 
 the ceiling, so that persons may pass under it, then 
 descending slowly, balancing itself like a sheet of 
 paper ; or it sometimes falls violently to the ground, 
 and is broken, which proves very decisively that it is 
 from no optical delusion. 
 
 64. Another phenomenon, very often produced, ac- 
 cording to the nature of the medium, is that of raps in 
 the very tissue of the wood, without movement of the 
 table ; these raps, sometimes very weak, at other times 
 very strong, are heard as well in the other furniture of 
 the room, against the walls and the ceiling. We shall 
 return to this presently. When they take place in the 
 table, they produce in it a vibration very perceptible 
 to the fingers, and very distinct when the ear is applied 
 to it. 
 
Chapter III. 
 
 INTELLIGENT MANIFESTATIONS. 
 
 65. In what we have seen, nothing assuredly reveals 
 the intervention of an unknown power, and these 
 effects could be perfectly explained by the action of a 
 magnetic or electric current, or of some kind of fluid. 
 Such was, in fact, the first solution given to these phe- 
 nomena, and which might reasonably pass for logical. 
 It would have prevailed without contradiction, if other 
 facts had not come to demonstrate its insufficiency. 
 These facts are the proofs of intelligence given ; for as 
 all intelligent effects must have an intelligent cause, it 
 remained evident, that even admitting that electricity 
 or some other fluid played a part in it, there was still 
 some other cause. What was it ? what was this intel- 
 ligence ? This is what the continuation of the obser- 
 vations brought to light. 
 
 66. For a manifestation to be intelligent it is not 
 necessary that it should be eloquent, witty, or learned ; 
 it is sufficient that it prove a free and voluntary act, 
 expressing an intention, or answering to a thought. 
 Assuredly, when we see a weathercock agitated by the 
 wind, it is very certain it obeys only a mechanical im- 
 pulse ; but if we should recognize in its movements 
 intentional signals, — should it turn to the right or to 
 the left, rapidly or slowly, at command, — we should be 
 forced to admit, not that the. weathercock is intelligent, 
 
 80 
 
INTELLIGENT MANIFESTATIONS. 8 1 
 
 but that it obeys an intelligence. This is what hap- 
 pened with the table. 
 
 67. We have seen the table moved, raised, strike 
 blows, under the influence of one or of several medi- 
 ums. The first intelligent effect that was remarked 
 was to see these movements obey the word of com- 
 mand ; thus, without changing its place, the table 
 would rise alternately on the designated foot, then, in 
 coming down, strike a required number of blows, an- 
 swering a question. At other times the table, without 
 personal contact, would walk across the room, going 
 to the right or to the left, forward or backward, execut- 
 ing divers movements, at the order of the assistants. 
 It is very evident that we set aside all supposition of 
 fraud, that we admit the perfect loyalty of the assist- 
 ants, proved by their honor and perfect disinterested- 
 ness. We shall speak, by and by, of the frauds against 
 which it is necessary to be guarded. 
 
 68. By means of raps, and, above all, by the inner 
 raps of which we have spoken, still more intelligent 
 effects are produced, as the imitation of the beatings 
 of a drum, a small war, with rank and platoon firing, 
 cannonading ; then the grinding of the saw, blows of 
 a hammer, the rhythm of different airs, &c. It was, as 
 may well be supposed, an immense field opened for 
 exploration. It was said, since there is here an un- 
 known intelligence, it should be able to answer ques- 
 tions ; and, in fact, it did answer Yes, or No, by means 
 of a given number of raps. These answers were very 
 insignificant, which led to the idea of designating the 
 letters of the alphabet, and thus composing words and 
 phrases. 
 
 69. These facts, renewed at will, by thousands of 
 persons in all countries, could leave no doubt of the 
 
82 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 intelligent nature of these manifestations. Then arose 
 a new system/according to which this intelligence was 
 no other than that of the medium, the interrogator, or 
 even of the assistants. The difficulty was, to explain 
 how this intelligence could be reflected into the table, 
 and translated by blows. As soon as it was proved 
 that these blows were not struck by the medium, they 
 were then by the thought ; but thought striking blows 
 was a still more prodigious phenomenon than the one 
 they had already witnessed. Experience soon demon- 
 strated the inadmissibility of this opinion. In fact, the 
 answers were often found to be in complete opposition 
 to the thought of the assistants, beyond the intellectu- 
 al strength of the medium, and even in language of 
 which he was ignorant, or relating to facts unknown 
 to all. The examples are so numerous that it is almost 
 impossible that any one, even slightly occupied with 
 Spiritism, should not have been many times witness 
 of it. We shall cite only one, brought to us by an eye- 
 witness. 
 
 70. On a vessel of the imperial French navy, sta- 
 tioned in the Chinese Seas, the whole crew, from the 
 sailors up to the staff-major, were occupied in making 
 tables talk. They hit upon the idea of invoking the 
 spirit of a lieutenant of this same vessel, some two 
 years dead. He came, and after various communica- 
 tions, which astonished every one, he said, by rapping, 
 what follows : " I pray you instantly to pay the captain 
 the sum of " (he mentioned the sum) " which I owe 
 him, and which I regret not having been able to repay 
 before my death." No one knew the fact ; the captain 
 himself had forgotten the debt, — a very small one, by 
 the by, — but on looking over his accounts, he found 
 there the lieutenant's debt, the sum indicated being 
 
INTELLIGENT MANIFESTATIONS. 83 
 
 perfectly correct. We ask, of whose thought could 
 this be the reflection ? 
 
 71. The act of communicating by alphabetic raps 
 was perfected, but the process was always very long ; 
 though by its means they obtained very interesting 
 revelations from the world of spirits. These indicated 
 other means, and to them we are indebted for written 
 communications. 
 
 The first communications of this kind were by ad- 
 justing a pencil to the foot of a table, held lightly on a 
 sheet of paper. The table, moved by the influence of 
 a medium, began to trace characters, then words and 
 phrases. This process was successively simplified, by 
 using little tables, the size of the hand, made express- 
 ly, then baskets, card-baskets, and afterward simple 
 planchettes. The writing was as flowing, rapid, and 
 easy, as with the hand, but it was afterward found 
 that these objects were really only appendices, pencil- 
 holders, with which they could dispense by themselves 
 holding the pencil : the hand, carried along by an 
 involuntary movement, wrote under the impulse given 
 by the spirit, and without the concurrence of the will 
 or thought of the medium. From henceforward, the 
 communications from beyond the tomb had no more 
 limits than correspondence between the living. 
 
 We shall return to these different processes, and 
 will explain them in detail ; having rapidly sketched 
 them to show the succession of the facts, proving in 
 these phenomena the intervention of unknown intelli- 
 gences, otherwise spirits. 
 
Chapter IV. 
 THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 
 
 Movements and Levitations. — Noises. — Increase and 
 Diminution of the Weight of Bodies. 
 
 J2. The existence of spirits being demonstrated by- 
 reasoning and by facts, as well as the possibility for 
 them to act upon matter, it remains now to know how 
 this action is performed, and how they manage to 
 make tables and other inert bodies move. One' thought 
 naturally presents itself, and that was our own : as it 
 was contradicted by the spirits, who gave us quite a 
 different explanation, one we were far from expecting, 
 it is an evident proof that their theory was not our 
 opinion. As to the first thought, every one, as well as 
 ourselves, might be likely to have it ; but as to the 
 theory of the spirits, we believe it never has entered 
 into any person's mind. It will easily be recognized 
 as superior to ours, though less simple, because it 
 gives the solution of a crowd of other facts which 
 found no satisfactory explanation in our idea. 
 
 73. From the moment in which the nature of the 
 spirits is known, their human form, the semi-material 
 properties of the p&risprit, the mechanical action they 
 can have on matter, that among the facts of apparition, 
 fluidic and even tangible hands have been seen to 
 grasp objects and transport them, it was natural to 
 believe that the spirit simply used his hands to make 
 
 84 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 85 
 
 the table turn, and that he sustained it in the air by 
 the strength of his arm. But, in that case, what 
 necessity for a medium ? Cannot the spirit act alone ? 
 for the medium, who most often rests his hands in a 
 sense contrary to the movement, or even does not rest 
 them at all, evidently cannot second the spirit by any 
 muscular action whatever. Let us first allow the 
 spirits whom we questioned on the subject to speak. 
 74. The following answers were given to us by the 
 spirit of St. Louis : they have since been confirmed by 
 many others. 
 
 1. Is the universal fluid an emanation from the 
 Divinity ? 
 
 " No." 
 
 2. Is it a creation of the Divinity ? 
 " All is created, except God." 
 
 3. Is the universal fluid at the same time the uni- 
 versal element ? 
 
 " Yes ; it is the elementary principle of all things ? " 
 
 4. Has it any relation to the electric fluid whose 
 effects we know ? 
 
 " It is its element." 
 
 5. What is the state in which the universal fluid is 
 presented to us in its greatest purity ? 
 
 " To find it in its absolute purity, you must mount 
 to the pure spirits ; in your world it is always more or 
 less modified to form the compact matter that sur- 
 rounds you ; at the same time you may say that the 
 state in which it approaches most nearly to purity, is 
 that of the fluid you call animal magiietic fluid!' 
 
 6. It has been said that the universal fluid is the 
 source of life ; is it at the same time the source of 
 intelligence ? 
 
 " No ; this fluid animates only matter." 
 
86 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 7. Since it is this fluid which composes theperisprit, 
 it appears to be there in a kind of condensed state, 
 which approximates it, up to a certain point, to matter 
 so called. 
 
 " Up to a certain point, as you say, for it has not all 
 its properties : it is more or less condensed, according 
 to the worlds." 
 
 8. What is the operation by which a spirit moves a 
 solid body ? 
 
 " He combines a portion of the universal fluid with 
 the fluid exhaled from the medium suitable to this 
 effect." 
 
 9. Do the spirits raise the table with the aid of their 
 members in some degree solidified ? 
 
 " This answer will not yet lead to what you desire. 
 When a table is moved under your hands, the spirit 
 evoked draws from the universal fluid what animates the 
 table with a factitious life. The table thus prepared, 
 the spirit attracts it and moves it under the influence 
 of his own fluid thrown off by his will. When the 
 mass he wishes to move is too heavy for him, he calls 
 to his aid spirits who are in the same condition as 
 himself. By reason of his ethereal nature, the spirit 
 proper cannot act on gross matter without intermedia- 
 ry, that is to say, without the link that unites it to 
 matter : this link, which you call perisprit, gives you 
 the key to all material spirit phenomena. I believe I 
 have expressed myself clearly enough for you to under- 
 stand." 
 
 Remark. We call attention to this first phrase : 
 this answer will not yet lead to what you desire. 
 The spirit had perfectly understood that all .the pre- 
 ceding questions were asked only to arrive at this, and 
 he alluded to our thought, which, in fact, expected 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. $7 
 
 quite a different answer, that is to say, the confirmation 
 of our idea on the method by which the spirit makes 
 the table move. 
 
 10. Are the spirits he calls to his aid inferior ? are 
 they under his orders ? 
 
 " Equal, almost always ; sometimes they come of 
 themselves." 
 
 ii. Are all spirits able to produce phenomena of 
 this kind ? 
 
 " The spirits who produce these effects are always 
 inferior spirits, who are not entirely disengaged from 
 all material influence." 
 
 12. We understand that the superior spirits are not 
 occupied by things that are beneath them ; but we 
 ask if, by reason of their being more dematerialized, 
 they would have the power if they had the will ? 
 
 " They have the moral strength, as the others have 
 the physical strength ; when they require this strength, 
 they make use of those who possess it. Have they 
 not told you that they make use of inferior spirits as 
 you do of porters ? " 
 
 Remark. It has been said that the density of the 
 perisprit, if one may so express it, varies according to 
 the state of the worlds ; it appears that it varies also 
 in the same world according to individuals. Among 
 the morally advanced spirits, it is more subtile, and 
 approximates to that of the elevated spirits : among 
 the inferior spirits, on the contrary, it approximates to 
 matter, which is the reason these spirits of low state 
 preserve so long the illusions of the terrestrial life ; 
 they think and act as if they were still living ; they 
 have the same desires, and we might almost say the 
 same sensuality. This coarseness of the perisprit 
 giving to it more affinity with matter, makes the 
 
88 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 inferior spirits more fitted for physical manifestations. 
 It is for the same reason that a man of the world 
 accustomed to the labor of intellect, whose body is 
 frail and delicate, cannot carry a heavy burden like a 
 porter. Matter, with him, is in a manner, as it were, 
 less* compact, the organs less resistant ; he has less 
 nervous fluid. The perisprit being to the spirit what 
 the body is to man, and its density being accord- 
 ing to the degree of inferiority of the spirit, it takes 
 the place of muscular force ; that is to say, gives him, 
 over the fluids necessary for manifestations, a greater 
 power than those have whose nature is more ethereal. 
 If an elevated spirit desires to produce such effects, 
 he does what delicate people amongst us do ; he has it 
 done by a spirit of the trade. 
 
 13. If we have thoroughly understood what you 
 have said, the vital principle resides in the universal 
 fluid ; the spirit draws in this fluid the semi-material 
 envelope which constitutes his perisprit, and it is by 
 means of this fluid that he acts on inert matter. Is 
 it so ? 
 
 " Yes ; that is to say, he animates matter with a 
 kind of factitious life ; the matter is animated with 
 animal life. The table that moves under your hands 
 lives like the animal ; it obeys the intelligent being. It 
 is not he who pushes it as a man does a burden ; 
 when the table is raised, it is not the spirit who raises 
 it by strength of arm, it is the animated table that 
 obeys the impulse given by the spirit." 
 
 14. What is the part of a medium in this matter ? 
 
 " I have said it ; the fluid of the medium is com- 
 bined with the universal fluid accumulated by the 
 spirit : the union of these two fluids is necessary ; 
 that is to say, the animalized fluid with the universal 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 89 
 
 fluid, to give life to the table. But remark that this 
 life is only momentary; it is. extinguished with the 
 action, and often before the end of the action, as soon 
 as the quantity of fluid is insufficient to animate it." 
 
 15. Can the spirit act without the concurrence of a 
 medium ? 
 
 " It can act in spite of the medium ; that is to say, 
 that no doubt many persons serve as auxiliaries to 
 the spirits for certain phenomena. The spirit draws 
 from them, as from a source, the animalized fluid he 
 needs ; it is thus that the concurrence of the medium, 
 as you understand it, is not always necessary ; which 
 is the case particularly in spontaneous phenomena." 
 
 16. Does the animated table act with intelligence ? 
 Does it think ? 
 
 " It thinks no more than the stick with which you 
 make an intelligent sign ;. but the vitality with which it 
 is animated permits it to obey the impulse of an intel- 
 ligence. Understand that the table that moves does 
 not become spirit, and that it has of itself neither 
 thought nor will." 
 
 Remark. We often use an analogous expression in 
 our usual language ; we say of a wheel that turns 
 quickly, that it is animated with a rapid movement. 
 
 17. Which is the preponderating cause in the pro- 
 duction of this phenomena, the spirit or the fluid ? 
 
 " The spirit is the cause, the fluid is the instrument ; 
 both are necessary." 
 
 18. What part does the will of the medium play in 
 this case ? 
 
 " To call the spirits, and to second them in the im- 
 pulse given to^the fluid." 
 
 Is the action of the will always indispensable ? 
 
 " It adds to the power, but is not always necessary, 
 
90 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 since the movement can take place against and in 
 spite of that will ; this is a proof that there is a cause 
 independent of the medium." 
 
 Remark. The contact of the hands is not always 
 necessary to make an object move. It is so more 
 often to give the first impulse ; but once the object is 
 animated, it can obey the will without material con- 
 tact ; that depends either on the power of the medi- 
 um or the nature of the spirit. A first contact even is 
 not always indispensable ; there is proof of it in the 
 spontaneous movements and displacements which no 
 one has dreamed of calling forth. 
 
 19. Why cannot every one produce the same effect ? 
 and why have not all mediums the same power ? 
 
 " That depends on the organization, and the greater 
 or less facility with which the combination of fluids 
 can operate ; then the spirit of the medium sympa- 
 thizes more or less with the foreign spirits who find in 
 him the necessary fluidic power. This power, like 
 that of magnetizers, is greater or less. Under this 
 relation there are persons who are altogether refracto- 
 ry ; others with whom the combination operates only 
 by an exertion of their will ; others, finally, with whom 
 it takes place so naturally and so easily, that they are 
 not aware of it, and serve as instruments against their 
 will, as we have already said." (See the next chapter, 
 on Spontaneous Manifestations) 
 
 Remark. Magnetism is, doubtless, the principle of 
 these phenomena, but not such as we usually under- 
 stand it. The proof is, that there are very powerful 
 magnetizers who could not move a stand, and persons 
 who cannot magnetize, children even, to whom it suf- 
 fices only to touch the fingers on. a heavy table to 
 make it move ; so, if the medianimic power is not by 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. QT 
 
 reason of the magnetic, it is that there is another 
 cause. 
 
 20. Can persons called electric be considered as 
 mediums ? 
 
 " These persons draw from themselves the fluid 
 necessary to the production of the phenomena, and 
 can act without the help of foreign spirits. Thus they 
 are not mediums in the sense attached to this word ; 
 but a spirit can assist them, and profit by their natu- 
 ral disposition." 
 
 Remark. There are persons, like somnambulists, 
 who can act with or without the concurrence of a for- 
 eign spirit. (See, in chapter on Mediums, the article 
 relative to Somnambulistic Mediums) 
 
 21. Is the spirit that acts on solid bodies in the 
 substance of the bodies, or outside of it ? 
 
 " Both ; we have said that matter is no obstacle to 
 spirits ; they penetrate everything ; a portion of the 
 perisprit is identified, so to say, with the object it pen- 
 etrates." 
 
 22. How does the spirit manage to strike ? Does 
 he make use of a material object ? 
 
 " No more than of his arms to raise the table. You 
 well know that he has no hammer at his disposal. His 
 hammer is the combined fluid put in action to move or 
 to strike. When he moves, the light brings you the 
 sight of the movements ; when he strikes, the air 
 brings you the sound." 
 
 23. We can understand that when he strikes on a 
 hard body ; but how can he make us hear noises or 
 articulate sounds in the air ? 
 
 ".Since he can act on matter, he can act on air as 
 well as on the table. As to articulate sounds, he can 
 imitate them, as he can all other noises." 
 
92 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 24. You say that spirits do not use their hands to 
 remove the table ; yet, in certain visual manifestations, 
 hands have been seen to appear whose fingers have 
 wandered over the key-board of a piano, moved the 
 keys, and caused sounds. Would it not seem that in 
 this case the movement of the keys is produced by the 
 pressure of the fingers ? Is not this pressure as direct 
 and real when it is felt on ourselves, when these hands 
 leave imprints on the skin ? 
 
 " You can understand the nature of spirits and their 
 manner of acting only by comparisons, which give you 
 an incomplete idea, and it is wrong to always wish to 
 assimilate their processes to your own. Their pro- 
 cesses must bear relation to their organization. Have 
 I not told you that the fluid of the perisprit penetrates 
 matter, and is identified with it, that it animates it 
 with a factitious life ? Well, when the spirit rests his 
 fingers on the keys, he puts them there really, and 
 even moves them ; but it is not by muscular force that 
 he presses the key : he animates it as he animated the 
 table, and the key, which obeys his will, moves and 
 strikes the chord. There is one thing you will have 
 trouble in comprehending ; it is Jthis : that some spirits 
 are so little advanced, and so material in comparison 
 to the elevated spirits, that they still have the illusions 
 of the terrestrial life, and believe they act as when they 
 had their body ; they can no more give a reason of the 
 true cause of the effects they produce, than a peasant 
 can give a reason for the theory of the sounds he artic- 
 ulates ; ask them how they play on the piano, they 
 will tell you they strike on it with their fingers, because 
 they believe they do strike it ; the effect is produced 
 instinctively with them, without their knowing how, 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 93 
 
 and yet by their will. When they make you hear 
 words, it is the same thing/' 
 
 Remark. It results, from these explanations, that 
 spirits can produce all the effects that we produce our- 
 selves, but by means appropriate to their organization : 
 certain forces which are suited to them take the place 
 of the muscles which are necessary to us to act ; as 
 gesture with the mute takes the place of speech, which 
 he lacks. 
 
 25. Among the phenomena cited in proof of the 
 action of an occult power, there are some evidently 
 contrary to all the known laws of nature ; does not 
 doubt, then, seem to be permitted ? 
 
 " It is because man is far from knowing all the laws 
 of nature ; if he knew them all he would be a superior 
 spirit. Every day, however, gives the lie to those who, 
 thinking they know everything, presume to set bounds 
 to nature ; and they are none the less haughty. In 
 constantly unvailing new mysteries God warns men 
 to doubt their own lights, for the day will come when 
 the science of the most learned will be put to confu- 
 sion. Have you not every day examples of bodies 
 animated by a movement capable of overcoming the 
 force of gravity ? Does not the bullet, shot into the 
 air, momentarily overcome this force ? Poor men, who 
 think yourselves so learned, and whose silly vanity is 
 every instant disconcerted, know that you are still 
 very small." 
 
 75. These explanations are clear, categorical, and 
 without ambiguity ; from them results this capital 
 point : that the universal fluid, in which dwells the 
 principle of life, is the principal agent of the manifesta- 
 tions, and that this agent receives its impulse from the 
 spirit, whether incarnated or wandering. This fluid 
 
94 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. . 
 
 condensed constitutes the perisprit, or semi-material 
 envelope of the spirit. In the state of incarnation, the 
 perisprit is united to the matter of the body ; in the 
 wandering state it is free. When the spirit is incar- 
 nate, the substance of the perisprit is more or less 
 bound, more or less adherent, if we may so express it. 
 With certain persons there is a kind of emanation of 
 this fluid from their organization ; and it is this, prop- 
 erly speaking, that constitutes mediums for physical 
 manifestations. The emission of the animalized fluid 
 may be more or less abundant, its combination more 
 or less easy, from whence mediums more or less pow- 
 erful ; it is not permanent, which explains the inter- 
 mittence of the power. 
 
 76. Let us cite a comparison. When one has the 
 will to act materially on a given point at a distance, it 
 is the thought that wills ; but the thought alone cannot 
 go to strike the point ; an intermediary is necessary, 
 which it directs — a stick, a projectile, a current of air, 
 &c. Remark, too, the thought does not act directly 
 on the stick, for if it is not touched it will not act 
 alone. The thought, which is but the incarnated spirit 
 within us, is united to the body by the perisprit ; but 
 it can no more act on the body without the perisprit, 
 than it can act on the stick without the body ; it acts 
 on the. perisprit because it is the substance with which 
 it has the greatest affinity ; the perisprit acts on the 
 muscles, the muscles grasp the stick, and the stick 
 strikes its aim. When the spirit is not incarnate, a 
 foreign auxiliary is necessary ; this auxiliary is the 
 fluid by which he fits the object to follow the impulse 
 of his will. 
 
 J*]. Thus, when an object is put in motion, raised or 
 thrown into the air, the spirit does not grasp, push, or 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 95 
 
 raise it, as we should, with the hand ; he saturates it, 
 so to say, with his fluid, combined with that of the 
 medium, and the object, thus momentarily vivified, 
 acts like a living being, with this difference, that, hav- 
 ing no will of its own, it follows the impulse of the will 
 of the spirit. 
 
 Since the vital fluid emitted in some way by the 
 spirit, gives a factitious and momentary life to inert 
 bodies ; since \hc^erisprit is but this same vital fluid, 
 it follows that when the spirit is incarnate, it is he who 
 gives life to the body, by means of his perisprit ; he 
 remains united to it as long as the organization per- 
 mits ; when he withdraws, the body dies. Now, if, 
 instead of a table, a statue of wood were made, and 
 acted on as is the table, we will have a statue that will 
 move, will strike, will answer by its movements and 
 by its blows ; in a word, we shall have a statue mo- 
 mentarily animated by an artificial life ; we say talk- 
 ing tables, we could also say talking statues. What a 
 light this theory throws on a crowd of phenomena 
 hitherto without solution ! How many allegories and 
 mysterious effects does it not explain ? 
 
 78. But the incredulous object that the fact of rais- 
 ing tables without a support is impossible, because it 
 is contrary to the law of gravity. We will answer 
 them, firstly, that their denial is not a proof; secondly, 
 that if the fact exists, it may well be contrary to all 
 the known laws ; that would prove one thing, that it 
 must rest on unknown law, and that those who deny 
 cannot pretend to know all the laws of nature. We 
 have just explained this law, but it is no reason that it 
 may be accepted by them, precisely because it is given 
 by spirits, who have left their terrestrial clothing in- 
 stead of being by spirits who still have it, and have 
 
96 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 seats in the Academy. In such a manner that if the 
 spirit of Arago living had given this law, they, would 
 have accepted it with their eyes shut ; but given by 
 the spirit of Arago dead, it is a Utopia ; and why so ? 
 because they believe that, Arago being dead, every- 
 thing in him is dead. We have not the pretension to 
 dissuade them ; yet, as this objection might embarrass 
 some people, we shall try to answer it, putting our- 
 selves at their stand-point, that is to say, by making 
 abstract for an instant of the theory of factitious 
 animation. 
 
 79. When the space under the bell of the pneumatic 
 machine is emptied, this bell adheres with such force 
 that it is impossible to raise it, on account of the 
 weight of the column of air that rests upon it. Let 
 the air enter, and the bell rises with the utmost facility, 
 because the air below counterbalances the air above ; 
 at the same time, left to itself, it will remain on the 
 platform by virtue of the force of gravity. Now, let 
 the air below be compressed till it have a density 
 greater than that above, the bell will be raised in spite 
 of gravity ; if the current of air is rapid and violent it 
 could be sustained in space without visible support, in 
 the manner of those toys that are made to flutter in a 
 waterfall. The universal fluid, then, which is the ele- 
 ment of all matter, being accumulated around the 
 table, why should it not have the property to diminish 
 or increase its specific relative weight, as the air for 
 the bell of the pneumatic machine, as hydrogen gas 
 for balloons, without its being considered against the 
 law of gravity ? Do you know all the properties and 
 all the power of this fluid ? No : well, do not deny a 
 fact because you cannot explain it. 
 
 80. Let us return to the theory of the movement of 
 
THEORY OF PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS. 97 
 
 the table. If, by the means indicated, the spirit can 
 raise a table, he can raise anything else ; an easy- 
 chair, for instance. If he can raise an easy-chair, he 
 can, with a sufficient force, raise at the same time a 
 person seated on it. This is the explanation of this 
 phenomenon, which Mr. Home has produced a hun- 
 dred times, on himself and other persons ; he renewed 
 it during a voyage to London, and in order to prove 
 that the spectators were not the sport of an optical 
 illusion, he made a mark on the wall with a pencil, 
 and persons passed beneath him. It is said Mr. Home 
 is a powerful medium for physical effects ; he was in 
 this case the efficient cause and the object. 
 
 We spoke of the possible augmentation of weight j 
 it is, in fact, a phenomenon sometimes produced, and 
 which has nothing more anomalous than the prodi- 
 gious resistance of the bell under the atmospheric 
 column. Under the influence of some mediums, ob- 
 jects as light have been known to offer the same 
 resistance, then suddenly yield to the slightest effort. 
 In the experiment mentioned above, the bell in reality 
 weighs neither more nor less by itself, but it appears 
 heavier from the effect of the exterior cause that acts 
 upon it ; it is probably the same here. The table has 
 always the same intrinsic weight, for the mass is not 
 augmented, but a foreign force is opposed to its move- 
 ment ; and this cause may be in the ambient fluids 
 that penetrate it, as that which augments or dimin- 
 ishes the apparent weight of the bell is in the air. 
 Make the experiment of the pneumatic bell before an 
 ignorant peasant ; not understanding that it is the air 
 he does not see that acts, it will not be difficult to per- 
 suade him it is the devil. It may be said, perhaps, 
 that, this fluid being imponderable, its accumulation 
 7 
 
98 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 cannot augment the weight of an object. Agreed ; 
 but remark that if we used the word accumulation, it 
 is by comparison, and not from absolute assimilation 
 to the air. It is imponderable ; so be it : at the same 
 time nothing proves that it is so ; its inmost nature is 
 unknown to us, and we are far from being acquainted 
 with all its properties. 
 
 Before having experimented on the weight of the 
 air, no one suspected the effects of this same weight. 
 Electricity is also ranked among the imponderable 
 fluids ; yet a body may be held back by an electric 
 current, and offer a strong resistance to one who 
 would raise it : it has in appearance increased in 
 weight. It would be very illogical to conclude that no 
 support exists, because we cannot see it. The spirit, 
 then, may have levers that are unknown to us ; Nature 
 proves to us daily that her power does not stop at the 
 evidence of our senses. 
 
 We can explain only by a similar cause the singular 
 phenomenon, of which there have been several exam- 
 ples, of a young person, feeble and delicate, raising 
 with two fingers, without effort and as a feather, a 
 strong, robust man, with the chair on which he is 
 seated. This proves a cause foreign to the person ; it 
 is an intermitting of the faculty. 
 
Chapter V. 
 
 SPONTANEOUS PHYSICAL MANIFESTA- 
 TIONS. 
 
 Noises, Racket, and Disturbance. — Objects thrown, &c. 
 
 82. The phenomena of which we have spoken are 
 induced, but it sometimes happens that they take place 
 spontaneously, without participation of the will ; far 
 from it, since they often become very importunate. 
 The thought that they may be an effect of the imagi- 
 nation, over-excited by spirit ideas, is utterly excluded 
 by the fact that they are produced among persons who 
 never heard of spirit ideas, and at a moment they least 
 expect them. These phenomena, which may be called 
 practical natural Spiritism, are very important ; for 
 they cannot be suspected of connivance ; this is why 
 we ask persons who are engaged in spirit phenomena 
 to gather all the facts of this nature which come to 
 their knowledge, but, above all, to verify with care 
 their reality, by a minute study of the circumstances, 
 that they may be assured that they are not the sport 
 of illusion or mystification. 
 
 83. Of all the spirit manifestations, the simplest and 
 most frequent are sounds and rappings ; here, especial- 
 ly, we must fear an illusion, for a crowd of natural 
 causes might produce them — the wind whistling or 
 moving an object, a body we ourselves move without 
 perceiving it, an acoustic effect, a hidden animal, an 
 
 99 
 
IOO BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 insect, &c. ; nay, even the pranks of evil jesters. 
 Spirit noises have always a peculiar character, an in- 
 tensity of sound and very varied tone, which render 
 them easily recognizable, and do not allow them to be 
 confounded with the cracking of the wood, the snap- 
 ping of the fire, or the monotonous tic-tac of the pen- 
 dulum : they are dry blows, sometimes hollow, feeble, 
 and light, sometimes clear, distinct, and noisy, which 
 change from place to place, and are repeated with 
 mechanical regularity. Of all the means for making 
 sure, the most efficacious, that which leaves no doubt 
 of their origin, is their obedience to the will. If the 
 blows come from a designated place, if they answer to 
 the thought by their number or intensity, an intelli- 
 gent cause for them cannot be disavowed ; but the 
 want of obedience in them is not always a contrary 
 proof. 
 
 84. Let us admit, now, that, by a minute verifica- 
 tion, the certainty is acquired that the noises or other 
 effects are real manifestations ; is it rational to be afraid 
 of them ? No, assuredly ; for in any case there could 
 not be the least danger in them : persons who have 
 been persuaded it is the devil, alone could be affected 
 by them in a grievous manner, — as children are afraid 
 of the loup-garou, man- wolf, or of Croque-mitaine. 
 
 It must be admitted that these manifestations ac- 
 quire, under certain circumstances, a persistence and 
 proportion very disagreeable, creating a very natural 
 desire to be relieved of them. An explanation is 
 unnecessary to this subject. 
 
 85. We have said that the physical manifestations 
 have for their motive to call our attention to some- 
 thing, and to convince us of the presence of a power 
 superior to man. We have said, also, that the elevated 
 
SPONTANEOUS PIIYS. MANIFESTATIONS. IOI 
 
 spirits are not engaged in these kinds of manifesta- 
 tions ; they employ inferior spirits to produce them, 
 as we employ servants for coarse work, and that with 
 the motive we have indicated. This end once attained, 
 the material manifestation ceases, because it is no 
 longer necessary. One or two examples will make 
 this thing better understood. 
 
 86. Several years ago, at the beginning of my studies 
 on Spiritism, being one evening engaged in a work on 
 that matter, rappings were heard around me for four 
 consecutive hours ; it was the first time that a similar 
 thing had happened to me. I satisfied myself that it 
 was from no accidental cause, but, at the moment, knew 
 nothing more. I had, at this time, occasion frequently 
 to see an excellent writing medium. The next day I 
 questioned the spirit, who communicated by this medi- 
 um, as to the cause of the rappings. " It is," he an- 
 swered, " your familiar spirit, who wants to speak to 
 you." " And what does he want to say to me ? " 
 " You may ask him yourself, for he is there." 
 
 Having then interrogated that spirit, he made him- 
 self known under an allegorical name (I have since 
 known, from other spirits, that he belongs to a very 
 elevated order, and has played a very important part 
 in the world) ; he pointed out errors in my work, indi- 
 cating to me the lines where they would be found, 
 gave me useful and wise advice, and would come at my 
 call whenever I wished to interrogate him. Since 
 then, in fact, this spirit has never left me. He has 
 given me many proofs of great superiority, and his 
 benevolent and efficacious intervention has been mani- 
 fested for me in the affairs of material life, especially 
 on those bearing on metaphysics. But from our first 
 conversation, the rappings ceased. What did he desire 
 
102 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 to effect ? To enter into a regular communication 
 with me ; for that he must warn me. The warning 
 given, then explained, regular relations established, the 
 rappings became useless : this is why they ceased. 
 The drum is no longer beaten to awaken the soldiers 
 when once they are up. 
 
 A fact almost similar happened to one of our 
 friends. For some time his room resounded with 
 various noises, which became very annoying. Occa- 
 sions being presented of interrogating Ihe spirit of his 
 father, by a writing medium, he ascertained what was 
 wanted, did what he recommended, and after that 
 nothing more was heard. It is to be remarked, that 
 persons who have a regular and easy means of com- 
 munication with the spirits are much more rarely 
 subject to manifestations of this kind, which may be 
 readily conceived. 
 
 87. Spontaneous manifestations are not always lim- 
 ited to noises and rappings ; they sometimes degener- 
 ate into real racket and disturbances ; furniture and 
 various objects overthrown, projectiles of all kinds 
 thrown from without, doors and windows opened and 
 shut by invisible hands, tiles broken, — which cannot 
 be placed to the account of illusion. The overthrow- 
 ing is often very effective, but often there is only the 
 appearance. An uproar is heard, a sound of some- 
 thing falling and breaking with a crash, blocks of 
 wood roll over the floor : running to the spot, every- 
 thing is found tranquil and in order ; then scarcely 
 outside, when the tumult recommences. 
 
 88. Manifestations of this kind are neither rare nor 
 new ; scarcely any local chronicle that does not pos- 
 sess some history of the kind. Fear has, doubtless, 
 exaggerated the facts, which have been made to take 
 
SPONTANEOUS PIIYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 103 
 
 proportions ridiculously gigantic, in passing from mouth 
 to mouth ; superstition aiding, the houses where they 
 have happened have been reputed as haunted by the 
 devil, and hence all the marvelous or terrible stories 
 of ghosts. On its part, knavery has not let slip so 
 excellent an occasion for working upon credulity, and 
 that often to the profit of its own personal interests. 
 Besides, it may be readily imagined what impression 
 facts of this kind, even reduced to the reality, might 
 have on weak characters, predisposed by education to 
 superstitious ideas. The surest means of remedying 
 the possible inconveniences, since they cannot be pre- 
 vented, is to make known the truth. The simplest 
 things are terrifying when their cause is unknown. 
 When people shall have become familiarized with 
 spirits, and when those to whom they are manifested 
 no longer believe they have a legion of demons at 
 their heels, they will no longer fear. In the "Revue 
 Spirit e" may be seen stated many authentic facts of 
 this kind, among others, the history of the rapping 
 spirit of Bergzabern, whose evil tricks lasted more than 
 eight years (Nos. of May, June, and July, 1858) ; that 
 of Dibbelsdorf (August, i860) ; that of Noyers Street, 
 Paris (August, i860) ; that of the spirit of Castelrnau- 
 dary, under the title of History of an Infernal (Febru- 
 ary, i860) ; that of the manufacturer of St. Peters- 
 burg (April, i860) ; and many others. 
 
 89. Transactions of this nature have often the char- 
 acter of a real persecution. We know six sisters living 
 together, who, for several years, found, every morning, 
 their dresses dispersed, hidden under the roof, torn, 
 and cut in pieces, whatever precautions they might 
 take to put them under lock and key. It has 'often 
 happened that persons in bed, and perfectly awake, 
 
104 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 have seen their curtains shaken, their coverings and 
 pillows violently torn from them, have been raised up 
 on their mattresses, and sometimes even thrown out 
 of the bed. These doings are more frequent than is 
 believed ; but the most of the time, those who are the 
 victims dare not speak of them, for fear of ridicule. 
 To our own knowledge, certain individuals have been 
 subjected to treatment for insanity, in order to cure 
 them of what they supposed to be hallucinations, and 
 thus have been made really crazy. Medicine cannot 
 comprehend these things, because it admits as cause 
 only the material element ; from whence often result 
 most fatal mistakes. History, some day, will tell of 
 certain modes of treatment of the nineteenth century, 
 as now it recounts certain processes of the middle 
 ages. We entirely admit that some things are the 
 work of malice or malevolence ; but if, after every 
 investigation, it is proved that it is not the work of 
 man, it must be conceded that it is, as some will say, 
 of the devil ; we shall say, of spirits ; but of what 
 spirits ? 
 
 90. Superior spirits no more amuse themselves with 
 charivaris than grave and serious men do here. We 
 have often made some of them come, that we might 
 inquire into their motive in thus disturbing people. 
 Most of them have had no other than amusement ; 
 these are light rather than wicked spirits, who laugh 
 at the fears they occasion, and the useless researches 
 that are made to discover the cause of the tumult. 
 Often they set upon an individual whom they are 
 pleased to vex, and pursue him from dwelling to dwell- 
 ing ; at other times they attach themselves to a local- 
 ity, with no other motive than caprice. Sometimes, 
 also, it is a vengeance they exercise, as we shall have 
 
SPONTANEOUS PI I VS. MANIFESTATIONS. 105 
 
 occasion to show. In some cases their intention is 
 more praiseworthy ; they wish to call attention and be 
 put en rapport, either to give some warning useful to 
 the person, or to ask something for themselves. We 
 have often known some of them to ask prayers, others 
 to solicit the accomplishment, in their name, of a vow 
 they had not been able to fulfill, others wishing to re- 
 pair an evil they had committed while in this life. In 
 general it is wrong to be afraid ; their presence may 
 be inopportune, but not dangerous. Of course there 
 is a strong desire to be relieved from it, and usually 
 what is done for that purpose has the directly con- 
 trary effect. If they are spirits who are amusing them- 
 selves, the more seriously the thing is taken, the more 
 they persist in it, like mischievous children, who tor- 
 ment the more those who they see are impatient, and 
 like to make cowards afraid. If one would be wise 
 enough to laugh at their ill turns, they would grow 
 weary and leave. We know a person who, far from 
 being irritated, excited them, defying them to do such 
 and such a thing, so that, at the end of a few days, 
 they came no more. But, as we have said, there are 
 those whose motive is less frivolous. For this reason 
 it is always useful to know what they want. If they 
 ask something, it is certain their visits will cease 
 as soon as their desire can be satisfied. The best 
 means to be informed in this respect, is to invoke the 
 spirit by the intermediary of a good writing medium ; 
 by his answers we shall at once see with whom we 
 have to do, and can act accordingly. If it be an 
 unhappy spirit, charity will urge us to treat him with 
 the respect he deserves ; if it be an idle jester, we can 
 act toward him without ceremony ; if he is malevo- 
 lent, we can pray God to make him better. In every 
 
106 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 case, prayer will always have a good result. But the 
 gravity of the forms of exorcism make them laugh, and 
 they care nothing about them. If we can enter into 
 communication with them, we must distrust the bur- 
 lesque or terrifying qualities they sometimes assume to 
 play upon a person's credulity. 
 
 We shall return to treat this subject more in detail, 
 and to speak of the causes that sometimes render 
 prayer inefficacious, in the chapters on Haunted Places 
 and Obsession. 
 
 91. These phenomena, though executed by inferior 
 spirits, are often prompted by spirits of -a more elevated 
 order, for the purpose of convincing people of the ex- 
 istence of incorporeal beings of a power superior to 
 man. The report that follows, even the terror it 
 causes, call attention, and end by opening the eyes of 
 the most skeptical. These find it easiest to place these 
 phenomena to the score of imagination — a very con- 
 venient explanation, and one that dispenses with the 
 necessity of making others ; yet when objects are 
 turned upside down, or thrown at your head, it re- 
 quires a very complacent imagination to suppose such 
 things are, when they are not. An effect of some 
 kind is seen ; this effect has, necessarily, a cause : if a 
 cool and calm observation shows us that this effect is 
 independent of all human will and all material cause, — 
 if, further, it gives us evident signs of intelligence and 
 free will, which is the most characteristic sign, — we 
 are forced to attribute it to an unknown intelligence. 
 What are these mysterious beings ? This is what the 
 spiritist studies teach us in the least contestable man- 
 ner, by the means they give us to communicate with 
 them. These studies teach us, above all, to separate 
 what is real from the false or exaggerated in the phe- 
 
SPONTANEOUS P1IYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 107 
 
 nomena we cannot explain. If an isolated effect be 
 produced, — noise, movement, or apparition even, — 
 the first thought should be that it is owing to an en- 
 tirely natural cause, which is the most probable : then 
 this cause must be sought for with the utmost care, 
 and the intervention of spirits admitted only in good 
 earnest : this is the way not to be deceived. For 
 instance, he who, without any person being near him, 
 receives a box on the ear, or blows of a stick on his 
 back, as has been known, cannot doubt the presence 
 of an invisible being. 
 
 One should guard not only against recitals that may 
 be more or less exaggerated, but against his own im- 
 pressions, and not attribute everything he cannot un- 
 derstand to an occult origin. An infinity of very simple 
 and very natural causes may produce effects strange 
 at first sight, and it would be truly superstitious to 
 fancy spirits always busy upsetting the furniture, 
 breaking dishes, instigating the thousand and one 
 household vexations, which it is most rational to place 
 to the account of carelessness. 
 
 92. The explanations given of the movement of 
 inert bodies naturally apply to all the spontaneous 
 effects. The noises, though stronger than the table 
 rappings, have the same cause ; objects are thrown or 
 displaced by the same force that raises any object 
 soever. A circumstance comes in here to the support 
 of this theory. It might be asked, Where is the medi- 
 um in 'this case ? The spirits have told us that, in 
 such cases, there is always some one whose power is 
 exercised against his will. Spontaneous manifesta- 
 tions are very rarely produced in isolated places ; they 
 almost always take place in inhabited houses, and 
 through the presence of certain persons who exercise 
 
108 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 an influence without desiring it ; these persons are 
 real mediums, who themselves are ignorant of it, and 
 whom, for that reason, we call natural mediums ; they 
 are to other mediums what natural somnambulists are 
 to magnetic somnambulists, and quite as curious to 
 observe. 
 
 93. The voluntary or involuntary intervention of a 
 person endowed with a special aptitude for the produc- 
 tion of these phenomena, appears to be necessary in 
 most cases, though there are cases in which the spirit 
 appears to act alone ; but then it might be that he 
 could draw the animalized fluid elsewhere, and not 
 from a person present. This explains why spirits, 
 who surround us constantly, do not every moment 
 produce disturbances. It is first necessary that the 
 spirit should desire it ; that he should have an end, a 
 motive ; without that he does nothing. Then, too, he 
 must often find, exactly in the place where he desires 
 to act, a suitable person to second him — a rare coin- 
 cidence. Such a person coming unexpectedly, he 
 profits by it. Notwithstanding the meeting of all 
 those favorable circumstances, he might be prevented 
 by a superior will, which does not permit him to act 
 as he pleases. He might be permitted to act only 
 within certain limits, and in a case where these mani- 
 festations would be considered useful, either as a 
 means of conviction or trial, for the person who is the 
 object of them. 
 
 94. On this subject we will cite only the conversa- 
 tion in regard to the manifestations in June, i860, in 
 Noyers Street, in Paris. The details may be found in 
 the Revue Spirit e of August, 1 860. 
 
 1. To St. Louis. "Will you please tell us if the 
 
SPONTANEOUS PI TVS. MANIFESTATIONS, rex) 
 
 incidents said to have occurred in Noyers Street are 
 real ? As to the possibility, we do not doubt." 
 
 " Yes, these incidents are true ; only men's imagina- 
 tions exaggerate them, either from fear or irony ; but, 
 I repeat, they are true. These manifestations are 
 brought about by a spirit who is amusing himself a 
 little at the expense of those who live in the place." 
 
 2. " Is there any person in the house who may be 
 the cause of these manifestations ? " 
 
 "They are always caused by the presence of the 
 person whom they attack ; either- the attacking spirit 
 has a grudge against the person living in the place 
 where he is, and wants to play tricks on him, or, per- 
 haps, even seeks to drive him away." 
 
 3. "We ask, if, among the persons in the house, 
 there is one who may be the cause of these phenomena, 
 by a spontaneous and involuntary medianimic influ- 
 ence." 
 
 " It must be so ; without that the thing could not 
 have occurred. 
 
 " A spirit lives in a place he likes ; he remains in- 
 active so long as a suitable nature is not present in the 
 place ; when the person comes, then he amuses himself 
 as much as he can." 
 
 4. "Is the presence of the person in the very place 
 indispensable ? " 
 
 " Ordinarily so, and it is in this instance ; that is 
 why I said without that the incident could not have 
 occurred"; but I did not mean to generalize ; there are 
 cases in which immediate presence is not necessary." 
 
 5. " As these spirits are always of an inferior order, 
 is it an unfavorable sign for the person that he is fit to 
 serve them as an auxiliary ? Would it show a sympa- 
 thy with beings of that nature ? " 
 
HO BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " No, not precisely ; for this suitability arises from a 
 physical disposition ; at the same time, it very often 
 shows a material tendency which it would be prefera- 
 ble not to have ; for the higher one is morally, the more 
 one attracts good spirits, who necessarily keep away 
 bad ones." 
 
 6.." From whence does the spirit take the projectiles 
 he uses ? " 
 
 " These things are most often taken on the place, 
 or in the vicinity ; a force coming from a spirit projects 
 them, and they fall in the spot designated by that 
 spirit." 
 
 7. " Since spontaneous manifestations are often 
 permitted, or even excited, for the purpose of convin- 
 cing, it seems to us that if certain skeptical people 
 were personally the object of them, they would be 
 obliged to yield to such evidence. They sometimes 
 complain that they never witness conclusive facts ; 
 would it not depend on the spirits to give them some 
 sensible proofs ? " 
 
 "Are not atheists and materialists every moment 
 witnesses of the effects of the power of God and of 
 thought ? That does not prevent them from denying 
 God and the soul. Did the miracles of Jesus convert 
 all his contemporaries ? Did not the Pharisees, who 
 said to him, ' Master, show us a sign/ resemble those 
 who, in our time, ask you to make them see manifesta- 
 tions ? If they are not convinced by the wonders of 
 creation, they would no more be convinced even if 
 spirits should appear to them in the most unequivocal 
 manner, because their pride makes them like restive 
 horses. The occasions of seeing would not be want- 
 ing if they should seek in sincerity. God does not 
 see fit to do for them more than for those who sincere- 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. Ill 
 
 ly seek instruction, for the reward is only to the will- 
 ing. Their skepticism will not prevent the will of 
 God from being accomplished ; you see plainly it has 
 not hindered the spread of the doctrine. 
 
 " Cease to be disquieted by their opposition, which 
 is to the doctrine what shade is to the picture ; it gives 
 it a stronger light. What merit would they have in 
 being convinced by force ? God will leave them to all 
 the responsibility of their obstinacy, and that responsi- 
 bility will be more terrible than you think. ' Blessed 
 are those who have not seen, and yet have believed,' as 
 Jesus said, because they do not doubt God's power." 
 
 8. " Do you think it would be of use to invoke that 
 spirit, to ask some explanations of him ? " 
 
 " Invoke him if you wish, but it is an inferior spirit, 
 who will give you only very insignificant answers. 
 
 95. Co7iversation with the disturbing spirit of Noyers 
 Street. 
 
 1. Invocation. 
 
 " Why have you called me ? Do you want to be 
 struck with stones ? Then we should see a fine run 
 away, in spite of your brave air." 
 
 2. " If you should bring stones here, it would not 
 frighten us ; we actually ask if you can bring them 
 here." 
 
 " Here I could not, perhaps ; you have a guardian 
 who watches over you." 
 
 3. " In Noyers Street was there a person who 
 served as your auxiliary to help in the malicious tricks 
 you have played on the people in the house ? " 
 
 " Certainly ; I found a good instrument, and no 
 learned, wise, and prudent spirit to hinder me. I am 
 gay. I love to amuse myself." 
 
112 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 4. " Who was the person who served as your instru- 
 ment ? " 
 
 " A servant" 
 
 5 . " Was it against her will she served you ? " 
 
 " O, yes ; the poor girl ! she was the most fright- 
 ened." 
 
 6. " Did you act in this way from a hostile motive ? " 
 " I had no hostile motive ; but the men who seize 
 
 upon everything will make it turn to their advantage." 
 
 7. " What do you mean by that ? We don't under- 
 stand you." 
 
 " I was trying to amuse myself ; but you will study 
 the thing, and will have one more fact to show that we 
 exist." 
 
 8. " You say you had no hostile motive, and yet 
 you have broken all the windows in the house ; you 
 have thus caused a real loss." 
 
 "That is but a detail." 
 
 9. " Where did you procure the objects you threw ? " 
 "They are very common. I found them in the 
 
 court-yard, and in the next gardens." 
 
 10. "Did you find them all, or did you make some 
 of them ? " (See Chapter VIII.) 
 
 " I made nothing, composed nothing." 
 
 11. " If you had not found them, could you have 
 made them ? " 
 
 " It would have been more difficult ; but to tell the 
 truth, matters can be mixed, and make something." 
 
 12. " Now tell us how you threw them." 
 
 " Ah, that is harder to tell. I was helped by the 
 electrical nature of that girl, joined to mine, less 
 material ; so between us we transported the different 
 matters." 
 
 13. "You would like, I think, to tell us something 
 
SPONTANEOUS PI I VS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 13 
 
 about yourself. Tell us, then, if it is long since you 
 died." 
 
 11 Long enough ; more than fifty years." 
 
 14. " What were you when you were living ? " 
 
 " Not much good ; I picked rags around here, and 
 sometimes they scolded me because I loved Goodman 
 Noe's red wine too much ; so I would have liked to 
 drive them all away." 
 
 15. "Is it of yourself, and of your own free will, 
 that you have answered our questions ? " 
 
 " I had an instructor." 
 
 16. " Who is your instructor ? " 
 " Your good King Louis." 
 
 Remark. This question was propounded on account 
 of certain answers which seemed beyond the capacity 
 of this spirit, in the depth of the ideas, and even in the 
 form of the language. It is not at all astonishing that 
 he should have been aided by a more enlightened 
 spirit, who desired to profit by this occasion to give 
 us some instruction. This is a very ordinary occur- 
 rence, but a remarkable particularity in this circum- 
 stance is, that the influence of the other spirit made 
 itself felt even in the writing ; that of the answers, 
 when he intervened, is more regular, more flowing ; 
 that of the rag-picker is angular, coarse, irregular, 
 often scarcely legible, and bears an entirely different 
 character. 
 
 17. " What do you do now; does the thought of 
 your future occupy you ? " 
 
 "Not yet; I am wandering. They. think so little 
 of me in the world, that nobody prays for me ; as I 
 am not helped, I don't work." 
 
 Remark. We shall see, by and by, how much we 
 8 
 
114 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 can contribute to the advancement and consolation of 
 the inferior spirits by prayers and advice. 
 
 1 8. " What was your name when you were living ? " 
 " Jeannet." 
 
 19. " Well, Jeannet, we will pray for you. Tell us 
 if our invocation has given you pleasure, or annoyed 
 you ? " 
 
 " Pleasure rather, -for you are good fellows ; gay 
 livers, though a little severe ; all the same, you have 
 listened to me. I am satisfied. 
 
 " Jeannet." 
 
 Phenomeno7i of Materialization. 
 
 96. This phenomenon differs from those of which 
 we have spoken only in the kind intention of the 
 spirit who is their author, in the nature of the objects, 
 almost always of a gracious character, and by the 
 sweet and almost delicate manner in which they are 
 brought. It consists in the spontaneous bringing of 
 objects which are not in the place where you are ; 
 these are most, often flowers, sometimes fruits, confec- 
 tionery, jewels, &c. 
 
 97. Let us first say that this phenomenon is one of 
 those most easily imitated, and consequently of which 
 we must be on our guard against imposture. We 
 know how far sleight of hand can go in such matters ; 
 but without having to do with a person of this pro- 
 fession, we might easily be the dupe of a skillful 
 maneuver. The best of all guarantees is in the 
 diameter, tJie known honor, the absolute disinterested- 
 ness of the person who obtains the effects ; in the 
 second place, in the attentive examination of all the 
 circumstances under which they are produced ; finally, 
 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 15 
 
 in the enlightened knowledge of Spiritism, which alone 
 can enable us to discover what is to be suspected. 
 
 98. The theory of the phenomenon of materializa- 
 tion, and of physical manifestations in general, is 
 summed up in a remarkable manner in the following 
 dissertation, by a spirit whose communications bear 
 an incontestable seal of profundity and logic. Several 
 of them will be found in the course of this work. He 
 made himself known under the name of Erastus, a 
 disciple of St. Paul, and as the spirit protector of the 
 medium who served him as an interpreter. 
 
 " To obtain these phenomena, there must necessarily 
 be mediums whom I will call sensitive ; that is to say, 
 endowed in the highest degree with the medianimic 
 faculties of expansion and penetrability ; because the 
 easily excitable nervous system of some of these 
 mediums permits them, by means of certain vibrations, 
 to project round them with profusion their animalized 
 fluid. 
 
 " Impressionable natures, persons whose natures 
 vibrate to the least sentiment, to the smallest sensa- 
 tion, whom moral or physical influence, internal or 
 external, easily affects, are subjects very apt to become 
 excellent mediums for the physical effects of tangibili- 
 ty and materialization. In fact, their nervous system, 
 almost entirely deprived of the refractory envelope 
 which isolates this system among most incarnated 
 beings, makes them suitable for the development of 
 these various phenomena. 
 
 " Consequently, with subjects of this nature, whose 
 other faculties are not adverse to medianimization, the 
 phenomena of tangibility will be more easily obtained ; 
 rappings in the walls and in the furniture, intclligciit 
 
Il6 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 movements, and even the suspension in space of the 
 heaviest, inert matter. A fortiori, these results will 
 be obtained if, instead of one medium, there are at 
 hand several, equally well endowed. 
 
 " But from the production of these phenomena to 
 the obtaining of that of materializations, there is a 
 whole world ; for, in this case, not only is the labor 
 of the spirit more complex, more difficult, but, more 
 than this, the spirit can operate only by means of one 
 medium ; that is, several mediums could not simulta- 
 neously concur in the production of the same phe- 
 nomenon. On the contrary, it sometimes happens 
 that the presence of persons antipathetic to the spirit 
 who operates, radically fetters his operation. To these 
 motives, which, as you see, do not lack importance, 
 add that the materialization always necessitates a 
 greater concentration, and, at the same time, a greater 
 diffusion of certain fluids which can be obtained only 
 from the best endowed mediums, those, in a word, 
 whose electro-medianimic machinery is the best con- 
 ditioned. 
 
 " In general, these effects are, and will remain, ex- 
 ceedingly rare. I do not need to prove to you why 
 they are, and will be, less frequent than the other tan- 
 gible effects ; from what I have said, you will yourself 
 make that deduction. Besides, these phenomena are 
 of such a nature, that not only all mediums are not 
 suitable, but even all spirits cannot produce them. In 
 fact, there must exist between the spirit and the 
 medium influenced a certain affinity, a certain analogy, 
 in a word, a certain resemblance, which permits the 
 expansible part of the perispritaltic (Note 5) fluid of 
 the incarnated to be mingled, united, combined with 
 that of the spirit who desires to produce the effect. 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 17 
 
 This fusion should be such that the resulting force 
 becomes, so to say, one; as the electric current acting 
 on the coal produces one flame, one single brightness. 
 Do you say, Why this union ? why this fusion ? It is 
 that for the production of these phenomena it is ne- 
 cessary that the essential properties of the operating 
 spirit be augmented by some of those of the medium- 
 ized ; it is that the vital fluid, indispensable to the 
 production of all the medianimic phenomena, is the 
 exclusive appanage of the incarnated ; and that, con- 
 sequently, the spirit operator is obliged to be impregnat- 
 ed with it. It is thus only that he can, by means of 
 certain properties of your ambient fluid, unknown to 
 you, isolate, render invisible, and cause to move, cer- 
 tain material objects, and even the incarnated them- 
 selves. 
 
 " It is not permitted me, at this moment, to unvail 
 to you these special laws that rule the gases and 
 fluids that surround you ; but before many years 
 shall have elapsed, before one generation of man 
 be accomplished, the explanation of these laws and 
 of these phenomena will be revealed to you, and 
 you will see a new order of mediums arise, who 
 will fall into a peculiar state as soon as they shall be 
 medianimized. 
 
 " You see with how many difficulties the production 
 of these phenomena is surrounded ; you can conclude 
 from this, very logically, that phenomena of this kind 
 are exceedingly rare, as I have said, and with still 
 greater reason, that the spirits seldom lend them- 
 selves to their production, because it requires on their 
 part a quasi-material labor, which is for them an ennui 
 and a fatigue. On the other hand there is this : it is 
 that very often, in spite of their energy and will, the 
 
u8 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 state of the medium himself opposes an impassable 
 barrier. 
 
 " It is thus evident, and doubtless your reasoning 
 sanctions it, that the tangible facts of rappings, move- 
 ments, suspensions, are simple phenomena, which are 
 operated by the concentration and dilatation of cer- 
 tain fluids, and which may be elicited and obtained by 
 the will and the work of mediums who are suited 
 thereto, when they are seconded by friendly and kind 
 spirits ; while the facts of materialization are multiple, 
 complex*, require a concourse of special circumstances, 
 can be operated only by a single spirit and a single 
 medium, and necessitate, over and above the wants 
 of tangibility, a very especial combination of circum- 
 stances to isolate and render invisible the object or 
 objects subject to the materialization. 
 
 " All you spiritists comprehend my explanations, 
 and you can perfectly understand the reason for this 
 concentration of special fluids for the locomotion and 
 tangibility of inert matter ; you believe in it as you 
 believe in the phenomena of electricity and magnetism, 
 with which the medianimic facts are full of analogy, 
 and are, so to say, its consecration and development. 
 As to the skeptics, — and the scientists, worse than 
 the skeptics, — I have nothing to do with convincing 
 them ; I do not trouble myself about them : they will, 
 some day, be convinced by the force of evidence, for 
 they must necessarily bow before the unanimous testi- 
 mony of spiritist facts, as they have been forced to do 
 before other facts they have at first rejected. 
 
 " To recapitulate : while the facts of tangibility are 
 frequent, the facts of materialization are very rare, 
 because their conditions are very. difficult ; consequent- 
 ly no medium can say, " At such an hour, at such a 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 19 
 
 moment, I will obtain a materialization ; for often the 
 spirit himself finds a hindrance to his work. I must 
 add that these phenomena are doubly difficult in pub- 
 lic, for there almost always are met energetically re- 
 fractory elements, which paralyze the efforts of the 
 spirit, and, with still greater reason, the action of the 
 medium. On the contrary, be certain that these phe- 
 nomena are almost always produced in private, spon- 
 taneously, most often unknown to the mediums, and 
 without premeditation, and very rarely when these 
 have foretold them ; from whence you may conclude 
 that there is a legitimate motive of suspicion whenever 
 a medium flatters himself he can obtain them at will ; 
 in other words, that he can command spirits as ser- 
 vants, which is simply absurd. Again, take as a gen- 
 eral rule, that these spirit phenomena are not given in 
 the way of a show, and to amuse the curious. If some 
 spirits lend themselves to such things, it can be only 
 for simple phenomena, and not for those which, like 
 materialization and others similar, exact exceptional 
 conditions. 
 
 " Remember, spiritists, that if it is absurd to reject 
 systematically all the phenomena from beyond the 
 tomb, neither is it wise to accept them all blindly. 
 When a phenomenon of tangibility, of apparition, of 
 visibility, or of materialization is manifested spontane- 
 ously, and, as it were, instantaneously, accept it : but I 
 cannot repeat to you too often, accept nothing blindly ; 
 let each action be subjected to an examination, minute, 
 searching, severe ; for, believe me, Spiritism, so rich in 
 sublime and grand phenomena, has nothing to gain 
 from those small manifestations which skillful jugglers 
 can imitate. 
 
 " I know very well what you will say to me, — that 
 
120 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 these phenomena are useful to convince the skeptical ; 
 but know this, that if you had no other means of con- 
 viction, you would not have, to-day, the hundredth 
 part of the spiritists that you have. Speak to the 
 heart ; it is by that you will make the most serious con- 
 versions. If, for certain persons, you consider it useful 
 to act by' material facts, at least present them under 
 such circumstances that there can be no false interpre- 
 tation, and, above all, do not go aside from the normal 
 condition of these facts ; for facts presented under bad 
 conditions furnish arguments to the skeptical, instead 
 of convincing them. Erastus." 
 
 99. This phenomenon offers a very striking pecu- 
 liarity, which is, that certain mediums obtain it only 
 in a somnambulic state. This is easily explained : 
 there is with a somnambulist a natural disengagement, 
 a kind of isolation of the spirit and of the perisprit, 
 which must facilitate the combination of the necessary 
 fluids. Such is the case with the materializations we 
 have witnessed. The following questions were ad- 
 dressed to the spirit who produced them, but his 
 answers being unsatisfactory, we submitted them to 
 the spirit Erastus, much more enlightened on the 
 theory, and who completed them by very judicious 
 remarks. One is the workman, the other the scientist ; 
 and the comparison of these two intelligences is an 
 instructive study, for it proves that simply b?ing a 
 spirit is not sufficient to make one comprehend every- 
 thing. 
 
 1. " Will you please tell us why the materializations 
 you made were produced only during the magnetic 
 sleep of the medium ? " 
 
 "That depends on the nature of the medium ; the 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 121 
 
 effects I produced with mine asleep, I could have pro- 
 duced equally well with another medium in a waking 
 state." 
 
 2. " Why did you make us wait so long ? and why 
 excite the covetousness of the medium, irritating his 
 desire to obtain the promised object ? " 
 
 " Time is necessary for me to prepare the fluids that 
 serve for the materialization ; as to the excitation, it is 
 often only to amuse those present, as well as the som- 
 nambulist." 
 
 Remark by Erastus. " The spirit who answered 
 knew no better ; he does not reason on the motive of 
 this covetousness, which he instinctively incites without 
 understanding its effect ; he thinks to amuse, while 
 in reality he undoubtedly provokes a greater emission 
 of fluid ; it is the consequence of the difficulty the 
 phenomenon presents ; a difficulty always greater 
 when it is not spontaneous, especially with certain 
 mediums." 
 
 3. " Does the production of the phenomena pertain 
 to the special nature of the medium ? and could it be 
 produced with other mediums with more facility and 
 promptitude ? " 
 
 "•The production pertains to the nature of the medi- 
 um, and can be produced only with corresponding 
 natures ; as to promptitude, our custom of correspond- 
 ing often with the same medium is a great help to 
 us." 
 
 4. " Does thf influence of the persons present count 
 for anything ? " 
 
 " When there is skepticism, opposition, we can be 
 greatly annoyed : we like better to give our proofs with 
 believers, and persons versed in Spiritism ; but I do 
 
122 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 not mean by that to say that ill will could completely 
 paralyze us." 
 
 5. " From whence did you take the flowers and bon- 
 bons you brought ? " 
 
 " The flowers I took from the gardens, wherever it 
 pleased me." 
 
 6. "And the bonbons ? Surely the confectioner would 
 miss them." 
 
 " I took them from wherever it pleased me ; the 
 merchant did not miss them at all, for I put others in 
 their place." 
 
 Remark of Erastus. " I think this is explained in 
 a very unsatisfactory manner, because of the incapa- 
 city of the spirit who answered. Thus, he may have 
 caused a real wrong ; but the spirit does not wish to 
 pass for one who would wrong any person whatever. 
 An object can be replaced only by an identical object 
 of the same form, same value ; consequently, if a spirit 
 had the faculty to substitute an object similar to that 
 he takes, he would have no reason for taking it, and 
 might give that which served him in replacing." 
 
 7. " Is it possible to bring flowers from another 
 planet ? " 
 
 " No ; it is not possible to me." 
 ( To Erastus) " Could other spirits have the power ? " 
 " No ; that is not possible, on account of the differ- 
 ence in the surrounding atmospheres." 
 
 8. " Could you bring flowers from another hemi- 
 sphere, — the tropics, for instance ? " • 
 
 11 From any part of the earth I can." 
 
 9. " Could you make the objects you have brought 
 disappear, and carry them back ? " 
 
 " Just as well as I made them come. I can take 
 them as I will." 
 
SPONTANEOUS P11YS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 23 
 
 10. "Docs the production of this phenomenon cause 
 you any trouble — any annoyance ? " 
 
 " It causes us no trouble, when we have permission ; 
 it might cause us a great deal, if we wished to produce 
 effects without being authorized to do so." 
 
 Remarks of Erastus. " He does not wish to ac- 
 knowledge his trouble, though it may be very real, as 
 he is obliged to effect what might be called a material 
 operation." 
 
 11." What are the difficulties you encounter ? " 
 
 " No other than bad fluidic dispositions, which might 
 oppose us." 
 
 12. " How do you bring the object ? Do you hold it 
 in your hands ? " 
 
 " No ; we envelop it in ourselves." 
 
 Rema?'k of Erastus. " He does not clearly explain 
 his operation, for he does not envelop the object with 
 his own personality ; but as his personal fluid is dilata- 
 ble, penetrable, and expansible, he combines a part of 
 this fluid with a part of the animalized fluid of the me- 
 dium, and it is in that combination that he hides and 
 transports the object subject to the materialization. It 
 is not, thus, right to say that he envelops it in himself." 
 
 13. "Could you, with the same facility, bring an 
 object of considerable weight, of fifty kilometres, for 
 instance?" 
 
 " Weight is nothing to us ; we bring flowers because 
 that may be more agreeable than a great weight." 
 
 Remark of Erastus. " That^s true ; he could bring 
 one or two hundred kilometres of objects ; for the 
 weight that exists for you is annulled for him ; but here 
 again he does not give the reason for what happens. 
 The mass of the combined fluids is proportionate to 
 the mass of the objects ; in a word, the force should be 
 
124 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 in proportion to the resistance ; from whence it follows, 
 that if the spirit brings only a flower, or a light object, 
 it is often because he does not find, either in the medi- 
 um or in himself, the elements necessary for a greater 
 effort." 
 
 14. " Are there sometimes disappearances of objects 
 when the cause is unknown, which may be the work 
 of spirits ? " 
 
 " That happens very often ; more often than you 
 think ; and it could be remedied by begging the spirit 
 to bring back the object that disappeared." 
 
 Remark of Eras tus. " That is true ; but sometimes 
 what is carried off is well carried off; for such objects, 
 when we cannot find them at home, are often carried 
 very far away. At the same time, as the carrying 
 away objects requires nearly the same conditions as 
 bringing them, it can take place only with the aid of 
 mediums endowed with special faculties : this is why, 
 when anything disappears, it is probably more your 
 own stupidity than that of the spirits." 
 
 15. " Are there effects regarded as natural phenom- 
 ena which are due to the action of spirits ? " 
 
 " Your days are full of such effects, which you do 
 not understand, because you have not thought of 
 them, and which a little reflection would make you 
 see clearly." 
 
 Remark of Erastus . " Do not attribute to the spirits 
 what is the work of humanity, but believe in their 
 secret constant influerce, which brings to life around 
 you a thousand circumstances, a thousand incidents, 
 necessary to the accomplishment of your actions, your 
 existence." 
 
 16. " Among the objects brought, are there not some 
 that may have been fabricated by spirits ; that is, pro- 
 
SPONTANEOUS PHYS. MANIFESTATIONS. 1 25 
 
 duced spontaneously by the modifications to which 
 the spirits can subject the fluid, or the universal 
 element." 
 
 " Not by me, for I have not permission to do it ; an 
 elevated spirit alone can do it." 
 
 17. " How did you introduce those objects the other 
 day ? for the room was shut." 
 
 " I made them enter with me, enveloped, so to say, 
 in my substance ; as to telling you more at length, it 
 is not possible." 
 
 18. "How did you manage to render visible what 
 was, a moment before, invisible ? " 
 
 11 1 took away the matter that enveloped them.'' 
 Remark by Erastus. " It is not matter, properly so 
 called, that envelops them, but a fluid, drawn partly 
 from the perisprit of the medium, partly from that of 
 the operating spirit." 
 
 19. (To Erastus) " Can an object be brought into 
 a place perfectly closed ? in a word, can the spirit spir- 
 itualize a material object, so that it may penetrate 
 matter ? " 
 
 " This question is complex. The spirit can render 
 the objects brought invisible, but not penetrable ; he 
 cannot break the aggregation of matter, which would 
 be the destruction of the object. This object, made in- 
 visible, he can bring when he pleases, and disengage it 
 at the proper moment, to make it appear. It is other- 
 wise for those we compose ; as we introduce only the 
 elements of matter, and as these elements are essen- 
 tially penetrable, as we ourselves penetrate and pass 
 through the most condensed bodies with as much 
 facility as the solar rays pass through the panes of 
 glass, we can truly say, we have introduced the 
 
126 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 object into a place, however tightly shut it may be ; 
 but only in this case can we say it." 
 
 Note. — See afterward, for the theory of the spon- 
 taneous formation of objects, the chapter entitled, 
 Laboratory of the Spiritual World, 
 
Chapter VI. 
 
 VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 
 
 Qucstiofis on Apparitions. — Theoretic Essay on Appa- 
 ritions. — Globular Spirits. — Theory of Hallucina- 
 tions. 
 
 ioo. Of all the spirit manifestations the most inter- 
 esting are, undoubtedly, those by which spirits can 
 render themselves visible. It will be seen, by the 
 explanation of this phenomenon, that it is no more 
 supernatural than" the others. We first give the an- 
 swers of the spirits to questions on this subject. 
 
 i. " Can spirits make themselves visible ? " 
 
 " Yes ; especially during sleep : at the same time 
 some persons see them as well waking ; but this is 
 more rare." 
 
 Remark. While the body rests, the spirit is disen- 
 gaged from its material ties ; it is more free, and can 
 more easily see other spirits with whom it enters into 
 communication. Dreams are but the remembrances 
 of this state ; when nothing is remembered, it is said 
 there has been no dreaming ; but the soul has none 
 the less seen and enjoyed its liberty. We treat more 
 especially here of apparitions in the waking state. 
 
 2. " Do the spirits who manifest themselves to the 
 sight belong more to one class than another ? " 
 
 " No ; they may belong to all classes, — to the most 
 elevated as to the most inferior." 
 
 127 
 
128 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 3. " Is it given to all spirits to manifest themselves 
 visibly?" 
 
 " All can ; but they have not always the permission, 
 nor the will." 
 
 4. " What is the motive of spirits who make them- 
 selves visible ? " 
 
 "That depends upon circumstances; according to 
 their nature, the motive may be good or bad." 
 
 5. "How could this permission be given if the 
 motive were bad ? " 
 
 " It is then to try those to whom they appear. The 
 intention of the spirit may be evil, but the result* may 
 be good." 
 
 6. " What can be the motive of the spirits who 
 have evil intentions, in showing themselves ? " 
 
 " To terrify, and often to avenge." 
 
 " What is that of the spirits who come with a good 
 intention ? " 
 
 " To console those who regret them, to prove that 
 they exist and are near you, to give advice, and to 
 claim assistance for themselves." 
 
 7. " What inconvenience could there be if the pos- 
 sibility of seeing spirits were permanent and general ? 
 Would it not be a means of relieving the doubts of the 
 most skeptical ? " 
 
 " Man being constantly surrounded by spirits, their 
 incessant sight would trouble him, would hamper him 
 in his actions, would destroy his initiative in most 
 cases ; while believing himself alone, he acts more 
 freely. As for the skeptical, they have plenty of means 
 of being convinced if they would profit by them, and 
 were not blinded by pride. You know very well that 
 there are persons who have seen, and who believe 
 none the more for that, since they say it is an illusion. 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 1 29 
 
 Do not disquiet yourself for those people. God sees to 
 them." 
 
 Remark. There would be as great inconvenience 
 in seeing spirits always with us, as in seeing the air 
 that surrounds us, or the myriads of microscopic ani- 
 mals that flutter around us and on us. From whence 
 we should conclude that what God has done is well 
 done, and that he knows better than we what is suited 
 to us. 
 
 8. " If the sight of spirits has inconveniences why is 
 it permitted in certain cases ? " 
 
 " It is to give a proof that all does not die with the 
 body, that the soul preserves its individuality after 
 death. This temporary sight suffices to give this 
 proof, and attests to the presence of your friends near 
 you, but it has not the inconveniences of permanence." 
 
 9. " In more advanced worlds than ours, is the sight 
 of spirits more frequent ? " 
 
 " The nearer man is brought to the spiritual nature, 
 the more easily he enters into relations with spirits : 
 it is the grossness of your envelope that makes the 
 perception of ethereal beings most difficult and most 
 rare." 
 
 10. " Is it rational to be terrified at the apparition 
 of a spirit ? " 
 
 " He who reflects ought to understand that a spirit, 
 whatever he may be, is less dangerous than a living 
 person. Besides, spirits go everywhere, and there is 
 no need to see them to know that they may be beside 
 us. The spirit that would do harm can do it without 
 showing himself, and even more surely ; he is not dan- 
 gerous because he is a spirit, but because of the influ- 
 ence he can exert in the thought, turning it. away from 
 good and toward evil." 
 9 
 
130 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Remark. Persons who are afraid in solitude or in 
 darkness rarely consider the cause of their terror ; 
 they could not say what they fear, but assuredly they 
 should more fear to meet men than spirits ; for a 
 wrong-doer is more dangerous living than after death. 
 A lady of our acquaintance had, one evening, in her 
 room, an apparition so distinct, she thought it a per- 
 son, and her first movement was that of fright. Hav- 
 ing assured herself that no one was there, she said to 
 herself, " It appears it is only a spirit. I may sleep 
 in peace." 
 
 ii. "Can the person to whom a spirit appears en- 
 gage in conversation with him ? " 
 
 " Perfectly well ; and that is what should always be 
 done in such cases, — asking the spirit who he is and 
 what he wants, and how we may be useful to him. 
 If the spirit is unhappy and suffering, our commisera- 
 tion soothes him ; if it is a benevolent spirit, he may 
 come with the intention of giving us good advice." 
 
 " How, in this case, can the spirit answer ? " 
 
 " He does it sometimes by articulate sounds, like a 
 person living ; most often by transmission of thought." 
 
 12. " Do the spirits who appear with wings really 
 have them, or are those wings but symbolical appear- 
 ances ? " 
 
 " Spirits have not wings ; they do not need them ; 
 for they can, as spirits, transport themselves every- 
 where. They appear according to the way in which 
 they desire to affect the person to whom they show 
 themselves : some appear in ordinary costume, others 
 enveloped in draperies ; some with wings, as attributes 
 of the category of spirits they represent." 
 
 13. "Are the persons we see in dreams always 
 those they seem to be ? " 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 13 1 
 
 " It is almost always those persons themselves whom 
 your spirit goes to find, or who come to find you." 
 
 14. " Could not mocking spirits take the appear- 
 ance of persons who arc dear to us, to lead us into 
 error ? " 
 
 " They take fantastic appearances only to amuse 
 themselves at your expense ; but there are things 
 with which they are not permitted to sport." 
 
 15. Thought being a kind of invocation, it is easily 
 understood that it evokes the presence of the spirit ; 
 but how is it that often the persons of whom we 
 think most, — whom we ardently desire to see, — do 
 not come in dreams, while we see people who are in- 
 different to us, and those of whom we never think ? " 
 
 " There is not always the possibility of spirits mani- 
 festing themselves to the sight, even in dreams, and 
 in spite of the desire there may be to see them : causes 
 independent of their will may prevent them. It is, 
 also, often a trial which the most ardent desire cannot 
 overpass. As to indifferent persons, if you do not 
 think of them, it is possible they may think of you. 
 Besides, you can have no idea of the relations of the 
 world of spirits ; you meet there a crowd of intimate 
 acquaintances, old and new, of whom you have no idea 
 in the waking state." 
 
 Remark. When there is no means of controlling 
 the visions or apparitions, they can undoubtedly be 
 looked upon as hallucinations ; but when they are con- 
 firmed by events, they cannot be attributed to the 
 imagination ; such are, for instance, the apparitions at 
 the moment of their death, either in dream or in a 
 waking state, of persons of whom we do not think, 
 and who, by various signs, reveal the wholly unexpect- 
 ed circumstances attending their death. Morses have 
 
132 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 often been known to rear, and refuse to go forward, in 
 presence of the apparitions that terrified their drivers. 
 If imagination counts for something with men, surely 
 it cannot with animals. Besides, if the images seen in 
 dreams were always an effect of waking perceptions, 
 nothing could explain why it often happens that we 
 never dream of those things most often in our thoughts. 
 
 1 6. " Why are some visions more frequent in sick- 
 ness ? " 
 
 " They occur the same in a state of perfect health, 
 but in sickness the material ties are relaxed ; the 
 weakness of the body leaves more liberty to the spirit, 
 which enters more easily into communication with 
 other spirits." 
 
 17. "Spontaneous apparitions appear to be more 
 frequent in certain countries. Is it that certain people 
 are better endowed than others to have this kind of 
 manifestations ? " 
 
 " Are you acquainted with the details of each appa- 
 rition ? Apparitions, noises, all the manifestations, in- 
 deed, are equally spread over the whole world ; but 
 they present distinctive characters, according to the 
 people among whom they take place. For instance, 
 among those who have little knowledge of writing, 
 there are no writing mediums ; among others they 
 abound : elsewhere there are more often noises and 
 movements than intelligent communications, because 
 these are less esteemed there and less sought after." 
 
 18. " Why do apparitions prefer the night ? May it 
 not be an effect of silence and obscurity on the imagi- 
 nation ? " 
 
 " It is for the same reason that you see the stars in 
 the night, which you cannot see in the daylight. The 
 great brightness may efface a light apparition ; but it 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 133 
 
 is an error to believe that the night has anything to 
 do with it. Question those who have seen them, and 
 you will see that the majority have taken place by 
 day." 
 
 Remark. Apparitions are much more frequent and 
 general than is believed ;• but many persons do not 
 confess it, from fear of ridicule ; others attribute them 
 to illusion. If they appear more numerous among 
 certain people, that is because there they more care- 
 fully preserve traditions, either true or false, almost 
 always exaggerated by the love of the marvelous ; 
 credulity makes them see the supernatural in the most 
 common phenomena ; the silence of solitary places, 
 the depths of ravines, the groanings of the forest, the 
 screamings of the tempest, the echo of the mountains, 
 the fantastic form of the clouds, the shadows, the mi- 
 rage, all assist the illusion of simple and artless imagi- 
 nations, and they tell with the utmost sincerity what 
 they have seen, or what they think they have seen. 
 But beside this fiction there is the reality ; the serious 
 study of Spiritism tends to free it from all the absurd 
 accessories of superstition." 
 
 19. "Is the sight of spirits produced in a normal 
 state, or only in an ecstatic state ? " 
 
 " It can take place in perfectly normal conditions ; 
 at the same time the persons who see them are quite 
 often in a peculiar state, bordering on ecstasy, which 
 gives them a kind of double sight." (Book on Spirits, 
 No. 447.) 
 
 20. " Do those who see spirits see them with their 
 eyes ? " 
 
 " They believe they do ; but in reality it is the soul 
 that sees, and what proves it is, that they can see them 
 with their eyes shut." 
 
134 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 21. " How can the spirit make itself visible ? " 
 
 " The principle is the same as that of all manifesta- 
 tions ; it comes from the properties of the perisprit, 
 which can undergo various modifications at the will of 
 the spirit." 
 
 22. " Can the spirit itself be made visible, or can it 
 make itself visible only by the aid of the perisprit ?" 
 
 " In your material state spirits can manifest them- 
 selves only by the aid of their semi-material envelope ; 
 it is the intermediary by which they act on your 
 senses. It is under this envelope that they appear 
 sometimes with a human form, sometimes otherwise, 
 either in dreams or in a state of waking." 
 
 23. " Might it be said that it is by the condensation 
 of the fluid of the perisprit that the spirit becomes visi- 
 ble ? " 
 
 " Condensation is not the word ; it is rather a com- 
 parison which may help you to understand the phe- 
 nomenon, for there is not really condensation. By the 
 combination of the fluids, there is produced in the 
 perisprit a peculiar disposition, that has no analogy 
 for you, and which renders it perceptible." 
 
 24. " Are the spirits that appear always intangible, 
 and inaccessible to the touch ? " 
 
 " Intangible, as in a dream, in their normal state ; at 
 the same time they can make an impression on the 
 touch, and leave traces of their presence, and even in 
 some cases momentarily become tangible, which proves 
 that between them and you there is matter." 
 
 25. " Is every one capable of seeing spirits ? " 
 
 " In sleep, yes, but not in a waking state. In sleep 
 the soul sees without intermediary ; when awake it is 
 always more or less influenced by the organs ; this is 
 "why the conditions are not altogether the same." 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 135 
 
 26. " In what consists the faculty of seeing spirits 
 during the waking hours ? " 
 
 " This faculty depends upon the organization ; it de- 
 pends upon the greater or less facility which the fluid 
 of the seer has for combining with that of the spirit. 
 Thus it does not suffice to the spirit to wish to show 
 himself; it is necessary that he find in the person to 
 whom he desires to show himself the necessary apti- 
 tude." 
 
 " Can this faculty be developed by exercise ? " 
 " It can, like all the other faculties ; but it is one of 
 those of which it is better to await the natural de- 
 velopment than to hasten it, for fear of exciting the 
 imagination. The general and permanent sight of 
 spirits is exceptional, and is not a normal condition of 
 man." 
 
 27. " Can the apparition of spirits be called forth ? " 
 " It may be sometimes, but very rarely ; it is almost 
 
 always spontaneous ; and for that it is necessary to be 
 endowed with a special faculty." 
 
 28. " Can spirits make themselves visible under any 
 other than a human form ? " 
 
 " The human form is the normal form ; the spirit 
 can vary its appearance, but it is always the human 
 type." ' 
 
 " Can they show themselves under the form of flame ? " 
 "They can produce flames, lights, as well as all 
 other effects to attest their presence ; but this is not 
 the spirit itself. Flame is often only a mirage, or an 
 emanation from the perisprit ; it is, in all cases, only a 
 part ; the perisprit appears entire only in visions." 
 
 29. " What do you think of the belief that attributes 
 the ignis fat nus to the presence of souls or spirits?" 
 
136 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 11 Superstition produced by ignorance. The real 
 cause of the ignis fatnus is well known." 
 
 "The blue flame said to have appeared on the head 
 of Servius Tullius when a child, is it a fable or a re- 
 ality ? " 
 
 "It was real ; it was produced by the familiar spirit 
 who wanted to warn the mother. This mother — a 
 seeing medium — saw a ray of the protecting spirit of 
 her child. All seeing mediums do not see in the same 
 degree, the same as your writing mediums do not all 
 write the same thing. Where this mother saw only a 
 flame, another medium would have seen the whole 
 body even of the spirit." 
 
 30. " Could spirits present themselves under the form 
 of animals ? " 
 
 " That might happen, but it is always only very in- 
 ferior spirits who take these appearances. It can, in 
 all cases, be only a momentary appearance, for it would 
 be absurd to believe that any animal whatever could 
 be the incarnation of a spirit. Animals are always 
 only animals, and nothing more." 
 
 Remark. Superstition alone can produce the belief 
 that some animals are animated by spirits ; it must be 
 a very obliging or a very vivid imagination to see any- 
 thing supernatural in everything a little out of the way ; 
 but fear often makes one see what does not exist. Yet 
 fear is not always the source of this idea ; we knew a 
 lady, very intelligent in other matters, who loved be- 
 yond measure a great black cat because she believed 
 its nature was above the animal ; had she known any- 
 thing of Spiritism, it would have shown her the ab- 
 surdity of the cause of her predilection, by proving to 
 her the impossibility of such a metamorphosis. 
 
/ 1SUAL MANJFESTA TICKS. 137 
 
 TJi covet ical Essay on Apparitions. 
 
 101. The most ordinary apparent manifestations take 
 place during sleep, by dreams ; these are visions. It 
 does not enter into our plan to examine all the par- 
 ticularities that dreams may present ; we sum up by 
 saying they may be an actual vision of things present 
 or absent ; a retrospective vision of the past ; and, in 
 some exceptional cases, a presentiment of the future. 
 Often, also, they are allegorical pictures which the 
 spirits cause to pass" before our eyes, to give us useful 
 warnings or salutary advice, if they are good spirits ; 
 or to lead us into error, or to flatter our passions, if 
 they are imperfect spirits. The following theory ap- 
 plies to dreams as to all other cases of apparitions. 
 (See Book on Spirits, Nos. 400 and following.) 
 
 We should consider it an insult to the good sense of 
 our readers to refute all the absurdities of what is 
 commonly called the interpretation of dreams. 
 
 102. Apparitions proper take place in a waking 
 state, during the full and entire liberty of the faculties.- 
 They are usually presented under a vaporous and di- 
 aphanous form, sometimes vague and indistinct ; it is 
 often at first a white light whose outline is gradually 
 developed. At other times the forms are perfectly de- 
 fined, and the smallest features can be distinguished, 
 so that an exact description of them could be given. 
 The manner, the aspect, are the same as were those of 
 the spirit when living. 
 
 Being able to take all appearances, the spirit presents 
 himself under that by which he could be most readily 
 recognized, if such is his desire. Thus, although, as a 
 spirit, he has no corporeal infirmity, he will show him- 
 self disabled, lame, humpbacked, wounded, with scars, 
 
138 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 if that is necessary to establish his identity. ^sop, 
 for example, as a spirit, is not deformed ; but if he is 
 evoked as ^Esop, even should he since have had many 
 existences, he will appear ugly and humpbacked, with 
 the traditional costume. One remarkable thing is that, 
 except in some particular instances, the least defined 
 parts are the inferior members, while the head, the 
 trunk, the arms, the hands, are always perfectly shown ; 
 also they are rarely seen to walk, but glide like shadows. 
 As to the costume, it is ordinarily composed of a dra- 
 pery ending in long, floating folds/or with hair in flow- 
 ing, graceful curls, the appearance of spirits who have 
 preserved nothing of terrestrial things ; but the com- 
 mon spirits, those whom one has known, usually wear 
 the costume of the latter part of their life. They have 
 often the attributes characteristic of their elevation, as 
 an aureole, or wings for those who may be considered 
 as angels, while others have those which recall their 
 terrestrial occupations ; thus a warrior might appear in 
 his armor, a savant with his books, an assassin with 
 a poniard, &c. The superior spirits have a beautiful 
 countenance, noble and serene ; the more inferior 
 something ferocious and brutal, and sometimes still 
 bear the traces of the crimes they have committed or 
 the punishments they have endured. The question of 
 costume and of all these accessory objects is, perhaps, 
 what most astonishes. We shall return to it in a 
 special chapter, because it is united to other very im- 
 portant facts. 
 
 103. We have said that an apparition has a vapor- 
 ous appearance ; in some cases it might be compared 
 to the image reflected in a glass without foil, and which, 
 despite its clearness, does not prevent the objects be- 
 hind the glass from being seen through the reflected 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 1 39 
 
 image. It is usually thus that the seeing mediums 
 distinguish them ; they see them go and come, enter 
 a room or leave it, circulate among the crowd of the 
 living, having the air — at least the ordinary spirits — of 
 taking an active part in all that is going on around 
 them, of interesting themselves in it, of listening to 
 what is said. They often see them approach a person 
 and whisper ideas, influence, console if they are good, 
 jeer if they are malicious, seeming sad or contented 
 with the results they obtain ; in a word, it is the double 
 of the corporeal world. Such is this secret world that 
 surrounds us, in the midst of which we live unknow- 
 ingly, as unthinkingly as we live in the midst of the 
 myriads of the microscopic world. The microscope 
 has revealed to us the world of infinity of small things 
 which we had not suspected ; Spiritism, aided by see- 
 ing mediums, has revealed to us the world of spirits, 
 which also is one of the active forces of nature. With 
 the aid of seeing mediums we have been able to study 
 the invisible world, become initiated into its customs, 
 as blind people could study the visible world with 
 the help of men who enjoy sight. (See, further, the 
 chapter on Mediums, article concerning seeing medi- 
 ums.) 
 
 104. The spirit who wishes to appear, or can appear, 
 assumes sometimes a still more perfect form, having all 
 the appearance of a solid body to the extent of produ- 
 cing a complete illusion, making a person think that a 
 corporeal being stands before him. In some cases, 
 also, and under certain circumstances, the tangible 
 may become real ; that is to say, we can touch, handle, 
 feel the same resistance, the same warmth, as in a liv- 
 ing body, which does not prevent him from vanishing 
 with the rapidity of lightning. It is, then, no longer 
 
140 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 by the eyes their presence is verified, but by the touch. 
 If the simply visual apparition might be attributed to 
 illusion, or a kind of fascination, the doubt is not per- 
 mitted when you can grasp it, handle it, when it 
 seizes you and holds you fast. The facts of tangible 
 apparitions are the rarest ; but those that have hap- 
 pened in these last days by the influence of some 
 powerful mediums (Mr. Home among others), and 
 which have all the authenticity of unexceptionable 
 witnesses, prove and explain those related in history 
 of persons seen after death with all the appearances 
 of reality. Yet, as we have already said, however 
 extraordinary these phenomena may be, all the mar- 
 velous disappears when we know the manner in which 
 they are produced, and comprehend that, far from 
 being a derogation of Nature's laws, they are only a 
 new application of them. 
 
 105. By its nature and in its normal state, the 
 perisprit is invisible, and it has that property in com- 
 mon with many fluids which we know exist, and yet 
 which we have never seen ; but it can also, the same 
 as some other fluids, undergo modifications that 
 render it perceptible to the sight, whether by a sort 
 of condensation or by a change in the molecular dis- 
 position : it then appears to us under a vaporous form. 
 Condensation (this word must not be taken in its 
 exact meaning ; we use it only for want of another, 
 and by comparison), — condensation, let us say, may be 
 such that the perisprit acquires the properties of a 
 solid and tangible body ; but it can instantaneously 
 resume its ethereal and invisible state. We can 
 understand this state by that of vapor which can pass 
 from invisibility to a state of fog, then liquid, then 
 solid, and vice versa. These different states of the 
 
VIS I r A L MANIFF.S TA TIONS. 14 1 
 
 perisprit are the result of the will of the spirit, and 
 not an exterior physical cause, as in our gases. When 
 the spirit appears to us, he puts his perisprit into the 
 state necessary to render him visible ; but for that 
 his will alone is not sufficient, for the modification of 
 the perisprit is effected by his combination with the 
 fluid of the medium ; but this combination is not 
 always possible, which explains why the visibility of 
 spirits is not general. It is not enough #iat the spirit 
 desires to be seen ; it is not enough that a person 
 desires to see him ; it is necessary that the two fluids 
 may combine, that there should be between them a 
 kind of affinity ; perhaps, also, that the emission of the 
 person's fluid should be sufficiently abundant to effect 
 the transformation of the perisprit ; and probably still 
 other conditions, to us unknown ; it is also necessary 
 that the spirit should have permission to make himself 
 visible to the person, which is not always granted, or 
 granted only under certain conditions, for reasons we 
 cannot always appreciate. 
 
 106. Another property of the perisprit, and which 
 pertains to its ethereal nature, is penetrability. Matter 
 is no obstacle ; it passes through everything as the 
 light passes through transparent bodies. This is why 
 no closing can shut out spirits ; they visit the prisoner 
 in his cell as easily as the man in the open fields. 
 
 107. Apparitions in a waking state are neither rare 
 nor new ; they have occurred in every age ; history 
 relates very many ; but without going so far, they are 
 frequent in our own day, and many persons have had 
 what, at first sight, they have taken for what it is 
 considered proper to call hallucinations. They are, 
 especially, frequent in the case of the death of absent 
 persons who visit their relations or friends ; often they 
 
142 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 seem to have no particular motive ; but it may be said 
 that, in generaj, the spirits who appear are attracted by 
 sympathy. If every one would search his memory, 
 he would see that there are few persons without a 
 knowledge of some facts of this kind, whose authen- 
 ticity cannot be doubted. 
 
 1 08. We will add to the preceding considerations 
 the examination of some optical effects which have 
 given rise to«the singular system of globular spirits. 
 
 The air is not always of an absolute limpidity, and 
 there are conditions under which the currents of 
 aeriform molecules and their agitation produced by the 
 heat are perfectly visible. Some persons have taken 
 that for masses of spirits moving around in space ; the 
 mere mention of this opinion is all that is necessary 
 to refute it ; but there is another species of illusion, no 
 less absurd, against which it is equally well to be 
 forewarned. 
 
 The aqueous humor of the eye offers points, scarcely 
 perceptible, that have lost their transparency. These 
 points are like opaque bodies in suspension in the 
 liquid, and whose movements they follow. . They pro- 
 duce in the air, and at a distance, from the effects of 
 enlargement and refraction, the appearance of small 
 disks varying from one to ten millimetres in diameter, 
 and which seem to swim in the atmosphere. We have 
 seen persons take these disks for spirits, who follow 
 and accompany them everywhere, and in their enthusi- 
 asm take for figures the shades of irisation, which is 
 almost as rational as to see a figure in the moon. A 
 simple observation, furnished by these people them- 
 selves, would bring them to the land of reality. 
 
 These disks, or medallions, they say, not only accom- 
 pany them, but follow all their movements ; they go 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 143 
 
 to the right, to the left, up, down, or stop, according to 
 the movement of the head : that is not astonishing, 
 since the seat of the appearance is in the globe of the 
 eye ; it should follow all its movements. If they were 
 spirits, it must be admitted that they would be con- 
 fined to entirely too mechanical a part for free and 
 intelligent beings — a very tedious part, even for inferior 
 spirits, and certainly entirely incompatible with our 
 ideas of superior spirits. Some, it is true, think the 
 black points bad spirits. These disks, the same as the 
 black spots, have an undulatory movement which never 
 varies from a certain angle, and their not rigidly 
 following the line of vision adds to the illusion. The 
 reason is very simple. The opaque points of the 
 aqueous humor, primary cause of the phenomenon, are, 
 as we have said, held, as it were, in suspension, and 
 have always a tendency to descend ; when they 
 ascend, it is in consequence of the movement of the 
 eye from low to high ; but, after reaching a certain 
 distance, if the eye is fixed, the disks descend of them- 
 selves, then stop. Their mobility is extreme, for an 
 imperceptible movement of the eye is sufficient to 
 make them change their direction and traverse rapidly 
 the whole extent of the arc in the space where the 
 object is produced. So long as it is not proved that 
 an image possesses a spontaneous and intelligent 
 movement of its own, there can be seen in it but a 
 simple optical or physiological phenomenon. It is the< 
 same with the sparks, which are sometimes produced in 
 sheafs and bundles, more or less compact, by the con- 
 traction of the muscles of the eye, and which are, 
 probably, owing to the phosphorescent electricity of 
 the iris, as they are usually limited to the circumference 
 of the disk of that organ. Similar illusions can only 
 
144 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 be the result of incomplete observation. Whoever 
 may have seriously studied the nature of spirits by all 
 the means practical science gives, will understand their 
 puerility. While we combat the theories by which the 
 manifestations are attacked, when these theories are 
 based on ignorance of facts, we should also seek to 
 destroy the false ideas which exhibit more enthusiasm 
 than reflection, and which, in that very way, do more 
 harm than good with the skeptical, already so disposed 
 to look for the ridiculous. 
 
 109. The perisprit, as may be seen, is the principle 
 of all the manifestations ; its knowledge has given the 
 key to a crowd of phenomena ; it has been the means 
 of making an immense step in the science of Spiritism, 
 and has caused it to enter a new path by taking from 
 it all marvelous character. We have found it by the 
 spirits themselves, for, remember carefully, it is they 
 who have given us the explanation of the action of 
 spirit on matter, of the movement of inert bodies, 
 noises and apparitions. We shall yet find in it that 
 of several other phenomena which remain for us to ex- 
 amine before passing to the study of the communica- 
 tions proper. They will be as much better understood 
 as the reason for the first causes shall be better. If 
 this principle has been thoroughly comprehended, each 
 one may for himself easily make the application of the 
 various facts which may be presented to the observer. 
 # no. We are far from regarding the theory we give 
 as absolute, and as being the last word ; it will, doubt- 
 less, be completed or rectified by new studies ; but how- 
 ever incomplete or imperfect it may be to-day, it can 
 at least assist in showing the possibility of the facts by 
 causes which have nothing in them of the supernatu- 
 ral : if it be a hypothesis, the merit of rationality and 
 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 145 
 
 probability cannot be altogether refused to it ; and it 
 is worth more than all the explanations given by those 
 who try to prove that in the spirit phenomena all is 
 but illusion, phantasmagoria, and subterfuge. 
 
 Theory of Hallucination. 
 
 in. Those who do not admit the incorporeal and 
 invisible world, think to explain everything by the 
 word hallucination. The definition of this word is 
 well known ; it is an error, an illusion of a person 
 who thinks he has perceptions which he has not 
 really (from the Latin halluciuari, to err, made of ad 
 lucent) ; but the scientists have not yet, that we know, 
 given the physiological reason. 
 
 Optics and physiology appear to have no further 
 secrets from them ; how, then, is it that they have failed 
 to explain the nature and the source of the images pre- 
 sented to the mind under certain circumstances ? 
 
 They wish to explain everything by the laws of 
 matter : be it so ; let them give, then, by those laws a 
 theory of hallucination ; good or bad, it will, at any rate, 
 be an explanation. 
 
 1 12. The cause of dreams has never been explained 
 by science ; it attributes them to an effect of the im- 
 agination, but it does not tell us what is imagination, 
 nor how it produces these so clear and perfect images 
 that sometimes appear to us ; it is explaining an un- 
 known thing by another equally unknown ; the ques- 
 tion remains untouched. It is, they say, a remem- 
 brance of the preoccupations of our waking state ; but 
 admitting this solution, which is not one, it would still 
 remain to show what this magic mirror is that so pre- 
 serves the impression of things ; how, above all, explain 
 those visions of things real which have never been 
 10 
 
146 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 seen, or even thought of, in a waking state ? Spiritism 
 alone can give us the key to this strange phenomenon, 
 which passes unperceived because of its very common- 
 ness, like all the wonders of nature we trample under 
 foot. 
 
 Scientists have disdained to investigate hallucina- 
 tion ; whether it be real or not, it is not the less a phe- 
 nomenon which physiology should be able to explain 
 under pain of confessing its insufficiency. If some 
 day a savant should undertake to give of it, not a 
 definition, be it understood, but a physiological ex- 
 planation, we should see if his theory solves all the 
 cases ; if they do not omit, especially the facts, so com- 
 mon, of apparitions of persons at the moment of their 
 death, let them say from whence comes the coincidence 
 of the apparition with the death of the person. If it 
 were an isolated fact, it might be attributed to chance ; 
 but it is very frequent ; chance has none of these re- 
 newals. If he who sees the apparition has had his 
 imagination struck with the idea that the person would 
 die, so be it ; but the one that appears is most often 
 the one he has least thought of; then the imagination 
 counts for naught. Still less can the circumstances 
 of the death, of which there has been no idea, be ex- 
 plained by imagination. Will the hallucinationists say 
 that the soul (if they so much as admit a soul) has mo- 
 ments of over-excitement, when its faculties are exalted ? 
 We agree with them ; but when what is seen is real, it 
 is not illusion. If, in its exaltation, the soul sees a 
 thing that is not present, it is because it is transported ; 
 but if our soul can be transported toward an absent 
 person, why should not the soul of the absent person 
 be transported toward us ? In their theory of halluci- 
 nation, let them take especial account of these facts, 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. H7 
 
 and not forget that a theory to which contrary facts 
 may be opposed is necessarily false or incomplete. 
 
 While waiting their explanation, we shall endeavor 
 to put forth some ideas on this subject. 
 
 1 13. Facts prove that there are veritable apparitions, 
 of which the spirit theory can give a perfect reason, 
 and which those alone can deny who admit nothing 
 outside of the organism ; but by the side of the real 
 visions are there hallucinations in the sense attached 
 to this word ? That is not doubtful. What is their 
 source ? The spirits will put us in the way of know- 
 ing, for the explanation seems to us complete in the 
 answers made to the following questions : — 
 
 " Are visions always real, and are they not sometimes 
 the effect of hallucination ? When we see, in dreams 
 and otherwise, the devil, for instance, or other fantas- 
 tic things that do not exist, is it not produced by im- 
 agination ? " 
 
 " Yes, sometimes : when persons are struck by what 
 they have read, or impressed by stories of deviltries, 
 they remember them, and think they see what does 
 not exist. But we have also said, that the spirit under 
 his semi-material envelope can take all kinds of forms 
 to manifest himself. A mocking spirit thus can ap- 
 pear with horns or claws if it so please him, to sport 
 with credulity, as a good spirit can show himself with 
 wings and a radiant countenance." 
 
 " May the figures and other images that often present 
 themselves in a half sleep, or simply when the eyes are 
 shut, be considered as apparitions ? " 
 
 " As soon as the senses grow dull, the spirit is freed, 
 and can see, far off*or near, what he could not see with 
 the eyes. These images are very often visions ; but 
 they may, also, be an effect of the impressions which 
 
148 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the sight of certain objects has left in the brain, 
 which preserves its traces as it preserves those of 
 sounds. The freed spirit sees, then, in his own brain, 
 these imprints, which are fixed there as on the plate of 
 a daguerreotype. Their variety and their blending 
 form strange and fugitive wholes, which are almost 
 immediately effaced, in spite of the efforts made to 
 retain them. To a similar cause must be attributed 
 certain fantastic apparitions, which have nothing real 
 about them, often produced in a state of sickness." 
 
 It is certain that memory is the result of impressions 
 preserved in the brain ; but what strange phenomenon 
 prevents the confounding together of these impres- 
 sions, so varied, so multiple ? That is an impenetra- 
 ble mystery, but not more strange than that of the 
 sonorous undulations that cross each other in the air, 
 and remain none the less distinct. In a healthy and 
 well-organized brain these impressions are clear and 
 precise : in a less favorable state they are effaced and 
 confused ; from thence loss of memory or confusion 
 of ideas. That appears still less extraordinary if it be 
 admitted, as in phrenology, a special destination to 
 each part, and even to each fibre of the brain. The 
 images reaching the brain through the eyes leave 
 there an impression which brings to remembrance a 
 picture as if it were before one ; but this is not merely 
 an affair of memory, for it is not seen; but in. a cer- 
 tain state of emancipation, the soul sees into the brain, 
 and there finds again these images, especially those 
 most deeply seated, according to the nature of the 
 preoccupations or the dispositions of the mind. Thus 
 it finds the impressions of scenes- religious, diabolic, 
 dramatic, worldly ; figures of strange animals seen at 
 some other epoch, in painting or in story ; for recitals, 
 
VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS. 1 49 
 
 also, leave impressions. Thus the soul really sees but 
 sees only an image daguerreotyped in the brain. In 
 the normal state, these images are fugitive and ephem- 
 eral, because all the cerebral parts act freely ; but in a 
 state of disease the brain is always more or less en- 
 feebled, the equilibrium no longer exists between all 
 the organs ; some alone preserve their activity, while 
 others are in some sort paralyzed ; from thence the 
 permanence of certain images, which are not, as in 
 the normal state, effaced by the preoccupations of the 
 exterior life. That is the real hallucination, and the 
 primary cause of fixed ideas. 
 
 As may be seen, we have given a reason for this 
 anomaly by a well known and thoroughly physiologi- 
 cal law — that of cerebral impressions ; but we have 
 always been obliged to bring in the soul ; and if mate- 
 rialists have not yet given a satisfactory solution of 
 this phenomenon, it is because they will not admit 
 soul : so they may say our solution is good for nothing, 
 because we rest on a contested principle. Contested 
 by whom ? By them, but admitted by the immense 
 majority since there have been men on the earth , and 
 the denial of some cannot make law. 
 
 Is our explanation good ? We give it for what it is 
 worth, in default of others, and, if you please, by way 
 of simple hypothesis, while awaiting a better. Such 
 as it is, does it account for all the cases of vision ? 
 Certainly not ; and we defy all the physiologists to 
 give a single one, exclusively from their point of view, 
 that does solve them all ; for when they have pro- 
 nounced their cabalistic words of over-excitement and 
 exaltation, they have said nothing. Then, if all the 
 theories of hallucination are insufficient to explain all 
 
i5o 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the facts, it must be that there is something else 
 besides hallucination. Our theory would be false if 
 we should apply it to all cases of visions, because 
 there is still something that would contradict it. It 
 may be correct if confined to certain facts. 
 
Chapter VII. 
 BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 Apparitions of the Spirit of the Living. — Double 
 Men. — St. A/phonse de Lignori and St. Antoinc de 
 Padua. — Vespasian. — Transfiguration. — Invisi- 
 bility. 
 
 114. These two phenomena are varieties of the 
 phenomenon of visual manifestation, and however 
 marvelous they may appear at first sight, it will be 
 easily perceived, by the explanation that can be given 
 of them, that they are not out of the order of natural 
 phenomena. They both rest on this principle — that 
 all that has been said of the properties of the perisprit 
 after death applies to the perisprit of the living. We 
 know that during sleep the spirit partly recovers its 
 liberty ; that is, it is isolated from the body ; and it is 
 in this state that we have, many times, had occasion to 
 observe it. But the spirit, be the man dead or living, 
 has always its semi-material envelope, which, for the 
 same causes that we have described, can acquire visi- 
 bility and tangibility. Very positive facts leave no 
 doubt of this ; we will cite some examples of our own 
 personal knowledge, whose truth we can guarantee ; 
 every one can, no doubt, remember analogous ones, 
 by searching his memory. 
 
 115. The wife of one of our friends several times 
 saw a fruit merchant of the neighborhood, whom she 
 
 151 
 
152 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 knew by sight, but to whom she had never spoken, 
 enter her room in the night, whether she had a light 
 or not. This apparition caused her great terror, great- 
 er because at that time she had no knowledge of Spir- 
 itism, and the phenomenon happened very often. But 
 the merchant was perfectly alive, and probably sleep- 
 ing at that hour : while his material body was at 
 home, his spirit and his fluidic body was with this 
 lady ; with what motive ? No one knows. In such 
 case a spiritist, initiated in such things, would have 
 asked him ; but she had no idea of it. Each time the 
 apparition vanished without her knowing how, and 
 each time, also, after its disappearance, she went to the 
 doors to assure herself that they were perfectly shut, 
 and that nobody could have been introduced into her 
 room. This precaution proved to her that she was 
 perfectly awake, and not the sport of a dream. At 
 other times she saw, in the same way, a man she did 
 not know ; but one day she saw her brother, who was 
 then in California. He had so much the appearance 
 of a real person, that, at the first moment, she thought 
 he had returned, and was going to speak to him ; but 
 he disappeared without giving her time. A letter, 
 afterwards received, proved that he was not dead. 
 This lady was what was called a natural seeing me- 
 dium, but at that time, as we have said, she had never 
 heard of mediums. 
 
 1 1 6. Another lady, who lives in the country, being 
 very seriously ill, saw, about ten o'clock one evening, 
 an aged gentleman, living in the same town, whom 
 she had sometimes met in society, but of no intimate 
 acquaintance. This gentleman was seated in an arm- 
 chair, at the foot of her bed, and from time to time 
 took snuff; he seemed to be watching. Surprised at 
 
BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. 153 
 
 such a visit at such an hour, she wished to ask the 
 cause of it ; but he signed to her not to speak, but to 
 go to sleep : several times she was about to address 
 him, but each time with the same result She ended 
 by going to sleep. Some days after, being convales- 
 cent, she received a visit from this same gentleman, 
 but at a more suitable hour ; and this time it was 
 himself: he was dressed the same, had the same snuff- 
 box, the same manners. Persuaded that he had come 
 during her illness, she thanked him for the trouble he 
 had taken. The gentleman, much surprised, said he 
 had not had the pleasure of seeing her for a very long 
 time. The lady, who understood spirit phenomena, 
 saw at once what it was, but not wishing to explain it 
 to him, contented herself with telling him she had 
 probably dreamed it. " Very probably," will say the 
 skeptical, the strong-minded, for them the synonym 
 of men of mind ; but it is certain she slept not at all, 
 no more than the preceding. Then she dreamed 
 awake ; in other words, she had a hallucination. That 
 is the great word, the universal explanation of every- 
 thing that is not understood. As we have already 
 refuted this objection, we will continue, addressing our- 
 selves to those who can understand us. 
 
 1 17. Here is another and more characteristic fact, 
 and we should be curious to see how it can be ex- 
 plained by the play of the imagination. A gentleman, 
 living in the country, had never wished to marry, in 
 spite of the importunity of his family. They had con- 
 stantly insisted in favor of a person living in a neigh- 
 boring town, and whom he had never seen. One day, 
 being in his room, he was astonished to find himself in 
 the presence of a young girl, dressed in white, her 
 head crowned with flowers. She told him she was his 
 
154 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 betrothed, held out her hand to him, which he took in 
 his, and on which he saw a ring. In a few moments 
 she disappeared. Surprised at this apparition, and 
 being sure that he was fully awake, he asked if any one 
 had come during the day, but was answered no person 
 had been seen. A year after, yielding to the renewed 
 solicitations of a relative, he decided to go and see the 
 person proposed to him. He arrived the day of the 
 Fete-Dieu (festival of Corpus Christi day). They re- 
 turned from the procession, and one of the first per- 
 sons he saw, on entering the house, was a young girl, 
 whom he recognized as the one who had appeared to 
 him, dressed in the same manner : for the day of the 
 apparition was also that of the Fete Dieu. He re- 
 mained speechless, and the young girl uttered a cry 
 of surprise, and fainted. Restored to her senses, she 
 said she had already seen this gentleman, the same 
 day in the preceding year. The marriage was con- 
 cluded. This was about 1835 5 at tnat time there was 
 no question about spirits, and besides, both were 
 persons of extreme positivism, and imagination the 
 least exalted possible. 
 
 It may be said, perhaps, that both had their minds 
 occupied with the idea of the proposed union, and that 
 this preoccupation brought about a hallucination ; but 
 it must not be forgotten, that the husband was so 
 indifferent that he was a year without going to see his 
 intended. Admitting even this hypothesis, the double 
 apparition remains to be explained, the coincidence of 
 the costume with the day of the Fete-Dieu, and then 
 the physical recognition between persons who had 
 never seen each other — circumstances that could not 
 be the effect of imagination. 
 
 118. Before going further, we should answer imme- 
 
BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. 155 
 
 diatcly a question that will not fail to be asked ; this 
 is, to know how the body can live while the soul is 
 absent. We can say that the body can live with the 
 organic life, which is independent of the presence of 
 the spirit, and the proof of this is, that plants live, and 
 have no spirit ; but we would add that during life the 
 spirit is never completely detached from the body. 
 Spirits, as also some seeing mediums, recognize the 
 spirit of a living person by a luminous train joined to 
 its body, a phenomenon that never occurs when the 
 body is dead, for then the separation is complete. 
 Thus, the body can never die during the absence of the 
 spirit, and it can never happen that the spirit on its 
 arrival finds the door shut, as some romancers have 
 said, in their fairy histories. {Book on Spirits, Nos." 
 400 and following.) 
 
 119. To return to our subject. The spirit of a liv- 
 ing person isolated from the body can appear the same 
 as that of a dead person, and have all the appearance 
 of reality ; and further, for the same causes that we 
 have explained, it can acquire a momentary tangibility. 
 It is this phenomenon called bi-corporeity that has given 
 foundation to the stories of double men, that is to say, 
 individuals whose simultaneous presence has been 
 verified in two different places. Here are two exam- 
 ples, drawn not from our popular legends, but from 
 ecclesiastical history. 
 
 St. Alphonse de Liguori was canonized before the 
 usual time, for having been seen simultaneously in two 
 different places, which passed for a miracle. 
 
 St. Antoine de Padua was in Spain, and at the time 
 he was preaching, his father, who was in Padua, was 
 going to the torture, accused of murder. At this 
 moment St. Antoine appeared, showed the innocence 
 
156 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 of his father, and pointed out the true criminal, who 
 was afterward punished. It was proved that St. 
 Antoine had not left Spain. 
 
 St. Alphonse, having been invoked and interrogated 
 by us on this fact, gave us the following answers : — 
 
 1. " Can you give us the explanation of this phe- 
 nomenon ? " 
 
 " Yes ; man, when he is completely dematerialized 
 by his virtue, when he has elevated his soul toward 
 God, can appear in two places at once, and in this 
 way. The incarnated spirit, feeling sleep come, can 
 ask God to transport him to some especial place. 
 His spirit, or his soul, as you would call it, then 
 leaves his body, followed by apart of his perisprit, and 
 leaves the unclean matter in a state bordering on 
 death. I say, bordering on death, because there re- 
 mains in the body a tie which attaches the perisprit 
 and the soul to the matter, and this tie cannot be 
 defined. The body appears then in the place desired. 
 I believe this is all you wish to know." 
 
 2. " This does not give us the explanation of the 
 visibility and tangibility of the perisprit." 
 
 " The spirit, finding himself freed from matter, can, 
 according to his degree of elevation, make matter tan- 
 gible." 
 
 3. " Is the sleep of the body indispensable to the 
 spirit appearing in other places ? " 
 
 " The soul can divide itself, when it feels itself taken 
 to a different place from where the body is. It may 
 happen that the body does not sleep, though that is very 
 rare ; but then the body is not in a perfectly normal 
 condition ; it is always in a state more or less ec- 
 static." 
 
 Remark. The soul does not divide itself in the 
 
BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. 157 
 
 literal sense of the word ; it radiates on different sides, 
 and thus can be manifested on several points without 
 being divided ; the same as a light, which can be re- 
 flected simultaneously in several glasses. 
 
 4. "A man being asleep while his spirit appears 
 elsewhere, what would happen were he awakened 
 suddenly ? " 
 
 " That could not happen, because, if any one had 
 such an intention, the spirit would reenter the body, 
 and foresee the intention, for the spirit reads the 
 thought." 
 
 This identical explanation has been given to us 
 several times, by the spirit of persons dead or living. 
 St. Alphonse explains the fact of this double presence, 
 but does not give the theory of its visibility and 
 tangibility. 
 
 120. Tacitus relates an analogous fact. During 
 the months that Vespasian passed in Alexandria to 
 await the periodical return of the spring winds, and 
 the season when the sea should become safe, several 
 prodigies took place, showing the favor of the heavens, 
 and the interest which the gods seemed to take in this 
 prince. 
 
 These prodigies redoubled in Vespasian the de- 
 sire of visiting the sacred dwelling-place of the god, 
 to consult him about the empire. He ordered that the 
 temple should be closed to every one, entered himself, 
 and just as the oracle was about to be pronounced, he 
 perceived behind him one of the principal Egyptians, 
 named Basilide, who, he knew, had been left sick 
 several days' journey from Alexandria. He inquired 
 of the priests if Basilide had come that day to the 
 temple, and asked of the passers-by if he had been 
 seen in the city ; finally, he sent some men on horse- 
 
158 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 back, and was assured that, at that moment, he was 
 eighty miles distant. Then he no longer doubted that 
 the vision was supernatural, and the name of Basilide 
 was to him instead of an oracle. (Tacitus, Histories, 
 Book IV., Chap. 81, 82. Translation of Burnouf.) 
 
 121. The individual who is seen in two different 
 places simultaneously has, then, two bodies,~but only 
 one of them is real ; the other is but an appearance ; 
 we might say the first has the organic life, the second 
 the life of the soul ; at the awakening, the two bodies 
 reunite, and the life of the soul reenters the material 
 body. It does not appear possible, at least we have 
 no example of it, and reason seems to show it, that in 
 the state of separation the two bodies can enjoy, 
 simultaneously, and to the same degree, active and 
 intelligent life. It shows, moreover, what we have 
 said — that the real body could not die if the apparent 
 body remained visible ; the approach of death always 
 recalling the spirit into the body, were it but for an 
 instant. It equally results that the apparent body 
 could not be killed, because it is not organic, and is 
 not formed of flesh and bones ; it would disappear the 
 moment a person might desire to kill it. 
 
 122. We pass to the second phenomenon, that of 
 transfiguration. It consists in a change of aspect 
 of a living body. In this connection is a fact whose 
 perfect authenticity we can guarantee, and which 
 happened in the years 1858 and 1859. In the suburbs 
 of St. Etienne, a young girl of fifteen years of age 
 enjoyed the singular faculty of being transfigured, that 
 is to say, of taking, at given moments, all the appear- 
 ances of certain persons dead ; the illusion was so 
 complete, that people would suppose the person before 
 them, so like were the features, the expression, the 
 
BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. 159 
 
 sound of the voice, and even the speech. This phe- 
 nomenon was renewed hundreds of times, the will of 
 the young girl counting for nothing. Several times 
 she took the appearance of her brother, dead some 
 years before ; she had not only his face, but the height 
 and size of his body. A doctor of the country was 
 many times witness c£ these strange effects, and wish- 
 ing to be assured that he was not the sport of an 
 illusion, made the following experiment. 
 
 We have the facts from himself, from the father of 
 the young girl, and from several other honorable and 
 trustworthy eye-witnesses. He conceived the idea of 
 weighing her in her normal state, then in that of the 
 transfiguration, when she had the appearance of her 
 brother, more than twenty years old, and much larger 
 and stronger. Well, it was found that in this last 
 the weight was nearly doubled. The experiment was 
 conclusive, and it was impossible to attribute the 
 appearance to a simple optical illusion. Let us try to 
 explain this fact, which, at one time, would have been 
 called a miracle, and which we call a simple phe- 
 nomenon. 
 
 123. Transfiguration, in some cases, may be caused 
 by a simple muscular contraction which can give to 
 the countenance an entirely different expression, so as 
 to render the person unrecognizable. We have often 
 seen it with somnambulists, but in such cases the 
 transformation was not radical ; a woman could appear 
 young or old, beautiful or ugly, but it would be always 
 a woman ; and her weight neither augmented nor 
 diminished. In the case we are considering it is very 
 evident it is something more : the theory of the peri- 
 sprit will put us on the right road. 
 
 It is admitted that the spirit can give every appear- 
 
l6o BOOK ON MEDIUMS. ^ 
 
 ance to his pevisprit ; that by a modification of the 
 molecular disposition he can give it visibility, tangi- 
 bility, and consequently opacity ; that the perisprit of 
 a living person, isolated from the body, can undergo 
 the same transformations ; that this change of state is 
 effected by the combination of fluids. Imagine, now, 
 the perisprit of a living person, not isolated, but radi- 
 ating around the body in such a way as to envelop it 
 like a vapor : in this state it could undergo the same 
 modifications as if it were separated ; if it lose its 
 transparency, the body can disappear, become invisible, 
 and be vailed, as if it were plunged in a fog. It could 
 even change its aspect, become brilliant, if such be 
 the will or the power of the spirit. Another spirit, 
 combining his own fluid with the first, can substitute 
 his own appearance, in such a way that the real body 
 could disappear under an exterior fluidic envelope, 
 whose appearance could vary at the will of the spirit. 
 Such appears to be the cause of the phenomenon, 
 strange and rare, it must be said, of transfiguration. 
 As to the difference in weight, it is explained in the 
 same manner as for inert bodies. The intrinsic 
 weight of the body does not vary, because the quantity 
 of matter has not augmented ; it is under the influence 
 of an exterior agent, who can increase or diminish 
 relative weight, as we have explained above, Nos. 78 
 and following. It is thus probable that if the trans- 
 figuration had taken place under the form of a small 
 child, the weight would have diminished in proportion. 
 124. It may be imagined that the body can take an 
 appearance larger or of the same dimension, but how 
 take one smaller, that of a small child, as we have said ? 
 In such case, would not the real body exceed the 
 apparent body ? But we have not said that the effect 
 
BI-CORPOREITY AND TRANSFIGURATION. l6l 
 
 can be produced ; we have simply desired to show, in 
 reverting to the theory 'of specific weight, that the 
 apparent weight would have diminished. As to the 
 phenomenon in itself, we affirm neither its possibility 
 nor its impossibility ; but in the case where it has 
 taken place, no satisfactory solution having been given 
 does not invalidate the thing ; it must not be forgotten 
 that we are at the beginning of science, that it is far 
 from having said its last word on this point, as on 
 many others. Besides, the parts in excess could per- 
 fectly well be made invisible. 
 
 The theory of the phenomenon of invisibility comes 
 very naturally within the preceding explanation, and 
 those given on materialization, Nos. 96 and following. 
 
 125. It remains to speak of the singular phenome- 
 non of agenercs, which, extraordinary as it may appear 
 at first sight, is no more supernatural than the oth- 
 ers. But as we have explained in the Revue Spirite 
 (February 1859), we consider it useless to reproduce 
 the details in this work ; we will only say, it is a variety 
 of the- tangible apparition ; it is the state of some 
 spirits who can momentarily assume the form of a 
 living person, so as to create a complete illusion. 
 (From the Greek a privative, and geine, geinomai, to 
 engender; which has not been engendered.) 
 11 
 
Chapter VIII. 
 
 LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 
 
 Clothing of Spirits. — Spontaneous Formation of 
 Tangible Objects. — Modification of the Properties 
 of Matter. — Magnetic Curative Action. 
 
 126. We have said that the spirits present them- 
 selves clothed in tunics, with draperies, or even with 
 their, ordinary dress. Draperies appear to be a general 
 costume in the spirit world ; but it is asked, Where do 
 they find the garments exactly like those they wore 
 while living, with all the accessories of the toilet ? It 
 is very certain they did not carry these things with 
 them, since the real objects are there under our very 
 eyes ; then whence come those they wear in the other 
 world ? This question has been often asked ; but with 
 many it is a simple affair of curiosity ; nevertheless it 
 confirmed a principle of great importance ; for its solu- 
 tion has put us in the way of a general law, which finds 
 its application in our corporeal world. Many facts 
 have come to complicate it, and show the insufficiency 
 of the theories that have been tried. 
 
 Up to a certain point, a reason could be given for 
 the costume, because it might be considered as mak- 
 ing, in some sort, a part of the individual"; it is not the 
 same with the accessories, as for instance, the snuff-box 
 of the sick lady of whom we spoke, No. 1 1 7. Let us 
 
 162 
 
LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 163 
 
 remark on this subject that there is no question here 
 of one dead, but of one living, and that this gentleman, 
 when he came again in person, had a snuff-box per- 
 fectly similar. Where, then, did his spirit find the 
 one he had at the foot of the sick lady's bed ? We 
 could cite a great many cases where the spirits of the 
 dead or living have appeared with various objects, such 
 as canes, arms, pipes, lanterns, books, &c. 
 
 There came to us a thought that inert bodies have 
 their ethereal analogies in the invisible world ; that the 
 condensed matter that forms the objects might have a 
 very refined part escaping our senses. This theory 
 was not without probability, but it was powerless to 
 give a reason for all the facts. It seemed as if it must 
 baffle all interpretations. Up to this time there had 
 been question only of images or appearances : we have 
 seen that the perisprit can acquire the properties of 
 matter and become tangible, but this tangibility is only 
 momentary, and the solid body vanishes like a shade. 
 This is a very extraordinary phenomenon, but far be- 
 yond it is to see solid, persistent matter produced, as 
 numerous authentic facts prove, and notably that of 
 direct writing, of which we shall speak in detail in a 
 special chapter. Yet as this phenomenon is intimately 
 connected with the subject before us, and is one of its 
 most positive applications, we will anticipate the order 
 in which it should come. 
 
 1 27. Direct writing, or pneumatography, is that which 
 is produced spontaneously without the help of a medi- 
 um's hand or pencil. It is sufficient to take a sheet 
 of white paper, which may be done with all necessary 
 precautions, so as to feel assured of not being the dupe 
 of treachery, fold and deposit it somewhere, in a drawer, 
 or even on a table ; and, if the conditions are favorable, 
 
1 64 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 at the end of a longer or shorter time there will be 
 found, traced on the paper, characters, various signs, 
 words, phrases, even discourses, most often with a gray 
 substance of the appearance of lead, at other times 
 with red pencil, ordinary ink, or even printing ink. 
 There is the fact in all its simplicity ; and though not 
 very common, it is still not very rare, for there are 
 persons who easily obtain it. If a pencil were put 
 with the paper it might be supposed the spirit had 
 used it to write ; but when the paper is entirely alone, 
 it is evident the writing is formed by a deposited 
 matter ; where does the spirit obtain this matter ? 
 Such is the question to whose solution we have been 
 conducted by the snuff-box already mentioned. 
 
 128. The spirit of St. Louis has given us the solu- 
 tion in the following answers : — 
 
 1. "We have cited the case of an apparition of a liv- 
 ing person. This spirit had a snuff-box and took snuff. 
 Did he experience the sensation of snuff-taking ? " 
 
 " No." 
 
 2. '■ This snuff-box had the form that he ordinarily 
 used, and which was at home. What was this one in 
 his hands ? " 
 
 " An appearance ; it was in order that the circum- 
 stance should be remarked as it was, and that the 
 apparition should not be taken for a hallucination pro- 
 duced by the person's state of health. The spirit de- 
 sired that this lady should believe in the reality of his 
 presence ; he took all the appearances of reality." 
 
 3. " You say it is an appearance ; but an appearance 
 is not real ; it is like an optical illusion: we should like 
 to know if ,this snuff-box was only an image without 
 reality, or if it possessed something of material ? " 
 
 " Certainly , it is by the aid of this material principle 
 
LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 165 
 
 that the perisprit takes the appearance of clothes, like 
 those the spirit wore while living." 
 
 Remark. It is evident that the word appearance 
 must here be understood in the sense of aspect, imita- 
 tion. The real snuff-box was not there ; that which 
 the spirit held was only its representation ; it was thus 
 an appearance compared to the original, though formed 
 of a material principle. 
 
 Experience teaches us that we must not always take 
 literally certain expressions employed by the spirits ; 
 in interpreting them, according to our ideas, we are 
 exposed to great mistakes : this is why we must study 
 deeply the sense of their words every time they present 
 the least ambiguity ; it is a recommendation constantly 
 given to us by the spirits themselves. Without the 
 explanation we have called forth, the word appearance, 
 constantly reproduced in analogous cases, might lead 
 to a false interpretation. 
 
 4. " Could inert matter be duplicated ? Is there in 
 the' invisible world an essential matter which could 
 clothe the form of the objects we see ? In a word, 
 could these objects have their ethereal double in 
 the invisible world, as men are represented there by 
 spirits ? " 
 
 " That is not the way of it : the spirit has over the 
 elements, spread everywhere throughout your atmos- 
 phere, a power you are far from suspecting. He can, 
 at will, concentrate these elements, and give them the 
 apparent form proper to his designs." 
 
 Remark. This question, as may be seen, was the 
 translation of our thought ; that is x of the idea we had 
 formed of the nature of these objects. If the answers 
 were, as some pretend, the reflection of the thought, 
 
1 66 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 we should have obtained the confirmation of our theory, 
 instead of a contrary one. 
 
 5. " I ask the question anew in a categorical manner, 
 in order to avoid all equivocation : are the clothes with 
 which the spirits are covered something ? " 
 
 " It seems to me that my preceding answer solves 
 that question. Do you not know that the perisprit 
 itself is something ? " 
 
 6. " It results from this explanation that spirits make 
 ethereal matter undergo transformations at their will, 
 and that thus, for instance, the spirit did not find the 
 snuff-box ready made, but made it himself for the mo- 
 ment he had need of it, by an act of his will, and that 
 he could unmake it : it must be the same with all the 
 other objects, such as clothing, jewels, &c." 
 
 " Evidently so." 
 
 7. " The snuff-box was perfectly visible to this lady ; 
 could the spirit have made it tangible for her ? " 
 
 " He could.'' 
 
 8. "The case so happening, could this lady have 
 taken it into her hands, believing she held a real snuff- 
 box ? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 9. " If she had opened it, she would probably have 
 found snuff in it ; if she had taken this snuff, would it 
 have made her sneeze ? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 10. "The spirit, then, could give not only the form 
 but the special properties ? " 
 
 " If he wishes : it is only by virtue of this principle 
 I have answered affirmatively the preceding questions. 
 You will have proofs of the powerful action spirit exer- 
 cises over matter, and which you are far from suspect- 
 ing, as I told you." 
 
LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 1 67 
 
 11. "Suppose, then, that he had desired to make a 
 venomous substance, and that a person had taken it ; 
 would he have been poisoned ? " 
 
 " He could have done so, but he did not ; that would 
 not have been permitted." 
 
 12. " Would he have had the power to make a salu- 
 tary substance, suitable to cure in case of sickness, and 
 is it ever done ? " 
 
 " Yes, very often." 
 
 13. " He could, then, as well make an alimentary sub- 
 stance : suppose he had made a fruit, a dish of any 
 kind ; could a person have eaten of it and had his hun- 
 ger appeased ? " 
 
 " Yes, yes ; but do not seek so hard to find out what 
 is so easy to" understand. Even a ray of the sun can 
 render perceptible to your gross organs those material 
 particles that fill the space ir^ the midst of which you 
 live ; do you not know that the air contains the vapors 
 of water ? Condense them, you restore them to the 
 normal condition ; deprive them of heat, and these im- 
 palpable and invisible molecules become a solid, a very 
 solid body, and many other substances from which 
 your chemists draw still more astonishing wonders, 
 only the spirit possesses instruments more nearly per- 
 fect than yours — will and God's permission." 
 
 Remark. The question of satisfaction is here very 
 important. How and in what way can a substance 
 that has only temporary existence and properties 
 satisfy hunger ? This substance, by its contact with 
 the stomach, produces the sensation of satisfaction, 
 but not the satisfaction resulting from fullness. If 
 such a substance can act on the economy and modify 
 a morbid state, it can quite as well act on the stomach 
 and produce the feeling of satisfaction. At the same 
 
1 68 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 time we beg the druggists and restaurateurs not to be- 
 come jealous, nor believe that the spirits will destroy 
 their trade : these cases are rare, exceptional, and never 
 depend on the will ; otherwise people could be nourished 
 and cured too cheaply. 
 
 14. " Could objects, rendered tangible by the will of 
 the spirit, have a character of permanence and stability, 
 and become useful ? " 
 
 "It could be, but it is not done; it is beyond the 
 laws." 
 
 15. "Have all spirits the same degree of power to 
 render objects tangible ? " 
 
 " It is certain that the more elevated the spirit is, 
 the more easily he obtains this result ; but still that de- 
 pends on circumstances ; inferior spirits could have the 
 power." 
 
 16. "Does the spirit «al ways know exactly how he 
 produces his clothing, or other objects, whose appear- 
 ance he gives ? " 
 
 " No ; he often assists in their formation by an in- 
 stinctive act which he does not, himself, comprehend, 
 if he be not sufficiently enlightened for it." 
 
 1 7. " If the spirit can draw from the universal ele- 
 ment the materials to make all these things, to give to 
 these things, with their properties, a temporary reality, 
 he can as well draw from it what is necessary for writ- 
 ing ; and consequently this would appear to give us the 
 key to the phenomenon of direct writing." 
 
 " There you are at last ! " 
 
 Remark. It was there, in fact, we wished to come 
 by all our preliminary questions ; the answer proves 
 that the spirit read our thought. 
 
 18. " If the matter used by the spirit has no persis- 
 
LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 1 69 
 
 tence, how does it happen that the traces of the writing 
 do not disappear ? 
 
 " Do not epiloguize the words. In the first place I 
 did not say, never ; there it was of a voluminous ma- 
 terial object ; here it is of signs traced which it is use- 
 ful to have preserved, and they are preserved. I meant 
 that the objects thus composed by the spirits could not 
 become objects to use, for they do not, in reality, pos- 
 sess aggregation of matter like your solid bodies." 
 
 129. The above theory may be thus summed up; 
 the spirit acts on matter ; he draws from the universal 
 cosmic matter the elements necessary to form, at his 
 will, objects having the appearance of various bodies 
 which exist on the earth. He can equally well, by his 
 will, effect on elementary matter an intimate transfor- 
 mation, which gives it certain properties. This faculty 
 is inherent in the nature of the spirit, who often, when 
 necessary, exercises it without thinking, as an in- 
 stinctive act. The objects formed by the spirit have 
 a temporary existence, subordinated to his will or to 
 necessity ; he can make and unmake them at will. 
 These objects can, in some cases, have to the eyes of 
 living persons all the appearances of reality, that is to 
 say, become momentarily visible, and even tangible. 
 There is formation, but not creation ; the spirit can 
 draw nothing from the void. 
 
 130. The existence of one single elementary matter 
 is now almost generally admitted by science, and con- 
 firmed, as we have seen, by the spirits. This matter 
 gives birth to all the bodies of nature : by the transfor- 
 mations it undergoes, it produces also the various prop- 
 erties of these same bodies ; it is in this way a salutary 
 substance can become venomous by a simple modifica- 
 tion ; chemistry affords us numerous examples. Every- 
 
I/O BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 body knows that two innocent substances, combined 
 in certain proportions, can produce a deleterious one. 
 One part oxygen and two of hydrogen, both inoffensive, 
 form water ; add an atom of oxygen, and you have a 
 corrosive liquid. Without changing the proportions, 
 often a simple change in the method of molecular ag- 
 gregation can change the properties ; thus an opaque 
 body can become transparent, and vice versa. Since 
 the spirit has by his sole will so powerful an action on 
 elementary matter, it may be conceived that he can 
 not only form substances, but can denaturalize their 
 properties, will having herein the effect of a reactive. 
 
 131. This theory gives us the solution of a fact in 
 magnetism, well known, but hitherto unexplained — that 
 of the change of the properties of water by the will. 
 The acting spirit is that of the magnetizer, most fre- 
 quently assisted by a foreign spirit ; he effects a trans- 
 mutation by the aid of the magnetic fluid, which, as 
 has been said, is the substance most nearly approach- 
 ing cosmic matter, or the universal element. If he can 
 effect a modification in the properties of water, he can 
 as well produce an analogous phenomenon on the fluids 
 of the organism, and from thence the curative effect 
 of the magnetic action properly directed. 
 
 We know the great part played by the will in all the 
 phenomena of magnetism ; but how explain the ma- 
 terial action of so subtile an agent ? The will is not a 
 being, a substance ; it is not even a property of the 
 most ethereal matter ; the will is the essential attribute 
 of the mind, that is to say, of the thinking being. By 
 the aid of this lever he acts on elementary matter, and, 
 by a consecutive action, he reacts on its compounds, 
 whose intimate properties can thus be transformed. 
 
 Will is the attribute of the incarnate as well as of 
 
LABORATORY OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD. 171 
 
 the wandering spirit ; from thence the power of the 
 magnetizer, a power which we know to be in propor- 
 tion to the strength of the will. The incarnate spirit, 
 being able to act on elementary matter, can, then, as 
 well vary its properties in certain limits : here we have 
 explained the faculty of curing by laying on of hands — 
 a faculty possessed by some to a greater or less de- 
 gree. (See chapter on Mediums, article relating to 
 Healing Mediums. See also the Revue Spirit V, J uly, 
 1859, pages 184 and 189.) 
 
Chapter IX. 
 HAUNTED PLACES. 
 
 132. The spontaneous manifestations that have been 
 produced in all times, and the persistence of some 
 spirits in giving ostensible marks of their presence in 
 certain localities, are the source of the belief in haunt- 
 ed places. The following answers have been made 
 to questions on this subject : — 
 
 1. " Do spirits attach themselves solely to persons, 
 or do they also attach themselves to things ? " 
 
 " That depends upon their elevation. Some spirits 
 can be attached to terrestrial objects ; .misers, for in- 
 stance, who have hidden their treasures, and who are 
 not sufficiently dematerialized, can still watch over and 
 guard them." 
 
 2. " Do wandering spirits prefer particular places ? " 
 " Still the same principle. Spirits who are no longer 
 
 on the earth go where they find anything to love ; 
 they are attracted by persons rather than by material 
 objects ; yet they might, momentarily, have a prefer- 
 ence for certain places ; but these are always inferior 
 spirits." 
 
 3. " Since the attachment of spirits for a locality is a 
 sign of inferiority, is it equally a proof that they are 
 bad spirits ? " 
 
 " Certainly not. A spirit may be but little advanced, 
 
 yet not be bad for all that ; is it not the same among 
 
 men ? " 
 
 172 
 
HAUNTED PLACES. 173 
 
 4. " Has the belief that spirits frequent ruins from 
 preference any foundation ? " 
 
 " No ; spirits go in these places as they go every- 
 where else ; but the imagination is struck by the 
 somber aspect of these places, and attributes to their 
 presence what is, most often, but a very natural effect. 
 How many times has not fear taken the shadow of a 
 tree for a phantom, the cry of an animal, or the breath 
 of the wind, for a ghost ! Spirits love the presence of 
 men ; so they seek rather inhabited places than those 
 that are isolated." 
 
 " Yet, from what we know of the diversity of char- 
 acter among spirits, there may be among them misan- 
 thropes who prefer solitude." 
 
 "Did I not answer in an absolute manner to the 
 question ? I said, They can go into deserted places, 
 as everywhere else, and it is very evident that those 
 who go there go because they please ; but that is not 
 a reason why ruins should be places of predilection 
 for them ; for, indeed, tKere are many more in towns 
 and in palaces than in the midst of woods." 
 
 5. " Popular beliefs have usually a foundation of truth, 
 which may be the source of that of haunted places." 
 
 " The foundation of truth is the manifestation of 
 spirits, in which man has believed at all times, by in- 
 stinct ; but, as I have said, the aspect of these melan- 
 choly places strikes his imagination, and he naturally 
 connects them with the beings he looks upon as super- 
 natural. This superstitious belief is kept alive by the 
 recitals of poets, and the fantastic tales that have 
 cradled his infancy." 
 
 6. " Have spirits who gather together, certain days 
 and hours for so doing ? " 
 
 " No ; days and hours belong to time, for the use of 
 
74 
 
 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 men, and for corporeal life ; but of which the spirits 
 have no need, and about which they do not trouble 
 themselves." 
 
 7. " What is the origin of the idea that spirits, by- 
 preference, come in the night ?" 
 
 " The impression produced on the imagination by 
 silence and obscurity. All these beliefs are supersti- 
 tions, which the rational knowledge of Spiritism must 
 destroy. It is the same with the-days and hours they 
 believe to be most propitious to them ; believe that 
 the influence of midnight has never existed save in 
 stories." 
 
 " If it be so, why do certain spirits announce their 
 arrival and manifestations for that hour, and for certain 
 days, like Friday, for instance ? " 
 
 " There are spirits who take advantage of credulity, 
 and amuse themselves with it. For the same reason, 
 some pretend to be the devil, or give themselves infer- 
 nal names. Show them that you are not their dupes, 
 and they will not return." 
 
 8. " Do spirits return, by preference, near the tomb 
 where their bodies rest." 
 
 " The body is but a covering ; they care no more for 
 the envelope that has made them suffer, than the pris- 
 oner for his chains. The remembrance of the persons 
 dear to them is the only thing they value." 
 
 " Are the prayers made at their graves more agreea- 
 ble, and do they attract them rather than otherwise." 
 
 " Prayer is an invocation that attracts spirits, you 
 very well know. Prayer has greater action inasmuch 
 as it is fervent and sincere ; before a venerated tomb 
 the thought is more concentrated : the preservation of 
 relics is a testimony of affection for the spirit, to which 
 he is always sensible. It is always the thought that 
 
HAUNTED PLACES. 1 75 
 
 acts on the spirit, and not the material object ; these 
 objects have more influence on him who prays, by fix- 
 ing his attention, than on the spirit." 
 
