MEMO I R S

E X T R A O R D I N A R Y

POPU L R DELU S IO S .

BY CHARLES MACKAY ,

AL'I'IIOI OP

rm : m u s s AND rrs rn xnuu m ss ,”

rm : non : or 1mm wonw , n o .

I] eat hon do eonnaitre lea dellm dc l’

etlpri t human) . Chaquo people a

m tolle plul on molns p ra wn -A.

"

V OL . I.

PREFACE.

plete and copious than are to be found elsewhere ;

and the same may be said of the history of the

Witch Man ia, which contains an account of its

terrific progress in Germany, a part of the subject

which has been left comparatively untouched by S ir

Walter Scott, in his Letters on Demonology and

Witchcraft,the most important that have yet ap

peaned on this fearful but most interesting subject.

Popular delusions began so early, spread so wi dely,

and have lasted so long, that in stead of two or three

volumes, fifty would scarcely suffice to detail their

history. The present may be considered more of a

mi scellany of delusions than a history,—a chapter

only in the great and awful book of human folly

which yet remains to be written , and which Porson

011652 J edfim’

g'ly -fibfil hewould write in five hundred

sketches of some lighter

ces of the imitativeness and

wronglieaded

'

neés‘of‘the people, rather than ex ammesof folly and delusion .

Religious manias have been purposely ex cluded

as incompatible w ith the limi ts prescribed to the

present work—a mere list of them would alone be

sufficient to occupy a volume.

NATIONAL DELUS IONS.

N'sn dépls iu é m tons nom fi dam ;

Bn ce monde il n’el t t de “geese ;Tous les hommea sou foug ot mdy ‘tous lemRom m tm m m h m m du moim .

Bon u s .

.

IN reading the history of nations, we find that, like indiVlduals

, they have their whims and their peculiarities ; theirseasons of ex citement and recklessness, when they care not

what they do. We find that whole commun ities suddenly fixtheirminds upon one object, and go mad in its pursuit ; thatmillions of people become simultaneous] impressed with one

delusion, and run after it, till their at ntion is caught by

somenew folly more captivating than the first. We see one

nation suddenly seized, from its highest to its lowest members

, with a fierce desire of military glory ; another as suddenly becoming crazed upon a religious scruple, and neitherof them recovering its senses until it has shed rivers of bloodandsowed a harvest of groans and tears

,to be reaped by its

Pogterity. At an early age in the annals of Europe its population lost their wits about the Sepulchre of Jesus, and crowdedin frenzied multitudes to the Holy Land : another age wentmad for fear of the Devil, and offered up hundreds of thou8§nds of victims to the delusion of witchcraft. At anothertune

, the many became crazed on the subject of the Philoso

Pher’

s S tone,and committed follies till then unheard of in

the pursuit. It was once thought a venial offence in verymany countries of Europe to destroy an enemy by slow p01son. Persons whowouldhave revolted at the idea of stabbingVOL. 1. 2

NATIONAL DELUSIONS .

a man to the heart, dru ged his pottage without scruple.

Ladies of gentle birth an manners caught the contagion of

murder, until poison ing, under their auspices, became quitefashionable. Some delusions, though notorious to all the

world, have subsisted for ages, flourishing as widely amongcivilized and polished nations as among the early barbarianswith whom they originated, —that of duelling, for instance,and the belief in omens and divination of the future, whichseem to defy the progress of knowledge to eradicate entirelyfrom the popular mind. Money, again , has often been a

cause of the delusion of multitudes. Sober nations have all

at once become desperate gamblers, and risked almost theirex istence upon the turn of a piece of paper. To trace thehistory of the most prominent of these delusions is the objectof the present pages. Men , it has been well said, think inherds ; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while theyon] recover their senses slowly, and one by one.

11 the present state of civi lization , societ has often shown

itself very prone to run a career of foll m the last-men

tioned cause. This infatuation has seiz upon whole nations

in a most ex traordinary manner. France, wi th her Mississippi madness, set the first great ex ample, and was very soon

imitated by England with her South Sea Bubble. At an

earlier period, Holland made herself still more ridiculous inthe eyes of the w&ld, by the frenzy which came over herpeople for the love of Tulips. Melancholy as all these delu

sions were in their ultimate results, their history is mostamusing. A more ludicrous and yet painful spectacle, thanthat which Holland presented in the years 16 35 and 1636

, or

France in 1719 and 17 2 0, can hardly be imagined. Takingthem in the order of their importance, we shall commence

our history with John Law and the famous Mississippi Schemeof the years above mentioned.

THE personal character and career of one man are so inti

mately connectedwith the great scheme of the years 1719 and”

172 0, that a history of the Mississippi madness can have no

fitter introduction than a sketch of the life of its great author,J ohn L aw. Historians aredivided 1n opinion as towhether theyshould designate him a knave or a madman . Both epithetswere unsparingly applied to him 1n his lifetime, and while the

unhappy consequences of his projects were still deeply felt.Posterity, however, has found reason to doubt the justice of

theaccusati on , and to confess that John Lawwas neither knavenor madman

, but one more deceived than deceiving more sin

ned against than sinning. He was thoroughly acquaintedwiththe philosophy and true principles of credit. He understoodthe pecuniary question better than any man of his day and

if his system fell with a crash so tremendous, it was not so

much his fault as that of the people amongst whom he had

erected it. He did not calculate upon the avaricious frenzyof a whole nation ; he did not see that confidence, likemistrust,could be increased, almost ad infin itum,

and that hope was as

ex travagant as fear. How was he to foretell that the Frenchpeople, like the man in the fable, would kill m their franticeagerness, the fine goose he had brought to lay them so many

golden eggs ? Hisgfate was like that whi ch may be supposed

THE MIS SISSIPPI SCHEME.

to have overtaken the first adventurous boatman who rowedfrom Erie to Ontario. Bread and smooth was the river on

whichhe embarked ; rapid and pleasant was his progress ; andwho was to stay him in his career ? Alas for him !the cataractwas n igh. He saw,

when it was too late, that the tide which

wafted him so joyously along was a tide of destruction ; andwhen he endeavoured to retrace his way, he found that thecurrent was too strong for his weak efforts to stem, and that

he drew nearer every instant to the tremendous falls. Downhe went over the sharp rocks

,and the waters with him. H e

was dashed to pieces with his bark, but the waters, maddenedand turned to foam by the rough descent, only boiled and

bubbled for a time, and then flowed on a ain as smoothly as

ever. Just so it was with Law and the rench people. He

was the boatman and they were the waters.

John Law was born at Edinburgh in the year 1671. H is

father was the younger son of an ancient family in Fife, andcarried on the business of a goldsmith and banker. He

amassed considerable wealth in hi s trade, sufficient to enablehim to gratify the wish, so common among his countrymen,of adding a territorial designation to his nn .ame He pur

chased wi th this view the estates of Lauriston and Randle

ston,on the Frith of Forth, on the borders of West and

Mid Lothian , and was thenceforth known as Law of Lau

riston . The subject of our memoir, being the eldest son ,

was received into his father’s counting- house at the age of

fourteen , and for three years laboured hard to acquire an

insight into the principles of banking, “as then carried on inScotland. He had always manifested great love for the studyof numbers, and his proficiency 1n the mathematics was con

sidered ex traordinary ln one of his tender years. At the age

of seventeen he was tall, strong, and well made and his face,although deeply scarred with the small- pox , was agreeable inits ex pression, and full of intelligence. At this time he beganto neglect his business, and becoming vain of his person , indulged in considerable ex travagance of attire. He was a

great favourite with the ladies, by whom he was called Beauaw, while the other sex , despising his foppery, nicknamed himJessamy John . At the death of his father, which happened in1688, hewithdrew entirely from the desk, whichhad become so

THE MISS ISSIPPI SCHEME.

irksome, and being possessed of the revenues of the paternalestate of Lauriston , he proceeded toLondon, to see the world.

He was now very young, very vain, good- looking, tolerably

rich,and quite uncontrolled. It is no wonder that

, on hisarri val in the capital, he should launch out into ex travagance.

He soon became a regular frequenter of the gaming- houses,and by pursuing a certain plan, based upon some abstrusecalculation of chances, he contrived to gain considerable sums.

All the gamblers envied him his luck, and many made it a

point to watch his play, and stake their money on the same

chances . In afi'

airs of gallantry he was equally fortunate ;ladies of the first rank smiled graciously upon the handsome

Scotchman—the young, the rich, the witty, and the obliging.

But all these successes only paved the way for reverses.

After he had been for nine years ex posed to the dangerousattractions of the gay life he was leading, he became an irrecoverable gambler. As his love of play increased in violence,it dim in ished in prudence. Great losses were only to be re

paired by still greater Ventures, and one unhappy day he lostmore than he could repay without mortgaging his familyestate. To that step he was driven at last. At the same

time his gallantry brought him into trouble. A love affair,

or slight flirtation, with a lady of the name of Villiers

,

*ex

posed him to the resentment of a Mr. Wilson, by whom he

was challenged to fight a duel. L aw accepted,and had the

ill fortune to shoot his antagon ist dead upon the spot. H e

was arrested the same day, and brought to trial for murderby the relatives of Mr . W ilson . H e was afterwards found

guilty, and sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted

to a fine,upon the ground that the offence only amounted to

manslaughter. An appeal being lodged by a brother of thedeceased, L aw was detained in the King

’

s Bench, whence, bysome means or other

,which he never ex plained, he con trived

to escape ; and an action being instituted against the sheriffs,he was advertised in the Gazette, and a reward ofl

’

ered for his

apprehension . H e was described as“Captain JohnL aw, a

Scotchman,aged twenty - six ; a very tall

, black, lean man ;

well shaped,above si x feet high, with large peck - holes in his

face ; big- nosed, and speaking broad and loud.

”As thus was

Mi ss Eli zabeth Vi lliers, afterwards Coun tess of Orkney .

2 s

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

rather a caricature than a description of him,it has been sup

posed that it was drawn up with a view to favour his escape.

He succeeded in reaching the Continent, where he travelledfor three years, and devoted much of his attention to the

pecun iary and banking afl'

airs of the countries through whichhe passed. H e stayed a few months in Amsterdam

,and

speculated to some ex tent in the funds. H is mornings weredevoted to the study of finance and the principles of trade,and his evenings to the gaming

- house. It is generally believedthat he returned to Edinburgh in the year 1700. It is certainthathe published in that city his “Preposals and Reasons for

constituting a Council of Trade. This pamphlet did not

ex cite much attention .

In a short time afterwards he published a project for esta

blishing what he called a Land- bank,* the notes issued bywhich were never to ex ceed the value of the entire lands of

the state, upon ordinary interest, or were to be equal in value

to the land, with the right to enter into possession at a certaintime. The project ex cited a good deal of discussion in the

S cottish Parliament, and a motion for the establishment ofsuch a bank was brought forward by a neutral party, calledthe Squadrone, whom L aw had interested in his favour. The

Parliament ultimately passed a resolution to the effect,that,

to establish any kind of paper credit, so as to force it to pass,was an improper ex pedient for the nation .

Upon the failure of this project, and of his efforts to pro

cure a pardon for the murder of Mr . Wilson , Law withdrewto the Continent, and resumed his old habits of aming . For

fourteen years he continued to roam about, in lglanders, Hol

land,Germany, Hungary, Italy, and France. He soon he

came intimately acquainted with the ex tent of the trade and

resources of each, and daily more confirmed in his opinionthat no country could prosper without a paper currency.

During the whole of thi s time he appears to have chiefly supported himself by successful play. At every gambling- house

of note in the capitals of Europe, he was known and approciated as one better skilled in the intricacies of chance than

any other man of the day. It is stated in the B iographies

The wits of the day called it a sand- bank, which would wreck the

vessel of the state.

w mat h

in that coun The Duke replied that his dominions weretoo circumscri for the ex ecuti on of so great a project, and“lat he was by far too poor a potentate to be ruined. He

advised him, however, to try the King of France once more ;ior he was sure

,if he knew anythin of th

deligh with a plan , not only so

5,and the heir to the throne being

“this anecdote, which is related in the correspondence of Madame debril l -o, Duohm of Orleans, and mother of the R at, is di scredi ted bylard J ohn Russell, in hi s History of the rincipal

e

ge

tates of Europe, from“t h an of Utrecht ;

” forwhat reason hegoes not inform us. There is no

doubt that Law his scheme to Desmareta, and that Louis refused

b hm of it. e m sen given for thc refuu l is quite consistent wi th the

W e! that bigoted and tyrannical monarch.

2 0 run m ssrssrrm sons-

u s .

an infant only seven years of age, the Duke of Orleansassumed the reins of government, as Regent, during his

minority . Law now found himself in a more favourable position . The tide in his afl

'

airs had come,which

,taken at the

flood, was to waft him on to fortune. The Regent was hisfriend, already acquainted with his theory and pretensions,and inclined, moreover, to aid him ma ny efforts to restore thewounded credit of France, bowed down to the earth by theex travagance of the long reign of Louis XIV .

Hardly was that monarch laid in his grave ere the popularhatred, suppressed so long, burst forth against his memory.

He who, during hi s life, had been flattered with an ex cess of

adulation,to which history scarcely offers a parallel, was now

cursed as a tyrant,a bigot, and a plunderer. His statues

were pelted and disfigured ; his efligies torn down, amid theex ecrations of the populace, and his name rendered syno

nymous with selfishness and oppression . The glory of his

arms was forgotten, and nothing was remembered but his re

verses, his ex travagance, and his cruelty.

The finances of the country were in a state of the utmost

disorder. A profuse and corrupt monarch, whose profuseness

and corruption were imitated by almost every functionary,from the highest to the lowest grade, had brought France tothe verge of ruin . The national debt amounted to 3000mi]

lions of livres, the revenue to 145 millions, and the ex pendi

ture to 142 millions per annum ; leaving only three millionsto pay the interest upon 3000millions. The first care of the

Regent was to discover a remedy for an evil of such magn i

tude, and a council was early summoned to take the matterinto consideration . The Duke de S t. S imon was of opinionthat nothing could save the country from revolution but a re

medy at once bold and dangerous. He advised the Regentto convoke the S tates- General, and declare a national bankruptcy. The Duke de Noailles, a man of accommodatingprinciples, an accomplished courtier, and totally averse from

giving himself any trouble or annoyance that ingenmty couldescape from, opposed the project of S t. S imon with all hi s ln

fluence. Herepresented the ex pedient as alike dishonest andruinous. The Regent was of the same opinion , and this desperate remedy fell to the round.

0

The measures ultimate y adopted, though they promi sed

ex travagant joy took possession of the nation . The Chamberof Justice, instituted chiefly for this purpose, was endowed

with very ex tensive powers. It was composed of the presidents and councils of the Parliament, the judges of the Courtsof Aid and of Requests, and the oflicers of the Chamber ofAccoun t, under the general presidence of the minister of

finance. Informers were encouraged to give evidence against

the offenders by the promise of one- fifth part of the fines andconfiscations. A tenth of all concealed efl

’

ects belonging tothe gu ilty was promised to such as should furnish the meansofdiscovering them.

The promulgation of the edict constituting this court causedade es of consternation among those principally concernedwhio can only be accounted for on the supposition that theirpcculation had been enormous . But they met with no sym

pathy. The proceedings against them justified their terror.The Bastile was soon unable to contain the prisoners thatwere sent to it, and the gaols all over the country teemedwith

ffl ty or suspected persons. An order was issued to all inn

eepers and postmasters to refuse horses to such as en

deavoured to seek safety in flight ; and all persons were for

From m um, an oppressive tax .

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

THE MIS SISSIPPI SCHEME.

resentment is over, generally ex press a sympathy for theweak,were indignan t that so much severity should be used to so

little purpose. They did not see the justice of robbing one

setof rogues to fatten another. In a few months all the more

guilty had been brought to puni shment, and the Chamber ofastice looked for victims in humbler walks of life. Chargesof fraud and ex tortion were brou ht against tradesmen of

good character, in consequence of t e great inducements heldout to common informers. They were compelled to lay opentheir afl

'

airs before this tribunal in order to establish their innocence. The voice of complaint resounded from every side,and at the ex piration of a year the government found it advisable to discontinue further proceedings. The Chamber of

Justice was suppressed, and a general amnesty granted to all

agains t whom no charges had yet been preferred.

In the midst of thi s financial confusion ,Law appeared upon

the scene. No man felt more deeply than the Regent the deplorable state of the country

,but no man could be more averse

from pu tting his shoulders manfully to the wheel. H e dis

liked business ; he signed official documents without properex am ination ,

and trusted to others what he should have un

dertaken himself. The cares inseparable from his high office

were burdensome to him ; he saw that something was no

sary to be done,but he lacked the energy to do it, and had

not virtue enough to sacrifice his case and his pleasures in the

attempt . No wonder that,with this character

,he listened

favourab ly to the m ighty projects, so easy of ex ecution,of the

clever adventurer whom he had formerly known , and whose

talen ts he appreciated.

IVhen L aw presented himself at court, he was most cordiallyreceived. H e offered two memorials to the R egent, in which

he set forth the evils that had befallen France,ow ing to an

insufli c ien t currency, at difl'

erent times depreciated. H e as

sorted that a metallic currency, unaided by a paper money,Was wholly inadequate to the wants of a commercial country,and particularly c ited the ex amples of Great B ritain and H o]

land to show the advantages of paper. H e u sed many sound

argumen ts on the subject of credit, and preposed, as a means

of restoring that of France, then at so low an ebb among the

nations,that he should be allowed to set up a bank, W ll lCll

should have the management of the royal revenues, and issue

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

notes, both on that and on landed security. He further prposed that this bank should be admin istered in the Kingname, but sub ect to the control of commissioners, to lnamed by the tates- General.While thesememorials were under consideration , Law tran

lated into French his essay on money and trade, and as

every means to ex tend through the nation hi s renown as

financier . He soon became talked of. The confidante of t]

Regent spread abroad his praise, and every one ex pected grethings of Monsieur Lass.

On the 5 th of May, 1716 , a royal edi ct was published, Iwhich Law was authorized, in conjunction with his brother,establish a bank, under the name of Law and Company

, t]

notes of which should be received in payment of the tex tThe capital was fix ed at six millions of livres

,in twelve the

sand shares of five hundred livres each, purchasable one- four

in specie and the remainder in bi llets d’

état. It Was 11

thought ex pedient to grant him the whole of the privilegprayed for in his memorials until ex perience should ha'

shown their safety and advantage.

L aw was now on the high road to fortune. The studythirty years was brought to guide him in the management

1

his bank . He made all his notes payable at sight, and in t]

coin current at the time they were issued. This last wasmaster- stroke of policy, and immediately rendered his notmore valuable than the precious metals. The latter we‘

constantly liable to depreciation by the unwise tamperingthe government. A thousand livres of silver might be wontheir nominal value one day and be reduced one- six th t]

nex t,but a note of Law ’

s bank retained its original valuHe publicly declared at the same time that a banker deservcdeath if he made issues W ithout having suflicient securityanswer all demands. The consequence was, that his not

advanced rapidly in public estimation, and were receivedone per cent. more than specie. It was not long before tltrade of the country felt the benefit. Langu ishing commer‘began to lift up her head ; the tax es were paid with great

The French pronounced his name in this manner to avoid the ungal

sound, aw. After the fai lure of hi s scheme, the wags said the nation w

lan e dc Inf, and proposed that he should in future be known by the nameMonsieur Helm !

MISSISS IPPI SCHEME .

pany, that should have the ex clus ive privilege of trading tothe great river Mississippi and the province of Louisiana, onits Western bank . The country was supposed to abound inthe precious metals, and the company, supported by the profits of their ex clusive commerce, were to be the sole farmersof the tax es, and sole coiners ofmoney. Letters patent wereissued, in corporating the company, in August, 1717 . The

capital was divided into two hundred thousand shares of fivehundred livres each, the whole of which might be paid in bi llets d

’

état, at their nominal value, although worth no morethan 160 livres in the market.It was now that the frenzy of speculating be an to seize

upon the nation . Law’

s bank had efl'

ected so mucgi good, thatany premises for the future which he thought proper to makewere readily believed. The Regent every day conferred new

privileges u

pon the fortunate projector . The bank obtained

the monopo y of the sale of tobacco ; the sole right of the re

finage of gold and silver, and was finally erected into the

Royal Bank of France. Amid the intox ication of success,

both Law and the Regent forgot the max im so loudly proclaimed by the former, that a banker deserved death who

made issues of paper Without the necessary funds to prov1defor them. As soon as the bank , from a private, became 9.

VOL . 1 .8

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

public institution, the Regent caused a fabrication of notes to

the amount of one thousand millions of livres. This was thefirst departure from sound principles, and one for whi ch Law isnot justly blamable. While the afl

’

airs of the bank wereunder his control, the issues had never ex ceeded six ty millions.Whether Law opposed the inordinate increase is not known,but as it took place as soon as the bank was made a royalestablishment, it is but fair to lay the blame of the change of

system upon the Regent.L aw found that he lived under a despotic government, but

he was not yet aware of the pernicious influence which such a

government could ex ercise upon so delicate a framework as

that of credit. He discovered it afterwards to his cost, but

in the mean time suffered himself to be impelled by the Re

g‘ent into courses which his own reason must have di sapproved.

ith a weakness must culpable, he lent his aid in inundatinthe country with paper money, which, based upon no soli

foundation, was sure to fall, sooner or later. The ex traordi

nary present fortune dazzled his eyes, and prevented himfrom seeing the evil day that would burst over his head, whenonce, from any cause or other, the alarm was sounded. The

Parliament were from the first jealous of his influence as a

foreigner, and had, besides, their misgivings as to the safetyof his projects. As his influence ex tended, their animosityincreased. D

’

Aguesseau , the Chancellor, was unceremoniouslydismissed by the Regent for his opposition to the vast increaseof paper money, and the constant depreciation of the gold and

silver coin of the realm. This only served to augment the

enmity of the Parliament, and when D’

Argenson , a man do

voted to the interests of the Regent, was appointed to the vacant chancellorship, and made at the same time Minister ofFinance, they became more violent than ever. The first mea

sure of the new min ister caused a further depreciation of the

coin . In order to ex tinguish the billets d’

etat,it was ordered

that persons bringing to the mint four thousand livres inspecie and one thousand livres in bi llets d’

etat, should receiveback coin to the amount of five thousand livres. D

’

Argenson

plumed himselfmightily upon thus creating five thousand newand smaller livres out of the four thousand old and largerones

,being too ignorant of the true principles of trade and

aware of the immense injury he

to be the author of all the evil,and some of the counsellors, in the virulence of their enmity,proposed that he should be brought to trial, and

,if found

gm'

lty, be hung at the gates of the Palace de Justice.

Law,in great alarm fled to the Palais Royal, and threw

himself on the protection of the Regent, praying that mea

sures might be taken to reduce the Parliament to obedience.

The Regent had nothing so much at heart, both on that ac

coun t and because of the disputes that had arisen relative tothe legitimation of the Duke of Maine and the Count of

Thoulouse,the sons of the late King . The Parliament was

ultimately overawed by the arrest of their president and twoof the counsellors, who were sent to distant prisons.

Thus the first cloud upon Law’

s prospects blew over : freedfrom the apprehension ofpersonal danger, be devotedhis attention to hi s famous Mississip i project, the shares of whichwererapidly rising in spite ofthe arliament. At the commencement

of the car 1719 an edictwas published, granting to theMississippi Company the ex clusive privilege of trading to the EastIndies, China, and the South Seas, and to all the ossessions of

the French East India Company, established by elbert. The

Company, in consequence of this great increase of their

business, assumed, as more appropriate,the title of Company

of the Indies, and created fifty thousand new shares. The

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

prospects now held out by Law were most magnificent. He

promised a yearly dividend of two hundred livres upon each

share of five hundred, which, as the shares were paid for inbillets d

’

état,at their nominal value, but worth only 100

livres,was at the rate of about 12 0per cent. profit.

The publi c enthusiasm, which had been so long rising,could not resist a vision so Splendid. At least three hundredthousand applications were made for the fifty thousand new

shares, and Law’

s house in the Rue de Quincampoix was

beset from morn ing to n ight by the eager applicants. As it

was impossible to satisfy them all,it was several weeks before

a list of the fortunate new stockholders could be made out,

during which time the public impatience rose to a pitch of

frenzy. Dukes, marquises, counts, with their duchesses, marchicnesses, and countesses, waited in the streets for hoursevery day before Mr. Law

’

s door to know the result. At

last,to avoid the jostling of the plebeian crowd, which, to the

number of thousands, filled the whole thoroughfare, they tookapartments in the adjoining houses, that they might be con

tinually near the temple whence the new Plutus was difl'

us ingwealth. Every day the value of the old shares increased,and the fresh applications

,induced by the golden dreams of

the whole nation, became so numerous that it was deemedadvisable to create no less than three hundred thousand new

shares at five thousand livres each, in order that the Regentmight take advantage of the popular enthusiasm to pay off

the national debt. For this purpose, the sum of fifteen hun

dred millions of livres was necessary. Such was the eagerness of the nation

,that thrice the sum would have been sub

scribed if the government had authorized it.Law was now at the zen ith of his prosperity, and the people

were rapidly approaching the zenith of their infatuation .

The highest and the lowest classes were alike filled with a

vision of boundless wealth. There was not a person of note

among the aristocracy, with the ex ception of the Duke of S t.

S imon and Marshal Villars, Who was not engaged in buyingor selling stock . People of every age and sex , and condition

in life,speculated in the rise and fall of theMississippi bonds.

The R ue de Quincampoix was the grand resort of the jobbers, and it being a narrow,

inconvenient street, accidents

continually occurred in it, from the tremendous pressure of

selves in the very middle of the place, and reaped a golden,or rather a paper, harvest from the throng. The Boulevardsand public gardens were forsaken ; parties of pleasure tooktheir walks in preference in the Place Vendome, which hecame the fashionable lounge of the idle, as well as the gene

ral rendezvous of the busy. The noise was so great all day,that the Chancellor, whose court was situated in the square,complained to the Regent and the municipality, that he couldnot hear the advocates. Law, when applied to

,ex pressed his

Willingness to aid in the removal of the nuisance, and for this

purpose entered into a treaty with the Prince de Carignanfor the Hetel de Soissons, which had a garden of severalacres in the rear. A bar ain was concluded, by which Lawbecame the purchaser of tie hotel, at an enormous price, thePrince reserving to himself the magnificent gardens as a new

source of profit. They contained some fine statues and severalfountains, and were alto ether laid out wi th much taste. As

soon as L aw was installedin hi s new abode, an edict was pub

lished, forbidding all persons to buyor sell stock anywherebut

in the gardens of the Hotel de Sci ssons. In the midst amongthe trees, about five hundred small tents and pavilions were

as

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11 L aw accepted an invitation,he was sometimes so sur

ded by ladi es, all asking to have their names put down

8 lists as shareholders in the new stock, that, in spite ofrell- known and habitual gallantry, he was obliged to tearelf away par force. The most ludicrous stratagems wereoyed to have an opportun ity of speaking to him. One

who had striven in vain during several days, gave up inair all attempts to see him at his own house

,but ordered

coachman to keep a strict watch whenever she was out

er carriage, and if he saw Mr. Law coming, to drive

i st a post, and upset her. The coachman promised obe

3c , and for three days the lady was driven incessantlyngh the town ,

praying inwardly for the opportunity to be:urned. At last she espied Mr. Law,

and,pullin the

g, called out to the coachman , Upset us now for

s sake, upset us now ! The coachman drove against a

the lady screamed, the coach was overturned, and Law,

had seen the accident, hastened to the spot to rendertance. The cunning dame was led into the Hotel desons, where she soon thought it advisable to recover fromfright, and, after apologizing to Mr. Law,

confessed her

agem. Law smiled, and entered the lady in his books aslurchaser of a quantity of India stock. Another story

32 run MISSISSIPPI scam s .

is told of a Madame de Boucha, who, knowing that Mr. Lawwas at dinner at a certain house, proceeded thither in hercarriage, and gave the alarm of fire. The company startedfrom table, and Law among the rest ; but, seeing one ladymaking all haste into the house towards him, while everybodyelse was scampering away, he suspected the trick, and ran 06

in another direction .

Many other anecdotes are related,which, even though they

may be a little ex aggerated, are nevertheless worth preserving, as showing the spirit of that singular period.

* TheRegent was in the presence of D

’

Argcn

son,the Abbé Dubo other persons

,that he was

desirous of deputin e rank at least of a

Duchess, to attend ughter at Modena ;“but

,

”

added he,“I do not ex actly know where to find one.

“No ! replied one, in aflected surprise ; I can tell you

where to find every Duchess in France —you have only to

go to Mr . Law’

s ; you will see them every one in his ante

chamber. ”

M . de Chirac, a celebrated physician,had bought stock at

an unlucky period,and was very anx ious to sell out. S tock

,

however, continued to fall for two or three days, much to hisalarm . H is mind was filled with the subject, when he wassuddenly called upon to attend a lady

, who imagined herselfunwell. He arrived, was shown up stairs

,and felt the lady’s

pulse.

“It falls ! it falls ! good God ! it falls continually !said he

,musingly, while the lady looked up in his face, all

anx iety for his opinion .

“Oh ! M . de Chirac,”

said she,starting to her feet, and ringing the hell for assistance ;

“Iam dying ! I am dying ! it falls ! it falls

“What falls ?inquired the doctor, in amazement. My pulse ! my pulse !

”

said the lady ; “I must be dying . Calm your apprehensions, my dear Madam,

”said M . de Chirac ; I was speak

ing of the stocks. The truth is,I have been a eat loser,

andmy mind is so disturbed, I hardly know what have beensaying .

The curious reader may fi nd an anecdote of the eagerness of the

French ladies to retain Law in their company, which will make him blush

or smile, according as he happens to be very modest or the reverse. It is

related in the Letters of Madame Charlotte Eli zabeth de Bavihre, Ducheaof Orleans, vol. i i . p . 2 74.

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

The price of shares sometimes rose ten or twenty per cent.

in the course of a few hours, and many persons in the humbler walks of life, who had risen poor in the morn ing, wentto bed in affluence. An ex tensive holder of stock

,being

taken ill, sent his servant to sell two hundred and fifty shares,at eight thousand livres each, the price at which they werethen quoted. The servant went, and

,on his arrival in the

Jardin de S oissons, found that in the interval the price hadrisen to ten thousand livres. The difl

‘

erence of two thousand

livres on the two hundred and fifty shares,amoun ting to

livres, or 2 0,000l. sterling, he very coolly transferredto his own use

,and

, giving the remainder to his master, setout the same evening for

‘

another country. Law ’

s coachman

in a very short time made money enough to set up a carriageof his own , and requested permission to leave his service.

Law . who esteemed the man, begged of him as a favour, thathe would endeavour, before he went, to find a substitute as

good as himself. The coachman consented, and in the overi

ing brought two of his former comrades, telling Mr. L aw to

cho ose between them,and he would take the other. Cook

maids and footmen were now and then as lucky,and

,in the

full - blown pride of their easily - acqu ired wealth,made the

most ridiculous mistakes. Preserving the language and man

acre of their old, with the finery of their new station , theyafl

'

orded continual subjects for the pity of the sensible,the

contempt of the sober,and the laughter of everybody . But

the folly and meanness of the higher ranks of society were~ till more disgusting. One instance alone

, related by the

Duke de S t. S imon , will show the unworthy avarice which

ufec ted the whole of society. A man of the name of Andre,vi thou t character or education , had, by a series of well- timed

peculat ions in Mississippi bonds, gained enormous wealth, inin incredibly short Space of time. As S t. S imon ex pressest.

“ he had amassed mountains of gold. As he becamei ch,

he grew ashamed of the lowness of his birth, and an x ious

1bove all things to bc allied to nobility . He had a daughter,i n infan t only three years of age, and he Opened a negoti n

i on w ith the aristocratic and needy family of D’

Oyse, that

h is child should, upon certain conditions, marry a member ofba t house. The Marquis d

'

Oyse, to his shame,consented,

1nd promised to marry her himself on her attain i ng the age

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

of twelve, if the father would pay him down the sum of a

hundred thousand crowns, and twenty thousand livres everyyear, until the celebration of the marriage.

was himself i n his thirty- third year. This scandalous bar

gain was duly signed and sealed, the stockjobber furthermoreagreeing to settle upon his daughter, on the marriage- day, a

fortune of several millions. The Duke of Brancas, the headof the family, was present throughout the negoti ation , and

shared in all the profits. St. S imon , Who treats the matterwith the levity becoming What he thought so good a joke,adds, that people did not spare their animadversions on thisbeautiful marriage, and further informs us

,

“that the pro

jcet fell to the ground some months afterwards by the overthrow of Law

,and them in of the ambitious Monsieur Andre.

It would appear,however, that the noble family never had

the honesty to return the hundred thousand crowns.

Amid events like these,which

,humiliating though they

be, partake largely of the ludicrous, others occurred of a

more serious nature. Robberies in the streets were of dailyoccurrence, in consequence of the immense sums, in paper,which people carried about with them. Assassinations werealso frequent. One case in particular fix ed the attention of

the whole of France, not only on account of the enormity of

the offence, but of the rank and high connex ions of the

criminal.The Count d’

Horn,a younger brother of the Prince

d’Horn , and related to the noble families of D ’Aremberg, DeLigne, and D e Montmorency, was a young man of dissipatedcharacter, ex travagant to a degree, and unprincipled as he

was ex travagant. In connex ion with two other young menas reckless as himself

,named Mille, a Piedmontese captain,

and one Destampes, or Lestang, a Fleming, he formed a de

sign to rob a very rich broker, Who was known , unfortunatelyfor himself, to carry great sums about his person . The Countpretended a desire to purchase of him a number of shares inthe Company of the Indies

,and for that purpose appointed

to meet him i n a cabaret, or low public house, i n the neigh

bourhood of the Place V enddme. The unsuspecting brokerwas punctual to his appointment ; so were the Count d

’Hornand his two associates, Whom he introduced as his particularfriends. After a few moments

’

conversation, the Count

as possible, being determined that, in a case so atro

latice should take its course ; but the importunity of

ifluential suitors was not to be overcome so silently,iy at last forced themselves into the presence of the

and prayed him to save their house the shame of a

x ecution . They hinted that the Princes d’

Horn were1 the illustrious family of Orleans, and added that the

himself would be disgraced if a kinsman of his should

he hands of a common ex ecutioner. The Regent, tolit, was proof against all their solicitations, and repliedlast argument in the words of Corneille,

Lo crime fai t la honte, et non pas l’échafaud

that whatever shame there mi ht be in the pun ish1 would very willingly share wit the other relatives.

or day they renewed their entreaties, but always Wi th19 result. At last they thought that if they could

the Duke de S t. S imon in their favour, a man forhe R egent felt sincere esteem,

they might succeed i n

icot . The Duke, a thorough aristocrat, was as shocked

were, that a noble assassin should die by the same

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

dcath as a plebeian felon,and represented to the Re cut the

impolicy Of making enemies of so numerous, wealt y, andpowerful a family. He urged, too, that in Germany, Wherethe family Of D

’

Aremberg had large possessions, it was the

law, that no relative of a person broken on the wheel could

succeed to any public oflice or employ until a whole enera

tion had passed away . For this reason he thoug t the

punishment Of the guilty Count might be transmuted intobeheading, which was considered all over Europe as much

less infamous . The Regent was moved by this argument,and was about to consent, when Law

, who felt peculiarlyinterested in the fate Of the murdered man , confirmed him inhis former resolution, to let the law take its course.

The relatives of D ’

Horn were now reduced to the last extremity. The Prince de Robec Montmorency

,despairing Of

other methods, found means to penetrate into the dungeon ofthe criminal, and offering him a cup of poison

,implored him

to save them from disgrace. The Count d’

Horn turned awayhis head, and refused to take it. Montmorency pressed himonce more, and losing all patience at his continued refusal,turned on his heel, and ex claiming, D ie, then, as thou Wilt,mean - spirited wretch ! thou art fit only to perish by thehands of the hangman left him to his fate.

D’

Horn himself petitioned the Regent that he might bebeheaded

,but Law,

who ex ercised more influence over hismind than any other person , with the ex ception of the note

rions Abbé Dubois,his tutor

,insisted that he could not in

justice succumb to the self- interested views of the D’

Horns.

The Regent had from the first been of the same Opin ion, and

within six days after the commission of their crime, D’

H orn

and Mille were broken on the wheel, in the Place de Gréve.

The other assassin , Lestang, was never apprehended.

This prompt and severe justice was highly pleasing to the

populace of Paris ; even M . de Quincampoix , as they called

Law, came in for a share of their approbation for havinginduced the Regent to show no favour to a patri

’

cian . But

the number of robberies and assassinations did not dimin ish.

No sympathy was shown for rich jobbers when they wereplundered : the general lax ity of publi c morals, conspicuousenough before, was rendered still more so by its rapid pervasion of the middle classes, who had hitherto remained com

unusual activity, to supply rich laces, silks, broadcloth, andvelvets, which being paid for in abundant paper, increased inprice fourfold. Provisions shared the general advance ;bread, meat, and vegetables were sold at prices greater thanhad ever before been known ; while the wages of labour rosein ex actly the same proportion . The artisan

, who formerly

gained fifteen sous per diem,now gained six ty . New houses

were built in every direction ; an illusory prosperity shone

over the land, and so dazzled the eyes of the whole nation

that none could see the dark cloud on the horizon,announ

cin

lgthe storm that was too rapidly approaching .

aw himself, the magician whose wand had wrought so

surprising;

change, shared, of course, in the general prosperity . is wife and daughter were courted by the highestnobility

,and their alliance sought by the heirs of ducal and

princely houses. He bought two splendid estates in different

parts of France, and entered into a negotiation with the

fami ly of the Duke de Sully for the purchase of the Mar

quisate of Rosny. His religion being an obstacle to his

advancement, the Regent promised, if he would publiclyconform to the Catholic faith, tomake him Comptroller- General of the Finances. Law

,who had no more real religion

than any other professed ambler, readily agreed, and was

confirmed by theAbbede encin, in the cathedral of Melun,ven t. 4

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THE MIS S ISS IPPI 5 0111911113. 39

Leon. The Duke dc Bourbon , son of Louis XIV. by

all his actions. So great a crowd followed his carriagewhenever he went abroad

,that the Regent sent him a troop of

horse as his permanent escort, to clear the streets before him .

It was remarked at this time, that Paris had never beforebeen so full of objects of elegance and lu x ury. S tatues,pictures, and tapestries were imported in great quantitiesfrom forci countries

,and found a ready market. All those

prett tri es in the way of furniture and ornament,which

the Prench ex cel in manufacturing, were no longer the

ex clusive playthings of the aristocracy, but were to be

found in abundance in the houses of traders and the middle

The Duke de la Force gained considerable sums, not only by jobbingin the stocks, but in dealing in porcelain , spices, &c . It was debated for

a length of time in the Parliament of Paris whether he had not, in hi s

quali ty“spice-merchant, forfeited his rank in the peerage. It was de

ci ded in the negative. A caricature of him was made, dressed as a street

porter, carrying a large bale of spices on his back, with the inscription ,“Admire: L a Pesos .

”

THE MISS ISSIPPI SCHEME.

classes in general. Jewellery of the most costly description was brought to Paris as the most favourable mart.Among the rest, the famous diamond, bought by the Regent,and called by his name, and which long adorned the crown of

France. It was purchased for the sum of two millions of

livres, under circumstances which show that the Regent wasnot so great a gainer as some of his subjects, by the impetuswhich trade had recci1 ed. When the diamond was firstoffered to him

,he refused to buy it, although he desired,

above all things, to possess it, alleging as his reason,that his

duty to the country he governed would not allow him to

spend so large a sum of the public money for a mere jewel.This valid and honourable ex cuse threw all the ladies of the

court into alarm,and nothing was heard for some days but

ex pressions of regret, that so rare a gem should be allowed

to go out of France no private individual being rich enough

to buy it. The Regent was continually importuned aboutit ; but all in 1 ain

,until the Duke de S t. S imon , who, with

all his ability,was something of a twaddler, undertook the

weighty business. H is entreaties, being seconded by Law,

theb

good- natured Regent gave his consent, lea1mg to L aw

’

s

ingenu i ty to find the means to pay for it. The owner tooksecurity for the payment of the sum of two millions of livresw ithin a stated period, receiving, in the mean time

, the

interest of five per cent. upon that amount,and being allowed

besides, all the valuable clippings of the gem. S t. S imon, in

his Memoirs, relates, with no little complacency, his share inthis transaction . After describing the diamond to be as

large as a greengage, of a form nearly round, perfectly white,and without flaw,

and weighing more than five hundred

grains, he concludes with a chuckle, by telling the world,“that he takes great credit to himself for ha1 ing inducedthe Regent to make so illustrious a purchase.

”In other

words, he was proud that he had induced him to sacrifice hisduty, and buy a bauble for himself, at an ex travagant price,out of the public money .

Thus the system continued to flourish till the commence

ment of the year 17 2 0. The warnings of the Parliament,that too great a creation of paper money would, sooner or

later, bring the country to bankruptcy, were disregarded.

The Regent, who knew nothing whatever of the philosophy

m s MISSISS IPPI sos s x s . 41

alarm that was occasioned was early in17 2 0. The de Conti, ofl

'

ended that Law should have

den ied him fresh shares in India stock, at his own price, sentto his bank to demand payment in specie of so enormous a

quantity of notes, that three wagons were required for itstransport. Law complained to the Regent, and urged on his

attention the mischief that would be done, if such an ex amplefound many imitators. The Regent was but too well awareof it, and, sending for the Prince de Conti, ordered him,

under penalty of his high dis leasure, to refund to the banktwo- thirds of the specie which e hadwithdrawn from it. The

Prince was forced to obey the despotic mandate. Happilyfor Law

’

s credit, D e Conti was an unpopular man : everybody condemned his meanness and cupidity, and agreed that

Law had been hardly treated. It is strange, however, thatso narrow an escape should not have made both Law and

the Regent more anx ious to restrict their issues. Otherswere soon found who imitated, from motives of distrust, theex ample which had been set

byDe Conti in revenge. The

THE MISS ISSIPPI SCHEME.

more acute stockjobbers imagined justly that prices could not

continue to rise for ever. Bourdon and La Richardiere,renowned for their ex tensive operations in the funds

,qu ietly

and in small quantities at a time, converted their notes into

specie, and sent it away to foreign countries. They also

bought as much as they could conveniently carry of plateand ex pensive jewellery, and sent it secretly away to Englandor to Holland. V ermalet, a jobber who snifl

'

ed the comingstorm, procured gold and silver coin to the amount of nearlya million of livres, which he packed in a farmer’s cart, andcovered over with hay and cow- dung . He then disguised

himself in the dirty smock - frock,or blouse, of a peasant, and

drove his precious load in safety into Belgium. Thence hesoon found means to transport it to Amsterdam.

Hitherto no difficulty had been ex perienced by any class

in procuring specie for their wants. But this system could

not long be carried on without causing a scarcity. The

voice of complaint was heard on every side, and i nquiriesbeing instituted, the cause was soon discovered. The council

debated long on the remedies to be taken , and Law, beingcalled on for his ad1 1ce, was of Opinion , that an edict should

be published, depreciating the value of coin five per cent.

below that of paper. The edict was published accordingly ;but, failing of i ts intended effect, was followed by another, in

which the depreciation was inc1eased to ten per cent. The

payments Of the bank were at the same time restricted to oneundred livres in gold, and ten in silver . All these measureswere nugatory to restore confidence in the paper, though the

restriction of cash payments within limits so ex tremely nar

row kept up the credit of the bank .

Notwi thstanding every effort to the contrary, the preciousmetals continued to be conveyed to England and Holland.

The little coin that was left in the country was carefully treasured, or hidden , until the scarcity became so great, that theOperations of trade could no longer be carried on . In this

emergency, Law hazarded the bold ex periment of forbiddingthe use of specie altogether. In February, 17 2 0, an edict

was published, which, instead of restoring the credit of the

paper, as was intended, destroyed it irrecoverably, and drovethe country to the very brink of revolution . By this famousedict it was forbidden to any person whatever to have more

doubt of the sincerity of Law ’

s conversion to the Catholicreligion ; he had established the inquz

'

sitz’

on , after havinggiven abundant evidence of his faith in transubstantz

'

atz'

on,

by turn ing so much gold into paper.Every epithet that popular hatred could suggest was show

ered upon the Regent and the unhappy Law . Coin, to any

amoun t above five hundred livres, was an illegal tender, andnobody would take paper if he could help it. N0 one knewto- day what his notes would be worth to- morrow. Never,says D uclos, in his Secret Memoirs of the Regency,

“was

seen a more capricious government—never was a more frantictyranny ex ercised by hands less firm. It is inconceivable tothose who were witnesses of the horrors of those times, and

who look back upon them now as on a dream,that a sudden

revolution did not break out—that Law and the Regent didnot perish by a tragical death. They were both held inhorror, but the people confined themselves to complaints ; a

sombre and timid despair, a stupid consternation , had seized

upon all, and men’

s minds were too vile even to be capable of

a courageous crime.

”It would appear that, at one time, a

movement of the people was organized. Seditious writings

were posted up against the walls, and were sent, in hand

bills, to the houses of the most conspicuous people. One of

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

them, given in the “Mémoires de la R é ence, was to the

following efl'

ect S ir and Madam,

his is to give you

notice that a S t. Bartholomew’

s Day will be enacted again

on S aturday and Sunday, if afl'

airs do not alter. You are

desired not to stir out, nor you , nor your servants . God pre

serve you from the flames ! Give notice to your neighbours.Dated Saturday, May 2 5 th, 17 2 0. The immense number ofspies with which the city was infested rendered the peoplem istrustful of one another, and beyond some trifling distarbances made in the even ing by an insign ificant group, whichwas soon dispersed, the peace of the capital was not com

promised.

The value of shares in the Lou isiana, or Mississippi stock,had fallen very rapidly, and few indeed were found to believethe tales that had once been told Of the immense wealth of

that region . A last effort was therefore tried to restore thepublic confidence in the Mississippi project. For this pur

pose, a general conscription of all the poor wretches in Pariswas made by order of government. Upwards of six thousandof the very refuse of the population were impressed, as if intime of war

,and were provided with clothes and tools to be

embarked for New Orleans, to work in the gold mines alleged

to abound there. They were paraded day after day throughthe streets with their pikes and shovels, and then sent of In

small detachments to the out- ports to be shipped for America.

Two- thirds of them never reached their destination , but dis

persed themselves over the country, sold their tools for whatthey could get, and returned to their old course of life. In

less than three weeks afterwards, one- half of them were to be

found again in Paris . The manoeuvre, however, caused a

trifling advance in Mississippi stock. Many persons of superbabundant gullibility believed that operations had begun inearnest in the new Golconda, and that gold and silver ingotswould again be found in France.

In a constitutional monarchy some surer means would havebeen found for the restoration of public credit. In England,at a subsequent period

,when a similar delusion had brought

on similar distress, how difl'

erent were the measures taken to

repair the evil ; but in France, unfortunately, the remed

was left to the authors of the mischief. The arbitrary w'

of the Regent, which endeavoured to ex tricate the country,

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

mly plunged it deeper into the mire. Al l payments weremlered to be made in paper, and between the l st of Febru

iryand the end of May, notes were fabricated to the amount

ofupwards of 1500millions of livres, or ster

ling. But the alarm once sounded, no art could make the

people feel the slightest confidence in paper which was not

exchangeable into metal. M . Lambert,the President of the

Parliament of Paris, told the Regent to his face that hewould rather have a hundred thousand livres in gold or silver

,

than five millions in the notes of his bank . When such was

the general feeling, the superabundant issues of paper butncrcased the evil, by rendering still more enormous the dis

arity between the amount of specie and notes in circulation .

bin, which it was the object of the Regent to depreciate,see in value on every fresh attempt to dimin ish it. In Febra'

y, i t was judged advisable that the Royal Bank should be

rporated with the Company of the Indies. An edict to

at effect was published and registered by the Parliament .

1e state remained the guarantee for the notes of the bank,

d no more were to be issued without an order in council.

ll the profits of the bank, since the time it had been takent of Law

’

s hands and made a national institution , were

ven over by the Regent to the Company of the Indies .

1is measure had the effect of raising for a short time the

Inc of the Lou isiana and other shares of the Company, butfa iled in placing public credit on any permanent bas is.

