Complete Works of Wilkie Collins (2191 page)

V — was magnetized, and placed, sitting on the edge of her chair, with her body inclined sideways thoroughly out of the perpendicular, and one of her arms extended and raised towards her head. The magnetizer then made one “pass” over her; and she remained in this position, as perfectly still as if she had been turned to marble (her outstretched arm not moving by a hair’s breadth), for full ten minutes; or, in other words, until the spectators were tired of watching any longer. Should any readers consider that our want of patience to sit out the half-hour, during which the Count had himself suggested that we should wait, vitiated the completeness of this experiment, I recommend those ladies or gentlemen to put themselves in V — ’s position, as above described, and to try to sit quite still in it for three minutes together by a watch; allowing a friend, at the same time, to keep an eye on the arm they will have to extend, for the purpose of noting whether it moves or not during that interval. I have myself occasionally officiated as amateur model to artist-friends, and know therefore, by experience, what the difficulty is of keeping a limb extended, or the body inclined, without support, in anything like a still position, even for so short a time as three minutes.

V — was awakened immediately after this experiment. I asked her whether she felt any sensation of stiffness in the arm which she had held out. The reply was, “None whatever;” and she proved its truth by immediately taking up and resuming her “crochet” work, which our visit had interrupted. Some idea may be formed of the extent to which this petrifying power of the magnetic influence can be carried, by the fact (communicated by letter a few days ago) that Count P suddenly stopped V — , and struck her perfectly motionless, by a strong act of will, merely expressed by a single “pass,”
while she was dancing the polka!
Incredible as this must appear to most people, it is nevertheless true. Besides the young lady’s partner in the dance, other persons were present who saw the thing done.

I have now communicated to you the nature and result of all the experiments in Animal Magnetism which my stay in Somersetshire gave me an opportunity of witnessing — of all at least, which I find preserved in my notes In some few cases, I unhappily omitted to make my usual record on the spot; and to those cases, accordingly I shall not direct your attention. I am unwilling to trust only to my recollection, however vivid I may consider it to be, in writing such a narrative as the present narrative which I should consider to be quite valueless, unless I knew it to be throughout literally true.

In closing this short series of letters, I can merely repeat what I wrote on commencing them. Having been allowed by Count P — to make public, in any form I chose, the experiments which he was kind enough to show me, I availed myself of that permission, because I considered that I had enjoyed, at his house, an unusually favourable opportunity for fairly estimating, by the fairest practical demonstration, the real merits of Animal Magnetism. The proceedings which I thus resolved to report, were proceedings conducted by a gentleman who followed the science only for its own sake, and for whose character and position, I had the best and amplest guarantee. It is on this account, quite as much as on account of the internal evidence to their genuineness which I believe the experiments here reported to contain, that I venture to think my narrative at least worthy of attention from persons who will do me the common justice to read it with minds unprejudiced, either one way or the other.

As to the future of Animal Magnetism, it seems to me to be already assured. The science has, of late years, gained a vast hold on the convictions of men of intellect and men of honour in all quarters. As such persons continue to study it, year by year, more closely, and to extract from it more clearly the practical uses to which it may assuredly be directed for the benefit of humanity, so will the circle of believers, whose belief is worth gaining, inevitably widen and widen; and so will the masses, who follow, but never lead, be drawn into that circle after them. Leave the science to work its way honestly, and boldly by its own merits, its visible, actual results; and it will certainly continue to advance, as it has already advanced. Angry partisanship will not avail it anything; public exhibitions of it, displayed to gaping crowds at so much a head, will lend it no assistance that is of real value. Let it be studied by each man who desires to know it, quietly and reverently, as a mystery too perilously important to be trifled with for mere amusement. Let the results of such studies as these, communicated by competent writers, and attested by competent witnesses, be the only sources whence persons who doubt the science (and can doubt it fairly) seek their
primary
information or encouragement. Thus practised, and thus examined, Animal Magnetism need ask no more; for then will have been conceded to it the only privilege that it ever required — the privilege of being justly judged.

W. W. C.

Lewes responds
—
The Leader
27 March 1852

THE FALLACY OF CLAIRVOYANCE

BY G. H. LEWES

BELIEVERS in mesmerism and its “higher phenomena,” claim our credence for the “facts” which they bring forward declaring themselves to be comparatively indifferent as to the explanations they or you may give of those facts. But every man who has made any scientific researches will know how excessively difficult it often is to recognise a fact — to know it for what it is. The facts of clairvoyance may seem simple and appreciable enough to persons who “believe their eyes,” as they say; but scientific men know the truth of Dr. Cullen’s sarcasm, that people are never so little to be believed as when narrating what they have seen. Nevertheless, it must not be concealed that several scientific men have examined clairvoyance, and recorded their belief in it; the testimonies are of such a character, and the “facts” so abundant, that no cautions mind will hastily dismiss them as unworthy of examination.