 9. " According to that, the belief in haunted places 
 would not appear to be absolutely false ? " 
 
 " We have said that some spirits can be attracted 
 by material things ; they can be so by certain places, 
 where they seem to choose their dwelling, till the 
 circumstances that led them there are at an end." 
 
 11 What are the circumstances that might lead them 
 there?" 
 
 " Their sympathy for some of the persons there, or 
 their desire to communicate with them. Yet their 
 intentions are not always so praiseworthy : when they 
 are bad spirits, they may wish to execute vengeance 
 on certain persons of whom they have cause of com- 
 plaint. The sojourn in an especial place may be for 
 some a punishment inflicted on them, — especially if 
 they have committed a crime there, — in order that 
 they may have this crime constantly before their 
 eyes." 
 
 10. "Are places always haunted by their former in- 
 habitants ? " 
 
 " Sometimes, but not always ; for if the former in- 
 habitant is an elevated spirit, he cares no more for his 
 terrestrial dwelling than for his body. The spirits who 
 haunt certain places have often no other motive than 
 caprice ; at least, if they are not attracted thither by 
 their sympathy for certain persons." 
 
 " Can they remain there to protect a person, or his 
 family?" 
 
 " Assuredly, if they are good spirits ; but in this 
 case, they never manifest their presence by disagreea- 
 ble things." 
 
176 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 ii. "Is there anything real in the history of the 
 ' White Lady ' ? " 
 
 " It is a tale drawn from a thousand facts that are 
 true." 
 
 12. " Is it rational to fear places haunted by spirits ? " 
 " No ; the spirits who haunt certain places, and 
 
 make a racket there, seek rather to amuse themselves 
 at the expense of credulity and cowardice than to do 
 evil. Besides, remember, there are spirits everywhere, 
 and wherever you may be, you have them constantly 
 at your side, even in the most peaceable houses. 
 They appear to haunt certain houses only because 
 they find an occasion to manifest their presence." 
 
 13. " Is there any means of expelling them ? " 
 
 " Yes ; but most often the means used attract, in- 
 stead of removing, them. The best means to drive 
 away bad spirits is to attract the good. Draw good 
 spirits to you by doing as much good as possible, and 
 the bad will go away ; for the good and the bad are in- 
 compatible. Be always good, and you will always have 
 good spirits at your side." 
 
 " Yet there are many good persons subject to the 
 torments of bad spirits." 
 
 " If these persons are really good, it may be only a 
 trial to exercise their patience, and make them still 
 better : but, believe me, it is not those who talk most 
 of virtue who have most of it. He who possesses 
 real qualities is often ignorant of them himself, or does 
 not speak of them." 
 
 14. " What must be believed with regard to the 
 efficacy of exorcism to drive away bad spirits from 
 haunted places ? " 
 
 " Have you ever seen this means succeed ? Have 
 you not, on the contrary, seen the racket redoubled 
 
HAUNTED PLACES. \J7 
 
 after the ceremony of exorcism ! They are amused at 
 being taken for the devil." 
 
 44 Spirits who do not come with an evil intention may 
 also manifest their presence by noise, and even by mak- 
 ing themselves visible, but they never make a trouble- 
 some racket. They are often suffering spirits, whom 
 you can soothe by praying for them ; at other times 
 they are benevolent spirits, who wish to prove to you 
 that they are near you ; or they may be light, frolic- 
 some spirits. As the noisy, troublesome spirits are 
 almost always those who are amusing themselves, the 
 best thing to do is to laugh at them : they will become 
 tired if they see they can neither terrify nor annoy 
 you. (See Chapter V., Spontaneous Physical Mani- 
 festations^) 
 
 The above explanations show that there are spirits 
 who are attached to certain localities, and remain there 
 from preference, but that they do not need to manifest 
 their presence by obvious effects. Any place what- 
 ever may be the abiding-place, either forced or from 
 predilection, of a spirit, even a bad one, without hi^ 
 ever producing any manifestation. 
 
 The spirits who are attached to localities, or to 
 material things, are never superior spirits, but, without 
 being superior, they may neither be wicked nor have 
 any evil intention ; they are even, sometimes, com- 
 panions more useful than injurious, for if they are 
 interested in persons, they can protect them. 
 
 12 
 
Chapter X. 
 NATURE OF COMMUNICATIONS. 
 
 Gross, Frivolous, Serious, or Instructive Communi- 
 cations. 
 
 133- We have said that every effect that reveals 
 in its cause an act of free will, however insignificant 
 the act may be, gives assurance by that of an intelli- 
 gent cause. Thus a simple movement of a table, 
 answering our thought, or showing an intentional char- 
 acter, may be considered an intelligent manifestation. 
 If the result were limited to that, it would always be 
 something to give proof that there is, in these phe- 
 nomena, more than a purely material action ; but its 
 practical utility would be, for us, null, or at least very 
 restricted ; it is quite otherwise when this intelligence 
 acquires a development which permits a regular ex- 
 change and connection of thoughts ; no longer, then, 
 simple manifestations, but veritable communications. 
 By the means now used, they can be obtained as ex- 
 tended, as explicit, and as rapid as those we maintain 
 with men. 
 
 If the infinite variety existing among spirits, under 
 the double view of intelligence and morality, has been 
 thoroughly considered, according to the spirit scale 
 (Livre des E sprits, No. ioo), the difference that must 
 exist in their communications may be readily con- 
 ceived ; they must reflect the elevation or the lowness 
 
 i 7 8 
 
NATURE OF COMMUNICATIONS. 179 
 
 of their ideas, their knowledge and their ignorance, 
 their vices and their virtues ; in a word, they should 
 no more resemble each other than those of men, from 
 the savage to the most enlightened European. All 
 the shades they present may be grouped in four prin- 
 cipal categories, according to their most prominent 
 characteristics ; they are, gross, frivolous, serious, or 
 instructive. 
 
 134. The gross communications are those given in 
 expressions that shock decency. They can emanate 
 only from spirits of a low state, still soiled with the 
 impurities of matter, and differ in nothing from those 
 that might be given by vicious and gross men. They 
 are repugnant to every person who has the least deli- 
 cacy of sentiment ; for they are according to the 
 character of the spirits — trivial, dirty, obscene, inso- 
 lent, arrogant, malevolent, and even impious. 
 
 135. Frivolous communications emanate from light, 
 mocking, mischievous spirits, more roguish than wick- 
 ed, and who attach no importance to what they say. 
 As there is nothing unseemly about them, they please 
 some, persons who are amused with them, and find 
 pleasure in their fruitless conversations, where many 
 words are used to say nothing. These spirits often 
 make sudden witty, sarcastic sallies, and, in the midst 
 of common facetiousness, often say hard truths, which 
 almost always go straight to the mark. 
 
 These light spirits multiply around us, and seize 
 every occasion to mingle in the communications ; 
 truth is the least of their care : this is why they 
 take a roguish pleasure in mystifying those who are 
 weak, and who sometimes presume to believe their 
 word. Persons who take pleasure in such commu- 
 nications naturally give access to light and deceiving 
 
ISO BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 spirits ; serious spirits remove from them, as, among 
 us, serious men withdraw from the society of the 
 giddy. 
 
 136. Serious communications are grave as to the 
 subject and the manner in which they are made. 
 Every communication which excludes frivolity and 
 grossness, and which has a useful end, be it even of 
 private interest, is serious, but is not, for all that, al- 
 ways exempt from error. The serious spirits are not 
 always equally enlightened ; there are many things of 
 which they are ignorant, and in which they may be 
 deceived in all sincerity : this is why the spirits truly 
 superior constantly recommend us to submit all com- 
 munications to the scrutiny of reason and the severest 
 logic. 
 
 It is, then, necessary to distinguish the true-serious 
 from the false-serious communications, and it is not 
 always easy ; for even under cover of the gravity of 
 the language certain spirits, presumptuous or false sci- 
 entists, seek to give prevalence to the falsest ideas 
 and the most absurd systems ; and to obtain greater 
 credit and importance, they do not hesitate to use the 
 most respectable and even the most venerated names. • 
 That is one of the greatest dangers in the practical 
 science ; we shall return to it later, with all the devel- 
 opments so important a subject requires ; at the same 
 time we shall show the means of providing against the 
 danger of false communications. 
 
 137. Instructive communications are the serious, 
 which have for their principal object instruction of 
 some kind given by the spirits on the sciences, morals, 
 or philosophy, &c. They are more or less profound 
 according to the degree of elevation and dematerializa- 
 tion of the spirit. To draw a real advantage from 
 
NATURE OF COMMUNICATIONS. 181 
 
 these communications, they must be regular, and fol- 
 lowed up with perseverance. Serious spirits attach 
 themselves to those who desire to be instructed, and 
 they second them, while they leave to light spirits the 
 care of amusing those who see in these manifestations 
 only a passing distraction. It is only by the regularity 
 and frequency of the communications that we can 
 appreciate the moral and intellectual value of the spir- 
 its with whom we converse, and the degree of confi- 
 dence they merit. If experience is necessary to judge 
 men, it is still more so to judge spirits. 
 
 In giving to these communications the qualification 
 of instructive, we suppose them true ; for a thing not 
 true would not be instructive, were it said in the most 
 imposing language. We cannot, then, rank in this 
 category certain teachings which have naught serious 
 but the form, often bombastic and emphatic, by the 
 aid of which the spirits, more presumptuous than 
 learned, who dictate them, hope to create delusion ; 
 but these spirits, being unable to supply the ground- 
 work lacking in them, cannot long sustain their part ; 
 they soon betray their weak side ; for few of their 
 communications have a sequel, or can be pressed to 
 their extreme limits. 
 
 138. The means of communicating are very varied. 
 The spirits, acting on our organs and on our senses, 
 can manifest themselves to the sight as apparitions, to 
 the touch by tangible impressions, hidden or visible, 
 to the hearing by sounds, to the smelling by odors, 
 without known cause. This last method of manifes- 
 tation, though very real, is, without contradiction, the 
 most uncertain, from the numerous causes that may 
 lead to error ; so we will stop here. What we ought 
 
1 82 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 to examine with care are the various means of obtain- 
 ing communications ; that is to say, an exchange, reg- 
 ular and followed by thoughts. These means are, rap- 
 pings, talking, and writing. We shall develop them 
 in special chapters. 
 
Chapter XL 
 SEMATOLOGY AND TYPTOLOGY. 
 
 Language of Signs and Rappings. — Alphabetic 
 Typtology. 
 
 139. The first intelligent manifestations were ob- 
 tained by rappings, or typtology. This primitive 
 means, which came in the infancy of the art, offered 
 but very limited resources, and with it communica- 
 tions were confined to monosyllabic answers, Yes or 
 No, by the aid of a designated number of raps. It was 
 afterward perfected, as we have said. 
 
 The rappings were obtained in two ways, by special 
 mediums ; and a certain aptitude for physical mani- 
 festations was usually necessary for this mode of oper- 
 ation. The first, which might be called swinging typ- 
 tology \ consists in the movements of the table, which 
 raises itself on one side, then falls, striking its foot. 
 For this, it is sufficient for the medium to rest the 
 hands on the edge of the table : if he wishes to con- 
 verse with any special spirit, he must make an invoca- 
 tion ; in a contrary case, it is the first comer who is 
 presented, or he who is in the habit of coming. 
 
 Having agreed, for instance, one rap for Yes, and 
 two for No, — this is indifferent, — the questions they 
 wish to ask are addressed to the spirit. We shall see, 
 later, those from which it is proper to abstain. The 
 difference is in the brevity of the responses, and the 
 
 .183 
 
1 84 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 difficulty in so formulating the question that it may be 
 answered by Yes or No. Suppose we ask the spirit, 
 " What do you want ? " He can answer only by one 
 phrase ; so we must say, "Do you want some thing? " 
 " No." " Some other ? " " Yes ; " — and so on. 
 
 140. It is to be remarked that, in the use of this 
 means, the spirit often joins a kind of pantomime, that 
 is, he expresses the energy of his affirmation, or nega- 
 tion, by the force of the raps. He also expresses the 
 nature of the sentiments that animate him, — violence, 
 by the rudeness of his movements ; anger and impa- 
 tience, in striking reiterated blows with force, as a 
 person strikes with the foot with rage, sometimes 
 throwing the table to the ground. If he is kind and 
 polite, at the beginning and end of the sitting he in- 
 clines the table in salutation ; if he desires to address 
 himself to one person in the circle, he inclines the 
 table toward him with gentleness or violence, accord- 
 ing as he desires to express affection or antipathy. 
 This is, properly speaking, sematology, or the language 
 of signs, as typtology is the language of rappings. 
 
 The following is a remarkable example of the spon- 
 taneous employment of sematology : A gentleman of 
 our acquaintance was in his parlor one day, where 
 several persons were engaged with manifestations, 
 when he received a" letter from us. While he was 
 reading it, the stand which served for experimenting 
 suddenly came toward him. Having finished reading 
 the letter, he went to put it on a table at the other 
 end of the room ; the stand followed him, and inclined 
 itself toward the table on which he had laid the letter. 
 Surprised at this coincidence, he thought there must 
 be some relation between this movement and the 
 letter. He interrogated the spirit, who answered that 
 
SEMATOLOGY AND TYPTOLOGY. 185 
 
 he was our familiar spirit. This gentleman having 
 informed us of the circumstance, we, in our turn, 
 asked the spirit to tell us the motive of the visit he 
 had made ; he answered, " It is natural that I should 
 go to see persons with whom you are in relation, in 
 order to be able, at need, to give you, as well as them, 
 the necessary warnings." 
 
 It is thus evident that the spirit had wished to call 
 his attention, and had sought an occasion to let him 
 know that he was there. A dumb person could not 
 have done better. 
 
 141. Typtology was not slow in being perfected and 
 enriched with a more complete means of communica- 
 tion — that of alphabetic typtology. It consists in 
 designating the letters of the alphabet by means of 
 raps ; words, phrases, and even whole discourses, 
 could thus be obtained. Following a rule, the table 
 rapped a certain number of times to indicate each let- 
 ter ; that is, one for a, two for b, &c. : during this time, 
 a person writes the letters as they are designated. 
 When the spirit has finished, he lets them know it by 
 some sign agreed upon. 
 
 This mode of proceeding, as may be seen, is very 
 long, and requires an enormous time for communica- 
 tions of any length ; yet there are persons who have 
 had the patience to use it for the dictation of several 
 pages ; but practice brought about the discovery of 
 abbreviative means, which allowed greater rapidity. 
 The one most in use consists in having an alphabet 
 written out, also a series of figures, marking the units ; 
 while the medium is at the table another person goes 
 successively through the alphabet, if a word is in ques- 
 tion, or of the figures, if a number ; the necessary 
 letter reached, the table raps of itself, and the person 
 
1 86 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 writes the letter ; then begins again, for the second, 
 the third, and so on. If a letter has been mistaken, 
 the spirit warns by several raps, or by a movement of 
 the table, and they begin again. With practice it is 
 quite rapid, but it is much abridged by divining the 
 end of the word begun, which is known by the sense 
 of the phrase : if there is any uncertainty, the spirit 
 is asked if he meant such or such a word, and he an- 
 swers Yes, or No. 
 
 142. All the above-mentioned effects can be ob- 
 tained in a still more simple manner, by raps in the 
 very wood itself of the table, without any movement, 
 and which we have described in the chapter on Physi- 
 cal Manifestations, No. 64. 
 
 This is interior typtology. All mediums are not 
 equally suited to this last mode of communication ; 
 for there are many who obtain only rappings by 
 swinging ; yet, with practice, most of them may attain 
 it, and this manner has the double advantage of being 
 more rapid, and less open to suspicion, than the other, 
 which may be attributed to voluntary pressure. It is 
 true that the inward raps could be imitated by an 
 insincere medium. The best things can be counter- 
 feited, which proves nothing against them. (See, at 
 the end of volume, chapter entitled Frauds and Decep- 
 tions) However perfected this method may become, 
 it can never attain the rapidity and facility of writing, 
 and it is now very little employed ; yet it is sometimes 
 very interesting as a phenomenon, principally for 
 novices, and it has the advantage of proving, in a 
 peremptory manner, its absolute independence of the 
 medium's thought. In this way answers have been 
 obtained so unforeseen, so strikingly to the purpose, 
 that it must be a person very obstinate in his opinion 
 
SEMATOLOGY AND TYPTOLOGY. 187 
 
 not to yield to the evidence : thus it is for many per- 
 sons a powerful means of conviction. But no more by 
 this means than by any other do the spirits like to 
 lend themselves to the caprices of those who desire to 
 put them to the proof by misplaced questions. 
 
 143. In order the better to assure its independence 
 of the medium's thought, various instruments have 
 been devised, consisting of dials on which letters are 
 traced, in the manner of the dials of the electric 
 telegraph. A needle, moved by the influence of the 
 medium, by the aid of a conducting thread and a pul- 
 ley, indicates the letters. As we know these instru- 
 ments only by drawings and descriptions published in 
 America, we cannot pronounce upon their merit ; but 
 we think their very complication would be an incon- 
 venience ; that the independence from the medium's 
 thought is quite as well attested by the inward raps, 
 and still more by the unforeseen nature of the re- 
 sponses, than by all the material means. On the other 
 side, the skeptical, who are always disposed to see 
 everywhere snares and preparations, are much more 
 apt to suppose them in a special mechanism than in 
 taking the first table at hand, deprived of all acces- 
 sories. 
 
 144. A more simple machinery, but which insin- 
 cerity might easily abuse, as we shall see in the chapter 
 on Frauds, is one we shall describe under the name of 
 Table Girardin, in memory of the use Madame Emile 
 de Girardin made of it in the many communications 
 she obtained as medium ; for Madame de Girardin, 
 intellectual as she was, had the weakness to believe in 
 spirits and their manifestations. This instrument con- 
 sists of an upper movable stand, of from thirty to forty 
 centimetres in diameter, turning freely and easily on 
 
1 88 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 its axis, in the manner of a roulette. On the surface, 
 and at the circumference, are traced, as on a dial, let- 
 ters, figures, and the words yes and no. In the centre 
 is a fixed needle. 
 
 The medium resting his fingers on the edge of the 
 table, this turns and stops when the desired letter is 
 under the needle. Notice is taken of the letters indi- 
 cated, and thus words and phrases are rapidly formed. 
 It must be remarked that the table does not slide 
 under the fingers, but the fingers, remaining on it, 
 follow the movements of the table. Perhaps a power- 
 ful medium might obtain an independent movement ; 
 we think it possible, but have never witnessed it. If 
 the experiment could be made in this way, it would be 
 infinitely more conclusive, because it would remove a 
 possibility of deceit. 
 
 145. It remains now for us to destroy a somewhat 
 widely-spread error, which consists in confounding all 
 spirits that communicate by raps, with rapping spirits. 
 Typtology is a means of communicating, like any 
 other, and not more unworthy of elevated spirits than 
 writing or speaking. All spirits, good or bad, may 
 use it, the same as the other methods. It is the 
 elevation of the thoughts that characterizes superior 
 spirits, and not the instrument they use to transmit 
 them ; doubtless they prefer the most convenient, and, 
 above all, the most rapid means, but, in default of 
 pencil and paper, they do not disdain to use the ordi- 
 nary talking table ; and the proof is, that some of the 
 most sublime things have been obtained in this way. 
 We ourselves do not use it ; not that we despise it, but 
 simply because, as a phenomenon, it has taught us all 
 we can know ; it can add nothing to our convictions, 
 
SEMATOLOGY AND TYPTOLOGY. 1 89 
 
 and the extent of the communications we receive re- 
 quires a rapidity incompatible with typtology. 
 
 Thus all spirits who rap are not rapping spirits ; 
 the name should be reserved for those who may be 
 called rappers by profession, and who, by the aid of 
 this means, are pleased in amusing a circle, or vexing 
 them by their importunity. On their part, spiritual 
 things may sometimes be received, but never anything 
 very profound ; it would be a waste of time to ask them 
 any scientific or philosophic questions ; their ignorance 
 and inferiority have justly won for them the title given 
 to them by other spirits — that of the clowns or moun- 
 tebanks of the world of spirits. Let us add, that, 
 while they very often act on their own account, they 
 are also often used by superior spirits, when these 
 desire to produce material effects. 
 
Chapter XII. 
 
 PNEUMATOGRAPHY, OR DIRECT WRITING. 
 — PNEUMATOPHONY. 
 
 Direct Writing. 
 
 146. Pneumatography is the writing produced di- 
 rectly by the spirit, without a medium ; it differs from 
 psychography in that this last is the transmission of 
 the thought of the spirit by means of writing by the 
 hand of a medium. 
 
 The phenomenon of direct writing is, without con- 
 tradiction, one of the most extraordinary in Spiritism ; 
 but however anomalous it may appear at first sight, it 
 is now a proved and incontestable fact. If theory is 
 necessary to give a reason for spirit phenomena in 
 general, it is still more so, perhaps, in this case, cer- 
 tainly one of the strangest yet presented, but which 
 ceases to appear supernatural as the principle is under- 
 stood. 
 
 At the first revelation of this phenomenon, the pre- 
 dominant idea was that of doubt ; the idea of decep- 
 tion instantly entered the mind ; in fact, everybody 
 knew the action of so-called sympathetic inks, whose 
 traces, at first completely invisible, could appear at 
 the end of a certain time. It was very easy to abuse 
 credulity, and we do not affirm that it' has never been 
 done ; we are even convinced that some persons, 
 whether from a mercenary motive or simply from 
 
 190 
 
PNEUMA TOGRAPHY. — PNEUMA TOPHONY. 191 
 
 self-love and a desire to make others believe in their 
 power, have employed these subterfuges. (See the 
 chapter on Deceptions}} 
 
 But, because a thing can be imitated, it would be 
 absurd to conclude that the thing does not exist. Has 
 there not been found, in these latter days, the way to 
 imitate the lucidity of the somnambulist, so as to pro- 
 duce a perfect illusion ? And because this jugglery 
 has been exhibited at all the fairs, must we conclude 
 that there are no real somnambulists ? Because some 
 merchants sell adulterated wine, is that a reason there 
 should be no pure wine ? It is the same with direct 
 writing ; besides, the precautions to insure its reality 
 were very simple and easy, and, thanks to these pre- 
 cautions, it can no longer be the object of doubt. 
 
 147. Since the possibility of writing without a medi- 
 um is one of the attributes of the spirit, and since 
 spirits have always existed, and have also always pro- 
 duced the various phenomena we know, they could as 
 well have produced direct writing in olden times as 
 to-day ; and thus may be explained the apparition 
 of the three words in the palace of Belshazzar. The 
 middle ^ages, so fertile in prodigies, but which were 
 stifled at the stake, must have known direct writ- 
 ing, and perhaps in the theory of the modifications 
 which spirits can effect in matter, which we have de- 
 veloped in Chapter VIII., may be found the principle 
 of the belief of the transmutation of metals. 
 
 Whatever may be the results obtained at various 
 times, it is only since the manifestations have become 
 common that there has been anything said of direct 
 writing. The first who appears to have made it known 
 in these latter days is Baron de Gujdenstubbe, at Paris, 
 who has published a very interesting work on this sub- 
 
I9 2 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 ject, containing a great many facsimiles of writings he 
 has obtained. (Note 7.) The phenomenon, had already 
 been known in America for some time. The social 
 position of Baron Guldenstubbe, his independence, the 
 consideration he enjoys in the highest society, incon- 
 testably remove all suspicion of voluntary fraud, for 
 he could have no interested motive. 
 
 It could more easily be believed that he was himself 
 the subject of an illusion ; but to that, one fact answers 
 peremptorily : the same phenomenon has been obtained 
 by others, surrounding themselves with all the precau- 
 tions necessary to avoid all deception, and every cause 
 of error. 
 
 148. Direct writing is obtained, like most of the non- 
 spontaneous spirit manifestations, by concentration of 
 thought, prayer, and invocation. It has often been 
 obtained in church, in tombs, at the foot of the statues 
 or images of the persons called ; but it is evident that 
 the locality has no other influence than to produce a 
 greater degree of reflection, and a more profound con- 
 centration of thought ; for it is proved that it can be 
 quite as well obtained without these accessories, and 
 in the most common places, on a simple piece of do- 
 mestic furniture, if the requisite moral conditions are 
 found, and the necessary medianimic faculty enjoyed. 
 
 In the beginning, it was thought necessary to put a 
 pencil with the paper ; the fact could then, up to a cer- 
 tain point, be explained. It is known that spirits effect 
 the movement and displacement of objects, that the} 
 sometimes take and throw them to a distance ; they 
 could as well, then, take the pencil and use it to write ; 
 as they give it the impulse, in the hand of the medium, 
 of a planchette, &c, they could just as well do it in a 
 direct manner. But it was soon found that a pencil was 
 
PNEUMA TOGRAPHY— PNEUMA TOPHONY. 1 93 
 
 not necessary ; a simple piece of paper, folded or riot, 
 was sufficient, on which, after a few minutes, writing 
 would be found. This completely changes the aspect 
 of the phenomenon, and gives us an entirely new order 
 of things ; the characters were traced with some kind 
 of substance ; since none was furnished to the spirit, he 
 must have made it, composed it himself; where did he 
 get it ? 
 
 That was the problem. 
 
 Turn back to the explanation given in Chapter VIII. , 
 Nos. 127 and 128, and there the complete theory of 
 this phenomenon will be found. In this writing the 
 spirit uses neither our substance nor our instruments ; 
 he himself makes the matter and the instrument he 
 needs, gathering his materials in the universal primitive 
 element, which he, by his will, causes to undergo the 
 modifications necessary to the effect he wishes to pro- 
 duce. 
 
 Of course he can as well make red pencils, printer's 
 ink, or ordinary ink, as black pencil ; nay, even type 
 solid enough to make a raised impression, as we have 
 seen. The daughter of a gentleman whom we know — 
 a child of twelve or thirteen years — has obtained whole 
 pages written with a substance like crayon. 
 
 149. Such is the result to which the phenomenon 
 of the snuff-box, reported in Chapter VII., No. 116, 
 has conducted us, and on which we dwelt to some ex- 
 tent, because we saw in it an occasion to search into 
 one of the gravest laws of Spiritism — a law whose 
 knowledge can clear up more than one mystery, even 
 in the visible world. 
 
 It is thus that a fact, common in appearance, can 
 bring out the light ; all that is necessary is to observe 
 with care, and that any one can do as well as we, when 
 13 
 
194 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 they do not limit themselves to seeing effects without 
 searching out their causes. If our faith is strengthened 
 day by day, it is because we understand ; then make 
 people understand, if you would make serious prose- 
 lytes. 
 
 The knowledge of causes has another effect ; it 
 traces a line of demarcation between truth and super- 
 stition. 
 
 If we look at direct writing in regard to the advan- 
 tages it can offer, we shall say that, until now, its prin- 
 cipal utility has been the material verification of a grave 
 fact : the intervention of a hidden power, which finds, 
 in that way, a means of manifesting itself. But the 
 communications thus obtained are rarely of any ex- 
 tent ; they are usually spontaneous, and limited to 
 words, sentences, often unintelligible signs ; they have 
 been obtained in all languages — Greek, Latin, Syriac, 
 hieroglyphics, &c. ; but they have not yet been given 
 to those sustained and rapid conversations that psy- 
 chography, or writing by mediums, permits. 
 
 Pneamatophony. 
 
 150. Spirits, being able to produce noises and rap- 
 pings, can as well make any sound of nature, vocal 
 sounds imitating the human voice, beside us, or in the 
 air : this phenomenon we call pneumatophony. 
 
 From what we know of the nature of spirits, it may 
 be believed that some of them of an inferior order de- 
 lude themselves, and believe they speak as when alive. 
 (See Revue Spirit e y February, 1858 : History of the 
 Ghost of Mile. Clarion) 
 
 It is necessary to guard against taking for spirit 
 voices all sounds that have no known cause, or simple 
 ringing in the ears, and, above all, thinking there is 
 
PNEUMA TOGRAPHY— PNEUMA TOPHONY. TQ5 
 
 the least truth in the common belief that the ringing 
 in the ears warns us that some one is talking of us. 
 These ringings, whose cause is purely physiological, 
 have, besides, no sense, while the pneumatophonic 
 sounds express thoughts ; and it is by that alone we 
 can recognize them as due to an intelligent, and not 
 to an accidental, cause. We may rely on the principle 
 that the manifestly intelligent effects only are those 
 which attest the intervention of spirits ; as to the 
 others, there are, at least, a hundred chances to one 
 that they are due to accidental causes. 
 
 151. It happens frequently that in half sleep we hear 
 words, names, sometimes even entire phrases distinctly 
 pronounced, and that, too, loudly enough to waken us 
 with a start. Though this may, in some cases, be 
 really a manifestation, there is nothing in it sufficiently 
 positive to prevent it being attributed to a cause anal- 
 ogous to that we have developed in the theory of hal- 
 lucination, Chapter VI., Nos. in, &c. What is heard 
 in this way has, besides, no continuation ; it is not the 
 same as when entirely awake, for then, if it is a spirit 
 who is making himself heard, there can almost always 
 be an exchange of thought and a regular conversation, 
 
 Spirit or pneumatophonic sounds have two very 
 distinct methods of being produced ; sometimes it is 
 a voice which resounds in the soul ; but while the 
 words may be clear and distinct, there is nothing ma- 
 terial in them ; at other times they are exterior, and 
 r.s distinctly articulated as if they came from a person 
 at our side. In whatever manner they may be pro,- 
 duced, the phenomenon of pneumatophony is almost 
 always spontaneous, and can be but very rarely in- 
 duced. 
 
Chapter XIII. 
 PSYCHOGRAPHY. 
 
 Indirect Psychography. — Baskets and Planchettes. — 
 Direct or Manual Psychography. 
 
 152. Spirit science has progressed like all other 
 sciences, but more rapidly than the others ; for but a 
 few years separate us from those primitive and incom- 
 plete means which were triflingly called talking tables ; 
 and already communication can be had with spirits as 
 easily and as rapidly as people have with each other, 
 and by the same means — writing and speaking. 
 Writing has the advantage of showing more materially 
 the intervention of an unseen power, and of leaving 
 traces we can preserve as we do our own correspon- 
 dence. The first means employed was that of plan- 
 chettes, or baskets armed with a pencil. 
 
 153. We have said that a person endowed with a 
 special aptitude can impress a movement of rotation 
 to a table or any other object whatever ; take now, 
 instead of a table, a little basket (either of wood or of 
 willow ; no matter which, the substance is indifferent). 
 If a pencil is passed through the bottom of it and 
 solidly fastened, the point outward, then, holding 
 the whole squarely on the point of the pencil placed 
 on a sheet of paper, resting the fingers on the edge 
 of the basket, it will begin to move ; but instead of 
 
 196 
 
PSYCHOGRAPHY. 197 
 
 turning, it will carry the pencil in various ways over 
 the paper, whether in insignificant characters or in 
 writing. If a spirit is invoked, and he desires to com- 
 municate, he will answer, not by rappings, as in typtol- 
 ogy, but by written words. The motion of the basket is 
 no longer automatic, as in the turning tables ; it becomes 
 intelligent. In this way, when the pencil reaches the 
 end of the line, it does not return to begin another ; it 
 continues circularly, so that the lines of writing form 
 a spiral, and the paper has to be turned several times 
 to read what is written. The writing thus obtained is 
 not very legible, the words not being separated ; but 
 the medium, by a sort of intuition, easily deciphers it. 
 For economy, a slate and slate pencil can be substitut- 
 ed for the ordinary paper and pencil. We call this 
 basket corbeille-toupie. For this basket is sometimes 
 substituted a card, the pencil forming the axis of the 
 teetotum. 
 
 154. Other ways have been thought of to secure 
 the same end. The most convenient is that we shall 
 call corbcillc-a-bcc (basket with a beak), which consists 
 in adapting to the basket an inclined piece of wood in 
 the position of the bowsprit of a vessel. Through a 
 hole pierced in the end of this stick or beak a pencil 
 is passed, long enough for the point to rest on the 
 paper. The medium having his fingers on the edge 
 of the basket, the whole machine is moved, and the 
 pencil writes as in the above case, with this difference, 
 that the writing is, in general, more legible, the words 
 separated, and the lines are not so spiral, the medium 
 easily taking the pencil from one line to another* 
 Dissertations of several pages are obtained in this 
 way as rapidly as with the hand. 
 
 155. The intelligence that acts is often manifested 
 
198 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 by other unequivocal signs. Having reached the end 
 of the page, the pencil makes a spontaneous movement 
 to turn ; if he wish to refer to a preceding passage 
 in the same page, or in another, he seeks it with the 
 point of the pencil, as with the finger, then underlines 
 it. Should the spirit wish to address one of the assist- 
 ants, the end of the beak of wood is directed toward 
 him. To abridge, he often expresses the words yes 
 and no by the sign of affirmation and negation, as we 
 do with the head ; if he wish to express anger or im- 
 patience, he strikes forcibly with the point of the 
 pencil, often breaking it. 
 
 156. Instead of a basket, some persons use a kind 
 of little table made for the purpose, with three feet, 
 one of which carries a pencil ; the other two are 
 rounded, or furnished with a little ivory ball, to make it 
 glide smoothly over the paper. Others use a simple 
 planchette, triangular, oblong, or oval ; on one edge is 
 an oblique hole for the pencil ; placed to write, it is 
 inclined, and rests by one side on the paper ; this side 
 is sometimes finished with two little rollers to facilitate 
 the movement. It may be readily imagined that there 
 is nothing absolute in any of these arrangements ; the 
 most convenient is the best. 
 
 With all these machines, two persons are almost 
 always necessary ; but it is not necessary that the sec- 
 ond person should be endowed with the medianimic 
 faculty : it is only to maintain the equilibrium, and 
 diminish the fatigue of the medium. 
 
 157. We call the writing thus obtained indirect 
 psycJwgrapliy, in opposition to direct or manual psy- 
 chograpliy, obtained by the medium's" self To under- 
 stand the last, it is necessary to notice what happens 
 in this operation. The spirit who is communicating 
 
PSYCHOGRAPHY. 1 99 
 
 acts on the medium, who, under this influence, directs 
 his arm and hand to write, without having (at least 
 in ordinary cases) the least consciousness of what he 
 writes ; the hand acts on the basket, and the basket on 
 the pencil. Thus, it is not the basket that becomes 
 intelligent ; it is an instrument directed by an intelli- 
 gence ; it is, in reality, but a pencil-holder, an appen- 
 dage to the hand, an intermediary between the hand 
 and the pencil ; suppress this intermediary, and hold 
 the pencil in the hand, and you will have the same 
 result, with a mechanism much more simple, since the 
 medium writes as he does in normal conditions, so 
 every one who writes with the aid of a basket, plan- 
 chette, or other object, could write directly. 
 
 Of all the means of communication, writing with the 
 hand — called by some involuntary writing — is, with- 
 out contradiction, the most simple, the easiest, and the 
 most convenient, because it requires no preparation, 
 and because, as in ordinary writing, it can be used for 
 the most extended development. We shall return to 
 this in speaking of mediums. 
 
 158. In the beginning of the manifestation, when 
 there were less exact ideas on this subject, several 
 writings were published, headed Communications of a 
 Basket, of a Planchette, of a Table, &c. All that is 
 insufficient and erroneous in these expressions is now 
 understood as a not sufficiently serious view of their 
 character. In fact, as has been seen, tables, plan- 
 chettes, and baskets are only unintelligent instruments, 
 though momentarily animated with a factitious life, 
 which can communicate nothing of themselves ; it is 
 taking the effect for the cause, the instrument for the 
 principal ; as well might an author add to the title of 
 
200 BOOK OX MEDIUMS. 
 
 his work that it was written with a steel pen or a 
 goose quill. 
 
 Besides, these instruments are not absolute ; we 
 know one person who, instead of the basket we have 
 described, used a funnel with a neck, through which he 
 put the pencil. It might have been said communica- 
 tions of a funnel, or of a stewpan, or a salad dish. If 
 they were given by rappings, and these rappings 
 were made by a chair or cane, it is no longer a talking 
 table, but a talking chair or cane. What is necessary 
 to know is, not the nature of the instrument, but the 
 method of obtaining. If the communications take 
 place by writing, let the pencil-holder be what it may, 
 for us it is psychography ; if by rappings, it is typ- 
 tology. Spiritism, having taken the proportions of a 
 science, requires a scientific . language. 
 
Chapter XIV. 
 OF MEDIUMS. 
 
 Mediums for Physical Effects. — Electrical Persons. — 
 Sensitive or Impressible Mediums. — Hearing Medi- 
 ums. — Speaking Mediums. — Seeing Mediums. — 
 Somnambulic Mediums. — Healing Mediums. — 
 Pneumato graphic Mediums. 
 
 159. Every person who feels, in any degree what- 
 ever, the influence of the spirits, is a medium. This 
 faculty is inherent in man, and consequently not an 
 exclusive privilege ; so there are few in whom are not 
 found some rudiments of it. 
 
 It might thus be said that very nearly every one is 
 a medium. Usually, this qualification is applied only 
 to those in whom the medianimic faculty is clearly 
 characterized, and shown by visible effects of a certain 
 intensity, which depends on an organization more or 
 less sensitive. It must be remarked that this faculty 
 is not revealed in the same manner with all ; mediums, 
 usually, have a special aptitude for such or such order 
 of phenomena, which makes as many varieties as 
 there are kinds of manifestations. The principal are, 
 mediums for pJiysical effects ; sensitive or impressible 
 mediums ; auditive ; speaking ; seeing; somnambulis- 
 tic ; healing ; pneumatographic ; writing or psycho- 
 graphic. 
 
 201 
 
202 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 I . Mediums for Physical Effects. 
 
 1 60. Mediums for Physical Effects are more espe 
 cially fit to produce material phenomena, such as move- 
 ments of inert bodies, noises, &c. They may be divided 
 into optional mediums and involuntary mediums. (See 
 Part II., Chapters II. and IV.) 
 
 Optional Mediums are those who have a conscious- 
 ness of their power, and who produce the spirit phe- 
 nomena by the power of their will. This faculty, 
 though, as we have said, inherent in the human spe- 
 cies, is far from existing in all in the same degree ; yet, 
 if there are few persons with whom it is absolutely null, 
 those who are capable of producing great effects, such 
 as the suspension of heavy bodies in space, aerial trans- 
 lation, and, above all, apparitions, are still more rare. 
 The most simple effects are those of rotation of an object, 
 rapping by the raising of the object, or even within its 
 substance. Without attaching primary importance to 
 these phenomena, we engage not to neglect them ; they 
 may give occasion to interesting observations and aid 
 conviction. But it is to be remarked that the faculty of 
 producing physical effects rarely exists with those who 
 have more perfect means of communication, as writing 
 and speaking. Generally, the faculty diminishes in one 
 sense in proportion as it develops in another. 
 
 161. Involuntary or natural mediums are those in 
 whom the influence is exercised without their will. 
 They have no consciousness of their power, and often 
 the abnormal occurrences around them seem to them 
 nothing extraordinary ; it is a part of themselves, 
 absolutely like persons endowed with second sight, 
 and who never suspect it. These subjects are very 
 worthy of observation ; and collecting and studying 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 203 
 
 facts of this kind that may come to our knowledge 
 should not be neglected ; they show themselves at all 
 ages, even with very young children. (See, in Chap. 
 V., Spontaneous Manifestations) 
 
 This faculty is not, by itself, the indication of a 
 pathological state, for it is not incompatible with perfect 
 health. If the one who possesses it is suffering, that 
 proceeds from a foreign cause ; also therapeutic means 
 are powerless to end it. It may, in some cases, be 
 consecutive with a certain organic weakness, but it is 
 never the efficient cause. No inquietude, then, can be 
 reasonably felt in a hygienic point of view ; it could 
 produce inconvenience only if the subject, having 
 become an optional medium, should abuse its use, 
 because in that case there might be enfeebling of the 
 organs, from too abundant emission of the vital fluid. 
 
 162. Reason revolts at the idea of the tortures, 
 moral and corporeal, to which science has sometimes 
 subjected weak and delicate beings, to ascertain if there 
 were treachery on their part ; the.se experimentations, 
 most often made through malice, are always injurious 
 to sensitive organizations ; there might result from 
 them serious disorders in the economy ; to make such 
 trials is to sport with life. The sincere observer needs 
 not these means ; besides, a person familiar with these 
 phenomena knows that they belong more to the moral 
 than to the physical order, and that their solution will 
 be vainly sought in our exact sciences. For the very 
 reason that these phenomena belong to the moral 
 order, everything that can over-excite the imagination 
 should be avoided with the most scrupulous care. We 
 know what accidents fear can occasion, and persons 
 would be less imprudent if they knew all the cases of 
 insanity and epilepsy that have their origin in the 
 
204 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 stories of the were wolf and Croquemitanie ; what will 
 it be, then, if persuaded it is the devil ? 
 
 Those who accredit such ideas know not the re- 
 sponsibility they assume ; they might kill. But the 
 danger is not alone for the subject, but for those 
 around him, who might be frightened at the thought 
 of their house being a haunt of demons. It is this 
 fatal belief that has caused so many acts of atrocity in 
 times of ignorance. At the same time, with a little 
 more discernment, they would know that, in burning 
 the body supposed to be possessed by the devil, they 
 could not burn the devil. Since they wish to get rid 
 of the devil, it is he they should kill : the spirit doc- 
 trine, by enlightening us on the true cause of all these 
 phenomena, gives him the death-blow. TJius, far 
 from encouraging this idea, we should, as a duty of 
 morality and humanity, combat it where it exists. 
 
 What should be done when such a faculty is spon- 
 taneously developed in an individual, is to leave the 
 phenomenon to take its natural course. Nature is 
 more prudent than man : besides, Providence has His 
 views, and the smallest can be an instrument of the 
 greatest designs. But it must be conceded that this 
 phenomenon sometimes acquires fatiguing and impor- 
 tunate proportions for every one (Note 8) ; here is 
 what, in all cases, should be done. In Chapter V., on 
 Spontaneous Physical Manifestations, we have already 
 given some advice on this subject, saying that it is 
 necessary to tpy to come into relations with the spirit, 
 to know from him what he wants. The following 
 method is also founded on observation. The invisible 
 beings who reveal their presence by effects, are, in 
 general, of an inferior order of spirits, who can be 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 205 
 
 governed by moral ascendency ; it is this ascendency 
 we must endeavor to acquire. 
 
 To obtain it, the subject must be made to pass from 
 the state of natural to that of optional medium. Then 
 there is produced an effect analogous to that which 
 takes place in somnambulism. It is known that natu- 
 ral somnambulism generally ceases when it is replaced 
 by magnetic somnambulism. The emancipative fac- 
 ulty of the soul is not stopped, but is turned into 
 another course. It is the same with the medianimic 
 faculty. Then, instead of arresting the phenomena, 
 which is rarely successful, and not always without 
 danger, the medium must be incited to produce them 
 at will, by overawing the spirit ; by this means he 
 may be able to master him, and from a somewhat 
 tyrannical ruler he makes of him a subordinate, and 
 often very docile being. A fact worthy of remark, and 
 justified by experience, is, that in such cases a child 
 has as much, and often more, authority than an adult ; 
 new proof in support of this main point in the doc- 
 trine that the spirit is a child only by the body, and 
 that he has, by himself, a development necessarily 
 anterior to his actual incarnation — a development 
 that can give him the ascendency over spirits who are 
 his inferiors. 
 
 The moralization of the spirit by the counsels of a 
 third influential and experienced person, if the medium 
 is not in a state to do it, is often a very efficacious 
 means : we shall return to it later. 
 
 163. In this category of mediums seem to belong 
 the persons endowed with natural electricity — veri- 
 table human torpedoes, producing, by simple contact, 
 all the effects of attraction and repulsion. It would 
 be wrong, however, to regard them as mediums, for 
 
206 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 true mediumship supposes the direct intervention of 
 a spirit ; but in the case of which we speak, conclusive 
 experiments have proved that electricity is the only 
 agent of these phenomena. 
 
 This strange faculty, which might almost be called 
 an infirmity, may sometimes be allied to mediumship, 
 as may be seen in the history of the rapping Spirit of 
 Bergzabern ; but often it is completely- independent. 
 So, as we have said, the sole proof of the intervention 
 of spirits is the intelligent character of the manifesta- 
 tions ; wherever this character does not exist, there 
 is the right to attribute them to a purely physical 
 cause. 
 
 The question is, to know if electric persons -would 
 possess a greater aptitude for becoming mediums for 
 physical effects ; we think so, but this would be the 
 result of experience. 
 
 2. Sensitive or Impressible Mediums. 
 
 164. Persons capable of perceiving the presence of 
 spirits by a vague impression, a kind of feeling through- 
 out the whole body, for which they can give no reason, 
 are thus designated. This variety has no very decided 
 character ; all mediums are necessarily impressible : 
 impressionability is rather a general than a particular 
 quality ; it is the rudimentary faculty indispensable 
 to the development of all the others ; it differs from 
 purely physical and nervous impressionability, with 
 which it must not be confounded ; for there are per- 
 sons who have not delicate nerves, and who yet feel, 
 more or less, the presence of spirits ; and others, very 
 irritable, who have not the slightest perception of 
 them. This faculty is developed by habit, and may 
 acquire such a subtilty that the person endowed with 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 207 
 
 it recognizes, by the impression he feels, not only the 
 good or bad nature of the spirit at his side, but even 
 his individuality, as a blind person recognizes, by a 
 certain unknown sense, the approach of this or that 
 person ; he becomes, in relation to spirits, a veritable 
 sensitive plant. A good spirit always makes a gentle 
 and agreeable impression ; that of a bad spirit, on the 
 contrary, is painful, anxious, and disagreeable ; there 
 is, as it were, a scent of impurity. 
 
 3. Hearing Mediums. 
 
 165. They hear thevoice of the spirits : it is, as we 
 have said, in speaking of pneumatophony, sometimes 
 an interior voice, which makes itself heard in the soul ; 
 at other times it is an exterior voice, clear and distinct 
 as that of a living person. An auditive medium can 
 enter into conversation with the spirits. When they 
 are accustomed to communicate with certain spirits, 
 they immediately recognize the character of the voice. 
 When a person is not himself endowed with this fac- 
 ulty, he can communicate with a spirit by means of an 
 auditive medium, who fills the office of interpreter. 
 
 This faculty is very agreeable when the medium 
 hears only good spirits, or only those he calls ; but it 
 is not the same when a bad spirit is always after him, 
 making him hear at every moment the most disagreea- 
 ble, and often the most improper things. It then 
 becomes necessary to get rid of him by the means we 
 indicate in the chapter on Obsession. 
 
 4. Talking Mediums. 
 
 166. Hearing mediums, who transmit only what 
 they hear, are not, properly speaking, talking mediums ; 
 these last very often hear nothing ; with them the 
 
208 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 spirit acts on the organs of speech, as he acts on the 
 hand of writing mediums. The spirit wishing to com- 
 municate acts on the organ he finds most flexible ; of 
 one the hand, of another the speech, of another the 
 hearing. The talking medium usually expresses him- 
 self without having a consciousness of what he says, 
 and often says things completely beyond his custom- 
 ary ideas, his knowledge, or even the -height of his 
 intelligence. 
 
 Though he may be perfectly awake, and in a normal 
 state, he rarely preserves the remembrance of what he 
 has spoken ; in a word, speech is, with him, the instru- 
 ment the spirit uses, and through which another per- 
 son can enter into communication, as can be done by 
 the interposition of the hearing medium. 
 
 The passivity of the hearing medium is not always 
 so complete ; there are some who have the intuition 
 of what they say at the moment of pronouncing the 
 words. We shall return to this variety when we treat 
 of intuitive mediums. 
 
 5. Seeing Mediums. 
 
 167. Seeing mediums are endowed with the faculty of 
 seeing spirits. There are some who enjoy this faculty 
 in the normal state ; then they are perfectly awake, 
 and preserve an exact remembrance of it ; others have 
 it only in a somnambulic state, or one bordering on 
 somnambulism. This faculty is rarely permanent ; it 
 is almost always the effect of a momentary and fleet- 
 ing crisis. All persons endowed with second sight 
 may be placed in the category of seeing mediums. 
 The possibility of seeing spirits in dreams most cer- 
 tainly results from a kind of mediumship, but does 
 not, properly speaking, constitute seeing mediums. 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 209 
 
 We have explained this phenomenon in Chapter VI., 
 on Visual Manifestations. 
 
 The seeing medium thinks he sees with his eyes, as 
 also those who have double sight ; but in reality it is 
 the soul that sees, because he sees as well with his 
 eyes shut as with them open ; from whence it follows 
 that a blind person can see spirits as well as one who 
 has the use of his eyes. This last point might give 
 an interesting subject for study, to know if this faculty 
 is more frequent with the blind. Spirits who have 
 been blind have told us that, while living, they had, 
 by the soul, a perception of certain objects, and that 
 they were not plunged in black obscurity. 
 
 168. A distinction must be made between inciden- 
 tal and spontaneous apparitions, and the faculty proper 
 of seeing spirits. The former are frequent, particu- 
 larly at the moment of the death of persons loved or 
 known, and who come to warn us they are no longer 
 in the world. There are numerous examples of facts 
 of this kind, without reckoning visions during sleep. 
 At other times, relatives or friends, who, though a 
 longer or shorter time dead, appear either to warn us 
 of a danger, or to give advice, or to ask a service. 
 The service a spirit can claim consists usually in 
 the accomplishment of a thing he could not do while 
 living, or in the help of prayers. These apparitions 
 are isolated facts, which have always an individual 
 and personal character, and do not constitute a faculty 
 proper. The faculty consists in the possibility, if not 
 permanent, at least very frequent, of seeing any spirit, 
 even that of an entire stranger. It is this faculty that, 
 properly speaking, constitutes seeing mediums. 
 
 Among seeing mediums there are those who see 
 only those whom they call, and whom they describe 
 14 
 
210 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 with a perfect minuteness ; they tell, to the smallest 
 detail, their gestures, their expression of countenance, 
 their features, costume, and even the sentiments by 
 which they are animated. With others this faculty is 
 still more general ; they see all the surrounding spirit 
 population go, come, and, as one might say, attend to 
 their affairs. 
 
 169. One evening we were at a representation of the 
 opera of Oberon, with a very good seeing medium. 
 There were in the house quite a number of seats 
 vacant, but many of which were occupied by spirits, 
 who seemed to be taking their share in the scene ; 
 some went near certain of the spectators, and appeared 
 to listen to their conversation. On the stage another 
 scene was passing ; behind the actors several humor- 
 ous, jovial spirits amused themselves in mimicking 
 them, imitating their gestures in a grotesque manner ; 
 others, more serious, seemed to inspire the singers, and 
 make efforts to give them energy. One of them was 
 constantly near one of the principal female singers ; 
 we thought his intentions a little light. Having called 
 him, after the fall of the curtain, he came to us, and 
 reproached us with some severity for our rash judg- 
 ment. " I am not what you think," said he ; "I am 
 her guide and spirit protector ; it is I who am charged 
 to direct her." After some moments of very serious 
 conversation, he left us, saying, " Adieu ! she is at 
 home. I must go watch over her." 
 
 We afterward called the spirit of Weber, the author 
 of the opera, and asked him what he thought of the 
 execution of his work. " It is not so very bad," said 
 he; "but it is tame; the actors sing — that is all; 
 there is no inspiration. Wait!" added he ; "I will try 
 to give them a little of the sacred fire." Then we saw 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 211 
 
 him on the stage, hovering above the actors : a breath 
 seemed to part from him, and spread over them, and a 
 very visible increase of energy took place among 
 them. 
 
 170. Here is another fact which proves the influ- 
 ence spirits exercise at their will on man. We were, 
 as before, at a theatrical representation with another 
 seeing medium. Having engaged in conversation with 
 a spirit spectator, he said to us, " Do you see those two 
 ladies alone in that private box ? Well, I warrant you 
 I will make them leave the theater." 
 
 So said, he was soon in the box, talking. to the two 
 ladies ; suddenly, from having been very attentive to 
 the play, they looked at each other, consulted together, 
 and finally went out, and did not return. The spirit 
 made us a comical gesture, to show that he had kept 
 his word, but did not return, that we might ask fur- 
 ther explanations. 
 
 We have thus been many times witness of the part 
 spirits play among the living : we have seen them at 
 many reunions, — ball, concert, church, funerals, wed- 
 dings, &c, — and everywhere we have found them ex- 
 citing the evil passions, stirring up discord, inciting 
 brawls, and rejoicing in their prowess ; others, on the 
 contrary, combated this pernicious influence, though 
 but rarely listened to. 
 
 171. The faculty of seeing spirits can, without doubt, 
 be developed, but it is one of which it is best to await 
 the natural development, without trying to call it out, 
 if one would not wish to become the dupe of his im- 
 agination. When the germ of a faculty exists, it will 
 be manifested of itself; from principle, we must be 
 contented with those God has granted to us, without 
 seeking the impossible ; for then, in wishing to have 
 
212 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 too much, we risk losing what we have. When we 
 said spontaneous apparitions are frequent, we did not 
 intend to say that they are very common ; as to see- 
 ing mediums, properly so called, they are still more 
 rare, and we should be very careful of those who pre- 
 tend to enjoy this faculty ; it is prudent not to trust 
 them except upon positive proofs. We do not mean 
 those who are given to the ridiculous illusion of globu- 
 lar spirits, which we described No. 108, but of those 
 who pretend to see spirits in a rational manner. Some 
 persons may, doubtless, be deceived in all sincerity, 
 but others may simulate this faculty from self-love or 
 interest. In this case, particular account must be 
 taken of the character, of the morality and habitual 
 sincerity ; but it is especially in the details the most 
 certain test can be found, for they can be such as to 
 leave no doubt ; as, for instance, the exactness of the 
 description of spirits whom the medium has never 
 known living. The following fact is of this cat- 
 egory : — 
 
 A widowed lady, whose husband frequently commu- 
 nicated with her, found herself one day with a seeing 
 medium, who did not know her nor her family : the 
 medium said to her, " I see a spirit near you." 
 
 " Ah ! " said the lady, " it is, doubtless, my husband, 
 who seldom leaves me." 
 
 " No," answered the medium ; " it is an elderly lady ; 
 her head-dress is very singular ; she has a white band 
 across her forehead." 
 
 From this particular and other descriptive details, 
 the lady unmistakably recognized her grandmother, of 
 whom she was not thinking. If the medium had 
 wished to simulate the faculty, it was easy to follow 
 the thought of the lady, whereas, instead of the hus- 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 213 
 
 band, of whom she was thinking, he sees a woman 
 with a peculiarity of head-dress, of which nothing had 
 given him the idea. This fact proves another thing, 
 — that the sight, with the medium, was not the reflec- 
 tion of any person's thought. (See No. 102.) 
 
 6. Somnambulic Mediums. 
 
 172. Somnambulism may be considered as a variety 
 of the medianimic faculty, or, rather, they are two 
 orders of phenomena very often found combined. The 
 somnambulist acts under the influence of his own 
 spirit ; it is his soul, which, in moments of emancipa- 
 tion, sees, hears, and perceives, outside the limit of 
 the senses ; what he expresses, he draws from himself; 
 his ideas are, in general, more just than in the normal 
 state, his knowledge more extended, because his soul 
 is free ; in a word, he lives, by anticipation, the life of 
 spirits. 
 
 The medium, on the contrary, is the instrument of 
 a foreign intelligence ; he is passive, and what he says 
 comes not from himself. To recapitulate : the somnam- 
 bulist expresses his own thought, the medium that of 
 another. But the spirit who communicates to an ordi- 
 nary medium could also as well to a somnambulist ; 
 often the state of emancipation of the soul renders this 
 communication more easy. Many somnambulists see 
 spirits perfectly, and describe them with as much pre- 
 cision as the seeing mediums ; they can talk with 
 them, and transmit their thought to us ; what they 
 say beyond the circle of their own knowledge is often 
 suggested to them by other spirits. Here is a remark- 
 able example, where the double action of the spirit of 
 the somnambulist and of the foreign spirit reveals 
 itself in the most unequivocal manner. 
 
214 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 173. One of our friends had for a somnambulist a 
 young boy of fourteen or fifteen years of age, of very 
 ordinary intelligence, and extremely limited instruc- 
 tion. Nevertheless, in somnambulism he gave proofs 
 of extraordinary lucidity and great perspicacity. He 
 excelled especially in the treatment of diseases, and 
 made a great many cures regarded as impossible. 
 One day he gave a consultation to a sick person, 
 whose malady he described exactly. 
 
 " That is not' all," said they ; " now you must indi- 
 cate the remedy." " I cannot," he answered. " My 
 angel doctor is not here!' " What do you mean by 
 your angel doctor?" " He who dictates to me." " It 
 is not you, then, who see the remedies ? " " Why, 
 no ; don't I tell you my angel doctor dictates them 
 to me ? " 
 
 Thus, with this somnambulist, the action of seeing 
 the disease was that of his own spirit, who for that 
 needed no assistance, but the indication of the reme- 
 dies was given by another ; this other not being there, 
 he could say nothing. Alone, he was only a somnam- 
 bulist ; assisted by what he called his angel doctor, he 
 was a somnambulistic medium. 
 
 174. Somnambulistic lucidity is a faculty that per- 
 tains to the organism, and which is entirely indepen- 
 dent of the elevation, of the advancement, and even of 
 the moral state of- the subject. A somnambulist may, 
 then, be very clear, and be incapable of solving certain 
 questions, if his spirit be but little advanced. He who 
 talks by himself may say good or bad, true or false 
 things ; put more or less delicacy or fastidiousness 
 into his proceedings, according to the degree of eleva- 
 tion or inferiority of his own spirit ; then the assist- 
 ance of a foreign spirit may supply his insufficiency ; 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 215 
 
 but a somnambulist may be assisted by a lying, or 
 trifling, or even a bad spirit, as well as mediums ; it is 
 here, above all, that the moral qualities have a great 
 influence to attract good spirits. (See Book on Spirits, 
 Somnambulism, No. 425 ; and in this, the chapter on 
 the Moral Influence of the Medium) 
 
 7. Healing Mediums. 
 
 175. We shall here give but a glance at this variety 
 of mediums, because this subject requires too extended 
 developments for our outline ; we know, besides, that a 
 doctor, one of our friends, proposes to treat it in a spe- 
 cial work on intuitive healing. We shall say only that 
 this kind of mediumship consists principally in the 
 gift possessed by some persons of healing by the sim- 
 ple touch, by the look, even by the gesture, without 
 the help of any medication. It will, doubtless, be said, 
 that it is nothing but magnetism. It is evident the 
 magnetic fluid here plays a great part ; but when this 
 phenomenon is carefully examined, it is easily seen 
 that there is something more. Ordinary magnetiza- 
 tion is a real treatment, continuous, regular, and me- 
 thodical ; in it things happen very differently. Nearly 
 all magnetizers are capable of curing, if they know 
 how properly to undertake it ; but with healing medi- 
 ums the faculty is spontaneous, and some even possess 
 it without ever having heard of magnetism. The inter- 
 vention of a hidden power, which constitutes medium- 
 ship, becomes evident under certain circumstances : it 
 is so, particularly, when it is considered that most 
 persons, whom we can reasonably qualify as healing 
 mediums, have recourse to prayer, which is a real invo- 
 cation. (See No. 131.) 
 
2l6 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. . 
 
 176. Here are the answers to the following questions 
 addressed to the spirits on this subject : — 
 
 1. " Can persons endowed with magnetic power be 
 considered as forming a variety of mediums ? " 
 
 " You cannot doubt it." 
 
 2. "Yet the medium is an intermediary between 
 the spirits and man ; but the magnetizer, drawing his 
 strength from within himself, seems not to be the inter- 
 mediary of any foreign power." 
 
 " It is an error : the magnetic power resides, doubt- 
 less, in the man ; but it is augmented by the action of 
 the spirits he calls to his aid. If you magnetize with 
 a view to healing, for instance, and you invoke a good 
 spirit, who interests himself in you and your patient, 
 he augments your strength and your will* he directs 
 your fluid, and gives it the necessary qualities." 
 
 3. " But there are very good magnetizers who do 
 not believe in spirits." 
 
 " Do yuu think that spirits act only on those who 
 believe in them ? Those who magnetize for good pur- 
 poses are seconded by good spirits. Every man who 
 has a desire to do good undoubtedly calls them ; the 
 same as by the desire of evil, and evil intentions, he 
 calls the evil." 
 
 4. " Would he who has the power act more effica- 
 ciously, should he believe in the intervention of 
 spirits ? " 
 
 " He would do things you would look upon as mir- 
 acles." 
 
 5. " Have some persons truly the gift of healing by 
 the simple touch, without employing magnetic passes ? " 
 
 " Assuredly ; have you not numerous examples of 
 it?" 
 
OF MEDIUMS. 217 
 
 6. " In this case is there magnetic action, or only 
 influence of spirits ?" 
 
 " Both ; these persons are veritable mediums, be- 
 cause they act under the influence of spirits ; but that 
 is not to say they would be writing mediums, as you 
 would understand it." 
 
 7. " Can this power be transmitted ? " 
 
 " The power, no ; but the knowledge of the things 
 necessary to its exercise where it is possessed. A 
 person would not suspect that he has this power if he 
 did not believe it has been transmitted to him." 
 
 8. " Can cures be made by prayer alone ? " 
 
 " Yes, sometimes, if God permits ; but perhaps the 
 good of the sick person is that he should suffer, and 
 then you believe that your prayers are not heard." 
 
 9. " Are there some forms of prayer more efficacious 
 for that than others ? " 
 
 " Superstition alone can attach a virtue to certain 
 words, and ignorant or lying spirits alone can enter- 
 tain such ideas in prescribing forms. Yet it may 
 happen that, for persons not much enlightened, and 
 incapable of understanding things purely spiritual, the 
 employment of a formula helps to give them confi- 
 dence ; in this case it is not the form that is efficacious, 
 but the faith that is increased by the idea attached to 
 the use of the form." 
 
 8. Pneumatographic Meduims. 
 
 177. This name is given to mediums suitable to the 
 obtaining of direct writing, which is not given to all 
 writing mediums. This faculty is, as yet, extremely 
 rare ; it is, probably, developed by exercise ; but, as 
 we have said, its practical utility is limited to the 
 patent verification of the intervention of an occult 
 
218 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 power in the manifestations. Experience alone can 
 prove its possession : a person can try, and also ask it 
 of a protecting spirit, through other means of commu- 
 nication. According to the degree of power possessed 
 by the medium, simple marks, signs, letters, words, 
 phrases, and even whole pages are obtained. It suf- 
 fices, ordinarily, to fold a piece of paper, put it in 
 some place designated by the spirit, for ten minutes, 
 or a quarter of an hour, or sometimes longer. Prayer 
 and concentration of thought are essential conditions ; 
 this is why it may be looked upon as impossible to 
 obtain anything in a reunion of persons but little 
 serious, or who might not be animated by sympathetic 
 and benevolent sentiments. (See Theory of Direct 
 Writing, Chapter VIII., Laboratory of the Invisible 
 World, No. 127, &c, and Chapter XII., Pneumatog- 
 raphy.) 
 
 We shall treat, in a special manner, of writing medi- 
 ums in the following chapters. 
 
Chapter XV. 
 WRITING OR PSYCHOGRAPHIC MEDIUMS. 
 
 Mechanical. — Intuitive. — Semi-Mechanical. — Inspired 
 or Involuntary Mediums. — Mediums f<or Presenti- 
 ments. 
 
 178. Of all the means of communication, manual 
 writing is the most simple, the most convenient, and 
 the most complete. It is to that all efforts should 
 tend, for it permits us to establish with the spirits as 
 continuous and regular relations as among ourselves. 
 We should cling to it the more, because it is that by 
 which the spirits best reveal their nature, and the 
 degree of their perfection or inferiority. By the ease 
 with which they express themselves, they let us know 
 their secret thoughts, and allow us, at the same time, 
 to judge and appreciate them at their value. The 
 faculty of writing, for a medium, is especially the one 
 that is most susceptible of development by exercise. 
 
 Mechanical Mediums. 
 
 179. If certain effects produced in the movements of 
 the table, of the basket, or of the planchette that writes, 
 be examined, an action exercised directly by the spirit 
 en these objects cannot be doubted. 
 
 The basket is, at times, shaken with so much vio- 
 lence, that it escapes from the hands of the medium ; 
 
 219 
 
220 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 sometimes, even, it is directed toward certain persons 
 in the circle, to strike them ; at other times, its move- 
 ments testify an affectionate sentiment. 
 
 The same thing occurs when the pencil is in the 
 hand ; often it is thrown forcibly to a distance, or the 
 hand, like the basket, is convulsively shaken, and 
 strikes the table with anger even when the medium 
 is perfectly calm, and astonished not to be master of 
 himself. Let us observe, in passing, that these effects 
 always denote the presence of imperfect spirits ; those 
 really superior are constantly calm, dignified, and be- 
 nevolent ; if they are not listened to properly, they 
 retire, and others take their place. Thus the spirit- 
 can express his thought directly, either by the move- 
 ment of an object in the hand of the medium, or by his 
 action on the hand itself. 
 
 When the spirit acts directly on the hand, he gives 
 to it an impulse completely independent of the will. 
 It goes on without interruption, and in spite of the 
 medium, as long as the spirit has anything to say, and 
 stops when he has finished. 
 
 What characterizes the phenomenon in this case is, 
 that the medium has no consciousness of what he 
 writes ; absolute unconsciousness constitutes passive 
 or mechanical mediums. This faculty is precious, as it 
 can leave no doubt of its independence of the thought 
 of him who writes. 
 
 Intuitive Mediums. 
 
 1 80. The "transmission of thought takes place by the 
 intervention of the medium's spirit, or, rather, of his 
 soul ; for by this name we designate the incarnated 
 spirit. The foreign spirit, in this case, does not act 
 on the hand to make it write ; he does not hold it, 
 
WRITING OR rSYCHOGRAPIIIC MEDIUMS. 221 
 
 docs not guide it ; he acts on the soul with which he is 
 identified. The soul, under this impulse, directs the 
 hand, and the hand directs the pencil. 
 
 Let us remark here one important thing to know ; it 
 is, that the foreign spirit is not substituted for the soul, 
 for he cannot displace it : he controls it at his will, he 
 impresses his will upon it. The part of the soul is not 
 absolutely a passive one ; it receives the thought of the 
 foreign spirit, and transmits it. In this case the medi- 
 um is conscious what he writes, though it is not his 
 cwn thought ; this is what is called intuitive medium. 
 
 If this be so, it may be said, nothing proves that it is 
 any more the thought of a foreign spirit than of the 
 medium. The distinction is, in fact, sometimes quite 
 difficult to make, but it may happen that this will be 
 of little consequence. The suggested thought can 
 always be recognized, in that it is never preconceived ; 
 it is born as it is written, and often is contrary to the 
 idea previously formed ; it may even be beyond the 
 knowledge and capacity of the medium. 
 
 The part of the mechanical medium is that of a 
 machine, the intuitive medium acts as an interpreter. 
 In fact, to transmit the thought, he should understand 
 it ; appropriate it in some sort, in order to translate it 
 faithfully ; yet this thought is not his — it but passes 
 through his brain. Such is exactly the part of the 
 intuitive medium. 
 
 Semi- Mechanical Mediums. 
 
 1 8 1. In the purely mechanical medium, the move- 
 ment of the hand is independent of the will ; in the 
 intuitive medium, the movement is voluntary and 
 optional. 
 
 The semi-mechanical medium partakes of both na- 
 
222 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 tures ; he feels an impulse given to his hand in spite 
 of himself, but, at the same time, has a consciousness 
 of the words as rapidly as they are formed. With the 
 first, the thought follows the act of writing ; with the 
 second, it precedes it ; with the third, it accompanies 
 it. These last mediums are the most numerous. 
 
 Inspired Mediums. 
 
 182. Every person who, whether in the normal state 
 or in a state of ecstasy, receives, by the thought, com- 
 munications foreign to his preconceived ideas, may be 
 ranked in the category of inspired mediums ; which is, 
 as may be seen, a variety of intuitive mediumship, with 
 this difference, that the intervention of an occult power 
 is still less apparent ; for, with the inspired, it is more 
 difficult to distinguish between the thought proper and 
 that which is suggested. What peculiarly character- 
 izes this is its spontaneity. Inspiration comes to us 
 from spirits who influence us for good or evil, but it 
 is more especially from those who wish us well, and 
 whose advice we too often wrongly avoid following. 
 It applies to every circumstance in life, in the resolu- 
 tions we make ; as far as this goes, we might say every 
 one in the world is a medium, for there is no person 
 who has not his spirit protectors and familiars, who 
 make every effort to suggest salutary thoughts to their 
 wards. 
 
 If every one were thoroughly convinced of this 
 truth, there would be more frequent recourse to the 
 guardian angel in moments when one knows not what 
 to say or do. Let us, then, invoke him with fervor 
 and confide71.ee in cases of necessity, and we shall be 
 more often astonished by the ideas that will come as 
 by enchantment, whether we may have something to 
 
WRITING OR rSYCHOGRAPHIC MEDIUMS. 223 
 
 decide or something to compose. If no idea comes, it 
 is because it is necessary for us to wait. 
 
 The proof that the idea that comes unexpectedly is 
 one foreign to us, is, that if it had been in us we should 
 always have been master of it, and there would be no 
 reason it could not have manifested itself at will. He 
 who is not blind has only to open his eyes to see when 
 he pleases ; so, the same, he who has ideas of his own 
 always has them at his disposal ; if they do not come 
 at will, it is because he is obliged to draw them from 
 other sources. 
 
 In this category may also be classed persons who, 
 without being endowed with an extraordinary intelli- 
 gence, and without leaving the normal state, have 
 flashes of intellectual lucidity which gives them tem- 
 porarily an unaccustomed facility of conception and 
 elocution, and, in some cases, a presentiment of the 
 future. In these moments, justly called, of inspiration, 
 ideas abound, are continuous, carry us along, as it were 
 of themselves, by an involuntary and almost feverish 
 impulse ; it seems to us that a superior intelligence 
 comes to our aid, and that our mind is relieved of a 
 load. 
 