A counc il of state was held in the beginn ing of May,at

lich L aw,D

'

Argenson (his colleague in the admin istration

the finances), and all the min isters were present. It was

en computed that the total amount Of notes in circulationis 2 6 00 m illions of livres

,while the coin in the coun try

i s not quite equal to half that amount. It was evident to

e majori ty of the council that some plan must be adoptedequalize the currency . Some proposed that the notes

ould be reduced to the value of the specie, while others'

oposed that the nominal value of the specie should be

ised t i ll it was on an equality w ith the paper . L aw 18 saId

have opposed both these projects, but fa ilmg In suggestmg

1y other,it was agreed that the notes should be depreci ated

.e- half. On the 2 l st of May, an edict was accordmgly

sued, by which it was decreed that the shares of the Com

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TH] MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

ledged too late, that he had treated with unjustifiablemess and mistrust one of the ablest, and perhaps thehones t public man of that corrupt period. He had1d ever since his to his country- house at Fresnes,s, i n the midst 0 severe but delightful philosophicas, he had forgotten the intrigues of an unworthy court.

himself, and the Chevalier de Conflans, a gentleman ofl

ie

gent

'

s household, were despatched in a post- chaise,era to bring the ex—chancellor to Paris along with

D'

Aguessean, consented to render what assistance hecontrary to the advice of his friends, who did not

we that he should accept any recall to oflice of which

was the bearer. On his arrival in Paris, five counsellors

3 Parliament were admitted to confer with the Commis

of F inance, and on the l et of June an order was publ,abolishing the law which made it criminal to amass

to the amount of more than five hundred livres. Everyvas permitted to have as much specie as he pleased. In

that the bank- notes might be withdrawn , twenty- five

ms of new notes were created, on the security of the

mes of the city of Paris, at two- and- a- half per cent.

bank - notes withdrawn were publicly burned in front of

[Fate] de Ville. The new notes were principally of the

sof ten livres each ; and on the l 0th of June the bankre-opened

,with a sufliciency of silver coin to give in

ge for them .

w e measures were productive of considerable advantage.

he population of Paris hastened to the bank, to get cointheir small notes ; and silver becoming scarce, they

paid in copper . Very few complained that this was too

y, although poor fellows might be continually seen toil- g1nd sweatmg along the streets, laden with more than they1 comfortably carry, in the shape of change for fiftys. The crowds around the bank were so great, thatlly a day passed that some one was not pressed to death.

the 9th of July, the multitude was so dense and clamorousthe guards stationed at the entrance of the Mazarm

dens closed the gate, and refused to adm1t any more.

crowd became incensed, and flung stones through the

ngs upon the soldiers. The latter, incensed In thelr turn ,

atened tO fire upon the people. At that instant one of

48 run MISSISSIPPI scnm m.

them was hit by a stone,and

,taking up his piece, he fired

into the crowd. One man fell dead immediately, and another

was severely wounded. It was every instant ex pected that a

general attack would have been commenced upon the bank;but the gates of the Mazarin Gardens being opened to thecrowd

,who saw a whole troop of soldiers, with their bayonets

fix ed,ready to receive them,

they contented themselves by

giving vent to their indignation in groans and hisses.

E ight days afterwards the concourse of people was so

tremendous, that fifteen persons were squeezed to death at

the doors of the bank . The people were so indignant that

they took three of the bodies on stretchers before them,and

proceeded, to the number of seven or eight thousand, to the

gardens of the Palais Royal, that they might show the

R egent the misfortunes that he and Law had brought uponthe country . Law ’

s coachman,who was sitting on the box

of his master ’s carriage, in the court- yard of the palace,happened to have more zeal than discretion , and, not likingthat the mob should abuse his master, he said

,loud enou h

to be overheard by several persons, that they were all blaciguards, and deserved to be hanged. The mob immediatelyset upon him

,and

,think ing that Law was in the carriage,

b1oke it to pieces . The imprudent coachman narrowlyescaped with his life. NO further mischief was done ; a bodyof troops making their appearance, the crowd quietly dispersed, after an assurance had been given by the Regent thatthe three bodies they had brought to show him should be

decently buried at his own ex pense. The Parliament wassitting at the time of this uproar, and the President took uponhimself to go out and see what was the matter . On his

return he informed the councillors,that Law

’

8 carriage hadbeen broken by the mob. All the members rose simulta

neously, and ex pressed their joy by a loud shout, while one

man,more zealous in his hatred than the rest, ex claimed,

And L aw himself, is he torn to p ieces

The Duchess of Orleans gives a difl‘

erent version of this story ; but

whichever be the true one, the man ifestation of such feeling in a legislative

assembly was not very creditable. She says, that the President was so

transported wi th J oy, that he was seized wi th a rhyming fit, and, returninginto the hall, ex claimed to the members

l a tices-c l Hessia n ! bonus m ucus !

Le can -on e do Lacs a t reduit en m alls !

THE MISSISS IPPI SCHEME. 49

solemn judges and

councillors joined in cards rsions, leadmg for

several weeks a life of the most ex travagant pleasure, for no

other purpose than to show the Regent of how little couse

quence they deemed their banishment, and that when theywilled it, they could make Pontoise a pleasanter residencethan Paris .

Of all the nations in the world the French are the most re

nowned for singing over their grievances. Of that country ithas been remarked with some truth

,that its whole history

may be traced in its songs. When Law,by the utter failure

of his best- laid plans,rendered himself obnox ious, satire of

course seized hold upon him,and, while caricatures of his

person appeared in all the shops, the streets resounded withsongs, in which neither he nor the Regent was spared.

Many of these songs were far from decent ; and one of them

in particular counselled the application of all his notes to the

most ignoble use to which paper can be applied. But the

following, preserved in theletters of the Duchess of Orleans,

VOL . I. 5

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

was the best and the most popular, and was to be heard formonths in all the carrefours of Paris.

chorus is happy enough

The application of the

Aussitdt que Lass arriva

Dans notre bonne vi lle,Monsieur lo Regent publiaQue Lass serai t uti lePour ré tablir la nation .

L afaridondaine! la fan'

dondon

Mais i l nous a tous enrichi,B irt

’

bi

A la j apan dc B arber:

Ce parpaillot, pour attirer

Tout l’

argent de la France,Songea d

’abord a s

’

assurer

De notre confiance.

11 fit son abjuration .

L a fan'

dondat'

nc ! Ia faridondon !Mai s le fourbe s

’

est converti ,B in

'

bi

A lafagon dc B arbart

Lass, le fils ainede S atan

Nous met tous a l’aumfine,

I] nous a pris tout notre argent

Et n’en rend apersonne.

Mais la Regent,humain et bon ,L a fan

'

dondaim ! Ia fan dondon !Nous rendra cc qu

’

on nou s a pris,B in bi

A la fagon dc B arbers

The following smart epigram is of the same date

L undi , j’

achetai des actions ;Mardi, je gagnai des millions ;Mercredi , j

’

arrangeai mon ménage,q di , je pris un equ ipage,Vcndrcdi, je m

’en fus nu bal,

E't Samcdi , it l

’HOpi tal .

Among the caricatures that were abundantly published,and that showed as plainly as graver matters, that the nation

had awakened to a sense of its folly, was one, a fac- simile of

which is preserved in the Mémoires de la Regence.

was thus described by its author : The Goddess of Shares,’

It

THE MISS ISS IPPI SCHEME.

11 her triumphs ] car, driven by the Goddess of Foll Thosewho are drawing the car are impersonations of t e Mississippi , w ith his wooden leg , the South Sea, the Bank of Eng.and, the Company of the West of Senegal, and of various as

Lest the car should not roll fast enough, the agentsof these compan ies, known b their long fox - tails and theircunn ing looks, turn round t e spokes of the wheels, uponwhich are marked the names of the several stocks

, and theirvalue, sometimes high and sometimes low,

accordin to the

turns of the wheel. Upon the ground are the mere andise,day

- books and ledgers of legi timate commerce, crushed under

the chariot of Folly. Behind is an immense crowd of ersons,

of all ages, sex es and conditions, clamouring after ortune,

and fighting with each other to get a portion of the shares

which she distributes so bountifully among them. In the

cloud sits a demon , blowing bubbles of soap, which are also

the objects of the admiration and cupidity of the crowd, whojump upon one another’s backs to reach them ere they burst.

Right in the pathway of the car, and blocking up the passage,stands a large building, with three doors, through one of

which it must pass,if it proceeds further, and all the crowd

along w ith it. Over the first door are the words,

‘H dp ital

der F mr,

’

over the second,‘

p ital dcs JlIalades,’

and

over the third,

‘H dp ital des Gueu x .

’ Another caricaturerepresen ted Law sitting in a large cauldron

,boiling over the

flames of popular madness, surrounded by an impetuous multitude

,who were pouring all their gold and silver into it, and

rece iving gladly in ex change the bits of paper whi ch be di stri buted among them by handsful.While this ex citement lasted, Law took good care not to

ex pose himself unguarded in the streets. Shut up in the

apartments of the Regent, he was secure from all attack, and,whenever he ventured abroad

,it was either incogn ito, or m

one of the Roy al carriages, with a powerful escort:An

amus ing anecdote is recorded of the detestation In whrch he

was held by the people,and the ill treatment he would have

met, had he fallen into their hands. A gentleman , of the

name of Boursel, was passing in his carriage down the Rue

S t. Antoine, when his further progress was stayed by a’

hack

ney- coach that had blocked up the road. M . Boursel s ser

vant called impatiently to the hackney- coachman to get out

THE MISSISSIPPI SCHEME.

of the way, and, on his refusal, struck him a blow on the face.

A crowd was soon drawn together by the disturbance, and M.

Boursel got out of the carriage to restore order. The hackney

- coachman,imagin ing that he had now another assailant,

bethought him of an ex pedient to rid himself of both, and

called out as loudly as he was able,

“Help ! help ! murder !murder ! Here are L aw and his servant going to k ill me !Help ! help !” At this cry, the people came out of their

shops, armed with sticks and other weapons, while the mob

gathered stones to inflict summary vengeance upon the supposed financier. Happily for M . Boursel and his servant,the door of the church of the Jesuits stood wide open , and,seeing the fearful odds against them,

they rushed towards itwith all speed. They reached the altar

,pursued by the

people, and would have been ill treated even there, if, findingthe door open leading to the sacristy, they had not sprangthrough, and closed it after them . The mob were then persuadcd to leave the church by the alarmed and indignant

priests ; and finding M . Boursel’

s carriage still in the streets,they vented their ill- will against it, and did it considerabledamage.

The twenty- five millions secured on the municipal revenuesof the city of Paris

,bearing so low an interest as two and a

half per cent.,were not very popular among the large holders

of Mississippi stock . The conversion of the securities was,

therefore, a work of considerable difficulty ; for many preferred to retain the falling paper of Law

’

s Company, in the

hope that a favourable turn might take place. On the 15 th

of August, with a view to hasten the conversion , an edict was

passed, declaring that all notes for su ms between one thousand

and ten thousand livres, should not pass current, ex cept forthe purchase of annuities and bank accounts, or for the payment of instalments still due on the shares of the Company .

In October following another edict was passed,depriving

these notes of all value whatever after themonth of Novembernex t ensuing. The management of the mint, the farm ing of

the revenue, and all the other advantages and privileges of

the India, or Mississippi Company, were taken from them,

and they were reduced to a mere private company . Thiswas the deathblow to the whole system , which had now got

into the hands of its enemies. Law had lost all influence in

keep them in custody, u theyhad any plate or jewellery with them

,or were concerned in

the late stockjobbing . Against such few as escaped, thepunishment of death was recorded, while the most arbitraryproceedings were instituted against those who remained.

Law himself,in a moment of despair, determined to leave

a country where his life was no longer secure. H e at firstonly demanded permission to retire from Paris to one of

his country- seats ; a permission which the Regent cheerfully

gran ted. The latter was much affected at the unhappy turnafl

'

a irs had taken , but his faith continued unmoved in the truthand efficacy of Law'

s financial system . H is eyes were openedto his own errOrs, and during the few remaining years of his

life, be constantly longed for an opportun ity of again esta

blishing the system upon a securer basis. At Law’

s last interview with the Prince, he is reported to have said I confessthat I have committedmany faults ; I committed them becauseI am a man

, and all men are liable to error ; but I declare to

you most solemnly that none of them proceeded from wickedor dishonest motives, and that nothing of the kind m l] befound in the whole course of my conduct.

”

Two or three days after his departure the Regent sent h1m

a very kind letter, permitting him to leave the kingdom when

ever he pleased, and stating that he had ordered hispassports

51k

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is ex travago overstep the bounds of safe speculation . It was also

scertained that the national debt, on the l st of January,

7 2 1, amounted to upwards of 3100 millions of livres, or

Jere than sterling, the interest upon whichwas,196

,000L A commission , or visa, was forthwith appointed

o ex am ine into all the securities of the state creditors,who

vere to be divided into five classes,the first four comprising

hose who had purchased their securities with real effects,sad the latter comprising those who could give no proofshat the transactions they had entered into were real and

50116 fide. The securities of the latter were ordered to be

iestroyed, while those of the first four classes were subjectedto a most rigid and jealous scrutiny . The result of the

labours of the visa was a report, in which they counselled the

reduction of the interest upon these securities to fifty- six

million s of livres . They justified this advice by a statement

of the various acts of peculation and ex tortion which theyhad discovered, and an edict to that efl

’

ect was accordingly

plished and duly registered by the parliaments of the

'

n dom .

Ignother tribunal was afterwards established, under the titleof the C'hambre de 1

’

Arsenal, which took cogn izance of all

the malversations committed in the financial departments ofthe government during the late unhappy period. A Master

56 run MISSISS IPPI seam s .

of Requests, named Falhonct, together with the Abb6

Clement, and two clerks in their employ, had been concernedin divers acts of peculation , to the amount of upwards of amillion of livres. The first two were sentenced to be be

headed, and the latter to be hanged ; but their pun ishmentwas afterwards commuted into imprisonment for life in the

Bastile. Numerous other acts Of dishonesty were discovered,and punished by fine and imprisonment.D

’

Ar enson shared with Law and the Regent the unpopu

larity w ich had alighted upon all those concerned in the

Mississippi madness. H e was dismissed from his post of

Chancellor, to make room for D’

Aguesseau ; but he retainedthe title of Keeper of the Seals, and was allowed to attend

the councils whenever he pleased. He thought it better,however, to withdraw from Paris, and live for a time a life of

seclusion at his country- seat. But be was not formed forretirement, and becoming moody and discontented, he aggra

vated a disease under which he had long laboured, and diedin less than a twelvemonth. The populace of Paris so de

tested him,that they carried their hatred even to his grave.

As his funeral procession passed to the church of S t. N icholasdu Chardonneret, the burying- place of his family

,it was

beset by a riotous mob, and his two sons,who were follow ing

as chief- mourners, were obliged to drive as fast as they wereable down a by

- strect to escape personal violence.

As regards Law,he for some time entertained a hope that

he should be recalled to France,to aid in establishing its

credit upon a firmer basis. The death of the Regent, in17 2 3, who ex pired suddenly, as he was sitting by the firesideconversing with his mistress, the Duchess de Phalaris, de

prived him of that hope,and he was reduced to lead his

former life of gambling . He was more than once obliged to

pawn his diamond, the sole remnant of his vast wealth, but

successful play generally enabled him to redeem it. Beingpersecuted by his creditors at Rome, he proceeded to Copenhagen , where he received permission from the English min istry, to reside in his native country, his pardon for the murderof Mr. Wilson having been sent over to him in 1719 . He

was brought over in the admiral’s ship, a circumstance which

gave occasion for a short debate,in the House of Lords.

Earl Coningsby complained that a man , who had renounced

THE MIS SISSIPPI SCHEME.

n th his country and his religion , should have been treatedri th such honour, and ex pressed his belief that his presence11 En gland, at a time when the people were so bewildered byhe n efar ious practices of the South Sea directors, would be.tten ded w ith no little danger. He gave notice of a motion

11: the su bject ; but it was allowed to drop, no other memberbf the H ouse having the slightest participation in his lordship

’

s fears . Law remained for about four years in England,1n d then proceeded to Venice, where he died in 17 2 9, invery embarrassed circumstances. The following epitaph waswri tten at the time

“Ci git cet Ecossais célébre,Ce calculateur sans égal,

Qui , par les regles de l’algé bre,

A mi s la France a l’H6pital.

”

H is brother, William Law,who had been concerned with

him in the admin istration both of the Bank and the Lou is ia na Company, was imprisoned in the Bastile for alleged

malversation , but no guilt was ever proved against him . He

was liberated after fifteen months, and became the founder ofa familv

,which is still known in France under the title of

Marqu i ses of Lauriston .

In the nex t chapter will be found an account of the

madnes s which infected the people of England at the same

time. and under very similar circumstances, but which, thanksto the energies and good sense of a constitutional government , was attended w ith results far less disastrous than thosewhich were seen in France.

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

At length corruption ,like a general flood,

Did deluge all, and avarice creeping on ,

Spread, like a low - born m ist, and hid the sun .

S tatesmen and patriots plied alike the stocks ,Peeress and butler shared alike the box ;And j udges jobbed, and bishops bit the town ,

And mighty dukes packed cards for half- a- crown

Britain was sunk in lucre’

s sordid charms

THE South Sea Company was originated by the celebratedHarley

,Earl of Ox ford, in the year 1711, with the view of

restoring public credit, which had suffered b the dismissal

of the Whig min istry, and of providing for t e discharge ofthe army and navy debentures, and other parts of the floating debt

,amoun ting to nearly ten millions sterling . A

company of merchants, at that time without a name, took

this debt upon themselves, and the government agreed tosecure to them,

for a certain period, the in terest of six per

cent. To provide for this interest, amounting to

per annum, the duties upon wines, vinegar, India goods,wrought silks

, tobacco, whale- fins,and some other articles,

were rendered permanent. The monopoly of the trade to

the South Seas was granted, and the Company, being incorporated by Act of Parliament, assumed the title by which ithas ever since been known . The minister took great creditto himself for his Share in this transaction , and the scheme

was always called by his flatterers “the Earl of Ox ford’

s

masterpiece.

”

Even at this early period of its history, the most visionaryideas were formed by the Company and the public of theimmense riches of the eas tern coast of SouthAmerica. Everybody had heard of the gold and silver mines of Peru and

Mex ico ; every one believed them to be inex haustible, and

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

‘t was only necessary to send the manufactures of Engto the coast, to be repaid a hundredfold in gold andingots by the natives. A report

,industriously spread,

Spa in was willing to concede four ports, on the coasts

Iii i and Peru, for the purposes of traflic, increased thea ] confidence ; and for many years the South Sea Com'

5 stock was in high favour.ilip V. of Spain , however, never had any intention of

tring the English to a free trade in the ports of Spanishrica . Negotiations were set on foot, but their onlyt was the assiento contract, or the privilege of supplyingcolon ies with negroes for thirty years, and of sendinga year a vessel, limited both as to tonna e and value of1, to trade with Mex ico, Peru , or Chili . be latter perou was only granted upon the hard condition , that the

of Spain should enjoy one- fourth of the profits, and a

if five per cent. on the remainder. This was a great

pointment to the Earl of Ox ford and his party, whoreminded much oftener than they found agreeable of

Parmriunt monies, nacci tur ridicules mus .

he public confidence in the South Sea Company was noten . The Earl of Ox ford declared, that Spain would

it two ships,in addition to the annual ship, to carry out

imndi se during the first year ; and a list was published,nich all the ports and harbours of these coasts wereous ly set forth as open to the trade of Great Britain .

first voyage of the annual ship was not made till the

17 17 , and in the following year the trade was suppressed.e rupture with Spain .

.e King'

s speech, at the open ing of the session of 1717 ,pointed allusion to the state of public cred1t, and

amended that proper measures should be taken to reducenational debt. The two great monetary corporat1ons,

louth Sea Company and the Bank of Englandamade pro

8 to Parliament on the 2 0th of May.

ensumg . The

in S ea Company prayed that their cap1tal stock of ten

ms might be increased to twelve, by subscr1pt10n or

wise, and ofi'

ered to accep t five per cent. Instead of Si x

60 run sou'm SEA nnnnnn.

upon the whole amount. The Bank made proposals equallyadvantageous. The House debated for some time, andfinally three acts were passed

,called the S outh Sea Act, the

Bank Act,and the General Fund Act. By the first, the

proposals of the South Sea Company were accepted, and thatbody held itself ready to advance the sum of two millions

towards discharging the principal and interest of the debt

due by the state for the four lottery funds of the ninth and

tenth years of Queen Anne. By the second act, the Bank

received a lower rate of interest for the sum of

15 8 . due to it by the state, and agreed to deliver up to be

cancelled as many Ex chequer bills as amoun ted to two

millions sterling, and to accept of an annuity of one hundred

thousand pounds, being after the rate of five per cent. , the

whole redeemable at one year’

s notice. They were furtherrequired to be ready to advance, in case of need, a sum not

ex ceeding upon the same terms of five er cent.

interest, redeemable by Parliament. The General und Act

recited the various deficiencies,which were to be made good

by the aids derived from the foregoing sources.

The name of the South Sea Company was thus continuallybefore the public . Though their trade with the South American S tates produced little or no augmentation of their revenues, they continued to flourish as a monetary corporation.

Their stock was in high request, and the directors, buoyed upw ith success, began to think Of new means for ex tending theiJinfluence. The Mississippi S cheme of John Law,

which at

dazzled and captivated the French people, inspired them witl

an idea that they could carry on the same game in England.

The anticipated failure of his plans did not divert them frontheir intention . Wise in their own conceit, they imagine(

they could avoid his faults, carry on their schemes for everand stretch the cord of credit to its ex tremest tension , wi th

out causing it to snap asunder.It was while Law ’

s plan was at its greatest height of popnlarity, while people were crowding in thousands to the Rue

Quincampoi x,and ruin ing themselves with frantic eagerness

that the South Sea directors laid before Parliament thei1famous plan for paying ofl

’

the national debt. Visions o

boundless wealth floated before the fascinated eyes of thl

people in the two most celebrated countries of Europe. Thi

was represented, that they had performed great and eminent

services to the state, in the most difi cult times, and deserved,at least, that if any advantage was to be made by publicbargains of this nature, they should be preferred before a

company that had never done anything for the nation . The

further consideration of the matter was accordingly postponedfor five days. In the mean time, a plan was drawn up by theGovernors of the Bank. The South Sea Company, afraidthat the Bank mi ht ofi

’

er still more advantageous terms tothe government t an themselves, reconsidered their formerpreposal, and made some alterations in it, which they hopedwould render it more acceptable. The principal change wasa stipulation that the government might redeem these debtsat the ex piration of four years, instead of seven , as at firstsuggested. The Bank resolved not to be outbidden in this

on , and the Governors also reconsidered theirand sent in a new one.

Thus, each corporation having made two proposals, theHouse be an to deliberate. Mr. Robert Walpole was the

chief speagker in favour of the Bank, and Mr. Aislabie, the

Chancellor of the Ex chequer, the principal advocate on behalfof the South Sea Company.

6

It was resolved, on the 2 d ofV OL . I.

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were to mert the

hundred pounds invested in it

annum to the stockholder. At

these means to near four hun

dred ; but, after fluctuatin a good deal, settled at three

hundred and thirty, at whio price it remained when the bill

passed the Commons by a majority of 17 2 against 5 5 .

In the House of Lords the bill was hurried through all its

stages with unex ampled rapidity . On the4th of April it wasread a first time ; on the 5 th, it was read a second time ; on

the 6 th, it was committed ; and on the 7th, was read a third

time, and passed.

Several peers spoke warmly against the scheme ; but theirwarnings fell upon dull, cold ears. A speculating frenzy hadseized them as well as the plebeians. Lord North and Greysaid the bill was unjust in its nature, and might prove fatalin its consequences, being calculated to enrich the few and

ilnpoverish the many. The Duke of Wharton followed ; but,as he on ly retailedat second- hand the arguments so eloquentlystated by Walpole in the Lower House, he was not listened

towith even the same attention that had been bestowed uponLord North and Grey. Earl Cowper followed on the same

side, and compared the bill to the famous horse of the siege

of Troy. Like that, it was ushered in and received with

great pomp and acclamations of joy, but bore within it

treachery and destruction. The Earl of Sunderland endea

voured to answer all objections ; and, on the question beingput, there appeared only seventeen peers against, and eightythree in favour of the project. The very same day on which

it passed the Lords, it received the Royal assent, and becamethe law of the land.

It seemed at that time as if the whole nation had turned

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLI »

stockjobbers . Ex change Alley was every day blocked up bycrowds, and Cornhill was impassable for the number of carriages. Everybody came to purchase stock .

“Every foolasplred to be a knave. In the words of a ballad

,published

at the time, and sung about the streets,*

Then stars and garters did appearAmong the meaner rabble ;

To buy and sell, to see and hear,The J ews and Genti les squabble.

The greatest ladies thither came,And plied in chariots dai ly,

Or pawned their jewels for a sumTo venture in the Alley.

i i

The inordinate thirst of gain that had afflicted all ranks ofsociety, was not to be slaked even in the South S ea. Otherschemes, of the most ex travagant kind, were started. The

share- lists were speedily filled up, and an enormous traflic

carried on in shares, whi le, of course, every means were re

sorted to,to raise them to an artificial value in the market.

Contrary to all ex pectation , South Sea stock fell when thebill received the Royal assent. On the 7th of April theshares were quoted at three hundred and ten , and on the

following day, at two hundred and ninety. Already the

directors had tasted the profits of their scheme, and it was

not likely that they should quietly allow the stock to find itsnatural level, without an efi

'

ort to raise it. Immediately theirbusy emissaries were set to work. Every person interestedin the success of the project endeavoured to draw a knot oflisteners around him,

to whom he ex patiated on the treasuresof the South American seas. Ex change Alley was crowdedwith attentive groups. One rumour alone, asserted with theutmost confidence, had an immediate effect upon the stock.

It was said, that Earl Stanhope had received overtures in

France from the Span ish Government to ex change Gibraltarand Port Mahon for some places on the coast of Peru, for thesecurity and enlargement of the trade in the South Seas.

A South Sea Ballad ; or, Merry Remarks upon Ex change Alley Bubbles. To a new tune, called ‘The Grand Eli x ir ; or, the Philosopher’sStone Discovered.

’

m s sourn SEA BUBBLB . 6 5

Instead of one annual ship trading to those ports, and allowing the King of S twenty

- five per cent. out of the profits,the Company mi t bnild and charter as many shi as theypleased, and pay no percentage whatever to any xii-sign po

V isiona cf ingcts danced befcre thsir eyes,

and stock 11 the 12 th of April, five days afterbooks for

a subscription of a million, at the rate of £800

£100 capital. Such

ranks, that this first to amount toabove two millions of ori 111 stock. It was

for eve £100.

three hundre and fortyscriptions were sold for double the price of the first payment.

To raise the stock still higher, it was declared, in a general

court of directors, on the 2 1st of April, that the midsummer

should be entitled to the same. These resolutions anew

the end designed, the directors, to improve the infatuation o

the mon ied men, opened their books for a second subscriptionof a mill ion, at four hundred per cent. Such was the franticeagerness of people of every class to speculate in these funds,that in - the course of a few hours no less than a million and a

half was subscribed at that rate.

In the mean time, innumerablejoint- stock companies startedup everywhere. They soon received the name of Bubbles, themost appropriate that imagination could devise. The pcpulace are often most happy in the nicknames they employ.

None could be more apt than that of Bubbles. Some of them

lasted for a week, or a fortnight, and were no more heard of,whi le others could not even live out that short span of ex ist

ence. Every even ing produced new schemes, and everymorning new projects. The hi

ghest of the aristocracy were

as eager in this hot ursuit 0 gain as the most ploddingjobber in Cornhill. he Prince of Wales became governorof one company, and is said to have cleared by hisspeculations .

* The Duke of Bridgewater started a scheme

Cox e’s Walpole, Correspondence between Mr. Secretary Craggs and

THB SOUTH SEA BUBBLI .

for the improvement of London and Westminster, and theDuke of Chandos another. There were nearly a hundred

different projects, each more ex travagant and deceptive thanthe other. To use the words of the Political S tate, theywere set on foot and promoted by crafty knaves, then pursued by multitudes of covetous fools, and at last appeared tobe

,1n effect, what their vulgar appellation denoted them to

be—bubbles and more cheats. It was computed that near

one million and a half sterling was won and lost by these nuwarrantable practices, to the impoverishment of many a fool,and the enriching of many a rogue.

Some of these schemes were plausible enough, and, had

they been undertaken at a time when the public mindunex cited, might have been pursued with advantage to all

concerned. But theywere established merelywith the viewof raising the shares 1n the market. The proj ectors took thefirst opportunity of a rise to sell out, and nex t morning the

scheme was at an end. Maitland,in his History of London,

gravely informs us, that one of the projects which received

great encouragement, was for the establishment of a companyto make deal- boards out of saw- dust.

” This is, no doubt,intended as a joke ; but there is abundance of evidence to

show that dozens of schemes hardly a whit more reasonable,lived their little day, ruining hundreds ere they fell. One of

them was for a wheel for perpetual motion—capital, one

million ; another was for encouraging the breed of horses lnEngland, and 1mproving of glebe and church lands, and te

pairing and rebuilding parsonage and V icarage houses. Whythe clergy, who were so mainly interested 1n the latter clause,should have taken so much interest in the first, is only to beex plained on the supposition that the scheme was projectedby a knot of the fox - hunting persons, once so common in

England. The shares of this company were rapidly sub

scribed for. But the most absurd and preposterous of all,and whi ch showed, more completely than any other, the utter

madness of the people, was one started by an unknown cd

venturer, entitled A company for carrying on an undentaking of great advantage, bu t nobody to know what it 1

'

s .

’

Were not the fact stated by scores of credible witnesses, itwould be impossible to believe that any person could have

been duped by such a project. The man of genius who se

ran som e SEA BUBBLE. 67

sayed this bold and successful inroad

profit was to

them at that time, but promised, that in a month full

lars should be duly announced, and a call made for

maining £98 of the subscription . Nex t morning,o'clock, this great man opened an ofiice in Cornhill. Crowds

of people beset his door, andwhen be shut up at three o’

clock,he found that no less than one thousand shares had been sub

the de°

ts aid. He was thus, in five

hours, the winner of £2 , 0. e was philosopher enough to

bem tented with his venture, and set of the same eveningfix the Continent. He was never heard of again .

Well ht Swift ex claim, comparing Change Alley to a

gal! inm outh Sea,

Snbasrlbara here by thousands float,

fid jostle one another down,

dling in his leaky boat,An here they fish for gold, and drown .

oNow buried in the depths below,

New mounted up to heaven again,

They reel and stagger to and fro,At their wit

’s end, like drunken men .

Meantime, secure on Garraway clifi'

s,

A savage race, by shipwrecks fed,Lie waiting for the foundered skifi

‘

s,

And strip the bodies of the dead.

Another fraud that was very successful, was that of the

Globe P ermits, as they were called. They were nothingmore than square pieces of playing cards, on whi ch was the

impression of a seal, in wax , bearing the sign of the GlobeTavern , in the neighbourhood of Ex change Alley, with the

inscription of Sail Cloth Permits. The possessors enjoyedno other advantage from them than permission to subscribe,at some future time, to a new sail- cloth manufactory, projected by one who was then known to be a man of fortune, butwho was afterwards involved in the peculation and punishment

THE SOUTH SBA BUBBLE.

of the South Sea directors. These permits sold for as muchas six ty guineas in the Alley .

Persons of distinction , of both sex es, were deeply engaged

in all these bubbles, those of the male sex going to taverns

and coffee- houses to meet their brokers, and the ladies resorting for the same purpose to the shops of milliners and haberdashers. But it did not follow that all these people believedin the feasibility of the schemes to which they subscribed ; it

was enough for their purpose that their shares would, bystockjobbing arts, be soon raised to a premium, when they

got rid of them with all ex pedition to the really credulous.

great was the confusion of the crowd in the Alley, thatshares i n the same bubble were known to have been sold at

the same instant ten per cent. higher at one end of the Alleythan at the other. Sensible men beheld the ex traordinaryinfatuation of the people with sorrow and alarm. There weresome, both in and out of Parliament, who foresaw clearly the

ruin that was impending. Mr. Walpole did not cease his

gloomy forebodings. His fears were shared by all the think

ing few,and impressed most forcibly upon the government.

On the 11th of June, the day the Parliament rose, the Kinpublished a proclamation, declaring that all these unla

projects should be deemed public nuisances, and prosecutedaccordingly, and forbidding any broker, under a penalty of five

hundred pounds, from buying or selling any shares m them.

Notwithstanding this proclamation, roguish Speculators still

carried them on,and the deluded people still encouraged

them. On the 1 2 th of July, an order of the Lords Justicesassembled in privy council was published, dismissing all thepetitions that had been presented for patents and charters,and dissolving all the bubble compan ies. The following copyof their lordships’ order, contain ing a list of all these nefan

ous projects, wi ll not be deemed uninteresting at the present

day, when there 1s but too much tendency ln the public mindto indulge 1n similar practices

At the Council Chamber, Whitehall, the 12 thday of July, 17 2 0. Present, their Ex cellencies the Lords Justices in Council.

Their Ex cellencies, the Lords Justices in council, takinginto consideration the many inconveniences arising to the

THE SOUTH SBA BUBBLE.

ublic from several projects set on foot for raising of jointock for various purposes, and that a great many of his Ma

sty'

s subjects have been drawn in to part with their money1 pretence of assurances that their petitions for patentsmd charters, to enable them to carry on the same, would be

ranted : to prevent such impositions, their Ex cellencies, thisay, ordered the said several petitions, together with such

ports from the Board of Trade, and from his Majesty’

s

.ttorney and Solicitor- General, as had been obtained thereon,1 be laid before them, and aftermature consideration thereof

,

ere pleased, by advice of his Majesty ’

s Privy Council,to

rder that the said petitions be dismissed, whi ch are as fol

1w

1 . Petition of several persons, praying letters patent forsrrying on a fishing trade, by the name of the Grand Fisheryf Great Britain .

2 . Petition of the Company of the Royal Fishery of

England, praying letters patent for such further powers as

ill effectually contribute to carry on the said fishery .

3 . Petition of George James, 011 behalf of himself and

livers persons of distinction concerned in a national fishery ;say ing letters patent of incorporation to enable them to

an y on the same.

4. Petition of several merchants, traders, and others,whose names are thereunto subscribed

, praying to bc incor1orated for reviving and carrying on a whale fishery to Greenand and elsewhere.

5 . Petition of S ir John Lambert, and others thereto sub

scribing , on behalf of themselves and a great number of mer3hants , praying to be incorporated for carrying on a Greenand trade, and particularly a whale fishery in D avis

’

s S traits .

6 . Another petition for a Greenland trade.

7 . Petition of several merchants, gentlemen ,and citizens,

praying to be incorporated for buying and building of shipsto let or freight.“ 8 . Petition of Samuel Antrim and others

,praying for

etters patent for sow ing hemp and flax .

“ 9 . Petition of several merchants, masters of ships, sailnakers, and manufacturers of sail- cloth, praying a charter ofncorporation , to enable them to carry on and promote the

mid manufactory by a joint stock .

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fi mu cf and.Ed

10. For encouragin the breed of horses in England, andof globe an church lands, and for repairing and

building parsonage and vicarage houses.

11 . For making of n on and steel 1n Great Britain .

12 . For improving the land m the county of Flint. Capi1, one million .

13. For purchasing lands to build on. Capital, two

14. For trading in hair.

15 . For erecting salt -works in Holy Island. Capital,

10. For buying and selling estates, and lending money on

carrying on an undertaking of great advantage,st nobody to know what it is .

18. For paving the streets of London . Capital, two mil

19 . For furnishing funerals to any part of Great Britain .

2 0. For buying and selling lands and lending money at

der-est. Capital, five millions.

2 1 . For g on the Royal Fishery of Great Britain .

a ital, ten

32 . For assuring

ms

of seamen’

s wages.

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

2 3 . For erecting loan - ofi ces for the assistance and encou

ragement of the industrious. Capital, two millions.

24. For purchas ing and improving leasable lands. Capi

tal, four millions.

2 5 . For importing pitch and tar, and other naval stem ,

from North Britain and America.

2 6 . For the clothing, felt, and pantile trade.

E2 7 . For purchasing and immovmg a manor and royalty in

ssex .

2 8 . For insuring of horses. Capital, two millio2 9 . For ex porting the woollen manufacture, and importing

copper, brass, and iron . Capital, four millions.

30. For a grand dispensary. Capital,three millions.

31 . For erecting mills and purchasing lead mines. Capi

tal, two millions.

32 . For improving the art of making soap.

33. For a settlement on the island of Santa Cruz.

34. For sinking pits and smelting lead ore in

35 . For making glass bottles and other glass .

36 . For a wheel for perpetual motion . Capital, one million .

37 . For improving of gardens.

38 . For insuring and increasing children ’

s fortunes .

39 . For entering and loading goods at the custom- house,and for negotiating business for merchants.

40. For carrying on a woollen manufacture in the north of

England.

41 . For importing walnut- trees from Virginia. Capital,two mi llions.

42 . For making Manchester stufi’

s of thread and cotton.

43 . For making Joppa and Castile soap .

44. For improving the wrought- iron and steel manufactures

of this kingdom. Capital, four millions.

45 . For dealing in lace, Hollands, cambrics, lawns, &c.

Capital, two millions.

46 . For trading in and im roving certain commodities of

the produce of this kingdom, go. Capital, three millions.47 . For supplying the London markets with cattle.

48. For making looking-

glasses, coach glasses, &0. Capi

tal, two millions.

56 . For

61. The Bottomry Company.

6 2 . For drying malt by hot air.

63 . For carrying on a trade in the river Oronooko.

64. For the more effectual making of baize, in Colchesterand other parts of Great Britain .

65 . For buying of naval stores, supplying the victualling,and paying the wages of the workmen .

66 . or employing poor artificers, and furnishing mer

chants and others with watches.

67 . For improvement of tillage and the breed of cattle.

68 . Another for the improvement of our breed of horses.

69 . Another for a horse- insurance.

70. For carrying on the corn trade of Great Britain .

71 . For insuring to all masters and mistresses the lossesthey may sustain by servants. Capital

,three millions.

7 2 . For erecting houses or hospitals, for taking in and

maintaining illegitimate children . Capital,two millions.

73 . For bleaching coarse sugars, without the use of fire or

loss of substance.

74. For building turnpikes and wharfs in Great Britain .

75 . For insuring from thefts and robberies.

76 . For ex tractin silver from lead.

7 7 . For making China and Delft ware. Capital, one mi lJ on .

V OL . I.

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

78. For importing tobacco, and ex porting it again t

Sweden and the north of Europe. Capital, four milhons.

79 . For making iron wi th pit coal.80. For furnishing the cities of London and Westminste

with hay and straw. Capital, three millions.

81 . For a sail and packing cloth manufactory in Ireland.

8 2 . For taking up ballast.83. For buying and fitting out ships to suppress pirates.

84. For the importation of timber from Wales. Capitatwo millions.

85 . For rock- salt.

86 . For the transmutation of quicksilver into a malleablfine metal.

Besides these bubbles, many others sprang up daily, i

spite of the condemnation of the government and the ridicul

of the still sane portion of the public. The print- shops teams

with caricatures, and the newspaperswithep ms and satire

upon the prevalent folly. An i ngenious card-Tmaker publishea pack of South Seaplaying

- cards,which are now ex treme]

rare, each card containing, besides the usual figures, of a vetsmall size, in one corner, a caricature of a bubble compan:with appropriate verses underneath. One of the most famorbubbles was Puckle’

8 Machine Company, for dischargin

round and square cannon - balls and bullets, and makintotal revolution 1n the art of war. Its pretensions to pu li

favour were thus summed up, on the eight of spades

A rare invention to destroy the crowdOf fools at home, instead of fools abroad.

Fear not, my friends, this terrible machine,They’re only wounded who have shares therein .

The nine of hearts was a caricature of the English Copptand Brass Company, with the following epigram

The headlong fool that wants to be a swopperOf gold and silver coin for Engli sh copper,May, in Change Alley, prove himself an ass,

And give rich metal for adul terate brass.

The eight of diamonds celebrated the Company for tiColonization of Acadia, with this doggrel :

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

He that is rich and wants to fool awayA good round sum in North America,Let him subscri be himself a headlong sharer,And asses

’ears shall honour him or bearer .

And in a similar style every card of the pack ex posed some

13 7181] scheme, and ridiculed the persons who were its dupes.

was computed that the total amount of the sums proposed'

carrying on these projects was upwards of three hundredllions sterling, a sum so immense that it ex ceeded the value

all the lands in England at twenty years ’ purchase.

It is time, however, to return to the great South Sea gulf,it swallowed the fortunes of so many thousands of the

1ricious and the credulous . On the 2 9th of April the stockd risen as high as five hundred, and about two- thirds of thevernment annuitants had ex changed the securities of the

.te for those of the South Sea Company . During the

ole of the month of May, the stock continued to rise, andthe 2 8 th it was quoted at five hundred and fifty. In fourvs after this it took a prodig ious leap, rising suddenly fromhundred and fifty to eight hundred and n inety . It was

117 the general opinion that the stock cou ld rise no higher,1 many persons took that Opportun ity of selling out

,with

iew of realiz ing their profits. Many noblemen and personsthe train of the King, and about to accompany him to

mover , were also anx ious to sell out. So many sellers,and

few buyers, appeared in the Alley on the 3d of June, thatstock fell at once from eight hundred and n inety to six

adred and forty . The directors were alarmed,and gave

sir agents orders to buy. Their efforts succeeded. Towards

an ing confidence was restored,and the stock advanced to

'

en hundred and fifty . It continued at this price, withne slight fluctuation , until the Company closed their booksthe 2 2 d of June.

It would be needless and un interesting to detail the va

us arts employed by the directors to keep up the price of

lok. It will be sufficient to state that it finally rose to one

msand per cent. It was quoted at this price in the com

ncement of August. The bubble was then full blown , and

ga11 to qu iver and shake, preparatory to its bursting .

Iany of the government annuitants ex pressed dissatisfactn against the di rectors. They accused them of partiality

THB SOUTH BRA BUBBLE.

in making out the lists for shares in each subscription . Fur

ther uneasiness was occasioned by its being generally knownthat S ir John Blunt, the chairman , and some others, hout. During the whole of the month of August the stock fell,and on the 2 d of September, it was quoted at seven hundred

only.

The state of things now became alarming. To prevent, ifpossible, the utter ex tinction of public confidence in their

proceedings, the directors summoned a encral court of thewhole corporation

,to meet in Merchant ailors

’ Hall, on the

8th of September . By nine o’

clock in the mornin the roomwas filled to suffocation Cheapside was blockedup by a

crowd unable to gain admittance, and the greatest ex ci tementprevailed. The di rectors and their friends mustered m great

numbers. S ir John Fellowes, the sub-

governor, was called tothe chair. He acquainted the assembly with the cause of

their meeting, read to them the several resolutions of the

court of directors, and gave them an account of their pro

ceedings ; of the taking in the redeemable and unredeemablefunds, and of the subscriptions in money. Mr. SecretaryCraggs then made a short speech, wherein be commended the

conduct of the directors, and urged that nothing could more

effectually contribute to the bringing this scheme to perfectionthan union among themselves . H e concluded with a motion

for thanking the Court of Directors for their prudent and

skilful management, and for desiring them to proceed in such

manner as they should thi nk most proper for the interest andadvantage of the corporation . Mr. Hungerford, who hadrendered himself very conspicuous in the House of Commonsfor his zeal in behalf of the South Sea Company, and whowas shrewdly suspected to have been a considerable gainer byknowing the right time to sell out

,was very magniloquent on

this occasion . He said that he had seen the rise and fall,the

decay and resurrection of many communities of this nature,but that, in his opinion , none. had ever performed such won

derful things in so short a time as the South Sea Company.

They had done more than the crown , the pulpit, or the benchcould do. They had reconciled all parties in one common

interest ; they had laid asleep, if not wholly ex tin

gii ished

, all

the domestic jars and an imosities of the nation . y the rise

of their stock, moneyed men had vastly increased their for

THE SOUTH SBA BUBBLE.

tunes ; country gentlemen had seen the value of their landsdoubled and trebled in their hands. They had at the same

time done good to the Church, not a few of the reverendclergy having got great sums by the project. In short, theyhad enriched the whole nation

,and he hoped they had not

forgotten themselves. There was some hissing at the latterpart of thi s speech, which for the ex travagance of its eulogywas not far removed from satire ; but the directors and theirfriends, and all the winners in the room,

applauded vehe

mently. The Duke of Portland spoke in a similar strain,and

ex pressed his great wonder why anybody should be dissatis

fied : of course, he was a winner by his speculations, and in a

condition similar to that of the fat alderman in J oe Miller ’sJ ests , who, whenever he had eaten a good dinner, folded hishands upon his paunch, and ex pressed his doubts whetherthere cou ld be a hungry man in the world.

Several resolutions were passed at this meeting, but theyhad no effect upon the public . Upon the very same even ingthe stock fell to si x hundred and forty , and on the morrow to

five hundred and forty. D ay after day it continued to fall,unti l it was as low as four hundred. In a letter dated S eptember 13th, from Mr. Broderick

,M . P.

,to Lord Chancellor

Middleton ,and published in Cox e

'

s Walpole, the former says,Various are the conjectures why the South S ea directors

have suffered the cloud to break so early. I made no doubt

but they wou ld do so when they found it to their advantage.

They have stretched credit so far beyond what it would hear,that specie proves insufficien t to support it. Their most con

siderable men have drawn ou t,securing themselves by the

losses of the deluded, thoughtless numbers, whose understandings have been overruled by avarice and the hope of

making mountains out of mole- hills . Thousands of families

will be reduced to beggary . The consternation is inex pressible— the rage beyond description, and the case altogetherso desperate that I do not see any plan or scheme so much as

thought of for averting the blow so that I cannot pretend to

guess what is nex t to be done. Ten days afterwards, thestock still falling, he writes, The Company have yet cometo no determination , for they are in such a wood that theyknow not which way to turn . By several gen tlemen latelycome to town , I perceive the very name of a South- Sea- man

7*

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Black it stood as night

Fierce as ten furies—terrible as hell.

At a general court of the Bank of England held two daysterwards, the governor informed them of the several meet

gs that had been held on the afi'

airs of the South Sea Com

sny, adding that the directors had not yet thought fit to

me to any decision upon the matter . A resolution was then

oposed, and carried without a dissentient voice, empoweringte directors to agree wi th those of the South Sea to circu

te their bonds, to what sum,and upon what terms, and for

hat time, they might think proper.Thus both parties were at liberty to act as they mightdge best for the public interest. Books were opened at the

ank for a subscription of three millions for the support of

1i c credi t, on the usual terms of 151. per cent. deposit, 31.er cent. premium, and 5 1. per cent. interest. So great wasLe concourse of people in the early part of the morning, allsgerly bringing their money, that it was thought the sub

ription would be filled that day ; but before noon the tide

rued. In spite of all that could be done to prevent it, themth Sea Company’

s stock fell rapidly . Their bonds weresuch discredit, that a run commenced upon the most emi

nt goldsmi ths and bankers, some of whom having lent out

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

great sums upon South Sea stock were obliged to shut uptheir shops and abscond. The Sword- blade Company, whohad hitherto been the chief cashiers of the South Sea Com

pany, stopped payment. This being looked upon as but the

eginn ing of evil, occasioned a great run upon the Bank,who were now obliged to pay out money much faster thanthey had received it upon the subscription in the mornin

The day succeeding was a holiday (the 2 9th of Septemberand the Bank had a little breathing time. They bore upagainst the storm ; but their former rivals, the South SeaCompany, were wrecked upon it. Their stock fell to one

hundred and fifty, and gradually, after various fluctuations,to one hundred and thirty- five.

The Bank, finding they were not able to restore publicconfidence, and stem the tide of ruin, without runn ing the

risk of being swept away with those they intended to save,

declined to carry out the agreement into which they hadpartially entered. They were under no obligation whatever

to continue ; for the so- called Bank contract was nothingmore than the rough draft of an agreement, in which blankshad been left for several important particulars, and which

contained no penalty for their secession . And thus,to

use the words of the Parliamentary History, were seen, in

the space of eight months, the rise, progress, and fall of thatmighty fabric, which, being wound up by mysterious springsto a wonderful height, had fix ed the eyes and ex pectations ofall Europe, but whose foundation, being fraud, illus ion, credulity, and infatuation , fell to the ground as soon as the artful

management of its directors was discovered.