I have already, on several occasions, expressed my opinions in this journal on mesmerism; but it may be as well briefly to recapitulate for the simplification of the present paper. For the leading facts of mesmerism, or
coma
the evidence seems to me ample, convincing. For the facts of clairvoyance there seems to me no evidence at all. I throw no sort of doubt on the veracity of the narrators, but in the authenticated cases that have come under my observation I miss the requisite elimination of all sources of error — I see no
crucial instance
to force my conviction. To go no farther than the letters which have recently appeared in these columns under the title of
Magnetic Evenings at Home
— when my friend C. narrated the substance of those letters to me, I at once offered them publicity, though expressing to him my complete
suspension of opinion
with regard to the facts related. C., known to the public as a distinguished writer, and known to me as a man of unimpeachable veracity, was certainly entitled to a most respectful hearing, even of marvels. But the facts did not carry the least persuasion to my mind. I am ready to believe, and publicly to avow my belief, the instant a
crucial instance
has been obtained; and not being in any way committed to anti-clairvoyance, I have sought on all sides for this proof, but sought in vain. If Dr. Haddock of Leeds, whose “Emma” has made such revelations, will undertake to assist me to this proof, I hereby undertake to publish the result in these columns. The challenge is made in an earnest desire to get at the truth, and I hope will be accepted in that spirit.

But to my present object. C. narrates how a card given to the clairvoyante was sufficient for her to tell
when
the card was given
where
it was given, at what kind of entertainment, the persons present there, the ages, sex, and social position of the persons, and their respective seats at the table. That was astounding; but convincing? Not to me. I believed then, and I believe still, that, in point of fact, the gentleman from whom the card was received
told
the clairvoyante all that was necessary for her to tell him — told it, by leading questions, by anxious expressions, by intonations, by the hundred suggestions of voice and manner. He would not accept this explanation, and declared he had been wholly passive. I resolved to try a
crucial instance
. I resolved to test the clairvoyante when she knew nothing, when her operator knew nothing, when no other human being but myself knew what the real case was. If she succeeded in that, my doubts would end.

Accordingly, I wrote a letter, requesting to be told what I had done on the Sunday when that letter was written. To render even a proximate answer more difficult I signed the letter
S.Lawrence
. The magnetizer, in transmitting her reply remarks: “The selection of your friend for an experiment in clairvoyance is not advantageous. It does not bear upon any particular thing upon which one could direct the attention of the somnabule to rest. It generalizes too much. Had he set about doing some particular thing at a given hour, and required that the clairvoyante should see what it was, I think there would have been better chance. I think it probable, that had Mr. Lawrence done anything remarkable in the course of the day the voyante would have seen it; but all that she has said
he did
is, as you will see, the general quiet Sunday-routine of most men; and supposing that all she has said should be right, people would say it was guess work. I am anxious to know how far she has been right.” He was told she had not been right. But let me give the clairvoyante’s reply. It is her magnetizer who writes: —

I placed the mirror in V’s hands,
willing
her to see ‘Mr. Lawrence.’

As usual in looking into it she went to sleep in a few minutes, and at the end of about twenty or twenty-five minutes she said she saw Mr. Lawrence, and described him as follows: — ’He has the face of a young man about thirty years of age. He is standing before me, looking at me. He looks serious, that is to say, he does not laugh nor even smile. I see him in the mirror, but in the distance, as when one looks through the wrong end of an opera-glass. He is rather tall; his face rather long, and his eyes are grey; he has a dark complexion and hair; a nose rather long and thin — when I say this I mean not large — and an ordinary mouth. It seems that he has a dark-coloured pantaloon, and nothing particular in his general dress.’

Thus far with the mirror. I then put Mr. Lawrence’s letter into V.’s hands,
willing
her to see what Mr. Lawrence did on Sunday 22nd inst. Her answers follow: — ’He went out in the morning after 10 o’clock, and in the morning also he went to church. Besides the letter, he wrote other things. He went to visit some one, a lady, at her own house. A man went also to see him and found him at home. He (Mr. Lawrence) had been also doing something which he was looking at very intently, but I do not know what it was. He has read a good deal. He dined in company with two other persons; he went out in the evening, and was in bed before eleven o’clock.’

Here she said she could see no more, and consequently I awoke her.

Those who know me will judge of the portrait. As to the details of what I did they are almost all incorrect. I had no visitor. I did not go to church. Instead of dining with two persons, I dined with
ten
; and when I add that Déjazet was one of the party, I say enough to indicate that the dinner was not one of “ordinary Sunday routine.” Finally, I did not go out in the evening, nor did I go to bed before eleven.

Although this experiment failed, I was willing to make every allowance to the objection raised by the magnetizer, as to my not having fixed an hour; moreover, I felt that the use of a false signature might have misled the clairvoyante, and certainly might be used as an argument to stultify the experiment. I therefore wrote a letter in my own name, and fixed the day and hour , asking what I did between the hours of half-past twelve and one; what kind of rooms I was in; and what persons, if any, were in those rooms. At last a
crucial instance
was obtained. The hour was fixed, no one was informed of what I had done, and I awaited the result with curiosity, for the series of things done by me at the hour named were such as defied all guessing — at least, in the order of their performance. This was the reply: —

MY DEAR FRIEND, — I write you here V.’s answers to the questions of your friend Mr. Lewes, which I this put to her last night whilst in the magnetic sleep: — ’What has Mr. Lewes been doing in London on Friday last, March 5th, between the hours of half-past twelve and one o’clock of the noon? What sort of room he was in, what he did there, and whom did he see, if anybody?

Answer
. ‘Mr. Lewes, he does himself magnetism, and he was, in fact, at that time, viz., between the hours of half-past twelve and one o’clock of the noon, magnetizing somebody — a man, whom he did not put to sleep. The room in which he was magnetizing is large; it has two windows, and one door; there is not much furniture in it; it was not furnished like a drawing-room, and there were quantities of written papers (
beaucoup de papiers
) lying about. There was nobody in the room besides Mr. Lewes himself and the person he was magnetizing.’ Here she said she saw nothing else.