 183. Men of genius of all kinds — artists, scientists, 
 men of letters — are doubtless advanced spirits, capa- 
 ble oy tnemselves of understanding and conceiving 
 great things ; but it is precisely because they are con- 
 sidered capable that the spirits who desire the accom- 
 plishment of certain work suggest to them the neces- 
 sary ideas ; and thus they are most frequently mediums 
 without knowing it. Yet they have a vague intuition 
 of a foreign assistance ; for he who appeals to inspira- 
 tion makes but an invocation ; if he did not hope to be 
 
224 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 heard, why should he so often cry, " Aid me, my good 
 genius ! " 
 
 The following answers confirm this assertion : — 
 " What is the primary cause of inspiration ? " 
 " Spirits who communicate by the thought." 
 " Has not inspiration the revelation of great things 
 for its object ? " 
 
 " No ; it often has relation to the most ordinary oc- 
 currences of life. For example, you wish to go some- 
 where • a secret voice tells you not to do so, for there 
 is danger for you ; or it tells you to do a thing you had 
 not thought of; that is inspiration. There are very few 
 persons who have not been more or less inspired at 
 certain moments." 
 
 "An author, a painter, a musician, for instance, 
 could they, in moments of inspiration, be considered 
 mediums ? " 
 
 " Yes, for in these moments the soul is freer and 
 more withdrawn from matter ; it recovers a portion of 
 its faculties as spirit, and more easily receives the com- 
 munications of other spirits who inspire it." 
 
 Presentiment Mediums. 
 
 184. Presentiment is a vague intuition of future 
 things. Some persons have this faculty more or less 
 developed ; they may owe it to a kind of double sight, 
 which permits them to foresee the consequences of 
 present things and the thread of events ; but often, 
 also, it proceeds from occult communications, and, in 
 this case, to those thus endowed may be given this 
 name of presentiment mediums, which is a variety of 
 inspired mediums. 
 
Chapter XVI. 
 SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 
 
 Special Aptitudes of Mediums. — Synoptical List of the 
 dijfcre?it Varieties of Mediums. 
 
 185. Besides the categories of mediums we have 
 enumerated, mediumship presents an infinite variety 
 of shades which constitute what are called special 
 mediums, who possess peculiar aptitudes not yet de- 
 fined, according to the qualities and knowledge of the 
 manifesting spirit. 
 
 The nature of the communication always sustains a 
 relation to the nature of the spirit, and bears the seal 
 of his elevation or inferiority, his knowledge or igno- 
 rance ; but, merit being equal in a hierarchical point of 
 view, he has undoubtedly a propensity to engage in 
 one thing rather than another ; the rapping spirits, for 
 instance, never depart from physical manifestations ; 
 and among those who give intelligent manifestations 
 are spirit poets, musicians, painters, moralists, scientists, 
 physicians, &c. We speak of spirits of a middle 
 order, for, once arrived at a certain degree, the apti- 
 tudes are blended in the unity of perfection. But, 
 besides the aptitude of the spirit, there is that of the 
 medium, who is an instrument for him, more or less 
 suitable, more or less flexible, and in whom he discov- 
 ers special qualities that we cannot appreciate. 
 15 225 
 
226 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Let us make a comparison : a very skillful musician 
 has in his hands several violins, which, to the ordinary 
 eye, will all be very good instruments, but between 
 which the consummate artist distinguishes a great 
 difference ; he perceives therein shades of exceeding 
 delicacy, which make him choose, some and reject 
 others, shades which he comprehends rather by intui- 
 tion than by anything he can define in them. It is 
 the same with respect to mediums ; with equal quali- 
 ties in the medianimic power, the spirit will give the 
 preference to one or to the other, according to the 
 kind of communication he desires to make. Thus, for 
 instance, persons, as mediums, write admirable poems, 
 though in the ordinary conditions they never knew 
 how, nor could compose two verses ; others, on the 
 contrary, who are poets, and who, as mediums, have 
 been able to write only prose, in spite of their desire. 
 
 The same with drawing, music, &c. 
 
 There are those who, without having, by themselves, 
 any scientific knowledge, have a more special aptitude 
 for receiving scientific communications ; others are for 
 historical studies ; others serve more easily as inter- 
 preters for spirit moralists ; in a word, whatever may 
 be the flexibility of the medium, the communications 
 he receives with most facility have, generally, a special 
 seal ; there are even those who never emerge from a 
 certain circle of ideas, and when they are taken from 
 that, they have but incomplete, laconic, and often false, 
 communications. Aside from the causes of aptitude, 
 the spirits communicate more or less willingly by such 
 or such an intermediary, according to their sympa- 
 thies ; so, all other things being equal, the same spirit 
 will be much more explicit with certain mediums, 
 solely because they suit him better. 
 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 227 
 
 186. It would then be an error, if, having at hand a 
 good medium, even one who writes with the utmost 
 facility, we should from that alone expect to obtain 
 good communications of all kinds. The primary con- 
 dition certainly is, to be assured of the source where 
 they emanate, that is, of the qualities of the spirit who 
 transmits them ; but it is not the less necessary to be 
 careful of the qualities of the instrument given to the 
 spirit : we must, then, study the nature of the medium, 
 as we study the nature of the spirit, for these are the 
 two essential elements for obtaining a satisfactory 
 result. There is a third, that plays an equally impor- 
 tant part — the intention, the secret thought, the more 
 or less praiseworthy sentiment of the interrogator ; 
 and so it may be said, To obtain a good communication, 
 it must emanate from a good spirit ; that this good spirit 
 may be able to transmit it, he must have a good instru- 
 nu nt ; that he may desire to transmit it, the motive must 
 suit him. 
 
 The spirit, who reads in the thought, judges if the 
 /question proposed merits a serious answer, and if 
 the person who addresses him is worthy to receive it : 
 in a contrary case, he does not lose his time sowing 
 good seed on stony ground ; and then trifling, mock- 
 ing, spirits take his place, because, troubling themselves 
 very little about the truth, they do not look at things 
 so closely, and are usually but little scrupulous as to 
 the end or means. 
 
 We here sum up the principal kinds of mediumship, 
 before presenting a kind of synoptical list, comprising 
 those we have already described in the preceding 
 chapters, indicating the numbers of those to which we 
 shall add further details. 
 
 We have grouped the different varieties of mediums 
 
228 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 by analogy with causes and effects, but do not propose 
 there shall be anything absolute in this classification. 
 Some are frequently met, others are rare and excep- 
 tional, which we have taken care to mention. These 
 last indications have all been furnished by spirits, 
 who, besides, have reviewed this descriptive list with 
 an exceedingly particular care, and have completed it 
 by numerous observations and new categories, so that 
 it may be said to be their entire work. We have in- 
 dicated by quotation marks their textual observations 
 when we have thought it necessary to make them more 
 prominent. They are mostly from Erastus and Soc- 
 rates. 
 
 187. Mediums may be divided into two great 
 classes. 
 
 Mediums for Physical Effects. Those who have 
 the power to induce material effects or ostensible 
 manifestations. (No. 160.) 
 
 Mediums for Intellectual Effects. Those who 
 are more especially proper to receive and transmit 
 intelligent communications. (No. 65, &c.) 
 
 All the other varieties more or less directly belong 
 to one or the other of these classes ; some pertain to 
 both. If the different phenomena produced under 
 medianimic influence are analyzed, it will be seen that 
 in all there is a physical effect, and that to the physical 
 effects are most often joined an intelligent one. The 
 boundary between the two is sometimes difficult to 
 establish ; but that is of no consequence. We com- 
 prehend under the denomination Mediums for Intellec- 
 tual Effects those who can more specially serve as 
 intermediaries for regular and continuous communica- 
 tions. (No. 133.) 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 229 
 
 Varieties common to all Kinds of Mediums hip. 
 
 188. Sensitive Mediums. Persons susceptible to the 
 presence of spirits by a general or local, a vague or 
 material impression. Most of them distinguish the 
 spirits, good or bad, by the nature of the impression. 
 
 " Delicate and very sensitive mediums should ab- 
 stain from communications with violent spirits, or those 
 whose impression is painful, because of the fatigue re- 
 sulting from it." 
 
 Natural or Unconscious Mediums. Those who pro- 
 duce the phenomena spontaneously, without any par- 
 ticipation of their will, and often against it. (No. 161.) 
 
 Optional or Voluntary Mediums. Those who have 
 the power of inducing the phenomena by an act of 
 their will. (No. 160.) 
 
 " Whatever may be this will, they could do nothing 
 should the spirits refuse, which proves the intervention 
 of a foreign power." 
 
 Special Varieties for Physical Effects. 
 
 189. Tipping Mediums. Those by whose influence 
 noises and rappings are produced. A very common 
 variety, with or without the will. 
 
 Moving Mediums. Those who produce the move- 
 ment of inert bodies. Very common. (No. 61.) 
 
 Mediums for Translations and Suspe?tsions. Those 
 who produce the aerial translations and the suspension 
 in space, without support, of inert bodies. There are 
 those who can raise themselves. More or less rare, 
 according to the development of the phenomenon ; very 
 rare in/ the latter case. (Nos. 75, &c, and No. 80.) 
 
 Musical Mediums. They induce the playing of in- 
 
230 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 struments without contact. Very rare. (No. 74, ques- 
 tion 24.) 
 
 Mediums for Apparitions . Those who can induce 
 fluidic or tangible apparitions visible to those present. 
 (No. 100, question 27, and No. 104.) 
 
 Mediums for Materialization. Those who can serve 
 as auxiliaries to the spirits, to bring material objects. 
 A variety of the moving mediums, and mediums for 
 translations. Exceptional. (No. 96.) 
 
 Nocturnal Mediums. Those who obtain certain 
 physical effects only in obscurity. I give the answer 
 of a spirit to the question, if these mediums may be 
 considered as forming a variety. 
 
 " A specialty may certainly be made of it ; but this 
 phenomenon pertains rather to surrounding conditions 
 than to the nature of the medium or the spirits. I 
 should add that some escape this influence of the sur- 
 roundings, and that most of the nocturnal mediums 
 could, by practice, succeed as well in the light as in the 
 darkness. This variety is not very numerous ; and it 
 must be said, that under cover of this condition, which 
 allows so much liberty in the employment of tricks, 
 ventriloquism, and acoustic pipes, charlatans have too 
 often played upon credulity, passing themselves off for 
 mediums in order to make money. But what matter ? 
 Private as well as public jugglers will be cruelly un- 
 masked, and the spirits will prove to them that it is 
 not good to interfere with their affairs. Yes, I repeat 
 it, certain charlatans will be rapped over the fingers in 
 a rude enough fashion to disgust them with the part 
 of false mediums. Besides, all that is but for a time. 
 
 " Erastus." 
 
 Pneumatographic Mediums. Those who obtain direct 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 23 1 
 
 writing. A very rare phenomenon, and one very easy 
 to imitate by jugglery. (No. 177.) 
 
 Remark. The spirits have insisted, against our 
 opinion, in classing direct writing among the physical 
 phenomena, for the reason, they say, that " intelli- 
 gent effects are those by which the spirits use the 
 cerebral material of the medium, which is not the case 
 in direct writing ; the action of the medium is here 
 wholly material, while with the writing medium, even 
 when entirely mechanical, the brain always plays an 
 active part." 
 
 Healing Mediums. Those who have the power of heal- 
 ing or soothing by laying on of hands, or by prayer. 
 
 " This faculty is not essentially medianimic ; it be- 
 longs to all true believers, whether they are mediums 
 or not ; it is often only an exaltation of magnetic power, 
 fortified, in case of need, by the concurrence of good 
 spirits." (No. 175.) 
 
 Excitative Mediums. Persons who have the power 
 of developing in others, by their influence, the faculty 
 of writing. 
 
 " This is rather a magnetic effect, than mediumship 
 proper, for nothing proves the intervention of a spirit. 
 In all cases it belongs to the order of physical effects. 
 (See chapter on the Formation of Mediums) 
 
 Special Mediums for Intellectual Effects. — Various 
 Aptitudes. 
 
 190. Hearing Mediums. Those who hear spirits. 
 Quite common. (No. 165.) 
 
 " There are many who imagine they hear, when it is 
 only imagination.". 
 
 Spcaki?ig Mediums. Those who speak under the in- 
 fluence of spirits. Quite common. (No. 166.) 
 
232 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Seeing Mediums. Those who see spirits in a waking 
 state. 
 
 The accidental or unforeseen sight of a spirit under 
 particular circumstances is quite frequent ; but the 
 habitual or optional sight of spirits without distinc- 
 tion is exceptional. (No. 167.) 
 
 " It is an aptitude to which the actual state of the 
 organs is opposed ; this is why you must not always 
 believe the word of those who say they see spirits." 
 
 Inspired Mediums. Those to whom thoughts are 
 suggested by spirits, most often against their will, be 
 it for the ordinary acts of life, or for great intellectual 
 labors. (No. 182.) 
 
 Mediums for Presentiments. Persons who, under 
 certain circumstances, have 'a vague intuition of ordi- 
 nary future events. (No. 184.) 
 
 PropJietic Mediums. A variety of the inspired or pre- 
 sentiment mediums ; they receive, by God's permission, 
 and with more precision than presentiment mediums, 
 the revelation of future events of a general interest, and 
 which they are charged to make known to men for 
 their instruction. 
 
 " If there are true prophets, still more are there of 
 false ones, and of those who take the dreams of their 
 imagination for revelations, when they are not im- 
 postors who pretend to be prophets, from ambition." 
 (See Book on Spirits, No. 624, Characters of the true 
 prophets.) 
 
 Somnambulistic Mediums. Those who, in a state 
 of somnambulism, are assisted by spirits. (No. 172.) 
 
 Ecstatic Mediums. Those who, in a state of ecstasy, 
 receive revelations from spirits. 
 
 " Many ecstatics are the sport of their own imagina- 
 tion, and of deceiving spirits, who profit by their exal- 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 233 
 
 tation. Those who deserve perfect confidence are very 
 rare." 
 
 Painting and Drawing Mediums. Those who paint 
 or draw under the influence of spirits. We speak of 
 those who obtain serious things, for this name cannot 
 be given to certain mediums who are made to draw, by 
 mocking spirits, things so grotesque that the merest 
 scholar would disavow them. Frivolous spirits are 
 imitators. At the time when the remarkable draw- 
 ings of Jupiter appeared, there arose a great number 
 of pretended drawing mediums, with whom the mock- 
 ing spirits amused themselves by making them draw 
 the most ridiculous things. One of them, among 
 others, wishing to outdo the drawings of Jupiter, in 
 dimensions, at least, if not in quality, made a medium 
 draw a monument covering sheets enough to have 
 reached two stories high. Many others drew so-called 
 portraits which were veritable caricatures. {Revue 
 Spirit e, August, 1858.) 
 
 Medium Musicians. Those who execute, compose, 
 or write music under the influence of spirits. There 
 are mechanical, semi-mechanical, intuitive, and inspired 
 medium musicians ; the same as for literary communica- 
 tions. (See Mediums for Musical Effects) 
 
 Varieties of Writing Mediums. 
 
 I. According to the Methods of Execution. 
 
 191. Writing or Psycliograpliic Mediums. Those 
 who have the faculty of writing under the influence of 
 spirits. 
 
 Mechanical Writing Mediums. Those whose hand 
 receives an involuntary impulse, and who have no con • 
 sciousness of what they write. Very rare. (No. 179.) 
 
234 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Semi-mechanical Mediums. Those whose hand moves 
 involuntarily, but who have instantaneous conscious- 
 ness of the words or phrases as they write them. The 
 most common. (No. 181.) 
 
 Intuitive Mediums. Those to whom the spirit com- 
 municates by the thought, and whose hand is guided 
 by the will. They differ from inspired mediums, inso- 
 much as these last have no need to write, while the 
 intuitive medium writes the thought suggested to him 
 instantaneously on any given and induced subject. 
 (No. 1 80.) 
 
 " They are very common, but also very subject to 
 error, because often they cannot distinguish what 
 emanates from the spirits, and what from their own 
 ideas.'* 
 
 Polygrapliic Mediums. Those whose writing changes 
 with the spirit who communicates, or who are apt to 
 reproduce the writing the spirit had during his life. 
 The first case is very common ; the second — that of 
 the identity of the writing — is more rare. (No. 219.) 
 
 Polyglot Mediums. Those who have, the faculty of 
 speaking or writing in languages unknown to them. 
 Very rare. 
 
 Illiterate Mediums. Those who write as mediums, 
 without knowing how to read or write in the ordinary 
 state. 
 
 " More rare than the preceding ; there is a much 
 greater material difficulty to overcome." 
 
 2. According to the Development of the Faculty. 
 
 192. Novice Mediums . Those in whom the faculty is 
 not yet fully developed, and who lack the necessary 
 experience. 
 
 Unproductive Mediums. Those who can succeed in 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 235 
 
 obtaining only insignificant things — monosyllables, 
 signs, or letters, without connection. (See chapter on 
 Formation of Mediums) 
 
 Formed or Complete Mediums. Those in whom the 
 medianimic faculties are completely developed, who 
 transmit the communications they receive with facility 
 and promptitude, without hesitation. It may be readily 
 supposed that this result is not obtained without prac- 
 tice, while with novice mediums the communications 
 are slow and difficult. 
 
 Laconic Mediums. Those whose communications, 
 though easy, are brief and without development. 
 
 Explicit Mediums. The communications they obtain 
 have all the fullness and extent that a perfect writer 
 can attain. 
 
 " This aptitude is due to the expansion and the 
 facility of habit, often acquired in a short time, while 
 experience is the result of a serious study of all the 
 difficulties presented in the practice of Spiritism. Ex- 
 perience gives the medium the tact necessary to 
 appreciate the nature of the spirits, who manifest 
 themselves, to judge their qualities, good or bad, by 
 the minutest signs, to discern the frauds of deceiving 
 spirits, who shelter themselves under the appearance 
 of truth." 
 
 The importance of this quality, in default of which 
 all others are without real utility, may be easily com- 
 prehended ; the trouble is, many mediums confound 
 experience, fruit of study, with aptitude, product of 
 organization ; they believe themselves " passed mas- 
 ters " because they write easily ; they repudiate all 
 advice, and become the prey of lying and hypocritical 
 spirits, who take them captive by flattering their pride. 
 (See after, chapter on Obsession) 
 
236 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Flexible Mediums. Those in whom the faculty is 
 most easily adapted to various kinds of communica- 
 tions, and by whom all spirits, or nearly all, can mani- 
 fest themselves spontaneously, or by invocation. 
 
 " This variety of mediums approach very nearly to 
 sensitive mediums." 
 
 Exclusive Mediums. Those by whom one spirit man- 
 ifests himself by preference, and even to the exclusion 
 of all others. 
 
 " This is always owing to a defect in flexibility ; when 
 the spirit is good, he may attach himself to the medi- 
 um from sympathy, and with a praiseworthy object ; 
 when he is bad, it* is always with a view to bringing 
 the medium into subjection to him. It is a defect j 
 rather than a good quality, and almost obsession." 
 (See chapter on Obsession) 
 
 Mediums for Invocation. Flexible mediums are most 
 fitted for this kind of communication, and to the ques- 
 tions in detail that may be addressed to spirits. 
 There are, under this head, mediums who are entirely 
 special. 
 
 " Their answers are. almost always limited to a re- 
 stricted outline, incompatible with the development of 
 general subjects." 
 
 Mediums for Spontaneous Dictations . They receive, 
 by preference, spontaneous communications from spir- 
 its who come without being called. When this faculty 
 is special with a medium, it is difficult, sometimes even 
 impossible, to make an invocation by him. 
 
 " Yet they are better furnished than those of the 
 preceding shade. Understand that by furnishing here 
 is understood cerebral material ; for there needs often, 
 I will even say always, a greater amount of intelli- 
 gence for spontaneous dictations than for invocations. 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 2tf 
 
 Understand here, by spontaneous dictations, those 
 which really deserve this name, and not a few incom- 
 plete phrases, or some ordinary thoughts to be found 
 
 in every human head-piece. 
 
 > 
 3. According to the Kind and, Speciality of the Com- 
 munications. 
 
 193. Versifying Mediums. They obtain, more easily 
 than others, communications in verse. Very common 
 for bad verses, very rare for good ones. 
 
 Poetic Mediums. Without obtaining verse, the com- 
 munications they receive are somewhat vaporous and 
 sentimental ; nothing expresses roughness : they are, 
 more than others, suited to the expression of tender 
 and affectionate expressions. All is vague, and it 
 would be useless to ask anything exact of them. Very 
 common. 
 
 Positive Mediums. Their communications have, in 
 general, a character of clearness and precision which 
 is easily accommodated to circumstantial details and 
 _exact teachings. Quite rare. 
 
 Literary Mediums. They have neither the vagueness 
 of poetic mediums, nor the matter of fact of positive 
 mediums ; but they discuss with sagacity ; their style 
 is correct, elegant, and often remarkably eloquent. 
 
 Incorrect Mediums. They can obtain very good 
 things, thoughts of irreproachable morality ; but their 
 style is diffuse, incorrect, full of repetitions and im- 
 proper terms. 
 
 " Material incorrectness of style is, generally speak- 
 ing, the fault of want of intellectual culture of the 
 medium, who is not, in this respect, a good instrument 
 for the spirit ; the spirit attaches lit tit importance to 
 it ; for him, the essential thing is the thought, and he 
 
238 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 leaves you free to give it a suitable form. It is not the 
 same with the false and illogical ideas a communica- 
 tion may enclose ; they are always an indication of the 
 inferiority of the spirit." 
 
 Historical Mediums. Those who have a special ap- 
 titude for historical developments. This faculty, like 
 all the others, is independent of the knowledge of the 
 mediums ; for unlearned persons, and even children, 
 are often seen to treat of subjects far above their men- 
 tal caliber. A rare variety of positive mediums. 
 
 Scientific Mediums. We do not say scientists, for 
 they may be very ignorant, and, notwithstanding that, 
 they may be more especially suited to communications 
 relating to the sciences. 
 
 Medical Mediums. Their speciality is to serve more 
 easily as interpreters to spirits for medical prescrip- 
 tions. They must not be confounded with Jiealing 
 mediums, for these absolutely do nothing but transmit 
 the thought of the spirit, and have, by themselves, no 
 influence. Quite common. 
 
 Religious Mediums. They receive, more especially, 
 communications of a religious character, or those that 
 treat questions of religion without regard to their 
 beliefs or their habits. 
 
 Moral Philosophic Mediums. Their communications 
 have usually for their object questions of morals and 
 higher philosophy. Very common for morals. 
 
 " All these shades are varieties of aptitudes of good 
 mediums. As to those who have a special aptitude 
 for certain communications, scientific, historical, medi- 
 cal, or others, beyond their actual caliber, be sure they 
 have possessed these knowledges in another existence, 
 and that theyfiave remained with them in a latent 
 state ; they make a part of the cerebral material 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 239 
 
 necessary to the spirit who manifests himself; they 
 are the elements which facilitate the way for him to 
 communicate his own ideas ; for these mediums are but 
 instruments for him, more intelligent and more easily 
 managed than an animal would be. | Erastus." 
 
 Mediums for Trivial and Obscene Communications . 
 These words indicate the kind of communications that 
 certain mediums habitually receive, and the nature of 
 the spirit who makes them. Whoever has studied the 
 spirit world in all the degrees of its scale, knows that 
 there are those whose perversity equals that of the 
 mast depraved men, and who are pleased to express 
 their thoughts in the grossest terms. Others, less 
 abject, are contented with trivial expressions. These 
 mediums should desire to be relieved from the pref- 
 erence these spirits accord them, and should envy 
 those who, in the communications they receive, have 
 never had an unwholesome word. One must have a 
 strange aberration of ideas, and an utter divorce from 
 good sense, to believe such language could be that 
 of good spirits. 
 
 4. According to the Physical Qualities of the Mediums. 
 
 194. Calm Mediums. They always write with a cer- 
 tain slowness, and without experiencing the least agi- 
 tation. 
 
 Rapid Mediums write with a rapidity greater than 
 they could voluntarily, in the ordinary state ; spirits 
 communicate with them with the velocity of lightning ; 
 it might be said, they have a superabundance of fluid, 
 which permits their instantaneous identification with 
 the spirit. This quality has sometimes its incon- 
 venience, the rapidity of the writing making it very 
 difficult to read for anv other but the medium. 
 
240 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " It is also very fatiguing, for it expends too much 
 fluid uselessly." 
 
 Convulsive Mediums. They are in an almost feverish 
 state of over-excitement ; their hand, and sometimes 
 their whole person, is agitated with a trembling they 
 cannot master. The primary cause is, without doubt, 
 in the organization, but it depends also much on the 
 nature of the spirits who communicate with them ; 
 good and benevolent spirits always make a gentle and 
 agreeable impression ; the bad, on the contrary, a 
 painful one. 
 
 " Mediums should use but rarely their medianimic 
 faculty, where the too frequent use of it may affect the 
 nervous system." (Chapter on Identity, distinction 
 between good and bad spirits.) 
 
 5. According to the Moral Qualities of the Medium. 
 
 195. We mention them summarily to memorize and 
 comphete the list ; but they will be developed by and 
 by in the special chapters, — On the Moral Influence 
 of Mediums ; On Obsession ; On Identity of Spirits ; 
 and others to which we call particular attention ; the 
 influence which the qualities and whims of the medi- 
 ums can exercise on the certainty of communications, 
 and who are those we can reasonably consider imper- 
 fect mediums, or good ones, will then be seen. 
 
 Imperfect Mediums. 
 
 196. Obsessed Mediums. Those who cannot rid them- 
 selves of importunate and deceiving spirits, but who 
 are not deceived. 
 
 Fascinated Mediums. Those who are directed by 
 deceiving spirits, and are deluded in the nature of the 
 communications they receive. 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 24 1 
 
 Subjugated Mediums. Those who are subjected to 
 a moral, and often material domination, on the part of 
 bad spirits. 
 
 Trifling Mediums. Those who do not accept their 
 faculty as serious, and use it only for amusement, or 
 for futile things. 
 
 Indifferent Mediums. Those who draw no moral 
 profit from the instructions, and in no way modify 
 their conduct or their habits. 
 
 Presumptuous Mediums. Those who pretend that 
 they alone are en rapport with superior spirits. They 
 believe in their own infallibility, and regard as inferior 
 and erroneous all that does not emanate from them. 
 
 Haughty Mediums. Those who are vain of the com- 
 munications they receive ; they think they have noth- 
 ing more to learn of Spiritism, and do not take to 
 themselves the lessons they often receive on the part 
 of the spirits. They are not contented with the fac- 
 ulties they possess ; they would have ail. 
 
 Susceptible Mediums. A variety of the haughty 
 mediums ; they are wounded by the criticisms of 
 which their communications may be the object ; they 
 are angry at the least contradiction, and if they show 
 what they obtain, it is to have it admired, and not to 
 ask advice. Generally, they take an aversion to the 
 persons who do not applaud them without reserve, 
 and desert the reunions they cannot impose upon and 
 control. 
 
 " Let them go and strut elsewhere, and seek ears 
 more complaisant, or withdraw into isolation ; the re- 
 unions they deprive of their presence do not sustain a 
 very great loss. EttASTUs." 
 
 Mercenary Mediums. Those who sell their faculty. 
 
 Ambitious Mediums. Those who, without putting a 
 16 
 
242 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 price on their faculty, yet hope to draw from it some 
 advantages. 
 
 Insincere Mediums. Those who, having real facul- 
 ties, simulate those they have not, for the sake of being 
 important. The title of medium cannot be given to 
 those who, having no medianimic faculty, produce 
 effects only by jugglery. 
 
 Egotistic Mediums. Those who use their faculty 
 only for personal use, and keep for themselves all the 
 communications they receive. 
 
 Jealous Mediums. Those who see with envy other 
 mediums better appreciated, and who are their supe- 
 riors. 
 
 All these bad qualities have, necessarily, their coun- 
 terparts in good. 
 
 Good Mediums. 
 
 197. Serious Mediums. Those who use their faculty 
 only for good and for really useful purposes ; they would 
 consider it profaned if used for the satisfaction of the 
 curious and indifferent, or for trifles. 
 
 Modest Mediums. Those who take no merit to 
 themselves for the communications they receive, how- 
 ever beautiful they may be ; they regard themselves, 
 in connection with it, as strangers, and do not consider 
 themselves proof against mystifications. Far from 
 avoiding disinterested advice, they solicit it. 
 
 Devoted Mediums. Those who understand that the 
 true medium has a mission to fulfill, and should, when 
 it is necessary, sacrifice tastes, habits, pleasures, time, 
 and even his material interests, to the good of others. 
 
 Certain Mediums. Those who, with facility of exe- 
 cution, deserve the most confidence, by their own 
 character, the elevated nature of the spirits, whose 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 243 
 
 assistants they are, and who are the least exposed to 
 be deceived. We shall see, by and by, that this secu- 
 rity depends not at all on the names, more or lcsr, 
 respectable, that the spirits take. 
 
 "It is incontestable, you can readily see, that thus 
 criticising the qualities and whims of mediums, will 
 excite contrarieties, and even animosities, with some ; 
 but what matter ? Mediumship is spreading day by 
 day, and more and more, and the medium who would 
 take these reflections amiss would prove one thing — 
 that he is not a good medium, or is assisted by bad 
 spirits. Then, too, as I have already said, it is but 
 for a time ; and bad mediums, or those who abuse 
 or misuse their faculties, will suffer the sad conse- 
 quences, as somejiave already done ; they will learn 
 to their cost what it is to turn to the profit of their 
 worldly passions a gift which God has given them for 
 their moral advancement. If you cannot lead them 
 into the good path, pity them, for I can tell you they 
 are cast away by God. Erastus." 
 
 " This descriptive list is of great importance, not 
 only for sincere mediums, who will truly seek, in read- 
 ing it, to avoid the dangers to which they are exposed, 
 but also for those who make use of mediums, because 
 it will show them what they may rationally expect in 
 it. It should be always kept in view by every one 
 engaged in manifestations, the same as the Spirit 
 Scale, which is its complement : these two descriptive 
 lists sum up all the principles of the doctrine, and will 
 contribute more than may be supposed to restore 
 Spiritism to its true mission. Socrates." 
 
 198. All these varieties of mediums present infinite 
 degrees in their intensity : there are many which con- 
 stitute but shades, properly speaking, but which are 
 
244 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 not the less effects of special aptitudes. It may easily 
 be supposed that the faculty of a medium being rigor- 
 ously circumscribed to one single kind is quite rare ; 
 the same medium can, doubtless, have several tenden- 
 cies, but there is always a governing one, and to the 
 cultivation of that one he should devote himself if it 
 be useful. 
 
 It is a serious wrong to wish to press to the devel- 
 opment a faculty one does not possess : all those 
 whose germs are seen to be within us should be culti- 
 vated, but to pursue the others is, in the first place, to 
 lose time, and, in the second place, to lose, perhaps, 
 — weaken, certainly, — those with which we are en- 
 dowed. 
 
 " When the principle, the germ of a faculty, exists, 
 it is always shown by unequivocal signs. By adhering 
 to his speciality the medium may excel, and obtain 
 grand and beautiful things ; in trying to do all, he will 
 do nothing well. Be it remarked, in passing, that the 
 desire to extend indefinitely the circle of his faculties 
 is a haughty presumption that the spirits never leave 
 unpunished ; the good always abandon the presump- 
 tuous, who thus become the sport of lying spirits. 
 
 " Unhappily, it is not rare to see mediums discontent- 
 ed with the gifts they have received, and aspire, from 
 self-love or ambition, to possess exceptional faculties, 
 that they may be noticed ; this presumption destroys 
 their most precious quality — that of sure mediums. 
 
 u Socrates." 
 
 199. The study of the speciality of mediums is 
 necessary, not only for these, but for the invocator. 
 According to the nature of the spirit whom it is desired 
 to call, and the questions to be addressed to him, it is 
 proper to choose the medium most suitable to the 
 
SPECIAL MEDIUMS. 245 
 
 purpose ; to take the first one at hand is to be ex- 
 posed to the reception of incomplete or erroneous 
 answers. Let us take a comparison from ordinary 
 usage. An editorial, even a simple copy, would not be 
 confided to the first comer, because he might know 
 how to write. A musician wants a bit of singing exe- 
 cuted, of his own composition ; he has at his disposal 
 several singers, all skillful ; yet he does not take by 
 chance : he will choose for his interpreter the one 
 whose voice, expression, all whose qualities, in fact, 
 best answer to the nature of the music. The spirits 
 do the same with regard to the medium, and wc 
 should do as do the spirits. 
 
 It is, besides, to be remarked, that the shades that 
 medmmship presents, and to which others might be 
 added, are not always related to the character of the 
 medium ; thus, for instance, a medium naturally gay 
 and jovial, might habitually have grave, even severe 
 communications, and vice versa ; here, again, is an evi- 
 dent proof that he acts under a foreign influence. We 
 shall return to this subject in the chapter that treats 
 of the Moral Influence of the Medium. 
 
Chapter XVII. 
 
 FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 
 
 Development of Mediums hip. — Change of Writing. — 
 Loss and Suspension of Mediums hip. 
 
 Development of Mediums hip. 
 
 200. We shall speak here especially of writing medi- 
 ums, because that is the most wide-spread mediumship, 
 and because it is, at the same time, the simplest and 
 most convenient, that which gives the most satisfactory 
 and most complete results ; it is also the one all per- 
 sons desire. Unhappily, up to this time there is no 
 diagnostic that can indicate, even approximately, the 
 possession of this faculty ; the physical signs in which 
 some have believed they could discover such indica- 
 tions have in them no certainty. It is found in chil- 
 dren and in the aged, among men and among women, 
 whatever may be the temperament, the state of health, 
 the degree of intellectual or moral development. There 
 is but one single means to prove its existence ; that is 
 to make the trial. 
 
 Writing can be obtained, as we have seen, by means 
 cf baskets and planchettes, or directly with the hand ; 
 this last method being the easier, and, we may say, the 
 only one at present employed, it is the one to which 
 we shall give the preference. The process is of the 
 simplest : it consists solely in taking pencil and paper, 
 
 246 
 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 247 
 
 and the position of writing, without other preparation ; 
 but to succeed, several recommendations are indis- 
 pensable. 
 
 201. As a material point, we recommend the avoid- 
 ance of everything that can interfere with the free 
 motion of the hand ; it is even preferable that it should 
 not rest at all on the paper. The point of the pencil 
 should rest enough to trace, but not enough to experi- 
 ence any resistance. All these precautions are. use- 
 less when the person has come to write easily, for 
 then no obstacle can arrest it : these are only the pre- 
 liminaries of the scholar. 
 
 202. It is indifferent whether the pen or the pencil 
 be used ; some mediums prefer the pen ; but it is only 
 convenient to those who are formed and who write 
 steadily ; there are some who write with such velocity 
 that the use of the pen would be almost impossible, or, 
 at least, very inconvenient ; it is the same when the 
 writing is jerky and irregular, or when violent spirits 
 are communicating, who strike with the point, and 
 break it, tearing the paper. 
 
 203. The desire of all who aspire to be mediums is, 
 naturally, to be able to converse with the spirits of 
 persons who are dear to them ; but they must moderate 
 their impatience, for communication with an especial 
 spirit frequently offers material difficulties that render 
 it impossible for the beginner. In order that a spirit 
 may communicate, there must be between him and the 
 medium fluidic relations, which are not always instantly 
 established ; it is only as the faculty is developed that 
 the medium acquires, little by little, the fitness to enter 
 into relation with the first comer. It may be, then, 
 that the one with whom communication is desired may 
 not be in propitious condition to make it, notwithstand- 
 
248 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 ing Jiis presence, as it may also be that he has neither the 
 possibility nor the permission to come at the call that 
 is made. This is why it is best, in the beginning, not 
 to persist in asking for one spirit to the exclusion of 
 alt others ; for it often happens that fluidic relations are 
 not established with that one most easily, whatever 
 may be the sympathy for him. So, before expecting 
 to obtain communications from such or such a spirit, 
 it is necessary to press the development of the faculty, 
 and for that purpose make a general appeal, and, above 
 all, address yourself to your guardian angel. 
 
 There is no particular form to be used ; whoever 
 pretends to give one may boldly be taxed with jug- 
 glery, because, for spirits, form is nothing. The in- 
 vocation should always be made in the name of God ; 
 it may be made in the following terms, or in something- 
 equivalent : / pray Almighty God to permit a good 
 spirit to communicate with me, and make me write ; I 
 pray, also, my guardian angel kindly to help me, and 
 drive away bad spirits. Then wait until a spirit mani- 
 fests himself by writing something. It may be that it 
 will be the one desired, or it may be the spirit of a 
 stranger, or the guardian angel ; in any case he gen- 
 erally makes himself known by writing his name ; but 
 then comes the question of identity, one that requires 
 the most experience, for there are few beginners who 
 are not liable to be deceived. We treat of this after- 
 ward in a special chapter. 
 
 When it is desired to call certain spirits, it is very 
 essential, in the beginning, to address only those 
 known to be good and sympathetic, and who might 
 have a motive for coming, as relations or friends. In 
 this case the invocation might be thus expressed : In 
 tJie name of Almighty God I pray the spirit of such a 
 
FORMA TION OF MEDIUMS. 249 
 
 one, to communicate with me : or, I pray Almighty God 
 to permit tlie spirit of so and so to communicate with 
 me : or any other form answering to the same thought. 
 It is not the less necessary that the first questions 
 should be so contrived that the answer may be simply 
 yes or no, as, for instance, Are you there? Will you 
 answer me ? Can you make me write ? &c. Later this 
 precaution will be useless : we are speaking only of the 
 beginning, when the relation is to be established : the 
 essential thing is, that the question be not useless ; that 
 it does not pertain to things of private interest ; and 
 above all, that it be the expression of a benevolent' and 
 sympathetic sentiment for the spirit addressed. (See, 
 later, the special chapter on Invocations.) 
 
 204. One thing still more important to observe 
 than the mode of appeal, is calm and concentration of 
 thought joined to an ardent desire and a firm will to 
 succeed ; and, by will, we do not understand an ephem- 
 eral will, that acts by jerks, and is, at each minute, 
 interrupted by other preoccupations ; but a serious, 
 persevering, sustained will, without impatience or fever- 
 ish desire. Concentration of thought is favored by 
 solitude, silence, and the removal of all that might dis- 
 tract the attention. But one thing more remains to be 
 done ; every day renew the effort for ten minutes or a 
 quarter of an hour, and that during fifteen days, a 
 month, two months, and more if necessary : we know 
 mediums who were not formed until after six months' 
 practice, while others write easily from the first. 
 
 205. To avoid useless attempts, a serious and ad- 
 vanced spirit can be interrogated through another 
 medium ; but we must here remark that when the 
 question of whether a person is or is not a medium is 
 addressed to the spirits, they almost always answer 
 
250 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 affirmatively, which yet does not prevent the efforts 
 from being unfruitful. This may be very naturally 
 explained. A general question is put to the spirit ; he 
 answers in a general manner ; for, as every one knows, 
 nothing is more elastic than the medianimic faculty, 
 as it can be displayed under the most varied forms, 
 and in very different degrees. A person thus may 
 be a medium without perceiving it, and in a different 
 sense from the one thought of. To this vague ques- 
 tion, Am I a medium ? the spirit may answer, Yes : to 
 the more exact one, Am I a writing medium ? he may 
 answer, No. The nature of the spirit questioned must 
 also be taken into consideration ; there are some so 
 trifling and so ignorant that they answer at random, 
 like veritable dunces : this is why we say, address en- 
 lightened spirits, who usually answer these questions 
 willingly, and indicate the best method to pursue if 
 there is a possibility of success. 
 
 206. One method, which often succeeds, consists in 
 employing as temporary auxiliary a good, flexible writ- 
 ing medium already formed. If he rests his hand or 
 his fingers on the hand that is wanted to write, it is 
 seldom that it does not succeed immediately : this is 
 easily comprehended : the hand that holds the pencil 
 becomes, in a manner, an appendage to the hand of 
 the medium, like a basket or a planchette ; but that 
 does not prevent this exercise from being very useful 
 when it can be done, inasmuch as if, often and regu- 
 larly repeated, it helps to overcome the material ob- 
 stacle, and develop the faculty. Magnetizing strongly 
 the arm and hand will sometimes suffice ; often even 
 the magnetizer may simply rest his hand on the 
 shoulder, and we have seen persons write at once 
 under this influence. The same effect may be pro- 
 
FORMA TIOX OF MEDIUMS. 25 I 
 
 duced without contact, by the sole effort of will. It 
 may easily be seen that the confidence of the mag- 
 netizer to produce this result will make a great differ- 
 ence, and that a skeptical one would have little or no 
 action. 
 
 The concurrence of an experienced guide is, besides, 
 sometimes useful to make the beginner observe a num- 
 ber of little precautions, which he often neglects, to the 
 detriment of the rapidity of his progress ; and especially 
 to enlighten him on the nature of the first questions, 
 and the manner of proposing them. His part is that 
 of a professor, to be dispensed with when the person 
 is sufficiently skillful. 
 
 207. Another means, that may also powerfully con- 
 tribute to the development of the faculty, consists in 
 gathering together a certain number of persons all 
 animated by the same desire and by a community of 
 intention ; then let all simultaneously, in absolute 
 silence, and with a religious concentration, try to 
 write, each appealing to his guardian angel or to 
 some sympathetic spirit. One of them may, without 
 special designation, and for all the members of the 
 assembly, make a general appeal to good spirits, say- 
 ing, for instance, /;/ the name of Almighty God, we 
 fray good spirits to please communicate by the persons 
 here present. It is very seldom that among the num- 
 ber there will not be some who give prompt signs of 
 mediumship, or even write easily in a very short time. 
 
 This can be readily explained. Persons united by a 
 community of intention form a collective whole, whose 
 power and susceptibility are increased by a kind of 
 magnetic influence which aids in the development of 
 the faculty. Among the spirits attracted by this con- 
 course of wills, there are some who find the instrument 
 
252 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 suited to them ; if not one, it will be another, and they 
 profit by it. 
 
 This method is suited to a circle of spiritists who 
 are in want of mediums, or who have not a sufficient 
 number. 
 
 208. Processes for the formation of mediums have 
 been sought for as people seek diagnostics ; but as yet 
 we know of none more efficacious than those we have 
 indicated. In the persuasion that the obstacle to the 
 development of the faculty is an entirely material re- 
 sistance, some pretend to overcome it by a kind of 
 gymnastics almost dislocating the arm and head. We 
 do not describe this process, which comes to us from 
 across the Atlantic, not only because we have no proof 
 of its efficacy, but from the conviction we have that 
 it may be dangerous to delicate constitutions by the 
 disturbance of the nervous system. If the rudiments 
 of the faculty do not exist, nothing can give them, not 
 even electricity, which has been unsuccessfully em- 
 ployed for -the same end. 
 
 209. Faith in the apprentice medium is not an ab- 
 solute condition ; it seconds the efforts, certainly, but 
 is not indispensable : purity of intention, desire, and 
 good will are sufficient. Perfectly skeptical persons 
 have been known to be surprised by writing in spite 
 of themselves, while sincere believers could not ; which 
 proves this faculty to be an organic predisposition. 
 (Note 10.) ' 
 
 210. The first indication of a disposition to write, 
 is a kind of trembling in the arm and hand ; little by 
 little the hand is carried along by an impulse that it 
 cannot master. It often traces, at first, but insignifi- 
 cant signs ; then the characters are drawn more and 
 more clearly, and it ends by acquiring the rapidity of 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 253 
 
 ordinary writing. In all cases the hand must be aban- 
 doned to its natural movement, neither resisting nor 
 propelling. 
 
 Some mediums write easily and rapidly from the 
 beginning, sometimes even from the first sitting, which 
 is quite rare ; others for a long time make lines and 
 genuine calligraphic exercises ; the spirits say to limber 
 the hand. If these exercises are too prolonged, or de- 
 generate into ridiculous signs, there can be no doubt 
 it is a spirit amusing himself, for good spirits never do 
 anything useless : in such case it is necessary to ap- 
 peal to them with redoubled fervor. If, in spite of 
 that, there is no change, stop as soon as it is found 
 nothing serious can be obtained. The attempt may 
 be renewed daily, but it is best to cease at the first 
 equivocal signs, so as not to give such satisfaction to 
 mocking spirits. 
 
 To these observations a spirit adds, "There are medi- 
 ums whose faculty cannot go beyond these signs ; when, 
 at the end of some months, they obtain nothing but in- 
 significant things, yes or no, or letters without continu- 
 ance, it is useless to persist in soiling paper in pure 
 loss : they are mediums, but unproductive mediums. 
 The first communications obtained should be con- 
 sidered only as exercises confided to Secondary spir- 
 its ; but slight importance should be atached to them, 
 because of the spirits who are, so to say, employed as 
 writing-masters to teach the beginner ; for believe not 
 that they are elevated spirits who take the medium 
 through these preparatory exercises ; only it happens 
 that, if the medium have no serious end in view, these 
 spirits remain, and attach themselves to him. Nearly 
 all mediums have gone through this crucible to be de- 
 
254 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 veloped ; it is for them to do all they can to conciliate 
 truly superior spirits. 
 
 211. The rock on which most debutants split, is 
 having to do with inferior spirits ; and they should 
 think themselves happy when they are only trifling 
 spirits. All their attention should be given to not al- 
 lowing them to take footing ; for once anchored it is not 
 always easy to be relieved from them. This is such 
 a special point, particularly in the beginning, that, 
 without the necessary precautions, the fruit of the 
 finest faculties may be lost. 
 
 The primary point consists in putting one's self, with 
 a sincere faith, under the protection of God, and im- 
 ploring the assistance of one's guardian angel, who is 
 always good, while the familiar spirit, sympathizing 
 with the good or bad qualities of the medium, may be 
 trifling, or even bad. 
 
 The second point is to ascertain with scrupulous 
 care, by every indication experience furnishes, the na- 
 ture of the first spirits that communicate, and of whom 
 it is always prudent to beware. If these indications 
 are suspicious, a fervent appeal must be made to the 
 guardian angel, and the bad spirit repulsed with the 
 whole strength, proving to him that you are not his 
 dupe, in order.to discourage him. This is why a pre- 
 vious study of the theory is indispensable, if the dan- 
 gers inseparable from inexperience would be avoided : 
 fully developed instructions on this subject w^ll be 
 found in the chapters on Obsession and Identity of 
 Spirits. We shall limit ourselves at this time to say- 
 ing that, besides the language, all signs, figures, use- 
 less or trifling emblems, all absurd writing, jerky, 
 designedly twisted, of exaggerated dimensions, or af- 
 fecting ridiculous or unusual forms, are infallible proofs 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 255 
 
 of the inferiority of the spirits ; the writing may be 
 very bad, quite illegible even, which is more the fault 
 of the medium than of the spirit, without being at all 
 unusual. We have seen mediums so deceived that 
 they measure the superiority of the spirits by the 
 dimensions of the characters, and who attached great 
 importance to letters modelled like print — a puerility 
 evidently incompatible with real superiority. 
 
 212. If it is important not to fall unwillingly into 
 the power of bad spirits, it is still more so not to put 
 one's self into a state of dependence upon them volun- 
 tarily ; and an immoderate desire to write should not 
 lead to the belief that it is indifferent to address the 
 first comer, hoping to be rid of him later, if he should 
 not suit, for assistance in anything is not asked of a 
 bad spirit with impunity ; he can always make one pay 
 dearly for his services. 
 
 Some persons, impatient for the development in 
 themselves of the medianimic faculty, — too slow in its 
 growth for them, — have had the idea of calling to 
 their aid any spirit whatever, even a bad one, intending 
 to dismiss him afterward. Many have been served to 
 their wish, and have written at once ; but the spirit, 
 not caring to be taken as a makeshift, has been less 
 docile to go than to come. We know some who have 
 been punished for their presumption in thinking them- 
 selves strong enough to drive them away as they 
 pleased, by years of obsessions of every kind, by the 
 most ridiculous mystifications, by a tenacious fascina- 
 tion, and even by material misfortunes and the most 
 cruel deceptions. The spirit at first showed himself 
 openly wicked, then hypocritical, in order to lead to a 
 belief in his conversion, or in the pretended power of 
 his victim, to drive him away at will. 
 
256 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 213. The writing is sometimes very legible, words 
 and letters perfectly detached ; but with some mediums 
 it is difficult to decipher for any other than the one 
 who writes it ; the habit must be acquired. It is quite 
 often formed in large characters ; the spirits are little 
 economical of paper. When a word or phrase is illegi- 
 ble, ask the spirit to please begin again, which he is 
 usually willing to do. When the writing is habitually 
 illegible, even for the medium, he can almost always 
 succeed in obtaining clearer copy by frequent and con- 
 tinued practice, bringing to it a strong will, and ear- 
 nestly requesting the spirit to be more correct. Some 
 spirits often adopt conventional signs, which pass cur- 
 rent in habitual circles. To mark when a question 
 displeases them, or they do not wish to answer, they 
 will, for instance, make a long bar, or something equiva- 
 lent. 
 
 When the spirit has finished what he had to say, 
 or will no longer answer, the hand remains immova- 
 ble, and the medium, be his power and will what they 
 may, can obtain no further word. On the contrary, 
 until the spirit has finished, the pencil goes on with- 
 out the hand being able to'stop it. If he wish to say 
 something spontaneously, the hand seizes the pencil 
 convulsively, and begins to write without power to 
 oppose it. The medium almost always feels within 
 him something that indicates, if it is only a suspension, 
 or if the spirit has ended. It is seldom he does not 
 feel when he is gone. 
 
 Such are the most essential explanations we have to 
 give concerning the development of psychography ; ex- 
 perience will show, in the practice, certain details use- 
 less to bring in here, and for which each one must be 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 257 
 
 guided by general principles. Let every one try, 
 and there will be found more mediums than are sup- 
 posed. 
 
 214. All that we have said applies to mechanical writ- 
 ing ; it is that all mediums seek to obtain, and with 
 reason ; but purely mechanical writing is very rare ; it 
 is more or less mixed with intuition. The medium, 
 having the consciousness of what he writes, is, natural- 
 ly, prone to doubt his faculty ; he does not know if it 
 comes from himself or the foreign spirit. He need 
 not be disquieted, and should continue all the same ; 
 let him observe with care, and he will easily recognize 
 in what he writes a crowd of things not in his thought, 
 that even are contrary to it — evident proof that they 
 do not come from him. Let him then continue, and 
 doubt will be dissipated by experience. 
 
 215. If it is not given to a medium to be entirely 
 mechanical, all attempts to obtain this result will be 
 fruitless ; yet he will do wrong to think himself disin- 
 herited : if he be endowed only with intuitive medium- 
 ship, he must be content with it, and it will not fail to 
 be of great service to him, if he knows how to profit 
 by it, and does not repulse it. 
 
 If, after useless attempts followed up for some time, 
 no indication of involuntary movement is produced, or 
 if these movements are too weak to give results, he 
 should not hesitate to write the first thought suggested 
 to him, without troubling himself as to whether it 
 come from himself or a foreign source ; experience will 
 teach him to make the distinction. It very often hap- 
 pens that the mechanical movement will be ulteriorly 
 developed. 
 
 We have said above that there are cases in which it 
 is indifferent to know if the thought is from the medium 
 
258 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 or a foreign spirit ; when a purely intuitive or inspired 
 medium writes a work of imagination, it is little matter 
 if he should attribute to himself a thought suggested 
 to him ; if good ideas come to him, let him thank 
 his good genius, and he will have other good ones 
 suggested to him. Such is the inspiration of poets, 
 philosophers, and savants. 
 
 216. Let us now suppose the medianimic faculty 
 completely developed ; that the medium writes with 
 facility ; in a word, let him be what is called a formed 
 medium ; it will be very wrong on his part to think he 
 can dispense with all further instruction ; he has over- 
 come only a material resistance ; but then begin for 
 him the real difficulties, and he has, more than ever, 
 need^ of the advice of prudence and experience, if he 
 would not fall into the thousand traps that will be set 
 for him. If he would fly with his own wings, it will 
 not be long before he will be the dupe of lying spirits, 
 who will try to make capital from his presumption. 
 
 217. When the faculty is developed with a medium, 
 it is essential that he should not abuse it. The satis- 
 faction it gives to some beginners excites in them an 
 enthusiasm it is important to moderate ; they should 
 remember that it is given to them to do good, and not 
 to satisfy a vain curiosity ; this is why it is best to use 
 it only at opportune moments, and not at every in- 
 stant ; spirits not being constantly at their orders, 
 they run the risk of being dupes of mystifiers. It is 
 well to adopt certain days and hours for this purpose, 
 for then greater concentration can be brought to it, 
 and the spirits who desire to come are informed, and 
 consequently prepared. 
 
 218. If, in spite of all efforts, mediumship is in no 
 way revealed, it must be renounced, as a person gives 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 259 
 
 up singing who has no voice. One who does not know 
 a language uses an interpreter ; he must do the same 
 here, that is, have recourse to another medium. In 
 default of a medium, he must not think himself de- 
 prived of the assistance of the spirits. Mediumship is 
 for them a means of expressing themselves, but not an 
 exclusive means of attraction ; those who love us are 
 near us whether we be mediums or not : a father does 
 not abandon his child because this child is deaf and 
 blind, and can neither see him nor hear him ; he sur- 
 rounds him with his solicitude as the good spirit's do 
 for us ; if they cannot transmit their thoughts to us 
 materially, they come to aid us by inspiration. 
 
 Change of Writing. 
 
 219. A very ordinary phenomenon, with writing 
 mediums, is the change of writing according to the 
 spirits who communicate ; and what is more remarka- 
 ble, the same writing is constantly reproduced with 
 the same spirit, and sometimes it is identical with that 
 he had while living ; we shall see, by and by, the re- 
 sults that may be drawn from this as to identity. The 
 change of writing takes place only with those medi- 
 ums who are mechanical or semi-mechanical, because 
 with them the movement of the hand is involuntary, 
 and directed by the spirit ; it is not the same with 
 mediums purely intuitive, for in such case the spirit 
 acts solely on the thought, and the hand is directed by 
 the will, as in ordinary circumstances, but the uniform- 
 ity of the writing, even with a mechanical medium, 
 proves absolutely nothing against the faculty, change 
 not being an absolute condition in the manifestations 
 of the spirits ; it pertains to a special aptitude, with 
 which the most mechanical mediums are not always 
 
260 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 endowed. We designate those who have this aptitude 
 under the name of polygrapliic mediums. 
 
 Loss and Suspension of Mediumship. 
 
 220. The medianimic faculty is subject to intermis- 
 sions and temporary suspensions, whether for physical 
 manifestations or for writing. We give the answers 
 of the spirits to some questions on this subject. 
 
 1. " Can mediums lose their faculty? " 
 
 " That very often happens, whatever kind it may be ; 
 but often it is only a temporary interruption, which 
 ceases with the cause that produced it." 
 
 2. " Is the cause of this loss the exhaustion of the 
 fluid ? " 
 
 " With whatever faculty the medium may be en- 
 dowed, he can do nothing without the sympathetic 
 concurrence of the spirits ; when he obtains nothing, 
 it is not always that the faculty is lacking, but that the 
 spirits will, or can, no longer use him." 
 
 3. " For what cause would the spirits abandon 
 him?" 
 
 " The use he makes of his faculty is the most power- 
 ful with good spirits. We may abandon him when he 
 uses it for frivolities or for ambition ; when he refuses 
 to impart our words or our facts to the incarnated who 
 call to him, or who need to see in order to be con- 
 vinced. This gift of God is not granted to the medium 
 for his good pleasure, and still less to serve his ambi- 
 tion, but for his own advancement, and to make known 
 the truth to men. f If the spirit sees that the medium 
 no longer answers his views, and does not profit by his 
 instructions, and by the warnings he gives him, he 
 retires to find a more worthy protege. 
 
 4. " Might not the spirit who withdraws be replaced, 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 26 1 
 
 and thus the suspension of the faculty not be under- 
 stood ? " 
 
 " Spirits are not wanting who ask nothing better 
 than to communicate, and are ready enough to replace 
 those who withdraw ; but when it is a good spirit who 
 forsakes the medium, it may very well be that he leaves 
 him only temporarily, and deprives him for a certain 
 time of all communication in order to give him a 
 lesson, and prove to him that his faculty depends not 
 on himself ] and that he should not be vain of it. This 
 temporary impotence is also to give the medium a 
 proof that he writes under a foreign influence ; other- 
 wise there would be no intermittence in it. 
 
 " Yet the interruption of the faculty is not always in 
 punishment ; it is sometimes a proof of the solicitude 
 of the spirit for the medium, whom he loves ; he would 
 by that means procure him a material rest, which he 
 sees to be necessary, and in such case he does not 
 permit other spirits to replace him." 
 
 5. " Yet we see mediums, very meritorious in a moral 
 point of view, who experience no need of rest, and are 
 annoyed by interruptions, whose motive they cannot 
 understand." 
 
 " It is in order to put their patience to the proof, and 
 to judge of their perseverance ; this is why the spirits 
 assign no general end to this suspension ; they wish 
 to see if the medium will become disheartened. It is 
 often, also, to leave them time to meditate on the in- 
 structions they have given them, and this meditation 
 on our teachings we recommend to all truly serious 
 spiritists ; we cannot give this name to those who, in 
 reality, are only amateurs of communications." 
 
 6. " Is it necessary in this case for the medium to 
 continue his attempts to write ? " 
 
262 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " If the spirit so advise him, yes : if he tells him to 
 abstain, he should do so." 
 
 7. " Is there any way to abridge this trial ? " 
 
 " Resignation and prayer. It is enough that he 
 make the attempt for a few minutes every day, for it 
 would be useless to lose time in fruitless efforts ; the 
 attempt has no other end but to see if the faculty is 
 recovered.'*' 
 
 8. " Does the suspension imply the absence of the 
 spirits who were accustomed to communicate ? " 
 
 tl Not the least in the world ; the medium is then 
 like a person who has temporarily lost his sight, but is 
 none the less surrounded by his friends, though he 
 cannot see them. The medium can then, and should, 
 continue to converse by thought with his familiar 
 spirits, and feel convinced that he is heard by them. 
 If the lack of mediumship can deprive him of material 
 communications with spirits, it cannot deprive of moral 
 communications." 
 
 9. " Then the interruption of the medianimic faculty 
 does not always imply blame on the part of the 
 spirits ? " 
 
 " No, doubtless ; for it may be a proof of good 
 will." 
 
 10. "By what sign can blame be recognized in the 
 interruption ? " 
 
 " Let the medium question his conscience ; let him 
 ask himself what use he has made of his faculty ; the 
 good that has resulted from it to others ; the profit lie 
 has drawn from the advice that has been given him, 
 and he will have the answer." 
 
 11. " Cannot the medium who can no longer write 
 have recourse to another medium ? " 
 
 " That depends upon the cause of the 'interruption ; 
 
FORMATION OF MEDIUMS. 263 
 
 it may often have for a motive to leave you some time 
 without communications, after having given you advice, 
 in order that you may not become accustomed to do 
 nothing without us ; in such case he will be no more 
 satisfied in using another medium ; and in that is still 
 a motive, to prove to you that the spirits are free, and 
 that you cannot make them come and go at your will. 
 It is also for this reason that those who are not medi- 
 ums do not always have all the communications they 
 desire." 
 
 Remark. It must be observed that he who has re- 
 course to a third for communications, notwithstanding 
 the quality of the medium, often obtains nothing satis- 
 factory, while at other times the answers are very 
 explicit. That depends so much on the will of the 
 spirit, that you are no further advanced by changing 
 the medium ; the spirits even seem in that respect to 
 give each other the word, for if nothing is obtained 
 from one, you get no more from another. We should 
 be careful not to persist or become impatient, if we 
 would not be the dupe of deceiving spirits, who will 
 answer if we wish it with all our strength, and the 
 good will allow them, to punish us for our persist- 
 ence. 
 
 12. "For what reason has Providence endowed cer- 
 tain individuals with mediumship in a special manner?" 
 
 " It is a mission with which they are charged, and 
 which they are happy in filling ; they are interpreters 
 between spirits and men." 
 
 1 3. " Yet there are mediums who employ their faculty 
 only with repugnance." 
 
 11 Those are imperfect mediums ; they do not know 
 the value of the favor accorded to them." 
 
 14. " If it be a mission, how does it happen that it 
 
264 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 is not the privilege of good men, and that this faculty 
 should be given to people who merit no esteem, and 
 who may abuse it ? " 
 
 " It is given to them because they need it for their 
 own advancement, and in order that they may receive 
 good instruction ; if they do not profit by it, they will 
 suffer the consequences. Did not Jesus prefer to give 
 His word to fishermen, saying, He must give to him 
 who has not ? " 
 
 15. " Should those who have a great desire to write, 
 and who cannot succeed, conclude there is something 
 against them in the kind feelings of the spirits on this 
 account ? " 
 
 " No ; for God may have refused them this faculty, 
 as He may have refused them the gift of poetry or 
 music ; but if they have not this favor, they may have 
 others." 
 
 16. " How can a man perfect himself by the instruc- 
 tions of spirits, when he has neither by himself, nor 
 by other mediums, the means of directly receiving this 
 teaching ? " 
 
 " Has he not books, as the Christian has the Gospel ? 
 To practice the morality of Jesus, the Christian does 
 not need to hear the words from His very mouth." 
 
Chapter XVIII. 
 
 INCONVENIENCES AND DANGERS OF 
 MEDIUMSHIR 
 
 Influence of the Exercise of Mediums hip on the Health ; 
 on the Brain ; on Children. 
 
 221. I. M Is the medianimic faculty an indication of 
 a pathological state, or simply abnormal ? " 
 
 " Abnormal sometimes, but not pathological ; there 
 are mediums of robust health ; those who are sick are 
 so from other causes." 
 
 2. " Can the exercise of the medianimic faculty occa- 
 sion fatigue ? " 
 
 " The too prolonged exercise of any faculty what- 
 ever leads to fatigue : mediumship is the same, prin- 
 cipally those who apply themselves to physical effects ; 
 it necessarily occasions an outlay of fluid which leads 
 to fatigue, and is repaired by rest." 
 
 3. " Has the exercise of mediumship dangers of 
 itself, in a hygienic point of view, even if not abused ? " 
 
 " There are cases where it is prudent, necessary 
 even, to abstain from it, or, at least, to moderate its 
 use ; that depends on the physical and moral state of 
 the medium. Besides, the medium generally feels it, 
 and when he experiences fatigue, he should abstain." 
 
 4. " Are there some persons for whom this exercise 
 is more unsuitable than for others ? " 
 
 " I have said that it depends upon the physical and 
 
 26s 
 
266 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 moral state of the medium. There are persons to 
 whom it is necessary to avoid every cause for excite- 
 ment, and this is of the number." (Nos. 188-194.) 
 
 5. " Can mediumship produce insanity ? " 
 
 " No more than anything else, when there is no 
 predisposition, owing to weakness of the brain. Me- 
 diumship will not produce insanity when the germ is 
 not there ; but if the germ exists, which is very easy 
 to know from the moral state, good sense says that 
 careful management is necessary in every way, for the 
 least shock might be injurious." 
 
 6. " Is there danger in developing mediumship in 
 children ? " 
 
 " Certainly ; and I maintain that it is very danger- 
 ous ; for these tender and delicate organizations would 
 be too much shaken, and their young imagination 
 over-excited. Wise parents will remove all these 
 ideas from them, or at least speak to them only of the 
 moral consequences." 
 
 7. " Yet there are children who are naturally medi- 
 ums for physical effects, for writing, and for visions : 
 has that dangers ? " 
 
 " No ; when the faculty is spontaneous in a child, it 
 is in its nature, and its constitution agrees with it ; it 
 is not the same when induced and over-excited. Re- 
 mark, that the child who has visions is generally very 
 little impressed by them ; it seems to him a perfectly 
 natural thing, to which he gives but little attention, 
 and often forgets : later the fact returns to his mind, 
 and if he knows anything of Spiritism, he can easily 
 explain it." 
 
 8. ' At what age, without danger, can a person prac- 
 tice mediumship ? " 
 
 " There is no precise age ; it depends upon develop- 
 
DANGERS OF AfEDIUMSHIP. 267 
 
 ment, physical, but still more upon moral. There are 
 children of twelve years who would be less affected 
 by it than some grown persons. I speak of medium- 
 ship in general, but that which applies to physical 
 effects is more fatiguing, corporeally ; writing has one 
 great danger for a child, on account of inexperience ; 
 he might engage in it alone, and make it a matter of 
 sport." 
 
 222. The practice of Spiritism, as we shall see, de- 
 mands much tact to unmask the tricks of deceiving 
 spirits ; if grown men are their dupes, childhood and 
 youth are still more exposed, from their inexperience. 
 It is well known that concentration of thought ' is a 
 condition without which we can have no intercourse 
 with serious spirits ; invocations made with careless- 
 ness, or in a joking way, are a real profanation, which 
 gives easy access to mocking or mischievous spirits ; 
 and as the necessary gravity for such an act cannot be 
 expected of a child, it may readily be feared that, if 
 left to himself, he would make a play of it. Even 
 under the most favorable conditions, it is to be desired 
 that a child gifted with the medianimic faculty should 
 exercise it only under the eye of experienced persons, 
 who will teach him, by their example, the respect due 
 to souls that have already lived. 
 
 It will be seen from this, that the question of age is 
 subordinate to the circumstances as much of tempera- 
 ment as of character. At all events, the clear results 
 of the answers given above are not to press this fac- 
 ulty to development with children, when it is not spon- 
 taneous, and that, in all cases, it must be used with 
 great circumspection ; that it must be neither excited 
 nor encouraged in debilitated persons. Those who 
 have ever displayed the least symptoms of eccentric!- 
 
268 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 ty, either in ideas or in weakness of mental faculties, 
 should, by every possible means, be dissuaded from it ; 
 for there is, with them, an evident predisposition to 
 insanity, which any too exciting cause may develop. 
 The spirit ideas have not a greater influence for this, 
 but insanity, once aroused, would take the character 
 of the predominant preoccupation, as it would take a 
 religious character, if the person abandons himself to 
 excess in devotional practices ; and every one would 
 consider Spiritism responsible. The best thing to do 
 with any one who shows a tendency toward a fixed 
 idea, is to direct his mind to other things, that so the 
 weakened organs may rest. 
 
 In this connection, we call the attention of our 
 reader to paragraph XII. of the introduction to the 
 Book 071 Spirits. 
 
Chapter XIX. 
 
 ROLE OF THE MEDIUM IN SPIRIT COM- 
 MUNICATIONS. 
 
 Influence of the Personal Spirit of the Medium. — 
 System of Inej't Mediums. — Aptitude of some Me- 
 diums for Tilings they do not know: Languages, 
 Music, Drawing, &c. — Dissertation of a Spirit on 
 the Rote of Mediums. 
 
 223. 1. "Is the medium, at the time of exercising 
 his faculty, in a perfectly normal state ? " 
 
 " He is sometimes in a state of crisis more or less 
 pronounced ; this is what fatigues him, and why he 
 needs rest ; but more often his state does not sensi- 
 bly differ from the normal state, especially in writing 
 mediums." 
 
 2. " Can written or verbal communications also pro- 
 ceed from the spirit incarnated in the medium ? " 
 
 " The soul of the medium may communicate, like 
 that of any other ; if it enjoy a certain degree of lib- 
 erty it recovers its qualities of spirit. You have the 
 proof of this in the soul of living persons who come to 
 visit you, and communicate to you by writing, often 
 without your calling them. 
 
 " For you must know that among the spirits you 
 invoke, there are some who are incarnated on the 
 earth ; then they talk to you as spirits, and not as men. 
 
 269 . 
 
270 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Why should you suppose it cannot be the same with 
 that of the medium ? " 
 
 " This explanation seems to confirm the opinion of 
 those who believe that all communications emanate 
 from the spirit of the medium, and not from foreign 
 spirits." 
 
 " They are wrong only because they are absolute ; 
 for while it is certain that the spirit of the medium can 
 act by himself, this is no reason that others cannot act 
 through him." 
 
 3. " How may it be known if the spirit who answers 
 is that of the medium, or a foreign spirit." 
 
 "By the nature of the communications. Study the 
 circumstances and the language, and you will distin- 
 guish. It is more particularly in the state of som- 
 nambulism, or ecstasy, that the spirit of the medium 
 manifests itself, because it is then more free ; but in 
 the normal state, it is more difficult. Besides, there 
 are answers it is impossible to ascribe to him : this is 
 why I tell you to study and observe." 
 
 Remark. When a person speaks to us, we readily 
 distinguish what comes from him, or what is only an 
 echo ; it is the same with mediums. 
 
 4. " As the spirit of the medium may have acquired 
 knowledge in his former existences, which he has for- 
 gotten • under his corporeal envelope, but which he 
 remembers as spirit, can he not draw from his own 
 sources the ideas that seem to surpass the breadth of 
 his instruction ? " 
 
 " That often happens in the somnambulic or ecstatic 
 crisis ; but even then there are circumstances that 
 admit no doubt; study long and meditate." 
 
 5. "Are the communications coming from the me- 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 27 1 
 
 dium always inferior to those that might be made by 
 foreign spirits ? " 
 
 " Not always ; for the foreign spirit may himself be 
 of an order inferior to that of the medium, and then 
 speak less sensibly. It is seen in somnambulism, for 
 then it is most often the somnambulist's spirit who 
 manifests himself, and who yet says some very good 
 things." 
 
 6. " Does the spirit who communicates by a medium 
 transmit his thought direct ; or has he the spirit in- 
 carnated in the medium as an intermediary ? " 
 
 " The spirit of the medium is the interpreter, be- 
 cause he is bound to the body that serves us to speak, 
 and a chain is necessary between you and foreign 
 spirits who communicate, as an electric wire is neces- 
 sary to transmit news from afar, and at the end of 
 the wire an intelligent person, who receives and trans- 
 mits it." 
 
 7. " Does the spirit incarnated in the medium influ- 
 ence the communications he has to transmit from for- 
 eign spirits ? " 
 
 11 Yes ; if he is not in sympathy with them, he may 
 alter their answers, and assimilate them to his own 
 ideas and inclinations ; but he does not influence the 
 spirits themselves ; he is only a bad interpreter." 
 