”

In the heyday of its blood, during the progress of this

dangerous delusion , the'

manners of the nation became sensibly corrupted. The Parliamentary inquiry, set on foot to

discover the delinquents,disclosed scenes of infamy, disgrace

ful alike to the morals of the ofi'

enders and the intellects of

the people among whom they had arisen . It is a deeplyinterestin study to investigate all the evils that were the

result. etions, like individuals, cannot become desperate

gamblers with impunity. Punishment is sure to overtake

them sooner or later. A celebrated writer* is quite wrong,

Smollett.

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

hen he says,“that such an era as this is the most unfa

turable for a historian ; that no reader of sentiment[and

1agination can be entertained or interested by a deta1l of

ansaction s such as these, whi ch admit of no warmth,no

.louring, no embellishment ; a detail of which only serves tothibit an inanimate picture of tasteless vice andmean dege

aracy . On the contrary, and Smollett might have dis

»vered it,if he had been in the humour— the subject is

tpable of inspiring as much interest as even a novelist can

as ire. Is there no warmth in the despair of a plunderedsople —no life and an imation in the picture which might berawn in the woes of hundreds of impoverished and ruinedtmilies ? of the wealthy of yesterday become the beggars ofyday ? of the powerful and influential changed into ex iles

nd outcasts, and the voice of self- reproach and imprecationasounding from every corner of the land ? Is it a dull or

ninstructive picture to see a whole people shaking suddenlyB"

the trammels of reason,and runn ing wild after a golden

ision,refusing obstinately to believe that it is not real

,till

,

he a deluded hind runn ing after an {gnawfatuus, they are

lunged into a quagmire ? But in this false Spirit has his

1ry too often been written . The intrigues of unworthyJurtiers to gain the favour of still more unworthy kings : ori s records of murderous battles and s ieges have been dilated

n,and told over and over again , w ith all the eloquence of

‘

yle and all the charms of fancy ; while the circumstances

hich have most deeply affected the morals and welfare of the

cople,have been passed over with but slight notice as dry

nd dull,and capable of neither warmth nor colouring .

During the progress of this famous Bubble, England presnted a singular spectacle. The public mind was in a state

f unwholesome fermentation . Men were no longer satisfiedith the slow but sure profits of cautious industry . The

ope of boundless wealth for the morrow made them heedless

nd ex travagant for to- day. A lu x ury

,till then unheard- of

,

as introduced,bringing in its train a corresponding lax ity

fmorals . The overbearing insolence of ignorant men , whoad arisen to sudden wealth by successful gambling, made

ten of true gen tility of mind and manners,blush that gold

i ould have power to raise the unworthy in the scale of

J ciety. The haughtiness of some of these cyphering

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

cits, as they were termed by S ir R ichard Steele, was re 1

membered against them in the day of their adversity. In

the Parliamentary inquiry, many of the directors sufl'

ered 5

more for their insolence than for their peculation . One of t

them,who

,in the full- blown pride of an ignorant rich man, 1

had said that he would feed hi s horse upon gold, was reduced 1:

almost to bread and water for himself every haughty look,every overbearing speech, was set down , and repaid thema hundred fold in poverty and humi li ation .

The state of matters all over the country was so alarming,that George I. shortened his intended stay in Hanover, andreturned in all haste to England. He arrived on the 11th 1

of November, and Parliament was summoned to meet on the

8th of December. In the mean time,public meetings were

held in every considerable town of the empire, at which

petitions were adopted, praying the vengeance of the legisla

ture upon the South Sea directors, who, by their fraudalent practices, had brought the nation to the brink of

ruin . Nobody seemed to imagine that the nation itself was

as culpable as the South Sea Company . Nobody blamed thecredulity and avarice of the people,— the degrading lust

of gain , which had swallowed up every nobler quality in thenational character, or the infatuation which had made the

multitude run their heads with such frantic eagerness intothe net held out for them by scheming projectors. Thesethings were never mentioned. The people were a simple,honest

,hard- working people, ruined by a gang of robbers,

who were to be hanged, drawn, and quartered without

mercy .

This was the almost unanimous feeling of the country.

The two Houses of Parliament were not more reasonable.Before the guilt of the South Sea directors was known,pun ishment was the on] cry. The King, in his speech fromthe throne, ex pressed his hope that they would rememberthat all their prudence, temper, and resolution were neeses

sary to find out and apply the proper remedy for their misfortunes. In the debate on the answer to the address,several speakers indul ed in the most violent invectives

a ainst the directors o the South Sea project. The Lordolesworth was particularly vehement. It had been said

by some, that there was no law to punish the directors of the

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

Sea Company, who were justly looked upon as the1 of the present misfortunes of the state. In his1 they ought, upon this occasion , to follow the ex ampleanc ient Romans, who, having no law against parricide,their legislators supposed no son could be so unnatu

ricked as to imbrue his hands in his father ’s blood,5 law to punish this heinous crime as soon as it was

ted. They adjudged the guilty wretch to be sown in

and thrown alive into the Tiber. He looked upon

ntrivers and ex ecutors of the villanous South Sea

as the parricides of their country, and should be

(1 to see them tied in like manner in sacks,and thrown

e Thames.

” Other members spoke with as much want

per and discretion . Mr. Walpole was more moderate.

commended that their first care should be to restorecredit. If the city of London were on fire, all wise

ould aid in ex tinguishing the flames,and preventing

ead of the conflagration before they inquired after thean es . Public credit had received a dangerous wound,y bleeding, and they ought to apply a speedy remedyIt was time enough to pun ish the assassin afterOn the 9th of December, an address

,in answer to

jesty’

s speech, was agreed upon,after an amendment

,

was carried without a division, that words should be

ex pres sive of the determination of the House not onlya remedy for the national distresses, but to punish

how of them .

inqu iry proceeded rapidly . The directors were orderedbefore the House a full account of all their proceedResolutions were passed to the effect that the calamitysinly ow ing to the vile arts of stockjobbers, and that

g could tend more to the re- establishment of publicthan a law to prevent this infamous practice. Mr.

le then rose,and said, that

“as he had previous

he had spent some time upon a scheme for restormg

credit,but that

,the ex ecution of it depending upon a

n which had been laid down as fundamental, he thought

»er, before he opened out his scheme, to be Informeder he m ight rely upon that foundatron . It was,

er the subscription of public debts and 1ncumbrances,

subscriptions, and other con tracts, made W lth the

7

84 THE scum sax BUBBLE.

South Sea Company should remain in the present statei”

rThis question occasioned an animated debate. It was finally

r

agreed, by a majority of 2 59 against 117, that all tha t

contracts should remain in their present state, unless altered!

for the relief of the proprietors by a general court of the:

South Sea Company, or set aside by due course of law. 011the following day Mr. Walpole laid before a committee of the

whole House his scheme for the restoration of public credit fllwhich was, in substance, to ingraft nine millions of South

aSea stock into the Bank of England, and the same sum into

3

the East India Company, upon certain conditions. The plan

was favourably received by the House. After some fewobjections, it was ordered that proposals should be received

from the two great corporations. They were both nu

to lend their aid, and the plan met with a warm but fruitless

Opposition at the general courts summoned for the purpose ofdeliberating upon it. They, however, ultimately agreed upon

the terms on which they would consent to circulate the SouthSea bonds, and their report, being presented to the com

mittee, a bill was brought in , under the superintendence of

Mr. Walpole, and safely carried through both Houses of

Parliament.A bill was at the same time brought in, for restraining

the South Sea directors, governor, sub-

governor, treasurer,cashier, and clerks

,from leaving the kingdom for a twelve

month, and for discovering their estates and effects, and

preventing them from transporting or alienating the same.

All the most influential members of the House supported thebill. Mr. Shippen ,

.

seeing Mr. Secretary Craggs 1n his place,and believing the i njurious rumours that were afloat of thatmin ister ’s conduct m the South Sea business, determined to

touch him to the quick . He said,he was glad to see a

British House of Commons resuming its pristine vigour and

spirit, and acting with so much unanimi ty for the public

good. It was necessary to secure the persons and estates of

the South Sea directors and their officers but,”he added,

looking fix edly at Mr. Craggs as he spoke,“there were

other men in high station,whom,

in time, he would not be

afraid to name,who were no less guilty than the directors.

"

Mr . Craggs arose in great wrath, and said, that if the innu

endo were directed against him,he was ready to give satisfac

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

ion to any man who questioned him, either in the House or

ut of i t. Loud cries of order immediately arose on everyide. In the midst of the uproar Lord Molesworth got up,.nd ex pressed his wonder at the boldness of Mr . Craggs inzhallenging the whole House of Commons. H e, Lord Moles

rorth, though somewhat old,past six ty, would answer Mr .

3rsggs whatever he had to say in the House,and be trusted

.here were plenty of young men beside him, who would not

1c afra id to look Mr. Craggs in the face, out of the House.

The cries of order again resounded from every side ; the

nembers arose simultaneously ; everybody seemed to be

rociferating at once. The Speaker in vain called order.The confusion lasted several minutes, during which LordMolesworth and Mr. Craggs were almost the only memberswho kept their seats. At last the call for Mr . Craggs becameso violent that he thought proper to submit to the universalfeeling of the House

,and ex plain his unparliamentary ex

press ion . H e said,that by giving satisfaction to the im

pugners of his conduct in that House, he did not mean that

he would fight, but that he would ex plain his conduct. H erethe matter ended

,and the H ouse proceeded to debate in what

mann er they should conduct their inqu iry into the affairs of

the S ou th Sea Company, whether in a grand or a select

comm ittee. U ltimately, a Secret Committee of thirteen

was appointed, with power to send for persons, papers, andrecords .

The Lords were as zealous and as hasty as the Commons .

The B ishop of R ochester said the scheme had been like a

pestilence. The D uke of Wharton said the house ought to

show no respect of persons ; that, for his part, he would give

up the dearest friend he bad, if he had been engaged in the

project. The nation had been plundered in a most shameful

and flagrant manner, and he would go as far as anybody inthe pun ishment of the offenders . Lord S tanhope said

,that

every farthing possessed by the crim inals,whether directors

or not directors,ought to be confiscated

,to make good the

public losses .

During all this time the public ex citemen t was ex treme.

We learn,from Cox e

’

s W alpole, that the very name of a

South Sea director was thought to be synonymous with everyspecies of fraud and villany . Petitions from counties

, cities,vol. 1 . 8

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zy, acquainted them that they had already discovered a

)f the deepest villany and fraud that Hell had ever conto ruin a nation , which in due time they would laythe House. In the mean time

,in order to a further

ery, the Committee thought it highly necessary to

1 the persons of some of the directors and principalS ea officers, and to seize their papers. A motion to

d’

ect having been made, was carried unanimously. S ir

t Chaplin, S ir Theodore Janssen , Mr. Sawbridge,

Hr. F . Eyles, members of the House, and directors3 South Sea Company, were summoned to appear inplaces, and answer for their corrupt practices. S ir

lore Janssen and Mr. Sawbridge answered to their

1, and endeavoured to ex culpate themselves. The Housethem patiently, and then ordered them to withdraw. An was then made

,and carried nemine contradicente,

hey had been gui lty of a notorious breach of trust—hadoned much loss to great numbers of his Majesty ’

s sub

and had highly prejudiced the public credit. It was

1rdered that, for their offence, they should be ex pelledIouse, and taken into the custody of the sergeant- atS ir Robert Chaplin and Mr. Eyles, attending in

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

their places four days afterwards, were also ex pelled the

House. It was resolved at the same time to address the

King, to give directions to his ministers at foreign courts to 1

make application for Knight, that he might be delivered up 1:

to the English authorities, in case he took refuge in any of 1

their dominions. The King at once agreed, and messengers 1

were despatched to all parts of the continent the same u i ht.

Among the directors taken into custody, was S ir ohn

Blunt,the man whom popular opin ion has generally accused

of having been the origi nal author and father of the scheme.

This man, we are informed by Pope, m his epistle to Allen,

Lord Bathurst, was a dissenter, of a most religious deportment, and professed to be a great believer. He constantlydeclaimed against the lux ury and corruption of the age, the

partiality of parliaments, and the mi sery of party Spiri t. He

was particularly eloquent against avarice in great and noblepersons . He was o1 iginally a scrivener, and afterwardsbecame

,not only a director, but the most active manager of

the South Sea Company . Whether it was during his careerin this capacity that he first began to declaim against the

ava1 ice of the great, we are not informed. He certainlymust have seen enough of it to justify his severest anathemabut if the preacher had himself been free from the vice he

condemned, his declamations would have had a better efi'

ect.

H e was brought up in custody to the bar of the House of .

Lords,and underwent a long ex amination . He refused to

answer several important questions. He said he had been ex a

m ined already by a committee of the House of Commons, andas he did not remember his answers, andmight contradict himself, he refused to answer before another tribunal. This declaration , in itself an indirect proof of guilt, occasioned some commotion in the House. H e was again asked peremptorily whetherhe had ever sold any portion of the stock to any memberof the administration , or any member of either House of

Parliament, to facilitate the passing of the bill . He again

declined to answer. He was an x ious, he said, to treat theHouse with all possible respect, but he thought it hard to becompelled to accuse himself. After several inefl

'

ectual at

tempts to refresh his memory, he was directed to withdraw.

A violent discussion ensued between the friends and opponeuts of the ministry. It was asserted that the administra

THE SOUTH S EA BUBBLE. 89

latter did not cease their solicitations ; but,in the mean time, Kn ight escaped from the citadel.

On the l 6th of February the Committee of Secrecy made

thei r first report to the House. They stated that their inquiryhad been attended with numerous difliculties and embarrassments ; every one they had ex amined had endeavoured, as

far as in him lay, to defeat the ends of justice. In some of

the books produced before them,false and fictitious entries

had been made ; in others, there were entries of money, withblanks for the name of the stockholders. There were frequenterasures and alterations, and in some of the books leaves weretorn ou t. They also found that some books of great importance had been destroyed altogether, and that some had beentaken away or secreted. At the very entrance into theirinquiry, they had observed that the matters referred to them

were of great variety and ex tent. Many persons had beenintrusted with various parts in the ex ecution of the law, and

8’

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

under colour thereof had acted in an unwarrantable manner,in disposing of the properties of many thousands of persons,amounting to many millions of money. They discoveredthat

, before the South S ea Act was passed, there was an

entry in the Company’

s books of the sum of

upon account of stock stated to have been sold to the amount

of This stock was all fictitious, and had been

disposed of with a view to promote the passing of the bill.

It was noted as sold at various days, and at various prices,from 150 to 3 2 5 per cent. Being surprised to see so largean account disposed of, at a time when the Company were not

empowered to increase their capital, the committee determinedto investigate most carefully the whole transaction . The

governor, sub-

governor, and several directors were broughtbefore them,

and ex amined rigidly. They found that, at thetime these entries were made, the Company was not in possession of such a quantity of stock, having in their own right

only a small quantity, not ex ceeding thirty thousand poundsat the utmost. Pursuing the inquiry, they found that this

amount of stock was to be esteemed as taken in or holden bythe Company, for the benefit of the pretended purchasers,although no mutual agreement was made for its delivery or

acceptance at any certain time. N0 money was paid down,{for any deposit or security whatever given to the Companyby the supposed purchasers ; so that if the stock had fallen,as might have been ex pected, had the act not passed, theywould have sustained no loss . If

,on the contrary, the price

of stock advanced (as it actually did by the success of the

scheme), the difference by the advanced price was to be made

good to them; Accordingly, after the passing of the act,

the account of stock was made up and adjusted with Mr.

Knight, and the pretended purchasers were paid the differenceout of the Company

'

s cash. This fictitious stock, which hadbeen chiefly at the disposal of S ir John Blunt, Mr. Gibbon,and Mr. Knight, was distributed among several members of

the government and their connex ions, b way of bribe, tofacilitate the passing of the bill. To theEarl of Sunderlandwas as signed of this stock ; to the Duchess of

Kendal to the Countess of Platen to her

two nieces to Mr. Secretary Craggs to

Mr. Charles Stanhope (one of the Secretaries of the Treasury)

m som su BUBBLE. 91

0001 to the Sword- blade Company It also apre d that Mr. S tanhope had received the enormous sum of

as the difference in the price of some stock, through1 hands of Turner, Caswall, and Co.

,but that his name

(1 been partly erased from their books, and altered to S tan1pe . A i slabie, the Chancellor of the Ex chequer, had maderofits st ill more abominable. He had an account wi th the

m e firm . who were also South Sea Directors, to the amount

I He had, besides, advised the Company to makezheir second subscription one mi llion and a half, instead of a

million . by their own authority, and without any warrant.The third subscription had been conducted in a manner as

di s g raceful. Mr. Aislabie’

s name was down for

Mr . C r aggs, sen ior, for the Earl of S underland’

s

for and Mr. S tanhope for This reportwas succeeded by six others . less importan t. At the end of

the last. the committee declared that the absence of Kn ight,who had been princ ipally intrusted, prevented them fromcarry ing on their inqu iries .

The firs t report was ordered to be prm ted, and taken intocons i deration on the nex t day but one succeeding . After avery angry and an imated debate, a series of resolutions wereagreed to, condemnatory of the conduct of the directors

,of

the members of the Parliament and of the admin istrationcnucerne d with them ; and declaring that they ought, each

1nd a ll. to make satisfaction out of their own estates for the

injury they had done the public . Their practices were declare-l to he corrupt, infamous, and dangerous ; and a billwas ordered to be brought in for the relief of the unhappymil

-

c rew .

Mr. Charles S tanhope was the first person brought to

account for his share in these transactions. Ile urged in his

defence that. for some years past, he had lodged all th'

money he was possessed of in Mr . Knight'

s hands , and wha‘

ever stock Mr. Kn ight had taken in for him ,he had paid

valuable consideration for it. As to the stock that had hebought for him by Turner, Caswall, and Co. , he knew netlu

about it . Whatever had been done in that matter was dcwithout his authority, and he could not be respons1ble for

Turner and Co. took the latter charge upon themselves,

it was notorious to every unbiassed and unprej ud1ced pe1

92 run sourn 88A sussnx .

that Mr. S tanhope was a gainer of the which lay 31

in the hands of that firm to his credit. He was, however,acquitted by a majority of three only. The greatest ex er 11

tions were made to screen him. Lord S tanhope, the son of 15’

the Earl of Chesterfield, went round to thewavering members, 1

using all the eloquence he was possessed of to induce than g

ei ther to vote for the acquittal or to absent themselves from 1

the house. Many weak- headed country gentlemen were led a

astray by his persuasions, and the result was as already 1

stated. The acquittal caused the greatest discontent throu hout the country. Mobs of a menacing character assemb ed

in different parts of London ; fears of riots were enerallyentertained, especially as the ex amination of a stilI

e

greater‘

1

delinquent was ex pected by many to have a similar termination . Mr. Aislabie

,whose high oflice and deep responsibilities

should have kept him honest,even had native principle been

insuflieient, was very justly regarded as perhaps the test

criminal of all. H is case was entered i nto on the

ceeding the acquittal of Mr. S tanhope. Great ex citement

prevailed, and the lobbies and avenues of the House werebeset by crowds , impatient to know the result. The debate

lasted the whole day. Mr. Aislabie found few friends ; hisguilt was so apparent and so heinous that nobody had courage

to stand up in his favour. It was finally resolved, without adissentient voice, that Mr . Aislabie had encouraged and pro

moted the destructive ex ecution of the South Sea scheme

with a view to his own ex orbitant profit, and had combined

with the directors in their pern icious practices to the ruin of

the public trade and credit of the kingdom : that he should

for his ofl'

ences be ignomin iously ex pelled from the House ofCommons, and committed a close prisoner to the Tower ofLondon ; that he should be restrained from going out of the

kingdom for a whole year, or till the end of the nex t session

of Parliament ; and that he should make out a correct accountof all his estate, in order that it might be applied to the

relief of those who had suffered by hi s mal- practices .

This verdict caused the greatest joy. Though it was delivered at half past twelve at night, it soon spread over the

city. Several persons illuminated their houses in token of

their joy. On the following day, when Mr. Aislabie was con

veyed to the Tower, the mob assembled on Tower Hill with

n of hooting and pelting him.,Not succeeding in

indled a large bonfire, and danced around it innce of their delight. Several bonfires were madeces ; London presented the appearance of a holiaople congratulated one another as if they hadI from some great calamity. The upon theMr. Stanhope had grown to such a eight, thattell where it would have ended, had Mr. Ai slabie0 like indulgence.

me the puhko satisfaction, S ir George Caswall, ofTurner

, Caswall Co. was ex pelled the House

owing day, and ordered to refund the sum of

t of the report of the Committee of Secrecy whichthe Earl of Sunderland was nex t taken into con

Every effort was made to clear his Lordship fromtion . As the case against him rested chiefly one ex torted from S ir John Blunt, great pains wereeke it appear that S ir John ’

s word was not to be

pecially in a matter afl'

ecting the honour of a peerouncillor. All the friends of the min istry ralliedEarl, it being generally reported that a verdict of1st him would bring a Tory ministry into power .entually acquitted, by a majority of 2 33 against

1e country was convinced of his guilt. The greatestwas everywhere ex pressed, and menacing mobsubled in London . Happily no disturbances took

the day on which Mr. Craggs, the elder, ex pired.

9 had been appointed for the consideration of his

as very generally believed that he had poisonedt appeared, however, that grief for the loss of hisf the Secretaries of the Treasury, who had died

previously of the small- pox , preyed much on his

thi s son , dearly beloved, he had been amassingof riches : he had been getting money, but not

1nd be for whose sake he had bat tered his honourhis fame, was now no more. The dread of furthercreased his trouble of mind, and ultimately broughtlactic fit, in which he ex pired. He left a fortune

1 and a half, which was afterwards confiscated for

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THE SOUTH SBA BUBBLE.

wted on ; but a bill of pains and penalties was introduced1 retro- active statute, to punish the ofi

'

ences which did not

ex ist at the time they were committed. The Legislaturemstrained the persons of the directors, imposed an ex orbitantsecurity for their appearance, and marked their characterwith a previous note of ignominy. They were compelled to

deliver, upon oath, the strict value of their estates, and weredisabled from makin any transfer or alienation of any partof their property. Egainst a bill of pains and penalties, itis the common ht of every subject to be heard by his coun

sel at the bar.

li’fihey prayed to be heard. Their prayer was

refused, and their oppressors, who required no evidence, would

listen to no defence. It had been at first proposed, that oneeighth of their res ective estates should be allowed for the

future support of t e directors ; but it was speciously urged,that in the various shades of opulence and guilt, such a pro

portion would be too light for many, and for some might pos

sibly be too heavy . The character and conduct of each man

were separately weighed ; but, instead of the calm solemnityof a judicial inquiry, the fortune and honour of thirty- threeEnglishmen were made the topics of hasty conversation , thesport of a lawless majority ; and the basest member of the

committee, by a malicious word, or a silent vote, might ia

dulge his general Spleen or personal an imosity. Injury wasaggravated by insult, and insult was embittered by pleasantry .

Allowances of 2 01. or 13 . were facetiously moved. A vague

report that a director had formerly been concerned in anotherproject, by which some unknown persons had lost their money

,

was adm itted as a proof of his actual gu ilt. One man was

ruined because he had dropped a foolish speech, that his

horses shou ld feed upon gold ; another, because he was grownso proud, that one day, at the Treasury, he had refused a

civil answer to persons much above him . All were condemned,absen t and unheard, in arbitrary fines and forfeitures , which

swept away the g1eatest part of their substance. S uch boldoppression can scarcely be shielded by the omn ipotence of

Parliamen t. “y g1a11df'1ther could not ex pect to be t1eatedwith more lenity than his compan ions . l l is

'l ory p1 1nc1ples

and connex ions rendered him obnox ious to the ruling powers .

His name was reported in a suspicious secret. H is well

known abilities could not plead the ex cuse of ignorance or

THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE.

error. In the first proceedin 8 against the South Sea direc

tors, Mr. Gibbon was one of the first taken into custody, 1a :

and in the final sentence the measure of his fine proclaimedhim eminentl guilty. The total estimate, which he delivered

on oath to t e House of Commons, amounted to z

5 8 . 6d., ex clusive of antecedent settlements. Two difi

'

erent

allowances of and of were moved for Mr.Gibbon ; but, on the question

’

s being put, it was carriedwithout a division for the smaller sum. On these ruins, with the a

skill and credi t of which Parliament had not been able to

despoil him,my grandfather, at a mature age, erected the

edifice of a new. fortune. The labours of six teen years wereamply rewarded ; and I have reason to believe that the secondstructure was not much inferior to the first.”

The nex t consideration of the Legislature, after the punishment of the directors, was to restore public credi t. The

scheme ofWalpole had been found insufficient, andhad falleninto disrepute. A computation was made of the whole capitalstock of the South Sea Company at the end of the year 17 2 0.

It was found to amount to thirty- seven millions eight hundred

thousand pounds, of which the stock allotted to all the pro

prietors only amounted to twenty- four millions five hundredthousand pounds. The remainder of thirteen millions threehundred thousand pounds belonged to the Company in their

corporate capacity,and was the profit they had made by the

national delusion . Upwards of eight millions of this weretaken from the Company

,and divided among the proprietors

and subscribers generally, making a dividend of about 331.6 8 . 8d. per cent. This was a great relief. It was fu rtherordered, that such persons as had borrowed money from the

South Sea Company upon stock actually transferred and

pledged at the time of borrowing to or for the use of the

Company,should be free from all demands

,upon payment of

ten per cent. of the sums so borrowed. They had lent abouteleven millions in this manner, at a time when prices wereunnaturally raised ; and they now received back one million

one hundred thousand, when prices had sunk to their ordinary level.But it was a long time before public credit was thoroughly

restored. Enterprise, like Icarus, had soared too high, and

melted the wax of her wings ; like Icarus, she had fallen into

dangerous it is to let ined, and to

hope for enormous profits from inadequate causes. Degradingas were the circumstances, there is wisdom to be gained fromthe lesson which they teach.

VOL. I.

THE TULIPOMANIA .

Qui s furor, 6 cives l—Luou .

THE tulip,—ao named, it is said, from a Turkish word,

sign ifying a turban ,—was introduced into western Europe

about the middle of the six teenth century. Conrad Gesner,who claims the merit of having brought it into repute,—littledreaming of the ex traordinary commotion it was to make inthe world,—says that he first saw it in the year 15 5 9 , in a

gi rden at Augsburg, belonging to the learned Counsellorerwart

,a man very famous in his day for his collection of

rare ex otics. The bulbs were sent to this gentleman by a

friend at ConstantinOple, where the flower had long been a

favourite. In the course of ten or eleven years after this

period, tulips were much sought after by‘

the wealthy,especially in Holland and Germany. Rich people at Amsterdam sent for the bulbs direct to Constantinople, and paidthe most ex travagant prices for them . The first roots plantedin England were brought from Vienna in 1600. Until the

year 1634the tulip annually increased in reputation , until itwas deemed a proof of bad taste in any man of fortune tobe without a collection of them. Many learned men , including Pompcius de Angelis and the celebrated L ipsius ofLeyden, the author of the treatise “De Constantia

,

”were

passionately fond of tulips. The rage for possessing them

soon caught the middle classes of society, and merchants and

shopkeepers, even of moderate means, began to vie with each

other in the rari ty of these flowers and the preposterousprices they paid for them. A trader at Harlaem was known

to pay one half of his fortune for a single root—not with the

design of selling it again at a profit,but to keep in his own

conservatory for the admiration of his acquaintance.

One would suppose that there must have been some great

in this flower to have made it so valuable in the eyes

prudent a people as the Dutch ; but it has neither the

7 nor the perfume of the rose—hardly the beauty of theat, sweet-

pea neither is it as enduring as either.

y , it is true, is loud in its praise. He says

The tulip nex t appeared, all over gay,But wanton, mu of pride, and full of play ;The world can

’t show a dye but here has place ;

Nay, by new mix tures, she can change her facePurple and gold are both beneath her '

eare

The richest needlework she loves to wear ;Her only study is to please the eye,And to outshine the rest in finery.

though not very poetical, is the description of a poet.

nann, in his History of Inventions, paints it with more.y, and in prose more pleasing than Cowley

’

s poetry.

1ya z There are few plants wh1ch acquire, through acciweakness

,or disease, so many variegations as the tulip .

1 uncultivated, and in its natural state, it is almost of

olour, has large leaves, and an ex traordinarily long stem.

1 it has been weakened by cultivation,it becomes more

able in the eyes of the florist. The petals are then

smaller,and more diversified in hue ; and the leaves

re a softer green colour. Thus,this masterpiece of

'

e, the more beautiful it turns, grows so much the

ar,so that

,with the greatest skill and most careful

tion , it can scarcely be transplanted, or even kept alive.

”

.ny persons grow insensibly attached to that which gives

a great deal of trouble, as a mother often loves her sickver- ailing child better than her more healthy ofl

'

spring .

the same principle we must account for the unmeritedaia lavished upon these fragile blossoms. In 1634, theamong the Dutch to possess them was so great that thesry industry of the country was neglected, and the

ation, even to its lowest dregs, embarked - in the tulipAs the mania increased, prices augmented, until, in

car 1635 , many persons were known to invest a fortuneflorins in the purchase of forty roots. It then

1e necessary to sell them by their weight in perits, awei ht less than a grain . A tulip of the species callediralTiefkm ,weighing400perite, wasworth4400flori ns

THE TULIPOMANIA.

an Admiral Von der Eyk, weighing 446 pet-its, was worth1 2 60florins ; a skilder of 106 perite was worth 1615 fiorins ;a viceroy of 400 perite, 3000 florins, and, most prec i ous of

all, a S eemper A ugustus, weighin 2 00 perits, was thought to

be very cheap at 5 500 florims . he latter was much sought

after, and even an inferior bulb might command a price of

2 000 florins. It is related that, at one time, early m 1636,there were only two roots of this description to be had in allHolland

,and those not of the best. One was in the posses

sion of a dealer in Amsterdam,and the other in H arlaem.

So anx ious were the speculators to obtain them that one

person offered the fee- simple of twelve acres of buildingground for the Harlaem tulip . That of Amsterdam was

bought for4600florins, a new carriage, two ay horses, and

a complete suit of harness. Muntingg, an mghstrious author

of that day, who wrote a folio volume of one thousand pages

upon the Tulipomania, has preserved the following list of thevarious articles, and their value, which were delivered for onesingle root of the rare species called the viceroy

Two lasts of wheat

Four lasts of rye

Four fat ox en

Eight fat swine

Twelve fat sheepTwo hogsheads of wine

Four tune of beer

Two tune of butter

One thousand lbs. of cheese

A complete bedA sui t of clothes

A silver drinking- cup

People who had been absent from Holland, and whose

chance it was to return when this folly was at its max imum,

were sometimes led in to awkward di lemmas by their 1gnorance.

There is an amusing instance of the kind related in Blainville

’

s Travels. A wealthy merchant, who prided himself

not a little on his rare tulips,received upon one occasion a

very valuable consignment of merchandise from the Levant.Intelligence of its arrival was brought him by a sailor

,who

presented himself for that purpose at the counting- house,

THE TULIPOMANIA.

unong bales of goods of every description . The merchant,o reward him for his news, munificently made him a present1f a fine red herring for his breakfast. The sailor had

,it

1ppears , a great partiality for onions,and seeing a bulb very

ike an on ion lying upon the counter of this liberal trader,

1nd thinkin it,no doubt, very much out of its place among

1ilks and vs vets, he slily seized an opportun ity and slippedt into his pocket, as a relish for his herring. He got clear1fl

'

w ith his prize, and proceeded to the quay to eat his

1reakfast. Hardly was his back turned when the merchantnissed his valuable S empcr Augustus, worth three thousand

lorins, or about 2 801. sterling . The whole establishmentras instantly in an uproar ; search was everywhere made forhe prec ious root, but it was not to be found. Great was thenerchant

’

s di stress of mind. The search was renewed, but1gain without success . At last some one thought of the

anilor.

The unhappy merchant sprang into the street at the bare111ggestion . H is alarmed household followed him . The

a ilor,simple soul ! had not thought of concealment. He

vas found qu ietly s itting on a coil of ropes, masticating the

ast morsel of his on ion . Little did he dream that he had

1cen eating a breakfast whose cost might have regaled a

whole ship’

s crew for a twelvemonth ; or,as the plundered

nerchan t himself ex pressed it,

“m ight have sumptuouslybested the Prince of Orange and the whole court of the

Stadtholder. Anthony caused pearls to be dissolved in

vine to drink the health of Cleopatra ; S ir Richard Whitington was as foolishly magn ificent in an entertainment toKing Henry V and S ir Thomas Gresham drank a diamond

,

lissolved in wine,to the health of Queen Elizabeth

,when she

1pened the Royal Ex change but the breakfast of this rogu ishDutchman was as splendid as either . H e had an advantage,00

, over his wasteful predecessors ; their gems did not improvehe taste or the wholesomeness of their wine, while his tulipvas qu ite delicious with his red herring . The most unfor

unate part of the business for him was, that he remained in

1rison for some months, on a charge of felony, preferred1gainst him by the merchant.

Another story is told of an English traveller, which is

.carcely less ludicrous . This gentleman,an amateur bota

9“

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were also appointed,who devoted themselves ex clusively to

the interests of the trade. The designation of public notarywas hardly known in some towns, that of tulip notary usurping its place. In the smaller towns, where there was no

ex change, the. principal tavern was usually selected as the

showplace,”where high and low traded in tulips, and con

firmed their bargains over sumptuous entertainments. Thesedinners were sometimes attended by two or three hundred

persons, and large vases of tulips, in full bloom,were placed

at regular intervals upon the tables and sideboards, for their

gratification during the repast.At last, however, the more prudent began to see that this

folly could not last for ever . Rich people no longer boughtthe flowers to keep them in their gardens, but to sell them

again at cent. per cent. profit. It was seen that somebodymust lose fearfully in the end. As this conviction spread,prices fell, and never rose again . Confidence was destroyed,and a universal panic seized upon the dealers. A had

agreed to purchase ten S crapers Augustin e from B , at four

thousand florins each, at six weeks after the signing of the

contract. B was ready with the flowers at the appointedtime ; but the price had fallen to three or four hundredflorins, and A refused either to pay the difi

'

erence or receive

THE TULIPOMANIA.

the tulips. Defaulters were announced day after da in allthe towns of Holland. Hundreds who, a few mont a previously, had begun to doubt that there was such a thing as

poverty in the land, suddenly found themselves the pos

sessors of a few bulbs, which nobody would buy, even th

they offered them at one quarter of the sums they hadfor them. The cry of distress resounded everywhere, andeach man accused his nei bhour. The few who had con

trived to enrich themselvesghid their wealth from the know

ledge of their fellow- citizens, and invested it in the Englishor other funds. Many who, for a brief season, had emerged

from the humbler walks of life, were cast back into their

original obscurity . S ubstantial merchants were reducedalmost to beggary, and many a representative of a noble

line saw the fortunes of his house ruined beyond redemption .

When the first alarm subsided,the tulip- holders in the

several towns held public meetings to devise what measureswere best to be taken to restore public credit. It was gene

rally agreed, that deputies should be sent from all parts toAmsterdam

,to consult with the government upon some remedy

for the evil. The government at first refused to in terfere,but advised the tulip- holders to agree to some plan amongthemselves. S everal meetings were held for this purpose ;but no measure could be devised likely to give satisfaction to

the deluded people, or repair even a slight portion of the mis

c‘

hief that had been done. The language of complaint andreproach was in everybody ’

s mouth,and all the meetings

were of the most stormy character . At last,however, after

much bickering and ill- will, it was agreed, at Amsterdam, bythe assembled deputies, that all contracts made in the heightof the man ia, or prior to the monthof November, 1636 , shouldbe declared null and void, and that, in those made after that

date, purchasers should be freed from their engagements, onpaying ten per cent. to the vendor. This dec1alca gave no

satisfaction . The vendors who had their tulips on hand were,of course, discontented, and those who had pledged them

selves to purchase, thought themselves hardly treated. Tulipswhi ch had, at one time, been worth six thousand florins, were

now to be procured for five hundred ; so that the compositionof ten per cent. was one hundred florins more than the actual

THE TULIPOMANIA.

alue. Actions for breach of contract were threatened in allhe courts of the country ; but the latter refused to take cogizance of gambling transactions.

The matter was finally referred to the Provincial Council1t the Hague, and it was confidently ex pected that the wislcm of this body would invent some measure by which creditbould be restored. Ex pectation was on the stretch for itsIncision, bu t it never came. The members continued to delimate week after week, and at last

,after thinking about it

hr three months , declared that they could od'

er no final dei ion un til they had more information . They advised, how

ser, that, in the mean time,every vendor should

,in the

m ence of wi tnesses, od

'

er the tulips in natura to the pur

laser for the sums agreed upon . If the latter refused toeke them, they might be put up for sale by public auction ,nd the original contractor held responsible for the difl

'

erence

etween the actual and the stipulated price. This was ex actlybe plan recommended by the deputies, and which was alreadyhown to be of no avail. There was no court in Holland

hich would enforce payment. The question was raised in1msterdam , but the judges unan imously refused to interfere

,

n the ground that debts contracted in gambling were no

ebts in law .

Thus the matter rested. To find a remedy was beyond theuower of the government. Those who were unlucky enough

ohave had stores of tu lips on hand at the time of the sudden

eaetion were left to bear their ruin as philosophically as

hey could ; those who had made profits were allowed to keephem: but the commerce of the country suffered a severe1hock

,from which it was many years ere it recovered.

The ex ample of the Dutch was imitated to some ex tent in

England. In the year 1636 , tulips were publicly sold in the

Exchange of London,and the jobbers ex erted themselves to

he utmost to raise them to the fictitious value they had1equired in Amsterdam . In Paris also the jobbers strove toreate a tulipomania. In both cities they only partially suc

ceded. However, the force of ex ample brought the flowers110 great favour, and amongst a certain class of people tuhpsare ever s ince been prized more highly than any otherJwei's of the field. The Dutch are still notorious for thelr1rt ia1itv to them,

and continue to pay higher prices for them

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RELICS .

A fouth o’ auld h ick- b askets,aim and ackWa ndfifim

’w mm’1. “a“,

A towmond guld ;

Afore the flood.Em a.

Tun love for relics is one whichwill never be eradicated as

long as feeling and affection are denizens of the heart. It isa love which is most easily ex cited in the best and kindliestnatures , and which few are callous enough to sood

'

at. Whowould not treasure the look of hair that once adorned the

brow of the faithful wife, now cold in death, or that hungdown the neck of a beloved infant, now sleeping under theaward ? Not one. They are home- reli cs, whose sacred worthis intelligible to all — spoils rescued from the devouringgrave, which, to the afl

'

ectionate, are beyond all price. How

dear to a forlorn survivor the book over whose pages he haspored with one departed ! How much greater its value, if

that hand,now cold, had written a thought, an opinion , or a

name, upon the leaf ! Besides these sweet, domestic relics,there are others

,which no one can condemn ; relics sanctified

by that admiration of greatness and goodness which is akinto love ; such as the copy of Montaigne

’

s Florio, with the

name of Shakspeare upon the leaf, written by the poet of all

time himself ; the chair preserved at Antwerp, in which

Rubens sat when he painted the immortal Descent from the

Cross ; or the telescope, preserved in the Museum of Flo

rence,which aided Galileo in his sublime discoveries . Who

would not look with veneration upon the undoubted arrow of

William Tell— the swords ofWallace or of Hampden— or the

Bible whose leaves were turned by some stern old father ofthe faith ?

108 names.

Thus the principle of reliquism is hallowed and enshrinedby love. But from this germ of purity how numerous theprogeny of errors and superstitions ! Men , in their admiration of the great, and of all that appertained to them,

have

forgotten that goodness is a component part of trueness

,and have made fools of themselves for the jaw- bone ofa

sai nt,the toe- nail of an apostle

,the handkerchief a king blew

his nose in , or the rope that hanged a criminal. Desiring torescue some slight token from the graves of their predecessors, they have confounded the famous and the infamous, the

renowned and the notorious. Great saints, great sinners ;

great philosophers, great quacks ; great conquerors, greatmurderers ; great min isters, great thleves : each and all have

had their admirers, ready to ransack earth, from the equatorto either pole, to find a relic of them.

The reliquism of modern times dates its origin from the

centuries immediately preceding the Crusades. The first

pilgrims to the Holy Land brought back to Europe thousandsof apocryphal relics, in the purchase of which they had expended all their store. The greatest favourite was the woodof the true cross, which, like the oil of the widow, never

dimin ished. It is generally asserted, in the traditions of the

Romish Church, that the Empress Helen, the mother of Constantine the Great, first discovered the veritable

“true cross

in her pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The Emperor Theodosiusmade a present of the greater part of it to St. Ambrose,B ishop of Milan

,by whom it was studded with precious

stones, and deposited in the principal church of that city.

It was carried away by the Huns, by whom it was burnt, after

they had ex tracted the valuable jewels it contained. Fragments, purporting to have been cut from it were, in the

eleventh ai1d twelfth centuries, to be found in almost everychurch in Europe, and would

,if collected together in one

place, have been almost sufficient to have built a cathedral.

Happy was the sinner who could get a sight of one of them ;happier he who possessed one ! To obtain them the greatestdangers were cheerfully braved. They were thought to pre

serve from all evils, and to cure the most inveterate diseases.

Annual pilgrimages were made to the shrines that containedthem,

and considerable revenues collected from the devotees.

Nex t in renown were those precious relics, the tears of the

he did not often inquire. Their uineness was

by the Christians of the Holy Landfn

m d that wasufi cient. Tears of theVirgin Mary, and tears of St. Peter,'are also to be had, carefully enclosed in little caskets, which

he pious might wear in their bosoms. After the tears theex t most pmcious relics were drops of the blood of Jesus

lhe majority of them had no other means of subsisting than

mm the profits thus obtained. Many a nail, cut from thedthy foot of some unscrupulous ecclesiastic, was sold at a

iamond’

s price, within six months after its severance fromhe parent toe, upon the supposition that it had once belongeda a saint. Peter’s toes were uncommonly prolific, for thererere nai ls enough in Europe, at the time of the Councilf Clermont, to have filled a sack, all of whi ch were devoutlyelieved to have grown on the sacred feet of that greatpostle. S ome of them are still shown in the cathedral ofLix - la - Chapelle. The pious come from a distance of a

undred German miles to feast their eyes upon them.

At Port Royal, in Paris, is kept with great care a them ,

rhich the priests of that seminary assert to be one of the

dentical thorns that bound the holy head of the Son of God.

low it came there, and by whom it was preserved, has nevercen ex plained. This is the famous thorn , celebrated in the

ong disscnsions of the Jansen ists and the Molenists, and

rhichworked the miraculous cure upon Mademoiselle Perrier1y merely kissing it, she was cured of a disease of the eyes~f long standing.

*

What traveller is unacquainted with the Santa Scala, or

1o S tairs, at Rome ? They were brought from Jerusalem.long with the true cross, by the Empress Helen , and wereaken from the house which, according to popular tradition ,was inhabited by Pontius Pilate. They are said to be the

tops which Jesus ascended and descended when brought intohe presence of the Roman governor. They are held in the

Voltaire, S iecle dc Lou is XIV .

von. 1.10

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ay bu teau , and. the morrow towards Halls .

1 was absent on] and returned home sad,l i ng , What is the matter 1 saidhusband “is the Virgin unwilling to listen to your

were ?”

The V ir

gin is willing enou b

,

”said the

I olate wife,“andw

'

do what she can or me ; but I shalllu

' have any more children ! The the y-fest !

1 gone from Hallo, and nobody ows where to find.

i ’

[t i cariou to remark the avidity manifested in all ages,1 in all countries, to obtain possession of some relic of anyDans who have been much spoken of, even for their crimes.

Longbeard, leader of thetpOpulacc of London,

the reign of Richard I., was hangs at Smithfield, the

l ost css was shown to obtain a hair from his head,a ah from his garments. Women came from Essex ,at, Sufi

'

olk, Sussex , and all the surrounding counties, to

lect the mould at the foot of hi s gallows. A hair of his1rd was believed to preserve from evil spirits, and a piecehis clothes from aches and pains .

[n more modern days, a similar avidity was shown to

lain a relic of the luckless Masaniello, the fisherman of

plan After he had been raised by mob favour to a height

power more despotic than monarch ever wielded, he washe same populace in the streets, as if he had been a

H is headless trunk was dragged through the mi re1 several hours, and cast at n ightfall into the city ditch.

a the marrow the tide of popular feeling turned once morehis favour. His corpse was so ht, arrayed in royal robes,1d buried ma ificently by torch ight in the cathedral, tenouaand arm men, and as many mourners, attending at

a ceremony. The fisherman’

s dress which he had worn

ls rent into shreds by the crowd, to be preserved as relics ;a door of his but was pulled 05 its hinges by a mob of

m u, and eagerly cut up into small pieces, to be madeO

into

ages, caskets , and other mementos . The scanty furmturehis poor abode became of more value than the adornmentsa palace ; the ground he had walked upon was cons1dered

cred, and, being collected in small phisls , was sold at 1ts

1ight in gold, and worn in the bosom as an amulet.

RELICS .

Almost as ex traordinary was the frenzy manifested by thepopulace of Paris on the ex ecution of the atrocious Marchioness de Brinvilliers. There were grounds for the popularwonder in the cas e of Masan iello, who

'

was unstained with

personal crimes. But the career of Madame de Brinvilliers

was of a nature to ex cite no other feelings than disgust andabhorrence. She was convicted of poison ing several persons,and sentenced to be burned in the Place de Greve, and tohave her ashes scattered to the winds. On the day of her

ex ecution , the populace,struck by her gracefulness and

beauty, inveighed against the severity of her sentence.

Their pity soon increased to admiration, and, are evening,she was considered a saint. Her ashes were industriouslycollected ; even the charred wood, which had aided to con

sume her, was eagerly purchased by the populace. Her

ashes were thought to preserve from witchcraft.In England many persons have a singular love for the

relics of thieves and murderers, or other great criminals.

The ropes with which they have been hanged are very often

bought by collectors at a guinea per foot. Great sums werepaid for the rope which hanged Dr . Dodd, and for those morerecently which did justice upon Mr. Fauntleroy for forgery,and on Thurtell for the murder of Mr. Weare. The murder

of Maria Marten , by Corder, in the year 18 2 8, ex cited the

greatest interest all over the country. People came from

Wales and S cotland, and even from Ireland, to visit the barn

where the body of the murdered woman was buried. Everyone of them was anx ious to carry away some memorial of his

visit. Pieces of the barn - door, tiles from the roof, and,

above all, the clothes of the poor victim, were eagerly sought

after. A lock of her hair was sold for two gu ineas, and thepurchaser thought himself fortunate in getting it so cheaply.

So great was the concourse of people to visit the house 1n

Camberwell Lane, where Greenacremurdered HannahBrown,in 1837 , that it was found necessary to station a strongdetachment of police on the spot. The crowd was so eagerto obtain a relic of the house of this atrocious criminal

,that

the police were obliged to employ force to prevent the tablesand chairs, and even the doors, from being carried away.

In earlier times, a singular superstition was attached to

3 3 13108 .

the hand of a criminal who had sufi'

ered ex ecution . It wasthought that

d

b

gmerely rubbing the dead hand on the body

,

the patient'

eted with the king’

s evil would be instantlycured. The ex ecutioner at Newgate, six ty or seventy yearsago, derived no inconsiderable revenue from this foolish practice. The possession of the hand was thought to be of still

greater efi cacy in the cure of diseases and the prevention of

misfortunes . In the time of Charles II. as much as ten

guineas was thought a small price for one of these disgustingrelies .

When the man iac,Thom, or Courtenay, was shot

,in the

spring of 1838, the relic- hunters were immediately in motionto obtain a memento of so ex traordinary an individual. H is

long, black beard and hair, which were cut of by the sur

geons, fell into the hands of his disciples, by whom they are

treasured with the utmost reverence. A look of his haircommands a great price, not only amongst his followers, butamong the more wealthy inhabitants of Can terbury and its

neighbourhood. The tree against which he fell when he was

shot,has already been stripped of all its bark by the curious

,

and b ids fair to be entirely demolished within a twelvemonth.