 8. " Is this the cause of the preference of spirits 
 for certain mediums ? " 
 
 " There is no other ; they seek the interpreter who 
 best sympathizes with them, and who renders most 
 exactly their thought. If there is not sympathy be- 
 tween them, the spirit of the medium is an antagonist, 
 who brinsis a resistance, and becomes an ill-willed, and 
 often unfaithful, interpreter. It is the same among 
 
272 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 you when the advice of a wise man is transmitted by 
 a blunderer or an insincere person." 
 
 9. " It can easily be supposed that it may be thus 
 with an intuitive medium, but not with those who are 
 mechanical." 
 
 " You do not thoroughly take into consideration the 
 part played by the medium ; there is a law in it you 
 have not yet grasped. Remember that to effect the 
 movement of an inert body, the spirit needs a portion 
 of animalized fluid, which he borrows from the medi- 
 um, to animate, temporarily, the table, before it will 
 obey his will. Well, understand, also, that for an in- 
 telligent communication he needs an intelligent inter- 
 mediary, and that this intermediary is the spirit of the 
 medium." 
 
 — " This does not appear applicable to what are 
 called talking tables ; for when inert objects, such as 
 tables, planchettes, and baskets give intelligent an- 
 swers, it seems as if the spirit of the medium has noth- 
 ing to do with it." 
 
 " That is an error ; the spirit can give to the inert 
 body a momentary, factitious life, but not intelligence : 
 never has an inert body been intelligent. It is, then, 
 the spirit of the medium who receives the thought 
 unwittingly, and gradually transmits it by the help of 
 various intermediaries." 
 
 10. "It seems to result from these explanations that 
 the spirit of the medium is never entirely passive." 
 
 " He is passive when he does not mingle his own 
 ideas with those of the foreign spirit, but he is never 
 absolutely null ; his concurrence is always necessary 
 as intermediary, even in what you call mechanical 
 mediums." 
 
 ii- "Is there not a greater guarantee of indepen- 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 273 
 
 dence in the mechanical medium than in the intu- 
 itive ? " 
 
 " Without doubt ; and for some communications a 
 mechanical medium is preferable ; but when the facul- 
 ties of an intuitive medium are known, it is immaterial, 
 according to circumstances ; I mean, there are com- 
 munications that require less precision." 
 
 12. "Among the different systems that have been 
 set forth to explain the spirit phenomena, is one which 
 consists in believing that the real mediumship is in a 
 body completely inert — is in the basket or the card, 
 for instance, which serves as the instrument ; that the 
 foreign spirit identifies himself with this object, and 
 renders it not only living, but intelligent ; from thence 
 the name of inert mediums given to these objects. 
 What do you think of it ? " 
 
 " There is but one word to say to that : if the spirit 
 had transmitted intelligence to the card, at the same 
 time as life, the card would write alone, without the 
 help of the medium ; it would be strange if an intelli- 
 gent man should become a machine, and an inert 
 object should become intelligent. This is one of the 
 many systems born of a preconceived idea, and which, 
 like so many others, fall before experience and obser- 
 vation." 
 
 13. "A well-known phenomenon — that of tables, 
 baskets, &c, which express, by their movements, anger 
 or affection — might easily accredit the opinion that 
 there is in animated inert bodies more than intelli- 
 gence, even life." 
 
 " When a man shakes a stick in anger, it is not that 
 
 the stick is angry, nor even the hand that holds the 
 
 stick, but the thought that directs the hand ; tables 
 
 and baskets are no more intelligent than the stick ; 
 
 18 
 
274 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 they have not one intelligent sentiment, but obey an 
 intelligence ; in a word, it is not the spirit transformed 
 into a basket, nor even that he lives in it." 
 
 14. "If it be not rational to attribute intelligence to 
 these objects, may they be considered as a variety of 
 mediums, designating them as inert mediums ? " 
 
 "It is but a question of words, which is of little mo- 
 ment to us, provided you understand us. You are free 
 to call a man a puppet." 
 
 15. " Spirits have but the language of thought ; they 
 have no articulate language ; this is why there is, for 
 them, but one single language ; according to that, could 
 a spirit express himself through a medium in a lan- 
 guage he had never spoken during his lifetime, in such 
 case, from whence would he draw the words he would 
 use ? " 
 
 " You have answered your own question by saying 
 that spirits have but one language — that of thought ; 
 this language is understood by all, as well by men as 
 by spirits. The wandering spirit, in addressing him- 
 self to the incarnated spirit of the medium, speaks to 
 him neither French nor English, but the universal 
 language, which is that of thought ; to translate his 
 ideas into an articulate, transmissible language, he 
 draws his words from the medium's vocabulary." 
 
 16. " If this be so, the spirit would be able to express 
 himself only in the language of the medium ; whereas 
 mediums are seen to write in languages unknown to 
 them : is that not a contradiction ? " 
 
 " Understand, in the first place, that all mediums are 
 not fit for this kind of exercise ; and secondly, that the 
 spirits lend themselves to it only incidentally, when they 
 consider it may be useful ; but for ordinary communi- 
 cations, and those of some extent, they prefer to use a 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 2?$ 
 
 language familiar to the medium," because it presents 
 less material difficulty to overcome." 
 
 17. "Does not the aptitude of some mediums for 
 writing in a language foreign to them proceed from 
 the fact of their having been familiar with this language 
 in another existence, and that they may have preserved 
 an intention of it ? " 
 
 " That may be, certainly, but it is not a rule ; the 
 spirit can, with some effort, temporarily overcome the 
 material resistance he encounters — exactly what hap- 
 pens when the medium writes in his own language 
 words he does not understand." 
 
 18. " Could a person who does not know how to 
 write serve as a writing medium ? " 
 
 " Yes ; but you can readily imagine that there would 
 be a great mechanical difficulty to surmount, the hand 
 being unaccustomed to the movement necessary to 
 form the letters. It is the same with drawing medi- 
 ums, who do not know how to draw." 
 
 19. " Could a medium of slight intelligence transmit 
 communications of an elevated order ? " 
 
 " Yes, by the same means that one can write in a 
 language unknown to him. Mediumship, properly so 
 called, is independent of intelligence as well as of the 
 moral qualities, and in default of a better instrument, 
 the spirit can use the one at hand ; but it is natural 
 that, for communications of a certain order, he should 
 prefer the medium who offers the least material obsta- 
 cles. And, then, another consideration : The idiot is 
 often an idiot only from the imperfection of his organs, 
 but his spirit may be more advanced than you sup- 
 pose ; you have a proof of it by certain invocations of 
 idiots, dead or living." 
 
 Remark. This is a fact verified by experience ; we 
 
276 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 have several times invoked living idiots, who have 
 given proofs patent of their identity, and answered in 
 a very sensible and even superior manner. This state 
 is a punishment for the spirit who suffers from the 
 constraint in which he is bound. An idiot medium 
 may sometimes offer to the spirit who desires to mani- 
 fest himself, greater resources than would be supposed. 
 (See Revue Spirite, July, i860, article on Phrenology 
 and Physiognomy.) 
 
 20. " From whence comes the aptitude of some medi- 
 ums to write in verse, notwithstanding their positive 
 ignorance of poetry ? " 
 
 " Poetry is a language ; they can write in verse as 
 they can write in a language they do not know ; and 
 then, too, they may have been poets in another exist- 
 ence ; and, as you have been told, knowledge acquired 
 is never lost to the spirit, who must attain perfection 
 in all things. Thus, what they have known gives them, 
 doubtless, a facility they do not have in the ordinary 
 state." 
 
 21. " Is it the same for those who have a general ap- 
 titude for drawing and music ? " 
 
 " Yes, drawing and music are also methods of ex- 
 pressing the thought ; spirits use the instruments that 
 offer them the greatest facility." 
 
 22. " Does the expression of the thought by poetry, 
 drawing, or music, depend solely on the special apti- 
 tude of the medium, or on that of the spirit who com- 
 municates ? " 
 
 " Sometimes on the medium, sometimes on the spirit. 
 The superior spirits have all aptitudes, the inferior 
 spirits have limited knowledge." 
 
 23. "Why does the man who has a transcendent 
 talent in one existence not have it in a following one?" 
 
ROLE IN SriRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 2J7 
 
 " It is not always so, for often he perfects in one 
 existence what he began in a preceding one ; but it 
 may happen that a transcendent faculty sleeps during 
 a certain time, to leave another more free to be de- 
 veloped ; it is a latent germ, which will be found after- 
 ward, and of which there always remain some traces, 
 or, at least, a vague intuition." 
 
 224. The foreign spirit doubtless understands all 
 languages, as languages are the expression of thought, 
 and as the spirit understands by thought ; but to ren- 
 der this thought he needs an instrument ; this instru- 
 ment is the medium. ■ The soul of the medium who 
 receives the foreign communication can transmit it 
 only by the organs of his body ; and these organs can- 
 not have the same flexibility for an unknown language 
 which they have for the one familiar to them. A 
 medium who knows only French might, incidentally, 
 give an answer in English, for instance, should it 
 please the spirit to do so ; but spirits, who already find 
 the human language too slow, considering the rapidity 
 of thought, though they abridge as much as they can, 
 are impatient of the mechanical resistance they experi- 
 ence ; this is why they do not always do it. This is 
 also the reason a novice medium, who writes laborious- 
 ly and slowly, even in his own language, usually ob- 
 tains but very brief and undeveloped answers ; so the 
 spirits recommend that only simple questions be asked 
 through him. For those of higher bearing it needs a 
 formed medium, who offers no mechanical difficulty to 
 the spirit. We would not take for our reader a scholar 
 who spells. A good workman does not like to use 
 poor implements. 
 
 Let us-add another consideration of great gravity in 
 what concerns foreign languages. Trials of this kind 
 
273 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 are always made from curiosity and for experiment, and 
 nothing is more antipathetic to the spirits than the 
 trials to which persons endeavor to subject them. The 
 superior spirits never lend themselves to it, and leave 
 as soon as this is begun. Inasmuch as they like use- 
 ful and serious things, in so far they dislike to be 
 engaged in frivolities and things without motive. 
 Skeptics will say, "It is to convince us; and that is 
 a useful motive, since it gains believers to their cause." 
 To that the spirits answer, " Our cause has no need 
 of those who have so much pride as to consider them- 
 selves indispensable : we call to us those whom we 
 wish, and they are often the least and the most hum- 
 ble. Did Jesus perform the miracles demanded of him 
 by the scribes, and what men did he use to revolu- 
 tionize the world ? If you desire to be convinced, you 
 have other means than by tricks ; begin first by sub- 
 mitting yourselves : it is not in order that the scholar 
 should impose his will upon his teacher." 
 
 It thus results that, with some exceptions, the medi- 
 um renders the thoughts of the spirits by the mechani- 
 cal means at his disposal, and that the expression of 
 this thought may, and most often must, partake of the 
 imperfection of these means ; thus, the uncultured man, 
 the peasant, might say the most beautiful things, ex- 
 press the most elevated, most philosophical thoughts, 
 speaking as a peasant, for it is well known that with 
 the spirits the thought is all. 
 
 This answers the objections of some critics on the 
 subject of the incorrectness of style and of orthography 
 with which they may reproach the spirit, and which 
 may come from the medium, as well as from the spirit. 
 It is frivolous to care for such things. It is not less 
 puerile to take great pains to reproduce such faults 
 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 279 
 
 with minute exactness, as we sometimes see done. 
 They may be corrected without scruple, at least, un- 
 less they be a characteristic type of the spirit who 
 communicates, in which case it is useful to preserve 
 them, as proof of identity. Thus, for instance, we 
 have seen a spirit constantly write Julc (without the s) 
 in speaking to his grandson, because, during his life, 
 he wrote it in this way, and though his grandson, who 
 served as medium, knew perfectly well how to write 
 his name. 
 
 225. The following dissertation, given spontane- 
 ously by a superior spirit who revealed himself by 
 communications of the highest order, recapitulates, in 
 the clearest and most complete manner, the question 
 of the role of mediums : u Whatever may be the nature 
 of writing mediums, whether mechanical, semi-me- 
 chanical, or simply intuitive, our processes of com- 
 munication with them do not essentially vary. In 
 fact, with the incarnated spirits themselves, as with 
 the spirits proper, we communicate solely by the radi- 
 ating of our thought. 
 
 " Our thoughts do not need the clothing of words to 
 be understood by spirits, and all spirits perceive the 
 thought you desire to communicate to them, simply 
 by your directing the thought toward them, and this 
 by reason of their intellectual faculties ; that is to say, 
 a certain thought can be comprehended by certain 
 ones according to their advancement, while to certain 
 others the thought, awakening no remembrance, no 
 knowledge in the depths of their heart or brain, is 
 not perceptible to them. In such case the incarnated 
 spirit who serves us as medium is more fit to render 
 our thought for other incarnated beings, even should 
 he not comprehend it, than a spirit decarnated and 
 
280 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 but little advanced could be to do so, were we forced 
 to have recourse to his intervention ; for the terrestrial 
 being puts his body at our disposal, which the wander- 
 ing spirit could not do. 
 
 " Thus, when we find a medium whose brain is fur- 
 nished with knowledge acquired during his actual life, 
 and whose spirit is rich with latent anterior knowledge 
 proper to facilitate our communications, we use him in 
 preference, because with him the phenomenon of com- 
 munication is much easier for us than with a medi- 
 um whose intelligence is limited, and whose anterior 
 knowledge may be insufficient. We will make our- 
 selves understood by a few concise and exact explana- 
 tions. 
 
 " With a medium whose actual or anterior intelli- 
 gence is developed, our thought is communicated in- 
 stantly, spirit to spirit, by a faculty proper to the spirit 
 himself. In such case we find in the brain of the 
 medium the elements suitable to give to our thought 
 the word-clothing corresponding to the thought, and 
 that whether the medium be intuitive, semi-mechani- 
 cal, or mechanical pure. This is the reason that how- 
 ever great may be the number of spirits communicating 
 through a medium, the dictations obtained by him, 
 though proceeding from different spirits, bear the seal 
 of form and color personal to the medium. Yes, even 
 though the thought may be altogether strange to him, 
 or the subject be one of the same kind he is accustomed 
 to, or even if what we wish to say proceed in no way 
 from him, he does not the less influence the form by 
 the qualities, the properties belonging to his individu- 
 ality. It is absolutely as when you look at different 
 points with colored spectacles — green, white, or blue ; 
 be the point of view or objects looked at entirely op- 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 28 1 
 
 posite, or totally independent of each other, they are 
 not the less always affected by the tint from the color 
 of the spectacles. Or, better, let us compare mediums 
 to those jars full of colored and transparent liquids 
 seen in the windows of druggists ; well, we are as lights 
 that illuminate certain points of view — moral, philo- 
 sophic, and internal — through mediums of blue, green, 
 or red, in such a way that our luminous rays, obliged 
 to pass through glasses more or less cut, more or less 
 transparent, — that is to say, through mediums more 
 or less intelligent, — reach the object they wish to en- 
 lighten, only with the tint, or rather the form, peculiar 
 and special to these mediums. Finally, to end by a last 
 comparison, we spirits are like composers of music 
 who have composed, or would improvise, an air, and 
 we have at hand only a piano, or a violin, or a flute, or 
 a bassoon, or only a two-penny whistle. It is true that 
 with the piano, the flute, or the violin, we could exe- 
 cute our bit in a manner very comprehensible to our 
 auditors ; and though the sounds coming from a piano, 
 bassoon, or clarinet, may differ essentially, our com- 
 position will not be less identically the same, save for 
 the shades of sound. But if we have at our disposal 
 only a two-penny whistle — therein lies the difficulty 
 for us. 
 
 " When we are obliged to use mediums but little ad- 
 vanced, our work becomes longer, much more tedious, 
 because we are obliged to have recourse only to in- 
 complete forms, which is a complication for us ; for then 
 we are forced to decompose our thought, word by word, 
 letter by letter, which is an annoyance and fatigue for 
 us, and a real hinderance to the promptitude and de- 
 velopment of our manifestations. 
 
 " This is why we are glad to find mediums well ap- 
 
282 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 pointed, well furnished, armed with materials ready to 
 work, — in a word, good instruments, — because then 
 our perisprit, acting on the perisprit of him whom we 
 mediumize, has only to give impulsion to the hand 
 which serves us as a pen-holder ; while with insuffi- 
 cient mediums we are obliged to perform a labor anal- 
 ogous to that we do when we communicate by rappings, 
 designating letter by letter, word by word, each of the 
 phrases which form the translation of the thoughts we 
 wish to communicate. 
 
 " It is for these reasons we address ourselves in 
 preference to the enlightened and instructed classes 
 for the divulgation of Spiritism, and the development 
 of the scriptive medianimic faculties, though it may 
 be among these classes we meet the most skeptical, 
 the most rebellious, and the most immoral individuals. 
 It is for the same reason we now leave to juggling 
 spirits, and those but little advanced, the exercise of 
 tangible communications, of rappings, of materializa- 
 tion, as, among you, men but little serious prefer phe- 
 nomena that strike their eyes or their ears, to those 
 which are purely spiritual, purely psychological. 
 
 "When we wish to work by spontaneous, dictations, 
 we act on the brain of the medium, and we mingle our 
 materials with the elements he furnishes us, and that 
 entirely without his will, just as if we should take the 
 money in his purse, and arrange the different kinds in 
 whatever order might seem to us most useful. 
 
 " But when the medium himself desires to question 
 us in a special manner, it is well for him to reflect 
 seriously, in order that he may question methodically, 
 thus facilitating our labor in answering. For, as has 
 been told you in a former instruction, your brain is 
 often in inextricable confusion, and it is as painful as 
 
ROLE IN SPIRIT COMMUNICATIONS. 283 
 
 it is difficult for us to move in the labyrinth of your 
 thoughts. Where questions involve each other, and 
 should be made in proper succession, it is well, it is 
 useful, that the series of questions should be com- 
 municated in advance to the medium, so that he may 
 identify himself with the spirit of the invocator, and 
 be impregnated with it, because we ourselves have 
 then much greater facility to answer, by the affinity 
 existing between our perisprit and that of the medium 
 who serves us as interpreter. 
 
 " Certainly we could talk mathematics by means of 
 a medium who seems to know nothing about it ; but 
 the spirit of this same medium may often possess this 
 knowledge in a latent state, that is to say, personal to 
 the fluidic being, and not to the incarnated, because his 
 actual body is an instrument, rebellious or contrary to 
 this knowledge. It is the same with astronomy, with 
 poetry, with medicine, and the different languages, as 
 well as all other knowledge pertaining to mankind. 
 We still have the means of toilsome elaboration in 
 use with mediums completely ignorant of the subject 
 treated, putting together by words and letters, as in 
 typography. 
 
 "As we have said, spirits do not need to clothe their 
 thoughts ; they perceive and communicate thought by 
 the simple fact of its existence in them. Corporeal 
 beings, on the contrary, perceive thought only when 
 clothed. While the letter, the word, the substantive, 
 the verb, the phrase, all are necessary to you in order 
 to perceive even mentally, no visible or tangible form 
 is necessary for us. Erastus and Timotheus." 
 
 Remark. This analysis of the role of mediums, and 
 of the processes by help of which the spirits com- 
 municate, is as clear as it is logical. From it results 
 
284 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 this principle — that the spirit draws, not his ideas, but 
 the materials necessary to express them, from the brain 
 of the medium, and that the richer this brain is in 
 materials, the easier is the communication,' When the 
 spirit expresses himself in the language familiar to the 
 medium, he finds within him the words all formed 
 with which to clothe the idea ; if it is a language un- 
 known to the medium, he does not find the words, but 
 simply the letters ; the spirit then is obliged to dictate, 
 as it were, letter by letter, exactly as you would do if 
 you wished to make a person write German who is 
 totally ignorant of that language. If the medium can 
 neither read nor write, he does not possess even the 
 letters ; it is then necessary to conduct the hand, as 
 you would that of a scholar ; and there is a still greater 
 material difficulty to overcome. These phenomena are 
 possible ; we have numerous examples of them ; but 
 it may readily be comprehended that this mode of 
 procedure accords little with the extent and rapidity 
 of communications, and that the spirits must prefer 
 the most flexible instruments, or, as they express it, the 
 mediums, from their point of view, best furnished with 
 tools. 
 
 If those who ask these phenomena as a means of 
 conviction had previously studied the theory, they 
 would know under what exceptional conditions they 
 are produced. 
 
Chapter XX. 
 MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM. 
 
 Various Questions. — Dissertations of a Spirit on 
 Moral Influence. 
 
 226. 1. "Is the development of mediumship in pro- 
 portion to the moral development of the medium ? " 
 
 " No ; the faculty proper pertains to the organism ; 
 it is independent of the moral ; it is not the same with 
 its use, which may be more or less good, according to 
 the qualities of the medium." 
 
 2. " It has always been said that mediumship is a 
 gift of God, a grace, a favor ; why, then, is it not a 
 privilege of good men, and why do we see unworthy 
 people who are endowed in the highest degree, and 
 who misuse it ? " 
 
 " All faculties are favors for which we should give 
 thanks to God, for there are men who are deprived of 
 them. You might as well ask why God gives sight to 
 malefactors, adroitness to thieves, eloquence to those 
 who use it to say evil things. It is the same with 
 mediumship ; unworthy persons are endowed with it, 
 because they have greater need of it to be improved : 
 do you think God refuses the means of salvation to the 
 guilty ? He multiplies such means in their path ; he 
 puts them in their hands ; it is for them to profit by it. 
 Did not Judas, the traitor, as apostle, perform miracles, 
 
 285 
 
286 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 and heal the sick ? God permitted him to have this 
 gift to render his treason more odious." 
 
 3. " Will mediums who make a bad use of their 
 faculty, or who do not use it for doing good, or do not 
 profit by it for their instruction, be obliged to bear the 
 consequences ?" 
 
 " If they use it wrongly, they will be doubly pun- 
 ished, because they have a means of being enlightened, 
 and do not profit by it. He who sees clearly and 
 stumbles is more blamable than the blind man who 
 falls into the ditch." 
 
 4. " There are mediums to whom communications 
 are, almost constantly, being made spontaneously; on 
 the same subject, on certain moral questions, for in- 
 stance, certain designated faults : has that any special 
 motive ? " 
 
 " Yes ; and the motive is to enlighten them on a 
 subject often repeated, or to correct them of certain 
 faults ; for this reason they speak to one constantly of 
 pride, to another of charity : only satiety can open 
 their eyes. There is not a medium misusing his 
 faculty from ambition or interest, or compromising it 
 by a capital fault, such as pride, egotism, levity, &c, 
 who does not receive from time to time some warning 
 from the spirits ; the evil is, that they rarely take the 
 warning to themselves." 
 
 Remark. Spirits often use management in giving 
 their lessons ; they give them in an indirect manner, 
 in order to leave more merit to him who knows how to 
 apply and profit by them ; but with some people the 
 blindness and pride are such that they cannot recog- 
 nize themselves in the picture placed before their eyes ; 
 much more if the spirit gives them to understand that 
 they themselves are the ones in question, they become 
 
MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM. 287 
 
 angry, and treat the spirit as a liar or jester. This 
 plainly proves that the spirit was right. 
 
 5. " In the lessons that are dictated to the medium 
 in a general manner, and without personal application, 
 does he not act as a passive instrument for the instruc- 
 tion of others ? " 
 
 " Often the advice and counsel are not dictated for 
 him personally, but for others to whom we can'address 
 ourselves only through his agency ; but he ought to 
 take his share of it, if he is not blinded by self-love. 
 
 " Do not think the medianimic faculty has been given 
 solely to correct one or two persons ; no, the end is 
 greater ; it is a question of all mankind. A medium 
 is an instrument of too little importance individually : 
 this is why, when we give instructions for general 
 profit, we use those who possess the necessary facili- 
 ties ; but be assured there will come a time when good 
 mediums will be so common that spirits will not need 
 to use bad instruments." 
 
 6. " Since the moral qualities of the medium keep 
 away imperfect spirits, how does it happen that a 
 medium endowed with good qualities transmits false 
 or gross answers ? " 
 
 " Do you know the inward recesses of the soul ? 
 Besides, without being vicious, he may be light and 
 frivolous, and then, also, sometimes he needs a lesson 
 that he may be on his guard." 
 
 7. " Why do the superior spirits permit persons 
 endowed with great power as mediums, and who 
 might do much good, to be made the instruments of 
 error ? " 
 
 " They try to influence them ; but when they allow 
 themselves to be carried into an evil way, they let 
 them go. This is the reason they use them with 
 
288 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 repugnance, for truth cannot be interpreted by false- 
 hoods 
 
 8. " Is it absolutely impossible to have good com- 
 munications through an imperfect medium ? " 
 
 " An imperfect medium may sometimes obtain good 
 things, because, if he have a fine faculty, good spirits 
 may avail themselves of him in default of another, in 
 one particular case ; but it is always only temporarily, 
 for, as soon as they find one who suits them better, 
 they give him the preference." 
 
 Remark. It is to be observed that when the good 
 spirits perceive that a medium ceases to be well assist- 
 ed, and becomes, by his imperfections, the prey of 
 deceiving spirits, they almost always call forth circum- 
 stances that expose his irregularities, and withdraw 
 from him serious and well-intentioned persons, whose 
 sincerity might be abused. In such case, whatever 
 may be their faculties, it is not to be regretted." 
 
 9. "What should a medium be, to be called per- 
 fect ? " 
 
 " Perfect ! You well know that perfection is not on 
 the earth, or you would not be here ; say a good 
 medium, and that is much, for they are rare. The 
 perfect medium would be one on whom the bad spirits 
 have never dared the attempt to deceive ; the best is 
 he who, sympathizing only with good spirits, has been 
 least often deceived." 
 
 10. " If he sympathize only with good spirits, how 
 can they allow him to be deceived ? " 
 
 " The good spirits sometimes allow it with the best 
 mediums, in order to exercise their judgment, and teach 
 them to discern the true from the false ; and then, 
 however good a medium may be, he is never so perfect 
 that there may not be found some weak side in him 
 
MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM. 289 
 
 hat can be approached ; it should serve him as a 
 (esson. The false communications that he receives 
 from time to time arc warnings that he must not be- 
 lieve himself infallible, and pride himself upon it ; for 
 the medium who obtains the most remarkable things 
 has no more matter for glorification in it than the 
 organ-grinder who produces the most beautiful airs by 
 simply turning the crank of the instrument." 
 
 11. "What are the necessary conditions by which 
 the words of the superior spirits may reach us pure 
 from all adulteration ? " 
 
 " To will good ; to remove all pride and egotism : 
 both are necessary." 
 
 12. "If the speech of the superior spirits reach us 
 pure only under conditions difficult to attain, is it not 
 an obstacle to the propagation of the truth ? " 
 
 " No ; for the light always comes to him who wishes 
 to receive it. Whoever wishes to be enlightened must 
 flee the darkness, and darkness is in impurity of 
 heart. 
 
 "Spirits whom you consider the personification of 
 good do not willingly answer the appeal of those 
 whose hearts are soiled by pride, cupidity, and a lack 
 of charity. 
 
 " Let those, then, who desire enlightenment, throw 
 aside all human vanity, and humble themselves before 
 the infinite power of the Creator : this will be the best 
 proof of their sincerity ; and this condition every one 
 can fulfill." 
 
 227. If the medium, as to execution, is only an 
 instrument, yet, under the moral relation, he exercises 
 a great influence. Since, in order to communicate, 
 the foreign 'spirit identifies himself with the spirit of 
 the medium, this identification can take place only so 
 19 
 
290 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 far as there is sympathy, and, if one might say it, 
 affinity between them. The soul exercises on the 
 foreign spirit a kind of attraction or repulsion, accord- 
 ing to the degree of their similarity or dissimilarity ; 
 thus, the good have an affinity for the good, and the 
 bad for the bad ; from whence it follows that the moral 
 qualities of the medium have a powerful influence on 
 the nature of the spirits who communicate through 
 him. If he is vicious, the inferior spirits surround 
 him, and are always ready to take the place of the 
 good spirits who have been called. The qualities 
 which best attract good spirits are, kindness, benevo- 
 lence, simplicity of heart, love of the neighbor, detach- 
 ment from material things ; the faults that repel them 
 are, pride, egotism, envy, jealousy, hatred, cupidity, 
 sensuality, and all the passions by which man is 
 attached to matter. 
 
 228. All moral imperfections are so many open 
 doors which give access to evil spirits ; but the one 
 they can play upon most skillfully is pride, because it is 
 the one people are least willing to confess, even to 
 themselves : pride has ruined numberless mediums 
 endowed with the finest faculties, and who, but for 
 that, might have become remarkable and very useful 
 subjects ; but, become the prey of lying spirits, their 
 faculties have been first perverted, then annihilated, 
 and more than one have been humiliated by the most 
 bitter deceptions. 
 
 Pride betrays itself in mediums by unequivocal 
 signs, to which it is so much the more necessary to 
 call attention, as it is one of the things which should 
 soonest inspire a distrust of their communications. 
 This is, first, a blind confidence in the superiority of 
 these same communications, and in the infallibility of 
 
MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM, 291 
 
 the spirit who gives them ; from thence a certain dis- 
 dain for all that does not come to them, for they be- 
 lieve that they have the privilege of the truth. The 
 prestige of great names, borrowed by the spirits whom 
 they account as their protectors, dazzles them, and 
 as their self-love would suffer in confessing themselves 
 to be dupes, they repulse every kind of advice ; they 
 even avoid it by withdrawing from their friends, and 
 from whoever might be the means of opening their 
 eyes : if they condescend to listen to them, they scorn 
 their advice ; for to doubt the superiority of their spirit 
 is almost a profanation. They are offended at the 
 least contradiction, at a simple criticism, and even 
 almost begin to hate the persons who have done them 
 the service. Under cover of this isolation, brought 
 about by spirits who want no contradictions, these have 
 fine sport in keeping them in their illusions, and 
 easily make them take the grossest absurdities for sub- 
 limities. Thus, absolute confidence in the superiority 
 of what they obtain, contempt for what does not come 
 from them, undue importance attached to great names, 
 rejection of counsel, all criticism taken in ill part, 
 withdrawal from those who might give disinterested 
 advice, a belief in their skill in spite of their want of 
 experience, — such are the characteristics of proud and 
 vain mediums. 
 
 It is proper to say that pride is often excited in 
 a medium by his surroundings. If he has greater 
 faculties than ordinary, he is sought after and praised ; 
 he considers himself indispensable, and soon affects 
 airs of self-sufficiency and disdain when he lends his 
 assistance. We have, more than once, had to regret 
 the eulogiums we had given to certain mediums in 
 order to encourage them. 
 
292 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 229. By the side of this picture let us place that of 
 the truly good medium — him in whom we may have 
 confidence. Let us first suppose facility of execution 
 so great as to permit the spirits to communicate freely, 
 without being hampered by any difficulty of a material 
 kind. This being given, what is most necessary to 
 consider is, the nature of the spirits who habitually 
 assist him ; and for that it is not the name that must 
 be looked to, but the language. He should never lose 
 sight of the fact that the sympathies he encourages 
 among the good spirits will be in proportion to his 
 withdrawal from the bad. Knowing that his faculty is 
 a gift accorded to him for use in good, he seeks not 
 self-laudation, he takes no merit for it to himself. He 
 accepts the good communications made to him as a 
 favor, of which he should endeavor to render himself 
 worthy by kindness, benevolence, and modesty. The 
 former prides himself on his relations with superior 
 spirits ; the latter becomes more humble in conse- 
 quence, always believing himself beneath such favor. 
 
 230. The following instruction has been given to us 
 on this subject by a spirit, several of whose communi- 
 cations we have already given : — 
 
 " We have already said, mediums, as mediums, have 
 but a secondary influence in the communications of 
 spirits : their task is that of an electric machine, which 
 transmits telegraphic despatches from one point of the 
 earth to another far distant. So, when we wish to dic- 
 tate a communication, we act on the medium as the 
 telegraph operator on his instruments ; that is, as the 
 tac-tac of the telegraph writes thousands of miles 
 away, on a slip of paper, the reproduced letters of the 
 dispatch, so we, from the immeasurable distance that 
 separates the visible from the invisible world, the im- 
 
MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM. 293 
 
 material from the incarnated world, communicate what 
 we wish to teach you by means of the median imic in- 
 strument. But, also, as the atmospheric influences act 
 upon, and often disturb, the transmissions of the electric 
 telegraph, the moral influence of the medium acts upon, 
 and sometimes affects, the transmission of our dis- 
 patches from beyond the tomb, because we are obliged 
 to make them pass through a medium whose nature is 
 contrary to them. At the same time, that influence is 
 most often annulled by our energy and our will, and 
 no disturbing element is manifest. Indeed, dictations 
 of a high, philosophic bearing, communications of 
 perfect morality, are sometimes transmitted through 
 mediums little suited to these superior teachings ; 
 while, on the other hand, communications anything 
 but edifying, sometimes come by mediums who are 
 very much ashamed of having been used as their 
 conductor. 
 
 M As a general rule it may be affirmed that spirits call 
 their like, and that spirits of an elevated plane rarely 
 communicate by bad conductors, where they have at 
 hand good medianimic instruments — good mediums. 
 
 11 Light, trifling mediums call spirits of the same 
 nature ; and thus their communications are impressed 
 with vulgar expressions, frivolities, ideas disjointed 
 and often very heterodox, spiritually. To be sure they 
 can and do sometimes say good things, but it is in this 
 case, particularly, that it is necessary to subject them 
 to a rigid examination ; for, in the midst of these good 
 things, some hypocritical spirits skillfully, and with 
 calculating perfidy, insinuate inventions, lying asser- 
 tions, in order to deceive the sincerity of their auditors. 
 Then every equivocal word or phrase must be merci- 
 lessly stricken out, preserving only as much of the 
 
294 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 dictation as is accepted by logic, or as is already- 
 taught by the doctrine. Communications of this na- 
 ture are to be dreaded only for isolated spiritists, for 
 circles newly formed, or not yet fully enlightened ; for 
 in reunions where the believers are more advanced, 
 and have gained experience, in vain the jackdaw bor- 
 rows the peacock's feathers ; he is always mercilessly 
 expelled. 
 
 * I will not speak of mediums who are pleased to 
 solicit and listen to filthy communications ; let us leave 
 them to please themselves in the society of cynical 
 spirits. Besides, communications of this order seek, 
 of themselves, solitude and isolation ; in any case they 
 could only inspire disdain and disgust among the 
 members of philosophical and serious circles. But 
 where the moral influence of the medium makes itself 
 really felt, is when he substitutes his personal ideas 
 for those which the spirits endeavor to suggest to him ; 
 and again, when he draws from his own imagination 
 fantastic theories, which he himself sincerely believes 
 to be the result of an intuitive communication. Then 
 it is a thousand to one that this is the reflex of the 
 personal spirit of the medium ; then occurs this 
 strange fact — the hand of the medium is sometimes 
 moved almost mechanically, guided by a secondary 
 and mocking spirit. It is against this touchstone that 
 so many ardent imaginations are shattered ; for, car- 
 ried away by the impetuosity of their own ideas, by 
 the tinsel of their literary learning, they despise the 
 modest dictation of a wise spirit, and abandon the sub- 
 stance for the shadow, substitute for it a high-flown 
 paraphrase. On this dreadful rock are personal ambi- 
 tions also stranded, when, in default of communications, 
 which the good spirits refuse to them, they present 
 
MORAL INFLUENCE OF THE MEDIUM. 295 
 
 their own work as the work of these same spirits. 
 For this reason it is necessary that the chiefs of spir- 
 itist circles be possessed of exquisite tact and rare 
 sagacity, in order to discern authentic communications, 
 and not to wound those who delude themselves. 
 
 " ' In doubt, abstain,' says one of your old proverbs ; 
 admit nothing that has not certain evidence of truth. 
 As soon as a new opinion is brought to light, if it 
 seem ever so little doubtful, pass it through the cruci- 
 ble of reason and logic ; what reason and good sense 
 refuse, reject boldly ; better reject ten truths than 
 admit a single lie, a single false theory. For on this 
 theory you might construct a whole system that would 
 crumble at the first breath of truth, like a monument 
 raised on the shifting sand ; while, should you reject 
 some truths to-day, because they are not clearly and 
 logically demonstrated, very soon a strong fact, an 
 irrefutable demonstration, will come to show you its 
 authenticity. 
 
 " Remember, nevertheless, O, spiritists, that there is 
 nothing impossible for God, and for good spirits, 
 except injustice and iniquity. 
 
 " Spiritism is now sufficiently diffused among men, 
 and has so moralized the sincere believers of its holy 
 doctrine, that spirits need no longer be reduced to 
 employ bad instruments — imperfect mediums. If, 
 now, a medium, whoever he may be, gives, by his con- 
 duct or his manners, by his pride, his want of love and 
 charity, a legitimate cause for suspicion, — refuse, re- 
 ject his communications, for there is a snake hidden 
 in the grass. That is my conclusion on the moral 
 influence of mediums. Erastus." 
 
Chapter XXI. 
 INFLUENCE OF THE SURROUNDINGS. 
 
 231. 1. " Does the sphere of the medium exercise an 
 influence on the manifestations ? " 
 
 " All_ the spirits that surround the medium assist 
 him, in good as in evil." 
 
 2. " Could not the superior spirits triumph over the 
 bad will of the incarnated spirit, who serves them as 
 interpreter, and over those who surround him ? " 
 
 " Yes, when they consider it useful, and according 
 to the intention of the person who addresses them. 
 We have already said so ; the most elevated spirits can 
 sometimes communicate by a special favor, notwith- 
 standing the imperfection of the medium, and his 
 sphere ; but then those surrounding spirits remain 
 perfect strangers to it." 
 
 3. " Do the superior spirits seek to lead frivolous 
 circles to more serious ideas ? " 
 
 " The superior spirits do not go into circles where 
 they know their presence to be useless. Where the 
 surroundings are but slightly instructed, yet sincere, 
 we go willingly, even should we find but feeble in- 
 struments ; but in instructed spheres, where irony 
 governs, we do not go. Then it is necessary to speak 
 to the eyes and ears ; that is the role of rapping or 
 mocking spirits. It is right that persons who boast 
 themselves of their science should be humiliated by- 
 spirits less learned and less advanced." 
 
 296 
 
INFLUENCE OF THE SURROUNDINGS. 297 
 
 4. " Are the inferior spirits denied access to serious 
 reunions ? " 
 
 " No ; they remain there, sometimes to profit by the 
 instructions given to you ; but they are silent, like the 
 giddy in a?i assembly of the wise!* 
 
 232. It would be an error to suppose that it is 
 necessary to be a medium in order to attract to you 
 beings from the invisible world. The whole of space 
 is peopled with them ; we have them constantly around 
 us, by our side ; they see us, observe us, mingle in 
 our reunions, follow us or fly from us, as we attract or 
 repulse them. The medianimic faculty is not needed 
 for that ; it is only a means of communication. From 
 what we have seen of the causes of sympathy or an- 
 tipathy of spirits, it will easily be understood that we 
 must be surrounded by those who have affinity for our 
 own spirit, according as it is elevated or degraded. If 
 we consider the moral state of our globe, we shall 
 perceive what kind of spirits must predominate among 
 the wandering spirits. If we take each people in par- 
 ticular, we can judge by the prevailing characteristics 
 of the inhabitants, by their preoccupations, their sen- 
 timents, more or less moral and humatiitary, of the 
 order of spirits who would there rendezvous from 
 preference. 
 
 Making this principle our starting-point, let us sup- 
 pose a reunion of trifling, incongruous persons, occu- 
 pied with their pleasures ; what kind of spirits would 
 be found among them ? Not, assuredly, superior spir- 
 its, any more than our " savants " and philosophers 
 would spend their time among them. So, whenever 
 men gather together, they have with them an invisible 
 assembly, which sympathizes with their qualities or 
 their whims, and that setting aside all thought of invo- 
 
298 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 cation. Let us admit, now, the possibility of holding 
 intercourse with the beings of the invisible world by 
 an interpreter, a medium ; who would answer to their 
 call ? Evidently those who are there already, and only 
 seeking an occasion to communicate. If, in a frivolous 
 assembly, a superior spirit is called, he might come, 
 and say some seasonable words, as a good pastor in 
 the midst of his strayed sheep ; but the moment he finds 
 himself neither understood nor listened to, he goes, as 
 you would do in his place, and then the others have 
 full liberty. 
 
 233. It is not always sufficient for an assembly to 
 be serious to have communications of a high order ; 
 there are people who never laugh, and whose hearts 
 are none the more pure ; and it is the heart, above all, 
 that attracts good spirits. No moral condition ex- 
 cludes spirit communications ; but if persons- are in 
 bad conditions, they talk with their like, who think it 
 no harm to deceive us, and often embrace our preju- 
 dices. 
 
 By this may be seen the enormous influence of the 
 sphere on the nature of intelligent manifestations ; but 
 this influence is not exercised, as some have supposed, 
 when the world of spirits was not as well known as 
 it is now, and before convincing proofs had cleared 
 away all our doubts. When communications agree 
 with the opinion of the assistants, it is not because the 
 opinion is reflected in the spirit of the medium, as in 
 a mirror ; it is because you have with you spirits who 
 are in sympathy with you, for good as for evil, and who 
 have your conceits ; and what proves this is, that if 
 you have the strength to attract to you other spirits 
 than those who surround you, the same medium will 
 hold an entirely different language, and tell you things 
 
INFLUENCE OF THE SURROUNDINGS. 2QQ 
 
 far removed from your thoughts and your convictions. 
 To recapitulate : the conditions of the sphere will be 
 so much better as there may be. more of homogeneity, 
 for good, more pure and elevated sentiments, more 
 sincere desire to be instructed, without afterthought. 
 
Chapter XXII. 
 
 OF MEDIUMSHIP IN ANIMALS. 
 
 234. Can animals be mediums ? This question has 
 often been asked, and certain facts would seem to answer 
 it affirmatively. The remarkable signs of intelligence 
 displayed by some trained birds have given credit to 
 this opinion ; they have seemed to divine the thought, 
 and draw from a pack of cards those that would give 
 the exact answer to the question proposed. We have 
 observed these experiments with very particular care, 
 and have most admired the art displayed in their in- 
 struction. We cannot refuse them a certain degree 
 of relative intelligence ; but it must be conceded that, 
 in this case, their perspicacity greatly surpassed that 
 of man, for no one could flatter himself to be able to 
 do as they do ; for some experiments, it would even be 
 necessary to suppose them to be endowed with a gift 
 of second sight, superior to that of the most clear- 
 seeing somnambulists. We know their lucidity is es- 
 sentially variable, and that it is subject to frequent 
 intermissions, while with these birds it would be per- 
 manent, and work up to a given point with a regu- 
 larity and precision not seen in any somnambulist ; in 
 a word, they were never at fault. Most of the experi- 
 ments that we have seen are of the nature of those of 
 jugglers, and could leave us no doubt of the employ- 
 ment of some of their methods, notably that of forced 
 cards. The art of legerdemain consists in concealing 
 
 300 
 
OF MEDIUMSHIP IN ANIMALS. 301 
 
 these methods, without which the effect would have 
 no charm. The phenomenon, even reduced to this 
 proportion, is not the less very interesting, and the 
 talent of the instructor is as admirable as the intelli- 
 gence of the pupil ; for the difficulty is much greater 
 than if the bird acted by virtue of his own faculties : 
 now, in making the birds do things that pass the 
 limit of the possible for human intelligence, is to prove 
 by that alone the employment of a secret process. 
 
 There is, besides, one certain fact — that these birds 
 reach this degree of skill only at the end of a certain 
 time, and by means of particular and persevering cares, 
 which would not be necessary if their intelligence was 
 the only thing. It is no more extraordinary to train 
 them to draw cards than to accustom them to repeat 
 tunes or words. It has been the same when the leger- 
 demain has attempted to imitate second sight ; they 
 made the subject do too much to be of long duration. 
 From the first time that we were at a seance of this 
 kind, we saw only a very imperfect imitation of som- 
 nambulism, revealing ignorance of the most essential 
 conditions of this faculty. 
 
 235. Whatever there may be in the above experi- 
 ments, the principal question remains none the less 
 entire in another point of view ; for even as the imita- 
 tion of somnambulism prevents not the existence of 
 the faculty, so the imitation of mediums, by means of 
 birds, proves nothing against the possibility of an 
 analogous faculty in them and in other animals. The 
 thing is, to know if animals are fit, like men, to serve 
 as intermediaries to spirits, for intelligent communica- 
 tions. It even seems logical enough to suppose that 
 a living creature, endowed with a certain degree of 
 intelligence, should be more suitable to this effect 
 
302 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 than an inert body without vitality, like a table, for 
 instance ; yet it is what does not happen. 
 
 236. The question of the medianimity of animals is 
 completely solved in the following dissertation given 
 by a spirit whose depth and sagacity may be appreci- 
 ated by the quotations we have already had occasion 
 to make. To be entirely aware of the value of his 
 demonstration, it is only necessary to refer to the ex- 
 planation he has given of the rdle of the medium in 
 communications, and which we have given above. 
 (No. 225.) 
 
 This communication was given at the end of a dis- 
 cussion that took place, on this subject, in the Paris 
 Society for Spirit Studies. 
 
 " I touch, to-day, upon the question of medianimity 
 in animals, raised and sustained by one of your most 
 fervent believers. He contends, by virtue of this 
 axiom, ' He who can do the most can do the least ; ' that 
 we can medianimize birds, and use them in our com- 
 munications with mankind. This is what you call, in 
 philosophy, or, rather, in logic, purely and simply a 
 sophism. ' You animate,' says he, ' inert matter ; 
 that is, a table, a chair, a piano ; a fortiori, you should 
 animate matter already animated, and notably birds.' 
 Well, in the normal state of Spiritism, this is not, and 
 it cannot be. 
 
 " First, let us look well at our facts. What is a 
 medium ? It is the being, the individual, who serves 
 as point of union to the spirits, that they may easily 
 communicate with men — incarnated spirits. Con- 
 sequently, without a medium, no communications, 
 tangible, mental, scriptive, physical, nor any sort 
 whatever. 
 
 " There is a principle which, I am sure, is admitted 
 
OF MEDIUMSHIP IN ANIMALS. 303 
 
 by all spiritists : it is that likes act with their likes 
 and as their likes. Now, what are the likes of spir- 
 its, if not the incarnated or non-incarnated spirits. 
 Must it be repeated to you constantly ? Well, I will 
 repeat it again : your pcrisprit and ours are drawn 
 from the same sphere, are of an identical nature, are 
 like, in a word ; they possess a property of assimila- 
 tion more or less developed, of magnetic action more 
 or less vigorous, which allows us, spirits and incar- 
 nated, to put ourselves, very promptly and easily, en 
 rapport. Finally, what specially pertains to mediums, 
 what is even the essence of their individuality, is a 
 special affinity, and at the same time a peculiar force 
 of expansion, which annihilate in them all refractibil- 
 ity, and establish between them and us a sort of cur- 
 rent, a kind of fusion, which facilitates our communi- 
 cations. It is this refractibility of matter which is 
 opposed to the development of mediumship in most 
 of those who are not mediums. 
 
 " Men are always prone to exaggerate. Some — I 
 speak not here of materialists — refuse a soul to ani- 
 mals ; and some would give them one, so to speak, 
 like our own. Why thus desire to confound the per- 
 fectible with the imperfectible ? No, no ; be convinced 
 in this : the fire that animates the beasts, the breath 
 that makes them act, move, and speak in their lan- 
 guage, has no aptitude, as to the present, to be min- 
 gled, to be united, to be fused with the divine breath, 
 the ethereal soul, the spirit which animates the being 
 essentially perfectible — man; this king of the crea- 
 tion. Now, is it not this very essential condition of 
 perfectibility in which consists the superiority of the 
 human species ? Well, understand, then, that no indi- 
 vidual of the other races living on the earth can be 
 
304 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 compared with man, alone perfectible in himself, and 
 in his works. 
 
 " Is the dog, whose superior intelligence among ani- 
 mals has made him the friend and companion of man, 
 perfectible of his own head, and from his personal 
 initiative? No one would dare to sustain it, for the 
 dog does not make his race progress ; the best trained 
 among them is always trained by his master. Since 
 the world has been a world, the otter has always built 
 his hut on the water, of the same proportions, and 
 according to an invariable rule ; the nightingales and 
 the swallows have never constructed their nests other- 
 wise than as did their fathers. 
 
 " A sparrow's nest before the deluge is a sparrow's 
 nest of to-day, is always a sparrow's nest ; built in 
 the same conditions, and with the same system of 
 interlacing blades of grass and rubbish, gathered in 
 the spring, the season of love. The bees and ants, 
 those little republican housekeepers, have never varied 
 in their custom of laying up stores, in their mode of 
 proceeding, in their manners, in their productions. 
 The spider always weaves his web in the same way. 
 
 " On the other side, if you seek the thatched huts 
 and the tents of the early ages of the earth, you will 
 find in their place the palaces and castles of modern 
 civilization ; to the garments of skins have succeeded 
 tissues of gold and silk ; finally, at each step, you find 
 the proofs of the incessant march of humanity towards 
 progress. 
 
 " Of this constant, invincible, undeniable progress of 
 the human species, and of this indefinite stationariness 
 of the other animated species, conclude with me, that 
 if there exist principles common to all that live and 
 move on the earth, breath and matter, it is none the 
 
OF MEDIUMSHJP IN ANIMALS. 305 
 
 less true that you alone, incarnated spirits are sub- 
 jected to that inevitable law of progress which presses 
 you incessantly forward, and always forward. God 
 has placed the animals by your side as auxiliaries, to 
 nourish, to clothe, to help you. He has given them a 
 certain degree of intelligence, because, in order to aid 
 you, they must understand ; and lie has proportioned 
 their intelligence to the services they are called upon 
 to render ; but, in His wisdom, He has not meant 
 they should be subjected to the same law of progress ; 
 such as they were created, such they have remained, 
 and will remain until the extinction of their races. 
 
 " It has been said, The spirits medianimize inert mat- 
 ter, and make it move chairs, tables, pianos ; make it 
 move, yes ; but medianimize it, no ! For, still again, 
 without a medium not one of these phenomena could 
 be produced. What is there extraordinary in the fact 
 that by the help of one or several mediums we move 
 inert or passive matter, which, by reason of its very 
 passivity, its inertia, is proper to undergo the move- 
 ment and impulsions we wish to impress upon it ? 
 For that we need mediums — that is certain ; but it 
 is not necessary that the medium be present, or con- 
 scions, for we can act with the elements he furnishes, 
 unknown to him, and without his presence ; above all, 
 in the facts of tangibility and materialization. Our 
 fluidic envelope, more imponderable and more subtile 
 than the most subtile and most imponderable of your 
 gases, uniting, wedding, combining with the fluidic 
 but animalized envelope of the medium, and whose 
 property of expansion and penetrability cannot be 
 grasped by your gross senses, and is almost inexplica- 
 ble to you, allows us to move furniture, and even to 
 break it, in inhabited places. 
 20 
 
306 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " Certainly spirits can make themselves visible and 
 tangible to animals, and often some sudden fright they 
 have, and which seems to you motiveless, is caused by 
 the sight of one or several of these spirits ill-inten- 
 tioned to the individuals present, or to those to whom 
 the animals belong. Very often you see horses who 
 will neither advance nor go back, or who rear up at 
 an imaginary obstacle. Well, take it for certain that 
 the imaginary obstacle is often a spirit, or group of 
 spirits, who are pleased to hinder his advance. 
 
 " Recollect Balaam's ass, who, seeing an angel before 
 her, and fearing his flaming sword, would not stir ; 
 before visibly manifesting himself to Balaam, the angel 
 wished to be visible to the animal alone ; but, I repeat, 
 we medianimize directly neither animals nor inert 
 matter ; the concurrence, either conscious or it?icon- 
 scious, of a human medium is always necessary, and 
 this we can find neither in animals nor in inert 
 matter. 
 
 " M. T. has, he says, magnetized his dog. What 
 happened ? He killed him, for the miserable animal 
 died after falling into a kind of atony, of languor, in 
 consequence. Indeed, in filling him with a fluid 
 taken from an essence superior to that special to his 
 nature, he crushed him, — acted on him, though more 
 slowly, in the manner of the thunderbolt. Then, as 
 there is no assimilation possible between our perisprit 
 and the fluidic envelope of animals, proper, we should 
 crush them instantly by medianimizing them. 
 
 " This established, I perfectly recognize among ani- 
 mals the existence of various aptitudes ; that certain 
 passions, identical with human passions and senti- 
 ments, are developed in them ; that they are feeling 
 and grateful, vindictive and hating, according as they 
 
OF MEDIUMSIIIP IN ANIMALS. 307 
 
 are well or ill treated. It is because God, who makes 
 nothing incomplete, has given to animals, companions 
 and servants of man, qualities of sociability that are 
 utterly wanting in wild animals. But from thence to 
 being able to serve as intermediaries for the transmis- 
 sion of spirit thought, there is a gulf — the difference 
 of natures. 
 
 11 You know we draw in the brain of the medium the 
 elements necessary to give to our thought a percepti- 
 ble form, one that you can grasp : it is by the aid of 
 the material he possesses that the medium translates 
 our thought into ordinary language : well, what ele- 
 ment would you find in the brain of an animal ? Are 
 there words, numbers, letters, any signs whatever, 
 similar to those existing with man, even the least in- 
 telligent ? Yet, you will say, animals understand man's 
 thought ; they even divine. Yes, trained animals un- 
 derstand certain thoughts ; but have you ever seen 
 them reproduce them ? No ; conclude, then, that ani- 
 mals cannot serve us as interpreters. 
 
 "To recapitulate : medianimic facts cannot be mani- 
 fested without the conscious or unconscious concur- 
 rence of mediums, and it is only among the incarnated, 
 spirits like ourselves, that we can meet with those who 
 can serve us as mediums. As to dogs, birds, or other 
 animals, trained to certain exercises, that is your busi- 
 ness, and not ours. Erastus." 
 
Chapter XXIII. 
 
 ON OBSESSION. 
 
 Simple Obsession. — Fascination. — Subjugation. — 
 Causes of Obsession. — Means of combating it. 
 
 237. Of the number of dangers which the practice 
 of Spiritism presents, in the front rank must be placed 
 Obsession; that is, the dominion some spirits know 
 how to take over certain persons. It is never done 
 except by inferior spirits, who seek to govern ; with 
 good spirits we experience no restraint ; they advise, 
 combat the influence of the bad, and if they are not 
 listened to, withdraw. The bad, on the contrary, 
 attach themselves to those whom they find exposed ; 
 if they gain dominion over any one, they identify 
 themselves with his own spirit, and lead him like a 
 veritable child. 
 
 Obsession presents various characteristics, which it 
 is very necessary to distinguish, and which result 
 from the degree of restraint, and the nature of the 
 effects it produces. The word obsession is, in some 
 sort, a generic term, by which we designate this kind 
 of phenomenon, whose principal varieties are, simple 
 obsession, fascination, and subjugation. 
 
 238. Simple obsession is when a malicious spirit im- 
 poses himself on a medium, intermeddles, in spite of 
 him, in the communications he receives, prevents him 
 
 308 
 
ON OB SESSION. 309 
 
 from communicating with other spirits, and substitutes 
 himself for those invoked. 
 
 It is not obsession to be deceived by a lying spirit : 
 the best medium is exposed to that, especially in the 
 beginning, when he still 'lacks the necessary experi- 
 ence ; the same as, with us, the most honest people 
 may be duped by rascals. One can be deceived with- 
 out being obsessed ; obsession is in the tenacity of 
 the spirit, of whom you cannot get rid. 
 
 In simple obsession the medium knows very well 
 that it is a deceiving spirit, and the spirit does aot 
 conceal himself : he disguises none of his bad inten- 
 tions and his desire to thwart. The medium easily 
 recognizes the imposture, and as he is on his guard, is 
 rarely deceived. This kind of obsession is simply dis- 
 agreeable, and has no other inconvenience than to 
 oppose an obstacle to the communications that might 
 be desired with serious spirits, or with those whom we 
 love. 
 
 Physical Obsession may be ranked in this class ; 
 those which consist in noisy and obstinate manifesta- 
 tions of certain spirits, who rap and make other noises 
 spontaneously. 
 
 239. Fascination has much graver consequences. It 
 is an illusion produced by direct action of the spirit on 
 the medium's thought, and which in some measure 
 paralyzes his judgment in regard to communications. 
 The fascinated medium does not believe himself to be 
 deceived ; the spirit has the art to inspire him with a 
 blind confidence, which prevents him from seeing the 
 treachery, and from understanding the absurdity of 
 what he writes, even when it is patent to everybody's 
 eyes : the illusion may even go so far as to make him 
 see sublimity in the most ridiculous language. It 
 
310 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 would be an error to suppose that this kind of obses- 
 sion could come to only simple, ignorant persons, and 
 those without judgment ; men the most acute, the 
 most learned, the most intelligent in other relations, 
 are not exempt, which proves that this aberration is 
 is the effect of a foreign cause, to whose influence 
 they are subjected. We have said that the results of 
 fascination are much more grave ; for, by means of 
 the illusion, the spirit leads the one he masters as he 
 would lead a blind man, can make him accept the 
 most absurd doctrines, the falsest theories, as being 
 the sole expression of truth ; still more, he can incite 
 him to the most ridiculous, compromising, and even 
 dangerous proceedings, 
 
 One can easily comprehend the great difference 
 existing between simple obsession and fascination ; 
 as also that the spirits who produce these two effects 
 must differ in character. In the first, the spirit is a 
 being troublesome only by his tenacity, and of whom 
 one is impatient to be rid. In the second, it is quite 
 another thing : to gain such ends needs an adroit, 
 subtle, and profoundly hypocritical spirit, for he can 
 create the delusion, and make himself accepted only 
 by means of the mask he wears and of a semblance 
 of virtue ; the grand words, charity, humility, and love 
 of God, are as letters of credence ; but through all he 
 shows signs of inferiority, which one must be fasci- 
 nated not to perceive. He also dreads all people 
 who see too clearly ; his tactics, therefore, are, almost 
 always, to inspire his interpreter to withdraw from 
 every one who could open his eyes : by this means, 
 avoiding all contradiction, he is sure of being always 
 right. 
 
 240. Subjugation is a bond that paralyzes the will of 
 
ON OBSESSION. 3 1 1 
 
 him who is subjected to it., and makes him act in spite 
 of himself. In a word, it is a xvaXyoke. 
 
 Subjugation may' be moral or corporeal. In the 
 first case, the subjugated is instigated to do things 
 often absurd and compromising, which he is deluded 
 into believing sensible : it is a kind of fascination. In 
 the second case, the spirit acts on the material organs, 
 and provokes involuntary movements. It shows itself 
 in the writing medium by an incessant desire to write, 
 even at the most inopportune moments. We have 
 seen those who, in default of pen or pencil, would 
 write with the finger, wherever they might be, even in 
 the streets, on the doors and walls. 
 
 Corporeal subjugation sometimes goes further ; it 
 may urge to the most ridiculous acts. We knew a 
 man, neither young nor handsome, under the domin- 
 ion of an obsession of this nature, constrained by an 
 irresistible force to kneel to a young girl whom he had 
 never before seen, and ask her in marriage. At other 
 times, he felt on his back and loins a violent pressure, 
 which forced him, in spite of his opposing will, to kneel 
 and kiss the ground in public and crowded places. 
 This man passed for crazy among his friends, but we 
 were convinced he was not at all so ; for he was per- 
 fectly conscious of the ridicule of which he was unwill- 
 ingly the cause, and suffered horribly from it. 
 
 241. Formerly the name of possession was given to 
 this dominion exercised by evil spirits, when their 
 influence extended to the aberration of the faculties. 
 Possession, for us, would be synonymous with subju- 
 gation. We have two reasons for not adopting this 
 term ; the first, that it implies beings created for, and 
 perpetually devoted to, evil, while really there are only 
 beings, more or less imperfect, who can all be made 
 
312 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 better ; the second, that it also implies the idea of 
 taking possession of the body by a foreign spirit — a 
 sort of cohabitation ; while really there is only con- 
 straint. The word subjugation perfectly renders the 
 thought. Thus, for us, there are no possessed, in the 
 ordinary sense of the word ; there are only obsessed, 
 subjugated, and fascinated. 
 
 242. Obsession, as we have said, is one of the great- 
 est dangers of raediumship ; it is also one of the most 
 frequent : so we cannot take too much pains to com- 
 bat it ; for, over and above the personal inconveniences 
 that may result, it is an absolute obstacle to the good- 
 ness and truth of communications. Obsession, to 
 whatever degree it may be carried, being always the 
 effect of a restraint, and this restraint never being 
 exercised by a good spirit, the result is, that every 
 communication given by an obsessed medium is of a 
 suspicious origin, and merits no confidence. If some- 
 times good is found in them, take the good, but reject 
 all that is even doubtful. 
 
 243. Obsession may be known by the following- 
 characteristics : First. Persistence of a spirit in com- 
 municating, bon gre, mal gre, by writing, hearing, typ- 
 tology, &c, and in opposing whatever other spirits 
 may do. 
 
 Second. Illusion, which, notwithstanding the intel- 
 ligence of the medium, prevents him from seeing the 
 falsity and absurdity of the communications he re- 
 ceives. 
 
 Third. Belief in the infallibility and absolute iden- 
 tity of the spirits who communicate, and who, under 
 respected and venerated names, say false or absurd 
 things. 
 
 Fourth. Confidence of the medium in the eulogi- 
 
ON OBSESSION. 313 
 
 aras the spirits who communicate with him bestow 
 upon him. 
 
 Fifth. A disposition to withdraw from persons who 
 may give him useful advice. 
 
 Sixth. Taking in ill part all criticisms on the sub- 
 ject of the communications he receives. 
 
 Seventh. An incessant and inopportune desire to 
 write. 
 
 Eighth. Any physical restraint whatever against 
 the will, and being forced to act or speak in spite of 
 one's self. 
 
 Ninth. Persistent noises and disturbances about 
 one, and of which one is the cause, or object. 
 
 244. In the face of this danger of obsession it may 
 be asked if it is not a pity to be a medium ; is it not 
 this faculty that induces it, and is it not a proof of 
 the inexpediency of spirit communications ? Our an- 
 swer is easy, and we beg it may be carefully con- 
 sidered. 
 
 Neither mediums nor spiritists created the spirits, 
 but the spirits have been the cause of there being 
 spiritists and mediums : spirits being only the souls of 
 men, there have been spirits as long as there have 
 been men ; and, consequently, they have, in all time, 
 exercised their salutary or pernicious influence on 
 humanity. The medianimic faculty is for them only a 
 means of manifesting themselves ; in default of this 
 faculty, they do it in a thousand other ways, more or 
 less occult. It would be an error to believe that spir- 
 its exercise their influence only by written or verbal 
 communications ; their influence is incessant, and those 
 who do not concern themselves about spirits, or who 
 do not even believe in them, are as exposed to it as 
 others, and more than others, because they have no 
 
3 H BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 counterpoise. Mediumship is for the spirit a means 
 of making himself known; if he is bad he always 
 betrays hims.elf, however hypocritical he may be ; thus 
 it may be said that mediumship allows one to see his 
 enemy face to face, if it may be so expressed, and to 
 fight him with his own weapons ; without this faculty 
 he acts in the dark, and, under cover of his invisibility, 
 can do, and does, much harm. To how many actions 
 have not people been urged, to their misfortune, and 
 which they might have avoided had they possessed the 
 means of being enlightened ! The incredulous know 
 not how truly they speak, when they say of a man who 
 obstinately goes astray, " It is his evil genius urging 
 him on to his destruction." Thus the knowledge of 
 Spiritism, far from giving dominion to bad spirits, 
 must, sooner or later, when it shall be widely spread, 
 result in the destruction of that domination by giving 
 to every one the means of being on his guard against 
 their suggestions, and then he who yields will have no 
 one to blame but himself. 
 
 General rule : whoever has bad spirit communica- 
 tions, written or verbal, is under an evil influence ; 
 this influence is exercised on him, whether he writes 
 or whether he does not write ; that is, whether he be 
 a medium or not ; whether he believe or disbelieve. 
 Writing gives a person the means of knowing the 
 nature of the spirits who act on him, and of fighting 
 against them if they are evil, which can be done with 
 much greater success when the motive which makes 
 them act is known. If he is too much blinded to 
 understand it, others can open his eyes. 
 
 To recapitulate: the danger is not so much in Spir- 
 itism itself, since it can, on the contrary, serve as a 
 controlling influence, and save from him who inces- 
 
ON OBSESSION. 315 
 
 santly pursues us against our will ; it is in the haughty 
 
 propensity of some mediums to believe too easily that 
 they are the exclusive instruments of superior spirits, 
 and in the kind of fascination that prevents them from 
 understanding the foolish things of which they are the 
 interpreters. Those, even, who are not mediums, may 
 be exposed to it. Let us make a comparison. A man 
 has a secret enemy, who disseminates all kinds of 
 calumnious reports that the blackest wickedness can 
 invent ; he sees his fortune lost, his friends alienated, 
 his internal happiness destroyed ; not being able to 
 discover the hand that strikes him, he cannot defend 
 himself, and yields ; but one day this secret enemy 
 writes to him, and, in spite of his strategy, betrays 
 himself. Now he faces the discovered foe, can put 
 him to confusion, and recover himself. Such is the 
 rdle of the evil spirits, whom Spiritism makes it possi- 
 ble to know and unmask. 
 
 245. The motives of the obsession vary according 
 to the nature of the spirit ; sometimes it is a vengeance 
 he exercises on an individual, against whom he has 
 cause of complaint, either during his life or in another 
 existence ; often, also, he has no other reason than the 
 desire of doing evil ; as he suffers, he wishes to make 
 others suffer ; he finds a kind of joy in tormenting and 
 vexing them ; also the impatience they exhibit excites 
 him, because such is his object, while, by being 
 patient, we weary him ; in becoming irritated, and 
 showing vexation, we do exactly what he wishes. 
 These spirits sometimes act from hatred and jealousy 
 of good ; this is why they cast their malicious eyes on 
 the best people. One of them sticks like a leech to 
 an honorable family of our acquaintance, whom he has 
 not even the satisfaction of deceiving ; interrogated as 
 
316 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 to his motive for attacking good people, instead of evil 
 men like himself, he answered, " They give me no cause 
 for envy." Others are guided by a sentiment of cow- 
 ardice, which leads them to profit by the moral weak- 
 ness of those who they know are incapable of resist- 
 ing them. One of these, who subjugated a young 
 man of very limited intellect, interrogated as to the 
 motives of his choice, answered, " I have a very great 
 need of tormenting some one: a sensible person would 
 repulse me. I attach myself to an idiot, who has no 
 means of opposing me!' 
 
 246. There are obsessing spirits without malice, who 
 even have some good, but who have the pride of false 
 knowledge ; they have their own ideas, their systems 
 of the sciences, social economy, morality, religion, 
 philosophy ; they want their opinion to prevail, and, 
 for that purpose, seek mediums credulous enough to 
 accept them with closed eyes, and whom they fascinate 
 to prevent them from discerning the true from the 
 false. They are the more dangerous because sophisms 
 cost them nothing, and they can gain credit for the 
 most ridiculous extravagances : as they know the pres- 
 tige of great names, they do not scruple to borrow the 
 most respected, not even recoiling before the sacrilege 
 of calling themselves Jesus, or the Virgin Mary, or a 
 venerated saint. They seek to dazzle by pompous 
 language, more pretentious than profound, bristling 
 with technical terms, and adorned with the grand 
 words of charity and morality ; they are careful not to 
 give bad advice, because they know they will be re- 
 jected : so those whose confidence they abuse defend 
 them against every one, saying, " You can see they 
 say nothing wrong." But morality is to them but a 
 passport ; it is the least of their care ; what they want 
 
ON OBSESSION. 317 
 
 is to govern, and to impose on others their ideas, how- 
 ever unreasonable they may be. 
 
 247. Spirits who have a system to advance are gen- 
 erally writers : this is why they look for mediums who 
 write with facility, and of whom they try to make 
 docile instruments, fascinating them that they may be 
 enthusiasts. They are almost always verbose, very 
 prolix, endeavoring to make up in quantity what they 
 lack in quality. They please themselves by dictating 
 to their interpreters voluminous writings, crude and 
 often nearly unintelligible, which, happily, it is almost 
 impossible for the masses to read. The really superior 
 spirits are sober of speech ; they say much in few 
 words : so this prodigious fecundity should always be 
 suspected. 
 
 One cannot be too circumspect when the question 
 arises of publishing such writings : the Utopianisms 
 and eccentricities in which they abound produce a 
 lamentable impression on novices, by giving them a 
 false idea of Spiritism, without counting the fact that 
 they are arms furnished to its enemies to turn it into 
 ridicule. Among these publications are those which, 
 without being evil, and without evincing obsession, 
 may yet be regarded as imprudent, unseasonable, or 
 maladroit. 
 
 248. It frequently happens that a medium can com- 
 municate only with one single spirit, who attaches 
 himself to him, and answers for those who are called 
 by his mediation. This is not always an obsession, 
 for it may pertain to a certain want of flexibility in the 
 medium, and to a special affinity on his part for such 
 or such a spirit. There is no obsession, properly 
 called, except when a spirit imposes himself on a 
 medium, and forces away others by his will ; this is 
 
318 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 never the case with a good spirit. Usually the spirit 
 who makes himself master of a medium with the view 
 of governing him, does not suffer the critical examina- 
 tion of his communications ; when he sees they are 
 not accepted, and that they are discussed, he does not 
 retire, but he inspires the medium with the thought of 
 isolating himself ; often he even commands him to do 
 so. Every medium who is wounded by the criticism 
 of the communications he obtains, is the echo of the 
 spirit who governs him, and this spirit cannot be 
 good if he inspires an illogical thought — that of refus- 
 ing examination. The isolation of the medium is 
 always a lamentable thing for him, because then he 
 has no critic for his communications. Not only should 
 he gain insight by the advice of others, but it is ne- 
 cessary for him to study all kinds of communications 
 in order to compare them ; in shutting himself up 
 in those he himself obtains, however good they may 
 appear to him, he is exposed to delusion as to their 
 value, without reckoning that he cannot know every- 
 thing, and that they nearly always run in the same 
 groove. (No. 192, Exclusive Mediums)} 
 
 249. The means of combating obsession vary accord- 
 ing to the character it takes. The danger does not 
 really exist for any thoroughly convinced medium to 
 be brought into relations with a lying spirit, as in 
 simple obsession ; it is only a disagreeable thing for 
 him. But precisely because it is disagreeable to him, 
 is a reason the more for the spirit to follow him persis- 
 tently to vex him. There are two essential things to 
 do in such case : to prove to the spirit that one is not his 
 dupe, and that it is impossible to deceive us ; secondly 
 tire his patience by showing ourself more patient than 
 he; if he is thoroughly convinced that he^will lose his 
 
ON OBSESSION. 319 
 
 time, be will end by retiring, as importunate persons 
 do when we do not listen to them. 
 