A letter, with his signature to it, is paid for in gold coins ;and his favourite horse prom ises to become as celebrated as

his master. Parties of ladies and gentlemen have come to

Boughton from a distance of a hundred and fifty m iles,to

visit the scene of that fatal afl'

ray, and stroke on the backthe horse of the mad Kn ight of Malta . If a strict watch

had not been kept over his grave for months, the body wouldhave been disinterred, and the bones carried away as memo

rials .

Among the Chinese no relics are more valued than the

boots which have been worn by an upright magistrate. In

Davis’

s interesting Description of the Empire of China,we

are informed, that whenever a judge of unusual integrityresigns his situation

,the people all congregate to do him

honour . If he leaves the city where he has presided, thecrowd accompany him from his residence to the gates, wherehis boots are drawn off w ith great ceremony, to be preservedin the hall of justice. Their place is immediately suppliedby a new pair, which, in their turn

,are drawn off to make

10*

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MODERN PROPHECIES .

AN epidemic terror of the end of the world has several

times spread over the nations. The most remarkable wasthat which seized Christendom about the middle of the tenth

century. Numbers of fanatics appeared in France, Germany

,and Italy at that time, preaching that the thousand

years prophesied in the Apocalypse as the term of the

world’

s duration,were about to ex pire, and the Son of Man

would appear in the clouds to judge the godly and the nu

godly. The delusion appears to have been discouraged bythe church

,but it nevertheless spread rapidly among the

people.

*

The scene of the last judgment was ex pected to be at

J erusalem. In the year 999 , the number ofpilgrims pro

ceeding eastward,to await the coming of the 0rd in that

city, was so great that they were compared to a desolatingarmy . Most of them sold their goods and possessions beforethey quitted Europe, and lived upon the proceeds in the

Holy Land. Buildings of every sort were suffered to fall

into ruins. It was thought useless to repair them, when the

end of the world was so near . Many noble edifices were de

liberately pulled down . Even churches, usually so well

maintained,shared the general neglect. Kn ights, citizens,

and serfs, travelled eastwards in company, taking with them

their wives and children, singing psalms as they went, andlooking with fearful eyes upon the sky, which they ex pected

each minute to open, to let the Son of God descend in hislory.8During the thousandth year the number of pilgrims in

creased. Most of them were smitten with terror as with a

pla ue. Every phenomenon of nature filled them with alarm.

A t under- storm sent them all upon their knees in mid-march.

See Gibbon and Voltaire for further notice of this subject.

MODERN PROPHECIES .

it was the opin ion that thunder was the voice of God, announcing the day of judgment. Numbers ex pected the earth.0 open, and give up its dead at the sound. Every meteor in:he sky seen at Jerusalem brought the whole Christian pcpuration in to the streets to weep and pray. The pilgrims onthe road were in the same alarm

Lorsque, pendant la nu it, nu globe do lumiereS'echappa quelquefois de la vofite des cieu x ,

Et traca dans sa chute nu long sillon de feu x ,La troupe suspendi t se marche solitaire.

*

Fanatic preachers kept up the flame of terror . Everyshooting star furni shed occasion for a sermon, in which the

sublimi ty of the approaching judgment was the principal topic.

The appearance of comets has been often thought to foretell the speedy dissolution of this world. Part of this beliefstill ex ists ; but the comet is no longer looked upon as the

sign , but the agen t, of destruction . So lately as in the year1832 the greatest alarm spread over the continent of Europe,especially in Germany, lest the comet

,whose appearance was

then foretold by astronomers,should destroy the earth. The

danger of our globe was gravely discussed. Many personsrefrained from undertaking or concluding any business duringthat year, in consequence solely of their apprehension that

this terrible comet would dash us and our world to atoms .

During seasons of great pestilence men have often believedthe prophecies of crazed fanatics, that the end of the worldwas come. Credulity is always greatest in times of calamity .

Prophec ies of all sorts are rife on such occas ions, and are

readily believed, whether for good or evil. During the great

plague, which ravaged all Europe, between the years 1345and 13 5 0, it was generally considered that the end of the

world was at hand. Pretended prophets were to be found inall the principal cities of Germany

,France, and Italy, pre

dicting that w ithin ten years the trump of the Archangelwould sound, and the Saviour appear in the clouds to call the

earth to judgment.

No little consternation was created in London in 1736 bythe prophecy of the famous Whiston , that the world would bedestroyed in that year

,on the 13th of October . Crowds of

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f athers so, and hastened away. The river wast to be a p of great sccurity, and

in the port were filled with ple, who passed the

;ht between the 4th and 5th on rd, pvery.tant tosee St. Paul

’

s totter, and the towers Westmmster1bey rock in the wind and fall amid a clond of dust. The

tater part of the fugitives returned on the following day,evinced that the prophet was a false one ; but many Judged

more prudent to allow a week to elapse before they trusted

sir dear limbs in London. Bell lost all credit in a short

A panic terror of the end of the world seised the gcod

cple of Leeds and its neighbourhood in the year 1806 . It

tee from the following circumstances. A hen, in a village

so by, laid eggs, on which were inscribed, in legibletractera, the words Christ is coming .

”Great numbers

ited the spot, and ex amined these wondrous e gs, convincedtt the day of judgment was near at hand. ike sailors in

storm, ex pecting every instant to go to the bottom,the

lievers suddenly became religious , prayed violently, and

ttered themselves that they repented them of their evil

arses . But a plain tale soon put them down ,and quenched

sir religion entirely . Some gentlemen , hearing of the

ttter, went one fine morning, and caught the poor hen ine act of laying one of her miraculous eggs. They soon

certained beyond doubt that the egg had been inscribedth some corrosive ink, and cruelly forced up a ain into the

rd’

s body. At this ex planation, those who find prayed,iw laughed, and the world wagged as merrily as of yore.

At the time of the plague in Milan, in 1630, of which so

ecting a description has been left us by R ipamonte, in histerestmg work D e P ests Mediolan i , the people, in theirstress, listened with avidity to the predictions of astrologers.d other impostors. It is singular enough that the plaguets foretold a year before it broke out. A large comet

.pearing in 16 2 8, the opinions of astrologers were dividedth regard to it. Some insisted that it was a forerunner ofbloody war ; others maintained that it predicted a great

MODERN PROPHBOIBS .

famine ; but the greater number, founding their judgmcupon its pale colour, thought i t portended a pestilence. I

fulfilment of their prediction brought them into great rep:while the plague was raging.

Other prophecies were current, which were asserted

have been delivered hundreds of years previously. They h

a most pernicious effect upon the mind of the vulgar, as th

induced a belief in fatalism. By taking away the hope

recovery—that greatest balm in everymalady—they in creuthreefold the ravages of the disease. One singular predicti

almost drove the unhappy people mad. An ancient coupl

preserved for ages by tradi tion, foretold, that, in the y1630

, the devil would poison all Milan . Early one morni

in April, and before the pestilence had reached its height, tpassengers were surprised to see that all the doors

gin 1

principal streets of the city were markedwith a curious dalor spot

,as if a sponge, filled with the purulent matter of t

plague- sores, had been pressed against them. The wbc

population were speedily in movement to remark the stran

appearance,and the greatest alarm spread rapidly . Eve

means was taken to discover the perpetrators, but in ya

At las t the ancient prophecy was remembered, and praycwere offered up in all the churches that the machinationsthe Evil One might be defeated. Many persons were

Opinion that the emissaries of foreign powers were employto spread infectious poison over the city ; but by far tgreater number were convinced that the powers of hell hconspired against them,

and that the infection was spreadsupernatural agencies. In themean time the pla

gue 1ncreas

fearfully. Distrust and alarm took possession 0 every mixEverything was believed to have been poisoned by the dev

'

the waters of the wells, the standing corn in the fields,a

the fruit upon the trees. It was believed that all objectstouch were poisoned ; the walls of the houses, the paveme

of the streets, and the very handles of the doors. T

populace were raised to a pitch of ungovernable fury.

stri ct watch was kept for the devil’ss emissaries, and any um

who wanted to be rid of an enemy, had only to say that

had seen him besmearing a door with ointment his fate w

certain death at the hands of the mob. An old ma

upwards of eighty years of age, a daily frequenter of t'

d him out by the hair of his head, withtths an imprecations. Howas trailed in thismannerthemire to the house cf themunicipal j that hea put to tbe rack, and forced to discover accomuat he ex pired on the way. Many other victims werel to the popular fury. One Mora, who appears tosn half a chemist and half a barber, was aocused of1 with the devil to Milan. His housefu nded, and a number of emical preparationswereThe poor man asserted that they were intended as

tires against infection ; but some physicians, to whomre submitted, declared they were poison . Mora was

he rack, where he for a long time asserted his inno

He confessed at last, when his coura e was worn

r torture, that he was in league with t e devil and

1owers to poison the whole city : that he had anointed

s, and infected the fountains of water. He named

persons as his accomplices, who were apprehendedto a similar torture. They were all found guilty,:uted. More

’

s house was raced to the ground, and a

rected on the spot, with an inscription to commemo

the public mind was filled with these marvellous

sea, the plague continued to increase. The crowds

3 brought together to witness the ex ecutions, spreadtion among one another. But the fury of their pasd the ex tent of their creduli ty, kept pace with the

of the plague ; every wonderful and preposterouss believed. One, in particular, occupied them to the

1, for a long time, of every other. The Devil himself1 seen. He had taken a house in Milan, in which hehis poisonous unguents, and furn ished them to his

as for distribution . One man had brooded over such

he became firmly convinced that the wild flights of

fancy were realities. He stationed himself in the

dues of Milan, and related the following story to the11

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mg ,andconsent to smear the doors andhouses ofMilanhPa

tiferous salve which he held out to him. He now

pm tobe the Devil, and in that moment of temptation,pu ri fied to give him strengtb to resist. His pra er

! lurd—h0 refused the bribe. The stranger scow ed

dulyupon him—a loud clap of thunder burst over his

l—thevivid 5&1

]:aflashed in his eyes, and the nex t

sel standing alone at the porch of the

isdnl. He repeated this strange talo da after day,a tanyvariation, and all the populacewere believers

in n-11th. Repeated search was made to discover the

twions house, but all in vain . The man pointed out

u l asm embling it, whichwere searched by the police ;theDemon of the Pestilence was not to be found, nor theJ ghosts, nor the poisonous fountain . But the minds of

maplewere so impressed with the idea that scores of wita, half crazed by disease, came forward to swear that

alsohad seen the diabolical stran er, and had heard his

it, drawn by the mi lk- white stee rumblin over the

l atmidnight with a sound louder than thun er.

1 number of persons who confessed that they were em

Iby the Devil to distribute poison is almost incredible.

.idemic frenzy was abroad, which seemed to be as con

1 as the plague. Imagination was as disordered as the

and day after day persons came voluntarily forward tothemselves. They generally had the marks of diseasehem, and some died 1n the act of confession .

ing the great plague of London , in 1665,the people

d with similar avid1ty to the predictions of quacks and

s. D efoe says, that at that time the peoplewere moread to prophecies and astronomical conjurations, dreams,d wives

’

tales than ever they were before or since.

Lacs, and their redictions, frightened them terribly

.

:he year before t e plague broke out, they were great yd by the comet which then appeared, and anticipatedamine, pestilence, or fire would follow. Enthusiasts,

yet the disease had made but little progress, ran aboutrests , predicting that in a few days London would beed.

i111 more singular instance of thefaith in predictions

ed in London in the year 15 24. The city swarmed at

MODERN PROPHECIEB.

that time with fortune- tellers and astrologers, who were con

sulted daily by people of every class in society on the secrets

of futurity. As early as the month of June, 15 2 3, several ofthem concurred in predicting that

,on the l st day of Fe

bruary, 15 24, the waters of the Thames would swell to such

a height as to overflow the whole city of London , and washaway ten thousand houses. The prophecy met implicit belief.It was reiterated with the utmost confidence month after

month,until so much alarm was ex cited that many families

packed up their goods, and removed into Kent and Essex .

As the time drew nigh, the number of these emigrants iacreased. In January

,droves of workmen might be seen,

followed by their wives and children, trudging on foot to the

villages within fifteen or twenty miles, to await the catas

trophe. People of a higher class were also to be seen, in

waggons and other vehicles, bound on a similar errand. Bythe middle of January, at least twenty thousand persons hadquitted the doomed city, leaving nothing but the bare wallsof their homes to be swept away by the impending floods.Many of the richer sort took up their abode on the heights of

Highgate, Hampstead, and Blackheath ; and some erectedtents as far away as Waltham Abbey

,on the north, and

Croydon , on the south of the Thames. Bolton, the prior ofS t. Bartholomew’

s, was so alarmed that he erected, at ver

ygreat ex pense, a sort of fortress at Harrow- on- the- Hill,whio

he stocked with provisions for two months. On the 24th of

January,a week before the awful day which was to see the

destruction of London,he removed thither

, with the brethrenand oflicers of the priory and all his household. A number

of boats were conveyed in waggons to his fortress, furn ishedabundantly with ex pert rowers, in case the flood, reaching sohigh as Harrow,

should force them to 0 further for a restmgplace. Many wealthy citizens prayedto share his retreat,but the Prior

, with a prudent forethought, admitted only hispersonal friends

,and those who brought stores of eatables for

the blockade.

At last the morn , big with the fate of London, appeared inthe cast. The wondering crowds were astir at an early hourto watch the rising of the waters. The inundation, it was

predicted, would be gradual, not sudden ; so that they ex

pected to have plenty of time to escape, as soon as they saw

the bosom of old Thames heave beyond the usual mark . But

noun s racrn on s. 12 5

the majority were too much alarmed to trust to this, andthought themselves safer ten or twentymiles cd

'

. The Thames,unmmdful of the foolish crowds u on its banks, flowed on

quietly as of yore. The tide eb at its usual hour, flowedto its usual t, and then ebbed again, just as if twentyastrologers not pledged their words to the contrary.

Blank were their faces as evening ap reached, and as blankgrew the faces of the citizens to thin that they had madesuch fools of themselves. At last night set in, and the obstisate river would not lift its waters to sweep away even one

house out of the ten thousand. Still, however, the peoplewere M to go to sleep. Man hundreds remained up till

dawn of the nex t day, lest the d uge should come upon themlike a thief in the night.

it was seri ous] discussed whether it wouldto duck the fi les prophets in the river.

Luckily for them, the thought of an ex pedient which allayedthe popular fury. hey asserted that

,by an error (a very

slight one)of a little figure, they had fix ed the date of this

awful inundation a whole century too early. The stars wereright after all, and they, erring mortals, were wrong. The

resent generation of cockneys was safe, and London wouldwashed away, not in 15 24, but in 16 24. At this announce

ment,Bolton, the prior, dismantled his fortress, and the weary

emigrants came back .

An eye- witness of the great fire of London , in an account

preserved among the Harleian MSS . in the British Museum,

and recently published in the Transactions of the Royal Society of Antiquaries

,relates another instance of the credulity

of the Londoners. The writer, who accompan ied the DukeofYork day by day through the district included between theFleet Bridge and the Thames, states that, in their efforts tocheck the progress of the flames, they were much impeded bythe superstition of the people. Mother Shipton, in one of

her prophecies, had said that London would be reduced to

ashes, and they refused to make any efl’

orts to prevent it.*

This pro hecy seems to have been that set forth at length in the pcpular Life of other Shipton

“When fate to England shall restore

A king to reign as heretofore,Great death in London shall be though,And many houses be laid low.

”

11

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MODERN enorm ou s.

visit she uttered another prophecy, which,unfulfilled,

during the present

“ The time shall come when seas of bloodShall mingle wi th a ter flood.Great uoise there be heard—greatAnd seas shall thunder louder than the skies ;

accomplished, was predicted by her shortly before her1. Revolutions— fall of mighty monarchs, and the

ling of much blood are to signalize that event. Theangels, afflicted by our woes, are to turn aside their

1, and weep for hapless Britain .

It great as is the fame of Mother Shipton, she ranks butid i n the list of British prophets. Merlin , the mightyin , stands alone i n his high pre

- eminence— the first and

a t. As old Drayton sings, in his Poly- olbion

Of Merlin and his skill what region doth not hear ?

The world shall still be full ofMerli n every year.

A thousand lingering years his prophecies have run,An d scarcely shall have and ti ll time itself be dome

”

ser, in his divine poem,has given us a powerful descrip

of this renowned seer

Who had in magic more insightThan ever him before, or after, living wight.

For he by words could call out of the skyBoth sun and moon, andmake them him obey ;

12 8 MODERN Paornncms.

The land to sea , and sea to mainland dry,And darksome night he eke could turn to dayHuge hosts of men he could, alone, dismay,

And hosts of men and meanest things could frame,Whenso him li st hi s enemies to fray,

That to thi s day, for terror of his name,The fiends do quake, when any him to them does name.

And soothe men say that he was not the scans,Of mortal sire or other living wights ,

But wondrously begotten and begoune

By false illusion of a gu ileful sprite,On a fairs ladye nun .

”

In these verses the poet has preserved the popular beliefwith regard to Merlin , who is generally supposed to have

been a contemporary of Vortigern . Opinion is divided as to

whether he were a real personage, or a mere impersonation,formed by the poetic fancy of a credulous people. It seems

most probable that such a man did ex ist, and that, possessingknowledge as much above the comprehension of his age, as

that possessed by Friar Bacon was beyond the reach of his,he was endowed by the wondering crowd with the super

.natural attributes that Spenser has enumerated.

Geofl'

rey of Monmouth translated Merlin ’

s poetical odes, orprophecies

,into Latin prose, and he was much reverenced,

not only by Goefl'

rey, but by most of the old annalists . In a

L ife of Merlin, with his P rophecies and P redictions inter

roted and made good by our Eng lishAnnals," by Thomas

Heywood, published ln the reign of Charles I. , we find severalof these pretended prophecies . They seem however, to havebeen written by Heywood himself. They are too plain and

positive to allow any one to doubt for a moment of their

paving been composed ex postfacto. Speaking of Richard I.9 says

The Lion’s heart will

’

gainst the S aracen rise,An d purchase from him many a glorious prizeThe rose and lily shall at first uni te,But, parting of the prey prove opposite.

1! fl 1!

But while abroad these great acts shall be done ;All things at home shall to disorder run .

Cooped up and caged then shall the Lion be,But, after sufi

‘

erance, ransomed and set free.

nonm raornrcms. 12 9

A hunch- backedmonster, who wi th teeth is born,The meek of art and nature

’s scorn :

Who from womb preposterously is hurled,And, wi th feet forward, thrust into the world,

gfifiem the lc

xer earth on

gfih hemevery step e mounts , eep

He ahall to th’ hei ght cf all his hopes aspire,

And, clothed in state, his ugly shape admireBu t, when he thinks himaelfmost safe to stand,

lla us that‘and bringroot out

m ored skulls ; and,

that he should

his rage nor woman in his lust ; and

nex t successor but one, there should

“ a in the fagot and the stake.

” Master Heywood closes

Merlin’

s prophecies at his own d

ay, and does not give even a

fl pee of what was to befall ugland after h e decease.

y other prophecies, besides those quoted by him, were,

M says, dispersed abroad, in his day, under the name of

Merlin ; but he gives his readers a taste of one only, and thatfl the following

When hempe is ripe and ready to pull,Englishman, beware thy

phecy, which, one would think, ought to have put

mmd of the gallows, the not unusual fate of false pro

phets, and perchance his own, he ex plains thus—“In this

word ns x rs be five letters. Now,by reckoning the five suc

cessive princes from Henry V III. , this proph is easily ex

pll

zined : H signifieth King Henry before nam E, Edward,son , the six th of that M,

Mary, who succeeded

him ; P,Philip of Spain, who by mi x

ing Queen Mary,

participated with her in the Eughsh em ; and, lastly, Esignifieth Queen Elizabeth, after whose death there was a

great fears that some troubles might have an sen about the

crown .

”As this did not happen, Heywood, who was a sly

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MODERN PROPHECIES .

wordes went over the sea, by the help of his prelates, amcame to the French King

’

s care, and gave to him a great en

couragement to invade the lande. He had not else done 1

so sodeinely. But he was most fowly deceived, as . all the:are and shall be that put their trust in such dark drowsyldreames of hipocrites. The King therefore commanded thehe should be banged up, and his sonne also with him, lest an;more false prophets should arise of that race ’

Heywood, who was a great stickler for the truth of all sortof prophecies, gives a much more favourable account of thi

Peter of Pomfret, or Pontefract, whose fate he would, in al

probability, have shared, if he had had themisfortune to havcflourished in the same age. He says, that Peter, who we:not only a prophet, but a bard, predicted divers of Km;John ’

8 disasters, which fell out accordingly. On beingtax ed for a lying prophet 1n bavin predicted that the Km!would be deposed before he enteredinto the fifteenth year 0

his reign , he answered him boldly that all he had said we

justifiable and true ; for that, having given up his crown tn

the Pope, and paying him an annual tribute, the Pope reignedand not he. Heywood thought this ex planation to be per

fectly satisfactory, and the prophet’

s faith for ever establishedBut to return to Merlin . Of him even to this day it may

be said, in the words which Burns has applied to another

notorious personage,

Great was hi s power and great his fame ;Far kenned and noted i s his name!”

H is reputation is by no means confined to the land of hi!

birth,but ex tends through most of the nations of Europe. A

very curious volume of his L ife, Prophecies, and Miracleswritten, it is supposed, by Robert de Bosron, was printed a!

Paris in 1498, whi ch states, that the Devil himself was hitfather, and that he spoke the instant he was born, and

assured his mother, a very virtuous young woman, that ahc

should not die in childbed with him, as her ill- natured neigh

hours had predicted. The judge of the district, hearing of amarvellous an occurrence, summoned

'

both mother and chi1<

to appear before him ; and they went accordingly the semi

day. To put the wisdom of the young prophet most efl'

ec

tually to the test, the judge asked him if he knew his om

given by Spenser in his“Faerie

no apology for their repetition

here, and any sketch of the great prophet of Britain would

be incomplete without them

There the wise Merlin, whilom wont (they say),To make his wonne low underneath the ground,

In a deep delve far from the view of day,That of no living wight he mote be found,

t nso he counselled with his sprites encompassed round.

And if thou ever happen that same wayTo travel, go to see that dreadful place ;

It is a hideous, hollow cave, they say,Under a rock that lies a little space

From the swi ft Barry, tumbling down space

Amongst the woody hi lls of Dynevoure ;But dare then not, I charge, in any case,

To enter into that same baleful bower,For fear the cruel fiendes should thee unwares devour !

But, standing high aloft, low lay thine care,And there such ghastly noise of iron chaines

And brazen caudrons thou shalt rombling hears,Whi ch thousand sprites, wi th long

- enduring paines,Doe tosse, that it will stun thy feeble braines ;

And often times great groans and grievous stowndsWhen too huge toils and labour them constraines

And often times loud strokes and ringing sounds

Prom under that deep rook most horribly rebounds.

The cause, th say, is thi s. A little while

Before that erlin died, he did intend

von. 1. 12

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reached Cheshire,

ex pressed

sent for him, and that hemust go to court, and be dammedthat is, starved to death. These ex pressions ex cited no littlewonder ; but, on the third day, the messen er arrived, andcarried him to court, leavin on the minds 0 the good peopleof Cheshire an impression t at their rophet was one of the

test ever born . On his arrival ing Henry appeared totroubled ex ceedingly at the loss of a valuable diamond,

and asked Ni x on if he could inform him where it was to be

found. Henry had hidden the diamond himself, with a view

to test the prophet’

s skill. Great, therefore,was his surprisewhen N ix on answered him in the words of the old proverb

,

Those who hide can find.

” From that time forth the Kinimplicitly believed that he had the gift of prophecy, andordered all his words to be taken down .

Dur ing all the time of his residence at court he was in

constant fear of being starved to death, and repeatedl told

the King that such would be his fate, if he were not al owed

to depart, and return into his own country . Henry wouldnot suffer it

, but gave strict orders to all his officers and cooksto give him as much to eat as he wanted. He lived so well,that for some time he seemed to be thriving like a nobleman ’

s

steward, and growing as fat as an alderman . One day the

king went out hunting, when Ni x on ran to the palace gate,and entreated on his knees that he might not be left behind tobe starved. The King laughed, and, calling an officer, toldhim to take especial care of the prophet during his absence,and rode away to the forest. After his departure, the ser

vants of the palace began to jeer at and insult Nix on, whomthey imagined to be much better treated than he deserved.

Nix on complained to the officer, who, to prevent him frombeing further molested, locked him up in the King

’

s own

closet, and brought him regularly his four meals a dafiBut

it so happened that a messen

ger arrived from the ing to

this ofi cer, requiring his imme°

ate presence at Winchester,on a matter of life and death. So great was his haste to

MODERN PROPHEOIBS .

obey the King’

s command, that he mounted on the horse

behind the messen er, and rode off, without

thought upon poor ix on . He did not return till threeafterwards, when, remembering the prophet for the first

time, he went to the King’

s closet, and found him lying upon

the floor,starved to death, as he had predicted.

Among the prophecies of his which are believed to have

been fulfilled,are the following, which relate to the times of

the Pretender

A great man shall come into England,B ut the son of a KingShall takefrom him the victory.

Grows shall drink the blood of many nobles ,And theNorth shall rise against the South.

"

The cock of the North shall bemade to flee,And his feather bep luckedfor his pride,That he shall almost curse the day that he was born .

All these, say his admirers, are as clear as the sun at noon

day. The first denotes the defeat of Prince Charles Edward,at the battle of Culloden, by the Duke of Cumberland ; thesecond, the ex ecution of Lords Derwentwater, Balmu ino,and Lovat ; and the third, the retreat of the Pretender fromthe shores of Britain . Among the prophecies that still

remain to be accomplished, are the following

B etween seven, eight, and nine,In England wonders shall be seen ;B etween nine and thirteen

All sorrow shall be done!

Through our own money and our menShall a dreadful war begin .

B etween the sickle and the sack

All England shall have a p luck.

“Foreign nations shall invade England with snow on their helmets, and shaa

bring p lague, famine, and murder in the skirts of their garments .

”

The town of Nantwich shall be swep t away by aflood.

”

Of the first two of these no ex planation has yet beenattempted ; but some event or other will doubtless be twistedinto such a shape as will fit them. The third, relative to the

a nation with snow on their helmets,most clearly the

As to the last, there are not a fewthat such will be

conclude their account

18 now

life, and tomake our continual prayer to God forprotection and safety. To this, though a non sequ itur,every one wi ll cry Amen !Besides the prophets, there have been the almanac -makers,

Lilly, Poor Robin , Partridge, and Francis Moore, physician,in England, andMatthew Laensbergh, in France and Belgium.

But great as were their pretensions, they were modesty itselfin comparison with Merlin, Shipton , and Nix on, who fix edtheir minds upon hi her things than the weather, and whowere not so restrainedin their flights of fancy as to prophesyfor only one year at a time. After such prophets as they,the almanac-makers hardly deserve to be mentioned : no,

not even the renowned Partridge, whose wonderful prognostications set all England agog in 1708, and whose death, at a

time when he was still alive and kickin was so pleasantlyand satisfactorily proved by Isaac Bickerstafi'. The anti

climax would be too pal able, and they and their doings mustbe left uncommemoratedl

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POPULAR ADMIRATION FOR GREAT THIEVRB.

id of hero in high repute. He adds that themob, in allmtries, being easily moved, look in general with concern

on criminals oing to the gallows ; but an English mobtked upon suc scenes with ex traordinary interest : theylighted to see them go through their last trials with resoluc, and applauded those who were insensible enough to diethey had lived, braving the justice both of God and men:h, he mi ght have added, as the noted robber Macpherson,whom the old ballad says

8ae rantingly, sae wantonly,Sac dauntingly gaed he :

He played a spring, and danced it roundBeneath the gallows tree.

”

Lmong these traditional thieves themost noted in England,perhaps in any country, is Robin Hood, a name which

ular afl'

ection has encircled with a peculiar halo. He

bed the rich to give to the poor ; and his reward has beenimmortali ty of fame

,a tithe of which would be thought

'

e than sufficient to recompense a benefactor of his species.

nan ce and poetry have been emulous to make him all theira; and the forest of Sherwood, in which he roamed withm erry men, armed with their long bows, and clad in

.coln green, has become the resort of pilgrims, and a classic

t sacred to his memory . The few virtues he had, which

rld have insured him no praise if he had been an honest

u, have been blazoned forth by popular renown during sevencessive centuries, and will never be forgotten while the

glish tongue endures. H is charity to the poor, and his galtry and respect for women, have made him the pre

- eminent

sf of all the world.

Among English thieves of a later date, who has not heardClaude Duval, Dick Turpin , Jonathan Wild, and Jackeppard, those knights of the road and of the town , whose

culiar chivalry formed at once the dread and delight of

agland during the eighteenth century ? Turpin’

s fame i s

known to no portion of the male population of England,at they have attained the age of ten . H is wondrous riderm London to York has endeared him to the imaginati on of

llions ; his cruelty in placing an old woman upon a fire, torce her to tell him where she had hidden her money, 18

POPULAR ADMIRATION FOR

regarded as a good joke ; and his proud bearingupon the

scaffold is looked upon as a virtuous action . T e AbbelsBlane

,writing in 1737, says he was continually entertained

with stories of Turpin—how, when he robbed gentlemen , hewouldgenerously

leave them enough to continue their journey,and ex act a ple go from them never to inform against him,and how scrupulous such gentlemen were in keeping their

word. He was one day told a story, with which the relator

was in the highest degree delighted. Turpin , or some other

noted robber, stopped a man whom he knew to be very rich,with the usual salutation Your money or your li fe but

not finding more than five or six guineas about him,he took

the liberty of entreating him,in the most afi

‘

able manner,never to come out so ill provided ; adding that, if he fell in

with him,and he had no more than such a paltry sum,

he

would give him a good licking. Another story, told by one

of Turpin ’

s admirers, was of a robbery he had committed upon

a Mr. C . near Cambrid e. He took from this gentleman his

watch, his snufllbox , andall his money but two shillings, and,before he left him,

required his word of honour that he wouldnot cause him to be pursued, or brou ht before a justice. The

promise being given , they both partedvery courteously. Theyafterwards met at Newmarket, and renewed their acquaintance. Mr. C . kept his word religiously ; he not only refrainedfrom giving Turpin into custody

,but made a boast that he

had fairly won some of his money back again in an honest

way. Turpin offered to bet with him on some favourite horse,and Mr . C . accepted the wager with as good a grace as he

could have done from the best gentleman in England.Turpin lost his bet and paid it immediately, and was so

smitten with the generous behaviour of Mr. C . that he toldhim how deeply he regretted that the trifling affair which hadhappened between them did not permit them to drink together.

The narrator of this anecdote was quite proud that Englandwas the birthplace of such a highwayman .

*

The Abbe, in the second volume, in the letter No. 79 , addressed toMonsieur de Bufi

‘

on , gives the following curious particulars of the robbersof 1787 , which are not withou t interest at thi s day, if it were only to showthe vast improvement which has taken place since that period It isusual, in travelling, to put ten or a dozen guineas in a separate pocket, asa tribute to the first that comes to demand them : the right of passport,whi ch custom has established here in favour of the robbers, who are almost

G REAT THIEV ES . 141

seple of England is the career ofa rufian as ever disgraced his

po ular admiration

e did not, likethe poor, nor rob

his felon brow

November

ma m :’tls thine to d wi th t’ame

N obn ura and raise c humble name ;

( b eer is to Aurelius due ;Cromwell in Lil] s works doth shine,And Sheppard, ornhill, lives in thine l

"

was J ack’

s fame that a pantomime entertainment,was devised by one Thur

fi - ly htflway surveyors in England, has made this necessary ; and ach gllah call these fellows the ‘Gentlemen of the Road,

’the

m u st letting that : ex ercise their jurisdiction upon travellers withoutmy great molestation . To say the truth, they content them

with only takinghthemoney of those who obey without di sputing ;

H , notwi thstanding sir boasted humani ty, the lives of those who endeaalwaye safe. They are very strict and severe in

their lmpcst ; and if a man has not wherewithal to pay them,he

a s ran the chance of getting himself knocked on the head for his poverty.

t fifteen years ago, these robbers, with the view of maintaining

l s i 3 5 5 .

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GREAT THIEVES .

escape the clutches of that old ex ecutioner the

name of J aek Sheppard was immediatelythe last penalty of his crimes

,it was as

the vast renown which he has acquiredafter the lapse of a century and a quar

fully appreciated till they haveand thieves, it would appear,

I tens of thousands,until the populace of England have

m e as familiar with J aek's features as they are with their1. Jack, the romantic, is the hero of three goodly volumes,Ithe delight of the circulating libraries ; and the theatres3 been smitten with the universal enthusiasm. Managers3 set their playmongers at work, and Jack ’

s story hasnreproduced in the shape of drama, melodrama, and farce,alf a dozen places of entertainment at once. Never wasa display of popular regard for a here as was ex hibitedondon in 1840 for the renowned Jack Sheppard : robberyti red additional lustre in the popular eye, and not onlylishmen

,but foreigners, caught the contagion and one of

latter,fired by the ex ample, robbed and murdered a vene

e, unofiending, and too confiding nobleman, whom it was

espec ial duty to have obeyed and protected. But he was

ward and a wretch - it was a solitary crime— he had not

e a daring escape from dungeon walls, or ridden fromdon to York, and he died amid the ex ecrations of the

ple, ed'

erding a melancholy ex emplifieation of the triteark , that every man is not great who is desirous of being so .

onathan W ild, whose name has been immortalized by!ding , was no favourite with the people. He had none of

vi rtues which, combined with crimes , make up the cha

sr of the great thief. He was a pitiful fellow,who ia

ued against his comrades, and was afraid of death. Thi s

.unces was not to be forgiven by the crowd, and they

POPULAR ADMIRATION FOR

pelted him with dirt and stones on his way to Tyburn, asex pressed their contempt by every possible means. Hodifi

'

erent was their conduct to Turpin and Jack Shepparwho died in their neatest attire, with nosega s in thei r bu

ton - holes, and with the courage that a crow ex pects

was anticipated that the body of Turpin would have been dlivered up to the surgeons for dissection, and the people soing some men very busily employed in removing it, sudden

'

set upon them,rescued the body, here it about the town

triumph, and then buried it in a very deep grave, filled witquick- lims

,to hasten the process of decomposition . The

would not sufi’

er the corpse of their hero, of the man who heridden from London to York in four- and- twenty hours to l

mangled by the rude hands of unmannerly surgeons .

The death of Claude Duval would appear to have been a

less triumphant. Claude was a gentlemanly thief. Accorting to Butler, in the famous ode to his memory, he

Taught the wi ld Arabs of the road

To rob in a more gentle mode ;Take prises more obligingly than thoseWho never had been bred filousAnd how to hang in a more graceful fashionThan o

’

er was known before to the dull Engli sh nation.

In fact,hewas the pink of politeness, and his gallantry to th

fair sex was proverbial. When he was caught at last, pet

in stone walls and chains and iron grates,”—their grief wt

in preportion to his rare merits and his great fame. Butle1

says, that to his dungeon

Came ladies from all parts ,To offer up close prisoners their hearts ,Whi ch he received as tribute due

a s s s

Never did bold kn ight, to relieve

Distressed dames, such dreadful feats achieve,As feeble damsels, for his sake,Would have been proud to undertake,And, bravely ambitious to redeemThe world

’

s loss and their own ,

S trove who should have the honour to lay down,And change a life with him.

Among the noted thieves of France, there is none to con

pare with the famous Aimerigot Tete- noire, who flourished i

GflHlAflf lflIUEVl EL

ofCharles V I. This fellowwas at the head of fourredmen, and possessed two very strong castles in

was a good deal of the

no revenueshe left a

er, one

for such

tenderly

mac; and I advise them to get a good strong, sharp ax e,

0dbreak open 111 strong box . Let them scramble for whatit contains, and t e Devxl seize the hindmost.

”The people

i Auvergne still recount with admiration the daring feats of

this brigand.

Of later years, the French thieves have been such nu

m’

tigated scoundrels as to have left but little room for populardmiration . The famous Cartouehe, whose name has becomemonvmous wi th ruflian in their language, had none of the

eneros ity,courtesy, and devoted bravery which are so re

uisite to make a robber- hero. He was born at Paris,

.wards the end of the seventeenth century, and brokenive on the wheel in November, 17 2 7 . He was , however,fi ciently popular to have been pitied at his death, and

terwards to have formed the subject of a much- admiredama

,which bore his name, and was played with great

m ess in all the theatres of France durin the years 1734,and 6 . In our own day the French ave been more

trtunate in a robber. Vidocq b ids fair to rival the fame of

arpin and J aek Sheppard. Already he has become the heremany an apocryphal tale—already his compatriots boasthis man ifold achievements, and ex press their doubts whetherIV o ther country in Europe could produce a thief so clever,accomplished

,so gentlemanly, as Vidocq.

G ermany has its Sehinderhannes, Hungary its S chubry,id Italy and S pain a whole host of brigands, whose names

1d ex ploits are familiar as household words in themouths ofas children and populace of those countries.

The Italian banditti are renowned over the world ; and

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faw n -ite heroes. These theatrical robbers, with their

‘

pietereeque attire, wild haunts

lgijolly, reckless, devil

-may- csre

fi lm“ , li ke a wonderful d upon the imagination, and,W h eir advoeates may say to the contrary, ex ercise avery pernicious influence upon public morals . In the Memoirs of the Duke of Guise upon the Revolution of Naplesin 1647 and 1648

,it is stated, that the manners, dress, and

mode of life of the Neapolitan banditti were rendered so

captivating upon the stage, that the authorities found itabsolutely necessary to forbid the representation of dramasin which they figured, and even to prohibit their costume at

the masquerades. So numerous were the banditti at this

time, that the Duke found no difliculty in raisin an army of

them , to aid him in his endeavours to seize on t e throne ofNaples . He thus describes them They were three thousand five hundred men, of whom the oldest came short of fiveand- forty years

,and the youngest was above twenty. They

were all tall and well made, with long black hair, for themost part curled, coats of black Spanish leather, with sleeves

of velvet, or cloth of gold, cloth breeches with gold lace, mostof them scarlet ; girdles of velvet, laced with gold,two pistols on each side ; a cutlass hanging at a belt,suitably trimmed, three fingers broad and two feet long ;

a hawking- b at their girdle, and a powder- flask hung abouttheir neck wit a great silk riband. Some of them carriedfirelocks, and others, blunderbusses ; they had all good shoes,

with silk stockings, and every one a cap of cloth of gold or

See also Foreign Quarterly Review, vol. iv. p . 398 .

POPULAR ADMIRATION FOR

cloth of silver, of different colours, on his head, which was

very delightful to the eye.

The Beggars’ Opera,

’

in our own country, is another

instance of the admiration that thieves ex cite u on the stage.

Of the ex traordinary success of this piece, w on first pro

duced, the following account is given in the notes to The

Dunciad and quoted by Johnson in his “Lives of the

Poets .

” This piece was received with greater applausethan was ever known . Besides being acted in London si x tythree days without interruption, and renewed the nex t seasonwith equal applause, it Spread into all the great towns of

England ; was pla ed in many places to the thirtieth and

fortieth time ; at ath and Bristol, &e.,fifty. It made its

progress into Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, where it was

performed twenty- four days successively. The ladies car

ried about with them the favourite songs of it in fans, and

houses were furnished with it in screens. The fame of it was

not confined to the author only. The person who acted

Polly, till then obscure, became all at once the favourite of

the town ;* her pictures were engraved and sold in great

numbers ; her life written, books of letters and verses to her

published, and - pamphlets made even of her sayings and jests.uthermore, it drove out of England, for that season, the

Italian Opera, which had carried all before it for ten ears.

”

Dr. Johnson, in his Life of the author, says, that erring,afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury

,censured the Opera, as

giving encouragement, not only to vice, but to crimes, bymaking the highwayman the hero, and dismissing him at last

unpunished; and adds, that it was even said, that after the

ex hibition the gangs of robbers were evidently multiplied.

The Doctor doubts the assertion, giving as his reason that

highwaymen and housebreakers seldom frequent the playhouse, and that it was not possible for any one to imagine

that he might rob with safety, because he saw Macheath re

prieved upon the stage. But if Johnson had wished to beconvinced

,he might very easily have discovered that high

waymen and housebreakcrs did frequent the theatre, and thatnothingwas more probable than that a laughable representation

Lavinia Fenton, afterwards Duchess of Bolton .

students,longing to imitate a character they thought so

noble, actually abandoned their homes and their colleges, andbetook themselves to the forests and wilds to levy contribu

tions upon travellers. They thought they would, like Moor,plunder the rich

,and deliver eloquent soliloquies to the

setting sun or the rising moon ; relieve the poor when theymet them, and drink flasks of Rheni sh with their free com

panions in rugged mountain passes, or in tents in the thickawese of the forests. But a little ex perience wonderfullycooled their courage ; they found that real, every- day robberswere very unlike the conventional banditti of the stage, and

that three months in prison , wi th bread and water for theirfare

,and damp straw to lie upon, was very well to read

about by their own firesides, but not very agreeable to

undergo in their own proper persons.

Lord Byron, wi th his soliloquizing, high- souled thieves,has, in a slight degree, perverted the taste of the greenhornsand incipient rhymesters of his country. As yet, however,they have shown more good sense than their fellows of Ger

many,and have not taken to the woods or the highways.

Much as they admire Conrad the Corsair, theywill not go tosea, and hoist the black flag in emulation of him. By words

13“

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GREAT THIRVRS .

late, and having both a theoretical and practical love

The good old rule, the“ple plan ,

That they should take who have the power,That they should keep who can,”

a ,y perhaps, become wiser, and consent to some

l etter distribution of its good things, b means of which

fi erce may be reconci lciled to the ago, an the to them.

T he probability, however, seems to be, that charmers

charm in vain, charm they ever so wisely.

INFLUENCE OF POLITICS AND RELIGION ON

THE HAIR AND BEARD.

Speak wi th respect and honourBoth of the beard and the board’s owner.

Human s.

THE famous declaration of S t. Paul, “that long hair wasa shame unto a

’man,

’’

has been made the pretex t for manysingular enactments, both of civil and ecclesias tical govern

ments. The fashion of the hair and the cut of the beardwere state questions in France and England from the esta

blishment of Christianity until the fifteenth century.

We find, too, that in much earlier times men were not per

mitted to do as they liked with their own hair . Alex anderthe Great thought that the beards of hi s soldiery afl

'

ordcd

convenient handles for the enemy to lay hold of, preparatoryto cutting ofl

’

their heads and,with the view of depriving

them of this advantage, he ordered the whole of his army tobe closely shaven . H is notions of courtesy toward an enem

were quite difl’

erent from those entertained by the Nort

American Indians, amongst whom it is held a point of honourto allow one chivalrous lock” to grow,

that the fee, in takingthe scalp, may have something to catch hold of.

At one time, long hair was the symbol of sovereignty inEurope. We learn from G1sgory of Tours that, amon the

successors of Clovis, it was the ex clusive privile e o the

royal family to have their hair long and curled. T e nobles,equal to kings in power, would not show any inferiorit in

this respect, and were not only their hair, but their bea of

an enormous length. This fashion lasted, with but sli ht

changes, till the time of Louis the Debonnaire, butsuccessors, up to Hugh Capet, were their hair short, by wayof distinction . Even the serfs had set all regulation at de

fiance, and allowed their looks and boards to grow.

3

n rnx cs or rom res, are , or run w e 1 1m am en. 158

At the time of the invasion of England by Will iam thenqueror, the Normans were their hair very short. Harold,his progress towards Hastings, sent forward spice to view

e strength and number of the enemy. They reported,nongst other things, on their return , that the host did

truest seem to be priests, because they had all their face and

Nb their lips shaven .

”The fashion among the English at the

m e was to wear the hair long upon the head and the upper

P’ but to shave the chin . When the haughty victors had

mwided the broad lands of the Sax on thanes and franklinsHmong them,

when tyranny of every kind was employed to

ma ke the English feel that they were indeed a subdued and

br oken nation . the latter encouraged the growth of their hair,th at they might resemble as little as possible their croppeda n d shaven masters.

This fashion was ex ceedingly displeasing to the clergy, and

Erevai lcd to a considerable ex tent in Franee and Germany .

ewards the end of the eleventh centur it was decreed byt he Pope. and zealously supported by t e ecclesiastical nu

t horities all over Europe, that such persons as were long hairshou ld be ex communicatedwhile living, and not be prayed forw hen dead. William ofMalmesbury relates, that the famousS t. Wulsten , Bishop of Worcester, was peculiarly indignantwhenever he saw a man with long hair. He declaimed against

the practice as one highly immoral, criminal, and beastly.

He continually carried a small knife in his pocket, and whenever an y body, oflending in this respect, knelt before him to

receive hi s blessing, he would whip it out sli ly, and cut ofl'

a

handful, and then, throwing it in his face, tell him to cut ofl

'

all the rest, or he would go to hell.

But fashi on, which at times it is possible to move with a

wisp. stands firm against a lever ; and men preferred to run

the risk of damnation to parting with the superfluity of theirhair. In the time of Henry I.

,Anselm, Archbishop of Can

terbury , found it necessary to republish the famous decree of

(« communication and outlawry against the offenders ; but, asthe court itself had begun to patronise curls, the fulminat1onsof the churchwere unavailing. Henry I . and his nobles weretheir ha ir in long ringlets down their backs and shoulders, andbecame a scandalum m natam in the eyes of

.

the godly

Une S crlo, the King’

s c plain , was so grieved m sp1r1t e

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d. more efi cacious than the entreaties of

w e informs us,“scarcelywas one year past, when all

thought themselves courtlets fell into the former vice,uni ntended with women in their long hairs.

”

1. appears to have been quite uninfluenosd b

hero, for even his own would not induce'

m a second

to undergo a cropping from priestly shears. It is said,hewas much troubled at this t1meby hlevisions.

ing ofl'

ended the church in this and e or respects, he

[ get no sound refreshing sleep, and used to imagine thataw all the bishops, abbots, and monks of every degree,ling around his bedside, and threatening to belabour himtheir pastoral staves ; which sight, we are told, so fright

him, that he often started naked out of his bed, and

:ked the phantoms sword in hand. Grimbalds , his phy11, who, like most of his fraternity at that day, was an

niastic, never hinted that his dreams were the result of a

digestion , but told him to shave his head, be reconciledhe Church, and reform himself with alms and prayer.he would not take this good advice, and it was not until

1ad been nearly drowned a year afterwards,in a violent

111 at sea, that he repented of his evil ways, cut his hairt, and paid preper deference to the wishes of the clergy.

1 France, the thunders of the Vatican with regard to longy hair were hardly more respected than in England. Louishowever, was more obedient than his brother- king, and

pad himself as closely as a monk, to the great sorrow of

he gallants of his court. H is Queen,the gay, haughty,

pleasure- seeking Eleanor of Guienne, never admired himsis trim,

and continually reproached him with imitating,only the head- dress, but the asceticism of the monks.

111 this cause, a coldness arose between them. The ladyring at last unfaithful to her shaven and indifi

'

erent lord,were divorced, and the Kings of France lost the rich

rinces of Guienne and Poitou, which were her dowry. She

156 m ess en or Pom ros m am elon

soon after bestowed her handand her possessions upon HenryDuke of Normandy, afterwards Henry II. of England, andthus gave the English sovereigns that strong footing inM es

which was for so many centuries the cause of such long andbloody wars between the nations.

When the Crusades had drawn all the smart young fellowsinto Palestine, the clergy did not find it so difficult to con

vince the staid burghers who remained in Europe, of the

enormity of long hair. During the absence of R ichard Cmde Lion , his English subjects not only cut their hair close, butshaved their faces. William Fitzosbert, or Long- beard, the

great dema ogue of that day, reintroduced among the

who claims to be of Sax on origin the fashion of long hair.

He did this with a view of making them as unlike as possibleto the citizens and the Normans. He were his own beardhanging down to his waist, from whence the name by which

he is best known to posterity.

The Church never showed itself so great an enemy to the

beard as to long hair on the head. It generally allowed

fashion to take its own course, both with regard to the chin

and the upper lip. This fashion varied continually ; for wefind that

,in little more than a century after the time of

Richard I .,when beards were short, that they had again

become so long as to be mentioned in the famous ep'

made by the Scots who visited London in 13 2 7, when Davidson of Robert Bruce, was married to Joan, the sister of KingEdward. This epigram, which was stuck on the church- doorof S t. Peter S tangate, ran as follows

Long beards heartlesse,Painted hoods witlesss ,Gray coats gracelesse,Make England thriftlesss .

When the Emperor Charles V. ascended the throne of

Spain, he had no heard. It was not to be ex pected that

the obsequious parasites who always surround a monarch,could presume to look more virile than their master. Immediately all the courtiers appeared beardless, with the ex ception of such few grave old men as had outgrown the influence

of fashion, and who had determined to die bearded as th

xhad lived. Sober people in general saw this revolution wi

m l:became at the t1me a common

Beade qne no barbg m haymu alma.

We have no longer since we have lost our beards.

In France, also, the beard fell into disrepute after theof Henry IV from the mere reason that his successor

n o too young to have one. Some of the more immediateHands of the great Béarnais, and his minister Sully amongthe rest, refused to part with their beards, notwithstandinghe of the new generation .m oss not remember the division of En land into two

peat parties of Roundheads and Cavaliers ? in those days,w ry species of vice and inic

fluity was thou ht b the Puri

tans to lurk in the long cur y tresses of e onarchists,while the latter imagined that their opponents were as desti

tute of wit, of wisdom,andof virtue, as they were of hair. A

man’

s locks were the symbol of his creed, both in politics andreligion . The more abundant the hair, the more scant thefaith ; and the balder the head, the more sincere the piety.

But among all the instances of the interference of governments with men

’

s hair, the most ex traordinary, not only for

its daring but for its success, is that of Peter the Great,in

1705 . By this time, fashion had condemned the heard in

every other country in Europe, and with a voice more potentthan Popes or Emperors, had banished it from civilized so

ciety. But this only made the Russians cling more fondlyto their ancient ornament, as a.mark to distinguish them fromforeigners, whom they hated. Peter, however, resolved thatthey should be shaven . If he had been a man deeply readinhistory, he might have hesitated before he attempted so

despotic an attack upon the time- hallowed customs and prejadices of his countrymen ; but he was not. He did not knowor consider the danger of the innovation ; he onl

gllistened to

the promptings of his own indomitable will, and'

s fiat went

Forth, that not only the army,but all ranks of the citizens,

:"

rom the nobles to the serfs, should shave their beards. A:ertain time was given, that eople might get over the first

;hresa of their repugnance, a r which every man who chosevoa. 1. 14

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1 Augus t, appea l e d 1111 on ion

mu i lay the King o f fu l'l1itl1 ll l lu'

e iv 1liun s,

pretenc e whatever, to w ear “mustachio s , and com

thepolice and other authorities to arrest,and cause

sued, the oflending parties.

“ S trange to say, adds

cit,”

the journal from which this account is taken ,whios disappeared immediately, like leaves from the

autumn everybody made haste to obey the royal

1dnot one person was arrested.

”

(ing of Bavaria, a rhymester of some celebrity, has

goodmany poetical licenses i n his time. H is license

latter appears neither poetical nor reasonable. It is

1cd that he will not take it into his royal head to

1 subjects shave theirs ; nothing but that 18 wantingrte their degradation .

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

There was an ancient sage philosopherWho swore the world, as he could prove,Was made of fighting.

i t

Hummu s .

MOST writers, in accounting for the origin of

derive it from the warlike habits of those barbarous nationswho overran Europe in the early centuries of the Christian

era, and who knew no mode so efl‘

ectual for settling their

difl‘

erences as the point of the sword. In fact, duelling,taken in its primitive and broadest sense, means nothin

more than combatting, and is the universal resort of all wil

animals, including man, to gain or defend their possessions,or avenge their insults. Two dogs who tear each other for a

bone, or two bantams fighting on a dun hill for the love of

some beautiful hen , or two fools on imbledon Common,shooting at each other to satisfy the laws of ofl

'

ended honour,stand on the same footing in this respect, and are, each and

all, mere duellists. As civilization advanced, the best- informed men naturally grew ashamed of such a mode of

adjusting disputes, and the promulgation of some sort of laws

for obtaining redress for injuries was the consequence. S till

there were many cases in which the allegations of an accusercould not be rebutted by any positive proof on the part of theaccused ; and in all these, which must have been ex ceedinglynumerous in the early stages of European society, the combatwas resorted to. From its decision there was no appeal.God was supposed to nerve the arm of the combatant whosecause was just

,and to grant him the victory over his opponent.

As Montesquieu well remarks,* this belief was not unnatural

4» u Esprit dos Loix , liv. x x viii . chap. x v11.

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

song a people just emerging from barbarism. Theirmannersg wholly warlike, the man deficient in courage, the prime

rtne of his fellows, was not unreasonably suspected of other

ces besides cowardice, which is generally found to be co

:istent w ith treachery. He, therefore, who showed himself

ost valiant in the encounter, was absolved by public Opinionom any crime with which he mi ht be charged. As a

acessary consequence, society woul have been reduced to

1 original elements, if the men of thought, as distinguished

cm the men of action, had not devised some means for

ming the unruly passions of their fellows. With this view,

ivernments commenced by restricting within the narrowest

issible limits the cases in which it was lawful to prove or

any guilt by the single combat. By the law of Gondebaldus,ing of the Burgundians, passed in the year 501

,the proof

r combat was allowed in all legal proceedings, in lieu of

tearing . In the time of Charlemagne, the Burgundianractiee had spread over the empire of the Francs, and not

i ly the suitors for justice, but the witnesses, and even the

ldges, were obliged to defend their cause, their evidence, or1eir decision , at the point of the sword. Louis the D e

)nnaire, his successor, endeavoured to remedy the growingril

,by permitting the duel only in appeals of felony, in civil

sses , or issue joined in a writ of right, and in cases of the

curt of chivalry, or attacks upon a man’

s kn ighthood. Noneere ex empt from these trials, but women , the sick and the

1aimed, and persons under fifteen or above six ty years of

ge. Ecclesiastics were allowed to produce champions in1eir stead. This practice, in the course of time, ex tended

1 all trials of civil and criminal cases, which had to be

ec ided by battle.

The clergy, whose domin ion was an intellectual one, never

pproved of a system of jurisprudence which tended so much

3 bring all things under the rule of the strongest arm. Fromhe first they set their faces against duelling, and endeavoured,5 far as the prejudices of their age would allow them,

to curbi s warlike spirit

,so alien from the principles of religion . In

re C ouncil of Valentia, and afterwards in the Council of'ren t , they ex commun icated all persons engaged in duelling,

nd not only them,but even the assistants and spectators,

eclaring the custom to be hellish and detestable, and intro14*

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the Evangelists was taken in ther: the accused who was received to

relics of the holy martyrs, or on their tomba that henocent of the crime imputed to him. He was also

[ to find twelve us, of acknowledged obity, who

take oath, at 0 same time, that theyglisved himat. This mode of trial led to very t

in cases of disputed inheri tance, w are

r was certain of the victory. This abuse

nci pal causes which led to the preference

yh ttle. It is not at all surprismg that a

1tain of the early ages, should have pa of a fair fight with his opponent, to a mode by which

srjury would always be successful.trial by, or judgment of, the cross, which Charlemagne1 his sons to have recourse to

, in cases of disputesbetween them, was performed thus —When a person11 of any crime has declared his innocence upon oath

,

ipealed to the cross for its judgment in his favour, heought into the church, before the altar. The priests1s prepared two sticks ex actly like one another, uponwhich was carved a figure of the cross . They were

rapped up with great care and many ceremonies, in a

ty of fine wool, and laid upon the altar, or on the relicssain ts. A solemn prayer was then ofl

'

ered up to God,3 would be pleased to discover, by the judgment of his

:ross, whether the accused person were innocent or

A priest then approached the altar, and took up one

sticks, and the assistants unswathed it reverently . If

marked with the cross, the accused person was innoi f unmarked, he was guilty. It would be unjust tothat the judgments thus delivered were, in all cases,one ; and it would be absurd to believe that they were;ogether to chance. Many true judgments were doubtven , and, in all probability, most conscientiously ; forn ot but believe that the priests endeavoured beforehandvince themselves by secret inqui ry and a strict ex ami

of the circumstances, whether the appellant were innorguilty, and that they took up the crossed or uncrossed

164 DUELS AND oanm s.

stick accordingly. Although, to all other observers, the

sticks, as enfolded in the wool, might appear ex actly similar,those who enwrapped them could, without any difi culty,distinguish the one from the other.By the fire- ordeal the power of deciding was just as une

quivocally left in their hands . It was generally believed thatfire would not burn the innocent, and the clergy, of course,

took care that the innocent, or such as it was their pleasure

or interest to declare so, should be so warned before

ing the ordeal, as to preserve themselves without anyfrom the fire. One mode of ordealploughshares on the ground at certain distances, and

blindfolding the accused person, make him walk baref

over them. If he stepped regularly in the vacant spaces,avoiding the fire, he was adjudged innocent ; if he burnedhimself, he was declared guilty. As none but the clergyinterfered with the arrangement of the ploughshares, theycould always calculate beforehand the result of the os

deal. To find a person gu ilty, they had only to place them

at irregular distances, and the accusedwas sure to tread uponone of them. When Emma, the wife of King Ethelred, andmother of Edward the Confessor, was accused of a guiltyfamiliarity with Alwyn, Bishop of Winchester, she cleared

her character in this manner. The reputation ,their order, but of a queen , being at stake, a verdwas not to be apprehended frompriests had the heating of. This ordeal was called theJ udicium D ei , and sometimes the Vu lgart

'

s P urgatt'

o, andmight also be tried by several other methods . One was tohold in the hand, unhurt, a piece of red- hot iron, of theweight of one, two, or three pounds . When we read not only

i

that men with hard hands,but women of softer and more

delicate skin, could do this with impunity, we must be convinced that the hands were previously rubbed with some

preservative, or that the apparently hot iron was merely cold

iron painted red. Another mode was to plunge the nakedarm into a caldron of boiling water. The priests then enve

loped it in several folds of linen and flannel,and kept the

patient confined within the church,and under their ex clusive

care, for three days. If, at the end of that time

, the arm

DUELS 'AR D ORDEALS .

sth upon the Evangelists was taken in the followingthe accused who was received to this proof, says7 , Count da Chastelet, in his Memoirs of Bertrandli n, swore upon a copy of the New Testament

, and

li es of the holy martyrs, or on their tombs, that he

cent of the crime imputed to him. He was also

3 find twelve persons, of acknowledged probity, whotke oath

,at the same time, that they believed him

This mode of trial led to very eat abuse, especases of disputed inheritance

, w ere the hardest

was certain of the victory. This abuse was one of

sips] causes which led to the preference given to thebattle. It is not at all surprising that a feudal baronain of the early ages, should have preferred the

of a fair fight with his opponent, to a mode by whichrjurywould always be successful.

rial by, or judgment of, the cross, whi ch Charlemagnehis sons to have recourse to

,in cases of di sputes

between them,was performed thus —When a person

of any crime has declared his innocence upon oath,caled to the cross for its judgment in his favour, heught into the church, before the altar. The priests!y prepared two sticks ex actly like one another

,upon

rhich was carved a figure of the cross . They werepped up with great care and many ceremonies, in a

of fine wool, and laid upon the altar, or on the relics

ints. A solemn prayer was then offered up to God,'

ould be pleased to discover, by the judgment of his

38,whether the accused person were innocent or

A priest then approached the altar,and took up one

cks, and the assistants unswathed it reverently . If

11'd with the cross, the accused person was innounmarked, he was guilty. It would be unjust toat the judgments thus delivered were, in all cases,

1 ; and it would be absurd to believe that they wereether to chance. Many true judgments were doubtI,and, in all probability

,most conscientiously ; for

t but believe that the priests endeavoured beforehandcc themselves by secret inqu iry and a strict ex aml

the circumstances, whether the appellant were i nno

uilty, and that they took up the crossed or uncrossed

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DUI LB AND ORDEALS .

aprimevirtue was personal bravery, was necessarily ex

ln fact, the nobility, from a ver early period, began11withjealous eyes upon them. hey were not slow to

iretheir true purport,whichwas no other than tomake the11the last court of appeal in all cases, both civil andal: and not only did the nobility prefer the ancient

of single combat from this cause, in itself a suflicient

at they clung to it because an acquittal gained byd

'

uplays of courage and address which the battled, was more creditable in the eyes of their compeers

,

towhich it required but little or none of either to se

ll1. To these causes may be added another, whichrhaps, more potent than either

,in raising the credit

judicial combat at the ex pense of the ordeal. The

utitution of chivalry was beginn ing to take root, and,standing the clamours of the clergy, war was made

1 business of life,and the only elegan t pursuit of the

scy. The fine spirit of honour was introduced, anyupon which was only to be avenged in the lists

,

sight of the applauding crowds, whose verdict of

tion was far more ratifying than the cold and formal

l of the ordeal. i othaire,the son of Louis I .

, abo

hat by fire and the trial of the cross within his do

but in England they were allowed so late as the

Henry III .,in the early part of whose reign they

i hibited by an order of council. In the mean time,

s ades had brought the institution of chivalry to theht of perfection . The chivalric spirit soon achieved

nfall of the ordeal system,and established the judicial

on a basis too firm to be shaken . It is true that withof chivalrv, as an in stitution , fell the tournament,encounter 1n the lists ; but the duel, their ofl

'

spring,vived to this day, defying the efforts of sages and

hem to eradicate it. Among all the errors bequeatheda barbarous age, it has proved the most pertinacious .

at variance between men ’

s reason and their honour ;man of sense on a level with the fool, and made

i s who condemn it submit to it, or practise it.

ewho are curious to see the manner in which these

were regulated, may consult the learned Montes

here they wi ll find a copious summary of the code of

168 DUELS AND onmu ns.

ancient duelling.

* Truly does he remark, in speaking ofthcclearness and ex cellence of the arrangements, that, as then

were many wise matters which were conducted in a ver;foolish manner, so there were many foolishmatters conducts!very wisely. No greater ex emplification of it could be given

than the wise and religious rules of the absurd and blasphemous trial by battle.

In the ages that intervened between the Crusades and th

new era that was opened out by the invention of gunpowds

and printing, a more rational system of legislation took root

The inhabitants of cities, engaged in the pursuits of trade a sind. :stry, were content to acquiesce in the decisions of thdjudges and magistrates whenever any differences arose amen;them . Unlike the class above them,

their habits and manner

did not lead them to seek the battle- field on every slight oc

casion . A diSpute as to the price of a sack of corn, a bahof broadcloth

,or a cow, could be more satisfactorily adjusts!

before the mayor or bailifl'

of their di strict. Even the martiaknights and nobles

,quarrelsome as they were, began to set

that the trial by battle would lose its dignity and splendoul

if too frequently resorted to. Governments also shared thin

Opinion, and on several occasions restricted the cases in whiclit was legal to proceed to this ex tremity. In France, beforlthe time of Lou is IX. , duels were permitted only in cases 0

L esa Majesty, R ape, Incendiarism,Assassination, and Bar

g lary . Louis IX.,by taking ofl

'

all restriction, made thenlegal in civil cases. This was not found to work well, and, i ]1303

, Philip the Fair judged it necessary to confine them, i!

criminal matters, to state ofl'

ences, rape, and incendiarismand in civil cases

,to questions of disputed inheritance. Knight

hood was allowed to be the best judge of its own honour, antmight defend or avenge it as often as occasion arose.

Among the earliest duels upon record, is a very singulal

one that took place in the reign of Louis 11. (A .D . 878)Ingelgerius, Count of Gastinois, was one morning discoveredby his Countess dead in bed at her side. Gentran, a relationof the Count

,accused the Countess of having murdered her

husband, to whom,be asserted, she had long been unfaithful,

and challenged her to produce a champion to do battle in her

Esprit des Loix ,

" livre x x viii . chap . n v.

of Essex wasaccused, b Robm de Mont

in 116 2 , of eving trai torouslystandard of England to fall from hi s hands

in a

1

skirmish with the Welsh, at Coleshill, five years pre

y, the latter ofl'

ered to prove the truth of the charge byma

n

gleycombat. The Earl of Essex accepted the challenge,the lists were prepared near Reading. An 1mmense con

course of persons assembled to witness the battle. Essex at

first fought stoutly, but, losing his temper and self- command,

Memoires de Brant6me touchant les Duels.

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nun s AND ORDEALS .

ofthefourteenth and fifteenth centuries. A memoraof the slightness of the pretex t on which a man

be forced to fight a duel to the death, occurs in the

in of the brave Constable, Du Guesclin . The advan

he had obtained, in a skirmish before Rennes, against

1! Brembre, an English captain , so preyed on the spiritslliamTroussel, the chosen friend and compan ion of the

,that nothing would satisfy him but a mortal combat

heConstable. The Duke of Lancaster, to whomTrousplied for permission to fight the great Frenchman, forthe battle, as not warranted by the circumstances .

is!nevertheless burned with a fierce desire to cross his

" i thDu Gasselin, and sought every occasion to pickrelwith him. Having so good a will for it, of course

1da way. A relative of hi s had been taken prisonerConstable, in whose hands he remained till hewas ablehis ransom. Troussel resolved to make a quarrel outand despatched a messenger to D u Guesclin , demandrelease of his prisoner, and ofl

'

ering a bond, at a dis

te, for the payment of the ransom. D u Guesclin, who

eived intimation of the hostile purposes of the Englishant back word, that he would not accept his bond,would he release his prisoner, until the full amount ofcm was paid. As soon as this answer was received,I sent a challenge to the Constable, demanding repa)r the injury he had done his honour, by refus1ng hi s

1d offering a mortal combat, to be fought three strokess lance, three with the sword, and three with the

D u Guesclin , although ill in bed with the ague,l the challenge, and gave notice to the Marshal d’

An

1, the King’

s L ieutenant- General in Lower Normandy,m ight fix the day and the place of combat. The Mar

de all necessary arran ements, upon condition that he

1 beaten should pay a undred florins of gold to feast

lea and gentlemen who werewitnesses of the encounter.D uke of Lancaster was very angrg

ith his captam ,

l him , that it would be a shame to kn ighthood and

on,if he forced on a combat with the brave D u Gues

a time when hewas enfeebled by disease and stretchedouch of sufl

'

ering. Upon these re resentat1ons, Trous

amed of himself, sent notice to u Gasselin that he

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

was willing to postpone the due] until such time as he shouldbe perfectly recovered. Du Guesclin replied, that he could

not think of postponing the combat, after all the nobility hadreceived notice of it ; that he had sufficient strength left, notonly to meet, but to conquer such an opponent as he was ;and that, if he did not make his appearance in the lists at thetime appointed, he would publish him everywhere as a man

unworthy to be called a kn ight, or to wear an honourablesword by his side. Troussel carried this haughty message tothe Duke of Lancaster, who immediately gave permission forthe battle.

On the day appointed, the two combatants appeared in thelists, in the presence of several thousand spectators . DuGuesclin was attended by the flower of the French nobility,includin the Marshal de Beaumanoir, Olivier de Manny,Bertrandde Saint Peru , and the Viscount de la Belliere,while the Englishman appeared with no more than the cus

tomary retinue of two seconds, two squires, two coutilliers, or

daggermen, and two trumpeters. The first onset was nu

favourable to the Constable he received so heavy a blow on

his shield- arm,that he fell forward to the left, upon his horse

’

s

neck, and, being weakened by his fever, was nearly thrownto the ground. All his friends thought he could never re

cover himself, and began to deplore his ill fortune ; but DuGuesclin collected his energies for a decisive efl

'

ort, and, at

the second charge, aimed a blow at the shoulder of his enemy,which felled him to the earth

,mortally wounded. He then

sprang from his horse, sword in hand, with the intention of

cutting of the head of his fallen foe, when theMarshal D’

An

dreghem threw a golden wand into the arena,as a signal that

hostilities should cease. D u Gasselin was proclaimed the

victor, amid the joyous acclamations of the crowd, and retir

ing, left the field to the meaner combatants, who were after

wards to make sport for the people. Four English and as

many French squires fought for some time with pointlesslances, when the French, gaining the advantage, the sportswere declared at an end.

In the time of Charles VI ., about the beginning of the

fifteenth century, a famous duel was ordered by the Parliament of Paris. The S ieur de Carrouges being absent in the

Holy Land, his lady was violated by the S ieur Legris . Car

DORIS AND ORDEALS .

his return, challenged Legris to mortal combat,

etvoioldcrime of violation and slander, inasmuch as heeuiedhis guilt, by asserting that the lady was a willingThelady

’

s asseverations of innocence were held to

evidence by the Parliament, and the duel was com

dwith all the ceremonies. On the day appointed,”

meme," the lady came to witness the spectacle in11101; but the King made her descend, judging her unbecause she was criminal in his eyes till her innocenceowed, and caused her to stand upon a scafl

'

old to awaitmyofGod and this judgment by the battle. After a

Juggle, the S ieur de Carrouges overthrew his .enem

ishim confess both the rape and the slander. lie1 taken to the gallows and ban ed in the presence of

itude ; while the innocence of t e lady was proclaimedxeralds, and recognised by her husband, the King,he spectators .

'

ous battles, of a similar description, constantly tookutil the unfortunate issue of one encounter of the

the French king, Henry IL ,to declare solemnly

,

ould never again permit any such encounter, whetherto a civil or criminal case, or the honour of a gen

1emorable combat was fought in the year 1547 .

de Vivonne,Lord of La Chataigneraie, and Guy dc

lord of J arnac, had been friends from their early(1 were noted at the court of Francis I. for the

Of their bearing, and the magnificence of theirChataigneraie, who knew that his friend’

s means

very ample,asked him one day, in confidence, how

at he contrived to be so well provided ? Jarnact1at his father had married a young and beautiful'ho

,loving the son far better than the sire, supplied

as much money as he desired. L a Chataigneraiethe base secret to the Dauphin , the Dauphin to theK ing to his courtiers, and the courtiers to all theirnee . In a short time it reached the ears of the old

Jarnac,who immediately sent for his son , and de

know in what manner the report had originated,

'f Mémoires de Branteme touchant les Duels .

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DUELS AND ORDEALS .

l ie as many times as he denies having said that whichhe did say ; for I repeat, that he told me several

n d boasted of it, that he had slept with his step

FRANCOIS DE Vrvonns .

his cartel De Jarnac replied

1 11 —With your good will and permission , I say, thato'

s dcVivonne has lied in the imputation which he has1poume, and of which I spoke to you at Compeigne. I

,

lore, entreat you, S ire, most humbly, that you be pleasedmtus a fair field, that we may fight this battle to the

1.

GUY CHABOT.

1pmparations were conducted on a scale of the greatestlicence, the King having intimated his intention of

present. L a Chataigneraie made sure of the victory,rited the King and a hundred and fifty of the principalages of the court to sup with him in the even ing, after.tle

,in a splendid tent

,which he had prepared at the

ity of the lists . D e Jarnac was not so confident,

perhaps more desperate. At noon , on the day apthe combatants met

,and each took the customary

1at he bore no charms or amulets about him,or made

my magic, to aid him against his antagon ist. Theytacked each other

,sword in hand. L a Chataigneraie

trong, robust man,and over- confident ; D e J arnac was

supple, and prepared for the worst. The combat'

Or some time doubtful,until D e Jarnac, overpowered

heavy blows of his opponent, covered his head with

i d, and, steeping down , endeavoured to make amends

ag ility for his deficiency of strength. In this crouchture be aimed two blows at the left thigh of L a Cha

aie,who had left it uncovered, that the motion of his

ht not be impeded. Each blow was successful, and,

is aston ishment of all the spectators, and to the great

of the King , La Chataigneraie rolled over upon the

H e seized his dagger, and made a last effort to strike

nae ; but he was unable to support himself, and fell

D UELS AND onnnans.

’

powerless into the arms of the assistants. The ofi cers newinterfered, and De J arnac being declared the victor, fell downupon hi s knees, uncovered his head, and, clasping his handstogether, ex claimed 0 D omine

,non sum dignua . La

Chataigneraie was so mortified by the result of the encounter,that he resolutely refused to have his wounds dressed. Hetore off the bandages which the surgeons applied, and ex piredtwo days afterwards . Ever since that time, any sly andunforeseen attack has been called b the French a coup dc

J arnac . Henry was so grieved at the loss of his favourite,that he made the solemn oath already alluded to

, that he

would never again , so long as he lived, permi t a duel. Somewriters have asserted

,and among otliers, Meseraic, that he

issued a royal edict forbidding them. This has been doubtedby others, and, as there appears no registry of the edict i n

any of the courts, it seems most probable that it was never

issued. This opinion is strengthened by the fact that twoyears afterwards, the council ordered another duel to be

fought, with similar forms, but with less magnificence, on

account of the inferior rank of the combatants. It is not

anywhere stated that Henry interfered to prevent it, notwithstanding hi s solemn oath ; but that, on the contrary

,he en

couraged it, and appointed the Marshal de la Marque to see

that it was conducted according to the rules of chivalry. The

disputants were Fendille and D’

Aguerre, two gentlemen of

the household, who, quarrelling in the King’

s chamber,had

proceeded from words to blows. The council, being informedof the matter, decreed that it could only be decided in thelists. Marshal de la Marque, with the King

’

s permission,appointed the city of Sedan as the place of combat. Fen

di lle, who was a bad swordsman , was anx ious to avoid an

encounter with D ’

Aguerre, who was one of the most ex pertmen of the age ; but the council authoritatively commanded

that he should fight, or be degraded from all his honours.D ’A erre appeared in the field attended by Francois deVen c

’

iome,Coun t do Chartres

,while Fend1lle was accompanied

by the Duke de Nevers Fendille appears to .have been not

only an inex pert swordsman,but a thorough coward ; one

who, like Cowley, might have heaped curses on the man ,

(Death’

s factor sure), who broughtD ire swords into this peaceful world.

"

encounter he m thrown from his horse,all that his viotor reqnired of

the yo Count de Montgomeri . He received

ranc

id

the eydm

gom the lance of this antagonist, and

a its efi'

ects shortly afterwards, in the forty- first year

get.

a n cceeding reigns of Francis 11 Charles IX., and

II , the practice of duelling increased to an alarmingD uels were not rare in the other countries ofEurope

n o period ; but in France theywere so frequent, thatus, in speakin of that e, designate it as

“l’

époque

rear des dueIs.

”The arliament of Paris endea

as far as in its power lay, to discoura e the practice.

:ree dated the 2 6th of June, 1559, it eclared all per

u should be present at duels, or aiding and abettingto be rebels to the King, transgressors of the law,

when of the public peace.

H enry III. was assassinated at St. Cloud, in 1589,

gentleman, named L’

isle Marivaut, who had beenloved by him, took his death so much to heart, thatved not to survive him. Not thinking suicide an

hi s death, and wishing, as he said, to die gloriously

g ing his King and master, he publicly ex pressed his11 to fight anybody to the deathwho should assert that

assassination was not a great misfortune to the com

An other youth, of a fiery temper and tried courage,darelles, took him at his word, and the day and place>mbat were forthwith ap ointed. When the hour had1d all were ready, Mare es turned to his second, and

hether his opponent had a casque or helmet only, orhe wore a aallade, or headpiece. Being answered a

My, he said gaily, So much the better ; for, sir, myyou shall repute me the wi ckedest man in all

.

the

I do not thrust my lance right through the middle

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DUELS AND ORDEALS .

iother m a duel,much less to any one who had taken away

’e. H e also advised, that some sort of tribunal, or court ofinour

,should be established, to take cogn izance of i njurious

i d slanderous language, and of all such matters as usuallyd to duels and that the justice to be administered by this>urt shou ld be sufficiently prompt and severe to appease theimplainant, and make the offender repent of his aggression .

Henry, being so warmly pressed by his friend andmin ister,

alled together an ex traordinary council i n the gallery of the

alace of Fontaiuebleau, to take the matter into consideraion . When all the members were assembled, his Majestyequested that some person conversant with the subject would1ake a report to him on the origin , progress, and difl

'

erent

m s of the duel. Sully complacently remarks, that none ofhe coun sellors gave the King any great reason to felicitate

hem on their erudition . In fact, they all remained silent.»ully held his peace with the rest ; but he looked so knowing,hat the King turned towards him,

and said Great mas

er l by your face I conjecture that you know more of this

i atter than you would have us believe. I pray you, and in.ccd I command

,that you tell us what you think and what

o n know .

”The coy min ister refused, as he says

,out of

uere politeness to his more ignoran t colleagues ; but, being.gain pressed by the K ing, he entered into a history of duel

ing both in ancient and modern times. He has not pre

erved this history in his Memoirs ; and,as none of the

uiuisters or counsellors present thought proper to do so,the

vorld is deprived of a discourse which was, no doubt, a

earned and remarkable one. The result was,that a royal

diet was issued,which S ully lost no time in transmitting to

he most distant provinces,w ith a distinct notification to all

parties concerned that the King was in earnest,and would

x ert the full rigour of the law in pun ishment of the offenders .

Sully himself does not inform us what were the provisions of

he new law ; but Father Matthias has been more ex plicit,nd from him we learn

,that the Marshals of France were

reated judges of a court of chivalry, for the hearing of all

auses wherein the honour of a noble or gentleman was con

erned, and that such as resorted to duelling should be pu

ished by death and confiscation of property, and that the

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

seconds and assistants should lose their rank, dignity, or

cflices, and be banished from the court of their sovereign.‘

But so strong a hold had the education and prejudice of hisage upon the mind of the King, that though his reason con

demned, his sympathies approved the duel. Notwithstandingthis threatened severity, the number of duels didnot diminish,and the wise Sully had still to lament the prevalence of an

evil which menaced society with utter di sorganization. In

the succeeding reign the practice prevailed, if possible, to astill greater ex tent, until the Cardinal de R ichelieu, better

able tograpplewith it than Sully had been , made some severe

ex amples in the very highest classes. Lord Herbert, the English ambassador at the court of Louis XIII., repeats, in hisletters, an observation that had been previous] made in the

reign of Henry IV that it was rare to fin a Frenchmanmoving in ood society who had not killed his man in a duel.

The Abbe illet says of this period, that the duel madnessmade the most terrible ravages. Men had actually a frenzyfor combatting. Caprice and vanity, as well as the ex cite

ment of passion, imposed the necessity of fighting. Friends

were obliged to enter into the quarrels of their friends, or bethemselves called out for their refusal, and revenge becamehereditary in many families. It was reckoned that i nyears eight thousand letters of pardon had been issued to persons who had killed others in single combat.1

‘

Other writers confirm this statement. Amelot de Houssaye,in his Memoirs

,says, upon this subject, that duels were so

common in the first years of the reign of Louis XIII., that

the ordinary conversation of persons when they met in the

morn ing was,

“D o you know who fought yesterday and

after dinner,

“D o you know whofought this morn ing ?”The

most infamous duellist at that period was D e Bouteville. It

was not at all necessary to quarrel with thi s assassin to be

forced to fight a duel with him. When he heard that anyone was very brave, he would go to him,

and say,“P eople

tell me that you are brave you and I mustfight togetherEvery morning the most notorious bravos and duellists used

to assemble at his house, to take a breakfast of bread aud!

Le Pere Matthias, tome 11. livre iv.

1 Elemens de l’Hi stoire de France,”vol . i i i . p. 2 19 .

D UELS AND OR DEAL S . 181

"me, and practise fencing. M . de Valencay, who was after

'g ds elevated to the rank of a cardinal, ranked very high inof D e Bouteville and his gang. Hardly a day

or other, either

challenged D e Boutevi llend, because De Bouteville had fought a

him to become his second. This quarrelappeased on the promi se of De Bouteville that

,in

encounter, he would not fail to avail himself of his

.m ices. For that purpose he went out the same da and

afl edaquarrel with theMarquis des Portes. M. deMalenaccording to agreement, had the pleasure of serving as

~almond, and of running through the body, M. de Cavois,

i s second of the Marqui s des Portes, a man who had never

,i n himany injury, and whom he afterwards acknowledged5 had never seen before.

a

i . Cardinal R ichelieu devoted much attention to this lamenta

i p Us state of public morals, and seems to have concurred with“a 5 great predecessor, Sully, that nothing but the most rigori severity could put a stop to the evil. The subject indeedi ully forced upon him by his enemies. The Marquis

emines, to whom R ichelieu, then Bishop of Lueon , had

given ofi'

ence by some representations he had made to MaryofMedicis, determined, since he could not challenge an eccle

siastic, to challenge his brother. An opportunity was soon1 found. Themines, accosting the Marquis de Richelieu, complained, in an insulting tone, that the Bishop of Lueon had

koken his faith. The Marquis resented both the mannerand matter of his speech, and readily accepted a chal

buge. They met in the Rue d’

Angouléme, and the unfortu

nate Richelieu was stabbed to the heart, and instantly ex

pired. From that moment the Bishop became the steady feeof the practice of duelling . Reason and the impulse of

brotherly love alike combined to make him detest it, and

when his power in France was firmly established, he set vigo

rously about repressing it. In his Testament Politique,he has collected his thoughts upon the subject, in the chapterentitled D es moyens d’arréter les Duels.

”In spite of the

edicts that he publi shed, the members of the nobility persistedin fighting upon the most trivial and absurd pretences . At

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M m hold any ofi ce in ths state. He who fell in a duel

Hericourt, the second of the Duke do Beaufort, a man whomand the challenge being m epted,

they fought even more desperately than their principals .

Thi s combat, being with swords, lasted longer than the first,and was more ex citing to the six remaining eutlemen who

stayed to witness it. The result was fatal to ericourt, who

fell pierced to the heart b the sword of D e Villars. Anything more sav e than t can hardly be imagined. V ol

taire says such uels were frequent, and the compiler of theDictionnaire d’Anecdotes” informs us, that the number of

seconds was not fix ed. As many as ten, or twelve, or twenty,were not unfrequent, and they often fought together aftertheir principals were disabled. The highest mark of friendship one man could manifest towards another, was to choose

him for his second ; and many gentlemen were so desirous of

serving in this capacity, that they endeavoured to raise everyslight misunderstanding into a quarrel, that they might havethe pleasure of being engaged i n it. The Count de Bus

}?Rabutin relates an instance of thi s in hi s Memoirs. e

says, that as he was one evening coming out of the theatre, a

gentleman, named Bruc, whom he had not before known ,

stopped him ver

ypolitely, and, drawing him aside, asked him

if it was true t at the Count de Thianges had called him

Bruc)a drunkard ? Bussy replied, that he reall did not

ow,for he saw the Count very seldom. Oh ! e is your

uncle !” replied Bruc ; and, as I cannot have satisfaction

from him, because he lives so far of in the country, I apply

DUELS AND ORDEALG.

to you . I see what you are at,

replied Bussy, and,since you wish to put me i n my uncle

’

s place, I answer, that

whoever asserted that he called you a drunkard, told a lie !”

My brother said so,replied Bruc, and he is a child.

Horsewhip him,then , for his falsehood, returned D e Bussy.

I will not have my brother called a liar,”returned Bruc,

determined to quarrel with him ; so draw,and defend your

self They both drew their swords in the public street, butwere separated by the spectators. They agreed, however, tofight on a future occasion

,and with all the regular forms of

the duello. A few days afterwards, a gentleman , whom De

Bussy had never before seen, and whom he did not know,even by name, called upon him, and asked if he might havethe privilege of serving as hi s second. He added, that he

neither knew him nor Bruc, ex cept by reputation, but, havinmade up his mind to be second to one of them,

he had decid

upon accompan'

ng D e Bussy as the braver uian of the two.

D e Bussy thanked him very sincerely for his politeness, butbegged to be ex cused, as he had already engaged four secondsto accompany him,

and he was afraid that if he took anymore, the affair would become a battle instead of a duel.

When such quarrels as these were looked upon as merematters of course, the state of society must have been indeedawful. Louis XIV. very early saw the evil

,and as early

determined to remedy it. It was not, however, till the year16 79, when he instituted the Chambre Ardente,

”for the

trial of the slow poisoncrs and pretenders to sorcery, that hepublished any edi ct against duelling. In that year his famousedict was promulgated, in whi ch he reiterated and confirmed

the severe enactments of his predecessors, Henry IV. and

Louis XIII., and ex pressedhis determination never to pardon

any offender. By this celebrated ordinance a supreme court

of honour was established, composed of the Marshals of

France. They were bound, on taking the office, to give to

every onewho brought a well- founded complaint before them,

such reparation as would satisfy the justice of the case.

Should any gentleman against whom complaint was maderefuse to obey the mandate of the court of honour, he mightbe punished by fine and imprisonment ; and when that was

not possible,by reason of his absenting himself from the king

dom, his estates might be confiscated till his return .

M mga be the cause ofdeprivad of all redress from the court ofthreeycars from the ex ercise of any ofice

the stato—was further imprisoned for two years, and sen~

tanned to pay a fine of half his yearly income.

He who accepted a challenge, was subject to the same

m t. Any servant, or other person, who knowingly

guil sen

tenced to stand in the ory be publicly whipped

l

ge’

r thefirst offence, and for second, sent for three years to the

t, was to be held guilty ofnot ensue, and was to bein the her ranks of lifeof the mi dle class hanged

upon a gallows, and their bodies

At the same time that Louis published this severe edict,he ex acted a promise from his principal nobility that theywould never enga e in a duel on any pretence whatever.He never swerved om his resolution to pursue all duellists

with the utmost rigour, and many were ex ecuted in variousparts of the country. A slight abatement of the evil was

the consequence, and in the course of a few years one duel

was not fought where twelve had been fought previously. Amedal was struck to commemorate the circumstance, by theex press command of the King. So much had he this objectat heart, that, in his will , he particularly recommended to his

successor the care of his edict against duellin and warned

him against any ill-judged lenity to those who beyed it.

A singular law formerly ex isted in Malta with regard to

duelling. By this law it was permitted, but only uponcondition that the parties should fight in one particularstreet. If they presumed to settle their quarrel elsewhere,they were held guilty of murder, and punished accordingly.

What was also very singular, they were bound, under heavypenalties, to put up their swords when requested to do so bya priest, a knight, or a woman . It does not appear, however, that the ladies or the knights ex ercised this mild and

beneficent privilege to any great ex tent ; the former were toooften themselves the cause of duels, and the latter sympathized too much in the wound

l

e

éi honour of the combatants tol '

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adviaarsmade no to altar the barbarous law. The

a reformation of the evil. Infer

and second, in a

so

a thing v meet and worthy toknown unto 0world.

”

by cunn dsnngthe nature and greatness of the mischi of

duelling

. t troubleth.peace

—it disfurnishcth war—itcalami u n vate men, the state,

and w nM pt

tynEli

’

s lap:l

.

fl‘ouchiiig

pt

e

l

l

ii

e

l

cm of it,”he

observed,“that the first motive of it, no doubt, is a false

anderroneous imagination of honour and credi t ; but then , theseed of this mischief being such, it is nourished by vain discourses and green and unripe conceits. Hereunto may beadded, that men have almost lost the true notion and understanding of fortitude and valour. For fortitude distin

guisheth of the grounds of quarrel whether they be just ; andnot only so, but whether they be worthy, and setteth a betterprice upon men

’

s lives than to bestow them idly. Nay, it is

weakness and di sesteem of a man’

s self to put a man’

s life

upon such liedger performances. A man’

s life is not to be

trified with : it is to be ofi'

ered up and sacrificed to honour

able services, public merits, good causes, and noble adven

tures. It i s’

in ex pense of blood as it is in ex pense ofmoney.

It i s no liberality to make a profusion of money upon everyvain occasion, neither i s it fortitude tomake efi

'

usion of blood,ex cept the cause of it be worth.

The most remarkable event connected with duelling i n this

was that between Lord San nir,a Scotch nobleman ,

:(

iig‘

ii ne Turner, a fencing -mas ter. n a trial of skill betweenthem,

his lordship’s eye was accidentally thrust out by the

Bee Life and Character ofLord Bacon, by Thomas Martin, Barrister

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

point of Turner’

s sword. Turner ex pressed great regret at

the circumstance, and Lord Sanquir bore hi s loss with a:

much philosophy as he was mas ter of, and forgave his antage

nist. Three years afterwards, Lord Sanquir was at Pariswhere he was a constant visitor at the court of Henry IVOne day, in the course of conversation , the afl

'

able monurolinquired how he had lost his eye. Sanquir, who prided him

self on bein the most ex port swordsman of the age, blushet

as he replie that it was inflicted by the sword of a

master. Henry, forgetting his assumed character ofduellist, carelessly, and as a mere matter of course, inquire!whether the man lived ? Nothing more was said, but thi

query sank deep into the proud heart of the Scotch baronwho returned shortly afterwards to England, burning for revenge. H is first intent was to challenge the fencing

-masts

to si ngle combat, but, on further consideration, he deemod iinconsistent with his dignit

fy to meet him as an ual in faii

and open fight. He there ore hi red two braves, w 0 set upon

the fencing-master, and murdered him in hi s own house a

Whitefriars. The assassins were taken and ex ecuted, ama reward of one thousand pounds offered for the apprehensior

of their employer. Lord Sanquir concealed himselffor severadays, and then surrendered to take his trial, in the hope (happily false) that Justice would belie her name, and be lenien

'

to a murderer because he was a nobleman, who, on a falsi

point of honour, had thought fit to take revenge into his owi

hands. The most powerful intercessions were employed i ihi s favour, but James, to his credi t, was deaf to them all

Bacon, in hi s character of Attorney- General, prosecuted thiprisoner to conviction ; and he died the felon

’

s death, on thi

2 9th of June, 1612 , on a gibbet erected in front of the gatiof Westminster Hall.

With regard to the public duel, or trial by battle, demandetunder the sanction of the law, to terminate a quarrel whiclthe ordinary course of justice could with difliculty decide

Bacon was equally opposed to it, and thought that in no cast

should it be granted. He suggested that there should bt

declared a constant and settled resolution in the state tt

abolish it altogether ; that care should be taken that the evi'

be no more cockered, nor the humour of it fed, but that al

persons found guilty should be rigorously punished by thi

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S ir Peter Kin brought the subject under

if the Legislature, an after dwelling at considera

an the alarming increase of the practice, obtained

ng in a bill for the prevention and unishment of

It was read a first time that day, an ordered for a

ling in the ensuing week.

to same time the attention of the

was also drawn to the subject inl‘wo of its most noted members w

icon that Queen Anne received notice of their in

l ex acted a pledge that they would desist ; while al afterwards, two other of its members lost their

of the most remarkable duels upon record. The

which hap ily terminated without a meeting, was

aDuke of arlboro h and the Earl Pawlet. Thefatal encounter, was tween the Duke of H

rd Mohun .

arose out of a debate in the Lords upon the con

Duke of Ormond, in ref to hazard a general

t with the enemy, in which arl Pawlet remarked

DUELS AND OBDRAIJ .

pockets by disposing of their commissions. Every one!that the remark was aimed at the Duke of Marlbo

he remained silent, though evidently sufi'

ering in mind.

after the House broke up, the Earl Pawlet receivedufrom Lord Mohun, who told him that the Duke of M.

‘

rough was anx ious to come to an ex planation with himative to some ex pressions he had made use of in that idebate, and therefore prayed him to go and take a litthin the country.

” Earl Pawlet did not afl'

ect tomisunder.the hint, but asked him in plain terms whether he broadchallenge from the Duke. Lord Mohun said his m.needed no ex planation, and that he (Lord Mohun) wouldcompany the Duke of Marlborough. He then took himand Earl Pawlet returned home and told his lady that hegoing out to fight a duel with the Duke of Marlborough. a

lady, alarmed for her lord’

s safety, gave notice of his

tion to the Earl of Dartmouth, who immediately, inQueen ’

s name, sent to the Duke of Marlborough, and 1manded him not to stir abroad. He also caused Earl ]let

’

s house to be guarded by two sentinels ; and having fl

these precautions, informed the Queen of the whole atHer Majesty sent at once for the Duke, ex pressed her atrence of the custom of duelling, and required his wonhonour that he would proceed no further. The Duke ph ihis word accordingly, and the affair terminated.

The lamentable duel between the Duke of HamiltonLord Mohun took place in November, 171 2 , and sprang :the following circumstances . A lawsuit had been pendia!eleven years between these two noblemen , and they 10

upon each other in consequence with a certain degree ofness. They met together on the 13th of November inchambers ofMr . Orlebar, a Mas ter in Chancery, when, itcourse of conversation, the Duke of Hamilton reflected i

the conduct‘

of one of the witnesses in the cause, sayinghe was a person who had neither truth nor justice inLord Mohun

, somewhat nettled at this remark, appliedwitness favourable to his side, made answer hasti ly, thatWhiteworth, the person alluded to, had quite as much 1

and justice in him as the Duke of Hamilton . The 1

made no reply, and no one present imagined that heoffence at what was said and when he went out of the r

hwand ocm-toous saluto to tt ord

gage, but the Duke insisted that“Macartney chould

vein the dam .

”All being ready, the two princi

uptheir positions, and fought with swords so d

t after a short time, they both fell down, morta yThe LordMohun ex pired upon the spot, and the

Hamilton in the arms of his servants as they were

happy termination caused the greatest ex citement,I the metro lis, but all over the country. The

eved at the oss of the Duke of Hamilton, chargedembat on the Whig party, whose leader, the. Dukerough, had so recent] set the ex ample of political[mulled Lord Mo nu the bully of the Whig

already killed three men in duels, and been

for murder), and asserted openly, that the quarrelted between him and General Macartney to rob the

the services of the Duke of Hamilton bymurderingas also asserted, that the wound of which the Dukenot inflicted by Lord Mohun , but by Macartney ;means was used to propagate this belief. Colonelagainst whom and Macartney the coroner

’

s juryed a verdict of wilful murder, surrendered a few

wards,and was ex amined before a privy counci l

he house of Lord Dartmouth. He then deposed,Lord Mohun fall, and the Duke upon him,

he ran

ke’

s assistance, and that he might with the more17

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” t rogrst of all ths ssnsible portion of ths

fought in 1765 , between Lord ByronThe dispute arose at a club dinner, andof the two had the largest quantity ofInfuriated by wine and passion, the

instantly into an a

floinin room, and fought with

across a table, by e fee lo glimmer of a tallowMr. Chaworth, who was the more ex pert swordsman

two, received a mortal wound, and shortly afterwards

E. Lord Byron was brought to trial for the murderthe House of Lords ; and it appearing clearly, that the

h was not premeditated, but fo ht at once, and in the

“of n, hewas found guilty 0 manslaughter only, and

h ad to be discharged upon payment of his fees. This

a very bad ex ample for the country, and duelling of

fell ihto no disrepute afier such a verdict.

In France, more severit was ex ercised. In the yearso, the Parliament of enoble took cognizance of the

h quency of the S ieur Duchelas, one of its members, whofl anged and killed in a duel a captain of the Flemish

The servant of Duchelas ofliciated as second, and

I arraigned with his master for the murder of the captain .

b y were both found guilty. Duchelas was broken alive on

a wheel, and the servant condemned to the galleys fors.

A barbarous and fiercely- contested duel was fought in No

l ber 1778, between two foreign adventurers, at Bath,n ed Count R ice and the Vicomte du Barri. Some disputewe relative to a gambling transaction, in the course of whicha Barri contradicted an assertion of the other, by saying,

not true Count R ice immediately asked him if henew the very disagreeable meaning of the words he had em

oyed. D u Barri said he was perfectly well aware of their

and that R ice might interpret them'

ust as he

A challenge was immediately given an accepted.

sounds were sent for, who, arriving with but little delay, thesole party, tho h it was not long after midnight, proceededa place called averton Down, where they remained withsurgeon until daylight. The

ythen prepared for the en

unter, each being armed wit two pistols and a sword.

t.