 But that does not always suffice, and it may be 
 long, for some of them are very tenacious, and months 
 and years are but little to them. The medium should 
 make a fervent appeal to his good angel, also to the 
 good spirits who are sympathetic to him, and beg them 
 to assist him. As for the obsessing spirit, however bad 
 he may be, he should be treated with firmness, but 
 with kindness, vanquishing him by good in praying 
 for him. If he is really perverse, he will at first 
 mock at it ; but in perseveringly moralizing with him, 
 he will end by amending ; it is a conversion to under- 
 take, a task often painful, ungrateful, even discoura- 
 ging, but whose merit is in the difficulty, and which, if 
 well accomplished, always gives the satisfaction of 
 having fulfilled a duty of charity, and often that of 
 having led a lost soul into the good road. 
 
 It is equally expedient to break off all written com- 
 munication as soon as it is known to come from a bad 
 spirit, who will not listen to reason, in order not to 
 give him the pleasure of being listened to. In some 
 cases, even, it might be necessary to cease writing for 
 a time ; it must be regulated according to circum- 
 stances. But if the writing medium can avoid these 
 discourses by abstaining from writing, it is not the same 
 with the hearing medium, whom the obsessing spirit 
 sometimes pursues every instant with his gross and 
 obscene remarks, and who has not even the resource 
 of closing his ears. There are persons who are 
 amused by the frivolous language of these spirits, 
 whom they encourage and urge by laughing at their 
 follies, instead of imposing silence on them, and trying 
 
320 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 to teach them better. Our advice does not apply to 
 those who will drown themselves. 
 
 250. There is, then, only disgust, and not danger, for 
 any medium who will not allow himself to be abused, 
 because he cannot be deceived ; it is entirely other- 
 wise with fasci natum, for then the dominion the spirit 
 assumes over him whom he invades has no bounds. 
 The only thing to do with him is to try to convince 
 him he is deceived, and to lead his obsession to a case 
 of simple obsession ; but it is not always easy, if it is 
 not even sometimes impossible. The ascendency of 
 the spirit may be such that he makes the one fascinat- 
 ed deaf to every kind of reasoning, and, when the 
 spirit commits some gross scientific heresy, makes him 
 go so far as to doubt if science itself is not wrong. 
 As we have said, he generally takes advice in very ill 
 part ; criticism annoys, irritates him, and makes him 
 dislike those who do not partake his admiration. To 
 suspect his spirit is almost a profanation in his eyes, 
 and that is all the spirit asks, for what he wants is, 
 that we should bend before his word. One of them 
 exercised on a person of our acquaintance a most 
 extraordinary fascination ; we invoked him, and after 
 some romancing, seeing that he could not delude us as 
 to his identity, he ended by confessing that he was not 
 the one whose name he had taken. Having asked 
 why he so deceived this person, he answered in these 
 words, which very clearly expresses the character of 
 spirits of this kind : " I looked for a man I could lead ; 
 I have found him, and here I stay." " But if we should 
 make him see clearly, he will drive you away." '* Well 
 see about that ! " As there is none more blind than he 
 who will not see, when we find the uselessness of every 
 attempt to open the eyes of the fascinated, the best 
 
ON OBSESSION. 32 1 
 
 thing to do is, to leave him to his delusions. A patient 
 cannot be cured who persists in keeping his disease, 
 and even delights in it. 
 
 251. Corporeal subjugation often takes from the 
 obsessed the energy necessary to rule the bad spirit ; 
 for this reason the intervention of a third person is 
 needed, acting either by magnetism or by his strength 
 of will. In default, of any assistance from the ob- 
 sessed, this person should take the ascendency over 
 the spirit ; but as this ascendency can only be moral, it 
 is given only to a being morally superior "to the spirit to 
 exercise it, and his power will be as much greater as 
 his moral superiority is greater, for he commands the 
 spirit who is forced to bend before him ; this is why 
 Jesus had such great power to drive out what were 
 then called demons, that is, bad obsessing spirits. 
 
 We can give here only general advice, for there is 
 no material process, no formula, nor any sacramental 
 word that has the power to drive away obsessing spirits. 
 Sometimes the obsessed lacks fluidic force ; in such case 
 the magnetic action of a good magnetizer might be a 
 very useful help. Then it is always well to take, by 
 a sure medium, the advice of a superior spirit, or of 
 his guardian angel. 
 
 252. The moral imperfections of the obsessed are 
 often an obstacle to his deliverance. Here is a re- 
 markable example, which may serve as instruction to 
 every one : — 
 
 Several sisters were, for a number of years, victims 
 of very disagreeable depredations. Their clothing 
 was constantly thrown about in every corner of the 
 house, and even upon the roof, cut, torn, and riddled 
 with holes, whatever care they might take to lock it 
 up. These ladies, brought up in a small provincial 
 21 
 
3^2 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 locality, had never heard of Spiritism. Their first 
 thought, naturally, was, that they were the butt of some 
 joker's tricks ; but the persistence and their precau- 
 tions destroyed that idea It was not until a long time 
 after, that, on some indications, they thought they 
 ought to address us to know the cause of the trouble, 
 and the means to remedy it, if possible. The cause 
 was not doubtful ; the remedy* was more difficult. 
 The spirit who manifested himself by these acts was 
 evidently malicious. He showed himself, in the invo- 
 cation, of great perversity, and inaccessible to every 
 good sentiment. Prayer seemed, nevertheless, to exer- 
 cise a salutary influence ; but after a short respite, the 
 depredations recommenced. The advice of a superior 
 spirit on this subject is here given. 
 
 " What these ladies had better do is, to pray their 
 spirit protectors not to abandon them ; and I have no 
 better advice to give them than to look into their con- 
 sciences, and confess to themselves, and examine if 
 they have always practiced the love of the neighbor 
 and charity ; I do not mean the charity that gives 
 and distributes, but the charity of the tongue ; for 
 unhappily they know not how to control theirs, and 
 do not justify, by their pious acts, their desire of being 
 delivered from him who torments them. They like 
 too well to slander their neighbor, and the spirit who 
 obsesses them is taking his revenge, for he was their 
 drudge during his life. They have only to search 
 their memory, and they will soon see with whom they 
 have to do. 
 
 "At the same time, if they become better, their 
 guardian angels will return to them, and their pres- 
 ence will suffice to drive away the bad spirit, who 
 could not have troubled one of them, but that her 
 
ON OBSESSION. 323 
 
 guardian angel had withdrawn to a distance from her 
 on account of some reprehensible acts or bad thoughts. 
 What they must do is, to pray fervently for those who 
 suffer, and to practice the virtues enjoined by God to 
 each one according to his condition." 
 
 On our observing that these words seemed to us a 
 little severe, and that they ought to be somewhat 
 softened before transmitting them, the spirit added, — 
 
 " I ought to say what I have said, and as I have said 
 it, because the persons in question have the habit of 
 believing they do no harm with the tongue, while they 
 do a great deal. We must, therefore, strike their minds 
 in such a way that it will be a serious warning." 
 
 From this may be drawn instruction of great signi- 
 fication — that moral imperfections give a footing to 
 obsessing spirits, and that the surest means of ridding 
 one's self of them is to attract the good by well 
 doing. (The good spirits have, without doubt, more 
 power than the bad, and their will is sufficient to 
 remove these last ; but they assist only those \*ho 
 second them by the efforts they make to become better; 
 otherwise they withdraw, and leave the field free to the 
 bad spirits, who thus become, in some cases, instru- 
 ments of punishment, for the good leave them to act 
 for this purpose. 
 
 253. Yet we should beware of attributing to the 
 direct action of the spirits all the annoyances that may 
 arise : these annoyances are often the consequence of 
 negligence or improvidence. A planter wrote to us, 
 that for twelve years all sorts of misfortunes had 
 befallen his animals. Sometimes his cows died, or 
 would give no milk ; sometimes the trouble was with 
 the horses ; again his sheep or his pigs. He hired new 
 people, but without remedying the evil, no more than 
 
324 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the masses he had said, or the exorcisms he had made. 
 Then, according to country prejudice, he was per- 
 suaded some one had cast an evil eye on his animals. 
 Believing, no doubt, that we were endowed with greater 
 power than the priest of his village, he sent to ask our 
 advice. We obtained the following answer : — 
 
 " The mortality or the sickness of this man's beasts 
 is, because his stables are infected, and that he does not 
 have them repaired because it costs." 
 
 254. We close this chapter with the answers given 
 by the spirits to some questions supporting what we 
 have said. 
 
 1. " Why cannot certain mediums rid themselves of 
 bad spirits who are with them, and how is it that the 
 good spirits they call are not powerful enough to 
 remove the bad spirits, and communicate directly ? " 
 
 " It is not power that is wanting to the good spirits, 
 it is often the medium who is not strong enough to 
 second them ; his nature adapts itself better to certain 
 relations, or rather his fluid identifies itself sooner 
 with one spirit than with another ; this is what gives 
 such great sway to those who wish to take advantage 
 of it." 
 
 2. " Nevertheless, it seems to us that there are very 
 many meritorious persons, of irreproachable morality, 
 who yet are prevented from communicating with good 
 spirits." 
 
 " It is a trial ; and, besides, who can tell if the heart 
 is not stained with an evil thought ? if pride does not 
 a little govern the appearance of goodness ? These 
 trials, by showing to- the obsessed his weakness, should 
 turn him to humility. 
 
 " Is there any one on the earth who can say he is 
 perfect ? and he who has all the appearances of virtue 
 
ON OBSESSION. 3^5 
 
 may still have hidden defects, an old leaven of imper- 
 fection. Thus, for instance, you say of him who does 
 no wrong, who is loyal in his social relations, This is a 
 true and worthy man : but do you know if his good 
 qualities are not tarnished by pride ; if there is not 
 within him a fund of egotism ; if he is not avaricious, 
 jealous, spiteful, slanderous, and a hundred other things 
 you do not perceive, because your relations with him 
 have not developed them ? The most powerful means 
 of striving against the influence of bad spirits is to 
 make yourself as much as possible like the good." 
 
 3. " Is the obsession which prevents a medium's 
 obtaining the communications he desires always a sign 
 of unworthiness on his part ? " 
 
 " I did not say it was a sign of unworthiness, but 
 that an obstacle might be there to oppose certain com- 
 munications ; it is to remove the obstacle within him 
 that all attention should be given ; without that all 
 his prayers, his supplications, will be of no avail. It is 
 not enough for a sick person to say to his doctor, 
 Give me health ; I want to be well : the doctor can do 
 nothing if the patient does not do what is necessary." 
 
 4. " Would the privation, then, be a kind of pun- 
 ishment ? " 
 
 " In some cases, this may be a real punishment, as 
 the possibility of communicating with them is a recom- 
 pense you should endeavor to deserve." (See Loss and 
 Suspejisioji of Mediums hip, No. 220.) 
 
 5. " Cannot the influence of bad spirits be also over- 
 come by giving them moral instruction ? " 
 
 " Yes ; this is what no one does, but it is what 
 should not be neglected ; for it is often a task given to 
 you, and one that you should accomplish charitably 
 
326 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 and religiously. By wise counsel they may be incited 
 to repentance, and their advancement hastened." 
 
 " How can a man have more influence in this respect 
 than the spirits themselves ? " 
 
 " The perverse spirits are allied rather to men whom 
 they seek to torment, than to spirits from whom they 
 withdraw as far as possible. In this approach to man, 
 when they find one who talks to them trying to im- 
 prove their morals, they do not listen at first ; they 
 laugh at it ; then, if you know how to take them, they 
 will eventually allow themselves to be affected. The 
 elevated spirits can speak to them only in the name 
 of God, and that frightens them. Man, certainly, has 
 not more power than the superior spirits, but his 
 language is better identified with their nature, and in 
 seeing the ascendency he can exercise over the inferior 
 spirits, he comprehends better the solidarity existing 
 between the heavens and the earth. 
 
 "Then, too, the ascendency that man can exercise 
 over the spirits is by reason of his moral superiority. 
 He cannot master the superior spirits, nor even those 
 who, without being superior, are good and benevolent, 
 but he can master the spirits who are morally inferior 
 to him." 
 
 6. "Can corporeal subjugation carried to a certain 
 length induce insanity ? " 
 
 " Yes ; a kind of insanity whose cause is unknown 
 to the world, but which has no relation to ordinary 
 insanity. Among those treated as insane, there are 
 many who are only subjugated ; a moral treatment is 
 necessary for them, while they make them really 
 insane by their corporeal treatments. When doctors 
 understand Spiritism, they will know how to make a 
 
ON OBSESSION. 327 
 
 distinction, and will cure more patients than they are 
 now curing with their shower-baths." (221.) 
 
 7. " What may be thought of those who, seeing 
 danger in Spiritism, think to prevent it by interdicting 
 spirit communications?" 
 
 " If they can prevent some persons from communi- 
 cating with spirits, they cannot prevent the sponta- 
 neous manifestations made to these same persons, for 
 they cannot suppress the spirits, nor hinder their 
 secret influence. It is like children shutting their 
 eyes and thinking no one can see them. It would be 
 folly to suppress a thing that offers great advantages 
 because some imprudent persons might abuse it ; the 
 way to prevent these abuses is, on the contrary, to 
 search the thing to the bottom." 
 
Chapter XXIV. 
 IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 
 
 Possible Proofs of Identity. — Distinction of Good and 
 Bad Spirits. — Questions on tlie Nature and Ide?itity 
 of Spirits. 
 
 Possible Proofs of Identity. 
 
 255. The question of the identity of spirits is one 
 that has given rise to the greatest controversy, even 
 among the believers of Spiritism ; spirits do not bring 
 us letters of introduction, and it is well known with 
 what facility some of them take borrowed names ; so 
 that, obsession aside, it is one of the greatest difficulties 
 in the practice of Spiritism ; yet, in many cases, abso- 
 lute identity is a secondary question, and without real 
 importance. 
 
 The identity of the spirit of ancient personages is 
 the most difficult to verify, often even impossible, and 
 we are reduced to a purely moral valuation. Spirits, 
 like men, are judged by their language ; if a spirit pre- 
 sents himself under the name of Fenelon, for instance, 
 and gives us trivialities or puerilities, it very surely 
 cannot be he ; if he says only things worthy the char- 
 acter of Fenelon, and which he would not disavow, 
 there is, if not material proof, at least a moral proba- 
 bility, that it must be he. In such case, particularly, 
 the real identity is an accessory question : if the spirit 
 
 328 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 329 
 
 says only good things, it matters little under what name 
 they are given. 
 
 It will, doubtless, be objected that the spirit who 
 would take an assumed name, even to say only good, 
 would not the less commit a fraud, and thus could not 
 be a good spirit. Here there are delicate shades quite 
 difficult to seize, but which we shall try to develop. 
 
 256. In proportion as spirits are purified and ele- 
 vated in the hierarchy, the distinctive characters of 
 their personality are, in some sort, obliterated in the 
 uniformity of perfection, and yet they do not the less 
 preserve their individuality : this is the case with the 
 superior and with the pure spirits. In this condition, 
 the name they had on the earth, in one of their thou- 
 sand ephemeral corporeal existences, is quite an insig- 
 nificant thing. Let us remark again that spirits are 
 attracted to each other by the similarity of their qual- 
 ities, and that they thus form sympathetic groups or 
 families. Again, if we consider the immense number 
 of spirits who, since the beginning of time, have 
 reached the highest rank, and compare them with the 
 very restricted number of men who have left a great 
 name on the earth, it will be understood that, amonq; 
 the superior spirits who can communicate, the greater 
 part must have* no name for us ; but as names are 
 necessary to us to fix our ideas, they can take that of 
 any known personage whose nature is best identified 
 with their own ; thus our guardian angels most often 
 make themselves known under the name of one of the 
 saints we venerate, and generally under his name for 
 whom we have the most sympathy. It thus follows 
 that if a person's guardian angel gives his name as St. 
 Peter, for instance, there is no actual proof that it is 
 the apostle of that name ; it may be he, or it may be 
 
330 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 an entirely unknown spirit, belonging to the family of 
 spirits of which St. Peter makes a part : it also follows 
 that under whatever name the guardian angel is in- 
 voked, he comes to the call that is made, because he 
 is attracted by the thought, and the name is indifferent 
 to him. 
 
 It is always the same when a superior spirit com- 
 municates spontaneously under the name of a known 
 personage ; nothing proves that it is precisely the 
 spirit of that personage ; but if he says nothing that 
 discredits the elevation of character of this latter, there 
 is presumption that it is he, and, in all cases, it may be 
 said that, if it is not he, it must be a spirit of the same 
 degree, or, perhaps, one sent by him. In recapitula- 
 tion, the question of name is secondary ; we may con- 
 sider the name as a simple indication of the rank the 
 spirit occupies in the spirit scale. 
 
 The position is quite different when a spirit of an 
 inferior order borrows a respectable name to give 
 credence to his words, and this case is so frequent 
 that we cannot too carefully guard against these sub- 
 stitutions ; for it is under cover of these borrowed 
 names, and with the help of fascination, that certain 
 spirits, more vain than learned, seek to gain credence 
 for the most ridiculous ideas. 
 
 The question of identity, then, is, as we have said, 
 nearly a matter of indifference in regard to general in- 
 structions, for the best spirits can be substituted the 
 one for the other without its being of any consequence. 
 The superior spirits form, so to say, a collective whole, 
 whose individualities are, with few exceptions, totally 
 unknown to us. The matter of interest to us is, not 
 their person, but their teachings : now, if this teaching 
 be good, it matters little whether he who gives it calls 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 33 1 
 
 himself Peter or Paul ; we judge by his quality, and not 
 by his signature. If a wine is bad, the trade-mark will 
 not make it better. It is otherwise with private com- 
 munications, because it is the individual, his very per- 
 son, that interests us ; and it is right that, in this case, 
 we should be particular to assure ourselves that the 
 spirit who comes at our call is really he whom we 
 wish. 
 
 257. The identity of contemporaneous spirits is 
 much more easily proved, those whose character and 
 habits are known, for it is precisely these habits, which 
 they have not yet had time to throw aside, by which 
 they can be recognized ; and let us say here, that in 
 these very individual habits we find one of the most 
 certain signs of identity. Without doubt, the spirit 
 can give the proofs if asked, but he does not always do 
 so unless it is agreeable to him, and generally the ask- 
 ing wounds him ; for this reason it should be avoided. 
 In leaving his body, the spirit has not laid # aside his 
 susceptibility ; he is wounded by any question tending 
 to put him to the proof. // is sitcJi questions as one 
 would not dare to propose to him, were he living, for 
 fear of overstepping the bounds of propriety ; why, 
 then, should there be less regard after his death ? 
 Should a man enter a drawing-room and decline to 
 give his name, should we insist, at all hazards, that 
 he should prove his identity by exhibiting his titles, 
 under the pretext that there are impostors ? Would 
 he not, assuredly, have the right to remind his interro- 
 gator of the rules of good breeding ? This is what the 
 spirits do, either by not replying or by withdrawing. 
 Let us make a comparison. Suppose the astronomer, 
 Arago, during his life, had presented himself in a 
 house where no one knew him, and he had been thus 
 
322 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 addressed : " You say you are Arago ; but as we do not 
 know you, please prove it by answering our questions : 
 solve this astronomical problem ; tell us your name, 
 your Christian name, those of your children, what you 
 did such and such a day, at such an hour, &c." What 
 would he have answered ? Well, as a spirit, he will 
 do just what he would have done during his lifetime ; 
 and other spirits do the same. 
 
 258. While spirits refuse to answer puerile and im- 
 pertinent questions, which a person would have hesi- 
 tated to ask during their lives, they often spontane- 
 ously give irrefutable proofs of their identity by their 
 character, revealed in their language, by the use of 
 words that were familiar to them, by citing certain 
 facts, particularities of their life sometimes unknown 
 to the assistants, and whose truth has been verified. 
 Proofs of identity will spring up in many unforeseen 
 ways, which do not present themselves at first sight, 
 but in the course of conversations. It is better, then, 
 to wait for them without calling for them, observing 
 with care all that may flow from the nature of the com- 
 munications. (See the fact given, No. 70.) 
 
 259. One means employed, sometimes with success, 
 to be assured of identity when the spirit who com- 
 municates is suspected, consists in making him affirm, 
 in tJie name of Almighty God, that he is the one he 
 pretends to be. It often happens that he who usurps 
 a name would recoil before a sacrilege, and after hav- 
 ing begun to write, I affirm, in the name of — , he stops, 
 and traces some insignificant lines, or breaks the 
 pencil in anger : if he is more hypocritical, he eludes 
 the question by a mental reservation, writing, for in- 
 stance, I certify that I have told you the truth; or, / 
 attest, in the 7iame of God, that it is I who speak to 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 333 
 
 you, &c. But there are some not so scrupulous, and 
 who swear whatever you want. One of them com- 
 municated to a medium, calling himself God ; and the 
 medium, highly honored by so high a favor, did not 
 hesitate to believe him. Invoked by us, he did not 
 dare sustain his imposture, and said, " I am not God, 
 but I am His son." " You are, then, Jesus ? That is 
 not probable, for Jesus is too high to employ subter- 
 fuge. Dare then to affirm, in the name of God, that 
 you are the Christ." " I do not say I am Jesus : I say 
 I am the son of God, because I am one of His crea- 
 tures." 
 
 We may conclude that the refusal on the part of a 
 spirit to affirm his identity in the name of God, is 
 always a manifest proof that the name is an imposture, 
 but that the affirmation is only a presumption, and not 
 a certain proof. 
 
 260. Among the proofs of identity may also be 
 classed the similarity of the writing and the signa- 
 ture, but, as it is not always given to all mediums to 
 obtain this result, it is not always a sufficient guaran- 
 tee ; there are forgers in the world of spirits as in 
 this ; so that this is but presumptive evidence, which 
 acquires value only by accompanying circumstances. 
 It is the same with all material signs that some give 
 as talismans that cannot be imitated by lying spirits. 
 For those who dare perjure themselves in God's name, 
 or counterfeit a signature, no material sign whatever 
 will offer an obstacle. The best of all the proofs of 
 identity is in the language and in casual circum- 
 stances. 
 
 261. It will be said, doubtless, that if a spirit can 
 imitate a signature, he can as well imitate the language. 
 That is true: we have seen those who had the effron- 
 
334 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 tery to take the name of the Christ, and in order to 
 delude, simulated the evangelical style, constantly in- 
 troducing at hap-hazard the well-known words, Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you ; but when the whole was studied 
 without prejudice, the depth of the thoughts, the bear- 
 ing of the expressions, scrutinized, — when, by the side 
 of fine maxims of charity; ridiculous and puerile recom- 
 mendations were seen, — he would needs be fascinated 
 to mistake it. Yes, certain parts of the material form 
 of the language can be imitated, but not the thought : 
 never will ignorance imitate true knowledge, never will 
 vice imitate true virtue ; some part will always show, 
 if but the tip of the ear ; the medium, as also the 
 invocator, need all their perspicacity, all their judg- 
 ment, to unravel the truth from the falsehood. They 
 must remember that the perverse spirits are capable 
 of every stratagem, and the more elevated the name 
 under which a spirit announces himself, the more it 
 should inspire distrust. How many mediums have 
 had apocryphal' communications signed Jesus, Mary, 
 or a venerated saint ! 
 
 Distinction of Good and Bad Spirits. 
 
 262. If the absolute identity of the spirits is, in 
 many cases, a secondary question, one of little im- 
 portance, it is not the same with the distinction of 
 good and bad ; their individuality may be indifferent 
 to us, their quality never. In all instructive communi- 
 cations, it is on this point the whole attention should 
 be concentrated, because it alone can give us the de- 
 gree of confidence we may accord to the spirit, what- 
 ever may be the name under which he manifests him- 
 self. Is the spirit good, or bad? To what degree of 
 the spirit scale does he belong? That is the grand 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 335 
 
 question. (See Spirit Scale in the Book on Spirits, 
 No. ioo). 
 
 263. The spirits are judged, we have said, as men 
 are judged, by their language. Suppose a man should 
 receive twenty letters from as many unknown persons : 
 from the style, from the thoughts, from many signs, he 
 will decide who are educated or ignorant, polished or 
 ill-bred, superficial, profound, frivolous, vain, serious, 
 light, sentimental, &c. It is the same with spirits : 
 they should be considered as unknown correspon- 
 dents, and we should ask ourselves what .we should 
 think of the knowledge and character of a man who 
 should write such things. It may be given as an in- 
 variable rule, and one without exception, that the lan- 
 guage of the spirits is always in accordance with the 
 degree of tlteir elevation. Not only do the really supe- 
 rior spirits say only good things, but they say them in 
 terms which exclude in the most absolute manner all 
 triviality ; however good these things may be, if they 
 are tarnished by a single expression that savors of low- 
 ness, it is an indubitable sign of inferiority ; still more 
 if the whole of the communication outrages propriety 
 by its grossness. The language always betrays its 
 origin, whether by the thought it renders, or by its 
 form ; and if a spirit should desire to delude us as to 
 his pretended superiority, a little conversation suffices 
 for us to estimate him at his proper value. 
 
 264. Goodness and benevolence are the essential 
 attributes of purified spirits ; they have no hatred, 
 neither for men nor for other spirits ; they pity weak- 
 nesses, they criticise errors, but always with modera- 
 tion, without anger and without animosity. If it be 
 admitted that truly good spirits can will only good, 
 and say only good things, it must thence be concluded 
 
336 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 that anything which, in the language of the spirits, 
 betrays a want of goodness and benevolence, cannot 
 emanate from a good spirit. 
 
 265. Intelligence is far from being a certain sign of 
 superiority, for intelligence and morality do not always 
 keep step. A spirit may be good and benevolent, and 
 have very limited knowledge, while an intelligent and 
 educated spirit may be very inferior in morality. 
 
 It is quite generally believed that in interrogating 
 the spirit of a man who was learned in a speciality on 
 the earth, the truth will be more certainly obtained : 
 this is logical, yet not always true. Experience shows 
 that savants, as well as other men, especially those who 
 have but lately left the world, are still under the do- 
 minion of the prejudices of corporeal life ; they do not 
 immediately rid themselves of the spirit of system. It 
 may, then, be that, under the influence of the ideas they 
 have cherished during their lives, and which have made 
 for them a glorious title, they see less clearly than we 
 think. We do not give this principle as a rule ; far 
 from it ; we say only that it shows for itself, and that, 
 consequently, their human science is not always a proof 
 of their infallibility as spirits. 
 
 266. By subjecting all communications to a scrupu- 
 lous examination, by scrutinizing and analyzing the 
 thought and the expressions, as we should do were we 
 judging a literary work, by unhesitatingly rejecting 
 everything that sins against logic and good sense, 
 everything that contradicts the character of the spirit 
 reputed to be manifested ; the deceiving spirits are dis- 
 couraged, and end by withdrawing, once thoroughly 
 convinced that they cannot deceive us. We repeat 
 it, this is the only means, but it is infallible, because 
 no "bad communication can resist a rigorous criticism. 
 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 337 
 
 The good spirits are never offended by it, for they 
 themselves advise it, and because they have nothing 
 to fear from the examination ; the bad alone take of- 
 fence, and try to dissuade from it : this of itself proves 
 what they are. 
 
 We give the advice of St. Louis on this subject : — 
 " However great may be the confidence with which 
 the spirits who preside over your labors inspire you, it 
 is a recommendation we cannot too often repeat, and 
 which you should always bear in mind when you give 
 yourself to your studies — to weigh and mature, that is, 
 submit to the censorship of the severest reason, all the 
 communications you receive ; as Ion 2^ as one point ap- 
 pears suspicious, doubtful, or obscure to you. not to 
 neglect to ask the explanations necessary to satisfy 
 you." 
 
 267. The means of recognizing the quality of the 
 spirits may be recapitulated in the following princi- 
 ples : — 
 
 1. Good sense is the sole criterion by which to dis- 
 cern the value of the spirits. Every formula given for 
 this purpose by the spirits themselves is absurd, and 
 cannot emanate from superior spirits. 
 
 2. The spirits are judged by their language and by 
 their actions. The actions of spirits are the sentiments 
 they inspire and the advice they give. 
 
 3. It being admitted that good spirits can say and do 
 only good, nothing bad can come from a good spirit. 
 
 4. The superior spirits have a language always 
 worthy, noble, elevated, with not the least tincture 
 of triviality ; they say everything with simplicity and 
 modesty,' never boast, never make a parade of their 
 knowledge or their position among others. That of 
 the inferior or ordinary spirit has always some reflex 
 
 22 
 
338 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 of human passions ; every expression that savors of 
 vulgarity, self-sufficiency, arrogance, boasting, acrimo- 
 ny, is a characteristic indication of inferiority, or of 
 treachery if the spirit presents himself under a re- 
 spected and venerated name. 
 
 5. We must not judge spirits by the material form 
 and the correctness of their style, but probe its inmost 
 sense, scrutinize their words, weigh them coolly, de- 
 liberately, and without prejudice. Any digression from 
 logic, reason, and wisdom leaves no doubt of their 
 origin, whatever may be the name under which the 
 spirit is disguised. (224.) 
 
 6. The language of elevated spirits is always identi- 
 cal, if not in form, at least in the inmost. The thoughts 
 are the same, whatever be the time and place ; they 
 may be more or less developed, according to circum- 
 stances, to the needs and to the facilities of com- 
 municating, but they will not be contradictory. If 
 two communications bearing the same name are in 
 opposition, one of the two is, evidently, apocryphal, 
 and the true one will be that where nothing contra- 
 dicts the known character of the personage. For 
 instance, between two communications signed by St. 
 Vincent de Paul, of which one should preach union and 
 charity, and the other should tend to sow discord, no 
 sensible person could mistake. 
 
 7. Good spirits tell only what they know ; they are 
 either silent or confess their ignorance of what they 
 do not know. The bad speak of everything with bold- 
 ness, without caring for the truth. Any notorious 
 scientific heresy, any principle that shocks good sense, 
 shows fraud, if the spirit pretends to be an enlightened 
 spirit.* 
 
 8. Again, we recognize trifling spirits by the facility 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 339 
 
 with which they predict the future and material facts 
 not given us to know. The good spirits may presage 
 future things when that knowledge is useful for us to 
 know, but they never fix dates ; any announcement of 
 an event at a fixed date is indicatory of mystification. 
 
 9. The superior spirits express themselves simply, 
 without prolixity ; their style is concise, without ex- 
 cluding the poetry of ideas and expressions, clear, in- 
 telligible to all, -and requires no effort for its compre- 
 hension ; they have the art of saying much in a few 
 words, because each word has its signification. The 
 inferior spirits, or false savants, hide under inflated 
 language and emphasis the emptiness of their thoughts. 
 Their language is often pretentious, ridiculous, or ob- 
 scure, by way of wishing to seem profound. 
 
 10. Good spirits never command ; they do not force 
 themselves on any one ; they advise, and if they are not 
 listened to, they withdraw. The bad are imperious ; 
 they give orders, wish to be obeyed, and remain, whether 
 or no. Every spirit who forces himself on any one be- 
 trays his origin. They are exclusive and absolute in 
 their opinions, and pretend that they alone have the 
 privilege of truth. They exact a blind belief, and 
 make no appeal to reason, because they know that 
 reason will unmask them. 
 
 n. Good spirits do not flatter; they approve when 
 we do well, but always with reserve ; the bad give 
 exaggerated eulogiums, stimulate pride and vanity, 
 while preaching humility, and seek to exalt tJic per- 
 sonal importance of those with whom they would curry 
 favor. 
 
 12. The superior spirits are above the puerilities of 
 form in cvcrytliing. Only ordinary spirits attach im- 
 portance to petty details, incompatible with truly ele- 
 
340 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 vated ideas. Any over-particular prescription is a 
 certain sign of inferiority and treachery on the part 
 of a spirit who takes an imposing name. 
 
 13. The odd and ridiculous names some spirits take, 
 who wish to impose on credulity, should be distrusted ; 
 it would be exceedingly absurd to take these names 
 seriously. 
 
 14. It is also necessary to distrust those who present 
 themselves easily under extremely venerated names, 
 and to accept their words with the utmost reserve ; in 
 this case a severe censorship is indispensable, for it is 
 often but a mask they assume to gain credit for their 
 pretended intimate relations with spirits beyond them. 
 By this means they flatter the vanity of the medium, 
 and make use of it often to draw him into doing ridicu- 
 lous things, or things to be regretted. 
 
 15. The good spirits are very careful as to the steps 
 they advise ; they never have any but a serious and 
 eminently useful aim. We should, then, regard with 
 suspicion all motives that are not of this character, or 
 that would be condemned by reason, and should de- 
 liberate seriously before undertaking them, for we 
 might be exposed to disagreeable mystifications. 
 
 16. We recognize good spirits by their prudent re- 
 serve on all subjects that might prove compromising ; 
 they dislike to unvail evil ; light or malevolent spirits 
 are pleased with displaying it. While the good seek 
 to smooth over injuries and preach indulgence, the bad 
 exaggerate them, and stir up discord by perfidious in- 
 sinuations. 
 
 17. Good spirits advise only good. Any maxim, any 
 advice, which is not strictly conformable to pure evan- 
 gelical charity, cannot be the work of a good spirit. 
 
 18. Good spirits advise only perfectly rational things. 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 34 1 
 
 Any recommendation which departs from therigJit line 
 of good sense, or from the immutable laws of nature, 
 shows a narrow spirit, and is, consequently, little worthy 
 of confidence. 
 
 19. Again, bad or simply imperfect spirits betray 
 themselves by material signs which cannot be mis- 
 taken. Their action on the medium is sometimes vio- 
 lent, and provocative of sudden and jerking movements, 
 a feverish and convulsive agitation, totally opposed to 
 the calm and gentleness of the good spirits. 
 
 20. Imperfect spirits often use the means of com- 
 munication opened to them to give perfidious advice; 
 they excite distrust and animosity against those who 
 are antipathetic to them ; those who could unmask 
 their imposture are especially the objects of their an- 
 imadversion. 
 
 Weak men are their best game ; to induce them to 
 evil. Employing by turns sophisms, sarcasms, insults, 
 even material signs of their occult power the better to 
 convince them, they strive to turn them from the path 
 of truth. 
 
 21. The spirits of men who have had, in the world, 
 a special preoccupation, whether material or moral, if 
 they are not disengaged from the influence of matter, 
 are still under the dominion of terrestrial ideas, and 
 retain a part of ; their prejudices, of their predilections, 
 and even of the fancies they had here below. This is 
 easily discerned in their language. 
 
 22. The learning that some spirits display, often with 
 a kind of ostentation, is not a sign of their superiority. 
 Unalterable purity of moral sentiment is the true touch- 
 stone. 
 
 23. The simple interrogation of a spirit is not suf- 
 ficient to know the truth. We should, before all things, 
 
342 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 know whom we address ; for the inferior spirits, them- 
 selve ignorant, treat with frivolity the most serious 
 questions. 
 
 Neither does it suffice that a spirit should have been 
 a great man on the earth to have supreme science in 
 the spirit world. Virtue alone, in purifying him, can 
 bring him nearer to God and extend his knowledge. 
 
 24. On the part of superior spirits pleasantry is 
 often fine and piquant, but never trivial. Among the 
 joking spirits who are not gross, biting satire is often 
 full of meaning. 
 
 25. In carefully studying the character of the spirits 
 who present themselves, especially from a moral point 
 of view, their nature and the degree of confidence to 
 be accorded them is easily ascertained. Good sense 
 cannot be deceived. 
 
 26. In order to judge spirits, as in order to judge 
 men, one should know how to judge one's self. There 
 are, unhappily, many men who take their personal 
 opinion as exclusive measure for good and bad, for 
 true and false ; all that contradicts their mode of see- 
 ing, their ideas, the system they have conceived or 
 adopted, is bad in their eyes. Such persons evidently 
 lack the first requisite for a healthy appreciation — rec- 
 titude of judgment ; but they do not suspect it ; in the 
 very defect is their greatest delusion. 
 
 All these instructions flow from experience and the 
 teachings of the spirits ; we complete them by answers 
 given by them on the most important points. 
 
 268. Questions on the Nature and Identity of Spirits. 
 
 1. "By what signs can we discern the superiority 
 or inferiority of spirits ? " 
 
 " By their language, as you distinguish a trifler from 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 343 
 
 a man of sense. We have already said, the superior 
 spirits never contradict themselves, and say only good 
 things; they will nothing but good: it is their whole 
 thought. 
 
 " The inferior spirits are still under the dominion of 
 material ideas ; their discourses show their ignorance 
 and imperfection. It is given only to the superior 
 spirits to know all things, and to judge without pas- 
 sion." 
 
 2. " Is scientific knowledge always a certain sign of 
 a spirit's elevation ? " 
 
 " No, for if he is still under the influence of matter, 
 he may have your vices and your prejudices. There 
 are persons who, in this world, are excessively jealous 
 and vain : do you believe that as soon as they leave 
 here they lose these defects ? There remains, after 
 the departure from here, especially to those who have 
 had very decided passions, a kind of atmosphere that 
 envelops them, and leaves them all these bad things. 
 
 " These semi-imperfect spirits are more to be dreaded 
 than bad spirits, because most of them combine astute- 
 ness and pride with intelligence. By their pretended 
 knowledge they impose on simple people and on the 
 ignorant, who accept without criticism their absurd 
 and lying theories ; though these theories cannot pre- 
 vail against the truth, they none the less do temporary 
 harm, for they hinder the progress of Spiritism, and 
 mediums are willingly blind to the merit of what is 
 communicated to them. This is what demands great 
 study on the part of enlightened spiritists and medi- 
 ums; all their attention should be given to distinguish 
 the true from the false." 
 
 3. " Many spirit protectors designate themselves by 
 
344 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the names of saints or well-known personages ; what 
 should we believe on this subject ? " 
 
 " All the names of saints and of well-known person- 
 ages would not suffice to furnish a protector to each 
 man ; among the spirits are few who have a name 
 known on the earth ; this is why very often they give 
 none ; but almost always you want a name ; then, to 
 satisfy you, they take that of a man you know and 
 respect." 
 
 4. " May not this borrowed name be considered a 
 fraud ? " 
 
 " It would be a fraud on the part of a bad spirit who 
 might want to deceive ; but when it is for good, God 
 permits it to be so among spirits of the same order, 
 because there is among them a solidarity and similarity 
 of thought." 
 
 5. " So, when a spirit protector calls himself St. Paul, 
 for instance, it is not certain to be the spirit or soul of 
 that apostle?" 
 
 " Not at all, for you find thousands of persons to 
 whom it has been said that their guardian angel is St. 
 Paul, or some other ; but what matters it, if the spirit 
 who protects you is as elevated as St. Paul ? I have said, 
 you want a name; they take one to be called, and recog- 
 nized by, as you take a baptismal name to distinguish 
 you from the other members of your family. They can 
 just as well take those of the archangel Raphael, St. 
 Michael, &c, and it would be a matter of no consequence. 
 
 " Besides, the more elevated the spirit, the more 
 multiple his radiation ; believe that a spirit protector 
 of a superior order may have under his tutelage hun- 
 dreds of incarnated beings. With you, on the earth, 
 you have notaries who have charge of the affairs of 
 one or two hundred families : why should you suppose 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 345 
 
 that we, spiritually speaking, would be less capable of 
 directing men morally than those of directing their 
 material interests ? " 
 
 6. "Why do the spirits who communicate so often 
 take the names of saints ? " 
 
 "They identify themselves with the habits of those 
 to whom they speak, and take the names calculated to 
 make the strongest impression on the man by reason 
 of his belief." 
 
 7. " Do superior spirits, when invoked, always come 
 in person ? or, as some think, do they come only by 
 mandataries charged to transmit their thought?" 
 
 " Why should they not come in person, if they can ? 
 but if the spirit cannot come, it will surely be a man- 
 dataiy." 
 
 8. " Is the mandatary always sufficiently enlightened 
 to answer as the spirit would who sends him ? " 
 
 "The superior spirits know to whom they confide 
 the care of replacing them. Besides, the more ele- 
 vated the spirits, the more they are commingled in one 
 common thought, in such manner that they are in- 
 different to personality ; and it ought to be the same 
 for you. Do you think that, in the world of superior 
 spirits, there are only those you have known on the 
 earth capable of instructing you ? You are so prone 
 to consider yourselves types of the universe, that you 
 always believe out of your world there is nothing. 
 Truly you are like those savages, who, never having 
 left their own island, fancy the world does not go be- 
 yond it." 
 
 9. " We comprehend that this may be the case when 
 it is a question of serious teaching ; but how is it that 
 the superior spirits permit spirits of a low class to avail 
 
346 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 themselves of respectable names to lead into error by 
 perverse maxims ? " 
 
 " It is not with their permission ; does it not hap- 
 pen the same among you ? Those who thus deceive 
 will be punished, believe me, and their punishment 
 will be in proportion to the gravity of the imposture. 
 Besides, if you were not imperfect, you would have 
 around you only good spirits, and if you are deceived, 
 you should blame no one but yourselves. God permits 
 it to be so to make trial of your perseverance and 
 your judgment, and to teach you to distinguish truth 
 from error ; if you do not, it is that you are not suffi- 
 ciently elevated, and still need the lessons of experi- 
 ence." . 
 
 10. " Are not spirits, slightly advanced but animat- 
 ed by good intentions and a desire to progress, some- 
 times delegated to replace a superior spirit, in order 
 that they may exercise themselves in teaching ? " 
 
 " Never in great circles ; I mean serious circles for 
 general instruction ; those who present themselves 
 there do it from their own desire, and, as you say, to 
 exercise themselves ; this is the reason their communi- 
 cations, though good, always bear traces of their inferi- 
 ority. Where they are delegated, it is for communica- 
 tions of little importance, and those that may be called 
 personal." 
 
 ii. "Ridiculous spirit communications are some- 
 times intermingled with very good maxims : how rec- 
 oncile this anomaly, which would seem to indicate the 
 simultaneous presence of good and bad spirits ?" 
 
 " Bad or frivolous spirits mingle thus to make sen- 
 tences, without much concern as to their bearing or 
 signification. Are all those among you superior men ? 
 No ; the good and bad spirits do not mingle ; it is the 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 347 
 
 constant uniformity of good communications by which 
 you may recognize the presence of good spirits." 
 
 12. "Do the spirits that lead persons into error 
 always do it purposely ? " 
 
 " No ; there are spirits, good, but ignorant, who 
 might deceive in all sincerity ; when they are con- 
 scious of their insufficiency, they say so, and tell only 
 what they know." 
 
 13. "When a spirit makes a false communication, 
 does he always do so with a malicious intention ? " 
 
 " No ; if it is a trifling spirit, he amuses himself by 
 mystifying, and has no other motive." 
 
 14. "As certain spirits can deceive by their lan- 
 guage, cau they also, to the eyes of a seeing medium, 
 take a false appearance ? " 
 
 " That may be done, but with great difficulty. In 
 all cases it never takes place, unless with an aim that 
 the bad spirits themselves do not know. They serve 
 as instruments to give a lesson. The seeing medium 
 can see frivolous and lying spirits, as others hear 
 them, or write under their influence. Frivolous spirits 
 may profit by this disposition in order to abuse him 
 by deceitful appearances ; that depends on the quali- 
 ties of his own spirit." 
 
 15. "Is it sufficient that we are actuated by good 
 intentions, not to be deceived ; and are perfectly seri- 
 ous men, who mingle no sentiment of vain curiosity 
 with their studies, as liable to be deceived ? " 
 
 " Less than others, evidently ; but man has always 
 some hobby which attracts mocking spirits ; he thinks 
 himself strong, and often is not ; he should beware of 
 the weakness born of pride and prejudices. These 
 two causes, by which spirits profit, are not sufficiently 
 
348 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 taken into consideration ; by flattering whims they 
 are sure to succeed." 
 
 1 6. "Why does God permit bad spirits to commu- 
 nicate and say evil things ? " 
 
 " Even in what is worst there is instruction ; it is 
 for you to know how to extract it. There must be 
 communications of all kinds, for you to learn to dis- 
 tinguish good spirits from bad, and to serve as mirrors 
 to yourselves." 
 
 17. " Can spirits, by means of written communica- 
 tions, inspire unjust suspicions against certain persons, 
 and embroil friends ? " 
 
 " Perverse and jealous spirits can do in evil all that 
 men can do ; it is, therefore, necessary to beware of 
 them. The superior spirits are always prudent and 
 reserved when they are obliged to blame ; they never 
 speak evil ; they warn with caution. If they desire, 
 for the interest of two persons, that they should never 
 see each . other, they will bring about incidents that 
 shall separate them in a perfectly natural manner. 
 Language calculated to sow trouble and discord is 
 always from a bad spirit, whatever may be the name he 
 assumes. Therefore receive with the greatest circum- 
 spection the evil that a spirit may say of one of you, 
 especially when a good spirit has said good to you of 
 the same ; and also mistrust yourselves and your 
 own prejudices. In communications from spirits, take 
 only what is good, great, rational, and what your con- 
 science approves." 
 
 1 8. " By the facility with which bad spirits mingle 
 in communications, it appears that one is never sure 
 of the truth ? " 
 
 "Yes, if you have judgment to appraise them. In 
 reading a letter, you know how to judge if it is a hod- 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 349 
 
 man or a refined person, a fool or a savant, who has 
 written to you : why can you not do the same when 
 spirits write to you? If )ou receive a letter from a 
 far-off friend, what proves to you it is really from him ? 
 His writing, you will say : but are there not forgers 
 who imitate all writing, rascals who might know your 
 affairs ? Yet there are signs in which you cannot be 
 mistaken. It is the same with spirits. Imagine, then, 
 that it is a friend writing to you, or that you are read- 
 ing *a literary work, and judge by the same means." 
 
 19. " Could superior spirits prevent bad spirits from 
 taking false names ? " 
 
 11 Certainly they could do so ; but the worse the 
 spirits, the more headstrong they are, and they often 
 resist injunctions. You must also know that there are 
 persons in whom the superior spirits are more inter- 
 ested than they are in others ; and when they deem it 
 necessary, they know how to preserve them from the 
 injury of the lie : against these persons the deceiving 
 spirits are powerless." 
 
 20. " What is the motive of this partiality ? " 
 
 " It is not partiality ; it is justice : the good spirits 
 are interested in those who profit by their advice, and 
 labor seriously in their own improvement : these are 
 their preferred ones, and they help them ; but they 
 trouble themselves little about those with whom they 
 lose their time in vain words." 
 
 21. " Why does God permit spirits to commit sac- 
 rilege, by falsely taking venerated names ? " 
 
 " You should also ask why God permits men to lie 
 and blaspheme. Spirits, as well as men, have their 
 free will, in good as in bad ; but to neither will the 
 justice of God be wanting." 
 
350 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 22. "Is there any formula that will drive away de- 
 ceiving spirits ? " 
 
 " Formula is matter ; good thought toward God is 
 of more value." 
 
 23. " Some spirits have said they have inimitable 
 graphic signs, a kind of emblems, by which they may 
 be recognized and their identity established. Is that 
 true ? " 
 
 " The superior spirits have no other signs, by which 
 they may be recognized, than the superiority of their 
 ideas and of their language. Any spirit can imitate a 
 material sign. As to the inferior spirits, they betray 
 themselves in so many ways, that one must be blind 
 to be deceived." 
 
 24. " Cannot deceiving spirits counterfeit thought, 
 also ? " 
 
 " They counterfeit thought, as theatrical decorators 
 counterfeit nature." 
 
 25. "It appears, then, that it is always easy to de- 
 tect fraud by an attentive study." 
 
 " Never doubt it ; spirits deceive only those who 
 allow themselves to be deceived. But *it is necessary 
 to have the eyes of diamond merchants to distinguish 
 the true stone from the false ; he who knows not 
 how to distinguish one from the other goes to the 
 lapidary." 
 
 26. " There are persons who allow themselves to be 
 seduced by emphatic language, who think more of 
 words than of ideas, who take false and common 
 ideas for sublime : how can these persons, who are not 
 even capable of judging the works of men, judge those 
 of spirits ? " 
 
 " When these persons have sufficient modesty to 
 
IDENTITY OF SPIRITS. 35 1 
 
 know their own inefficiency, they will not trust to 
 themselves ; when, through pride, they think them- 
 selves capable, when they are not, they must bear the 
 penalty of their silly vanity. The deceiving spirits 
 know whom they address : there are simple, unin- 
 structed persons more difficult to deceive than others 
 who have wit and learning. By flattering his pas- 
 sions they make a man do as they please." 
 
 27. " In writing, do not bad spirits often betray 
 themselves by involuntary material signs ?" 
 
 " The skillful do not ; maladroits go astray. Any 
 useless or puerile sign is a certain indication of inferi- 
 ority ; elevated spirits do no useless thing." 
 
 28. " Many mediums recognize good and bad spirits 
 by the agreeable or painful impression they experience 
 at their approach. We ask if any disagreeable im- 
 pression, convulsive agitation, any uneasiness, in short, 
 are always indications of the evil nature of the spirits 
 who manifest themselves ? " 
 
 " The medium experiences the sensations of the 
 state in which the spirit is who comes to him. When 
 the spirit is happy, he is tranquil, easy, sedate ; when 
 he is unhappy, he is agitated, feverish, and this agita- 
 tion naturally passes into the nervous system of the 
 medium. It is the same with men on the earth ; he 
 who is good is calm and tranquil, he who is wicked is 
 constantly agitated." 
 
 Remark. There are mediums of greater or less 
 nervous impressibility, so that the agitation cannot be 
 regarded as a general rule ; as in all other things, we 
 must, in this, take into account the circumstances. 
 The painful and disagreeable character of the impres- 
 sion is art effect of contrast ; for if the spirit of the 
 
352 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 medium sympathizes with the bad spirit who mani- 
 fests himself, he will be little or not at all affected by 
 it. The rapidity of the writing, which pertains to the 
 extreme flexibility of some mediums, must not be con- 
 founded with the convulsive agitation that the slowest 
 mediums may experience from contact with imperfect 
 spirits. 
 
Chapter XXV. 
 ON INVOCATIONS. 
 
 General Considerations. — Spirits who may be invoked. 
 — Language to hold with Spirits. — Utility of 
 Special Invocations. — Questions on Invocations. — 
 Invocations of Animals. — Invocations of Living 
 Persons. — Huma?i Telegraphy. 
 
 General Co?isiderations. 
 
 269. Spirits can communicate spontaneously, or 
 come at our call ; that is, on invocation. Some per- 
 sons think we should abstain from invoking such or 
 such a spirit, and that it is preferable to wait for the 
 one who wishes to communicate. This opinion is 
 founded on the fact that, in calling a designated spirit, 
 we are not certain that it is he who presents himself, 
 while he who comes spontaneously, and of his own im- 
 pulse, better proves his identity, as he thus announces 
 his desire to converse with us. In our opinion this is 
 an error ; firstly, because there are always spirits 
 around us, most often of a low class, who ask no better 
 than to communicate ; in the second place, and for this 
 last reason alone, in not calling any one in particular, 
 the door is open to all who wish to enter. In an 
 assembly, not to give the word to any one is to leave 
 it to every one ; and the result of that is well known. 
 The direct appeal, made to a designated spirit, is a 
 bond between him and us ; we call him by our desire, 
 23 353 
 
354 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 and thus erect a kind of barrier against intruders. 
 Without a direct appeal, a spirit would often have no 
 motive for coming to us, unless it might be our famil- 
 iar spirit. These two methods have each their advan- 
 tages, and the difficulty would be only in the absolute 
 exclusion of one of the two. There is no trouble in 
 regard to spontaneous communications where one is 
 master of the spirits, and is certain not to let the bad 
 gain any dominion ; then it is often useful to wait the 
 good pleasure of those who desire to communicate, be- 
 cause their thought is under no restraint ; and in this 
 way very admirable things may be obtained, while you 
 cannot be sure that the spirit you call will be disposed 
 to speak, or capable of doing so, in the sense that is 
 desired. The scrupulous examination we have advised 
 is a guarantee against evil communications. In regu- 
 lar reunions, especially in those engaged on a continu- 
 ous work, there are always the accustomed spirits, 
 who are at the rendezvous without being called, be- 
 cause, by reason of the regularity of the seances, they 
 are pre-engaged ; they often begin spontaneously to 
 treat a certain subject, develop a proposition, or pre- 
 scribe what should be done ; and then they are easily 
 recognized, whether by the form of their language, or 
 by their writing, or by certain habits familiar to them. 
 
 270. When it is wished to communicate with a des- 
 ignated spirit, he must of necessity be invoked. (No. 
 203.) If he can come, this answer is usually obtained : 
 Yes ; or, / am here ; or, What do you want of me ? 
 Sometimes he enters directly into the matter, answer- 
 ing by anticipation the questions it is proposed to 
 address to him. 
 
 When a spirit is invoked for the first time, it is best 
 to designate him with some precision. In the ques- 
 
ON INVOCA TIONS. 3 5 5 
 
 tions addressed to him, we should avoid dry, impera- 
 tive forms ; they might be a reason for his withdrawal. 
 The forms should be affectionate or respectful accord- 
 ing to the spirit, and in all cases testify the kindness 
 of the invocator. 
 
 271. We are often surprised at the promptitude 
 with which an invoked spirit presents himself, even 
 the first time ; it might be said he has been fore- 
 warned ; this is, indeed, what has been done when 
 we are thinking of making an invocation. This think- 
 ing is a kind of anticipated invocation, and as we 
 always have our familiar spirits, who are identified with 
 our thoughts, they prepare the way, so that nothing 
 opposes it ; the spirit whom we wish to call is already 
 present. When this is not the case, the familiar spirit 
 of the medium, or of the interrogator, or one of the 
 habitues, goes to find him, which does not require 
 much time. If the^ invoked spirit cannot come in- 
 stantly, the messenger (the heathens would have said 
 Mercury) asks for a delay, sometimes of five minutes, 
 a quarter of an hour, and even several days, and when 
 he arrives, says, He is there ; and then we can begin 
 the questions we want to ask him. 
 
 The messenger is not always a necessary intermedi- 
 ary, for the appeal of the invocator may be heard 
 directly by the spirit, as is said, No. 282, Question 5, 
 on the mode of transmitting thought. 
 
 When we say, Make the invocation in the name of 
 God, we mean that our recommendation should be 
 taken seriously, and not lightly ; those who see in it 
 only a formula, and of little consequence, would better 
 abstain from it. 
 
 272. Invocations often present more difficulties to 
 mediums than spontaneous dictation, especially when 
 
356 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 exact answers are wanted to circumstantial questions. 
 For that end special mediums are required at once 
 flexible and positive ; and we have seen (No. 193), that 
 these last are quite rare, for, as we have said, the fluidic 
 relations {rapports) are not always instantaneously es- 
 tablished with the first spirit comer. It is, therefore, 
 best that mediums should not attempt special invoca- 
 tions, until assured of the development of their faculty, 
 and of the nature of the spirits who assist them ; for 
 with those who are badly surrounded, the invocations 
 could have no character of authority. 
 
 273. Mediums are generally much more sought for 
 invocations of private interest than for communica- 
 tions of general interest ; this is explained by the very 
 natural desire .we have to converse with those who 
 are dear to us. We consider that we ought to make 
 several important recommendations on this subject to 
 mediums. First, to accede to this desire only with the 
 utmost reserve with persons in whose sincerity they 
 cannot completely trust, and to be on their guard 
 against the snares that malicious persons might set for 
 them. Secondly, not to lend themselves to it under 
 any pretext, if they discover motives of curiosity or 
 interest, and not a serious intention on the part of the 
 invocator ; to refuse themselves to all idle questions, 
 or those aside from the circle of questions that may 
 rationally be addressed to spirits. The suggestions 
 should be put with clearness, perspicuity, and with- 
 out evasion, if categorical answers are desired. 
 
 All those- that have an insidious character should 
 be declined, for it is well known that spirits do not 
 like those intended to put them to the proof; to insist 
 on questions of this nature is to wish to be deceived. 
 The invocator should go frankly and openly to the 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 357 
 
 desired end, without subterfuge or windings : if he 
 fears to explain himself, he would better abstain. If 
 invocations are made in the absence of the one who 
 has requested them, it should be done with the greatest 
 prudence ; it is even oftentimes preferable to abstain 
 entirely, those persons alone being fit to criticise the 
 answers, to judge of the identity, to challenge explana- 
 tions if there is cause, and to put incidental questions 
 brought up by circumstances. Besides, their presence 
 is a bond which attracts the spirit, often little disposed 
 to communicate with strangers for whom he has no 
 sympathy. In a word, the medium should avoid all 
 that could transform him into a consulting agent, 
 which, in the eyes of many persons, is synonymous 
 with a fortune-teller. 
 
 Spirits who may be invoked. 
 
 274. All spirits, to whatever degree of the scale they 
 belong, may be invoked — the good, as well as the bad ; 
 those who have left this life but lately, and those who 
 have lived in the most remote times ; illustrious men 
 and the most obscure ; our relatives, our friends, and 
 those who are indifferent to us ; but it is not said 
 that they will or can always come at our call : inde- 
 pendently of their own will, or of the permission that 
 may be refused them by a superior power, they might 
 be prevented by motives which it is not always given 
 us to penetrate. We would say, there is no absolute 
 hindrance to communications except what we shall 
 presently give ; the obstacles that might hinder the 
 manifestation of a spirit are almost always individual, 
 and pertain to circumstances. 
 
 275. Among the causes that might oppose the mani- 
 festation of a spirit, some are personal to him, some 
 
353 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 foreign. We must place among the former his occupa- 
 tions, or the missions in which he is engaged, and 
 from which he cannot turn aside to yield to our wishes ; 
 in such case, his visit is only postponed. 
 
 There is, again, his own situation. While the state 
 of incarnation may not be an absolute obstacle, it may 
 be a hindrance at certain given moments, especially 
 when it takes place in inferior worlds, and when the 
 spirit himself is but little dematerialized. In the 
 superior worlds, in those where the ties of spirit and 
 matter are very feeble, the manifestation is almost as 
 easy as in the wandering state, and in all cases easier 
 than in those where the corporeal matter is more 
 compact. 
 
 The foreign causes pertain principally to the nature 
 of the medium, to that of the invoker, to the sphere in 
 which the invocation is made, and, lastly, to the end 
 proposed. Some mediums receive more especially 
 communications from their familiar spirits, who may 
 be more or less elevated ; others are capable of serving 
 as intermediaries to all spirits ; that depends on the 
 sympathy or antipathy, the attraction or repulsion, 
 which the personal spirit of the medium exercises over 
 the foreign spirit, who may take him for interpreter 
 with pleasure or with repugnance. That, again, set- 
 ting aside the innate qualities of the medium, depends 
 on the development of the medianimic faculty. Spirits 
 come more willingly, are more explicit with a medium 
 who offers them no material obstacle. All things, 
 besides, being equal as to moral conditions, the greater 
 facility a medium has in writing or expressing himself, 
 the more his relations with the spirit world may be 
 generalized. 
 
 276. The facility with which the habit of communi- 
 
ON INVOCA TIONS. 359 
 
 eating with such or such a spirit gives, must also be 
 taken into consideration ; with time the foreign spirit 
 identities himself with the spirit of the medium, and 
 with him who calls him. The question of sympathy 
 aside, fluidic relations are established between them 
 which render communications more prompt : this is 
 why a first conversation is not always as satisfying as, 
 might be desired, and it is also why the spirits them- 
 selves often ask to be recalled. The spirit who is in 
 the habit of coming is as if at home ; he is familiar- 
 ized with his auditors, and with his interpreters ; he 
 speaks and acts more freely. 
 
 277. To recapitulate : from what we have just said, it 
 results that the power of invoking any spirit what- 
 ever does not imply that the spirit is at our orders ; he 
 can come at one moment, and not at another, with 
 such medium or such invocator as pleases him, and 
 not with such other ; say what he pleases, without 
 being constrained to say what he does not wish to say ; 
 go when it is agreeable to him ; finally, from causes 
 dependent or not upon his will, after having shown 
 himself assiduously during some time, he may sudden- 
 ly cease to come. It is from all these motives that 
 when we desire to call a new spirit, it is necessary to 
 ask our guide protector, if the invocation is possible ; 
 in cases where it may not be, he quite generally 
 gives the motives, and then it is useless to insist. 
 
 278. An important question presents itself here — 
 that of knowing whether or not there would be disa- 
 greeable consequences from invoking a bad spirit. 
 That depends on the end proposed, and the ascendency 
 that can be had over them. There is no difficulty 
 when we call them with a serious and instructive aim, 
 or with a view ul improving them ; it is very great, un 
 
360 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the contrary, if it is from pure curiosity or pleasantry, 
 or if one puts himself in their power by asking of 
 them any service whatever. 
 
 The good spirits, in such case, can very well give 
 them the power to do what is asked of them, safe to 
 punish severely afterward the rash man who dared to 
 ^invoke their help and believe them more powerful than 
 God. It is vain that he may have promised himself 
 to make a good use of it in the end, and to dismiss the 
 servitor once the service is rendered ; the very service 
 solicited> however minute it may be, is a veritable pact 
 concluded with the bad spirit, and he never lets him- 
 self be used easily. (See No. 212.) 
 
 279. Ascendency is exercised over the inferior spirits 
 only by moral superiority . 
 
 The perverse spirits feel their masters in good men ; 
 with those who oppose to them only strength of will, 
 a kind of brute force, they struggle, and are often the 
 stronger. A person tried in this way to tame a rebel- 
 lious spirit by his will ; the spirit answered him, 
 " Let me alone, with your bullying airs, you who are no 
 better than I ; they might say, a thief preaching to a 
 thief: 
 
 One is astonished that the name of God invoked 
 against them should often be powerless. St. Louis 
 has given the reason in the following answer : — 
 
 " The name of God has influence over imperfect 
 spirits only in the mouth of him who can use it with 
 authority by his virtues ; in the mouth of a man who 
 has no moral superiority over the spirit, it is a word 
 the same as another. It is the same with the holy 
 things opposed to them. The most terrible arms are 
 inoffensive in hands unskilled in their use, or incapable 
 of bearing them." 
 
ON INVOCA TIONS. 2>6l 
 
 Language to hold witJi Spirits. 
 
 280. The degree of superiority or inferiority of the 
 spirits naturally indicates the tone it is proper to take 
 with them. It is evident that the more elevated they 
 are, the more right they have to our respect, to our 
 regard, and to our submission. We should show them 
 as much deference as we should have done during their 
 lives, but from different motives ; on the earth we should 
 have considered their rank and their social position ; 
 in the world of spirits our respect is addressed only to 
 moral superiority. Their very elevation raises them 
 above the puerilities of our adulatory forms. It is not 
 by words that we can secure their kind feeling, but by 
 the sincerity of our sentiments. It would be ridicu- 
 lous, then, to give them the titles which our usages 
 consecrate to the distinction of ranks, and which, dur- 
 ing their lives, might have flattered their vanity ; if 
 they are really superior, not only will they not care 
 for them, but to do so will displease them. A good 
 thought is more agreeable to them than the most flat- 
 tering epithets ; if it were otherwise, they would not 
 be above humanity. The spirit of a venerable ecclesi- 
 astic, who, in this world, was a prince of the church, a 
 good man, practicing the law of Jesus, answered once 
 to a person who invoked him under the title of " my 
 Lord," " You should at least say, ex-my Lord, for here 
 there is no other Lord but God ; know that I see who. 
 on earth knelt before me, and those before whom I my- 
 self bowed." 
 
 As to the inferior spirits, their character shows us 
 the language proper to use with them. Among the 
 number there are some who, though inoffensive, and 
 even kind, are trifling, ignorant, stupid : to treat them 
 
362 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the same as serious spirits, as some persons do, is 
 about the same as to bow before a scholar or an ass 
 muffled up in a professor's cap. A tone of familiarity 
 would not be out of place with them, and they do not 
 take offense at it ; on the contrary, they willingly re- 
 ceive it. 
 
 Among the inferior spirits there are some who are 
 unhappy. Whatever may be the faults they are ex- 
 piating, their sufferings entitle them to our considera- 
 tion, so much the more as no one can flatter himself 
 that he does not deserve these words of the Christ : 
 " Let him who is without sin among you cast the first 
 stone." The kindness we show them is a comfort to 
 them : in default of sympathy, they should find the in- 
 dulgence we should wish them to show to us. 
 
 The spirits who reveal their inferiority by the cyni- 
 cism of their language, their lies, the baseness of their 
 sentiments, the perfidy of their counsels, are assuredly 
 less worthy of our interest than those whose words 
 show their repentance ; we owe them, at least, the pity 
 we accord the greatest criminals, and the way to reduce 
 them to silence is to show ourselves superior to them : 
 they indulge in their perversity only among persons 
 with whom they think there is nothing to fear ; for the 
 perverse spirits feel their masters in good men as in 
 superior spirits. 
 
 To recapitulate : as much as it would be irreverential 
 to treat the superior spirits as equals, just so much would 
 it be ridiculous to extend the same deference to all with- 
 out exception. Have veneration for those who deserve 
 it, gratitude for those who protect and assist us, for all 
 the others that kindness we may some day need for 
 ourselves. In penetrating into the incorporeal world 
 we learn to know it, and this knowledge should regu- 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 363 
 
 late us in our relations with those who inhabit it The 
 ancients, in their ignorance, elevated altars to them ; 
 for us, they are only creatures more or less perfect, and 
 we raise our altars only to God. 
 
 Utility of Special Invocations. 
 
 281. The communications obtained from very supe- 
 rior spirits, or from those who have animated the great 
 personages of antiquity, are precious from their exalted 
 teachings. These spirits have acquired a degree of 
 perfection which permits them to embrace a more ex- 
 tended sphere of ideas, to penetrate mysteries beyond 
 the ordinary limits of humanity, and, consequently, to 
 initiate us better than others into certain things. It 
 does not follow that communications from less elevated 
 spirits should be without utility ; the observer may 
 draw more than one instruction. To know the man- 
 ners of a people, it must be studied in every degree of 
 the scale. He who has seen it under one aspect only, 
 would illy know it. The history of a people is not that 
 of its kings and upper social circles ; to judge it, one 
 should see it in its private life and customs. 
 
 Now, the superior spirits are the upper circles of the 
 spirit world : their very elevation places them so much 
 above us that we are frightened at the distance that 
 separates us. Spirits more bourgeois (may they excuse 
 the expression) make the circumstances of their new 
 existence more palpable to us. With them, the tie be- 
 tween corporeal life and spirit life is more intimate ; 
 we comprehend it better, because it touches us more 
 nearly. In learning from themselves what has become 
 of the men of all conditions and of all characters, what 
 they think, what they experience, good, as well as 
 vicious, the great and the small, the happy and the 
 
364 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 unhappy of the age, in a word, the men who have lived 
 among ns, whom we have seen and known, with whose 
 real life we are acquainted, whose virtues and whims 
 we know, — we comprehend their joys and their suffer- 
 ings, we are associated with them, and draw therefrom 
 a moral instruction as much more profitable as the re- 
 lations between them and us are more intimate. We 
 put ourselves more easily in the place of him who has 
 been our equal than of him whom we see only through 
 the mirage of a celestial glory. 
 
 Ordinary spirits show us the practical application 
 of the great and sublime truths of which the superior 
 spirits teach us the theory. Besides, in the study of 
 a science nothing is useless ; Newton found his law of 
 the forces of the universe in the simplest phenomena. 
 
 The invocation of ordinary spirits has, besides, the 
 advantage of putting us en rapport with suffering spirits 
 who can be comforted, and whose advancement may 
 be facilitated by useful advice, so that we can be use- 
 ful while, at the same time, instructing ourselves ; there 
 is egotism in seeking only one's own satisfaction in 
 intercourse with the spirits, and he who disdains to 
 extend a helping hand to the unhappy gives proof of 
 pride. Of what use to obtain grand teachings from 
 spirits of the highest order, if it does not make us in- 
 wardly better, more charitable, more benevolent for 
 our brothers, both in this world and in the other ? 
 What would become of the diseased if the doctors re- 
 fused to touch their sores ? 
 
 282. Questions on Invocations. 
 
 1. " Can we invoke spirits without being medi- 
 ums?" 
 
 " Every one can invoke spirits, and if those you call 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 365 
 
 cannot manifest themselves materially, they are never- 
 theless near you, and listen to you." 
 
 2. " Does the spirit invoked always come at the call 
 made to him ? " 
 
 " That depends on the conditions in which he is, for 
 there are circumstances in which he cannot do so." 
 
 3. " What causes might prevent a spirit from coming 
 at our call ? " 
 
 " Firstly, his will ; then his corporeal state, if he is 
 re-incarnated ; the missions with which he may be 
 charged ; and still further, permission may be refused 
 him. There are spirits who can never communicate — 
 those who, by their nature, belong still to worlds in- 
 ferior to the earth. Neither can those who are in the 
 spheres of punishment, at least without a superior per- 
 mission, which is granted only for the general good. 
 That a spirit may be able to communicate, he must 
 have attained the same degree of advancement as that 
 of the world to which he is called ; otherwise he is 
 strange to the ideas of that world, and has no point 
 of comparison. It is not the same with those who are 
 sent on missions, or in expiation, to inferior worlds ; 
 they have the necessary ideas to reply." 
 
 4. " For what motives *may the permission to com- 
 municate be refused to a spirit ? " 
 
 " It may be a trial or a punishment for him, or for 
 the one who calls him." 
 
 5. " How can spirits, dispersed in space or in differ- 
 ent worlds, hear from all points of the universe the in- 
 vocations that are made ? " 
 
 " They are often forewarned by the familiar spirits 
 that surround you, who go to seek them ; but here is a 
 phenomenon difficult to explain to you, because you 
 cannot yet understand the transmission of thought 
 
3^6 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 among spirits. All I can tell you is, that the spirit 
 you invoke, however distant he may be, receives, as it 
 were, the rebound of the thought as a kind of electrical 
 commotion, which calls his attention to the side from 
 whence comes the thought addressed to him. It 
 might be said he hears the thought, as on earth you 
 hear the voice." 
 