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

The ground having been marked out by the seconds,Barri fired first, and wounded his opponent in the

Count Rice then levelled his pistol,mortally in the breast. So angry werethey refused to desist

then rushing forward,other . Neither shot

their pistols,the sword. Theytowards each other,staggered, grew pale“ J e vous demands

time to answer, that

D u Barri,and disgrace

manslaughter only. Count R ice, upon his recovery, was indicted for the murder notwithstanding this verdict. On Htrial he entered into a long defence of his conduct, pl

the fairness of the duel, and its unpremeditated nature

at the same time, ex pressing his deep regret for the unfortn;nate death of D u Barri

,with whom for many years he had

been bound in ties of the strictest friendship . These cub

s iderations appear to have weighed with the jury, and th'

l

fierce duellist was again found gui lty of manslaughter only,and escaped with a merely nominal puni shment.A duel, less remarkable from its circumstances, but more

so from the rank of the parties, took place in 1789 . Thecombatants on this occasion were the Duke of York andColonel Lenox , the nephew and heir of the Duke of R ichmond. The cause of offence was given by the Duke of York,who had said

,in presence of several officers of the Guards

that words had been used to Colonel Lenox at Daubigny’

!

to which no gentleman ought to have submitted. Colonel

Lenox went up to the Duke on parade,and asked him pub

licly whether he had made such an assertion . The Duke 01York, without answering his question , coldly ordered him tt

his post. When parade was over, he took an opportunity o1

saying publicly in the orderly room before Colonel Lenox .

fired first, and the ball whin ed past the head ef hisnt, se ncar to it as te grase his projecting curl. Therefused to return the fire, and the seconds interfering,

nel Lenox was 7 short] afterwards engaged inr duel arising ouz

r

hf this.

yA Mr. Swift wrote a

let in reference to the dispute between him and theIf York, at some ex pressions in which he took so much

as to imagine that nothing but a shot at the writer

stone for them. They met on the Ux bridge Road, buta ge was done to either party.

In sh were for a long time renowned for their love of

g. The sli htest offence which it is possible to imagineno man coul ofl

’

er to another, was sufi cient to provokeenge. S ir Jonah Barrington relates, in his Memoirs,'

evieus to the Union, during the time of a di sputed1 in Dublin , it was no unusual thing for three

- and

duels to be fought in a day. Even in times of less

lent, they were so common as to be deemed unworthyby the regular chroniclers of events, ex cept in cases

one or both of the combatants were killed.

hose days,in Ireland, it was not only the man of the

y, but of every profession , who had to work his way toice with the sword or pistol. Each political party hadular corps of bullies, or fire- eaters, as they were called,ualified themselves for being the pests of societ

yby

mg all their spare time in firing at targets. hey1 that they could hit an opponent part of his:hey pleased, and made up their minds before the

xter began whether they should kill him,disable, or

re him for life—lay him on a bed of sufl'

ering for a

month, or merel graze a limb.

evilhad reachedan alarming height, when, in the year17“

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1: 1 lhd i o' w ife 11 ent l ipn n he r knees l'ef'

u re the Prince

t i m me him to u ~ e his in fluen ce “ith the King . in

1 1 er unhappy husband. Everything a fund n ife and

a- o us woman could do, she tried

,to gain the royal

but George III . was inflex ible, in consequence of

s e ntetiens of the Irish Viceroy that an ex ample wasy The law was therefore allowed to take its course,v i ctimof a false spirit of honour died the death of a

m ost inveterate duellists of the present day are the

ts in the Un ivers ities of Germany . They fight on thefrivolous pretences, and settle with swords and pistolshoolboy disputes which in other countries are arrangedamoreharmless medium of the fisticufl

'

s. It was at one

the custom among these savage youths to prefer the

combat, for the facility it gave them of cutting ofl'

the

of their opponents. To disfigure them in this mannerI object of ambition, and the German duellists reckonedmber of these disgusting trophies which they had bornewith as much satisfaction as a successful general theres he had reduced or the cities he had taken .

it would be wearisome to enter into the minute detail

the duels of modern times. If an ex amination wereate the general causes which produced them,

it would

(1 that m every case they had been either of the mostor the most unworthy nature Parliamentary duelsb a n “ §:m 4\ " A “ n n m m n A o m n n n a " OL A n o A P

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

self. The bonds of reason , though iron- strong, are easilyburst through ; but those of folly, though lithe and frail as

the rushes by a stream, defy the stoutest heart to snap them

asunder. Colonel Thomas, an eflicer of the Guards, who was

killed in a duel, added the following clause to his will the

night before he died In the first place, I commit my soul

to Almighty God, in hope of his mercy and pardon for theirreligious step I now ( in compliance with the unwarrantablecustoms of this wicked world)put myself under the necessityof taking. How many have been in the same state of mind

as this wise, foolish man He knew his error, and abhorredit, but could not resist it, for fear of the opinion of the prejudiced and unthinking. No other could have blamed him forrefusing to fight a duel.The list of duels that have sprung from the most degrading

causes might be stretched out to an almost indefinite ex tent.

S terne’s father fought a duel about a goose and the greatRaleigh about a tavern bill.* Scores of duels (many of them

fatal)have been fought from disputes at cards,or a place at

a theatre, while hundreds of challenges, given and acceptedever - night, in a fit of drunkenness, have been fought out thenex t morning to the death of one or both of the antagon ists .

Two of the most notorious duels of modern times had theirorigin in causes no more worthy than the quarrel of a do

and the favour of a prostitute : that between Macnamara andMontgomery arising from the former ; and that between Bestand Lord Camelford, from the latter. The dog of Mont

gomery attacked a dog belonging to Macnamara, and each

Raleigh, at one period of his life, appeared to be an inveterate duellist,and it was said of him that he had been engaged in more encounters of the

kind than any man of note among his contemporaries . More than one fel

low - creature he had deprived of li fe ; but he lived long enough to be convinced of the sinfulness of his conduct, and made a solemn vow never to

fight another duel. The following anecdote of his forbearance is well

known , but it wi ll bear repetitionA dispute arose in a coffee- house between him and a young man on some

trivial point, and the latter, losing his temper, impertinently spat in theface of the veteran. S ir Walter, instead of running him through the body,as many would have done, or challenging him to mortal combat, coolly tookout his handkerchief, wiped his face, and said, Young man, if I could aseasily wipe from my conscience the stain of ki lling you ,

as I can this spittlefrom my face, you shou ld not live another minute. The youngman immediately begged his pardon.

DUI H AI D OBDRAIB .

interfering in behalf of his ewn animal, h wordsThe result was the giving and acoeptin a c enge

to mortal combat. The part1es met on the fo owing da

when Men mery was shot dead, and his antagonist severelywounded. is afl

'

air created a great sensation at the time,and Heaviside, the surgeon who attended at the fatal field to

render his assistance, 1f necessary, was arrested as an acces

sa

gto themurder, and committed toNewgate.

the duel between Best and Lord Camelford, two pistolswere used which were considered to be the best in England.

One of them was the ht slightly superior to the other, and

it was agreed that the lligerents should toss up a piece ofmoney to decide the choice of was us. Best gained It, and,at the first dischar

ge, Lord Camel ord fell, mortally wounded.

But little sym t was ex pressed for his fate ; he was a

confirmed duelEt,had been engaged in many meetings of

the kind, and the blood of more than one fellow- creature layat his door. As he had sowed, so did he reap ; and the

violent man met an appropriate death.

It now only remains to notice the means that have beentaken to stay the prevalence of this madness of false honourin the various countries of the civilized world. The efl

'

orts of

the governments of France and England have already beenmentioned, and their want of success is but too well known .

The same efl'

orts have been attended with the same results

elsewhere. In despotic countries, where the will of the

monarch has been strongly ex pressed and vigorously sup

ported, a diminution of the evil has for a .while resulted, butonly to be increased again , when death relax ed the iron

grasp, and a successor appeared of less decided epin ions uponthe subject. This was the case in Prussia under the greatFrederick, of whose aversion to duellin a popular anecdote

is recorded. It is stated of him that e permitted duellingin his army, but only upon the condition that the combatantsshould fight in the presence of a whole battalion of infantry,drawn up on purpose, to see fair play. The latter received

strict orders, when one of the belligerents fell, to shoot the

other immediately. It is added, that the known determination of the King efl

'

ectually put a stop to the practice.

The Emperor Joseph H . of Austria was as firm as Frede

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nun s AND ORDEALS .

the United States ofAmerica the code varies consideraIn one or two of the still wi ld and simp19 States of thefest, where no duel has yet been fou

p

ght, there is no

is law upon the subject beyond that in the Decalogue,says, Thou shalt do nomurder.

’

But duelhng evefollows the steps of modern civilization, and bythe backwoodsman is transformed into the citizen, he

1bibed the false notions of honour which are prevalent

rope, and around him, and 1s ready, like his pprogenitors,tle his diflerences with the istol. In the majority of

hates thepinnishment. for c eng mg, fighting, or acting

end, 1s so tary imprisonment and hard labour for any[ less than a year, and ualification for servin any1 05 00 for twenty years. Vermont the punis eat

11 disqualification for ofi ce, deprivation of the rights of

1ship, and a fine ; in fatal cases, the same punishment as.f murderers. Ii i Rhode Island, the combatant, thoughdoes not ensue, is liable to be carted to the gallows,

1 repe about his neck, and to sit in this trim for an hour,ed to the peltings of the mob. He may be further imled for a year, at the option of the magistrate. In Con

ut,the punishment 18 total disqualification for oflice or

»y, and a fine,var

Iying from one hundred to a thousand

s . The laws of llinois require certain officers of the

to make oath, previous to their instalment, that theynever been , nor ever will be, concerned i n a duel.

ion

gzst the edicts against duelling promulgated at variousurepe, may be mentioned that of Augustus, King of

rd, in 1712 , which dec1eed the punishment of death

at principals and seconds, andminor pun ishments againstsarera of a challenge. An edict was also published at

ch, in 1773, according to which both principals and

ds , even in duels where no one was either killed or

ded, should be hanged, and their bodies buried at the

)f the gallows.

9 King of Naples issued an ordinance against duelling38 , in which the punishment of death 1s decreed a

gainst

ncerned m a fatal duel. The bodies of those kills and

me who may be ex ecuted 1n consequence, are to be bi1ried

a u Encyclope dia Americana, art. Duellin8

DUELS AND ORDEALS .

in unconsecrated ground, and without any religious ceremonynor is any monument to be erected on the spot. The pun ishment for duels in which either, or both, are wounded, and forthose in which no damage whatever is done, varies accoto the case, and consists

,of fine, imprisonment, loss of rs

and honours, and incapacity for filling any public situation.

Bearers of challenges may also be punished with fineprisonment.It might be imagined that enactments so severe all over the

civilized world would finally eradicate a custom,the prevalence

of which every wise and good man must deplore. But the

frowns of the law never yet have taught, and never will teach,men to desist from this practice, as long as it is felt that the

lawgiver sympathizes with it in his heart. The stern judgeupon the bench may say to the unfortunate wight who hasbeen called a liar by some unmannerly opponent, “If youchallenge him, you meditate murder, and are guilty of mur

der . but the same judge, divested of his robes of state, and

mix ing in the world with other men , would say, If you do

not challenge him,if you do not run the risk ofmaking your

self a murderer, you will be looked upon as a mean - spiritedwretch, unfit to associate with your fellows, and deservingnothing but their seem and their contempt . It is society,and not the duelli st, who i s to blame. Female influence, too,which i s so powerful 111 leading men either to good or to evil,takes, i n this case, the evil part. Mere animal bravery has,unfortunately, such charms i n the female eye, that a success

ful duellist i s but too often regarded as a sort of here ; andthe man who refuses to fight, though of truer courage, is

thought a poltroon , who mayI:be trampled on . Mr. Graves, a

member of the American egislature, who, early in 1838,ki lled a Mr. Cilley i n a duel

, truly and eloquently said, on

the floor of the House of Representatives, when lamentingthe unfortunate issue of that encounter, that society was moreto blame than he was. Public opin ion , said the repentantorator, “ is practically the paramount law of the land. Everyother law,

both human and divine,ceases to be observed

yea, withers and perishes in contact with it. It was this paramount law of this nation , and of this House, that forced me,under the penalty of dishonour, to subject myself to the code,which impelled me unwillingly into this tragical ad

'

air. Upon

ads ef this natien, and at the doors of this House, restsed withwhichmy unfortunate handshavebeen stained.eng as society is in this mood ; as long as it thinksis man who refuses to meant an insult, deserved thatand should be scouted accordingly, so long, it is to bewi ll due ex ist, however severe the laws may be.

lust have r for injuries inflicted, and when thosea are of such a nature that no tribunal will take coguief them, the injm d will take the law into their own

and ri

ght themselves in the opinion of their fellows, at

a n d 0 their lives. Much as the sage may effect to

a the opinion of the world, there are few who would not

ex pose their lives a hundred times than be condemnedon , in society, but not of it—a by

- word of reproach to0 know their history, and a mark for seem to point hisat.

only practicable means for diminishing the force of a

11 which is the disgrace of civilization, seems to be the

ishment of a court of honour, which should take cogu i

of all those delicate and almost intangible ofl'

ences which

iund so deeply . The court established by Louis XIV .

be taken as a model. N0 man now fights a duel when

pology has been offered, and it should be the duty of

ourt to weigh dispassionately the complaint of everynjured in his honour

, either by word or deed, and to

the offender to make a public apology . If he refused

pology, he would be the breaker of a second law ; an

er against a high court, as well as against the man he

ijured, and might be punished with fine and imprisonthe latter to last until he saw the error of his con

and made the concession which the court demanded.

after the establishment of this tribunal, men should be

of a nature so bloodthirsty as not to be satisfiedwith its

ful decisions, and should resort t0°the old and barbarousof an appeal to the pistol, some means might be found.ling w ith them. To hang them as murderers would beavail ; for to such men death would have few terrors.

3 alone would bring them to reason . The followingit is humbly suggested to all future legislators upon thet, would, in conjunction with the establishment of a

of honour, do much towards eradicating this blot fromi .

18

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LOVE OF THE MARVELLOUS AND THE

DISBELIEF OF THE TRUE.

WELL, sen John, said the old woman, and what won

derful thin did you meet with all the time you were at

sca ?—“Oh . mother,”replied John, I saw many strange

things. Tell us all about them,

”re lied his mother,

“for

I long to hear your adventures.

”Véi

ell then,”said John,

as we were sailing over the Line, what do you think wesaw —“I can

’

t ima ine, replied his mother . Well, we

saw a fish rise out of t e sea, and fly over our ship ! “O !”John ! John ! what a liar you are !

”said his mother, shaking

her head, and smiling incredulously. True as death !” said

John ; and we saw still more wonderful thin 8 than that .

Let us hear them,

”said his mother, shai ing her head

again ; and tell the truth, John, if you can .

”Believe it,

or believe it not, as you please,”replied her son ; but as we

were sailing up the Red Sea, our captain thought he should

like some fish for dinner ; so he told us to throw our nets,

and catch some.

” Well inquired his mother, seeing thathe paused in his story . Well,

” rejoined her son , we did

throw them, and, at the very first haul, we brought up a

chariot- Wheel, made all of gold, and inlaid with diamonds !”

Lord bless us said his mother, and what did the captainsay ?

” Why, be said it was one of the Wheels of Pharaoh’

s

chariot, that had lain in the Red Sea ever since that wickedKing was drowned, with all his host, while pursuing the

Israelites. Well, well,”said his mother, lifting up her

hands in admiration ;“now, that

’

s ver

yrpossible, and I think

the captain was a very sensible man . ell me such stories asthat, and I

’

ll behave you ; but never talk to me of such things

THE LOVE OF THE MARVELLOUS

as flying fish ! No, no, John , such stories won’

t go (hwith me, I can assure you

Such old women as the sailor’s mother,in the above 1

known anecdote, are by no means rare in the world. Ev!

age and country has produced them. They have been fl!in high places, and have sat down among the learned ef l

earth. Instances must be familiar to every reader in vithe same person was willing, with greedy credulity, to swd

the most ex travagant fiction , and yet refuse credence lphilosophical fact. The same Greeks who believed redthat Jupiter wooed Leda in the form of a swan , dc

stoutly that there were any physical causes for storms !

thunder, and treated as impious those who attemptedaccount for them on true philosophical principles.

The reasons that thus lead mankind to believe the Ivellously false, and to disbelieve the marvellously true, Ibe easily gathered. Of all the offspring of Time, Errgthe most ancient, and is so old and familiar an acquaintthat Truth, when discovered, comes upon most of us likeintruder, and meets the intruder

’

s welcome. We all payinvoluntary homage to antiquity— a

“blind homage,'

Bacon calls it in his Novum Organum, which tends gruto the obstruction of truth. To the great majority ofmueyes, time sanctifies everything that he does not deal:

The mere fact of anything’

s being spared by the greatmakes it a favourite with us

, who are sure to fall his vicfiTo call a prejudice time- hallowed,

”is to open a way ft

into hearts where it never before penetrated. Some peelcustom may disgrace the people amongst whom it flourishyet men of a little wisdom refuse to aid in its ex tirpat

merely because it is old. Thus it is with human belief,thus it is we bring shame upon our own intellect.

To this cause may be added another, also mentionedLord Bacon—a misdirected zeal in matters of religion , 17]induces so many to decry a newly- discovered truth, beenthe Divine records contain no allusion to it, or becausefirst sight, it appears to militate, not against religion,against some obscure passage which has never been fainterpreted. The old woman in the story could not belithat there was such a creature as a flying

- fish, becauseBible did not tell her so, but she believed that her son

m m nrssn m orm raua.

yet they would

not believe Galileo, when he proved that the earth turned

Keppler, when he asserwd the same fact, could gain no

bread, and little credence ; but when he pretended to tellfortunes and cast nativities, the whole town flocked to him,

could have done it ; but when some wiseacres asserted that

the devil had appeared to him , and given him the knowledgewhich he turned to such account, no one was bold enough to

assert that it was improbable. H is hint that saltpetre,sulphur, and charcoal, mix ed in certain proportions, wouldproduce effects similar to thunder and lightning, was disre

garded or disbelieved ; but the legend of the brazen headwhich delivered oracles was credited for many ages.

*

Solomon De Cans, who, in the time of Cardinal R ichelieu,

Godwin , in his Lives of the Necromancers , gives the followingversion of this legend. Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay entertained the

project of enclosing England with a wall, so as to render it inaccessible to

any invader. They accordingly raised the devi l, as the person best able toinform them how this was to be done. The devil advised them to make a

brazen head, wi th all the internal structure and organs of a human head.

The construction would cost them much time, and they must wait wi thpatience till the faculty of s

peech descended upon it. Finally, however, it

wou ld become an oracle, an if the question were propounded to i t, wou ldteach them the solution of their problem. The friars spent seven years inbringing the subject to perfection , and waited day after day in ex pectationthat i t would utter articulate sounds . At length nature became ex hausted

in them, a nd they lay down to sleep, having first given it strictly in charge

to a servant of theirs, clown ish in nature, but of stri ct fideli ty, that heshould awaken them the moment the image began to speak . That periodarrived. The head uttered sounds , but such as the clown judged unworthyof notice. fi n e is !

” it said. No notice was taken, and a long pauseensued. Tim was —a similar pause, and no notice. Time is passed I

”

The moment these words were u ttered, a tremendous storm ensued, wi th

thunder and lightn ing, and the head was shivered into a thousand pieces.

Thus the ex periment of Friar Bacoxi8a

’nd Friar Bungay came to nothing.

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m m Dream OF THE TRUE.

of the Encyclopedia,but on re

te and the doctrine of theMetempsychosis. Lest hemightrilegiously devour his progenitors, he abstained from all

m l food ; and thinking that he ate nothing which enjoyedhe supported himself, like his brethren, upon fruits and

ptables. All the knowledge that did not run counter to

I belief, he sought after n th avidity, and bade fair to

wisest of his race. In an evi l hour, his Englishand and instructor ex hibited a very powerful solar m ero

vpo, cans of which he showed him that every drop of

he drank teemed with life—that every fru it was0 a world, covered with innumerable animalcule , each of

was fitted by its organization for the sphere in which

moved, and had its wants, and the capability of supplyingam as completely as visible animals millions of times its

lk. The English philosopher ex pected that his I-Iindoo

end would be enrapturedat the vast field of knowledge thusddenly opened out to him,

but he was deceived. The Brahn from that time became an altered man— thoughtful,Jomy, reserved, and discontented ,

He applied repeatedlyhis friend that he would make him a present of the microOpe but as it was the only one of its kind in India

,and the

ner set a value upon it for other reasons, he constantly re

sed the request, but offered him the loan of it for any periodm ight require. But nothing short of an unconditional gift

the instrument would satisfy the Brahmin , who became at

it so importunate that the patience of the Englishman washansted, and he gave it him . A gleam of joy shot acrosse care- worn features of the Hindoo as he clutched it, and

unding w ith an ex ulting leap into the garden , he seized a

'

ge stone, and dashed the instrument into a thousand pieces.

hen called upon to ex plain his ex traordinary conduct, he

id to his friend, Oh that I had remained in that happyi te of ignorance wherein you first found me ! Yet will Infess that, as my knowledge increased, so did my pleasure,til I beheld the last wonders of the microscope ; from that

)ment I have been tormented by doubt and perplex ed by

ystery my mind, overwhelmed by chaotic confusion, knowsit where to rest, nor how to ex tricate itself from such a

2 1 2 TH E LOVE or run nanvnnnous

maze. I am miserable, and must continue to be so, untilenter on another stage of ex istence. I am a solitar in

dual among fifty millions of people, all educated in t e

belief with myself—all happy in their ignorance ! Sothey ever remain ! I shall keep the secret within mybosom, where it will corrode my peace and break mBut I shall have some satisfaction in knowing that a

feel those pangs which, had I not destroyed the ins

might have been ex tensively communicated, and ren

thousands miserable ! Forgive me, my valuable friend !oh, convey no more implements ofknowledge and destructiolMany a learned man may smile at the ignorance of

Peruvian and the Hindoo, unconscious that he himself is jas ignorant and as prejudiced. Who does not rememberoutcry ag

ainst the science of geology, which has hardlysubsided ! Its professors were impiously and absu rdly as.

cused of designing to hurl the Creator from his throne.”

They were charged with sapping the foundations of religioa,and of propping atheism by the aid of a pretended science.

The very same principle which leads to the rejection of thetrue

,leads to the encouragement of the false. Thus we may

account for the success which has attended great imposten,at times when the truth, though not half so wondrous as their

impositions, has been disregarded as ex travagant and prapasterous. The man who wishes to cheat the people, must neethfound his operations upon some prejudice or bel1ef that alreadyex ists . Thus the philosophic pretenders who told fortunesbythe stars cured all diseases by one nostrum

,and preserved

from evil by charms and amulets,ran with the current of

popular belief. Errors that were consecrated by time and

long familiarity, they heightened and embellished, and sue

ceeded to their heart’s content ; but the preacher of truthhada foundation to make as well as a superstructure, a diflicultywhich did not ex ist for the preacher of error . Columbuspreached a new world, but was met with distrust and incredulity ; had he preached with as much zeal and earnestnessthe discovery of some valley in the old one, where diamonds

hung upon the trees, or a herb grew that cured all the ills

incidental to human ity, he would have found a warm and

hearty welcome—might have sold dried cabbage leaves for hiswonderful herb, and made his fortune.

m m DE BRLIBP OF THE TRUE.

fact, it will be found, in the history of every generationice of men, that whenever a choice of belief between the1drously False

”and the Wondrously True” is given to

mce or prejudice, that their choice will be fix ed uponrst, for the reason that it is most akin to their own

a. The great majority of mankind, and even of theamong us

,are still in the condition of the sailor’s

m—believing and disbelieving on the same grounds thatid—protesting against the flying

- fish, but cherishing the11wheels. Thousands there are amongst us, who, rather

their faith in the one fish, would believe not only inhi l of gold, but the chariot - not only in the chariot,1 the horses and the driver.

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by hackney Coachmen,cabrio let drivers i i id idle

“ho lu itc l‘ at the corners of the s treets . N o t one

l l‘ plu m e w i thou t produc ing a laugh from all w ithin

It seems applicable to every circumstance,and is

versal answer to every question ; in short, it is the

e slang phrase of the day, a phrase that,while its

new of popularity las ts, throws a dash of fun and

meness over the ex istence of squalid poverty and ill

I labour, and gives them reason to laugh as well as

ore fortunate fellows in a higher stage of society.

.on is peculiarly fertile in this sort of phrases, which1p suddenly, no one knows ex actly in what spot, andas the whole population in a few hours, no one knowsMany years ago the favourite phrase (for, though butsyllable, it was a phrase in itself) was QUOZ. Thisrd took the fancy of the multitude in an ex traordinaryand very soon acquired an almost boundless meaning.

vulgar wit wished to mark its incredulity and raise a.

.t the same time, there was no resource so sure as this

piece of slang. When a man was asked a favour1c did not choose to grant, he marked his sense of the

unparalleled preem ption by ex claiming Onoz WhenIiOVOllS urchin wished to annoy a passenger, and create'

or his chums, he looked him in the face, and cried out

and the ex clamation never failed in its object. Whenutant was desirous of throwing a doubt upon the

y of hi s opponent, and getting summarily rid of an

POPULAR FOLLIES IN GREAT CITIES .

passed away as suddenly as it arose, never again to be the

pet and the idol of the populace. A new claimant drove it

from its place, and held undisputed sway ti ll, in its turn, it

was hurled from its ple- eminence, and a successor appointed

in its stead.

What a shocking bad hat !”was the phrase that was nex t

in vogue. No sooner had it become universal, than thousandsof idle but sharp eyes were on the watch for the passengerwhose hat showed any signs, however slight, of ancient ser

vice. Immediately the cry arose, and, like the war- whoop of

the Indians, was repeated by a hundred discordant throats.

He was a wise man who, finding himself under these circumstances the observed of all observers,

” bore his honoursmeekly. He who showed symptoms of ill feeling at the

imputations cast upon his hat, only brought upon himself

redoubled notice. The mob soon perceive whether a man isirri table, and, if of their own class, they love to make sport

of him. When such a man, and with such a hat, passed in

those days through a crowded neighbourhood, he might thinkhimself fortunate if his annoyances were confined to the

shouts and cries of the populace. The obnox ious hat wasoften snatched from his head, and thrown into the gutter bysome practical joker, and then raised, covered with mud, uponthe end of a stick, for the admiration of the spectators, whoheld their sides with laughter, and ex claimed in the pauses oftheir mirth, oh what a shocking bad hat !

” What ashocking bad hat Many a nervous poor man, whose pursecould but ill spare the outlay, doubtless purchased a new but

before the time, in order to avoid ex posure in this manner.

The origin of this singular saying, which made fun for themetropolis for months, is not involved in the same obscurityas that which shrouds the origin of Quoz and some others.

There had been a hotly - contested election for the borough of

S outhwark, and one of the candidates was an eminent hatter.This gentleman , in canvassing the electors, adopted a some

what professional mode of conciliating their good- will, and of

bribing them without letting them perceive that they werebribed. Whenever he called upon or met a voter whose hatwas not of the best material, or, being so, had seen its best

days,he invariably said, What a shocking bad hat you have

ggt call at my warehouse, and you shall have a new one!

"

pan the day of election this circumstance was remembered,

POPULAR N LLIES IN GREAT CITIES .

is opponents made themost of it, by inciting the crowd9p up an incessant cry of What a shocking bad hat1

”

e time the honourable candidate was addressing them.

S outhwark the phrase spread over all London, and

ad, for a time,the supreme slang of the season .

okay Walker, derived from the chorus of a popular

I, was also high in favour at one time, and served

, likeedecessor, Quoz, to answer all questions. In the course

1c the latter word alone became the favourite, and wasad with a peculiar draw] upon the first syllable, and a

turn upon the last. If a lively servant girl was imporfor a kiss by a fellow she did not care about

, she cockedittle nose, and cried Walker 1

”If a dustman asked

ieud for the loan of a shilling, and his friend was eithere or unwilling to accommodate him, the probable answerould receive was Walker If a drunken man was

g along the streets, and a boy pulled his coat- tails, or a

mocked his hat over his eyes to make fun of him, the

was always accompanied by the same ex clamation . This[ for two or three months, and Walker walked off"

age, never more to be revived for the entertainment of

)r any future generation .

e nex t phrase was a most preposterous one. Who ind it, how it arose, or where it was first heard, are alikeown . Nothing about it is certain

,but that for months

5 the slang par ex cellence of the Londoners, and afl’

orded

a vast gratification . There he goes with his eye out !”

There she goes with her eye out as the sex of the partyed to might be, was in the mouth of everybody who knew:ow n . The sober part of the community were as much

ed bv this unaccountable saying as the vulgar were deed W ltll it. The wise thought it very foolish, but theI thought it very funny, and the idle amused themselves

balking it upon walls, or scribbling it upon monuments.

all that’

s bri ht must fade,

even in slang. The peo

;rew tired of t eir hobby, and There he goes with his

mt !”was heard no more in its accustomed haunts.

nether very odd phrase came into repute in a brief space'wards

,in the form of the impertinent and not universally

vsite query, Has your mother sold her mangle But

>opulari ty was not of that boisterous and cordial kindt. 1. 19

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POPULAR FOLLIES IN GREAT CITIES.

doubt it implied as to the capability of self-

guidance pomby the individual to whom i t was addressed.

“D oes your

mother know you’

re ou t .9”

was a query of mock concern an

solicitude, implying regret and concern that one so youn,and inex perienced in the ways of a great city should b

allowed to wander abroad without the guidance of a parent

Hence the great wrath of those who verged on manhood, bu

had not reached it, whenever they were made the subject c

it. Even older heads did not like it ; and the heir of a duct

house, and inheritor of a warrior’8 name, to whom they werapplied by a cabriolet driver, who was ignorant of his ran}

was so indignant at the aflront, that he summoned the ofl'

ende

before themag1ste1 1al bench. The fellow hadwished to impos

upon his Lordship by asking double the fare he was entitle

to, and when hi s Lordship resisted the demand, he was insultingly asked, “If his mother knew he was out ? All th

drivers on the stand joined in the query, and his L ordshi]was fain to escape their laughter by walking away with a

much haste as his dignity would allow. The man pleadec

ignorance that his customer was a Lord, but ofl'

ended justicfined him for his mistake.

When this phrase had numbered its appointed days, it dietaway, like its predecessors, and W ho are you .

9 reigned i1its stead. This new favoui ite, like a mushroom, seems t

have sprung up in a n ight, or, like a frog in Cheapside, tchave come down in a sudden shower. One day it was nu

heard, unknown ,uninvented ; the nex t it pervaded London

every alley resounded with it ; every highway was musics

with it,

And street to street, and lane to lane flung back

The one unvarying cry.

The phrase was uttered quickly, and with a sharp sound up01

the first and last words, leaving the middle one little men

than an aspiration . Like all its compeers which had bee1

ex tensively popular, it was applicable to almost every variet;of circumstance. The lovers of a plain answer to a plaiiquestion did not like it at all. Insolence made use of i t tc

giveofl'

ence ; i norance, to avoid ex posing itself ; andwaggeryto create laug ter. Every new comer into an alehouse

room was asked unceremoniously, Who are you . and if c

POPULAR POLLIES IN GREAT CITIES .

olish, scratched his head, and did not know what toouts of boisterous merriment resounded on every side.

oritative disputant was not unfrequently put down ,umption of every kind checked by the same query.

s popularity was at its height, a gentleman, feelinof a thief in hi s pocket, turned suddenly round

,an

an in the act, ex claiming, Who are you Thech gathered round applauded to the very echo,

ght i t the most capital joke they had ever heardacmé of wi t—the very essence of humour. AnotherLuce, of a similar kind

, gave an additional fillip tois , and infused new life and vigour into it, just as it

g away. The scene occurred in the chief criminalthe k ingdom. A prisoner stood at the bar ; the

rith which he had been charged was clearly provedim ; his counsel had been heard, not in his

‘

defence,tenuation , insisting upon his previous good life and

as reasons for the lenity of the court. “And

9 your witnesses ?” inquired the learned judge who“Please you, my Lord, I knows the prisoner

‘at

and a more honester feller never breathed,”said a

ice in the gallery . The oflicers of the court lookednd the strangers titteredwith ill- suppressed laughter.ire you said the Judge, looking suddenly up, buterturbable gravi ty . The court was convulsed ; the

)ke out into a laugh, and it was several minutes

lence and decorum could be restored. When the°

ecovered their self- possession , they made diligent

r the profane transgressor ; but he was not to be

Nobody knew him ; nobody had seen him. After a

~ business of the court again proceeded. The nex t

brought up for trial augured favourably of his prosen he learned that the solemn lips of the representatetico had uttered the popular phrase as if he felt andted it. There was no fear that such a judge wouldc severity his heart was with the people ; be undereir language and their manners, and would makeas for the temptations which drove them into erlmo.

'ht many of the prisoners, if we may infer it from the

t the learned judge suddenly acquired an immense

of popularity. The praise of his wit was in every19*

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POPULAR POLLIES IN GREAT CITIES .

wished to insult or annoy another, he had only to makethi s cabalistic sign in his face, andhis objectwas accomd. At every street corner where a group was assemthe spectator who was curious enough to observe theirnen ts , would be sure to see the fingers of some of themir noses, either as a mark of incredulity, surprise, refusal,i ckery, before he had watched two minutes. There isremnant of this absurd custom to be seen to this day ;is thought low, even among the vulgar.

out six years a 0, London became again most pre

rously musical. he ooze popu li wore itself hom e by

g the praises of “The Sea, the Sea !”If a stranger

aphi losopher)had walked through London, and listeneda universal chorus

,he might have constructed a very

rtheory upon the love of the English for the sea- service,»ur acknowledged superiority over all other nations uponelement. No wonder,

”he might have said

,that this

e is invincible upon the ocean . The love of it mix es

their daily thoughts they celebrate it even in the

st-

plaee their street-minstrels ex cite charity by it ; and

and low,young and old

,male and female, chant Io

s in its praise. Love is not honoured in the national

of this warlike race—Bacchus is no god to them ; theymen of sterner mould, and think only of ‘the Sea, the

and the means of conquering upon it.

ch would, doubtless, have been his im ression if he had

the evidence only of his ears. Alas in those days forefined ears that were musical !great was their torturedi scord

, with its thousand diversities of tone, struck uptppalling anthem— there was no escape from it. The

utery m instrels of Savoy caught the strain , and pealed itthe long vistas of qu iet streets, till their innermost and

;est apartments re- echoed with the sound. Men wereed to endure this crying evil for full si x months, weariedsperation , and made sea - sick on the dry land.

veral other songs sprang up in due succession afterwards,mm of them

,with the ex ception of one, entitled All

1 my Hat,

"

enjoyed any ex traordinary share of favour,an American actor introduced a vile song called J1m

The singer sang his verses in apprOpriatecostume,

grotesque gesticulations, and a sudden Whll‘l of h e body

22 24 mm . m m u ms m cam -r crrrss.

at the close of each verse. It took the taste of the

immediately, and for months the ears of orderly peoplewe“stunned by the senseless chorus

Turn about and wheel about,And do just se

Turn abou t and wheel about,And jump , J im Crow !”

'l

S treet-m instrels blackened their faces in order to give pro- deffect to the verses ; and fatherless urchins, who had to aha—qbetween thieving and singing for their livelihood, tookfllatter course, as likely to be the more profitable,the public taste remained in that direction . Th

dance, its accompaniment, might be seen in its full

on market nights in any great thoroughfare ; and

of the song might be heard, piercing above all the

buzz of the ever-moving multitude. He, the calm obserr e r,

who, during the hey- day popularity of this doggrel,

Sate beside the public way,Thick strewn with summer dust, and saw the streamOf people there was hurrying to and fro,Numerous as gnats upon the evening gleam,

might have ex claimed with Shelley, whose fine lines we quote,that

The m i llion , w ith fierce song and maniac dance,D id rage around.

The philosophic theoristwe have already supposed soliloquizingupon the English character

,and forming his opinion of it

from their ex ceeding love for a sea- song, might, if he had

again dropped suddenly into London , have formed another

very plausible theory to account for our unremitting efforts

for the abolition of the slave trade.

“Benevolent people !"

he might have said,

“how unbounded are your sympathies !Your unhappy brethren of Africa

,difl

'

ering from you only inthe colour of their skins

,are so dear to you , andyou begrud e

so little the twenty millions you have paid on their beha f,that you love to have a memento of them continually in yoursight. J im Crow is the representative of that injured race,

and as such is the idol of your populace ! See how they all

sing his praises - how they imitate his peculiarities —how

test his name in their moments of leisure and relax aes of himto adorn their hearths,

cause and his erings may never be forgotten !lanthropic England

—oh, v d of civilisation !

. area few of the peculiarities o the London multitude,10 riot, no ex ecution, no murder, no balloon, disturbs

311 current of their thoughts . These are the whimsies

follies bywhich they unconsciouslyour to lighten the load of care which presses upon

thence. Thewiseman, even though he smile at them,

t ther withhold his sym thy, and will say, Let

qjoy eir slang phrases and t eir choruses if they wi ll

they cannot be happy, at least let them be merry.

h glishman ,as well as to the Frenchman of whom

n si ngs, there may be some comfort in so small a

u song,

Au peuple attristeCe qui rendra la gai té ,C

’

est la GAUDRIOL I !

0 gas!

C’est la summons 1

”

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m 0. P. MANIA.

was announced for the 18th of September, 1809, withinays of a twelvemonth since the destruction of the originalng .

t the undertaking had proved more ex pensive than thefittee anticipated. To render the pit entrance moreodious, it had been deemed advisable to remove a lowz- house that stood in theway. This turned out a matter

li ttle difi culty, for the roprietor was a man well skillediving a hard bargain . e more eager the Committeead themselves to come to terms with him for his miserableouse, the more graspin he became in his demands for

ansation . They were timately obliged to pay him an

itan t sum. Added to this, the interior decorations wereto most costly scale ; and Mrs. S iddons, and other memof the Kemble family, together with the celebratedn singer, Madame Catalani, had been engaged at verysalaries . As the night of opening drew near, the Com

e found that they had gone a little beyond their means ;.hey issued a notice, stating that, in consequence of the

ex pense they had been at in bui lding the theatre, andarge salaries they had agreed to pay, to secure the

:es of the most eminent actors, they were under thesity of fix ing the prices of admission at seven shillings

l box es and four shillings to the pit, instead of six shillings

hree and six pence, as heretofore.

is announcement created the greatest dissatisfaction .

box es might have borne the oppression, but the dignitye pit was wounded. A war- cry was raised immediately .

ome weeks previous to the opening, a continual clatterept up in clubs and coffee- rooms

,against what was con

3d a most unconstitutional aggression on the rights of

going man . The newspapers assiduously kept up the

amen t, and represented, day after da to the managersmpolicy of the proposed advance. he bitter politics ofime were disregarded, and Kemble and Covent- Gardenno as great sources of interest as Napoleon and France.

0 attention was the more fix ed upon the proceedings atnt- Garden

,since it was the only patent theatre then 111

ence, Drury- Lane theatre having also been destroyed byn the month of February previous . But great as was

ndignation of the lovers of the drama at that time, no

THE 0. P. MANIA.

one could have anticipated the ex traordinary lengths toopposition would be carried.

F irstN ight, September 2

he of the upper tiso that those who had

were obliged to mount to a level with the gallery. Here

gwere stowed into box eswhich,from their size andshape,the contemptuous, andholes . Thiswas coestablished ri hts

managers mig t have heard in their green - roomshouts of Down with the pigeon - holes

ever Amid this din the curtain rose, and Mr. Ken“stood forward to deliver a poetical address in honour of doccasion . The riot now began in earnest ; not a word of Gaddress was audible, from the stamping and groaning of Qpeople in thepit. This continued, almostwithout intermissitlthrough the five acts of the tragedy. Now and then, ti

sublime acting of Mrs. S iddons,as the awful woman,

’

hushed the noisy multitude into silence, in spite of themselvbut it was only for a moment : the recollect1on of their fant

'

mwrongs made them ashamed of their admiration

,and the

,

shouted and hooted again more vigorously than before.

'1\comedy of Munden in the afterpiece met with no better i t

ception ; not a word was listened to,and the curtain fell ami

still increasin uproar and shouts of Old prices ! Soulmag istrates, w o happened to be present, zealously came l

the rescue, and appeared on the stage with copies of the BitAct. This ill- judged proceeding made the matter were

The men of the pit were ex asperated by the indign ity, anstrained their lungs to ex press how deep] they felt it. Thl

remained the war till long after midnig t,when the bellig

rents withdrew from sheer ex haustion .

S econd N ight— The crowd was not so great ; all thosewl

had gone on the previous even ing to listen to the performancenow stayed away, and the rioters had it nearly all to the!

m 0. P. MANIA.

1. With the latter, the play was not the thing, andoath and Polly sang in The Beggar

’

s Opera” in vain .

1ctors and the public appeared to have changed sidesadience acted, and the actors listened. A new featureis n ight

’

s proceedings was the introduction of placards.

al were displa ed from the pit and box es, inscribed inletters with t e words, Old prices.

”With a view of

mg terror, the constables, who had been plentifullylnced into the house, attacked the placard- bearers

, andsdcd, after several severe battles, in dragging ofl

'

a few

em to the neighbouring watch- house,in Bow Street.

ll ion now became worse and worse confounded. The

s screamed themselves hoarse ; while, to increase the

r, some mischievous frequenters of the upper regionsked through dozens of cata calls, till the combined noisenough to blister every tympanum in the house.

ird N ight.—The appearance of several gentlemen in

morning at the bar of the Bow Street Police- ofi ce, to

u' for their riotous conduct, had been indignantly com

id upon during the day. All augured ill for the uiet

a night. The performances announced were Ric ard

.

‘

hird and The Poor Soldier,”but the popularity of

ragedy could not obtain it a hearing. The pitites

ed to be drawn into closer union b the attacks madethem,

and to act more in concert t an on the previous5 . The placards were, also, more numerous ; not onlyit, but the box es and galleries ex hibited them. Amongmost conspicuous, was one inscribed, John Bull againstKemble—Who’

ll win Another bore, King Georgerer !but no King Kemble. A thirdwas levelled against.me Catalani , whose large salary was supposed to be one

0 causes of the increased prices, and was inscribed, No

were to tax us—we’re tax ed enough already.

”

This lasta double- barrelled one, ex pressing both dramatic and

cal discontent, and was received with loud cheers by thes.

e tragedy and afterpiece were concluded full two hourse their regular time ; and the cries for Mr. Kemblehe so loud

,that the manager thought preper to obey the

ions . Amid all these scenes of uproar he preserved hIS

simity, and was never once betrayed into any ex pressiont. 2 0

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resolution of the playgoerswould not allow them to quail ; it rather aroused them to

renewed opposition, and a determination never to submit or

It also strengthened their cause, by afi'

ording them

ground of complaint against the managers.

The performances announced on the bills were the opera ofLove 111 a Village,

”and Who wins l” but the bills had it

all to themselves, for neither actors nor public were muchburdened with them. T he latter, indeed, afi

'

orded some

sport. The titlewas too apt to the occasion to escape notice,and shouts of Who wins ? who wins l

”displaced for a time

the accustomed cry of old prices.

After the fall of the curtain , Mr. Leigh, with another

gentleman , again spoke, com laining bitterly of the introduc

tion of the rise- fighters, an ex horting the public never to'

ve in . BE. Kemble was again called forward ; but when

came, the full tide of discord ran so strongly against him

that, being totally unable to stem it, he m thdrew. Eachman seemed to shout as if he had been a Stentor ; and when

his lungs were wearied, took to his feet and stamped, till allthe black coats in his vicinity becamelast the audience were tired on

before eleve

gto’

cl

fik

e

.

la 0 1 ed ffi fth‘

a‘

was o emau’

s amusin com y o

John Thor]; zas no diminution of ghe uproar.

THE 0. P. MANIA.

Every note on the diapason of discord was run through.

The prize- fighters, or hititas as they were called, mustered inconsiderable numbers, and the battles between them and the

p itites were fierce and many. It was now, for the first time,that the letters 0. P. came into general use as an abbrevia

tion of the accustomed watchword of old prices. Severalplacards were thus inscribed ; and, as brevity is so desirablein shouting, the mob adopted the emendation . As usual, the

manager was called for. After some delay he came forward,and was listened to with considerable patience. He repeated,in respectful terms, the great loss that would be occasioned

to the proprietors by a return to the old prices, and ofi'

ered

to submit a statement of their accounts to the eminent law

yera, S ir Vicary Gibbs and S ir Thomas Plumer ; the eminent

merchants, S ir Francis Baring and Mr. Angerstein ; and Mr.

Whitmore, the Governor of the Bank of England. By theirdecision as to the possibility of carrying on the theatre at

the old prices, he would consent to be governed, and he

hoped the public would do the same. This reasonable proposition was scouted immedia tely. Not even the high and

reputable names he had mentioned were thought to afi'

ordany guarantee for impartiality. The pitites were too wrongheaded to abate one iota of their pretensions ; and they hadbeen too much insulted by the prize- fi hters in the manager

’

s

pay, to show any consideration for'

m, or agree to any

terms he mi ht propose. They wanted full acquiescence,and nothingfiess. Thus the conference broke OE

,and the

manager retired amid a storm of hi sses.

An Irish gentleman, named O’

Reilly, then stood up in one

of the box es. With true Irish gallantry, he came to therescue of an ill- used lady. He said he was disgusted at the

attacks made upon Madame Catalani , the finest singer in theworld, and a lady inestimable in private life. It was unjust,unmanly, and nu - English to make the innocent suffer for theguilty ; and he hoped this blot would be no longer allowed tostain a fair sense. As to the quarrel with the manager,he recommended them to persevere. They were not onlywronged by his increased prices, but insulted by his box ers, andhe hoped, that before they had done with him, they would

teach him a lesson he would not soon forget. The gallant

13 1 0. 9 . m

cf a cessatiOn of

none, or humour either,i lthough when they were successively ex hibited, they elicited

of laughter

John Kemble’

alcne is the cause of this riot ;When he lowc s his prices, John Bull will be quiet.

John Kemble be damn’d,We wi ll not be cramm’

d.

”

Squire KembleBegins to tremble.

The curtain fell as early as nine o’

clock, when there be

c

u

égKemble, he stood forward. He announ

that Madame Catalani , agamet whom so unjustifiable a pre

judice had been ex cited, had thrown upherengagement rather

than stand in the way of any accommodation of ex isting difi'

e

m ess. This announcement was receivedwith t applause.

Mr. Kemble then went on to vindicate himself-“and cc-

pro

prieters from the charge of despising public opinion. Noassertion , he assured them, could bemore unjust. Theywere

sincerely anx ious to bring theseunhappydifi'

erences to a close,and he thought he had acted in the most fair and reasonable

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to notoriousccurta ans, several ofwhom he then saw in the house and it

was clear that the managers preferred a large revenue fromthis 1mpure source to the reasonable profits they would receivefrom respectable eop Loud cheers greeted this speech ;every eye was m

e

xle.

towards the box es, and the few ladies

in them immediately withdrew. At the same moment, someinveterate pitite hoisted a large placard, on which was in

scribed,

We lads of the pitWill never submi t.

Several others were introduced. One of them was a carica

ture likeness of Mr. Kemble, asking, What do you want i”

with a

Otherspifite reply

'msi

The old prices, and no pigeon- holes !

Others merely bore e drawing of a lar e key, 111 allusion to

anotorious house 111 the neighbourhood, t e denizens of which

were said to be great frequenters of the private box es. These

2 86 rm: 0. r. m u .

appeared to give the managers more annoyance than all the

rest, and the prize- fighters made vigorous attacks upon the

holders of them. Several persons were, on this n ight, and

indeed nearly every night, taken into custody, and locked upin the watchhouse. On their appearance the following moming, they were generally held to bail in considerable sums tokeep the peace. This proceeding greatly augmented the

animosity of the pit.It would be useless to detail the scenes of confusion which

followed night after night. For about three weeks the war

continued with unabated fury. Its characteristics were

nearly always the same. Invention was racked to discovernew noises, and it was thought a happy idea when one fellow

got into the gallery a dustman’

s bell, and ran it fu

Dogs were also brought into the box es, to d their

sweet voices to the general uproar. The animals seemed to

join in it can amore,and one night a large mastifl

’

growledand barked so loudly, as to draw down upon his ex ertions

three cheers from the gratified pitites.

So strong did the popular enthusiasm run in favour of the

row,that well—dressed ladies appeared in the box es with

the letters 0. P. on their bonnets. O. P. hats for the

gentlemen were still more common, and some were so zealousin the cause as to sport waistcoats with an O embroideredupon one flap, and a P on the other. 0. P. toothpickswere also in fashion ; and gentlemen and ladies carried 0.

P. handkerchiefs, which they waved triumphantly whenever

the row was unusually deafening. The latter suggested the

idea of O . P. flags, which were occasionally unfurled fromthe gallery to the length of a dozen feet. Sometimes the

first part of the night’

s performances were listened to with

comparative patience, a majority of the manager’

s friends

being in possession of the house. But as soon as the half

price commenced, the row began again in all its pristine

glory . At the fall of the curtain it soon became customaryto sing God save the King,

”the whole of the 0.

ing in loyal chorus. Sometimes this was followed

Britannia and, on two or three occasions, by a

the national anthem,which ex cited great laughter.

may not be uninteresting as a specimen .

m a mm al .