 " Is the universal fluid the vehicle of thought, as the 
 air is that of sound ? " 
 
 " Yes, with this difference, that sound can be heard 
 only within a very limited radius, while thought attains 
 the infinite. The spirit, in space, is like the traveler 
 in the midst of a vast plain, who, hearing his name 
 suddenly pronounced, directs his attention to the side 
 on which he is called." 
 
 6. " We know that distances are but trifles to spirits ; 
 yet one is astonished to see them sometimes respond 
 as promptly to the call as if they had been all ready." 
 
 "And so, indeed, they are sometimes. If the invo- 
 cation is premeditated, the spirit is forewarned, and 
 often finds himself there before he is called." 
 
 7. " Is the thought of the invocator more or less 
 easily heard according to circumstances ? " 
 
 " Without doubt ; the spirit called by a sympathetic 
 and kind sentiment is more quickly touched : it is to 
 him the voice of a friend which he recognizes ; without 
 that it often happens that the invocation miscarries. 
 The thought that springs from the invocation strikes 
 the spirit ; if it is not well directed, it strikes in the 
 void. It is with spirits as with men ; if he who 
 calls them is indifferent or antipathetic, they may hear, 
 but do not often listen." 
 
 8. " Does the spirit invoked come voluntarily, or is 
 he constrained to come ? " 
 
ON INVOCA TIONS. 36/ 
 
 " He obeys the will of God, that is, the general law 
 that rules the universe ; and yet constraint is not the 
 word ; for he judges if it be useful to come , and there 
 still is his free will. A superior spirit always comes 
 when he is called for a useful end ; he refuses to anwer 
 only in circles of persons either not serious, or treating 
 the thing as a joke." 
 
 9. " Can the invoked spirit refuse to come at the call 
 made on him ? " 
 
 M Perfectly ; or where would be his free will ? Do 
 you think all the beings in the universe are at your 
 orders ? And do you consider yourselves obliged to 
 answer all who pronounce your name ? When I say 
 he can refuse, I mean on the demand of the invocator, 
 for an inferior spirit may be constrained to come by a 
 superior spirit." 
 
 10. "Is there any means by which the invocator 
 may oblige a spirit to come against his will ? " 
 
 " None, if the spirit is your equal or your superior 
 in morality ; I say in morality, not in intelligence, be- 
 cause you have no authority over him : if it is your in- 
 ferior, you can, if it is for his good, for then other spirits 
 will second you." (No. 279.) 
 
 11. "Is there any difficulty in invoking inferior 
 spirits ? and is there any danger, in calling them, of 
 putting ourselves in their power ? " 
 
 " They rule only those who allow themselves to be 
 ruled. He who is assisted by good spirits has nothing 
 to fear : he controls the inferior spirits ; they do not 
 control him. In isolation, mediums, especially those 
 who are beginning, should abstain from such invoca- 
 tions " (No. 278.) 
 
 12. " Is it necessary to be in any particular frame of 
 mind for invocations ? " 
 
568 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 "The most essential of all dispositions is concentra- 
 tion of thought, when we desire aught of serious spirits. 
 With faith and the desire of good, one is more power- 
 ful to invoke superior spirits. In elevating the soul 
 by concentration of thought, at the moment of invoca- 
 tion, we are identified with good spirits, and attract 
 them to us. 
 
 13. " Is faith necessary in invocations ? " 
 
 " Faith in God, yes ; faith will come for the rest if 
 you desire good, and wish for instruction." 
 
 14. " Have men more power to invoke spirits when 
 united by community of thought and intention ? " 
 
 V When all are united by charity and for good, they 
 obtain grand things. \ Nothing is more injurious to the 
 result of invocations than divergence of thought."' 
 
 15. "Is making a chain by joining hands for some 
 minutes, at the beginning of reunions, of any use ? " 
 
 " The chain is a material means, which does not pro- 
 mote union among you if it exist not in the thought : 
 what is more useful is to be united in one common 
 thought, each one calling to his side good spirits. You 
 do not know all you might obtain in a serious reunion, 
 from whence is banished every sentiment of pride and 
 personality, and where reigns a perfect sentiment of 
 mutual cordiality." 
 
 16. "Are invocations for fixed days and hours pref- 
 erable ? " 
 
 " Yes, and, if it be possible, in the same place ; the 
 spirits come to it more willingly : it is the constant de- 
 sire you have that aids the spirits to come and put 
 themselves into communication with you. Spirits have 
 their occupations, which they cannot leave at a mo- 
 ment's warning for your personal satisfaction. I say, 
 in the same place ; but do not suppose this to be an 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 369 
 
 absolute obligation, for spirits come everywhere : I 
 mean, a place consecrated to that is preferable, because 
 there concentration of thought is more perfect." 
 
 17. " Have certain objects, such as medallions and 
 talismans, the property of attracting or repelling spirits, 
 as some pretend ? " 
 
 " This is a useless question, for you know very well 
 that matter has no action on spirits. Be very sure 
 that no good spirit ever advises such absurdities ; the 
 virtue of talismans, of whatever nature they be, has 
 never existed save in the imaginations of credulous 
 people." 
 
 18. "What must we think of spirits who give ren- 
 dezvous in dismal places, and at undue hours ? " 
 
 " These spirits amuse themselves at the expense of 
 those who listen to them. It is always useless, and 
 often dangerous, to yield to such suggestions : useless, 
 because one gains absolutely nothing but to be mysti- 
 fied ; dangerous, not for the evil the spirits might do, 
 but on account of its influence on weak brains." 
 
 19. " Are there days and hours more propitious than 
 others for invocations ? " 
 
 " For spirits that is perfectly indifferent, as is every- 
 thing material, and it is a superstition to believe in 
 the influence of days and hours. The most propitious 
 moments are those in which the invocator can be the 
 least disturbed by his accustomed occupations ; when 
 his body and mind are most calm." 
 
 20. "Is invocation an agreeable or a painful thing 
 for spirits ? Do they come voluntarily when they are 
 called ? " 
 
 " That depends on their character and the motives 
 from which they are called. When the object is praise- 
 worthy, and when the surrounding is sympathetic to 
 24 
 
370 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 them, it is agreeable to them, and even attractive ; the 
 spirits are always happy in the affection testified for 
 them. There are those to whom it is a great happi- 
 ness to communicate*with men, and who surfer from 
 the indifference in which they are left. But, as I have 
 said, it depends upon their character ; among spirits 
 there are also misanthropes, who do not like to be 
 disturbed, and whose answers show their ill humor, 
 especially when they are called by indifferent people, 
 in whom they are not at all interested. A spirit has 
 often no motive for coming at the call of an unknown 
 person, who is indifferent to him, and almost always 
 moved by curiosity ; if he comes, he usually makes 
 but short visits, unless there may be a serious and 
 instructive end in view in the invocation." 
 
 Remark. We see people who invoke their relations 
 only to ask them the most ordinary things of material 
 life ; for instance, one to know if he shall rent or sell 
 his house, another to know what profit he shall have 
 from his merchandise, the place where money is de- 
 posited, whether or no a certain business will be 
 advantageous, j Our relations from beyond the tomb 
 are interested in us only by reason of the affection we 
 have for them. If all our thought is limited to think- 
 ing them sorcerers, if we think of them only to ask 
 favors of them, they cannot have any very great sym- 
 pathy for us, and we should not be astonished at the 
 little benevolence they sometimes evince. 
 
 21. "Is there a difference between good and bad 
 spirits, in regard to their readiness to come at our 
 call." 
 
 " There is a very great difference ; bad spirits come 
 voluntarily only inasmuch as they hope to govern and 
 make dupes ; but they experience a strong contrariety 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 371 
 
 when they are forced to confess their faults, and only 
 ask to go away again, like a pupil called up for correc- 
 tion. They can be constrained to come, by the supe- 
 rior spirits, as a punishment, and for the instruction of 
 the incarnated. Invocation is painful for good spirits 
 when they are called uselessly, for frivolities ; then 
 they do not come at all, or soon withdraw." 
 
 t" You may take it as a principle, that spirits, what- 
 ever they be, like no more than yourselves to serve as 
 amusement for the curious. \ Often you have no other 
 end, in invoking a spirit, than to see what he will tell 
 you, or to question him on the particulars of his life, 
 which he does not care to tell you, because he has no 
 motive for giving you his confidence ; and think you 
 he is going to put himself at the bar for your good 
 pleasure ? Undeceive yourselves : what he would not 
 have done during his lifetime, he will not do as a 
 spirit." 
 
 Remark. Experience proves, in fact, that invoca- 
 tion is always agreeable to spirits, when made with a 
 serious and useful motive ; the good come with pleas- 
 ure to instruct us ; those who suffer find comfort in 
 the sympathy shown them ; those whom we have 
 known are satisfied with our remembrance. Frivolous 
 spirits like to be invoked by frivolous persons, because 
 that gives them an opportunity to amuse themselves at 
 their expense ; they are ill at ease with grave persons. 
 
 22. " In order to manifest themselves, do spirits 
 always need to be invoked ? " 
 
 " No ; they very often present themselves without 
 being called, and that proves that they come will- 
 ingly." 
 
 23. ''When a spirit comes of himself, can we be sure 
 of his identity ? " 
 
372 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " Not at all ; for deceiving spirits often employ this 
 means, the better to delude." 
 
 24. " When we invoke the spirit of a person by 
 thought, does he come to us even when there are no 
 manifestations by writing or otherwise ? " 
 
 " Writing is a material means by which the spirit 
 may attest his presence ; but it is the thought that 
 attracts him, and we show it by writing." 
 
 25. When an inferior spirit manifests himself, can 
 we oblige him to withdraw ? " 
 
 " Yes ; by not listening to him. But how do you 
 expect him to withdraw when you amuse yourselves 
 with his vileness ? The inferior spirits attach them- 
 selves to those who listen to them with complacence, 
 like the fools among you." 
 
 26. " Is invocation, made in the name of God, a 
 guarantee against the intermeddling of bad spirits ? " 
 
 " The name of God is not a check for all perverse 
 spirits, but it restrains many ; by this means you 
 always remove some, and you would remove many 
 more, if it were made from the bottom of the heart, and 
 not as a common formula." 
 
 27. " Could several spirits be invoked by name at 
 the same time ? " 
 
 " There is no difficulty in that ; and if you had three 
 or four hands to write, three or four spirits could an- 
 swer you at the same time : this is what does happen 
 when there are several mediums." 
 
 28. " When several spirits are simultaneously in- 
 voked, and there is but one medium, which one 
 
 answers 
 
 " One answers for all, and he expresses the collec- 
 tive thought." 
 
ON TNVOCA TIONS. 373 
 
 29. " In a seance, could the same spirit communicate 
 with two mediums at the same time ? " 
 
 " As easily as you have men who can dictate several 
 letters at the same time." 
 
 Remark. We have seen a spirit answer at the same 
 time by two mediums, — to one in English, to another 
 in French, — and the answers were identical in sense; 
 some were the literal translation of the others. Two 
 spirits, invoked simultaneously by two mediums, might 
 establish a conversation with each other ; this mode 
 of communication not being necessary for them, as 
 they can read each other's thought, they sometimes do 
 it for our instruction. If they are inferior spirits, as 
 they are still imbued with terrestrial passions and cor- 
 poreal ideas, it might happen that they would dispute 
 and apostrophize each other with big words, upbraid 
 each other with their wrongs, and even throw pencils, 
 baskets, planchettes, &c, at each other. 
 
 30. " Can a spirit, invoked at the same time in dif- 
 ferent places, answer simultaneously to the questions 
 addressed to him ? " 
 
 11 Yes, if it is an elevated spirit." 
 
 — "In this case does the spirit divide himself? or has 
 he the gift of ubiquity ? " 
 
 " The sun is one, yet he radiates all around, throwing 
 his rays afar without subdividing himself: it is the 
 same with spirits. The thought of the spirit is like a 
 star that projects its light to a distance, and may be 
 seen from all points of the horizon. The purer the 
 spirit, the more his thought radiates and extends, like 
 the light. The inferior spirits are too material ; they 
 can answer only to a single person at once, and cannot 
 come if they are called elsewhere. A superior spirit, 
 called at the same time to two different points, will 
 
374 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 answer both invocations, if they are equally serious 
 and fervent ; if not, he will give his preference to the 
 more serious." 
 
 Remark. The same with a man who can, without 
 changing his place, transmit his thought by signals 
 seen from different points. 
 
 In a seance oi the Parisian Society for Spirit Studies, 
 when the question of ubiquity had been discussed, a 
 spirit dictated spontaneously the following communi- 
 cation : " You asked, this evening, what is the hierar- 
 chy of spirits as to ubiquity ? Compare us to an 
 aeronaut, who rises little by little in the air. When 
 he leaves the ground, a very small circle can perceive 
 him ; as he rises, the circle enlarges for him ; and when 
 he has reached a certain height, he appears to an infi- 
 nite number of persons. So with us : a bad spirit, who 
 is still attached to the earth, remains in a very restrict- 
 ed circle, in the midst of persons who see him. If he 
 grows in grace, if he becomes better, he can talk with 
 several persons ; and when he has become a superior 
 spirit, he can radiate like the light of the sun, show 
 himself to many persons, and in many places, at the 
 same time. Channing." 
 
 31. "Can the pure spirits be invoked — those who 
 have ended their series of incarnations ? " 
 
 " Yes, but very rarely : they communicate only with 
 pure and sincere hearts, and not with the haughty and 
 egotistical: you must be careful to distrust inferior 
 spirits, who take this quality to give themselves more 
 importance in your eyes." 
 
 32. " How is it that the spirit of the most illustrious 
 men comes as readily and familiarly at the call of the 
 most obscure ? " 
 
 '■ Men judge spirits by themselves, and that is an 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 375 
 
 error : after the death of the body, terrestrial rank no 
 longer exists ; there is but the distinction of goodness 
 among them ; and those who are good go wherever 
 there is good to be done." 
 
 33. "At what length of time after death can a spirit 
 be invoked ? " 
 
 " It can be done at the very instant of death ; but 
 as, at this moment, the spirit is still in trouble, he 
 answers but imperfectly." 
 
 Remark. The duration of the trouble being very 
 variable, there can be no fixed time to make the invo- 
 cation ; yet it is rare if, at the end of eight days, the 
 spirit has not sufficiently recovered to be able to an- 
 swer : he can sometimes very well do so two or three 
 days after death ; it can, in any case, be tried with 
 care. 
 
 34. " Is the invocation at the moment of death more 
 painful for the spirit than if made later ? " 
 
 " Sometimes ; it is as if you were torn from sleep 
 before you are fully awakened. There are some, how- 
 ever, who are not at all disturbed by it, and even 
 whom it helps out of their trouble." 
 
 35. " How can the spirit of a child, who has died 
 very young, answer with knowledge, when, during his 
 life, he had as yet no consciousness of himself?" 
 
 " The soul of a child is a spirit still enveloped in the 
 swaddling-clotJies of matter ; but, disengaged from 
 matter, he enjoys his spirit faculties, for spirits have 
 no age ; which proves that the spirit of the child has 
 already lived. Yet, until he shall have become com- 
 pletely disengaged, he may preserve in his language 
 some traces of the character of childhood." 
 
 Remark. The corporeal influence which makes 
 itself felt on the spirit of the child, for a longer or 
 
376 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 shorter time, is sometimes remarked, in the same way, 
 on the spirit of a person dying in a state of insanity. 
 The spirit himself is not crazy, but we know that some 
 spirits, for a time, believe themselves still in this 
 world : it is, then, not astonishing that the spirit of an 
 insane person should still feel the fetters which, during 
 life, opposed his free manifestation, until he become 
 completely disengaged. This effect varies according 
 to the causes of the insanity, for there are some mani- 
 acs who recover the lucidity of their ideas immediately 
 after their death. 
 
 283. Invocation of Animals. 
 
 36. " Can the spirit of an animal be invoked ?" 
 
 " After the death of the animal, the intelligent 
 principle that was in him is in a latent state ; he is im- 
 mediately utilized, by spirits charged with such cares, 
 to animate new beings, in whom he continues the 
 work of his elaboration. Thus, in the spirit world 
 there are no spirits of wandering animals, but only 
 human spirits. This answers your question." 
 
 " How is it, then, that some persons have invoked 
 animals and received answers ? " 
 
 " Invoke a stone and it will answer you. There is 
 always a crowd of spirits ready to speak for any- 
 thing." 
 
 Remark. Just the same if you invoke a myth, or 
 an allegorical personage, it will answer ; that is, it will 
 be answered for, and the spirit who would present 
 himself would take its character and appearance. One 
 day, a person took a fancy to invoke Tartzife, and 
 Tartufe came immediately ; still more, he talked of 
 Orgon, of Elmire, of Damis, and of Valire, of whom 
 he gave news ; as to himself, he counterfeited the hyp- 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 377 
 
 ocrite with as much art as if Tartnfe had been a real 
 personage. Afterward, he said he was the spirit of 
 an actor who had played that character. 
 
 Trifling spirits always profit by the inexperience of 
 interrogators, but they take good care never to address 
 those who they know are enlightened enough to dis- 
 cover their impostures, and who would give no credit 
 to their stories. 
 
 It is the same among men. 
 
 A gentleman had in his garden a nest of gold- 
 finches, in which he was much interested ; one day the 
 nest disappeared ; being certain that no one about the 
 house had been guilty of its destruction, he thought 
 of invoking the mother of the little ones ; she came, 
 and said, in very good French, " Do not accuse any 
 one, and be easy about my little ones ; the cat over- 
 threw the nest by jumping ; you will find, under the 
 grass, all the little ones that have not been eaten." 
 He looked, and found it so. Must he conclude that 
 the bird had answered him ? No, assuredly ; but 
 simply that a spirit knew the history of it. This 
 proves how much appearances should be distrusted, 
 and how just the above reply: Invoke a stone, and 
 it will answer you. (See, further the chapter on 
 Mediums hip among Aimnals, No. 234.) 
 
 284. Invocation of Living Persons. 
 
 37. " Is the incarnation of the spirit an absolute 
 obstacle to his invocation ? " 
 
 *' No ; but the state of the body must be such, at 
 the time, as to permit the spirit to disengage himself. 
 The incarnated spirit comes as much more easily as 
 the world in which he finds himself is of a more 
 
378 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 elevated order, because the bodies there are less 
 material." 
 
 38. " Can the spirit of a living person be invoked ? " 
 '< Of course, as you can invoke an incarnated spirit. 
 
 The spirit of a living person can also, in his moments 
 of liberty, come without being invoked ; that depends 
 on his sympathy for the person with whom he com- 
 municates." (See No. 116 — History of the Man and 
 the Snuff-box) 
 
 39. " In what state is the body of the person when 
 the spirit is invoked ? " 
 
 " He sleeps, or is dozing ; it is then the spirit is 
 
 free." 
 
 " Could the body awaken while the spirit is absent ? " 
 " No ; the spirit is obliged to reenter it ; if, at the 
 
 moment, he may be talking to you, he leaves you, and 
 
 often tells you the reason for so doing." 
 
 40. " How is the spirit, when absent from the body, 
 warned of the necessity of its return ? " 
 
 " The spirit of a living body is never completely 
 separated ; to whatever distance it may transport itself, 
 it is held to the body by a fluidic bond, which serves 
 to recall it when necessary ; this tie is broken only by 
 death." ' 
 
 Remark. This fluidic tie has often been noticed by 
 seeing mediums. It is a kind of phosphorescent train, 
 which is lost in space in the direction of the body. 
 Some spirits say it is by that they recognize those who 
 are still boumd to the corporeal world. 
 
 41. "What would happen, if, during sleep, and in 
 the absence of the spirit, the body should be mortally 
 wounded ? " 
 
 "The spirit would be warned, and would reenter 
 before death." 
 
ON INVOCA TIOXS. 3 79 
 
 — "So it could not happen that the body could die in 
 the absence of the spirit, and that on his return he 
 could not reenter it ? " 
 
 " No ; it would be contrary to the law regulating the 
 union of the soul and body." 
 
 — " But if the blow was struck suddenly, and without 
 premeditation ? " 
 
 " The spirit would be warned before the mortal blow 
 could be given." 
 
 Remark. The spirit of a living person interrogated 
 on this point, answered, — 
 
 " If the body could die in the absence of the spirit, 
 it would be too convenient a method of committing 
 hypocritical suicides." 
 
 42. " Is the spirit of a person invoked during sleep 
 as free to communicate as that of a dead person ? " 
 
 11 No ; matter always influences it more or less." 
 Remark. A person in this state, to whom this ques- 
 tion was addressed, answered, — 
 
 " / am always chained to the ball I drag after me? 
 
 — "In this state, could the spirit be hindered from 
 coming because of its being elsewhere ? " 
 
 " Yes ; the spirit might be in a place where it 
 pleased him to remain ; then he would not come at the 
 invocation, especially if it were made by some one in 
 whom he felt no interest." 
 
 43. " Is it absolutely impossible to invoke the spirit 
 of a person who is awake ? " 
 
 " Though difficult, it is not absolutely impossible ; 
 for if the invocation carries, it may produce sleep in 
 the person ; but the spirit can communicate, as spirit, 
 only' in those moments when its presence is not ne- 
 cessary to the intelligent activity of the' body." 
 
 Remark. Experience proves that invocation made 
 
380 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 during a waking state may produce sleep, or, at least, 
 an absorption bordering on sleep ; but this can take 
 place only through a very energetic will, and when 
 the ties of sympathy exist between the two persons ; 
 otherwise the invocation does not carry. Even in a 
 case where the invocation causes sleep, if the moment 
 is inopportune, the person not wishing to sleep will 
 resist, and, if he yield, his spirit will be troubled, and 
 answer with difficulty. It thus results that the most 
 favorable moment for the invocation of a living person 
 is during his natural sleep, because his spirit, being 
 free, can as well come toward the one who calls him 
 as to go elsewhere. 
 
 When the invocation is made with the consent of 
 the person, and he seeks to sleep for the purpose, this 
 very desire may retard the sleep and trouble the spirit ; 
 an unforced sleep is preferable. 
 
 44. " Has a living person, on waking, a conscious- 
 ness of having been invoked ? " 
 
 " No ; you are yourselves invoked more often than 
 you think. The spirit alone knows it, and may some- 
 times leave with him a vague impression, like a dream." 
 — "Who can invoke us if we are but obscure beings ?" 
 " In other existences you may have been known 
 either in this world or in others, and have had your 
 relations and friends the same in this world or in 
 others. Suppose your spirit may have animated the 
 body of the father of another person : well, then, he 
 invokes his father ; it is your spirit who is invoked, and 
 who answers." 
 
 45. "Would the invoked spirit of a living person 
 answer as spirit, or with the ideas pertaining to a 
 waking state ? " 
 
 " That depends on his elevation ; but his judgment 
 
OX JNVOCA TIOXS. 38 1 
 
 is more healthy, and he has fewer prejudices, exactly 
 like somnambulists ; it is a nearly similar state." 
 
 46. " If the spirit of a somnambulist in a state of 
 magnetic sleep were invoked, would he be more lucid 
 than that of other persons ? " 
 
 11 He would, doubtless, answer more lucidly, because 
 more disinthrailed ; all depends on the degree of the 
 spirit's independence of the body." 
 
 — "Could the spirit of a somnambulist answer a per- 
 son at a distance, who might invoke him, at the same 
 time that he is verbally answering another person ? " 
 
 "The faculty of communicating simultaneously at 
 two different points pertains only to spirits completely 
 disengaged from matter." 
 
 47. " Can the ideas of a person in a waking state 
 be modified by acting upon his spirit during sleep ? " 
 
 " Yes, sometimes ; the ties that bind the spirit to 
 matter are not then so close ; he is more accessible to 
 moral impressions, and these impressions may influ- 
 ence his mode of seeing in the ordinary state." 
 
 48. " Is the spirit of a living person free to say or 
 not to say what he will ? " 
 
 " He has his faculties of spirit, and consequently 
 his free will ; and as he has more perspicacity, he is 
 even more circumspect than when in a waking state." 
 
 49. " In invoking a person, can he be constrained to 
 speak when he wishes to be silent ? " 
 
 " I have said that the spirit has his free will ; but it 
 can very well be that, as spirit, he attaches less impor- 
 tance to certain things than in the ordinary state ; 
 his conscience may speak more freely. Besides, if he 
 does not wish to speak, he can easily escape importu- 
 nities by leaving, for a spirit cannot be retained as 
 you can retain his body." 
 
332 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 50. *' Can the spirit of a living person be forced by 
 another spirit to come and speak, as can be done 
 among wandering spirits ? " 
 
 " Among spirits, whether of the dead or the living, 
 there is no supremacy, save from moral superiority; 
 and you may well believe that a superior spirit will 
 never lend his support to a cowardly indiscretion." 
 
 Remark. This abuse of confidence would, in fact, 
 be a bad action, which, however, would have no result, 
 since you cannot tear from a spirit a secret he desires 
 to keep, at least unless, influenced by a sentiment of 
 justice, he avows what, under other circumstances, he 
 would withhold. A person, by this means, desired 
 to know of one of his relatives if his will was in her 
 favor. The spirit answered, " Yes, my dear niece, and 
 you shall soon have the proof of it." 
 
 The thing was true ; but a few days afterward the 
 relative destroyed his will, and was mischievous enough 
 to let her know of it, though he did not know he had 
 been invoked. An instinctive feeling, doubtless, urged 
 him to execute the resolution his spirit had taken at 
 the time of his having been questioned. It is cowardly 
 to ask of a spirit, either of the dead or living, what you 
 would not have dared to ask him in person, and this 
 cowardice is not even compensated by the expected 
 result. 
 
 51. "Can one invoke a spirit whose body is still in 
 the mother's womb ? " 
 
 " No ; you know that, at such time, the spirit is in 
 utter trouble." 
 
 Remark. The incarnation takes place actually only 
 at the moment of the child's first breath ; but from 
 the conception the spirit designated to animate it is 
 seized with a trouble, which increases as the birth 
 
ON IXVOCATIQNS. 383 
 
 approaches, and takes from him his self-consciousness, 
 and consequently the faculty of answering. (See 
 Book am Spirits — Return to the Corporeal Life, 
 Union of the Soul and Body, No. 344.) 
 
 52. "Could a deceiving spirit take the place of a 
 living invoked person ? " 
 
 " That is not doubtful, and it very often happens, 
 particularly when the intention of the invocator is 'not 
 pure. But the invocation of living persons is interest- 
 ing only as a psychological study : it is necessary to 
 abstain always when it can have no instructive result." 
 
 Remark. If the invocation of wandering spirits 
 does not always carry, — to use their own expression, — 
 it must be much more frequent for those who are incar- 
 nated ; then, especially, do deceiving spirits take their 
 place. 
 
 53. " Are there dangers in the invocation of a living 
 person ? " 
 
 " It is not always without danger ; that depends on 
 the person's position, for if he is sick, it might add to 
 his sufferings." 
 
 54. " In what case could the invocation of a living 
 person have most dangers ? " 
 
 " You should abstain from invoking children of a 
 very tender age, persons seriously ill, infirm old men ; 
 indeed, there are dangers in all cases when the body 
 is very much enfeebled." 
 
 Remark. The sudden suspension of the intellectual 
 faculties during a waking state might also be danger- 
 ous, if the person at the moment should find himself 
 in need of his presence of mind. 
 
 55. " During the invocation of a living person, does 
 the body experience fatigue by reason of the work his 
 absent spirit performs ? " 
 
384 BOOK ON MEDIUMS, 
 
 "A person in this state, who said his body was 
 fatigued, answered this question : ' My spirit is like 
 a balloon tied to a post ; my body is the post, which is 
 shaken by the strugglings of the balloon.' " 
 
 56. "As the invocation of living persons may be 
 dangerous when made without precaution, does not 
 the danger exist when we invoke a spirit we do not 
 know to be incarnated, and who might not find him- 
 self in favorable conditions ? " 
 
 " No ; the circumstances are not the same : he will 
 come only if in a position to do so ; and besides, have 
 I not told you to ask, before making an invocation, if 
 it be possible ? " 
 
 57. " When, at the most inopportune moments, we 
 experience an irresistible desire to sleep, does it warn 
 us that we are invoked by some one ? " 
 
 " It may occur, but most often it is a purely physical 
 effect ; either the body or the spirit has need of its 
 liberty." 
 
 Remark. A lady of our acquaintance, a medium, 
 one day invoked the spirit of her grandson, who was 
 sleeping in the same room. His identity was confirmed 
 by the language, by the familiar expressions of the 
 child, and by the exact recital of several things that 
 had happened at his boarding-school ; but one especial 
 circumstance confirmed it. Suddenly the hand of 
 the medium paused in the middle of a sentence, and 
 it was impossible to obtain anything further : at this 
 moment, the child, half awake, moved in his bed. 
 Some moments after, he again slept ; the hand went on 
 anew, continuing the interrupted talk. 
 
 The invocation of living persons, made under good 
 conditions, proves, in the least contestable manner, the 
 distinct action of the spirit and the body, and conse- 
 
ON INVOCATIONS. 3^5 
 
 quently, the existence of an intelligent principle inde- 
 pendent of matter. (See Revue Spirite of i860, 
 pages 11 and 18, several remarkable examples of 
 invocation of living persons.) 
 
 285. Hitman Telegraphy. 
 
 58. "Could two persons, by invoking each other, 
 transmit their thoughts, and thus correspond ? " 
 
 " Yes ; and this human tclcgrapJiy zvill some day be 
 a universal means of correspondence!' 
 
 " Why should it not be practiced at present ? " 
 
 " So it is, with some persons, but not with every 
 one : men must purify themselves, in order that their 
 spirit may be disengaged from matter ; and this is still 
 another reason for making the invocation in the name 
 of God. Until then it is confined to cJiose7i and 
 dcmatcrialized soids, who are rarely met in the actual 
 state of the world's inhabitants." 
 25 
 
Chapter XXVL 
 
 QUESTIONS THAT MAY BE ADDRESSED 
 TO SPIRITS. 
 
 Preliminary Observations. ■ — Questions sympathetic or 
 antipathetic to the Spirits. — Questions on the Future. 
 % — On Past and Future Existences. — On Moral and 
 Material Interests. — On the Fate of Spirits. — On 
 the Health. — On Paventions and Discoveries. — On 
 Hidden Treasures. — On the other World. 
 
 Preliminary Observations. 
 
 286. Too much importance cannot be attached to the 
 manner of putting questions, and still more to their 
 nature. Two things are to be considered in those ad- 
 dressed to spirits — the form and the subject. As to 
 the form, they should be compiled with clearness and 
 precision, avoiding complexity. But there is another 
 point not less important — the order that should pre- 
 side in their arrangement. When a subject requires 
 a series of questions, it is essential that they be 
 put together with method, so as to flow naturally into 
 each other ; the spirits then answer much more readily 
 and clearly than when they are put by chance, passing 
 abruptly from one object to another. For this reason 
 it is always best to prepare them in advance, intercalat- 
 ing those which, during a seance^ are brought out by 
 circumstances. The compiling is better done with the 
 
 386 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 387 
 
 head quiet ; and this preparatory work is, as we have 
 already said, a kind of anticipated invocation at which 
 the spirit may have assisted, and be prepared to an- 
 swer. It will be remarked that, very often, the spirit 
 answers by anticipation to certain questions, which 
 proves him to have already known them. 
 
 The subject-matter of the question requires a still 
 more serious attention, for it is often the nature of the 
 request that draws forth a true or false reply ; there are 
 those to which the spirits cannot or ought not to reply, 
 from motives unknown to us : it is, therefore, useless 
 to insist ; but what we should especially avoid are 
 questions calculated to put their perspicacity to the 
 proof. When a thing is, it is said they ought to know 
 ijt ; but it is precisely because the thing is known to 
 you, or that you have the means of verifying it for 
 yourselves, that they do not give themselves the 
 trouble of answering ; this suspicion annoys them, and 
 nothing satisfactory is obtained. 
 
 Have you not daily examples of this with yourselves ? 
 Would superior men, who are conscious of their value, 
 answer all the foolish questions calculated to subject 
 them to examination like scholars? /The desire of 
 making a believer of such or such a person is not, for 
 spirits, a motive for satisfying a vain curiosity ; they 
 know that conviction will come sooner or later, and the 
 means they employ to lead to it are not always those 
 you think. , Suppose a grave man, occupied with use- 
 ful and serious matters, incessantly harassed by the 
 puerile questions of a child, and you will have an idea 
 of what the superior spirits think of all the nonsense 
 with which they are credited. It does not follow that 
 very useful teachings and excellent advice may not be 
 obtained from spirits ; but they answer according to 
 
388 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 the knowledge they themselves possess, according to 
 the interest you deserve on their part and the affection 
 they have for you, and according to the end proposed 
 and the usefulness they see in the thing ; but if all our 
 thoughts are limited to thinking them better fitted to 
 teach us of the things of this world, they cannot have 
 a very profound sympathy for us ; then they make 
 visits very short or very often, according to the degree 
 of their imperfection, evincing their annoyance for hav- 
 ing been uselessly troubled. • • 
 
 287. Some persons think it preferable to abstain 
 from asking questions, and that it is best to wait the 
 teaching of the spirits without calling it forth ; that is 
 an error. Spirits, certainly, give spontaneous instruc- 
 tions of a very high bearing, which it would be wrong 
 to neglect ; but there are explanations we should often 
 await a long time were they not solicited. Without 
 the questions we have asked, the Book on Spirits and 
 the Book on Mediums would be still to make, or, at 
 least, would have been much less complete, and a 
 crowd of problems of great importance would be still 
 to solve. ; Questions, far from having the least danger 
 attending them, are of great utility as to instruction, 
 when we know how to keep them within the prescribed 
 limits. They have another advantage ; they help to 
 unmask deceiving spirits, who, being more vain than 
 learned, rarely undergo to their advantage the trial 
 of questions of close logic, by which they are driven 
 to their last intrenchments. As spirits truly superior 
 have nothing to dread from such a censorship, they 
 are the first to offer explanations on obscure points ; 
 the others, on the contrary, fearing to meet a stronger 
 party, take great care to avoid them ; thus, in general, 
 ' they recommend to the mediums they wish to govern, 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 389 
 
 and to make accept their theories, to abstain from all 
 controversy at the place of their teachings. 
 
 If what we have already said in this work has been 
 thoroughly understood, some idea can be formed of the 
 circle in which it is best to confine the questions to be 
 addressed to spirits ; yet, for greater certainty, we give» 
 below the answers that have been made on the princi- 
 pal subjects on which persons of slight experience are 
 usually disposed to interrogate them. 
 
 288. Questions sympathetic or antipathetic to Spirits. 
 
 1. " Do spirits answer willingly to questions that are 
 addressed to them ? " 
 
 " That is according to the questions. Serious spirits 
 always answer with pleasure to those which have for 
 their end good, and the means to advance you. They 
 do not listen to futile questions." 
 
 2. " Is it sufficient that a question be serious to ob- 
 tain a serious answer ? " 
 
 " No ; that depends on the spirit who answers." 
 — " But does not a serious question drive away 
 trifling spirits ? " 
 
 " It is not the question that drives away trifling spir- 
 its ; it is the character of him ivJio asks it" 
 
 3. " What are the questions especially antipathetic 
 to good spirits ? " 
 
 " All those that are useless, or are asked from a mo- 
 tive of curiosity or test ; then they do not answer, but. 
 withdraw." 
 
 — " Are there any questions antipathetic to imper- 
 fect spirits ? " 
 
 " Only those that might unmask their ignorance or 
 their fraud when they try to deceive ; otherwise they 
 
39° BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 answer all, without troubling themselves about the 
 truth." 
 
 4. " What is to be thought of persons who see in 
 spirit communications only a distraction or a pastime, 
 or a means of obtaining revelations on what interests 
 
 .them ? " 
 
 " These persons are very pleasing to inferior spirits, 
 who, like them, wish to be amused, and are content 
 when they have mystified them." . 
 
 5. "Where spirits do not answer certain questions, 
 is it the effect of their own will, or, rather, that a supe- 
 rior power is opposed to certain revelations ? " 
 
 " Both ; there are things that cannot be revealed, 
 and others that the spirit does not know." 
 
 — "By strongly insisting, would the spirit end by an- 
 swering ? " 
 
 " No ; the spirit who does not wish to ^answer can 
 always leave. It is, therefore, necessary to wait when 
 you are told to do so ; and do not be obstinate in wish- 
 ing to make us answer. To insist upon having an 
 answer when we do not wish to give one, is a certain 
 means of being deceived." 
 
 6. " Can all spirits understand the questions put to 
 them ? " 
 
 " Very far from it ; the inferior spirits are incapable 
 of comprehending some questions, which does not, 
 however, prevent them from answering well or ill, just 
 as it happens among yourselves." 
 
 Remark. In some cases, and when the thing is use- 
 ful, it frequently happens that a more enlightened spirit 
 comes to the assistance of the ignorant spirit, and 
 breathes to him what he ought to say. 
 
 The contrast between the answers is easily recog- 
 nized ; and, besides, the spirit often acknowledges it him- 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 39 1 
 
 self. This happens only for spirits really ignorant, never 
 for those who make a parade of false knowledge. 
 
 289. Questions 011 the Future. 
 
 7. " Can spirits tell us of the future ? " 
 
 " If man should know the future, he would neglect 
 the presents And there is where you always insist 
 upon having a precise answer ; it is a great wrong, for 
 the manifestation of spirits is not a means of divina- 
 tion. If you will, absolutely, have an answer, it will 
 be given to you by a foolish spirit ; we tell you so 
 always." (See Book on Spirits — Knowledge of the 
 Future, No. 868.) 
 
 8. "Are there not future events sometimes spon- 
 taneously and truly announced by spirits ?" 
 
 " It may happen that the spirit may foresee things 
 he thinks it useful to make known, or that he has a 
 mission to make known ; but there is greater cause for 
 suspecting it to be deceiving spirits, who are amusing 
 themselves by making predictions. Only by taking all 
 the circumstances together can we ascertain the degree 
 of confidence they merit." 
 
 9. " What kind of predictions should we most mis- 
 trust ? " 
 
 u All that have no motive of general utility. Per- 
 sonal predictions may almost always be considered 
 apocryphal.'' 
 
 10. " What is the motive of spirits who announce 
 spontaneously events that do not come to pass ?" 
 
 " Most often it is to be amused by the credulity, the 
 terror, or the joy they cause ; then they laugh at the 
 disappointment. Yet these lying predictions have 
 sometimes a more serious aim — that of putting to the 
 test him to whom they are made, to see how he takes 
 
39 2 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 them, the nature of the sentiments, good or bad, they 
 may awaken in him." 
 
 Remark. Such, for instance, as the announcement 
 of what might excite cupidity or ambition, the death 
 of a person, or a prospective inheritance, &c. 
 
 ii. "Why do serious spirits, when they predict an 
 event, ordinarily fix no date ; is it because they cannot, 
 or will not ? " 
 
 "Both ; they may, in some cases, predict an event ; 
 then it is a warning they give you. As to giving a 
 precise date, often they ought not ; often, also, they 
 cannot, because they do not know themselves. The 
 spirit may foresee that a thing will take place, but the 
 precise moment may depend on events not yet accom- 
 plished, and which God alone knows. Trifling spirits, 
 who make no scruple of deceiving you, indicate the 
 days and the hours, without troubling themselves with 
 the issue. For this reason, all circumstantial predic- 
 tions should be distrusted. 
 
 | " Once again, our mission is to make you progress ; 
 we aid you as much as we can. He who asks wisdom 
 of the superior spirits will never be deceived ; but do 
 not believe that we lose our time listening to y#ur 
 nonsense, and telling your fortunes ; we leave that to 
 frivolous spirits, whom it amuses, like mischievous 
 children. 
 
 J " Providence has imposed limits to the revelations 
 that may be^made to man. Serious spirits keep silence 
 on everything forbidden to be made known. By in- 
 sisting on an answer, .you are exposed to the impos- 
 tures of inferior spirits, always ready to seize every 
 occasion to lay snares for your credulity." 
 
 Remark. Spirits see, or foresee, by induction, future 
 events ; they see them fulfilled in a space of time which 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 393 
 
 they do not measure as we do ; in order to give the 
 exact date, they must identify themselves with our 
 method of computing duration, which they do not 
 always judge necessary ; this is often a cause of appar- 
 ent error." 
 
 12. "Are there not men endowed with a special 
 faculty, which makes them foresee the future ? " 
 
 " Yes ; those whose souls are disengaged from mat- 
 ter ; then it is the spirit who sees ; and when it is use- 
 ful, God permits them to reveal some things for good ; 
 but there are more impostors and charlatans. This 
 faculty will be more common in the future." 
 
 13. "What must be thought of spirits who predict a 
 person's death at a certain day or hour ? " 
 
 " These are malicious jesters, — very malicious, — 
 who .have no other motive than to enjoy the fears they 
 cause. Never believe them." 
 
 14. " How is it that some persons are warned by 
 presentiment of the time of their death ? " 
 
 41 Most often it is their own spirit, who knows it in 
 his moments of liberty, and preserves an intuition of it 
 on awakening. These persons, being prepared, are not 
 frightened nor moved. They see in this separation of 
 the body and soul only a change of situation, or, if you 
 like better, and to be more common, the change from a 
 thick coat to a silk one. The fear of death will dimm- 
 ish as spirit belief is extended." 
 
 290. Questions on Past and Future Existences. 
 
 15. "Can the spirits acquaint us with our past 
 existences ? " 
 
 " God sometimes permits them to be revealed ac- 
 cording to the end ; if for your edification and instruc- 
 tion, they will be true, and in such case the revelation 
 
394 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 is almost always made spontaneously, and in a totally 
 unforeseen manner ; but He never permits it to sat- 
 isfy a vain curiosity." 
 
 — "Why do some spirits never refuse to give such 
 revelations ? " 
 
 " They are bantering spirits, who amuse themselves 
 at your expense. In general, you should regard as 
 false, or, at least, suspicious, all revelations of this na- 
 ture that have not one eminently serious and useful 
 aim. Mocking spirits please themselves in flattering 
 self-love, by pretended origins. There are mediums 
 and believers, who accept for current coin all that is 
 said on this subject, and who do not see that the ac- 
 tual state of their spirit justifies in nothing the rank 
 they pretend to have occupied ; a small vanity, with 
 which the bantering spirits are as much amused as 
 men. It would be more logical and more in conform- 
 ity with the progression of beings, that they should 
 ascend, not have descended ; it would be more honor- 
 able to them. In order that these revelations should 
 be worthy of confidence, they should have been made 
 spontaneously by various mediums, strangers to each 
 other, to whom they should have been ' anteriorly 
 revealed : then there would be evident reason for 
 believing them." 
 
 — " If we may not know our anterior individuality, is 
 it the same as to the kind of existence we have had, 
 the social position we have occupied, the qualities and 
 defects that have predominated in us ? " 
 
 " No ; that may be revealed, because you may profit 
 by it, for your advancement ; but in studying your 
 present, you can yourselves deduce your past." (See 
 Book on Spirits — Forgetfulness of the Past, No. 
 
 39 2 -) 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 395 
 
 1 6. " Can anything be revealed to us of our future 
 existences ? " 
 
 " No ; all that some spirits tell you on this subject is 
 simply a jest, — easily understood to be so ; your future 
 existence is not decreed in advance, for it will be what 
 you yourself have made it, by your conduct in the 
 world, and by the resolutions you will have made 
 when you shall have become spirits. The less you 
 have to expiate, the happier you will be ; but to know 
 where and how this existence will be, is impossible, 
 except in the special and rare cases of spirits who are 
 on the earth only to accomplish an important mission, 
 because then their way is in some sort traced in 
 advance. 
 
 291. Questions on Moral and Material Interests. 
 
 17. " Can one ask advice of spirits ? " 
 
 " Yes, certainly ; good spirits never refuse to aid 
 those who invoke them with confidence, principally on 
 what concerns the soul ; but they repulse hypocrites, 
 those who seem to ask for light, and yet delight in 
 darkness!' 
 
 18. " Can the spirits give advice on things of private 
 interest ? " 
 
 "Sometimes, according to the motive. It depends, 
 also, upon those to whom you address yourself. Ad- 
 vice concerning your private life is given with more 
 certainty by the familiar spirit, because he attaches 
 himself to a person, and interests himself in what con- 
 cerns him. This is the friend, the confidant of your 
 most secret thoughts ; but often you tire him with 
 questions so little to the purpose that he leaves you. 
 It would be as absurd to ask about your private affairs 
 of spirits who are strangers to you, as to address your- 
 
39<5 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 self, for that purpose, to the first person you might 
 meet on your road. You should never forget that 
 puerility of questions is incompatible with the superi- 
 ority of the spirits. You must also take into account 
 the qualities of the familiar spirit, who may be good 
 or bad, according to his sympathies for the person to 
 whom he attaches himself. The familiar spirit of a 
 wicked man is a wicked spirit, whose advice may be 
 pernicious, but who removes and yields his place to 
 a better spirit if the man himself becomes better. 
 Like to like." 
 
 19. " Can the familiar spirits favor material interests 
 by revelations ? " 
 
 " They can and do sometimes, according to circum- 
 stances ; but be assured that good spirits never lend 
 themselves to serve cupidity. The bad will display to 
 your eyes a thousand attractions, to incite it, and mys- 
 tify you, at last, by deception. Be very sure, also, that 
 if your lot is to undergo a certain vicissitude, your 
 protecting spirits may aid you to support it with more 
 resignation, may sometimes soften it ; but in the inter- 
 est of your future, it is not permitted them to deliver 
 you from it ; as a good father does not give to his 
 child all he may desire." 
 
 Remark. Our spirit protectors can, in many cases, 
 indicate to us the better way, without, at the same 
 time, leading us in a leash ; otherwise we should lose 
 all initiative, and would not dare to take a step with- 
 out having recourse to them, and this to the prejudice 
 of our perfecting. To progress, man often has to gain 
 experience at his own expense ; for this reason wise 
 spirits, even while advising us, leave us to our own 
 energy, as a skillful teacher does for his pupils. In the 
 ordinary circumstances of life, they counsel us by in- 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 397 
 
 spiration, and thus leave us all the merit of the good, 
 as they leave us all the responsibility of the bad 
 choice. It would be an abuse of the condescension 
 of the familiar spirits, and a mistake as to their mis- 
 sion, to question them every instant about the most 
 ordinary things, as do some mediums. There are 
 those who, for a yes or no, take the pencil, and ask 
 advice for the most simple action. This habit denotes 
 poverty of ideas ; at the same time, it is a presumption 
 to suppose we have always a spirit at our command, 
 having nothing else to do but to be occupied with us 
 and our small interests. It will also serve to destroy 
 one's own judgment, and reduce one's self to a passive 
 part, profitless for the present life, and most surely 
 prejudicial to future advancement. If it is childish to 
 interrogate the spirits for trifling things, it is not less 
 so on the part of the spirits who occupy themselves 
 spontaneously with what one might call the details of 
 the household : they may be good, but assuredly they 
 are very terrestrial. 
 
 20. " If a person, in dying, leaves his affairs embar- 
 rassed, can one ask his spirit to aid in disentangling 
 them, and can one also question him upon the real 
 estate he has left, in a case where the estate may not 
 be known, if such questioning be in the interests of 
 justice ? " 
 
 " You forget that death is a deliverance from the cares 
 of the world ; do you think that the spirit who is happy 
 in his liberty willingly returns to take up his chains, 
 and occupy himself with things he no longer cares for, 
 to satisfy the cupidity of those who, perhaps, are re- 
 joiced at his death, in the hope that it will be profitable 
 to them ? You speak of justice, but the justice is in 
 cheating their covetousness ; it is the beginning of the 
 
39^ BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 punishment which God reserves for their greediness 
 for the goods of the world. Besides, the confusion 
 which the death of a person sometimes leaves, makes 
 a part of the trials of life, and it is not in the power 
 of any spirit to deliver you from them, because they 
 are in the decrees of God." 
 
 Remark. The above answer will, doubtless, disap- 
 point those who imagine that spirits have nothing bet- 
 ter to do than to serve us as auxiliary clairvoyants, 
 to guide us, not toward heaven, but on the earth. 
 Another consideration comes to the support of this 
 answer. If a man, during his life, has left his affairs 
 in disorder from negligence, it is not likely that, after 
 his death, he will take more care, for he would be 
 happy to be freed from the trouble they caused him, 
 and however little he may be elevated, he will attach 
 less importance to them as spirit than as man. As to 
 the unknown goods he may have left, he has no reason 
 to interest himself for greedy heirs, who would prob- 
 ably think no more of him if they did not hope to gain 
 something ; and if he is still imbued with human pas- 
 sions ; he may take a malign pleasure in their disap- 
 pointment. If, in the interest of justice and of persons 
 he loves, a spirit deems it useful to make revelations 
 of this kind, he makes them spontaneously, and for 
 that there is no need of being a medium, or of having 
 recourse to one ; he leads to the knowledge of the 
 things by apparently accidental circumstances, but 
 never on a question put to him about it ; inasmuch as 
 this question cannot change the trials to be suffered, 
 it would rather tend to increase them, because it is 
 almost always an indication of cupidity, and proves to 
 the spirits that they think of him only from interested 
 motives. (See No. 295.) 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 399 
 
 292. Questions on tlic Fate of Spirits. 
 
 21. " May we ask of spirits information of their situ- 
 ation in the world of spirits ? " 
 
 11 Yes ; and they give it willingly, when the question 
 is dictated by sympathy or the desire of being useful, 
 and not by curiosity." 
 
 22. "Can spirits describe the nature of their suffer- 
 ings, or their happiness ? " 
 
 44 Perfectly ; and these revelations are of great in- 
 struction for you, for they initiate you into the true 
 nature of future pains and recompenses, destroying 
 the false ideas you have had on this subject; they tend 
 to reanimate faith and your confidence in the goodness 
 of God. The good spirits are glad to describe to you 
 the happiness of the chosen ; the bad can be con- 
 strained to describe their sufferings to incite them to 
 repentance; they sometimes find a comfort in it ; the 
 unhappy pour out their complaint in the hope of com- 
 passion. 
 
 4< Do not forget that the essential, exclusive end of 
 Spiritism is your advancement, and it is to attain it 
 that the spirits are permitted to initiate you into the 
 future life, offering you examples by which you may 
 profit. The more you identify yourself with the world 
 that awaits you, the less you will regret the one in 
 which you now are. This is, in short, the actual end 
 of the revelation." 
 
 23. " In invoking a person whose fate is unknown, 
 may we know from himself if he is still living ? " 
 
 " Yes, if the uncertainty concerning his death is not 
 a necessity, or a trial for those who are interested in 
 knowing it." 
 
400 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " IT he is dead, can he give us the circumstances of 
 his death, so that they can be verified ? " 
 
 " If he attaches any importance to it, he will do it ; 
 otherwise he cares little about it." 
 
 Remark. Experience proves that, in such case, the 
 spirit is not impressed by the motives of interest there 
 may be to know the circumstances of his death ;• if he 
 chooses to reveal them, he does it of himself, either 
 through a medium or by visions or apparitions, and 
 can then give more exact indications ; if he does not 
 desire it, a deceiving spirit may perfectly counterfeit 
 him, and be amused by the vain search he causes. 
 
 It frequently happens that the disappearance of a 
 person, whose death cannot be officially confirmed, 
 creates confusion in family affairs. It is only in very 
 rare and exceptional cases that we have known the 
 spirits show the way of getting at the truth, after being 
 asked to do so ; if they wish to do it, doubtless- they 
 can, but often it is not permitted if the embarrassments 
 are trials for those who might be interested in disen- 
 tangling them. 
 
 It is, therefore, but a chimerical hope we follow, 
 when we take such means of recovering an inherit- 
 ance ; the most certain thing about it will be the 
 money spent in the effort. 
 
 There are not wanting spirits well disposed to flatter 
 such hopes, who make no scruples of inciting to pro- 
 ceedings of which one is often very happy to be re- 
 lieved at the expense of a little ridicule. 
 
 293. Questions on the Health. 
 
 24. " Can spirits give us advice for our health ?" 
 " Health is a condition necessary for the work one 
 should accomplish in the world ; for this reason they 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 4° l 
 
 willingly attend to it ; but as there are ignorant and 
 learned among them, it is not proper for that, any 
 more than for anything else, to address yourself to the 
 first comer." 
 
 25. " In addressing one's self to the. spirit of a med- 
 ical celebrity, is one more certain of obtaining good 
 advice ? " 
 
 " Terrestrial celebrities are not infallible, and have, 
 often, systematic ideas which are not always true, and 
 from -which death does not immediately deliver them. 
 Terrestrial science is a very small thing compared with 
 celestial science ; the superior spirits alone have this 
 last science ; without having names known among you, 
 they may know much more than your learned men 
 about everything. Science alone does not make spirits 
 superior, and you would be very much astonished at 
 the rank certain learned men occupy among us. The 
 spirit of a learned man may not know more than 
 when he was in the world, if he has not progressed as 
 a spirit." 
 
 26. " Cannot the learned, after becoming a spirit, 
 recognize his scientific errors ? " 
 
 " If he have reached a sufficiently high degree to be 
 rid of his vanity, and to understand that his develop- 
 ment is not complete, he recognizes and avows them 
 without shame ; but if he is not sufficiently demateri- 
 alized, he may" preserve some of the prejudices with 
 which he was imbued in the world." 
 
 27. " Could a doctor, by invoking those of his pa- 
 tients who are dead, obtain from them some enlight- 
 enment on the cause of their death, the faults he may 
 have committed in the treatment, and thus acquire an 
 addition to his knowledge ? " 
 
 " He can ; and that would be very useful should he 
 26 
 
402 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 have the assistance of enlightened spirits, who could 
 supply the defects in the knowledge of some of the 
 patients. But for that he must make this study in a 
 serious and assiduous manner, with a humanitary 
 design, and not as a means of easily acquiring knowl- 
 edge and fortune." 
 
 294. Questions on Inventions and Discoveries. 
 
 28. "Can spirits guide in scientific researches and 
 discoveries ? " 
 
 " Science is the work of genius ; it must be acquired 
 only by labor ; for by labor alone is man advanced on 
 his road. What merit would there be if he had only 
 to question the spirits in order to know everything ? 
 Any simpleton could become learned at that price. 
 Industry alone can give lis inventions and discoveries. 
 Then there is another consideration ; everything must 
 come in its time, when ideas are ripe to receive it : if 
 man had this power h? would overturn the order of 
 things, pushing forward fruit before its season. \ 
 
 " God has said to man, Thou shalt draw thy nourish- 
 ment from the earth by the sweat of thy face : admi- 
 rable figure ! which pictures his condition here below. 
 He must progress in everything by the effort of labor ; 
 if we give him things already made, of what use would 
 be his intelligence ? He would be like the scholar 
 whose duty another person performs." 
 
 29. " Are the ' savant ' and the inventor never assist- 
 ed by spirits in their researches ? " 
 
 " O, that is very different. When the time has come 
 for a discovery, the spirits charged with its direction 
 seek the man capable of conducting it to a good end, 
 and inspire him with the necessary ideas, in such a 
 way as to leave him all the merit of it ; for these ideas 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 4°3 
 
 he must elaborate and work out. It is thus with all 
 the grand achievements of human intelligence. The 
 spirits leave each man in his sphere ; of him who is 
 fit only to cultivate the earth, they will not make a 
 confidant of God's secrets ; but they know how to 
 draw from obscurity the man capable of seconding His 
 designs. Do not allow yourselves to be carried away, 
 by curiosity or ambition, into a path which is not the 
 end of Spiritism, and which will lead only to the most 
 ridiculous manifestations." 
 
 Remark. A more enlightened knowledge of Spirit- 
 ism has calmed the fever for discoveries which, in its 
 incipiency, were expected to be reached by this means. 
 It was supposed persons had only to ask of the spirits 
 recipes to color the hair or to make it grow, to cure 
 corns on the feet, &c. We have seen many persons 
 who thought their fortunes made, and who received 
 only more or less ridiculous processes for it. It is the 
 same when persons desire, by the aid of spirits, to pry 
 into the mysteries of the origin of things ; some spirits 
 having, on such subjects, systems often worth no more 
 than those of men, and which it is prudent to receive 
 with the utmost reserve. 
 
 295. Questions on Hidden Treasures. 
 
 30. " Can spirits discover to us hidden treasures ? " 
 " The superior spirits are not engaged in such mat- 
 ters ; but mocking spirits often indicate treasures that 
 do not exist, or can make you fancy one in a spot in a 
 directly contrary direction from where it is ; and that 
 has its usefulness in order to show that true fortune is 
 in labor. If Providence destines hidden riches for 
 some one, he will find them naturally ; otherwise 
 not.'' 
 
404 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 31. "What are we to think of the belief of spirit 
 guardians for hidden treasures ? " 
 
 11 Spirits who are not dematerialized are attached to 
 things." Misers who have hidden their treasures might 
 still watch over and guard them after their death, and 
 the trouble of seeing them carried away is one of their 
 punishments, until they understand how useless they 
 are to them. There are also spirits of the earth, 
 charged to direct its interior transformations, who 
 have been allegorically made the guardians of natural 
 riches." 
 
 Remark. The question of hidden treasures is in 
 the same category as that of unknown inheritances ; 
 very silly would he be who should reckon upon the 
 pretended revelations that might be made to him by 
 the jokers of the invisible world. We have said that 
 when spirits will or can make such revelations, they 
 do it spontaneously, and have no need of mediums for 
 that. We give an example. A lady lost her husband, 
 after thirty years of married life, and found herself on 
 the brink of being expelled from her home, without 
 any resource, by her step-son, to whom she had been 
 as a mother. Her despair was at its height, when, 
 one evening, her husband appeared to her, told her to 
 follow him into his study ; there he showed her his 
 writing desk, which was still under seal, and by a kind 
 of second sight he "made her see its interior ; he 
 pointed out a secret drawer that she had not known, 
 explained to her its mechanism, and added, " I fore- 
 saw what would happen, and wished to make sure of 
 your comfort : in this drawer is my last will ; I have 
 given you the use of this house, and a yearly income : " 
 then he disappeared. W'hen the day came to .remove 
 the seals, no one could open the drawer ; then the 
 
QUESTIONS TO SPIRITS. 405 
 
 lady related what had happened to her. She opened 
 it as her husband had told her, and there found the 
 will, in terms exactly as he had mentioned. 
 
 296. Questions on other Worlds. 
 
 32. " What degree of confidence may we place in 
 the descriptions spirits give us of the different worlds ? " 
 
 " That depends on the degree of real advancement 
 the spirits who give these descriptions may have 
 reached ; for you understand that ordinary spirits are 
 as incapable of, teaching you, in that respect, as an 
 ignoramus in the world is to describe all the countries 
 of the earth. You often ask scientific questions about 
 these worlds that these spirits cannot solve : if they 
 are sincere, they speak according to their personal 
 ideas ; if they are trifling spirits, they amuse them- 
 selves by giving you absurd and fantastic descriptions ; 
 inasmuch as these spirits, who are not deprived of 
 imagination in the wandering state, any more than 
 on earth, draw on this faculty for the recital of many 
 things that have no reality. Yet, there is no absolute 
 impossibility of having some enlightenment on these 
 worlds ; good spirits are even pleased in describing to 
 you those who inhabit them, in order to serve as in- 
 struction and for your advancement, and to induce you 
 to follow the road that will lead you thither ; it is a 
 means of fixing your ideas of the future, so as not to 
 leave you with a vague impression." 
 
 " What certainty can we have of the exactness of 
 these descriptions ? " 
 
 " The best is the agreement between them ; but 
 remember, they have your moral advancement for 
 their object, and that, consequently, it is on the moral 
 state of the inhabitants you may receive the best 
 
406 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 teachings, and not on their physical or geological state. 
 With your actual knowledge you could not even com- 
 prehend it ; its study would not serve your progress 
 here below, and you will have every means of making 
 it when you are there." 
 
 Remark. Questions on the physical constitution 
 and astronomical elements of the worlds enter into 
 the order of scientific researches, of which the spirits 
 ought not to spare you the trouble ; otherwise an 
 astronomer would find it very convenient to have them 
 make his calculations, which, doubtless, he would not 
 hesitate to do. If spirits could, by revelation, spare 
 the labor of a discovery, it is probable that they would 
 do so in favor of a " savant " modest enough to avow 
 openly the source, rather than to allow those to profit 
 by it who deny them, and for whose self-love, on the 
 contrary, they often contrive deceptions. 
 
Chapter XXVII. 
 CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS. 
 
 Of Contradictions. 
 
 297. The adversaries of Spiritism do not fail to ob- 
 ject that its believers do not agree among themselves ; 
 that all do not partake the same beliefs ; in fact, that 
 they contradict each other. If, they say, the teach- 
 ings are given to you by the spirits, how is it that they 
 are not identical ? Nothing but a serious and profound 
 study of the science can reduce this argument to its 
 just value. 
 
 Let us hasten to say, first, that these contradictions, 
 of which some persons make great account, are in gen- 
 eral more apparent than real ; that they more often 
 pertain to the superficies than to the depth of the 
 thing, and, consequently, are unimportant. The con- 
 tradictions proceed from two sources, men and spirits. 
 
 298. The contradictions of human origin have been 
 sufficiently explained in the chapter on Systems, No. 
 36, to which we refer our readers. Every one will un- 
 derstand that, in the beginning, when the observations 
 were still incomplete, divergent opinions arose on the 
 causes and the consequences of the spirit phenomena, 
 three quarters of which opinions have fallen before a 
 more serious and searching study. With very few 
 exceptions, and aside from those persons who do not 
 easily give up ideas they have embraced, or to which 
 
 407 
 
40S BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 they have given birth, it may be said that, at present, 
 there is unity among the immense majority of spiritists, 
 at least as to general principles, if not in insignificant 
 details. 
 
 299. In order to comprehend the cause and the 
 value of the contradictions of spirit origin, one must 
 become identified with the nature of the invisible 
 world, and have studied it under every aspect. At 
 first sight, it may seem astonishing that the spirits do 
 not all think the same ; but that cannot surprise any 
 one who will consider the infinite number of degrees 
 that must be passed through before attaining , the 
 height of the scale. To suppose them to have an 
 equal appreciation of things would be to suppose them 
 all at the same level ; to think they should all see cor- 
 rectly would be to admit that they have all reached 
 perfection, which is not and cannot be, if it be remem- 
 bered that they are but human beings stripped of the 
 corporeal envelope. Spirits of every rank being able 
 to manifest themselves, the result is, that their com- 
 munications bear. the seal of their ignorance or their 
 knowledge, of their moral inferiority or superiority. 
 The instructions we have given are to enable the true 
 to be distinguished from the false, the good from the 
 bad. 
 
 It must not be forgotten that among spirits, as 
 among men, there are false and half-learned scientists, 
 haughty and presumptuous spirits, and systematists. 
 As it is given only to the perfected spirits to know 
 everything, there are for others, as well as for us, mys- 
 teries which they explain in their own way, according 
 to their ideas, and on which they may have opinions 
 more or less correct, which from self-love they desire 
 to have prevail, and which they like to put forth in 
 
CONTRA DICTIONS AND MYSTIF1 CATIONS. 409 
 
 their communications. The wrong is, that some of 
 their interpreters have too lightly embraced opinions 
 contrary to good sense, and of which the authors 
 should be made responsible. Thus, the contradic- 
 tions of spirit origin have no cause but the diversity 
 of intelligence, knowledge, judgment, and morality of 
 spirits who are, as yet, unfitted to know everything, or 
 to comprehend everything. (See Book on Spirits. 
 Introduction, § XIII. ; Conclusion, § IX.) 
 
 300. Some persons will say, Of what use are the 
 teachings of the spirits if they offer to us no greater 
 certainty than human teachings ? The answer is easy : 
 We do not accept the teachings of all men with equal 
 confidence, and between two doctrines we give the 
 preference to that whose author seems to us most en- 
 lightened, most capable, most judicious, least accessible 
 to passion ; we must act the same with the spirits. 
 
 If in the number there are some who are not above 
 humanity, there are many who are far beyond it ; and 
 these could give us instructions, we should seek in 
 vain among the most learned men. We must dis- 
 tinguish them from the rabble of inferior spirits, and 
 a profound knowledge of Spiritism will certainly lead 
 us to this distinction. 
 
 But even these instructions are limited, and if it is 
 not given to spirits to know everything, for still greater 
 reason should it be the same with men. Thus, there 
 are things on which they are questioned in vain, either 
 that it is forbidden to reveal them, or because they are 
 themselves ignorant of them, and could give us only 
 their personal opinion ; but these very personal opin- 
 ions are what vain spirits give as absolute truths. It 
 is especially on what should remain hidden, as the 
 future, and the principle of things, that they insist the 
 
4IO BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 most, in order to appear to be in the secrets of God ; 
 so it is on these points there are the most contradic- 
 tions. (See the preceding chapter.) 
 
 301. The following answers were given by spirits to 
 questions relative to contradictions : — 
 
 1. "Can the same spirit, communicating to two dif- 
 ferent circles, transmit to them contradictory answers 
 on the same subject ? " 
 
 11 If the two circles differ in opinions and thoughts, 
 the answer might reach them travestied, because they 
 are under the influence of different columns of spirits : 
 it is not the answer that is contradictory ; it is the 
 manner in which it is rendered." 
 
 2. " We understand that an answer might be altered ; 
 but when the qualities of the medium exclude all idea 
 of bad influence, how does it happen that superior 
 spirits hold a different and contradictory language on 
 the same subject with persons perfectly serious ? " 
 
 " The really superior spirits never contradict them- 
 selves, and their language is always the same with the 
 same persons. It may be different according to the 
 persons and places ; but it is necessary to pay atten- 
 tion to this — the contradiction is often only apparent ; 
 more in the words than in the thought ; for on reflec- 
 tion it will be found that the fundamental idea is the 
 same. Then the same spirit may answer differently 
 on the same question, according to the degree of .per- 
 fection of those who invoke him, for it is not always 
 good that all should have the same answer, while they 
 are not as advanced. It is exactly as if a child and a 
 • savant ' should ask you the same question ; surely you 
 would answer to each in such a way as to be compre- 
 hended, and to satisfy them ; the answer, though differ- 
 ent, would always have the same groundwork." 
 
CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS. 411 
 
 3. " From what motive do serious spirits seem to 
 agree with ideas and prejudices of some persons, while 
 in others they assail the same ? " 
 
 " It is necessary that we make ourselves understood. 
 If a person has a very confirmed conviction on a doc- 
 trine even false, we must turn him from this convic- 
 tion, but little by little ; for this reason we often use 
 his terms, and appear to partake of his ideas, in order 
 that he may not be suddenly disconcerted, and cease 
 to allow us to instruct him. Besides, it is not good to 
 shock prejudices too abruptly ; it might be the-means 
 of not being listened to : for this reason the spirits 
 often speak in the sense of the opinion of those who 
 hear them, in order to lead them little by little to the 
 truth. They appropriate the language of the persons, 
 as you would do yourself, were you a somewhat skillful 
 orator ; thus they would not speak to a Chinese or to 
 a Mohammedan, as they would to a Frenchman or to a 
 Christian, for they would be sure to be repulsed. 
 
 " You must not take as a contradiction what is often 
 but a skillful elaboration of the truth. All spirits have 
 their tasks marked out by God ; they accomplish them 
 in the conditions He judges right for the good of those 
 who receive their communications." 
 
 4. " Even apparent contradictions might engender 
 doubts in the spirit of some persons ; by what means 
 can we know the truth ? " 
 
 " To discern errors from truth, the answers must be 
 examined thoroughly, and meditated long and serious- 
 ly ; it is an entire study. Time is necessary for this, as 
 for all other studies. 
 
 " Study, compare, examine thoroughly ; we tell you 
 this constantly ; knowledge of the truth is at this price. 
 How do you expect to reach the truth when you inter- 
 
4 J 2 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 pret everything after your own narrow ideas, which 
 you take for great ones ? But the day is not far dis- 
 tant when the teachings of the spirits will be every- 
 where uniform in the details, as in the fundamentals. 
 Their mission is to destroy error, but that can come 
 only by degrees." 
 
 5. "There are persons who have neither time nor 
 capacity for a serious and thorough study, and who 
 accept what is taught them without examination. Is 
 there no danger that they may thus give credence to 
 error ? " 
 
 " Let them practice good and do no evil ; that is the 
 essential thing ; for that there are not two doctrines. 
 Good is always good, whether it be done in the name/ 
 of Allah or Jehovah, for there is only one God for the 
 universe." 
 
 6. " How can spirits, who appear to be developed 
 in intelligence, have ideas evidently false on certain 
 things ? " 
 
 " They have their doctrine. Those who are not suf- 
 ficiently advanced, but who think they are, take their 
 own ideas of the truth. It is the same among you." 
 
 7. " What are we to think of that doctrine which 
 says that only one spirit can communicate, and that 
 one is God or Jesus ? " 
 
 " The spirit who teaches that is one who desires to 
 govern ; for that reason he wants to have it believed 
 that he is alone ; but the wretch who dare take the 
 name of God will bitterly expiate his pride. As to 
 these doctrines, they refute themselves, because they 
 are in contradiction to the most proved facts ; they do 
 not deserve serious examination, for they have no root. 
 
 " Reason tells you that good proceeds from a good 
 source, and bad from an evil one : why should you de- 
 
CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS. 413 
 
 sire a good tree to bring forth evil fruit ? Did you 
 ever gather grapes from an apple tree ? The diversity 
 of the communications is the most patent proof of the 
 diversity of their origin. 
 
 " Besides, the spirits who pretend that they alone 
 communicate forget to say why the others cannot. 
 Their pretension is the negation of the most beauti- 
 ful and consoling facts of Spiritism — the relations of 
 the visible and invisible worlds, of mankind with the 
 beings dear to them, and who would otherwise be lost 
 to them without return. These relations identify man 
 with his future, and detach him from the material 
 world ; suppress them, he is again plunged into the 
 doubt that makes his torment — given food for his 
 egotism. 
 
 " In examining with care the doctrines of these spir- 
 its, we see, at every step, unjustifiable contradictions, 
 the traces of their ignorance of the most evident 
 thing, and, consequently, the certain signs of their in- 
 feriority. Spirit of Truth." 
 
 8. " Of all the contradictions we observe in the com- 
 munications of spirits, one of the most striking is that 
 relating to re-incarnation. If re-incarnation is a neces- 
 sity of spirit life, how is it that all the spirits do not 
 teach it ? " 
 
 " Do you not know that there are spirits whose ideas 
 are limited to the present, as among many men of the 
 earth ? They believe that what is for them must last 
 forever ; they do not see beyond the circle of their 
 perceptions, and trouble themselves neither about 
 whence they come, nor whither they go ; and yet they 
 must undergo the law of necessity. Re-incarnation 
 is, for them, a law of necessity, of which they will not 
 think until it comes ; they know that the spirit pro- 
 
414 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 grosses, but how is for them a problem. Then, if you 
 ask it of them, they will talk to you of the seven 
 heavens, one above the other, like stagings : there are 
 some, even, who will talk of the sphere of fire, the 
 sphere of stars, then the city of flowers, and the city 
 of the chosen." 
 
 9. "We can easily imagine that spirits but little 
 advanced would not comprehend this question ; but 
 then, how is it that spirits of a notoriously moral and 
 intellectual inferiority speak spontaneously of their 
 different existences, and of their desire to be re-incar- 
 nated, to make amends for their past ? " 
 
 " There are many things occurring in the world of 
 spirits difficult for you to comprehend. Have you not 
 among you persons very ignorant on some things, and 
 enlightened on others ; persons who have more judg* 
 ment than instruction, and others who have more 
 instruction than judgment ? Do you not know, also, 
 that some spirits are pleased to keep men in ignorance, 
 while pretending to instruct them, profiting by the 
 ease with which their words gain credit ? They may 
 seduce those who do not go to the bottom of things, 
 but when they are pressed to extremity by reasonings, 
 they cannot long sustain their role. 
 
 " Notice, especially, the prudence with which the 
 spirits in general promulgate the truth ; a too vivid and 
 too sudden light dazzles without illuminating. They 
 might, in certain cases, consider it useful to spread it 
 only gradually, according to the times, the places, and 
 the persons. Moses did not teach all that the Christ 
 taught, and the Christ himself said many things the 
 understanding of which was reserved for future gen- 
 erations. You speak of re-incarnation, and are aston- 
 ished that this principle has not been taught in certain 
 
CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS. 415 
 
 countries ; but remember, that in a country where the 
 prejudice of color reigns supreme, where slavery is 
 rooted in the manners, they would have rejected 
 Spiritism, if only for that it proclaimed re-incarnation, 
 for the idea that he who is master may become a 
 slave, and the reverse, would have appeared monstrous. 
 Was it not better that the general principle should be 
 first accepted, safe, later, to bring its consequences ? 
 O, mankind ! how short-sighted to judge the designs 
 of God ! Know that nothing can be done without His 
 permission, and without a motive which, very often, 
 you cannot penetrate. 
 
 " I have told you that unity would come in the spirit 
 belief; take it as a certainty that it will come, and 
 that the disagreements, already deeply-seated, will be 
 effaced, little by little, as men are enlightened, and 
 will disappear completely ; for such is the will of God, 
 against which error cannot prevail. 
 
 " Spirit of Truth." 
 
 io. " Will not the erroneous doctrines that some 
 spirits teach have the effect of retarding the progress 
 of true science ? " 
 
 " You would have everything without trouble : under- 
 stand that there is no field where weeds will not grow 
 for the laborer to root out. These erroneous doc- 
 trines are a consequence of the inferiority of your 
 world ; if men were perfect, they would accept only 
 the true ; errors are like false stones, which an experi- 
 enced eye alone can distinguish ; you need an appren- 
 ticeship to distinguish the true from the false : well, 
 these false doctrines are useful in exercising you to 
 distinguish truth from error." 
 
 — "Are not those who adopt the error retarded in 
 their progress ? " 
 
4l6 __ BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 " If they adopt error, it is because they are not 
 sufficiently advanced to comprehend truth." 
 
 302. "While awaiting the coming of unity, each 
 person believes he himself has the truth, and main- 
 tains that he alone is in the true ; an illusioji that does 
 not fail to call to him deceiving spirits : on what 
 can an impartial and disinterested man base his 
 judgment ? " 
 
 " The purest light is obscured by no cloud ; the 
 diamond without flaw is most valuable : judge, then, 
 the spirits by the purity of their teachings. Unity 
 will come from that side where good has never been 
 mingled with bad ; to that side man will rally by the 
 law of events, for they will judge that there is the 
 truth. Remark, besides, that the fundamental princi- 
 ples are everywhere the same, and should unite you in 
 a common thought — the love of God and the practice 
 of good. Whatever may be the mode of progression 
 supposed for souls, the final end is the same, and the 
 means of attaining it is also the same — do good ; and 
 there are not two methods of doing it. 
 
 " Should there arise capital differences as to the 
 principle, even, of doctrine, you have a certain rule 
 for valuing them — the following : The best doctrine is 
 that which best satisfies the heart and the reason, and 
 which contains the most elements to lead men to good ; 
 it is, I assure you, the one that will prevail. 
 
 " Spirit of Truth." 
 
 Remark. The contradictions that present them- 
 selves in spirit communications may arise from the 
 following causes : the ignorance of some spirits ; the 
 deceptions of the inferior spirits, who, either from 
 malice or mischief, say the very contrary from what 
 the spirit whose name they have usurped has already 
 
 
CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS, 4*7 
 
 said elsewhere : the will of the spirit, who talks accord- 
 ing to the times, the places, and persons, and consid- 
 ers it useful not to say everything to everybody ; the 
 insufficiency of human language to express the things 
 of the incorporeal world ; the insufficiency of the means 
 of communication which do not always permit the 
 spirit to render his whole thought ; finally, to the in- 
 terpretation each one may give of a word or an expla- 
 nation, according to his ideas, his prejudices, or the 
 point of view from which he sees the thing. Study, 
 observation, experience, and the abnegation of all 
 sentiment of self-love, alone can teach us to distinguish 
 these different shades. 
 
 Of Mystifications. 
 
 303. If it be disagreeable to be deceived, it is still 
 more so to be mystified ; and it is one of the dangers 
 from which it is easiest to be preserved. The means 
 of unmasking the tricks of deceiving spirits are shown 
 by all the preceding instructions ; for that reason we 
 say but little. We give the answers of spirits on the 
 subject : — 
 
 1. "Mystifications are among the greatest disagreea- 
 bles in the practice of Spiritism : is there any way to 
 ,be preserved from them ? " 
 
 " It seems to me you can find the answer in all you 
 have been taught. Yes, certainly, there is a very 
 simple means ; it is, not to ask of Spiritism more than 
 it can or ought to give you ; its end is the moral 
 amelioration of humanity ; so long as you depart not 
 from that, you will never be deceived, because there 
 are not two methods of comprehending true morality, 
 which every man of good sense will admit. 
 
 " The spirits come to instruct and guide you into the 
 27 
 
41 S BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 way of good, and not into that of honors and fortune, 
 or to serve your mean passions. If nothing trifling is 
 ever asked of them, or nothing beyond their attributes, 
 no foothold is given to deceiving spirits ; from whence 
 you may conclude, that he who is mystified has only 
 what he deserves. 
 
 u The r.dle of the spirits is not to teach you about 
 the things of this world, but to guide you surely in 
 what may be useful to you in the other. When they 
 talk to you of things here below, it is because they 
 judge it to be necessary, but not on your asking. If 
 you look upon spirits only as supplying the place of 
 diviners or sorcerers, you will surely be deceived. 
 
 " If men had but to ask the spirits in order to know 
 everything, they would no longer have their free-will, 
 and would turn aside from the path marked out by 
 God for humanity. / Man should act for himself ; God 
 does not send the spirits to smooth the road of material 
 life, but to prepare that of the future."" 
 
 "But there are persons who ask nothing, and who 
 are unw r orthily deceived by spirits who come sponta- 
 neously, without being called." 
 
 " If they ask nothing, they allow themselves to tell 
 what happens to them all the same. If they meet 
 with reserve and distrust all that is not the essential • 
 object of Spiritism, trifling spirits will not so easily 
 take them for dupes." 
 
 2. " Why does God permit sincere persons, those 
 who accept Spiritism sincerely, to be mystified ? May 
 not that shake their belief?" 
 
 " If it shake their belief, it must be because their 
 faith is not very solid : those who renounce Spiritism 
 from a simple disappointment would prove that they 
 do not understand it, and do not belong to the serious 
 
CONTRADICTIONS AND MYSTIFICATIONS. 419 
 
 party. God permits mystifications to test the perse- 
 verance of true believers, and to puniuh those who 
 make it an object of amusement. 
 
 " Spirit of Truth." 
 
 Remark. The turnings and doublings of the mysti- 
 fying spirits sometimes surpass anything that can be 
 imagined ; the art with which they draw up their 
 batteries and arrange their means of persuading would 
 be a curiosity, were it always only for innocent pleasan- 
 tries ; but these mystifications may have disagreeable 
 consequences for those who are not on their guard : 
 we are happy that we have been able, in time, to open 
 the eyes of some persons who have asked our advice, 
 and to have spared them from ridiculous and compro- 
 mising actions. Among the means these spirits em- 
 ploy, we must place in the front rank, as being most 
 frequent, those which have for their aim to tempt 
 cupidity, such as the revelation of pretended hidden 
 treasures, the announcement of inheritances, or other 
 sources of fortune. 
 
 At first sight we ought especially to suspect all pre- 
 dictions for a fixed time, as well as all precise indica- 
 tions touching material interests ; to beware of every 
 step prescribed or advised by spirits when the motive 
 is not eminently rational ; never to allow ourselves to 
 be dazzled by the names they take to give an appear- 
 ance of truth to their words ; to mistrust bold scientific 
 theories and systems ; anything, in short, foreign to 
 the true mora) end of the manifestations. We could 
 fill a volume with the history of all the strange mysti- 
 fications that have come to our knowledge. 
 
Chapter XXVIII. 
 CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 
 
 Self-interested Mediums. — Spirit Frauds. 
 
 Self -interested Mediums. 
 
 304. As everything can become a subject for mak- 
 ing capital, it is not astonishing that persons should 
 wish to make capital out of the spirits ; it remains to 
 be seen how they will take the thing, if such a specu- 
 lation should be introduced. We will say, first, that 
 nothing lends greater aid to charlatanism and jug- 
 glery than such doings. If we see false somnambu- 
 lists, still oftener do we see false mediums ; and this 
 reason alone should induce distrust. Disinterested- 
 ness, on the contrary, is the most peremptory answer 
 to those who see nothing in the facts but a skillful 
 maneuver. There is no disinterested charlatanism. 
 What motive could persons have for using deception 
 without profit ? still more, when their proved honor 
 places them above suspicion ? 
 
 If the gain a medium may draw from his faculty 
 may be an object of suspicion, this would not be a 
 proof that the suspicion is well founded ; he might 
 have a real aptitude, and act in perfect sincerity, while 
 making it pay : let us see if, in this case, we can rea- 
 sonably expect a satisfactory result. 
 
 305. If all that we have said of the conditions neces- 
 sary to serve as interpreter to good spirits ; of the num- 
 
 420 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 42 1 
 
 beilcss causes that may repel them ; of the circum- 
 stances, independent of their will, which are often an 
 obstacle to their coming ; of all the moral conditions 
 that may exercise an influence over the communica- 
 tions, — if all this has been thoroughly comprehended, 
 how can it be supposed that a spirit, however little 
 elevated, can be, at all hours of the day, at the orders 
 of a director of seaiices, and subject to his require- 
 ments to satisfy the curiosity of the first comer ? 
 
 We know the aversion of the spirits for everything 
 that savors of cupidity and egotism, the few cases in 
 which they help in material things ; and yet they are 
 expected to assist in making money by their presence ! 
 The very thought is repugnant, and one must know 
 very little of the spirit world to believe that this may 
 be. But, as trifling spirits are less scrupulous, and 
 only seek occasion to amuse themselves at our ex- 
 pense, it results that if persons are not mystified by a 
 false medium, there is every chance of their being so 
 by such spirits. These reflections alone will show the 
 measure of the degree of confidence that should be 
 given to communications of this kind. For the rest, 
 why employ paid mediums, when now, if a person has 
 not the faculty himself, he can surely find it in his 
 family or among his friends and acquaintances ? 
 
 306. Interested mediums are not the only ones who 
 may exact a fixed payment ; self-interest is not always 
 seen in the hope of a material gain, but also in ambi- 
 tious views of every kind on which personal hopes 
 may be founded ; that again is a trait on which mock- 
 ing spirits know very well how to seize, and how to 
 profit by, with an address and skill truly remarkable, — 
 rocking to sleep by deceitful illusions those who place 
 themselves under their control. To recapitulate : me- 
 
422 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 diumship is a faculty given for good, and good spirits 
 withdraw from every one who would make it a step- 
 ping-stone for aught that does not answer to the views 
 of Providence. Egotism is the sore spot in the social 
 system ; the good spirits combat it, and it cannot be 
 supposed that they come to serve it. This is so ra- 
 tional that it would be useless to insist further on this 
 point. 
 
 307. Mediums for physical effects are not in the 
 same category ; these effects are usually produced by 
 less scrupulous, inferior spirits. We do not say that 
 these spirits may necessarily be bad : one can be a 
 porter and a very honest man ; a medium of this cat- 
 egory, who would make money of his faculty, might 
 have one who would help him without repugnance ; 
 but here again is another danger. The medium for 
 physical effects has received his faculty no more for 
 his pleasure than has the medium for intelligent com- 
 munications : it has been given to him on condition 
 that he make a good use of it ; and if he abuse it, it 
 will be withdrawn or turned to his detriment, for, per- 
 emptorily, the inferior are under the control of the 
 superior spirits. 
 
 The inferior spirits like well to mystify, but they do 
 not like to be mystified ; if they lend themselves will- 
 ingly to jesting, to things for curiosity, because they 
 like amusement, they no more than others like to be 
 used for money-making or selfish views ; and they prove 
 at every instant that they have their will ; that they act 
 when and how seems good to them, so that the medi- 
 um for physical effects is still less sure of the regularity 
 of the manifestations than the writing medium. To 
 pretend to produce them at fixed days and hours would 
 be a proof of the most profound ignorance. What, 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 4 2 3 
 
 then, will be done to earn his money ? Simulate the 
 phenomena : this is what happens not only with those 
 who make it a regular business, but even with persons 
 apparently simple, who find this easier and more 
 agreeable than to work. \{ the spirit does not give, 
 they supply it : imagination is so fertile when money 
 is in question ! Self-interest being a legitimate motive 
 of suspieion, it gives the right for rigorous examina- 
 tion, and none can be offended by it without justifying 
 suspicions. But as far as suspicion is legitimate in 
 such case, just so far is it offensive toward honorable 
 and disinterested persons. 
 
 308. The medianimic faculty, even restricted to the 
 limit- of physical manifestations, has not been given to 
 make a parade on the platform, and whoever pretends 
 to have at his orders spirits, to exhibit in public, may 
 justly be suspected of charlatanism or jugglery more 
 or less skillful. Let this be held for truth, every time 
 an announcement of pretended seances of Spiritism or 
 Spiritualism is made, wherever the place ; and let 
 every one remember the right he purchases with his 
 entrance. 
 
 From all that precedes we conclude that the most 
 absolute disinterestedness is the best guarantee against 
 charlatanism ; if it does not always insure the good- 
 ness of intelligent communications, it takes from bad 
 spirits a powerful means of action, and silences de- 
 tractors. 
 
 309. There remains what may be called amateur 
 jugglery ; that is, innocent frauds of mischievous jest- 
 ers. They may doubtless practice it, by way of pas- 
 time, in trifling and frivolous circles, but not in serious 
 assemblies, where only serious persons are admitted. 
 A person may please himself by a momentary mysti- 
 
424 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 fication, but he must be endowed with singular pa- 
 tience to play this part for months and years, and 
 each time for several consecutive hours. Interest of 
 some kind can alone give this perseverance ; and this 
 interest, we repeat, makes everything suspicious. 
 
 310. It will, perhaps, be said, that a medium who 
 gives his time to the public, in the interest of the 
 thing, cannot give it for nothing ; for he must live. 
 But is it in the interest of the thing, or in his own, 
 that he gives it ? and is it not rather because he sees 
 in it a lucrative business ? You can always find de- 
 voted people at that price. Has he no other industry 
 at his disposal ? Let us not forget that spirits, what- 
 ever may be their superiority or inferiority, are the 
 souls of the dead ; and when morality and religion 
 make it a duty to respect their remains, the obligation 
 is still greater to respect their spirits. 
 
 What would be said of one who should take a corpse 
 from the tomb to exhibit it for money, because there 
 might be something about it to arouse curiosity ? 
 
 Is it less disrespectful to exhibit the spirit than the 
 body, under the pretext that it is curious to see a 
 spirit act ? It is also to be remarked that the price of 
 seats is according to the wonders they can perform, 
 a,nd the attraction of the spectacle. Surely, during 
 his life, had he been a comedian, he could hardly 
 have supposed that, after his death, he would find a 
 manager who would make him play comedy gratis for 
 said manager's own profit. 
 
 It must not be forgotten that physical as well as in- 
 telligent manifestations are permitted by God only for 
 our instruction. 
 
 311. These moral considerations aside, we will not 
 aver that there cannot be interested mediums, honora- 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 425 
 
 ble and conscientious, because there are honest men 
 in all trades ; we speak only of the abuse : but it will 
 be readily agreed that there is more reason for the 
 abuse in paid mediums, than with those who, regard- 
 ing their faculty as a favor, employ it only to render 
 a service. 
 
 The degree of confidence or mistrust that may be 
 given to a paid medium depends entirely upon the 
 esteem his character and morality may command, in- 
 dependent of circumstances. The medium who, with 
 an eminently serious and profitable aim, would be pre- 
 vented from utilizing his time in any other way, and 
 for that reason ex otic rated, must not be confounded 
 with the speculating medium, him who, from premedi- 
 tated design, would make a trade of his mediumship. 
 According to tJie motive and the end, the spirits could 
 condemn, absolve, or even favor ; they judge the in- 
 tention rather than the material fact. 
 
 312. Somnambulists who utilize their faculty in a 
 lucrative manner are not in the same case. Though 
 this may be subject to abuse, and disinterestedness be 
 a greater guarantee of sincerity, the position is. differ- 
 ent, as it is their own spirit that acts ; it is, conse- 
 quently, always at their disposal, and, in reality, they 
 simply make money of themselves, because they are 
 free to dispose of their person as they, understand it, 
 while speculating mediums use the souls of the dead. 
 (See No. 172, Somnambulistic Mediums.) 
 
 313. We are fully aware that our severity in respect 
 to interested mediums will arouse against us all those 
 who make money, or may be tempted to make money, 
 by this new trade ; and we shall make bitter enemies 
 of them, as well as of their friends, who will naturally 
 take up their cause ; we console ourselves that the 
 
426 BOOK ON MEDIUMS, 
 
 merchants whom Jesus drove from the temple could 
 not have regarded him with a favorable eye. We have 
 also against us those who do not see the thing with 
 the same gravity ; yet we believe we have a right to 
 our opinion and to express it : we force no one to 
 adopt it. If an immense majority agree with us, it is, 
 apparently, because they find it just ; for we see not, 
 indeed, how it can be proved that there are not more 
 good chances for frauds and abuses in speculation than 
 in disinterestedness. As to ourselves, if our writings 
 have tended to cast discredit on interested medium- 
 ship in France and in other countries, we believe it 
 will not be one of the least services they will have ren- 
 dered to serious Spiritism. 
 
 Spirit Frauds. 
 
 314. Those who do not admit the reality of the 
 physical manifestations generally attribute the effects 
 produced to fraud. They base their opinion on the 
 fact that skillful jugglers do things that appear like 
 prodigies when we do not know their secrets ; whence 
 they conclude that mediums are only another kind of 
 sharpers. We have already refuted this argument, or, 
 rather, this opinion, principally in our articles on Mr. 
 Home, and in the Nos. of the Review of January and 
 February, 1858 ; we shall, therefore, say but a few 
 words before speaking of a more serious thing. 
 
 It is, besides, a consideration that will not escape 
 any one who reflects a little. There are, no doubt, 
 marvelously skiLful prestidigitators, but they are rare. 
 If all mediums practice juggling, it must be conceded 
 that the art has made unheard-of progress in a short 
 time, and become suddenly very common ; as it is 
 
CHARLATANISM AXD JUGGLERY. 427 
 
 found innate with persons who scarecly suspect it : 
 even with children. 
 
 Even as there are quacks who sell drugs in public 
 places, so there are mediums who, without going to 
 public places, betray confidence : must it follow that 
 all doctors are quacks, and that the medical corps is, 
 for that reason, unworthy of consideration ? Because 
 there are persons who sell adulterations for wine, does 
 it follow that all wine merchants are adulterators of 
 wine, and that there is none pure ? Everything is 
 abused, even the most respectable things, and it may 
 be said that fraud also has its genius. But fraud 
 always has a motive, some material interest : where 
 there is nothing to gain, there is no interest in deceiv- 
 ing. So we say, apropos to mercenary mediums, that 
 the best of all guarantees is absolute disinterestedness. 
 
 315. Of all the spirit phenomena, those which most 
 lend themselves to fraud are physical phenomena, from 
 motives it is useful to take into consideration. First, 
 because, addressing themselves more to the eyes than 
 to the intelligence, they are those that jugglery can 
 most easily imitate. Secondly, that, awaking curiosity 
 more than the others, they are more suited to attract 
 the crowd, and are, consequently, more productive. 
 In this double point of view, charlatans have every 
 interest in simulating them : the spectators, mostly 
 strangers to the science, seek them usually more as an 
 amusement than as a serious instruction ; and every 
 one knows that what amuses pays better than what 
 instructs. But set that aside, there is another motive 
 not less decided. If juggling can imitate material 
 effects, for which only address is needed, we have not, 
 as yet, known it to possess the gift of improvisation, 
 which requires a degree of intelligence not very com- 
 
428 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 mon, neither the gift of producing those beautiful and 
 sublime dictations, often so apropos, which the spirits 
 give in their communications. This recalls to us the 
 following fact : — 
 
 A literary man, quite well known, came, one day, to 
 see us, and told us that he was a very good intuitive 
 writing medium, and that he would put himself at the 
 disposal of the Spirit Society. As we were accustomed 
 to admit into the society only mediums whose faculties 
 were known to us, we requested him to come and give 
 proofs in a special reunion. He came ; several ex- 
 perienced mediums gave dissertations and answers of 
 remarkable precision on questions proposed and sub- 
 jects unknown to them. When this gentleman's turn 
 came, he wrote some insignificant words, said he was 
 indisposed that day, and since then we have never seen 
 him : he doubtless found that the role of medium for 
 intelligent effects was more difficult to play than he 
 had supposed. 
 
 316. In everything, those most easily deceived are 
 those not of the trade ; it is the same with Spiritism ; 
 those who know nothing of it are most easily deceived 
 by appearances ; while a previous attentive study in- 
 itiates them, not only into the cause of the phenom- 
 ena, but into the normal conditions under which they 
 can be produced, and furnishes them also with the 
 means of detecting fraud, should it exist. 
 
 317. Deceiving mediums are stigmatized as they 
 deserve in the following letter in the Review of Au- 
 gust, 1 86 1 : — 
 
 " Paris, July 21, 1S61. 
 
 " Sir : One may disagree on certain points, and 
 agree on others. I have just read, page 213 of the 
 last number of your journal, reflections on frauds in 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 429 
 
 spiritualist (or spiritist) experiments, to which I am 
 happy to give my entire assent. There all differences 
 in matters of theory or doctrine disappear as by en- 
 chantment. 
 
 M I am not, perhaps, as severe as you in regard to 
 mediums who, in a worthy and suitable way, accept a 
 remuneration as indemnity for the time they devote to 
 experiments often long and fatiguing ; but I am quite 
 as much so — and one cannot be too much — in re- 
 gard to those who, in such cases, supply, on occasion, 
 by trickery and fraud, the absence or insufficiency of 
 the results promised and expected. (See No. 311.) 
 
 "To mingle the false with the true, when phenom- 
 ena obtained through the intervention of spirits is in 
 question, is wholly infamous, and there must be an 
 utter obliteration of all moral sense with the medium 
 who can do so without scruple. As you have so well 
 observed, it is casting- discredit upon the cause in the 
 minds of the undecided } to find it mixed with fraud. I 
 would add that it is compromising in the most deplora- 
 ble manner the honorable men who give to mediums 
 the disinterested support of their knowledge and their 
 light, who are guarantees of their sincerity, and in one 
 way their patrons ; it is committing a veritable crime 
 against them. 
 
 " Every medium convicted of fraudulent maneuvers, 
 taken, to use a common expression, with his hand in 
 the bag, deserves to be ostracized by all spiritualists 
 and spiritists, for whom it should be a rigorous duty to 
 unmask them, and send them adrift. 
 
 " If you choose, sir, to insert these few lines in your 
 Journal, they are at your service. 
 " I am, &c, 
 
 " Matthew ." 
 
430 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 318. All spirit phenomena are not equally easy to 
 imitate, and there are those that evidently defy all the 
 skill of practiced jugglers ; such are, especially, the 
 movements of objects without contact, the suspension 
 of heavy bodies in space, blows struck on different 
 sides, apparitions, &c, without employing helpers and 
 companions ; therefore, we say, what should be done 
 in such cases is, to observe attentively the circum- 
 stances, and particularly take into account the char- 
 acter and position of the persons, the motive, and the 
 interest they may have in deceiving ; that is the best 
 of all censorship, for these are the circumstances that 
 destroy all cause for suspicion. We think, then, on 
 principle, it is necessary to beware of any one what- 
 ever who makes of these phenomena a spectacle, or 
 an object of curiosity or amusement, and who pretends 
 to produce them at will or at a given place, as we have 
 already explained. We cannot too often repeat that 
 the occult intelligences, who manifest themselves to us, 
 have their susceptibilities, and will prove to us that 
 they have their free will, and are not subjected to our 
 caprices. (No. 1%) 
 
 It will suffice to mention some subterfuges em- 
 ployed, or that it is possible to employ, in certain 
 cases, to warn sincere observers against fraud. As to 
 persons who persist in judging without studying, it 
 would be labor lost to seek to convince them. 
 
 319. One of the most ordinary phenomena is that 
 of raps in the very substance of the wood, with or 
 without movement of the table or other object used ; 
 this effect is one cf the easiest to imitate, either by 
 contact of the feet, or by calling out little crackings 
 in the furniture ; bat there is a special little stratagem 
 that may be exposed. It suffices to rest the two hands 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 431 
 
 flat on the table, near enough for the thumb nails to 
 rest strongly against each other ; then, by a muscular 
 movement entirely imperceptible, they are rubbed to- 
 gether, which gives a little dry sound, very much like 
 that of interior tvptology. This noise resounds in 
 the wood, and produces a complete illusion. Nothing 
 more easy than to make as many raps heard as are 
 asked, a drum beating, &c, to answer to certain ques- 
 tions by yes or no, by numbers, or even by indicating 
 letters of the alphabet. 
 
 Once warned, the means of detecting this fraud are 
 very simple. It is not possible if the hands are sepa- 
 rated, and if you are sure no other contact produces 
 the noise. The true raps, however, have this char- 
 acteristic, that they change place and tone at will, 
 which could not be if they were due to the cause we 
 have mentioned, or any similar, if they go from the 
 table to a piece of furniture no one is touching, on the 
 walls, on the ceiling, &c, if they answer impromptu 
 questions. (See No. 41.) 
 
 320. Direct writing is still easier to imitate ; with- 
 out speaking of well-known chemical agents for mak- 
 ing writing appear in a given time on a blank piece of 
 paper, which may be exposed by the most ordinary 
 precautions, it might happen that, by skillful trickery, 
 one piece of paper could be substituted for another. 
 It might be that he who might wish to deceive would 
 have the art of distracting the attention while writing 
 a few words. We have been told that writing has been 
 produced with a small crumb of lead hidden under the 
 nail. 
 
 321. The phenomenon of materialization is not less 
 accessible to jugglery, and a person can easily be the 
 dupe of a skillful sharper without having recourse to a 
 
43 2 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 professional. In the special article we have published 
 above (No. 96), the spirits have themselves told the 
 exceptional conditions under which they can be pro- 
 duced ; whence it may be concluded that the easy and 
 optional obtaining of them must be held more or 
 less suspicious. Direct writing is under the same 
 head. 
 
 322. In the chapter on Special Mediums, we gave 
 from the spirits the common medianimic aptitudes, and 
 those that are rare. Mediums who pretend to have 
 these last too easily are to be suspected, as also those 
 who are ambitious of a multiplicity of faculties — a pre- 
 tension rarely justified. 
 
 323. Intelligent manifestations are, according to the 
 circumstances, those which offer the strongest guaran- 
 tee ; and yet they are not proof against imitation, at 
 least the ordinary and trivial communications. 
 
 It is supposed there is more security with mechani- 
 cal mediums, not only for independence of ideas, but 
 also against fraud ; for this reason many persons prefer 
 material intermediaries. Well, it is an error. Fraud 
 is everywhere, and we know that, with skill, even a 
 writing basket or planchette can be directed at will. 
 The sentiments expressed will relieve all doubts whether 
 they come from a mechanical, intuitive, auditive, speak- 
 ing, or seeing medium. There are communications 
 so far above the ideas, the knowledge, and even the 
 intellectual strength of the medium, that we should 
 strangely deceive ourselves in giving him the honor of 
 their authorship. We see, in charlatanism, an extraor- 
 dinary skill and fertile resources, but we have yet to 
 find it capable of giving knowledge to the ignorant, or 
 mind to him who lacks it. 
 
 To recapitulate : we repeat, the best guarantee is in 
 
CHARLATANISM AND JUGGLERY. 433 
 
 the known morality of the mediums, and in the absence 
 of all material interested motives or self-love which 
 might stimulate in him the exercise of the medianimic 
 faculties he may possess ; for these same causes may 
 lead him to simulate those he has not. 
 28 
 
Chapter XXIX. 
 REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 
 
 Of Reunions in General. — Of Societies Proper. — Sub- 
 ejects of Study. — Rivalry between Societies. 
 
 Of Reunions in General. 
 
 324. Great advantages may be derived from spirit- 
 ist reunions, through reciprocal interchange of thought, 
 questions and remarks that each one may make, and 
 from which all may profit ; but in order to draw from 
 them all desirable fruit, they require special condi- 
 tions, which we will examine, for it is wrong to liken 
 them to ordinary societies. Reunions being collective 
 wholes, consequently the preceding instructions natu- 
 rally concern them ; they should take the same pre- 
 cautions and guard against the same dangers as indi- 
 viduals : therefore we have placed this chapter last. 
 
 Spiritist reunions have very different characters, 
 according to the end therein proposed, and their qual- 
 ity must, for the same cause, also differ. According 
 to their nature, they may be frivolous, experimental, or 
 instructive. 
 
 325. Frivolous reunions are composed of persons 
 who see only the jesting side of the manifestations, 
 who are amused with the humor of the trifling spirits, 
 who are very fond of these assemblies, where they 
 have full liberty to say what they please, and are not 
 considered at fault. In these reunions nonsense of 
 
 434 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 435 
 
 all kinds is asked ; here is where they expect fortune- 
 telling of the spirits, where they put their perspicacity 
 to the proof to guess ages, what they have in their 
 pockets, to detect little secrets, and a hundred other 
 things of like importance. 
 
 These reunions are of little consequence ; but as 
 the trifling spirits are often very intelligent, and are 
 usually in an easy and jovial mood, they often produce 
 in them very curious things, from which an observer 
 may draw profit ; he who has seen only that, and 
 should judge the world of spirits from that sample, 
 would have as false an idea of it as one who should 
 judge the whole society of a great city by the inhabit- 
 ants of a certain part of it. Simple good sense tells 
 us that elevated spirits cannot enter such reunions, 
 where the spectators are no more serious than the 
 actors. If persons desire to engage in futile things, 
 they must frankly call trifling spirits, as they would 
 call jesters, to amuse a society ; but there would be 
 profanation in inviting thither venerated names, — to 
 mingle the sacred with the profane. 
 
 326. (Experimental reunions have more especially 
 for their object the production of physical manifesta- 
 tions. For many persons this is a more amusing 
 than instructive spectacle ; skeptics come from them 
 more astonished than convinced, when they have seen 
 nothing else, and their whole thoughts are turned 
 toward seeking out frauds, for, not understanding any 
 of it, they willingly suspect subterfuges. It is other- 
 wise with those who have studied ; they already un- 
 derstand the possibility, and positive facts afterward 
 achieve or finish their conviction ; if there should be 
 fraud, they would be safe to discover it. 
 
 Yet there is a use in these experiments that no one 
 
436 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 should despise, for they were the means of discovering 
 the laws that rule in the invisible world ; and for many 
 they are certainly a powerful means of conviction ; but 
 we maintain that they alone could no more initiate the 
 science of Spiritism, than an ingenious piece of mech- 
 anism could make us understand mechanics, were we 
 unacquainted with its laws ; if they were always con- 
 ducted with method and prudence, better results would 
 be obtained. We shall return to this subject. 
 
 327. Instructive reunions have quite another char- 
 acter, and as these are where true instruction can be 
 received, we shall insist strongly on the conditions 
 they ought to fill. 
 
 The first of all is, to be serious in the full accep- 
 tation of the word. We should remember that the 
 spirits addressed are of a very special nature ; that the 
 sublime cannot be allied to the trivial, nor the good to 
 the bad ; if we desire to obtain good things, we must 
 address good spirits ; but to ask of good spirits is not 
 sufficient ; express conditions are necessary, to be in 
 propitious conditions, so that they may want to come ; 
 but superior spirits will no more come into the assem- 
 blies of trifling and superficial persons than they would 
 have come there during their lives. 
 
 A society is truly serioUs only on condition of being 
 engaged in useful things, to the exclusion of all others ; 
 if it aspire to obtain extraordinary things, for curiosity 
 or pastime, the spirits who produce them will come, 
 but the others will withdraw. In a word, whatever 
 may be the character of a reunion, it will always find 
 spirits ready to second its tendencies. A serious re- 
 union turns aside from its end, if it leaves instruction 
 for amusement. Physical manifestations, as we have 
 said, have their use ; let those who wish to see them 
 
REUNIOXS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 437 
 
 go to experimental reunions : let those who desire to 
 understand go to reunions for stud)' ; thus both will 
 be able to complete their spirit teachings, as, in the 
 study of medicine, some take the course, others clinics. 
 
 328. Spirit instruction comprises not only the moral 
 teachings given by the spirits, but, still more, the study 
 of facts ; here belong the theory of all the phenomena, 
 the inquiry into causes, and consequently, the verifica- 
 tion of what is possible and what is not ; in a word, 
 the observation of all that can advance science. But 
 it would be a mistake to suppose that the facts are 
 limited to the extraordinary phenomena; that those 
 which strike the senses most forcibly are alone worthy 
 of attention ; at every step in the intelligent commu- 
 nications, which men united for study must not neglect, 
 are met these facts, impossible to enumerate, springing 
 from a host of unforeseen circumstances ; though less 
 salient, they are none the less of the highest interest 
 for the observer, who finds therein either the confir- 
 mation of a known principle, or the revelation of a 
 new one, which brings him still further into the mys- 
 teries of the invisible world : there also is philosophy. 
 
 329. Reunions for study are especially useful for 
 mediums, for intelligent manifestations, particularly 
 for those who desire to perfect themselves, and who 
 do not go to them with a foolish presumption of infalli- 
 bility. One of the greatest dangers of mediumship is, 
 we have "said, obsession and fascination ; they can 
 thoroughly delude the medium as to the merit of what 
 he obtains, and it may well be understood that the 
 deceiving spirits have full scope when their interpreter 
 is blinded ; for this reason, they remove their medium 
 from all criticism : if necessary, they produce in him 
 an aversion even to being enlightened ; by means of 
 
433 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 isolation and fascination, they can make him accept 
 anything they choose. 
 
 We cannot too often repeat it, here is not only the 
 stumbling-block, but the danger ; yes, we say it, a real 
 danger. The only means of escaping it is the censorship 
 of disinterested and kind-hearted persons, who, judg- 
 ing the communications with coolness and impartiality, 
 may open his eyes, and make him see what he cannot 
 see of himself. Every medium who fears this judgment 
 is already on the road to obsession ; he who believes 
 the light is made only for him, is completely under the 
 yoke ; if he takes remarks in ill part, repulses, is irri- 
 gated by them, there can be no doubt of the bad nature 
 of the spirit who assists him. We have said, a medi- 
 um may lack the knowledge necessary to understand 
 errors ; he may be deluded by big words and preten- 
 tious language, be led astray by sophisms, and that in 
 all sincerity ; therefore, in default of his own light, he 
 should modestly have recourse to that of others, ac- 
 cording to these two adages, that four eyes see better 
 than two, and that no one is a good judge for his own 
 cause. In this point of view, reunions are of very 
 great utility for a medium, if he is sufficiently sensible 
 to listen to advice ; because he may find in them per- 
 sons more clairvoyant than himself, who can seize the 
 most delicate shades by which a spirit may betray his 
 inferiority. 
 
 Every medium who sincerely desires not to be the 
 plaything of a lie, should try to be developed in seri- 
 ous reunions, and bring there what he obtains in pri- 
 vate ; accept with gratitude — solicit even — critical 
 examination of the communications he receives ; if he 
 is the dupe of deceiving spirits, it is the surest means 
 of getting rid of them, and of proving to them that 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 439 
 
 they cannot delude him. It is so much the worse for 
 a medium who is irritated by criticism, as his self-love 
 is not at all engaged, since what he says is not his 
 own, and he is no more responsible for it than if he 
 should read the verses of a bad poet. 
 
 We have insisted on this point, because, a stum- 
 bling-block for mediums, it is also one for reunions, to 
 which it is of great importance not lightly to confide 
 in all the interpreters of the spirits. The assistance 
 of any obsessed or fascinated medium would be more 
 injurious than useful ; it should not be accepted. We 
 think we have so fully entered into their development, 
 that it will be impossible to mistake the characteris- 
 tics of obsession, if the medium cannot recognize it 
 himself ; one of the most salient points is the supposi- 
 tion that he alone of all the world is right. Obsessed 
 mediums, who will not be convinced, are like those 
 sick persons who are deluded as to the state of their 
 health, and are lost for want of submitting to salutary 
 regimen. 
 
 330. A serious reunion should propose to itself, 
 especially, to drive away lying spirits ; it would be 
 an error to suppose its aim and the quality of its 
 mediums a safeguard from them ; nothing will save it 
 unless it be itself in favorable conditions. 
 
 In order perfectly to comprehend what happens 
 under these circumstances, we beg the reader to turn 
 to what has been said, No. 331, on the Influence of the 
 Surroiindings . Each individual is surrounded by a 
 certain number of invisible acolytes, who are identified 
 with his character, his tastes, and his inclinations : 
 thus, each person who enters a reunion brings with 
 him spirits who are in sympathy with him. Accord- 
 ing to their number and nature, these acolytes may 
 
44° BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 exercise a good or bad influence on the assembly, and 
 on its communications. A perfect reunion would be 
 that in which all the members, animated by an equal 
 love of good, would bring with them only good spirits ; 
 in default of this perfection, the better would be where 
 the good would preponderate over the evil. This is 
 too logical to need that we should insist upon it. 
 
 331. A reunion is a collective being, whose qualities 
 and properties are the result of those of its members, 
 and form, as it were, a bundle, and this bundle will have 
 as much more force as it may be more homogeneous. 
 If our readers have thoroughly understood what, has 
 been said (No. 282, Question 5). on the manner in 
 which spirits are warned of our call, they easily com- 
 prehend the power of the association of thought in 
 the assistants. If the spirit is, in some sort, struck by 
 the thought as we are by the voice, twenty persons, 
 being united in the same intention, will necessarily 
 have more force than one alone ; but that all these 
 things may tend toward the same end, they must vibrate 
 in unison ; let them be commingled, as it were, in a 
 one, which cannot be done without concentration of 
 thought. 
 
 Then, again, the spirit, entering a completely sym- 
 pathetic circle, is more at his ease ; finding there only 
 friends, he comes more willingly, and is more disposed 
 to answer. Any person who has attentively watched 
 intelligent spirit manifestations, must have become 
 convinced of this truth. 
 
 If the thoughts are divergent, the result will be a 
 clashing of ideas disagreeable for the spirit and injuri- 
 ous to the manifestations. It is the same with a man 
 addressing an assembly ; if he feel all the thoughts to 
 be sympathetic and kindly to him, the impression he 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 44* 
 
 receives will react on his own ideas, and give them 
 more fervor ; the unanimity of the assembly exercises 
 on him a kind of magnetic action, which doubles his 
 means, while indifference or hostility troubles or para- 
 lyzes him ; so actors are inspired by plaudits ; and 
 spirits, being much more impressionable than human 
 beings, are very much more sensitive to the influence 
 of the surroundings. 
 
 Every spiritist reunion should tend as much as pos- 
 sible to homogeneity ; of course it is understood that 
 we speak of those that would achieve serious and truly 
 useful results ; if they desire simply to receive com- 
 munications, without caring for the quality of those 
 who give them, it is evident that all these precautions 
 are not necessary ; but then they should not complain 
 of the quality of the product. 
 
 332. Concentration and communion of thought be- 
 ing the essential conditions of every serious reunion, 
 it can be seen that too many assistants must be one 
 of the causes most directly adverse to homogeneity. 
 There is, certainly, no absolute limit to this number ; 
 and a hundred persons, sufficiently collected and atten- 
 tive, will be better than ten inattentive and noisy ; but 
 it is also evident that the greater the number the more 
 difficult to comply with the conditions. It is, besides, 
 a fact proved by experience, that the small private 
 circles are always more favorable for beautiful commu- 
 nications, for reasons already mentioned. 
 
 333. There is still another not less necessary point : 
 the regularity of the reunions. In all there are always 
 spirits that may be called habitues : we do not mean 
 those spirits that may be found everywhere, and min- 
 gling themselves in everything ; but those who are 
 either spirit protectors, or those who are most often 
 
442 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 interrogated. It must not be supposed that these 
 spirits have naught else to do but to listen to us ; 
 they have their occupations, and may, besides, be in 
 conditions unfavorable for invocation. When the re- 
 unions take place on fixed days and hours, they man- 
 age accordingly, and are rarely absent. There are 
 some who are extreme in punctuality ; they take 
 offense at a quarter of an hour's delay, and if they 
 themselves set the time of beginning, it is in vain to 
 call them even a few minutes sooner. Let us add that, 
 as well as the spirits prefer regularity, those who are 
 truly superior are not tenacious on this point. The 
 exaction of a rigorous punctuality is a sign of inferior- 
 ity, like everything puerile. Beyond the devoted hours, 
 they can come, and do- come, even willingly, if the end 
 is useful ; but nothing is more injurious to good com- 
 munications than to call them at random, when the 
 fancy takes us, and especially without a serious mo- 
 tive ; as they are not bound to submit to our caprices, 
 they might very well not trouble themselves ; then 
 others are sure to take their places. 
 
 Of Societies Proper. 
 
 334. All that we have said of reunions in general 
 applies to regularly-constituted societies, which, be- 
 sides, have to contend with some special difficulties, 
 which are born of the very tie that unites the members. 
 
 Advice on their organization having been asked of 
 us several times, we will here recapitulate it in a few 
 words. 
 
 Spiritism, but lately born, is still too diversely ap- 
 preciated, too little understood in its essence, by a great 
 number of believers, to afford a powerful bond between 
 the members of what may be called an association. 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 443 
 
 This bond may exist between those who perceive its 
 moral end, understand it, and apply it to themselves. 
 Between those who see only facts more or less curious, 
 there can be no serious bond ; putting facts above 
 principles, a simple divergence in the manner of view- 
 ing them may be a cause of division. It is not the 
 same with the first mentioned, for there cannot be two 
 ways of looking at moral questions : also, it must be 
 remarked, that wherever they meet a reciprocal confi- 
 dence attracts them to each other ; the mutual benev- 
 olence that reigns among them banishes the uneasi- 
 ness and constraint born of sensitiveness, of the pride 
 that is offended at the least contradiction, of the ego- 
 tism that takes everything to itself. A society where 
 such sentiments reign supreme, where all are united 
 for the purpose of being instructed by the teachings of 
 the spirits, and not in the hope of seeing .things more 
 or less interesting, or to make one's own opinion pre- 
 vail, — such a society, we say, would not only contain 
 the elements of life, but would be indissoluble. Again, 
 the difficulty of bringing together numerous homoge- 
 neous elements for this purpose, moves us to say that, 
 in the interest of study, and for the good of the thing 
 even, spirit reunions should be multiplied in small 
 groups, rather than in large agglomerations. These 
 groups, corresponding, visiting, transmitting their ob- 
 servations, may now form the nucleus of the great 
 spiritist family, that will, some day, bring together all 
 opinions, and unite all men in one sentiment of frater- 
 nity, sealed "by Christian charity. 
 
 335. We have seen the importance of uniformity of 
 sentiment for obtaining good results ; the greater the 
 number, the more difficult, necessarily, will it be to 
 obtain this uniformity. In small committees they 
 
444 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 know each other better, and are more sure of the ele- 
 ments introduced ; silence and concentration are more 
 easy, and all are like one family. Large assemblies 
 exclude intimacy by the variety of the elements of 
 which they are composed ; they require special loca- 
 tions, pecuniary resources, and an administrative ma- 
 chinery useless in small groups : diversity of character, 
 of ideas, of opinions, is better displayed, and offers to 
 the meddling spirits greater facility for sowing discord. 
 The t more numerous, the more' difficult to satisfy every 
 one ; each one wants the work directed according to 
 his liking, that the society should prefer those subjects 
 most interesting to him : some think that their mem- 
 bership gives them the right to have everything their 
 own way ; thence disagreements, a sensation of unea- 
 siness, which, sooner or later, leads to disunion, then 
 dissolution — the fate of all societies, whatever their 
 object. Small committees are not subject to the same 
 fluctuations ; the fall of a large society would be an 
 apparent check to the cause of Spiritism, and its ene- 
 mies would not fail to take advantage of it ; the disso- 
 lution of a small group would pass unnoticed ; and 
 then, if one is dispersed, twenty more would be formed 
 beside it : also, twenty groups, of from fifteen to twen- 
 ty, will obtain more and do more for propagation than 
 an assembly of three or four hundred persons. 
 
 It will, doubtless, be said that the members of a 
 society who would act in such a manner would not be 
 real spiritists, since the first duty the doctrine imposes 
 is charity and benevolence. That is perfectly true ; 
 those who do this are spiritists in name rather than in 
 fact ; they do not assuredly belong to the third category 
 (see No. 28) ; but who can say they are not in some sense 
 spiritists ? This consideration is not without gravity. 
 
KEUXIONS AXD SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 445 
 
 336. Let us not forget that Spiritism has enemies 
 interested in opposing it, and who view its success 
 with anger : the most dangerous are not those who 
 attack it openly, but those who act in the dark — those 
 who caress with one hand and mangle with the other. 
 These malevolent beings creep in wherever they hope 
 to do harm ; as they know that union is strength, they 
 endeavor to destroy by throwing in brands of discord. 
 Who, then, can say that those who, in reunions, sow 
 trouble and dissension, are not agents of those who are 
 interested in disorder ? Certainly they are neither true 
 nor good spiritists ; they can never do good, but they 
 can do much harm. It may easily be seen that they 
 have infinitely greater facilities to insinuate themselves 
 into large reunions than into small committees, where 
 all know each other ; under cover of their secret plots, 
 they sow doubt, distrust, and disaffection ; under an 
 appearance of hypocritical interest, they criticise every- 
 thing, form conventicles and coteries, which soon break 
 up the harmony of the whole : this is what they desire. 
 To appeal to sentiments of charity and fraternity with 
 such persons is like talking to persons willfully deaf, 
 for their aim is precisely to destroy those sentiments, 
 the greatest obstacles to their plots. This state of 
 things, grievous in all societies, is still more so in those 
 of spiritists, because, if they do hot lead to a rupture, 
 they cause a preoccupation incompatible with concen- 
 tration and attention. 
 
 337. It may be said, if the reunion is on the wrong 
 road, have not discreet and well-intentioned men the 
 right of criticism ? and should they let the evil go on 
 saying nothing, by their silence approving ? Without 
 doubt it is their right ; more, it is a duty ; but if their 
 intention be really good, they will offer their advice in 
 
44<5 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 a seemly and kindly manner, openly, and not in secret ; 
 if it is not followed, they withdraw ; for one cannot 
 imagine a well-intentioned person remaining in a so- 
 ciety where things are done that do not suit him. 
 
 It may, then, be established as a principle, that who- 
 ever, in a spiritist reunion, causes disorder or disunion, 
 openly or secretly, by any means whatever, is either 
 a designing agent, or, at least, a very bad spiritist, of 
 whom they cannot too soon rid themselves ; but the 
 obligations that bind the members are often obstacles 
 to this ; and for this reason it is best to avoid all indis- 
 soluble engagements : good men are always sufficiently 
 bound, bad men always too much so. 
 
 338. Besides men notoriously malevolent who in- 
 trude into reunions, there are those who, by their 
 character, bring trouble with them wherever they are ; 
 so that we cannot be too circumspect with regard to 
 the new elements introduced. The most troublesome, 
 in such cases, are not those ignorant of the matter, nor 
 even those who do not believe ;! conviction is acquired 
 only by experience, and there are persons who sin- 
 cerely desire to be enlightened.\ Those of whom it is 
 necessary to beware are systematists, skeptics who 
 doubt everything, even the evidence ; the vain, who 
 think they alone have the true light, wish to impose 
 their opinion on every one, and look with disdain on 
 all who do not think like themselves. Do not allow 
 yourselves to be deceived by their pretended desire 
 for enlightenment ; more than one would be sorry to 
 be forced to acknowledge himself deceived ; beware, 
 especially, of those insipid talkers, who always want 
 the last word, and of those who are only pleased when 
 contradicting ; both waste the time for others, while 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 447 
 
 not profiting by it themselves: spirits do not like use- 
 less words. 
 
 339. In view of the necessity of avoiding every cause 
 of trouble and distraction, a spiritist society about to 
 organize should turn its attention especially to meas- 
 ures that will deprive the fomentors of discord of the 
 means of doing injury, and give the greatest facility 
 for their removal ; small reunions need only a very 
 simple disciplinary rule for the order of the seances ; 
 regularly constituted societies require a more complete 
 organization : the best will be where the wheels are the 
 least complicated. 
 
 340. Small and large societies, and all reunions, 
 whatever be their importance, have to contend with 
 another danger. The fomentors of discord are not 
 only within them, they are in the invisible world as 
 well. As there are spirit protectors for societies, 
 cities, and nations, so bad spirits attach themselves to 
 groups as to individuals ; they first attack the weakest, 
 the most accessible, of whom they endeavor to make 
 instruments, and gradually try to circumvent the 
 masses ; for their wicked joy increases according to 
 the number they can subjugate. So, whenever one 
 person of a group has fallen into a snare, say at once, 
 an enemy is in the camp, — a wolf in the sheepfold, — 
 and we must be on our guard, for it is most probable 
 he will multiply his attempts ; if he is not discouraged 
 by an energetic resistance, the obsession then becomes 
 like a contagious disease, which is manifested among 
 the mediums by pertuibation of mediumship, and among 
 others by hostility of sentiment, perversion of the moral 
 sense, and a breaking up of the harmony. As the 
 most powerful antidote to this poison is charity, it is 
 charity they will seek to stifle. No waiting until the 
 
44^ BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 evil has become incurable in order to bring a remedy 
 for it, no waiting even for the symptoms, but by every 
 means endeavor to prevent it ; for this there are two 
 efficacious means, that may be well employed : prayer 
 from the heart, and the attentive study of the least 
 signs that reveal the presence of deceiving spirits ; the 
 first attracts good spirits who zealously assist those 
 who second them by confidence in God ; the other 
 proves to the bad ones that they have to do with 
 persons clear-sighted and sensible enough not to allow 
 themselves to be deceived. If one of the members 
 yields to the influence of the obsession, every effort, 
 from the first symptoms, should tend to open his eyes, 
 lest the evil should increase, then to convince him that 
 he is deceived, and lead him to desire to second those 
 who wish to help him. 
 
 341. The influence of the surroundings is the conse- 
 quence of the nature of spirits, and of their mode of 
 action on living beings ; of this influence each can, for 
 himself, deduce the conditions most favorable for a 
 society that aspires to conciliate the sympathy of 
 good spirits, and to obtain only good communications. 
 These conditions are entirely in the moral characters 
 of the assistants ; they may be recapitulated as to the 
 following points : — 
 
 Perfect community of views and sentiments. 
 
 Reciprocal kind feeling among all the members. 
 
 Abnegation of every sentiment adverse to true Chris- 
 tian charity. 
 
 Sole desire for instruction, and to advance through 
 the teachings of good spirits, and to profit by their 
 advice. Whoever is convinced that the superior spirits 
 manifest themselves with the view of making us pro- 
 gress, and not for our pleasure, will understand why 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 449 
 
 they should withdraw from those who are limited to 
 admiration of their style, without extracting the fruit 
 of their teachings, and who prize the seances only for 
 the greater or less interest they offer to their own in- 
 dividual tastes. 
 
 Exclusion of everything that, in communications 
 asked of the spirits, has only curiosity for its end. 
 
 Concentration and respectful silence during the in- 
 terviews with the spirits. 
 
 Associations of all the assistants by thought, in the 
 appeal made to the spirits invoked. 
 
 Concurrence of the mediums in the assembly, with 
 abnegation of every sentiment of pride, self-love, and 
 supremacy, in the one desire to be useful. 
 
 Are these conditions so difficult to fulfill that it can- 
 not be done ? We think not ; on the contrary, we hope 
 that truly serious reunions, as there are many already 
 in different localities, will be multiplied, and we do not 
 hesitate to say that it is to them that Spiritism will 
 owe its most powerful propagation ; in bringing unto 
 it honest and conscientious men, they will silence 
 criticism ; and the purer their intentions, the more re- 
 spected they will be, even by their adversaries ; wlicn 
 ridicule attacks the good, it no longer amuses, it becomes 
 despicable^ Among. reunions of this kind a true bond 
 of sympathy, a mutual solidarity, will be established by 
 the force of events, and will contribute to the general 
 progress. 
 
 342. It would be an error to think that this fraternal 
 concert is unnecessary in reunions for physical mani- 
 festations more especially, and that they exclude all 
 serious thought ; if they do not require so rigorous 
 conditions, it is not with impunity that they are under- 
 taken with levity, and a person would be deceived 
 29 
 
45° BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 should he suppose that the concurrence of the assist- 
 ants is absolutely null ; we have the proof of this in 
 the fact that often manifestations of this kind, even 
 called out by powerful mediums, can produce nothing 
 in some places. There is some reason for it, and it 
 can only be in the divergency or hostility of sentiment 
 which paralyzes the efforts of the spirits. 
 
 Physical manifestations, as we have said, are of great 
 utility ; they open a vast field to the observer, for it is 
 an entire order of unusual phenomena unfolded to his 
 view, whose consequences are incalculable. Thus, an 
 assembly may be occupied with very serious views, 
 but may not attain its end, whether of study or means 
 of conviction, if it is not placed in favorable conditions : 
 the first of all is, not faith in the assistants, but their 
 desire to be enlightened, without subterfuge, or deter- 
 mination to reject the evidence ; the second is the re- 
 striction of their number, to avoid the bringing together 
 of heterogeneous elements. If physical manifestations 
 are, in general, produced by the less advanced spirits, 
 they have none the less a providential end, and good 
 spirits always favor them when they can have a useful 
 result. 
 
 Subject for Study. 
 
 343. When a person has invoked his relations and 
 friends, some celebrated personages, to compare their 
 opinions as spirits with those they had during their 
 lives, he is often embarrassed to sustain a conversation 
 without falling into trivialities. Many persons think 
 that the Book on Spirits has exhausted the series o 
 questions on morals and philosophy : this is an error ; 
 for this reason it may be useful to indicate the source 
 whence almost illimitable subjects for study s may be 
 drawn. 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 45 1 
 
 344. If the invocation of illustrious men, of superior 
 spirits, is eminently useful for the instruction they give 
 us, that of ordinary spirits is not less so, though they 
 may be incapable of solving questions of high bearing : 
 by their inferiority they depict themselves, and the 
 smaller the distance that separates us, the greater 
 relation we find to our own situation, without reckon- 
 ing that they often give us characteristic traits of the 
 highest interest, as we have explained above, No. 281, 
 in speaking of the utility of special invocations. Here 
 is an inexhaustible mine of observations, taking only 
 those whose lives present some peculiarity in regard 
 to their kind of death, age, good or bad qualities, their 
 happy or unhappy position in the world, their habits, 
 mental state, &c. 
 
 With elevated spirits, the range of study is enlarged ; 
 besides the psychological questions, which are limited, 
 there may be proposed to them a great number of 
 moral problems, which extend to infinity -on all the po- 
 sitions of life, on the best conduct under certain given 
 circumstances, on our reciprocal duties, &c. The value 
 of the instruction we receive on any subject, 'moral, 
 historical, philosophical or scientific, depends entirely 
 on the state of the spirit interrogated ; it is for us to 
 judge. 
 
 345. In addition to invocations proper, spontaneous 
 dictations offer innumerable subjects of study. They 
 consist in waiting for whatever subject it may please 
 the spirits to treat. Several mediums, in such cases, 
 can work simultaneously. Sometimes an appeal may 
 be made to a designated spirit ; more ordinarily those 
 who choose to come are awaited, and often come in 
 the most unexpected manner. These dictations may 
 give rise to a crowd of questions whose theme is thus 
 
452 BOOK ON MEDIUMS, 
 
 found already prepared. They should be scanned with 
 care, to study all the thoughts they contain, and to 
 judge if they bear the seal of truth. This examina- 
 tion, made with severity, is, as we have said, the best 
 guarantee against the intrusion of deceiving spirits. 
 From this motive, as well as for the instruction of the 
 whole, knowledge of the communications obtained 
 outside of the reunion should be given. There, as 
 may be seen, lies an inexhaustible source of elements, 
 eminently serious and instructive. 
 
 346. The occupations of each seance may be regu- 
 lated as follows : — 
 
 1. Reading of communications obtained in the last 
 seance, correctly drawn up. 
 
 2. Varieties. — Correspondence. — Reading of com- 
 munications obtained outside of the seances. — Rela- 
 tion of interesting facts of Spiritism. 
 
 3. Works of Study. — Spontaneous dictations. — 
 Various moral questions and problems proposed to the 
 spirits. — Invocations. 
 
 4. Conference. — Critical and analytical examination 
 of the various communications. — Discussion on the 
 various points of spirit science. 
 
 347. Circles are often stopped in their very birth 
 from want of mediums. Mediums are, assuredly, one 
 of the essential elements of spirit reunions ; but they 
 are not an indispensable element, and one would be 
 wrong in supposing that, lacking them, there is nothing 
 to do. Doubtless those who come together simply for 
 experimentation, can no more do without mediums 
 than musicians in a concert can do without instru- 
 ments ; but those who have serious study in view 
 have a thousand subjects to occupy them, all as useful 
 and profitable as if they could operate them for them- 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 453 
 
 selves. Besides, the reunions that have mediums, might 
 be accidentally deprived of them, and it would be a pity 
 should they, for that reason, feel that nothing is left 
 for them but to retire. The spirits themselves may, 
 occasionally, place them in such a condition in order 
 to teach them to do without. We will say, further, 
 that it is necessary, in order to profit by the teach- 
 ings, to consecrate a certain time to their meditation. 
 Scientific societies have not always instruments of 
 observation at hand, and yet they are never at a loss 
 for subjects of discussion ; in the absence of poets 
 and orators, literary societies read and comment on 
 ancient and modern authors ; religious societies medi- 
 tate on the Scriptures ; spiritist societies should do 
 the same, and they would draw great profit for their 
 advancement by establishing conferences in which 
 they may read and comment upon all that may relate 
 to Spiritism, either for or against. From this discus- 
 sion, where each could bring the tribute of his reflec- 
 tions, might spring rays of light that might have 
 passed unperceived in an individual reading ; special 
 works, journals swarming with facts, recitals, events, 
 traits of virtue or vice, raising grave moral problems 
 which Spiritism alone can solve — a proof that it is 
 suited to every branch of social order. 
 
 We would warrant that a spiritist society that 
 would organize its work in this way, procuring the 
 necessary materials, would scarcely find time to give 
 to the direct communications of spirits ; for this rea- 
 son, we call the attention to this point of truly serious 
 circles, those who have self-instruction more at heart 
 than pastime. (See No. 207, chapter on the Formation 
 of Mediums.) 
 
454 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 Rivalry between Societies. 
 
 348. Reunions exclusively engaged in intelligent 
 communications, and those devoted to the study of 
 physical manifestations, have each their mission ; 
 neither could have the true feeling of Spiritism if 
 viewing each other with unfavorable eyes, and casting 
 a stone by either would be proof of its being governed 
 by evil influences ; all should agree, though by different 
 ways, in the common end — the research and propa- 
 gation of truth ; their antagonism, an effect of over- 
 excited pride, by furnishing arms to detractors, could 
 not fail to injure the cause they pretend to defend. 
 
 349. These last reflections apply equally to all circles 
 that might differ on small points of doctrine. As we 
 have said in the chapter on Contradictions, these diver- 
 gencies, being mostly only on the accessories, often 
 only on simple words, it would be very trifling to 
 separate for not thinking exactly the same. It would 
 be worse if the different circles in the same city 
 should be jealous of each other. Jealousy between 
 persons who may be prejudicial to each other materially, 
 is easily understood ; but when there is no speculation, 
 jealousy is only a silly rivalry from self-love. As it is 
 certain there is no society that can contain within 
 itself every believer, those who are animated with a 
 true desire to propagate the truth, whose end is solely 
 moral, should be pleased to see reunions multiply ; and 
 if there should be rivalry among them, it should be to 
 see which would do the most good. Those who pre- 
 tend to have the truth, to the exclusion of the others, 
 should prove it by taking for their device, Love and 
 Charity ; for such is the device of every true spiritist. 
 Do they wish to prove the superiority of the spirits 
 
REUNIONS AND SPIRITIST SOCIETIES. 455 
 
 who assist them ? Let them prove it by the superi- 
 ority of the teachings they receive, and by the applica- 
 tion they make of them to themselves : this is an 
 infallible criterion by which to distinguish those who 
 are in the better way. I 
 
 Certain spirits, more presumptuous than logical, 
 sometimes impose strange and impracticable systems 
 under the venerated names they borrow, Good sense 
 soon disposes of these ; but in the mean time, they may 
 sow doubt and uncertainty among believers, whence 
 arise temporary dissensions. In addition to the means 
 we have given to know them, there is another criterion 
 to measure their value ; it is the number of partisans 
 they recruit. Reason tells us that the system which 
 finds the loudest echo in the masses must be nearer 
 truth than that which is repulsed by the majority ; so, 
 hold for certain that, when spirits forbid discussion on 
 their teachings, it is because they are aware of their 
 weakness. , 
 
 350. If Spiritism, as has been announced, is to lead to 
 the transformation of humanity, it can be only through 
 the amelioration of the masses, which can only come 
 gradually, and one after another, by the amelioration 
 of individuals. What does it matter to believe in the 
 existence of spirits, if the belief makes us no better, 
 no more benevolent, and no more indulgent to our 
 kind, no more humble, no more patient in adversity? 
 Of what use is it for the miser to be a spiritist, if he 
 still continues a miser ? for the proud, if he is always 
 full of himself? for the envious, if he is always jealous ? 
 All men may believe in the manifestations, and yet 
 humanity remain stationary ; but these are not the 
 designs of God. All spiritist societies should tend 
 toward the providential end, collecting around them 
 
456 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 all who partake of the same sentiments ; then there 
 will be union, sympathy, fraternity, and not a vain and 
 puerile antagonism of self-love, of words rather than 
 things ; then they would be strong and powerful, be- 
 cause they would rest on a firm foundation, good for 
 all ; then they would be respected, and would impose 
 silence on foolish ridicule, because they would speak in 
 the name of evangelical morality, respected by all. 
 
 Such is the path into which we are bound to conduct 
 Spiritism. The flag we bear aloft is that of Christian 
 a?id hmnanitary Spiritism, around which we are happy 
 already to see so many men rally, in all parts of the 
 globe, because they understand that here is the 
 anchor of safety, the safeguard of public order, the 
 signal of a new era for humanity. We call upon all 
 spiritist societies to concur in this grand work ; that 
 from one end' of the world to the other, they may 
 stretch out the fraternal hand, and enclose the evil in 
 an inextricable network. , 
 
NOTES 
 
 1. M. Jobert (de Lamballe). To be just, we must say that 
 this discovery is due to M. Schiff: M. Jobert developed its con- 
 sequences before the Academy of Medicine to give the finishing 
 blow to the spirit-rappers. All the details will be found in the 
 Revue Spirite of the month of June, 1S59. 
 
 2. Communion. The light of the phenomena of the spirit. 
 Talking-tables, somnambules, mediums, miracles, spiritual mag- 
 netism ; power of the practice of faith. By Emah Tirpse, a 
 collective soul writing by the aid of a Planchette. Bruxelles, 
 1858, at Devroye's. 
 
 3. This question has been treated in the Book on Spirits, 
 (Nos. 128 and following) ; but we recommend on this subject, 
 as well as on all that touches the question on the religious side, 
 the brochure entitled Letter of a Catholic on Spiritisin, by Dr. 
 Grand, ex-consul of France (at Ledoyen, price r fr.) ; also one 
 we intend to publish under the title of The Opponents of 
 Spiritism, viewed from religion, science, and 7naterialism. 
 
 4. On looking over all we said in the Book on Spirits on 
 dreams and the state of the spirit during sleep (Nos. 400 to 418), 
 it may readily be imagined that those dreams which almost 
 every one has expeiienced, in which we seem to be transported 
 through the air as if flying, are nothing but a remembrance of 
 the sensation experienced by the spirit, when, during sleep, it 
 had momentarily quitted the corporeal body, taking with it only 
 its fluid body, that which it retains after death. These dreams 
 may give us some idea of the state of the spirit when it shall be 
 released from the fetters that bind it to earth. 
 
 457 
 
45 8 BOOK ON MEDIUMS. 
 
 5. It may be seen that when it is necessary to express a new 
 idea for which the language lacks the term, the spirits know per- 
 fectly well how to create neologisms. These words elect roinedi- 
 aminique, fierispritique, are not ouis. Those who have criticised 
 us as having made the words sfiirite, spiritisme, pdrisprit, 
 (literally spirit-covering) which had not their analogies, will be 
 able to do the same to the spirits. 
 
 6. See, for further details on the state of the spirit during 
 sleep, the Book o?i Spirits, Chap. Emancipation of the Soul, 
 No. 409. 
 
 7. The reality of spirits and of their manifestations, demon- 
 strated by the phenomenon of direct writing. By Baron de Gul- 
 denstubbe, 1 vol. in 8 mo. with fifteen plates and ninety-three 
 facsimiles. Price 8 fr. at Franck's, rue Richelieu. Also to be 
 found at Ledoyen's. 
 
 8. One of the most extraordinary facts of this nature, for the 
 variety and strangeness of the phenomena, is that which took 
 place in 1852, in the Palatinate (Rhenish Bavaria) at Bergzabern 
 near Wissembourg. It is the more remarkable, that it reunites, 
 and with the same subject, nearly every kind of spontaneous mani- 
 festations — racket enough to shake the house, upsetting of fur- 
 niture, objects thrown to a distance by an invisible hand, visions 
 and apparitions, somnambulism, ecstasy, catalepsy, electrical at- 
 traction, aerial cries and sounds, instruments playing without 
 contact, intelligent communications, &c., and, what is not of minor 
 importance, the verification of these facts during nearly three 
 years, by innumerable eye-witnesses, all worthy of belief from 
 their knowledge and social position. The authentic account of 
 it was published in several German papers, and especially in a 
 tract now out of print" and very rare. The complete translation 
 of this fact will be found in the Revue Spirite of 185:, with the 
 necessary commentaries and explanations. It is the only French 
 publication, to our knowledge. Beyond the great interest at- 
 tached to these phenomena, they are eminently instructive for 
 the practical study of Spiritism. 
 
Modern Spiritualism. 
 
 By EPES SARGENT. 
 
 PLANCHETTE : THE DESPAIR OF SCIENCE. 
 
 Being: a Full Account of Modern Spiritualism. 
 
 Prick in Illuminated Paper Covers, $1 : in Greem Cloth, $'.05. Postage, 10c. 
 A New Edition, just issued Ly Roberts Brothers, Boston. 
 
 This volume should be properly called " A History of Modern Spir- 
 itualism," for it is a thorough and careful survey of the whole subject 
 of well-attested phenomena believed to be spiritual. 
 
 Prof. WM. CROOKES, F. R. S., of London, the celebrated chemist, 
 whose scientific verifications of the spiritual phenomena are now cre- 
 ating such a sensation, writes, under date of April 17, 1874, — 
 
 "JZdnchettewas the first book I read on Spiritualism, and it still remains 
 in my opinion, the best work to place in the hands of the uninitiated." 
 
 GEO. WM. CURTIS, in Harper's Wkeklt, says of it, — 
 " It is a copious and popular but faithful summary of the phenomena 
 and theories. The ample knowledge and literary .skill with which the 
 subject is treated make this volume an indispensable manual to all 
 who are attracted to this speculation, and it will be read with great 
 interest by the skeptic as well as by the believer." 
 
 The RCT. Dr. BELLOWS, in the Liberal Christian, says of it, — 
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 losophy of the mind, while its historical notices of the development of 
 Spiritualism during the last twenty years give a more complete and 
 impartial view of the phenomena in question than has thus far been 
 presented to the public." 
 
 The New York Express says, — 
 
 "This is certainly one of the most startling works of our sensational 
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 either Spiritualism is one of the greatest delusions o the age, or that 
 it is indeed a new manifestation of supernatural power, deserving the 
 investigations of our theologians and teachers. The work, from its 
 extreme interest, will amply repay a careful perusal." 
 
 The Boston Journal says,— 
 
 " Mr. Sargent has here collected a vast amount of information, and 
 whoever wishes to have an intelligent epitome of the whole history of 
 modern SpirituaLism will find it in this volume." 
 
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