On thee our hopes we fix ,T’ upset them all !"

scrambled over the beaches,or danced the famous O . P.

ess . Accidental circumstances also contributed to disturb

memmrary calm. At the Westminster quarter- sessions,the 2 7th of October, bills of indictment were preferredi nst forty- one persons for creating a disturbance and inter

6 1

5the performances of the theatre. The grand jury

or W ent - seven of the bills, left two undecided, and

nd true b'

s against twelve. The latter ex ercised their

ht of traverse t1ll the ensuing sessions. The prefermentthese bills had the effect of re- awakening the subsidingitement. Another circumstance about the same time gave

till greater impetus to it, and furnished the rioters with 9.

cf, round whom they were eager to rally . Mr. Clifi'

ord, a

rister, appeared in the pit on the night of the 81st of

tcber, with the letters 0. P. on his hat. Bein'

a man of

10 note, he was ounced upon b the constab es, and led

to Bow Street policeofiice,where randon,the box - keeper,

him with riotous and disorderly conduct. This was

what Clifi'

ord wanted. He told the

paresiding ag1s

te, a Mr. Reed, that he had purposely disp yed the letters

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m 0. P. MANIA.

a them, to their loss and detriment, to lower theiradmission . The rule was granted, and an earlyfor the trial. In the mean time, these proceedingsthe acerbity of the O. P.

’

s, and every night at the

e curtain, three groans were given for John Kemblecheers for John Bull.

1 during this year that the national Jubilee was

(I, in honour of the fiftieth year of the reign of

.II. When the riots had reached their fiftieth ui ht,P.

’

s also determined to have a jubilee. All theirefi

'

orts in the way of roaring, great as they were,1 night outdone, and would have continued long after

a short hour,”had not the managers wisely put the

her upon them and the lights about eleven o’

clock.

1g the criminal prosecution against himself, Mr.

bro ht an action for false imprisonment against

T e cause was fix ed for trial in the Court of

Pleas, on the 5 th of December,before Lord Chief

Mansfield. From an early hour in the morning all

use leading to the court were thronged with an eager

a; all London was in anx iety for the result. So

s the crowd, that counsel found the greatest difficulty1g their way into court. Mr. Ser eant Best was re

s the part of the plaintifi'

,and r. Sergeant Shep

the defence. The defendant put two pleas upon the

first, that he was not guilty, and secondly, that he

ified. Sergeant Best, in stating the plaintifi"

s case,

zhe mana era for all the disturbances that had taken.d contended that his client, in affix ing the letters 0.

hat, was not guilty of any ofi'

ence. Even if he hadthe noises

, which he had not, his so doing would not

1im to the penalties for rioting . Several w itnesses

n called to prove the capture of Mr. Clifi'

ord, the

>f the case before the magistrate at Bow S treet, anda te dismissal. Sergeant Shepherd was heard

.

at

1gth on the other side, and contended that b e chent'

ectly justified in taking into custody a man who was

athers to commit a breach of the peace.

0

ord Chief- Justice summed up, with an evident bias 111

f the defendant. He said an undue apprehensmn of

La of an audience had got abroad. Even supposmg

240 was 0. e x am .

the object of the rioters to be fair and legal, they were not

authorized to carry it by unfairmeans. In order to constitute

a riot, it was not necessary that personal violence should be

committed, and it seemed to him that the defendant had not

acted in an improper manner in giving into custody a person

who,by the display of a symbol, was encouraging others to

commit a riot.The jury retired to consider their verdict. The crowd

without and within the court awaited the result in feverish

suspense. Half an hour elapsed, when the jury returned

with a verdict for the plaintiE—Damages, five pounds . The

satisfaction of the spectators was evident upon their counte

nances ; that of the judge ex pressed the contrary feeling.

Turning to the foreman of the jury, his Lordship asked upon

which of the two points referred to them,namely, the broad

question, whether a riot had been committed, and,if com

mitted, whether the plaintiff had participated in it, they hadfound their verdict ?The foreman stated, that they were all of opinion

that the plaintiff had been illegally arrested. Tanswer did not satisfy his Lordship, and he

question . He could not, however, obtain a more satisfactoryreply . Evidently vex ed at what he deemed the obtuseness

or partiality of the jury, he turned to the bar, and said, thata spirit of a mischievous and destructive nature was abroad,which, if not repressed, threatened awful consequences. The

country would be lost,he said

,and the overnment over

turned, if such a spirit were encouraged; it was impossible it could end in good. Time, the destroyer and

fulfiller of predictions, has proved that his Lordship wasa false prophet. The harmless O . P. war has been productive of no such di re results .

It was to be ex pected that after this triumph, the war inthe pit would ragewith redoubled acrimony. A riot beginningat half- price would not satisfy the ex cited feelings of the O.

P.

’

s on the night of such a victory. Long before the curtaindrew up, the house was filled with them,

and several placards

were ex hibited,whichthe constables andfriendsof themanagers

strove, as usual, to tear into shreds. One of them, which met

this fate was inscribed,“Success to O. P ! A British jury

for ever It was soon replaced by another of a similar

and sealed whieh putO. P., and restored

ed at the theatre with

its usual spirit. It was now the six ty- six th night of its continuance, and the rioters were still untired—sti ll determined

to resist to the last. In the midst of it a gentleman arrived

from the Crown and Anchor, and announced to the pit that

Mr. Kemble had attended the dinner, and had yielded at last

to the demand of the public. He stated, that it had beenagreed upon between him and the Committee for defendingthe persons under prosecution, that the box es should remain

at the advanced price ; that the pit should be reduced to threeshillings and six pence ; that the private box es should be doneaway with ; and that all prosecutions, on both sides, should be

immediately stayed. This announcement was received with

deafening cheers. As soon as the first burst of enthusiasm

was over, the O . P.

’

s became anx ious for a confirmation of the

intelligence, and commenced a loud call for Mr. Kemble. He

had not then returned from the Crown and Anchor ; but of

this the pititsa were not aware, and for nearly half an hour

they kept up a most ex cruciating di n. At length the great

actor made his appearance, in his walkin dress, with his cane

in hand, as he had left the tavern . i t was a long time

before he could obtain silence. He apologised in the most

respectful terms for appearing before them in such unbecom

ing costume, which was caused solely by his ignorance thatvet . r. 2 1

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m 0. P. n un .

double victory. He had, not only as a manager, soothed theof the play-

goers, but as an actor be had

of the largest audiences he had ever beheld,approbation more cordial and unanimous than he had ever

enjoyed before. The popular favour not only turned towardshim ; it embraced everybody connected with the

ex cept the poor victim,Brandon . Most of the favourite

actors were called before the curtain to make their bow,and

receive the acclamations of the pit. At the close of the per

formances, a few individuals, implacable and stubborn, got upa feeble cry of Old prices for the box es but they were

quickly silenced by the reiterated cheers of the majority, orby cries of Turn them out 1

” A placard, the last of its

race, was at the same time ex hibited in the front of the pit,bearing, in large letters, the words We are satisfied.

Thus ended the famous wars of O. P., which, for a period

of nearly three months, had kept the metropolis in an uproar.And after all

,what was the grand result ? As if the whole

proceeding had been a parody upon the more destructive, butscarcely more sensible wars recorded in history

,it was com

menced in injustice, carried on in bitterness of spirit, and

ended, like the labour of the mountain,in a mouse. The

abatement of six pence in the price of admission to the pit,and the dismissal of an unfortunate servant

,whose only fault

was too much zeal in the service of his employers,— suchwerethe grand victories of the O . P.

’

s.

THE THUGS, OR PHANSIGARS .

Orribili favelle—parcle di down—Dawn .

AMONG the black deeds which superstition has imposed as

duties upon her wretched votaries, none are more horriblethan the practices of the murderers, who, under the name of

Thugs, or Phansigars, have so long been the scourge of India.

For ages they have pursued their dark and dreadful calling,moulding assassination into a science, or ex tolling it as a

virtue, worthy only to be practised by a race favoured of

Heaven . Of late years this atrocious delusion has ex cited

much attention, both in this country and in India ; an atten

tion which, it is to be hoped, will speedily lead to the uproot

ing of a doctrine so revolting and anti- human . Although theBritish Government has ex tended over H industan for so lona period, it does not appear that Europeans even suspectedthe ex istence of this mysterious sect until the commencement

of the present century. In the year 1807, a gang of Thugs,laden with the plunder of murdered travellers, was accidentallydiscovered. The inquiries then set on foot revealed to theastonished Government a system of iniquity unparalleled in thehistory of man . Subsequent investigation ex tended the

knowled e and by throwing light upon the peculiar habits of

the mur§erers, ex plained the reason why their crimes had remained so long undiscovered. In the followin pages will be

found an epitome of all the information whichhas reachedEurope concern ing them, derived principally from Dr. Sherwood

’

s treatise upon the subject, published in 1816,and the

still more valuable and more recent work of Mr. S leeman,entitled the Ramaseeana ; or, Vocabulary of the peculiar

Language of the Thugs.

”

TH! THUGS .

The followers of this sect are called gs, andtheir profession Th In the so theycalled Phansigars : e former word signifying a deceiver ;and the latter, a strangler.

” They are both singularlyappropriate. The professmn of Thuggee is hereditary, andembraces, it is an posed, in every part of India, a body of at

least ten thousan individuals, trained to murder from their

childhood ; carrying it on in secret and in silence, yet glorying in it, and holding the practice of it higher than anyearthly honour. Durin the winter months, they usuallyfollow some reputable cal g, to elude suspicion ; and in the

summer, they set out in gs over all the roads of India, toplunder and destroy. ese gangs generally contain from

ten to forty Thugs, and sometimes as many as two hundred.

Each strangler is provided with a noose, to despatch the nu

fortunate v1ctim, as the Thu make it a point never to cause

death by any other means. en the gangs are ve

xlarge,

they divide into smaller bodies ; and each taking a'

fi'

erent

rou te, they arrive at the same general place of rendezvous todivide the spoil . They sometimes travel in the disguise of

respectable traders ; sometimes as sepoys or native soldiers ;and at others, as government ofii cers. If they chance to fall

in with an unprotected wayfarer, his fate is certain . One

Thug approaches him from behind, and throws the end of a

sash round his neck ; the other end is seized by a second the

same instant, crossed behind the neck, and drawn tightly,while with their other hand the two Thugs thrust his headforward to ex pedite the strangulation : a third Thug seizes thetraveller by the legs at the same moment, and he is thrown to

the ground, a corpse before he reaches it.But solitary travellers are not the prey they are anx ious

to seek . A wealthy caravan of forty or fifty individuals hasnot unfrequently been destroyed by them ; not one soul beingpermitted to escape. Indeed, there is hardly an instance

upon record of any one’

s escape from their hands, so surelyare their measures taken

,and so well do they calculate

beforehand all the risks and difliculties of the undertaking .

Each individual of the gang has his peculiar duty allotted to

him . Upon approaching a town , or sem i , two or three,known as the soothaes, or inveiglers,

”are sent in advance

to ascertain if any travellers are there ; to learn, if possible,2 1’

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who appear to

have been upwards of two hundred in a gang, had rovidedagainst all risk of failure. The only one left alive 0 all thatnumerous was an infant four years old, whowards in itia into all the mysteries of Thuggee.

If they cannot find a convenient opportumty for disposingof the bodies, they carry them formanymiles, until the cometo a spot secure from intrusion, and to a soil ads to re

ceive them. If fear of putrefaction admonishes em to use

despatch, they set up a large screen or tent, as other travel

lers do, and bury the body within the enclosure, pretending,if in uiries are made, that their women are within . But th e

only pens when the fall in with

In mnr ers which they ve planned previously, the findingof a place of sepulture is never left to hazard.

Travellers who have the misfortune to lodge in the same

chou ltry or hostelry, as the Thugs, are often murdered during

the n ight. It is either against their creed to destroy a sleeper,or they find a difiiculty in placing the noose round the neckof a person in a recumbent position . When this is the case,

the slumberer is suddenly aroused by the alarm of a snake or

a scorpion . He starts to his feet, and finds the fatal sasharound his neck.

—He never escapes.

In addi tion to these Thugs who frequent the highways,there are others, who infest the rivers, and are called Pungoos.

They do ‘

not differ in creed, but only in a few of their cus

toms, from their brethren on shore. They go up and down

the rivers in their own boats, pretending to be travellers of

consequence, or pilgrims, proceeding to,or returning from

Benares, Allahabad, or other sacred places. The boatmen,who are also Thugs, are not difi

'

erent in appearance from the

ordinary boatmen on the river. The artifices used to entice

victims on board are precisely similar to those employed bythe highway Thugs. They send out their inveiglers

”

to

scrape acquaintance with travellers, and find out the directionin which they are journeying. They always pretend to be

bound for the same place, and vaunt the superior accommo

dation of the boat by which they are going. The travellersfall into the snare, are led to the Thug captain, who very

THE THUGS .

often, to allay suspicion, demure to take them, but eventuallyagrees for a moderate sum. The boat strikes of into the

middle of the stream ; the victims are amused and kept inconversation for hours by their insidious foes, until three

raps are given on the deck above. This is a si nal from the

Thugs on the look- out that the coast is clear. 11 an instant

the fatal noose is ready, and the travellers are no more. The

bodies are then thrown , warm and palpitating, into the river

from a hole in the side of the boat, contrived ex pressly for

the purpose.

A river Thug, who was apprehended, turned approver, tosave his own life, and gave the following evidence relative tothe practices of his fraternity We embarked at Rajmahal.The travellers sat on one side of the boat, and the Thugs on

the other ; while we three (himself and two stranglerswere placed in the stern , the Thugs on our left, and the

travellers on our right. Some of the Thugs, dressed as heat

men,were above deck, and others walking along the bank of

the river, and pulling the boat by the joon , or rope, and all,at the same time

,on the look - out. We came up with a en

tleman’

s pinnace and two baggage- boats,and were oblige to

step and let them go on . The travellers seemed an x ious ; but

were quieted by being told that the men at the rope weretired, and must take some refreshment. They pulled out

somethin

g,and began to eat and when the pinnace had got

on a goo way, they resumed their work, and our boat proceeded. It was now afternoon ; and, when a signal was given

above, that all was clear, the five Thugs who sat opposite thetravellers sprang in upon them

,and

,with the aid of others,

strangled them. Having done this, they broke their spinalbones, and then threw them out of a hole made at the side,into the river, and kept on their course ; the boat being all this

time pulled along by the men on the bank .

That such atrocities as these should have been carried on

for nearly two centuries without ex citing the attention of the

British Government,seems incredible. But our wonder will

be diminished when we reflect upon the ex treme caution of

the Thugs, and the ordinary dangers of travelling in India.

The Thugs never murder a man near his own home, and theynever dispose of their booty near the scene of murder. Theyalso pay, in common with other and less atrocious robbers, aportion of their gains to the Polygars, or native authorities of

of hands, and lastly as t urtote. When a man who is not

c hug lineago,hnu gq or whc hu not been brought up from hisamongthem, wishes to become a straugler, he solicits

the ol mostmoss and.

ced Thug, to take hi1n

under his protection and make and under

his guidance he 11! regularly ini tiated. When e has acquiredsufi cient ex perience m the lower ranks of the profession, he

applies to his Gooroo, or preceptor, to give thefinishing grace

to his education, and make a stran lergl

of him. An opportu

nity is found when a solitary travelller is to be murdered ; andthe tyro, with his preceptor, having seen that the proposedvictim is asleep, and 111 safe keeping till their return, proceedto a neighbourin field and perform several religious coremonies, accompaniedby three or four of the oldest and steadiest

members of the ga g. The Gooroo first ofl'

ers up a prayer tooddess, sa in Oh, Kalee ! Kun - kalee ! Bhud- kalee !alec ! Maha aloe . Calkutta Wales ! if it seems fit to

thee that the traveller now at our lodging should die b

Theythe

hands of this thy slave, vouchsafe us thy good omen .

then sit down and watch for the good omen ; and if they re

ceive it within half an hour, conclude that their goddess is

favourable to the claims of the new candidate for admission .

If they have a bad omen, or no omen at all, some other Thugmust put the traveller to death, and the aspirant must wait a

more favourable opportunity, purifying himself 1n the mean

time by prayer and humiliation for the favour of the goddess.

If the good omen has been obtained, they return to their

quarters ; and the Gooroo takes a hatidkerchief and, turninghis face to the west, ties a knot at one end of it, inserting a

rupee, or other piece of silver. This knot 1s called the poor

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generated a demon ; and, although the goddess endeavoured

to lap up the blood ere it sprang into life, they increasedupon her so rapidly, that the labour of killing became too

great for endurance. The perspiration rolled down her arms

m large dr0ps, and she was com elled to think of some other

mode of ex terminating them. 11 this emergency, she created

two men out of the perspiration of her bod to whom she

confided the holy task of delivering the cart from the mou

store. To each of the men she gave a handkerchief, and

showed them how to kill without shedding blood. From her

they learned to tie the fatal noose ; and they became, underher tuition, such ex rt stranglers, that, in a very short spaceof time, the race 0 demons became ex tinct.

When there were no more to slay, the two men sought the

great goddess, in order to return the handkerchiefs. The

grateful Bhawanee desired that they would retain them,as

memorials of their heroic deeds ; and in order that theymight never lose the dex terity that they had acquired in usin

them, she commanded that, from thenceforward, they shoul

strangle men . These were the two first Thugs, and fromthem the whole race have descended. To the early Thugsthe goddess was more direct in her favours, than she has been

to their successors. At first,'

she undertook to bury the bodies

of all the men they slew and plundered, upon the condition

THE THUGS .

that they should never look back to see what she was doing.

The command was religiously observed for many ages, andthe Thugs relied with implicit faith upon the promise of

Bhawanee ; but as men becamemore corrupt, the ungovernablecuriosity of a young Thug ofl

'

ended the goddess, and led to

the withdrawal of a portion of her favour. This youth, burning with a desire to see how shemade her graves, looked back,and beheld her in the act, not of burying, but of devouring,the body of a man just strangled. Half of the still palpi

tating remains was dangling over her lips. Shewas so highlydispleased that she condemned the Thugs, from that time

forward, to bury their victims themselves. Another account

states that the goddess was merely tossing the body in the

air ; and that, being naked, her anger was aggravated by the

gaze of mortal eyes upon her charms. Before taking a final

leave of her devotees, she presented them with one of her

teeth for a pickax e, one of her ribs for a knife, and the hemof her garment for a noose. She has not since appeared tohuman eyes.

The original tooth having been lost in the lapse of ages,new pickax es have been constructed

,with great care and

many ceremonies, by each considerable gang of Thu to be

used in making the graves of strangled travellers. he pickax e is looked upon with the utmost veneration by the tribe.

A short account of the process of making it, and the rites

performed, may be interesting, as showing still further their

gloomy superstition In the first place, it is necessary to fixupon a lucky day. The chief Thug then instructs a smith to

forge the holy instrument : no other eye is permitted to see

the operation . The smith must engage in no other occupation

until it is completed, and the chief Thug never quite his sideduring the process. When the instrument is formed

,it be

comes necessary to consecrate it to the especial service of

Bhawanee. Another lucky day is chosen for this ceremony,care being had in the mean time that the shadow of no

earthly thing fall upon the pickax e, as its efficacy would be

for ever destroyed. A learned Thug then sits down ; and

turning his face to the west, receives the pickax e in a brassdish. After muttering some incantation, he throws it into a

it already prepared for it, where it is washed in clear water.

t is then taken out, and washed again three times ; the first

TH! THUGS.

sugar and water, the second in sour milk, and the

sp1rits. It is then dried, and marked from the head

point with seven red spots. This is the first part ofemony : the second consists in its purification by fire.

kax e is again placed upon the brass dish, along with

nut, some sugar, cloves, white sandal-wood, and other

A fire of theman tree, mix ed withdried cow- dung,rindled ; and the o ciating Thug, takin the pickax eh hands, passes it seven times through the flames.

w remains to be ascertained whether the goddess isvle to her followers. For this purpose, the cocoa- nut

from the dish and placed upon the ground. The

gedThug, turnin to the spectators, and holding theasks, Sb 1 I strike Assent being given , he

he nut with the butt end of the ax e, ex claiming,“All

ghty Davee !great mother of us all The specta

pond, All hail ! mighty Davee and prosper thythe Thugsnut is severed at the first blow,

the goddess is favour

not, she is unpropitious : all their labour is thrownnd the ceremony must be repeated upon some moreccasion . But if the sign be favourable, the ax e is'

efully in a white cloth and turned towards the west,rpectators prostrating themselves before it. It is then

u the earth, with its point turned in the direction the

shes to take on their approaching ex pedition . If the

des ires to warn them that they will be unsuccessful,they have not chosen the right track

,the Thugs

that the point of the ax e will veer round, and point toer way. During an ex pedition , it is entrusted to theudent and ex emplary Thug of the party ; it is his careit fast. If by any chance he should let it fall, con

on spreads through the gang the goddess is thought

Fended ; the enterprise is at once abandoned and the

eturn home in humiliation and sorrow, to sacrifice to

10my deity, and win back her estranged favour. So

the reverence in which they hold the sacred ax e, that

will never break an oath that he has taken upon 1t.

s that, should he perjure himself, his neck would be soby the ofl

'

ended Bhawanee as to make his face turn to2 2

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TH! THU 6 8 .

replied unhesitatingly that he never did. From1at the omens were favourable

,the Thugs considered

vellers they met as victims thrown into their handslivini t to be killed. The Thugs were the mere3 in t e hands of Bhawanee to destroy them. If

kill them,

”said Sahib, the goddess would never

propitious to us, and we and our families would be

1 misery and want. If we see or hear a bad omen,der of the dess not to kill the travellers we are

of, and we re not disobey.

as an ex pedition has been planned, the ddess is

On the day chosen for starting, whio is never

unlucky months of July, September, and Decem

1 a Wednesday or Thursday,the chief Thug of the

a brass jagwithwater, which he carries in his right

s side. ith his left, he holds upon his breast the( ax e

,wrapped carefully in a white cloth, along with

of turmeric,two copper, and one silver coin . He

3 slowly on,followed by the whole of the gang, to

or retired place,where halting, with his counte

1ed in the direction they wish to pursue, he lifts upto heaven, saying, Great goddess ! universalthis, our medi tated ex pedition, be fitting in thyhsafe to help us

,and give us the sign s of thy ap

All the Thugs present solemnly repeat the

er their leader,and wait in silence for the omen .

1alf an hour they see P z'

lhaoo, or good omen on the

i ifies that the goddess has taken them by the leftad them on ; if they see the The

'

baoo,or omen on

it signifies that she has taken them by the rightThe leader then places the brazen pitcher on the

.d sits down beside it, with his face turned in thetion for seven hours

,during which time his followers

the necessary preparations for the journey. If,

s interval,no unfavourable signs are observed, the

advances slowly,until it arrives at the bank of the

c am,when they all sit down and eat of the goor, or

d sugar. Any evil omens that are perceived after1ony may be averted by sacrifices ; but any eV 1l

n o, would at once put an end to the ex pedition .

the evil omens are the following— If the brazen

2 5 6 m s runes.

pitcher drops from the hand of the Jemadar or leader, it

threatens great evil either to him or to the gang— sometimes

to both. If they meet a funeral procession , a blind man, r

lame man, an oil- vendor, a carpenter, a potter, or a dancingmaster, the ex pedition will be dangerous. In like manner 1tis unlucky to sneeze, to meet a woman with an empty pail,couple of jackals, or a hare. The crossing of their path bythe latter is considered peculiarly inauspicious. Its cry at

n ight on the left is sometimes a good omen,but if they hear

it on the right, it is very bad ; a warning sent to them fromBhawanee that there is danger if they kill. Should they disregard this warn ing, and led on by the hope of gain , strangle

any traveller, they would either find no booty on him, or such

booty as would eventually lead to the ruin and dispersion of

the gang . Bhawanee would be wroth with her children ; andcausing them to perish in the jungle, would send the hares todrink water out of their skulls.

The good omens are quite as numerous as the evil. It

promises a fortunate ex pedition , if, on the first day, they passthrough a village where there is a fair. It is also deemed

fortunate, if they hear wailing for the dead in any village but

their own . To meet a woman with a pitcher full of water uponher head, bodes a prosperous journey and a safe return . The

omen is still more favourable if she be in a state of pregnancy.

It is said of the Thugs of the Jumaldehee and Lodahaa tribes,that they always make the youngest Thug of the party kickthe body of the first person they strangle, five times on the

back,thinking that it will bring them good luck . This prac

tice, however, is not general. If they hear an ass bray on

the left at the commencement of an ex pedition , and another

soon afterwards on the right, they believe that they shall be

supereminently successful, that they shall strangle a multitude

of travellers, and find great booty.

After every murder a solemn sacrifice, called the Tuponee,is performed by all the gang . The goor, or consecrated

sugar, is placed upon a large cloth or blanket, which is spreadupon the grass. Beside it is deposited the sacred pickax e,and a piece of silver for an offering . The Jemadar, or chief

of the party, together with the oldest andmost prudent Thutake their places upon the cloth

,and turn their faces to 0

west. Those inferior Thugs who cannot find room upon the

m THU“.

sit round as close to it as possible. A pitwhich the Jemadar pours a small uanu

zof the goor, prayin at the same time that the goddess w'

always reward her ollowers with abundant spoils. All theThugs repeat the pra er afier him. He then sprinkles water

the pickax e, an uts a little of the goor upon the headevery one who has 0 tained a seat beside him on the cloth.

A short pause ensues, when the signal for strangling is'

ven,

as if a murder were actually about to be committed, an eachThug eats his goor in solemn silence. So powerful is theimpression made upon their imagination by this ceremony,that it almost drives them frantic with enthusiasm. CaptamSleeman relates, that when he reproached a Thug for hisshare in a murder of great atrocity, and asked him whether

he never felt pity, the man re lied, We all feel pity some

times ; but the goor of the ponee changes our nature ; it

would change the nature of a horse. Let anyman once taste

of that goor, and he will be a Thug, though he know all the

trades and have all the wealth in the world. I never was inwant of food ; my mother

’

s family was opulent, and her relations high in oflice. I have been high in oflice m self

,and

became so great a favourite wherever I went that was sure

of promotion ; yet I was always miserable when absent frommy gang, and obliged to return to Thuggee. My father mademe taste of that fatal goor, when I was yet a mere boy ; andif I were to live a thousand years I should never be able tofollow any other trade.

”

The possession of wealth, station in society, and the esteemof his fellows, could not keep this man from murder. Fromhis ex traordinary confession we may judge of the ex treme

difficulty of ex terminating a sect who are impelled to their

horrid practices, not only by the motives of self- interest which

govern mankind in general, but by a fanaticism which fills

up the measure of their whole ex istence. Even severityseems thrown away upon the followers of this brutalizingcreed. To them, pun ishment is no ex ample ; they have nosympathy for a brother Thug who is hung at his own door bythe British Government, nor have they any dread of hi s fate.

Their invariable idea is, that their goddess only sufl'

ers those

Thugs to fall into the hands of the law, who have contravened

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rm; m uss. 2 59

by informing of their fellows, they reply, that Davee has doneher worst in abandoning them. She can inflict no severerpunishment, and therefore gives herself no further concernabout her degenerate children . This cowardly doctrine is

,

however, of advantage to the government that seeks to put anend to the sect, and has thrown a light upon their practices,which could never have been obtained from other sources.

Another branch of the Thug abomination has more recentlybeen discovered by the indefati able Captain S leeman . The

followers of this sect are called EGPUNNAS,and they murder

travellers, not to rob them of their wealth, but of their children ,

whom they afterwards sell into slavery. They entertainthe same religious Opinions as the Thugs, and have carriedon their hideous practices, and entertained their dismal superstition , for about a dozen years, with impun ity. The reportof Captain S leeman states, that the crime prevails almost ex

elusively in Delhi and the native principalities, or R ajpootanaof U lwer and Bhurtpore and that it first spread ex tensivelyafter the siege of Bhurtpo1e 111 182 6 .

The original Thugs never or ru1ely travel with their w ivesbut the “cgpunnas i nvariably take their fam ilies w ith them ,

the women and children being used to inveigle the victims.

Poor travellers are always chosen by the Megpunnas as the

objects of their murderous traflic . The females and children

are sent on in ad1 ance to make acqua intance w ith cmig1ants

01 beggars on the road,t1a1 elling w ith their fami lies, whom

they en tice to pass the n ight in some secluded place,where

they are afterwards set upon by the men , and strangled. The

women take care of the children . Such of them as are

beau tiful, are sold at a high price to the brothels of Delhi , 01other large cities ; while the boys and ill- fa1 oured girls aresold for ser1 ants at a more moderate rate. These murdersare perpetrated perhaps th e hundred miles from the homes of

the unfortunate victims and the chi ldren thus obtained,de

pri1 ed of all their rclati1 cs,are 1101 er 1nqu11cd after . E1 on

should any of their kin be alive, they are too far ofl'

and too poorto institu te inquiries. One of the members, on being questioned, said the Megpunnas made m01e money than the otherThugs it was n1o1e profitable to k ill poor people for the sake

of their children , than rich people f01 their wealth Megpun

unism is supposed by its 1 ota1 ics to be, like Thuggee, under

THE THUGS .

the immediate protection of the great oddess Davee, or

Kalee, whose favour is to be obtained be ore the commence

ment of every ex pedition, and whose omens, whether of good

or evil, are to be diligently sought on all occasions. Thefirst

apostle to whom she commumcated her commands for the

formation of the new sect, and the rules and ordinances b

which it was to be guided, was called Kheama J emadar. e

was considered so holy a man , that the Thugs and Megpunnaa

considered it an ex treme felicity to ax e upon and touch him.

At the moment of his arrest by the ritish authorities, a fire

was raging in the village, and the inhabitants gathered round

him and 1mplored him to intercede with his god, that the

flames might be ex tinguished. The Megpunna, sa 8 the tra

dition, stretched forth his hand to heaven, pray and the

fire ceased immediately .

There now only remain to be considered the ex ertions that

have been made to remove from the face of India this purulent and disgusting sore. From the year 1807 until 18 2 6 ,the proceedings against Thuggee were not carried on with anyex traordinary degree of vigour ; but, in the latter year, the

Government seems to have begun to act upon a settled deter

mination to destroy it altogether. From 182 6 to 1885 , bothincluded, there were committed to prison , in the various

Presidencies, 15 6 2 persons accused of this crime. Of these,3 2 8 were hanged; 999 transported ; 77 imprisoned71 imprisoned for shorter periods ; 2 1 held to bail ; and only2 1 acquitted. Of the remainder, 31 died in prison, beforethey were brought to trial, 11 escaped, and 49 turned approvers .

One Feringeea, a Thug leader of eat notoriety, was delivered up to justice in the year 188 in consequence of thereward of five hundred rupees offered for his apprehension bythe Government. He was brought before Ca tain S leeman,at Sangir, in the December of that year, and

)

ofi'

ered, if hislife were spared, to give such information as would lead to

the arrest of several ex tensive gan which had carried on

their murderous practices undetecte for several ears. He

mentioned the place of rendezvous, for the fo owing Fe

bruary, of some well- organ ized gangs, who were to proceedinto Guzerat and Candeish. Captam S leeman appeared to

m u ses.

the Thug to a mane road to Seronag

ge.o

over all the spots, and not the slightest traces were toseen that it had ever been disturbed. Under the sod of

Captain Sleeman’

s tent were found the bodies of the firstconsisting of a pundit and his six attendants, murdered

m 1 18 . Another of five, murdemd in 1824, were underthe ground at the pme where the Captain

’

s horses hadbeen tied up for the night ; and four Brahmin carriers of the

Ganges water, with a woman, were buried under his sleepingtent. Before the ground was moved, Captain Sleeman ex

preu ed some doubts ; but Feringeea, after looking at the

position of some neighbouring trees, said he would risk hislife on the accuracy of his remembrance. The workmen dugfive feet without discoverin the bodies ; but they were at

length found a little be on that depth, ex actly as the Thughad described them. ith this proof of his knowledge of thehaunts of his brethren, Feringeea was promised his libertyand pardon if he would aid in bringing to justice the man

large gangs to which he had belonged, and whi ch were stifiprowling over the country . They were arrested in the Fe

bruary following, at the place of rendezvous pointed out bythe

fiapprover, and most of them condemned and ex ecuted.

S o far we learn from Captain Sleeman , who only broughtdown his tables to the close of the year 1835 . A writer inthe Foreign Quarterly Review

”furn ishes an additional list

of 241 persons, committed to prison in 1886 , for being con

cerned in the murder and robbery of 474individuals. Of

these criminals, 91 were sentenced to death, and 2 2 to im

prisonment for life, leaving 806 , who were sentenced to trans

portation for life or shorter periods of imprisonment, or whoturned approvers, or died in jail. Not one of the whole

number was acquitted.

Great as is this amount of criminals who have been broughtto justice, it is to be feared that many ears must elapsebefore an evil so deeply rooted can be e

'

cated. The difli

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THE WITCH MANIA.

Of tears, eonsph-ing wretched n en t

'sflist,

Hath pear’d on earth this noyonsThat mortal minds doth in ink et

With love of blindness and of ignorance ?

s'sm qf fls“ .

m . Hang her —beat her —kill her !How now ? Forbear this violence !

Sawyer . A crew of vi llains—a knot of bloody hangma n! l ot tome —I know not why.

Alas ! nei ghbour Banks, are you a ringleader in mischief! Pie!an aged woman !

Woman ! a she hell- cat, a wi tch! To prove her one,we nosoonern the thatch of her house, but in she came running, as if the Devilher in a barrel of gunpowder.

M s Witch of Edmonton.

belief that disembodied spirits may be permitted to

this world, has its foundation upon that sublime hopeortality, which is at once the chief solace and greatest

1 of our reason. Even if revelation did not teach us,

that we have that within us which shall never die ; and

ex perience of this life but makes us cling the more

to that one repaying h0pe. But in the early days of

knowledge,”this grand belief became the source of a

;rain of superstitions, which, in their turn, became thefrom whence flowed a deluge of blood and horror.

for a period of two centuries and a half, brooded upona, not only that artsd spirits walked the earth to

in the afl'

airs 0 men, but that men had power to

n evil spirits to their aid to work wo upon their fellows.

demic terror seized upon the nations ; no man thought.

‘

secure, either in his person or possessions, from the

THE WITCH MANIA.

machinations of the devil and his agents. Every calamitythat befell him, he attributed to a witch. If a storm arose

and blew down his barn, it was witchcraft ; if his cattle diedof a murrain— if disease fastened upon his limbs

, or death

entered suddenly, and snatched a beloved face from his

hearth— they were not visitations of Providence, but the

works of some neighbouring hag, whose wretchedness or

insanity caused the ignorant to raise their finger, and pointather as a witch. The word was upon everybody ’

s tongue

France, Italy, Germany, England, Scotland, and the far

North, successively ran mad upon this subject, and for a longseries of years

,furnished their tribunals with so many trials

for witchcraft,that other crimes were seldom or never spoken

of. Thousands upon thousands of unhappy persons fell victims to this cruel and absurd delusion . In many cities of

Germany, as will be shown more fully in its due place hereafter, the average number of ex ecutions for this pretendedcrime, was six hundred annually

, or two every day, if weleave out the Sundays

,when , it is to be supposed, that even

this madness refrained from its work .

A misunderstanding of the famous tex t of the Mosaic law,

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live, no doubt led manconscientious men astray, whose superstition, warm enougbefore, wanted but a little corroboration to blaze out with

desolating fury. In all ages of the world men have tried to

hold converse with superior bein s ; and to pierce, by theirmeans, the secrets of futurity . n the time of Moses, it is

evident that there were imposters, who trafficked upon the

credulity of mankind,and insulted the supreme majesty of

the true God, by pretending to the power of divination.

Hence the law which Moses,by divine command, promulgated

against these criminals ; but it did not follow, as the supersti

tious monoman iacs of the middle ages imagined, that the

Bible established the ex istence of the power of divination byits edicts against those who pretended to it. From the bestauthorities, i t appears that the Hebrew word, which has beenrendered, venefica, and w itch, means a poisoner and divineress—a dabbler in spells, or fortune- teller. The modern witch

was a very difi’

erent character, and joined to her pretended

power of foretelling future events,that of working evil upon

the life, limbs, and possessions of mankind. This power was

m wrrcn HANIA.

be acquired b an ex press compact, signed in blood,e devil himsel bywhich thewizard or w1tch renounced1, and sold his or her immortal soul to the evil one,any saving clause of redemption.

e are so man wondrous appearances in nature, forscience and p osophy cannot, even now, account, that.ot surprising that

, when natural laws were sti ll lesstood, men should have attributed to supernatural agencyappearance which they could not otherwise ex plain .

crest tyro now understands various phenomena whichsect of old could not fathom. The schoolboy knowspon high mountains, there should, on certain occas ions,three or four suns in the firmament at once ; and whyi re of a traveller upon one eminence should be repro

inverted, and of a igantic stature, upon another. We

w the stran e prauske which imagination can play in

diseases— t at the hypochondriac can see visions ands,and that there have been cases in which men were

ly persuaded that theywere teapots . S cience has lifted

veil, and rolled away all the fantastic horrors in which'

efathers shrouded these and similar cases. The manvw imagines himself a wolf, is sent to the hospital, in»f to the stake

,as in the days of the witch mania ; and

air, and sea are unpeopled of the grotesque spirits thatnce believed to haunt them.

.re entering further into the history of W itchcraft, it1 as well if we consider the absurd impersonation of the°inciple formed by the monks in their legends. We

1ake acquaintance with the primum mobi le, and undervhat sort of a personage it was, who gave the witches

,

1ange for their souls, the power to torment their fellow'

es. The popular notion of the devil was, that he was

ill- formed,hairy sprite

,with horns, a long tail, cloven

1d dragon’

s wings. In this shape he was constantlyt on the stage by the monks in their early miraclesnysteries In these representations hewas an imporrsonage, and answered the purpose of the clown in the

1 pantomime. The great fun for the people was to see

ll belaboured by the saints with clubs or cud els, and

him howl with pain as he lim

ped ofl

'

,maime by the

.f some vigorous anchorite. t. Dunstan generally2 8

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THE WITCH MANIA.

inmanity . Milton seems to havebeen thefirst who succeeded11 giving any but a ludicrous description of him. The sublime1ride which is the quintessence of evi l, was unconceived before1is time. All other limners made him merely grotesque, butVIilton made him awful. In this the monks showed them

selves but miserable romancers for their object undoubtedlywas to represent the fiend as terrible as possible : but therewas nothing grand about their Satan ; on the contrary

,he

a low mean devil, whom it was easy to circumvent andfine fun to play tricks with. But

, as is well and eloquentlyremarked by a modern writer,* the subject has also its seriousside. An Indian deity

,with its wild distorted shape and

grotesque attitude, appears merely ridiculous when separatedfrom i ts accessories and viewed by dayli ht in a museum ; but

restore it to the darkness of its own hideous temple, bringback to our recollection the victims that have bled upon itsaltar, or been crushed beneath its car

,and our sense of the

ridiculous subsides into aversion and horror. So, while the

superstitious dreams of former times are regarded as merespecu lative insan ities, we may be for a moment amused with

the w ild incoherences of the patients ; but, when we reflect,that out of these hideous misconceptions of the principle of

evil arose the belief in witchcraft— that this was no dead

fai th,but one operating on the whole being of society, urging

on the wisest and the mildest to deeds ofmurder, or crueltiesscarcely less than murder— that the learned and the beautiful,young and old

,male and female

,were devoted by its influence

to the stake and the scafl'

old— every feeling disappears, ex ceptthat of astonishment that such things could be, and humilia

tion at the thought that the delusion was as lasting as it was

un iversal.Bes ides this chief personage, therewas an infin ite number of

inferior demons,who played conspicuous parts in the creed of

witchcraft. The pages of Bekker, Leloyer, Bodin , Delrio, andD e Lancre abound with descriptions of the qualities of theseimps and the functions whichwere assigned them. From theseauthors

,three of whom were commissioners for the trial of

S ee article on Demonology, in the si x th volume of the Foreign Quarterly R evi ew .

”

THE WITCH MANIA.

witches, and who wrote from the confessions made by the

supposed criminals and the evidence delivered against them,and from the more recent work of M . Jules Gar met, thelowing summary of the creed has been, with great pains, extracted. The student who is desirous of knowing more, isreferred to the works in question ; he will find enough in

every leaf to make his blood curdle with shame and horror :

but the purity of these pages shall not be soiled by anythingso inefl

'

ably humiliating and di sgusting as a complete ex posi

tion of them what is here culled will be a suflicient sampleofthe popular belief, and the reader would but lose time who

should seek in the writings of the Demonologists for moreample details . He will gain nothing by lifting the veilwhichcovers their unutterable Obscenities, unless, like S terne, hewishes to gather fresh evidence of what a beast man is.

”

In that case, he will find plenty there to convince him that

the beast would be libelled by the comparison .

It was thought that the earth swarmed with millions of demons of both sex es, many ofwhom,

like the human race, tracedtheir lineage up to Adam,

who,after the fall, was led astray

by devils, assuming the forms of beautiful women to deceive

him. These demons increased and multiplied,”

amongthemselves

, with the most ex traordinary rapidity. Theirbodies were of the thin air

,and they could ass through the

hardest substances with the greatest ease. hey had no fix ed

residence or abiding place, but were tossed to and fro in the

immensity of space. When thrown together in greattudes, they ex cited whirlwinds in the air and tempests in the

waters, and took delight in destroyin the beauty of nature

and the monuments of the industry 0 man. Al though theyincreased among themselves like ordinary creatures, theirnumbers were daily augmented by the souls of wicked menof children stillborn— of women who died in childbed, and

of persons killed in duels. The whole air was supposed to befull of them, and many unfortunate men and women drew

them by thousands into their mouths and nostrils at every inspiration ; and the demons, lod ing in their bowels or otherparts of their bodies

,tormentedthem with pains and diseases

of every kind, and sent them frightful dreams. S t. GregoryofNice relates a story of a nun who forgot to say her benedioita, andmake the sign of a cross, before she sat down to

Although thedevil and his legions couldt any time, it W

igner

-ally understood

he mght between day and Saturday.

.ppeared m human shape, he was never perfectly, and in all

aspects, like a man. He was either too black or too white—too large or too small, or some of his limbs were out of.roportion to the rest of his body. Most commonly his feet

rere deformed ; and hewas obliged to curl u and conceal his

ail 1n some part of his habiliments ; for, take what shape herould, he could not et rid of that encumbrance. He some

imes changed himse f into a tree or a river ; and upon one

ocasion be transformed himself into a barrister, as we learn'

rom Wierus, book 1v, chapter ix . In the re of Philippes Bel, he appeared to a monk in the shape 0 a dark man,iding a tall black horse—then as a friar—afterwards as an

as, and finally as a coach- wheel. Instances are not rare in

rhich both he and his inferior demons have taken the form

f handsome youn men ; and, successfully concealing their

ails, have marrie beautiful

Xiang women, who have had

hildren by them. Such chil n were easily recognisable

ay their continual shrieking—by their requiring five nurses

0 suckle them, and by their never growin fat.

All these demons were at the comman of any individual,rho would give up his immortal soul to the prince of evil for

he privile e of enjoying their services for a stated period.

.

‘he wizardor witch could send them to ex ecute the most

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ud witfi sg te see whether they had ths secret mark aboutthe devil

’

s own. ThisThose who had not yst

themaster of the cerelenien the devil at the ssme time bestowing nicknsmes uponbean. This done, they sll began to sing end dance in thelest furious manner, until some one arrived who was anx ious

were then silent for

his salvation, kissed

obedience to him in

n the course of an hour or two, theyrearied of this violent ex ercise, and they wn and

econnted the evil deeds they had done since their last meet1g. Those who had not been malicious and mischievous

nough towards their fellow- creatures, received personal chasisement from Satan himself, who flogged them with thorns

r scorpions till they were covered with blood, and unable toit or stand.

When this ceremony was concluded, they were all amusedy a dance of toads. Thousands of these creatures sprangat of the earth ; and standing on their hind- legs, danced,rhile the devil played the bagpipes or the trumpet..

‘hese toads were all endowed with the faculty of speech, andatt es ted the witches to reward them with the flesh of unhapLsed babes for their ex ertions to give them pleasure. The'itches promised compliance. The devil bade them remember1 keep their word ; and then stamping his foot, caused all the

:1ads to sink into the earth in an instant. The place beinbus cleared, preparation was made for the banquet, where1anner of disgusting things were served up and greedilyevoured by the demons and witches ; although the latter

are sometimes regaled with choice meats and ex pensive'ines from golden plates and crystal oblets ; but they wereever thus favoured unless they had one an ex traordinaryumber of evil deeds since the last period ofmeeting.

THE WITCH MANIA.

After the feast, they began dancing again ; but such as had

no relish for any more ex ercise in that way, amused them

selves by mocking the holy sacrament of baptism. For this

purpose, the toads were again called up, and sprinkled withfilthy water ; the devil making the sign of the cross, and all

the witches calling out,“In nominc P atrice, Aragaeaeo

P etrica, agora agora Valentia, jonando yours gaits

youstia I”which meant, In the name of Patrick, Petrick of

Ara ou ,—now,

now,all our ills are over !

hen the devil wished to be particularly amused, he made

the witches strip off their clothes and dance before him, each

with a cat tied round her neck, and another dangling from

her body in form of a tail. When the cock crew, they all

di sappeared, and the Sabbath was ended.

This is a summary of the belief which prevailed for manycenturies nearly all over Europe, and which is far from erad1cated even at this day. It was varied in some respects inseveral countries, but the main points were the same in

France, Germany, Great Britain , Italy, Spain, and the far

North of Europe.

The early annals of France aboundwith stories of supposedsorcery, but it was not until the time of Charlemagne that thecrime acquired any great importance. This monarch,

”

says M . J ules Garinet,* “had several times iven orders that

all necromancers,astrologers, and witches s ould be driven

from his states ; but as the number of criminals augmented

daily, he found it necessary at last to resort to severer measures. In consequence, he published several edi cts, which

may be found at length in the Capitulaire de Baluse.

’

Bythese, every sort of magic, enchantment, and witchcraft was

forbidden ; and the pun ishment of death decreed against those

who in any way evoked the devil—compounded love- philtersafflicted either man or woman wi th barrenness—troubled the

atmosphere—ex cited tempests—destroyed the fruits of the

earth—dried up the milk of cows, or tormented their fellow

creatures with sores and diseases. All persons found guiltyof ex ercising these ex ecrable arts, were to be ex ecuted immediately upon conviction, that the earthmight be rid of the burden

Histoire de la Magic en France. Bois de la seconds race, page 2 9.

1 1113 W ITCH MANIA . 2 78

and curse of their presence ; and those even who consulted

them m ight also be punished with death.

*

After this time, prosecutions for witchcraft are continuallymentioned, especially by the French historians. It was a

crime imputed with so much ease, and repelled with so much

diflicu lty, that the powerful, whenever they wanted to ruinthe weak, and could fix no other imputation upon them, hadonly to accuse them of witchcraft to insure their destruction.

Instances, in which this crime was made a pretex t for themost violent persecution , both of. individuals and of commun i

ties, whose real ofl'

ences were purel political or religious,must be familiar to every reader. T e ex termination of the

Stedinger, in 12 34; of the Templars, from 1307 to 1313 ;the ex ecution of Joan of Arc, in 142 9 ; and the unhappyscenes of Arras, in 145 9, are the most prominent. The firstof these is perhaps the least known , but is not among the

least remarkable. The following account, from Dr. Kortiim’

s

interesting historyf of the republican confederacies of the

Middle Ages, will show the horrible convenience of imputations of witchcraft, when royal or priestly wolves wanted a

pretex t for a quarrel with the sheep .

The Frieslanders, inhabiting the district from theWeser tothe Zuydersee, had long been celebrated for their attachmentto freedom,

and their successful struggles in its defence. As

early as the eleventh century, they had formed a generalconfederacy against the encroachments of the Normans and

the S ax ons, which was divided into seven seelands , holdingannually a diet under a large oak tree at Aurich, near theUpstalboom . Here they managed their own afl

'

airs,without

the con trol of the clergy and amb itious nobles who surroundedthem, to the great scandal of the latter . They already hadtrue notions of a representative government. The deputiesof the people levied the necessary tax es, deliberated on the

M. Michaud, in his “History of the Crusades, M . Gu inguené , in his

L i terary H istory of Italy,”and some other cri tics , have objected to Tasso

’

s

poem ,that he has attribu ted to the Cru saders a belief in magic , which did

not ex i st at the time. If these cri tics had referred to the Edicts of Charle

magne, they wou ld have seen that Tasso was r ight, and that a dispositiontoo eager to spy out imperfections in a great work was leading themselves

into error .

1“En tstehungsgeschichte der freistadlischen Bunde im Mittelalter, von

Dr. F . Kortum.

”182 7 .

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is and wizards. “The Stedinger, said his Holiccd by the devil, have abjured all the laws of Godsndered the Church—insulted the he] sacraments

irits—sh blood like

mthe lives of priests, an concocted an infernal

prepagate the worship of the devil, whom theythe nameof Asmodi . The devil appears to them

shapes ; sometimes as a goose or a duck, and at

s fi

gpre of a pale, black-eyed youth, with a melan

t, w ose embrace fills their hearts with eternal

1st the holy church of Christ. The devil presidesabaths, when the all kiss him and dance aroundhen envelopes them in total darkness, and they(1 female, give themselves up to the grossest and

ting debauchery.

”

[uence of these letters of the Pope, the Emperorr, Frederic II.

,also pronounced his ban against

Bishops of Ratzebourg , Lubec, Osnabriick, Mun

inden took up arms to ex terminate them, aided byf Brabant, the Counts of Holland, of Cleves, ofof Oldenburg, of Egmond, of Diest, and manyful nobles. An army of forty thousand men wasted, which marched, under the command of the

rabant, into the coun try of the Stedinger. The

red vigorously in defence of their lives and liberuld raise no greater force, including every manbearing arms

,than eleven thousand men to co e

overwhelming numbers of their foe. They foug t

argy of despair, but all in vain . Eight thousandre slain on the field of battle ; the whole race was

1d ; and the enraged conquerors scoured the

all directions —slew the women and children and

lrove away the cattle—fired the woods and cot

made a total waste of the land.

.bsurd and efl'

ectual was the charge brought against1rs in 1307 , when they had rendered themselves

to the potentates and prelacy of Christendom .

th, their power, their pride, and their insolenceup enemies on every side ; and every sort of accu

made against them,but failed to work the1r over

1 the terrible cry of witchcraft was let loose upon

THE WIN H MANIA.

them. This efl'

ected its object, and the Templars were ex tir

pated. They were accused of having sold their souls to th

devil, and of celebrating all the infernal mysteries of th

witches’

Sabbath. It was pretended that, when they admittea novice into their order

,they forced him to renounce hi

salvation and curse Jesus Christ ; that they then made hissubmit to many unholy and disgusting ceremonies, and forcehim to kiss the Superior on the check, the navel, and th

breech; and spit three times upon a crucifix . That all th

members were forbidden to have connex ion with women, bu

might give themselves up without restraint to every species 0unmentionable debauchery. That when, by any mischance,Templar infringed this order, and a child was born , the who]order met, and tossed it about like a shuttlecock from one t

the other until it ex pired ; that they then roasted it by a 8101

fire,and with the fat which trickled from it anointed the hai

and heard of a large image of the devil. It was also sai.

that, when one of the knights died, his body was burn t intopowder, and then mix ed with wine and drunk by every member of the order. Philip IV.

, who, to ex ercise his own implscable hatred, invented, in all probability

,the greater part 0

these charges, issued orders for the immediate arrest of al

the Templars in his dominions. The Pope afterwards too]up the cause with almost as much fervour as the King 0

France ; and in every part of Europe,the Templars wer

thrown into prison and their goods and estates confiscated

Hundreds of them,when put to the rack, confessed even th

most preposterous of the charges against them,and by s

doing, increased the popular clamour and the hopes of theienemies. It is true that, when removed from the rack

, the.

denied all they had previously confessed ; but this circumstanconly increased the outcry, and was numbered as an additions

crime against them . They were considered in a worse ligh

than before, and condemned forthwith to the flames, as relapseheretics. Fifty- nine of these unfortunate victims were al

burned together by a slow fire in a field in the suburbs 0

Paris,protesting to the very last moment of their lives, thei

innocence of the crimes imputed to them, and refusing to accepof pardon upon condition of acknowledging themselves guiltyS imilar scenes were enacted in the provinces ; and for fou

years, hardly a month passedwithout witnessing the ex ecutim

i cne cr mcse of

the lover of his

The ex ecution of J oan of Are is the nex t most notorious

to the long- laid train, and caused so fearful an ex plosion over

the‘ Christian world. It will be necessary, however, to go

back for some years anterior to that event, the better tounderstand themotives that influenced the Church in the promulgation of that fearful document.

Towards the close of the fourteenth and beginning of the

fifteenth century, many witches were burned in difi'

erent partsof Europe. As a natural consequence of the severe persecution , the crime, or the pretenders to it, increased. Thosewho found themselves accused and threatened with the penalties , if they happened to be persons of a bad and malicious

disposition , wished they had the power imputed to them,that

they might be revenged upon their persecutors. Numerousinstances are upon record of half- crazed persons bein found

mutterin the spells which were supposed to raise t e evil

one. W en religion and law alike reco ised the crime, it is

no wonder that the weak in reason and t e strong in imagination , especially when the were of a nervous temperament,fancied themselves endue with the terrible powers of whichall the world was speaking. The belief of their neighboursdid not lag behind their own, and ex ecution was the speedyconsequence.

As the fear of witchcraft increased, the Catholic clergystrove to fix the imputation of it upon those religious sects,von. 1. 24

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Catholics themselves. In after times we also find that the

of hares betokened, it was thought, the coming of

tichrist. orimond, in his'

work concerning the Anti

christ, lets us fully into the secret of these prosecutions. He

says, All who have afl‘

orded us some signs of the approach

of Antichrist afiee that the increase of sorcery andwitchcraft

is to distinguis the melancholy period of his advent ; and

was ever age so afflicted as ours ? The seats destined for cri

minals in our courts of justice are blackened with personsaccused of this guilt. There are not judges enough to trythem . Our dungeons are gorged with them. No day passesthat we do not render our tribunals bloody by the dooms

whi ch we pronounce, or in which we do not return to our

homes, di scountenanced and terrified at the horrible confos

sions which we have heard. And the devil is accounted so

good a master, that we cannot commit so eat a number ofhis slaves to the flames, but what there she] arise from theirashes a suflicient number to supply their place.

”

Florimond here spoke the eneral opin ion of the Church of

Rome ; but it never an gestegitself to themind of any personengaged in these tria s

,that if it were indeed a devil, who

raised up so many new witches to fill the places of those con

sumed, it was no other than one in their own employ—thedevil of persecution . But so it was. The more they burned

,

the more they found to burn ; until it became a common

prayer with women in the humbler walks of life, that the

might never live to ow old. It was suflicient to be aged,poor, and ill- tempe to insure death at the stake or the

scafi'

old.

In the year 1487 there was a severe storm in Switzerland,

2 80 m s wrrcn m m.

which laidwaste the country for four miles around Constance.

Two wretched old women, whom the popular voice had longaccused of witchcraft, were arrested on the preposterous

charge of having raised the tempest. The rack was displayed,and the two poor creatures ex tended upon it. In reply tovarious leading questions from their termentors, they owned,in their agony, that they were in the constant habit of meeting the devil, that they had sold their souls to him,

and that

at their command he had raised the tempest. Upon this

insane and blasphemous charge they were condemned to die.

In the criminal registers of Constance there stands against

the name of each the simple but significant phrase, convicts

et combuata .

This case and hundreds of others were duly reported to theecclesiastical powers. There happened at that time to be a

Pontifl'

at the head of the Church who had given much of his

attention to the subject of witchcraft, and who, with the

intent of rooting out the crime, did more to increase it thanany other man that ever lived. John Baptist C ibo, electedto the Papacy in 1485

,under the designation of Innocent

VIII.,was sincerely alarmed at the number of witches

, and

launched forth his terrible manifesto against them. In hiscelebrated hull of 1488, he called the nations of Europe tothe rescue of the Chureli of Christ upon earth, imperilled bythe arts of Satan, and set forth the horrors that had reachedhis ears ; how that numbers of both sex es had intercourse withthe infernal fiends ; how by their sorceries they afflicted both

man and beast ; how the blighted thema1riage had, destroyedthe births of women an the 1ncreasc of cattle ; and how the

blasted the corn on the ground, the grapes of the vineyardy,

the fru its of the trees, and the herbs of the field. In order

that criminals so atrocious might no longer pollute the earth,he appointed inquisitors in every country, armed with the

apostolic power to convict and pun ish.

It was now that the WitchMan ia,properly so called, may

be said to have fairly commenced. Immediately a class of

men sprang up in Europe, who made it the sole business of

their lives to discover and burn the witches. Sprenger, inGermany, was the most celebrated of these national scour es.

In his notorious work, the Malleus Maleficarum,

”heIaid

down a regular form of trial, and appointed a course of ex a

Straightway the inquisitors set towork Cumanus, in Italy,burned forty

- one poor women in one province alone, and

Sprenger, in Germany, burned a number which can never be

ascertained correct] , but which, it is agreed on all hands,amounted to more five hundred in a year. The great

resemblance between the confessions of the unhap victims

was regarded as a new roof of the ex istence of a crime.

But this is not astonishing. The same questions from the

Malleus Maleficarum,

”were put to them all, and torture

never failed to educe the answer required by the in uisitor.

Numbers of people whose imaginations were filled wit these

horrors, went further in the way of confession than over their

tormentors anticipated, in the hope that they would therebybe saved from the rack, and put out of their misc at once.

Some confessed that they had had children by the1

devil ; butno one, who had ever been a mother, gave utterance to such

a frantic imagining, even in the ex tremity of her anguish.

The childless only confessed it, and were burned instanter as

unworthy to live.

For fear the zeal of the enemies of Satan should cool, suc

cessive Popes appointed new commissions. Onewas appointedby Alex ander VI. , in 1494; another b Leo X .

,in 15 2 1 ;

and a third by Adrian VI. , in 15 2 2 . hey were all armed

with the same powers to hunt out and destroy, and ex ecuted

their fearful functions but too rigidly. In Geneva alone five

hundred persons were burned in the years 1515 and 1516,

under the title of Protestant witches. It would appear thattheir chief crime was heresy, and their witchcraft merely an

aggravation. Bartololomeo de Spina has a list still more

fearful. He informs us that, in the year 15 24, no less thana thousand persons suffered death for witchcraft in the dis

trict of Come, and that forfl

several years afterwards thel '

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m 1: WITCH MAN IA. 2 83

shape attending the sabbath of the fiends—prowling aroundSatan , who presided over them in the form of a goat, and

dancing, to amuse him, upon his back. They were foundguilty, and burned.

In 15 64, three wizards and a witch appeared before thePres iden ts Salvert and D

’

Avanton : they confessed, when

ex tended on the rack, that they anointed the sheep - penswith infernal unguents to kill the sheep—that they attended

the sabbath, where they saw a great black oat, which

li

spoke

to them, and made them kiss81

.

him, eachholding s hted

candle In his hand while he performed the ceremony.

li

Theywere all ex ecuted at Poitiers.

In 15 71, the celebrated sorcerer, Trois Echelles, was burnedin the Place de Grave, In Paris. He confessed, in the pre

sence of Charles IX.,and of the Marshals dc Montmorency

,

De Rats, and the S ieur du Mazille, physician to the King,that he could perform the most wonderful things by the aid

of a devil to whom he had sold himself. He described at

great length the saturnalia of the fiends—the sacrifices whichthey ofl

’

ered up—the debaucheries they committed with the

young and handsome witches, and the various modes of pre

paring the infernal unguent for blighting cattle. He said hehad upwards of twelve hundred accomplices in the crime ofw itchcraft In various parts of France, whom he named to the

King, and many of whom were afterwards arrested and suf

fered ex ecution .

At Dole,two years afterwards, Gilles Garnier, a native of

Lyons, was indicted for being a loup-

garou , or man-wolf, and

for prowling in that shape about the country at night to

devour little children . The indictment against him,as read

by Henri Camus,doctor of laws and counsellor of the King,

was to the effect that he, Gilles Garn ier, had seized upon a

little girl, twelve years of age, whom he drew into a vineyardand there killed, partly with his teeth and partly with hishands, seeming like wolf

’

s paws— that from thence he trailedher bleeding body along the ground with his teeth into the

wood of L a Serre, where he ate the greatest portion of her

Bodin , page 95 . Garinet, page 12 5 . Anti - demon de Serclier,

page 346 .

THE WITCH MANIA.

at one meal, and carried the remainder home to his wife that,upon another occasion, eight days before the festival of All

Saints, he was seen to some another child in his teeth, and

would have devoured her had she not been rescued by thecountry people—and that the said child died a few days after

wards of the injuries he had inflicted that fifteen days after

the same festival ofAll Saints, being again in the shape of a

wolf, he devoured a boy thirteen years of a

ge,bavin

viously torn of his leg and thi gh WIth his teat and hi that

;away for his breakfast on the morrow. He was, furthermore,indicted for giving way to the same diabolical and unnatural

propensities even in his shape of a man, and that he had

strangled a boy in a wood with the intention of eating him,which crime he would have efl

’

ected if he had not been seen

by the nei hbours and prevented.

Gilles arnier was put to the rack, after fifty witnesses

had deposed against him : he confessed everything that was

laid to his charge. He was thereupon , brought back into thepresence of his judges, when Dr. Camus, in the name of the

Parliament of D 61e, pronounced the following sentence

Seeing that Gilles Garnier has, by the testimony of

credible witnesses, and by his own spontaneous confession,been proved uilty of the abominable crimes of l canthropyand witchcraft, this court condemns him,

the saidGilles, tobe this day taken in a cart from this spot to the place of ex e

outien , accompanied by the ex ecutioner (maitre ex écuteur de lahaute j ustice), where he, by the said ex ecutioner, shall be tiedto a stake and burned alive

,and that hi s ashes be then scat

tered to the winds . The Court further condemns him the

said Gilles, to the costs of this prosecution .

”

Given at D 61e this 18th day of January, 1573 .

In 15 78, the Parliament of Paris was occupied for severaldays with the trial of a man, named Jacques Rollet. He,also, was found guilty of being a loup

-

garou , and in that

shape devouring a little boy. He was burnt alive in the

Place de Greve.

In 1579, so much alarm was ex cited in the neighbourhoodof Melun by the increase of witches and Imp

-

games , that a

council was held to devise some measures to stay the evil.

pe so” on whom such books were found should be burneddive.

!Three councils wcrc hcld in difi

'

crent parts of France

Parliament of Tours was

the face of the land. The Parliament of t ims was parti

sularly severe against the sw ears d’

aigu illette, or tiers of

the knot ; people of both sex es, who took leasure in pre

venting the consummation of marriage, t at they mightcounteract the command of God to our first parents, to marease and multiply. This Parliament held it to be sinful towear amulets to preserve from witchcraft ; and that this practice might not be continued within its jurisdiction, drew up a

form of ex orcism, whi ch would more efl'

ectually defeat the

sgents of the devil, and put them to flight.A case of witchcraft, which created a great sensation in its

lay, occurred in 1588, at a village in the mountains of Au

rergne, about two leagues from Apchon. A. gentleman of

that place being at his window, there passed a friend of his

who had been out hunting, and who was then returning to his

1wn house. The gentleman asked his friend what sport hehad ; upon which the latter informed him that he had

Jeen attacked in the plain by a large and savage wolf, which

1c had shot at, without wounding ; and that he had then

lrawn out his hunting- kni fe and cut ofl

’

the animal’

s fore-

paw,

i s it sprang upon his neck to devour him . The huntsman,1pon this, put his hand into his bag to pull out the aw, but

was shocked to find that it was a woman’

s hand, wi a wad

ling- ring on the finger. The gentleman immediately recog

1ised his wife’

s ring, which,”says the indictment against

1cr,“made him begin to ma t some evil of her.

”He

mmediately went in search of er, and found her sitting by

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madness with regardstate ofEngland during the same period.

he Reformation, which in its progress had rooted out so

any errors, stopped short at this, the greatest error of all.

uther and Calvin were as firm believers in witchcraft as'

ope Innocent himself, and their followers showed themselves10“ zealous persecutors than the Romanists. Dr. Hutchinm, in his work on Witchcraft, asserts that the mania maniwted itself later in England, and raged with less virulenceban on the Continent. The first assertion only is true ; but

he h the persecution began later both in England and(1, its progress was as fearful as elsewhere.

It was not until more than fift years after the issuing of

he Bull of Innocent VIII. that c Legislature of England

bought fit to make any more severe enactments against sor

ery than those already in operation . The statute of 1541vas the first that specified the particular crime of witchcraft.

i t a much earlier period, many persons had suffered death'

or sorcery in addition to other offences ; but no ex ecutions

ook place for attending the witches’

sabbath, raising tem

1ests, afllicting cattle with barrenness, and all the fantastic

rumpery of the Continent. Two statutes were passed in15 5 1 ; the first, relating to false prophecies

,caused mainly,

1o doubt, by the impositions of Elizabeth Barton, the Holyii aid of Kent, in 15 34, and the second against conjuration,witchcraft, and sorcery. But even this enactment did not

onsider witchcraft as penal in itself, and only condemned to

leath those who by means of spells, incantations, or contractswith the devil, attempted the lives of their neighbours. The

statute of Elizabeth, in 15 6 2 , at last recognised witchcraft1s a crime of the highest magnitude, whether ex erted or not

to the injury of the lives, limbs, and possessions of the com

mun ity . From that date, the persecution may be fairly said

to have commenced in England. It reached its climax in theearly part of the seventeenth century, which was the hottest

period of the mania all over Europe.

A few cases of witch persecution in the six teenth centurywill enable the reader to form a more accurate idea of the

progress of this great error than if he plunged at once into

that busy period of its history when Matthew Hopkins and

his coadjutors ex ercised their infernal calling . Several in

2 88 m s wrrcn m u .

stances occur in England durin the latter years of the reignof Elizabeth. At this time t e public mind had become

pretty familiar with the details of the crime. Bishop Jewell,in his sermons before Her Majesty, used constantly to con

clude them by a fervent prayer.

that she might be preserved

from witches. Upon one occasion, 1n1n 15 98, his words were,It may please your Grace to understand that witches and

sorcerers, within these last four years, are marvellously mcreased within this your Grace’s realm. Your Grace’

s sub

jects pine away even unto the death ; their colour fadeth

their flesh rotteth—their speech is benumbed— their senses

are bereft ! I pray God they may never practise furtherthan upon the subject !

”

By degrees, an epidemic terror of witchcraft spread intoi

the villages. In proportion as the doctrines of the Puritanstook root this dread increased, and, of course, brought pcrsc

cution in its train . The Church of England has claimed, andis entitled to the merit, of having been less influenced 111 these

matters than any other sect of Christians , but sti ll they weretainted with the superstition of the age. One of the most

flagrant instances of cruelty and delusion upon record was

consummated under the authority of the Church, and com

memorated till a very late period by an annual lecture at the I

Un iversity of Cambridge.

This 13 the celebrated case of theWitches ofWarbois, who

were ex ecuted about thirty- two years after the passing of the

statute of Elizabeth. Although in the interval but few trials

are recorded,there Is

,unfortunately, but too much evidence

to show the ex treme length to which the popular prejudicewas carried. Many women lost their lives in every part ofEngland without being brought to trial at all, from the 1njuriesreceived at the hands of the people. The number of thesecan never be ascertained.

The case of the Witches of Warbois merits to be detailedat length, not only from the importance attached to it for so

many years by the learned of the University, but from the

singular absurdity of the evidence upon which men , sensiblein all other respects, could condemn their fellow- creatures tothe scafl

’

old.

The principal actors in this strange drama were the families

of S ir Samuel Cromwell and a Mr. Throgmorton, both gen 1

of landed the county of

orton had several daughters, theJoan, was an imaginative and

melancholy girl, whose head was filled with ston es of ghosts

and witches. Upon one occasion she chanced to pass thecottage of one Mrs. , or, as she was called, Mother Samuel, a

a very poor, and a vs 1 woman . Mother

SamueFe

v

’

i’as sitting at her door 131t g

ywith a black cap

upon her head, when this silly young lad passed, and takingher eyes from her work, she looked s astly at her. Mistress Jcan immediately fancied that she felt sudden ains in

all her limbs, and from that da forth, never cc to tell

her sisters, and everybody about er, that Mother Samuel had

bewitched her. The other children took up the cry, and ac

tually fri

g

glhtened themselves into fits Whenever they passed

with1n s1 t of this terrible old woman .

Mr. and Mrs. Throgmorton, not a whit wiser than theirchildren , believed all the absurd tales they had been told ; andLady Cromwell, a gossip of Mrs. Throgmorton, made herselfvery active in the business, and determined to bring the W itchto the ordeal. The sapient S ir Samuel joined In the scheme ;and the children thus encouraged gave loose reins to theirimaginations, which seem to ha1 e been of the li1 eliest. Theysoon invented a whole host of evil spirits, and names for them

besides, which, they said,were sent by Mother Samuel to tor

men t them continually. Seven spirits especially, they said,

were raised from hell by this wicked woman to throw them

into fits ; and as the children were actually subject to fits, theirmother and her commeres gave the more credit to the story.

The names of these spirits were,“Fn st Smack, “Second

Smack,” Third Smack,

” “Blue,

” Catch,”

Hardname,

and Pluck .

”

Throgmorton,the father, was so pestered by these idle fan

cies , and yet so well inclined to believe them,that he marched

valiantly forth to the but where Mother Samuel resided withher husband and daughter, and dragged her forcibly into hisown g1ounda. Lady Cromwell, Mrs. Throgmorton , and the

girls were in waiting, armed with long pins to prick the Witch,and see if they could draw blood from her. Lady Cromwell,who seems to have been themost violent of the party, tore theold woman

’

s cap off her head, and plucking out a handful ofvOL . 1. 2 5

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1 her anguish that she war switch—that she had cast herpens upon the young ladies, and that she had caused the

eath of Lady Cromwell. The father and daughter, strongera mind than their unfortunate wife and parent, refused toonfess anything, and asserted their innocence to the last.

fhey were all three condemned to be hanged, and their bodies.urned. The daughter, who was young and good

- looking,the pity of many persons, and she was advised to

plead pregnancy, that she might gain at least a res its fromThe poor girl refused proudl on the groun that she

e accounted both a witch an a strumpet. Her half

ritted old mother caught at the idea of a few weeks’ longerd asserted that she was pre ant. The court was con

u lsed with laughter, in which t e wretched victim herself

oined, and this was accounted an additional roof that sheras a witch. The whole family were ex ecute on the 7th 0

5i pril, 1593 .

S ir Samuel Cromwell, as lord of the manor, received the

mm of 401. out of the confiscated property of the Samuels,whi ch he turned into a rent charge of408 . yearly, for theindowment of an annual sermon or lecture upon the enormity»f w itchcraft, and this case in particular, to be preached by a

loctor or bachelor of divinity of Queen ’

s College, Cambridge.

have not been able to ascertain the ex act date at which this

.nnual lecture was discontinued, but it appears to have beenpreached as late as 1718, when Dr. Hutchinson published hisfivork upon witchcraft.To carry on in proper chronolo

gical order the history of

he w itch delusion in the British is es, it will be necessary toex am ine into what was taking place in Scotland during all

hat part of the si x teenth century anterior to the accession of

lames VI. to the crown of England. We naturally ex pect,hat the Scotch,—a people renowned from the earliest times’or their powers of imagination,

—should be more deeplymbued with this gloomy superstition than their neighbours of:he South. The nature of their soil and climate tended to

encourage the dreams of early ignorance. Ghosts, goblins,wraiths, kelpies, and a whole host of spiritual beings, were:‘

amiliar to the dwellers by the misty glens of the Highlandsand the romantic streams of the Lowlands. Their deeds,whether of good or ill, were enshrined in song, and took a

2 92 m s wrrcn MARIA.

eater hold upon the imagination because verse had sancti

ed them.

”But it was not till the reli

'

ous reformers beganthe practice of straining Scripture to t e severest ex tremes,that the arm of the law was called upon to uni sh witchcraft

as a crimep er se. What Pope Innocent V II. had done forGerman and France, the preachers of the Reformation did

for the cottish people. Witchcraft, instead of being a mere

article of faith, became enrolled in the statute book ; and all

good subjects and true Christians were called u

pIon to take

arms against it. The ninth Parliament of Queen ary passed

an act in 15 63,which decreed the punishment of death

against witches and consulters with witches, and immediatelythe whole bulk of the peoplewere smitten with an epidemic fearof the devil andhismortal agents. Persons in thehighest ranksof life shared and encouraged thedelusion of thevul r. Manywere themselves accused of witchcraft ; and noble adies were

shown to have dabbled in mystic arts,and proved to the

world that,if they were not witches, it was not for want of

the will.

Among the dames who became notorious for endeavourinto effect their wicked ends by the devil’s aid, may bementionedthe celebrated Lady Buccleugh, of Branx holme

,familiar to

all the readers of S ir Walter S cott ; the Countess of Lothian,the Countess of Angus, the Countess of Athol, Lady Kerr,the Countess of Huntley, Euphemia Macalzean (the daughterof Lord Cliftonhall), and Lady Fowlis. Among the cele

brated of the other sex who were accused of wizzardi sm was

S ir Lewis Ballantyne, the Lord Justice Clerk for S cotland,who

,if we may believe S cot of Scotstarvet, dealt by curio

sity with a warlock called R ichard Grahame,”

and prayedhim to raise the devil. The warlock consented, and raisedhim in proprié persona, in the yard of his house in the Canongate, at sight of whom the Lord Justice Clerk was so

terrified that he took sickness and thereof died By such

idle reports as these did the envious ruin the reputation of

those they hated,though it would appear in this case that

S ir Lewis had been fool enough to make the attempt of whichhe was accused, and that the success of the ex periment wasthe only apocryphal part of the story.

The enemies of John Knox invented a similar tale, which

found ready credence among the Roman Catholics ; glad to

atigma to that of the vicas of their

appears on the authority of documents of unquestionedauthenticit in the Advocates ’ Library at Edinburgh,

* that

the Privy ouncil made a practice of granting comm ssions to

resident gentlemen and min isters, in every art of Scotland,to ex amine, try, and ex ecute witches within eir own parishes .

No records of those who sufi'

ered from the sentence of these

tribunals have been preserved ; but if popular tradition maybe believed, even to the amount of one- fourth of its assertions,their number was fearful. After the year 15 72 , the entriesof ex ecutions for witchcraft in the records of the High Courtbecome more frequent, but do not average more than one per

annum ; another proof that trials for this ofi'

encc were in

general entrusted to the local magistracy. The latter appearto have ordered witches to the stakewith as little compunction,and after as summary a mode, as modernjustices of the peaceorder a poacher to the stocks .

As James VI. advanced in manhood, he took eat interest

in the witch trials. One of them especially, t t of Cellio

Duncan, Dr . Fian, and their accomphces, in the year 15 91,engrossed his whole attention, and no doubt suggested in some

degree, the famous work on Demonol

lofiwhich he wrote

shortly afterwards. As these witches made an attempt

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m wn on m u . 2 95

the devil'

s means, raised the storms which had endangeredlives of the King and Queen. Genie, in her torture, had

M essed that such was the fact, and the whole kingdom

waited aghast and Open-mouthed for the corroboration about

0be furni shed by the trial.

“Ang

u s Sampson, the grave andmatron- like

”witch impli

by Galli c Duncan, was put to the horrible torture of theWiewt

'

nkia. She laid bare all the secrets of the sisterhoodefore she had sufl

'

ered an hour, and confessed that Gellieluncan , Dr. Fian, Marion L incup, Euphemia Macalzean,m elf, and upwards of two hundred witches and warlocks,led to assemble at midnight in the kirk of North Berwick,'here they met the devil that they had plotted there to

ttempt the King’

s life ; that they were incited to this by theId fiend himself, who had asserted with a thundering oath

a t James was the greatest enemy he ever had, and that there'

ould be no peace for the devil’s children upon earth until be

en got rid of ; that the devil upon these occasions alwaysked to have a little music, and that Gellie Duncan used to

lay a reel before him on a trump or Jew’

s harp, to which all

i s witches danced.

James was highly flattered at the idea that the devil should

ave said that he was the greatest enemy he ever had. He

mt for GellieDuncan to thepalace, andmade her play beforeim the same reel which she had played at the witches

’

dance

I the kirk .

Dr . Fian , or rather Cunningham,a petty schoolmaster at

'ranent, was put to the torture among the rest. Hewas a man

ho had led an infamous life, was a com ounder ofand dealer

1 poisons, and a pretender to magic. hough not gu ilty of

xc preposterous crimes laid to his charge, there is no doubt

2 96 m s wrrcu MANIA.

that he was a sorcerer in will, though not in deed, and

deserved all the misery he endured. When put on th

he would confess nothing, and held out so lo

the severe torture of the boots was resolved u

this until ex hausted nature couldendure no losibility kindly stepped in to his aid. Whenhe was utterly powerless, and thathis tongue 0ofhis mouth, he was released. Restorativesand during the first faint gleam of retur

he was prevailed upon to sign, ere he well

about. a full confession , in strict accolieDuncan andA nes Sampson . He

prison,from Whig), after two

other,to escape. He was soon recaptured and brought b

the Court of Justiciary, James himself being present. Fin» .

now den ied all the circumstances of the written confessionwhich he had signed

*

whereupon the King, enraged at F.stubborn wilfulness, ordered him once more to the torture.

H is finger nails were riven out with pincers, and long needles

thrust up to the eye into the qu ick ; but still he did not wince.

He was then consigned again to the boots, in which, to quote apamphlet published at the time,

* he continued so long, andabode so many blows in them, that his legs were crushed andbeaten together as small as m ight be, and the bones and flesh

so bruised,that the blood and marrow spouted forth in great

abundance,whereby they were made unserviceable for ever."

The astonishing similarity of the confessions of all the per

sons implicated in these proceedings has often been remarked.

It would appear that they actually endeavoured to cause the

King’

s death by their spells and sorceries . Fian,who was

acqua in ted with all the usual tricks of his profession, deceivedthem with pretended apparitions, so that many of them werereally convinced that they had seen the devil. The sum of

their confessions was to the following effect

Satan , who was, of course, a great foe of the reformed reli

gion , was alarmed that King James shouldmarry a Protestantprincess. To avert the consequences to the realms of evil, hehad determined to put an end to the King and his bride byraising a storm on their voyage home. S atan , first of all,

News from Scotland, declaring the damnable li fe of Dr. Fian .

m WITCH I ANIA.

thi ck mist over the waters, in the hope that the King’

s

might be stranded on the coast amid the darkness.

.iling, Dr. Fian, who, from his superior scholarship, wased to thedignity ofthedevil

’

s secretary,was commandedmen all the witches to meet their master, each one saila sieve on the high seas.

All-hallowmas Eve, the assembled to the number ofIs of two hundred, inc uding Gellie Duncan , Agneson , Eu bemia Macalzean, one Barbara Napier, and

. warlociis ; and each embarking in a riddle, or sieve,ailed over the ocean very substantially.

” After

guabout for some time, they met with the fiend, bearclaws a cat, which had been previously drawn nine

through the fire. This he delivered to one of the war

telling him to cast it into the sea, and cry Hola !”

as done with all solemnity, and immediate] the ocean

convulsed— the waters hissed loudly, an the waves

suntains high,

Twi sting their arms to the dun- coloured heaven .

itches sailed gallantly through the tempest they hadand landing on the coast of Scotland

,took their sieves

r hands, and marched on in procession to the hauntedNorth Berwiek, where the devil had resolved to hold ang . Gellie Duncan , the musician of the party

,tripped

re, playing on her Jew’

s harp,and singing,

Cummer, go ye before, Cummer, go ye ;G it ye will not go before, Cummer, let me

l at the kirk, they paced around it wi ther-shins, that is,rse of the apparent motion of the sun . Dr. Fian thento the key

- hole of the door, which Opened immediately,the witches entered. As it was pitch dark , Fian blews mouth upon the candles, which immediately lighted,adevil was seen occupying the pulpit. He was attired

lack gown and hat,and the witches saluted him, by

“All hail,master !” His body was hard, like iron ;

terrible ; his nose, like the beak of an eagle ; he had

urning eyes ; his hands and legs were hairy ; and he

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THE WITCH MANIA.

of these disclosures were too much even for the abune more than once ex claimed

,

used

devil

usual

them

also made no

would rid anycould pay him

far from beingeKing

’

s death,used such means to compass it as the superstition of the

directed. She was aa devoted partisan of Bothwell, who

accused by many of the witches as having consulted them

a the period of theKing’

s death. They were all found ilty,

and senten ced to be hanged and burned. Barbaraflpier,though found gu ilty upon other counts

,was acquitted upon

the charge of having been present at the great witch-meetingin Berwick kirk . The King was highly displeased, and

threatened to have the jury indicted for a wilful error uponan assize. They accordingly reconsidered thei1 verdict

,and

threw themselves upon the King’

8 mercy for the fault theyhad comm itted. James was satisfied, and Barbara Napierwas hanged along with Gellie D uncari, Agnes Sampson , Dr .

Fian, and five- and- twenty others . Euphemia Macalzean met

sharder fate. Her connex ion with the bold and obnox iousBothwell, and her share in poisoning one or two individuals

who had stood in her way, were thought deserving of the

severest pun ishment the law could inflict. Instead of the

1rdinary sentence, directing the criminal to be first st1anglcd

tud then burned, the wretched woman was doomed “to be

mand to a stake, and burned in ashes, quu k to the death.

”

This cru el sentence was ex ecuted on the 2 5 th of June, 15 91 .

These trials had the most pernicious consequences all overScotland. The lairds and mi nisters in their districts , armedwith due power from the privy council, tried and condemned

31d women after the most summary fashion . Those who still

THE WITCH MANIA.

clung to the ancient faith of Romewere the severest sufl'

erers,

as i t was thought, after the disclosures of the fierce enmityborne by the devi l towards a Protestant King, and his Protestant wife, that all the Catholics were leagued with the powersof evil to work we on the realm of S cotland. Upon a verymoderate calculation, it is presumed that from the passing ofthe act of Queen Mary till the accession of James to the

throne of England, a period of thirty- nine ears, the average

number of ex ecutions for witchcraft m Scot and was two hun

dred annually, or upwards of seventeen thousand altogether.

For the first nine years the number was not one quarter so

great ; but towards the years 15 90 to 1593, the number musthave been more than four hundred. The case last cited was

one of an ex traordinary character. The general aspect of thetrials will be better seen from that of Isabel Gowdie, whi ch,as it would be both wearisome and disgusting to go throughthem all

,is cited as a fair specimen

,although it took place at

a date somewhat later than the reign of James. This woman,wearied of her life by the persecutions of her neighbours,voluntarily gave herself up to justice, and made a confession,embodying the whole witch- creed of the period. She was

undoubtedly a monomaniac of the most ex traordinary kind.She said that she deserved to be stretched upon an iron rack,and that her crimes could never be atoned for, even if she wereto be drawn asunder bywild horses. She named a long list

of her associates, including nearly fifty women and a few war

locks. They dug up the graves of unchristencd infants, whoselimbs were serviceable in their enchantments. When theywanted to destroy the crops of an enemy, they yoked toads

to his plough, and on the following n ight Satan himself

ploughed the land with his team,and blasted it for the season.

The witches had power to assume almost any shape ; but theygenerally chose either that of a cat or a bare, oftenest the

latter . Isabel said, that on one occasion , when she was in

this disguise, she was sore pressed by a pack of bounds, and

had a very narrow escape with her life. She reached her owndoor at last

, feeling the hot breath of the pursuing dogs at herhaunches. She managed, however, to hide herself behindachest

,and got time to pronounce the magic words that could

alone restore her to her proper shape. They were

“Hu s t l ers !God -M an u re!

l am in a hare's likeusu now ;

But l shanbo a woman e’en now t

Hare! Hare!fied send thee eare!

witches,

the air mountedbroomsticks, or on corn or bean- straws, pronouncing as

1] went

“Horse and pattoek, horse and go,Horse and polish , ho t he ! he !

”

to

ygenerally lefi. behind them a broom, or a three- legged

to which, when placed in their beds and duly charmed,turned the human shape till their return . This was doneat the neighbours might not know when they were absent.She added, that thedevil furnishedhis favouritewitches with

rvant imps to attend 11 n them. These imps were called

l‘he Roaring Lion,” ‘i hiefofHell,

” Wait- upon - Herself,Ranting Roarer,

” Care- for- Naught, &c., andwere known

their liveries, which were generally yellow,sad- dun , sea

een , pea-

green , or grass-

green . Satan never called the

tobes by the names they had received at baptism ; neitherare they allowed

,in his presence, so to designate each other.

1011 a breach of the infernal etiquette assuredly drew down1 most severe displeasure. But as some designation was

cessary, he re- baptized them in their own blood by the names

Able- and- Stout,” Over- the- dike—with- it

,

”Raise- the

Pickle- nearest- the-wind,’

Batter- them- down -MagBlow- Kale,

”and such like. The devil himselfwas not

ry particular what name they called him so that it was not

Black John .

”If anywitchwas unthinkin enough to utter

ese words, he would rush out upon her, an beat and bufl'

et

r unmercifully, or tear her flesh with a wool- card. Other.mes he did not care about ; and once gave instructions to a

ted warlock that whenever he wanted his aid,he was to

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m use “he had eeen the devil

mdle!”A sim was called a

gar of which they dare not retract it. Another anthor,‘

ho'

a firm believer in witchcraft, gives a stillmore lamentable

”tance of a woman who preferred ex ecution as a witch to

Eve on under the in putatlon. This woman, who knew that

hree others were to be strangled and burned on an early day,ent for the minister of the parish, and confessed that she had

old her soul to Satan .

“Whereupon being called before the11d es, she was condemned to die with the rest. Being car

iefforth to the place of ex ecution, she remained silent duringhe first, second, and third prayer, and then

,perceiving that

here remained no more but to rise and go to the stake, sheifted up her body, and, with a loud voice, cried out,

‘Now

11 you that see me this day, know that I am now to die as a

ritch, bymy own confession , and I free all men, especiallyhe mimsters and magistrates, of the guilt of my blood. Iake it wholly upon myself. My blood be upon my own head.

had, as I must make answer to the God of heaven resently,Ideclare I am as free of witchcraft as any child. But, being[elated by a malicious woman , and put m prison under the1ame of a witch, disowned by my husband and friends; andseeing no ground of hope of ever coming out again, I made upbut confession to destroy my own life, being weary of it

,and

:hoosing rather to die than to live.

’

As a proof of the sin

;ular obstinacy and blindness of the believers in witches, itmay be stated, that the minister who relates this story onlysaw in the dying speech of the unhappy woman an addi tional

Satan’s InvisibleWorld Discovered, by the Rev. G. S inclair.

THE WITCH MANIA.

proof that she was a witch. True indeed is it, that none

are so blind as those who will not see.

”

It is time, however, to return to James VI ., who is fairly

entitled to share with Pope Innocent, Sprenger, Bodians,and Matthew Hopkins the glory or the odium of being at the

same time a chi ef enemy and chi ef encourager of witchcraft.

Towards the close of the six teenth century, many learnedmen , both on the Continent and in the isles of B ritain, hadendeavoured to di sabuse the public mind on this subject.The most celebratedwereWierus in Germany, Pietro d

’

Apone

in Italy,and Reginald S cot in England. Their works ex

cited the attention of the zealous James,who, mindful of the

involuntary compliment whi ch his merits had ex torted fromthe devil, was ambitious to deserve it by still continuing his

greatest cnemic.

”In the year 1597 he published, in Edin

burgh, his famous treatise on Demonology. Its design maybe gathered from the following passage in the introduction.

The fearful abounding, says theKing, at this time, and in

this country, of these detestable slaves of the devil, thewitches,or cnchanters, hath moved me, beloved reader, to despatchin post this following treatise of mine, not in any wise, as Iprotest, to serve for a show of mine own learning and ingene

(ingenuity but only (moved of conscience)to press thereby,so far as can , to resolve the doubting hearts ofmany ; boththat such assaults of Satan are most certainly practised, andthat the instrument thereof merits most severely to be punished

,against the damnable opin ions of two, principally in

our age, whereof the one, called Scot, an Englishman, is not

ashamed, in public print, to deny that there can be such

thing as witchcraft, and so maintains the old error of the

Sadducees, in denying of spirits. The other, calledWierus,a German physician

, sets out a public apology for all these

crafts- folks, whereby procuring for them impun ity, he plainlybetrays himself to have been one of that profession . In

other parts of this treatise, which the author had ut into the

form of a dialogue to make it more pleasant and)

facile,”he

says,“Witches ought to be put to death, according to the

law of God, the civil and imperial law,and the mun icipal law

of all Christian nations : yea, to spare the life, and not strikewhom God bids strike, and so severely punish in so odious a

treason against God, is not only unlawful, but doubtless as

great a sin in the magistrate, as was Saul’

s sparing Agag.

”

He szgt hat the crime is so abominable, that it may be

prov b evidence which would not be received a

glamst any

other enders, -

young chi ldren, who knew not e nature

of an oath, and persons of an infamous character, being suficient witnesses against them ; but lest the innocent should beaecused of a crime so difi cult to be uitted of, he recommends that in all cases the ordeal shohl

c

dbe resorted to. Hea ye, Two helps may be used : the one is,

- the findingof their mar and the tryi ng the insensibleness thereof ; theother is their floating on the water ; for, as in a secret murther, if the dead carcass be at any time thereafter handledby the murtherer, it will gush out of blood, as if the blood

were crying to Heaven for revenge of the murtherer (Godsupernatural sign for trial ofso that it appears that God

hath appointed (for a supernatural sign of the monstrousimpiety of witches)that water shall refuse to receive them in

her bosom,that have shaken ofl

'

them the sacred water ofbaptism, and wilfully refused the benefit thereof ; no, not somuch as their eyes are able to shed tears (threaten and tor

ture them as you please), while first they repent (God not

permitting them to dissemble their obstinacy in so horrible a

crime). Albeit, the womenkind especially,be able other

wise to shed tears at every light occasion, when the

ywill ;

yea , although it were dissembling, like the crocodiles.

’

When such doctrines as these were openly promulgated bythe highest authority in the realm,

and who,in promulgating

them, flattered, but did not force the public opinion, it is not

surprisin that the sad delusion should have increased and

multipli until the race of wizards and witches replenishedthe earth. The reputation which he lost by being afraid of anaked sword, he more than regained by his courage in com

bating the devil. The Kirk showed itself a most zealous

coadjutor, especial] during those halcyon days when it wasnot at issue with e King upon other matters of doctrine

and prerogative.

On his accession to the throne of England, in 1603, Jamescame amongst a people who had heard with admiration of his

glorious deeds against the witches. He himself left no part

of his ancient prejudices behind him,and his advent was the

signal for the persecution to

pcqrst forth in England with a

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rumours

them, when one of them sudden] started upwoman, and the other of a little He at

the woman to be the witchMother Ilickenson.

She offered him some money to induce him to sell his soul to

:he devil ; but he refused. Upon this she took a bridle out of1er pocket, and, shaking it over the head of the other littleJoy, he was instantly turned into a horse. Mother Dickenson:hen seized him in her arms, sprang upon the horse ; and,

placing him before her, rode with the swiftness of the wind

aver forests, fields, hogs, and rivers, until they came to a largeThe witch alighted at the door ; and takin him by

the hand, led him inside. There he saw seven 01 women ,

pulling at seven halters which hung from the roof. As they

pulled, large pieces of meat, lumps of butter, loaves of bread,basins ofmilk, hot puddings, black puddings, and other ruraldainties, fell from the halters on to the floor. Whi le engaged

in this charm they made such ugly faces, and looked so fiendish

,that he was quite frightened. After they had pulled, in

thismanner,enoughfor an ample feast, they set- to, and showed,whatever might be said of the way in which their supper wasprocured, that their epicurism was a little more refined than

that of the Scottishwitches, who, according to CellioDuncan’

s

aonfession, feasted upon dead men’

s flesh in the old ki rk of

Berwick. The boy added, that as soon as supper was ready,nauy other witches came to partake of it, several of whom he1amed. In consequence of this story, many persons were1rrested, and the boy Robinson was led about from church to

THE WITCH MANIA.

church, in order that he might point out to the ofi cers, bywhom he was accompanied, the hags he had seen in the barn.

Altogether about twenty persons were thrown into risen ;themwere condemned to die, includingMother

'

cken

son, upon this evidence alone, and ex ecuted accordingly.

Among the wretches who concocted this notable story, not

onewas ever brought to justice for his perjury ; and Robinson,the father, gained considerable sums by threatening personswho were rich enough to buy ofl

'

ex posure.

Among the ill weeds which flourished amid the long dissen

sions ofthe civilwar,MatthewHopkins, thewitch- finder, stamh

eminent in his sphere. This vulgar fellow resided, in the year1644

,at the town of Manningtree, in Essex , and made himself

very conspicuous in discovering the devil’

s marks upon several

unhappy witches. The credi t he gained by his ski ll in theinstance seems to have inspired him to renewed ex ertions. In

the course of a very short time, whenever a witch was spokenof in Essex , Matthew Hopkins was sure to be present, aidithe judges with his knowledge of such cattle, as he call

them . As his reputation increased, he assumed the title of

Witch- finder General, and travelled through the counties

of Norfolk, Essex , Huntingdon, and Sussex , for the sole pur

pose of finding out witches. In one year he brought six typoor creatures to the stake. The test he commonly adoptedwas that of swimming, so highly recommended by K1ng Jamesin his Demonologie.

”The hands and feet of the suspected

persons were tied together crosswise, the thumb of the righthand to the toe of the left foot, and vice vered. The were

then wrapped up in a large sheet or blanket, and lai upontheir backs in a pond or river. If they sank, their friends andrelatives had the poor consolation of knowing they were innocent

,but there was an end of them : if they floated, which,

when laid carefully on the water was generally the case, there

was also an end of them for they were deemed guilty of

witchcraft, and burned accordingly .

Another test was to make them repeat the Lord’

s prayerand creed. It was afli rmed that no witch could do so cor

rectly. If she missed a word, or even pronounced one ince

herently, which in her trepidation, it was most probable she

would, she was accounted guilty. It was thought that witches

could notweep more than three tears, and those only from the

THE WITCH MAN IA. 309

left eye. Thus the conscious innocence of many persons,whi them fortitude to bear unmeriwd torture without

tormentors into

the

a town, histhither and

or not. If

he found any, he claimed twenty shillin a head in . addition

when the were bro ht to ex ecution. or about three years

he can -i on this amous trade, success making him so inso

lent and re'

ous, that high and low became his enemies.

The Rev.m e , a clergyman of Houghton, in Hunting(lenahire° wrote a pamphlet impugning hi s g

etensions, and

accusing him of bemg a common nuisance. o

glkins replied

in an angry letter to the functionaries of Hon ton, statinghis intent1on tovisit their town ; but desiring to now whether

it afl'

orded many such sticklers for witchcraft as Mr. Gaul, andwhether they were willing to receive and entertain him with

the customary hospitality, if he so far honoured them. He

added, by way of threat, that in case he did not receive a

satisfactory reply, He would waive their shire altogether,and betake himself to such places where he might do and

punish, not only without control, but with thanks and recom

pense.

”The authorities of Houghton were not much alarmed

at his awful threat of letting them alone. They very wiselytook no notice either of him or his letter.Mr . Gaul describes in his pamphlet one of the modes em

ployed by Hopkins, which was sure to swell his revenues veryconsiderably. It was a proof even more atrocious than the

swimmin He says, that the“Witch- finder Genera used

to take t e suspected witch and place her in the middle of a

room, upon a stool or table, cross- legged, or in some other

uneasy posture. If she refused to sit 111 this manner, she was

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Andhaa lle not wlthin a

1 Scotland also witch-finding became a trade. TheyIn under the d tion of common prickers,

”and, like

kins, received a ca fer each witch they discovered. At

tri al of JanetPeaston,m 1646 , themagistrates ofDalkei thneed John Kincaid, of Tranent, the common

tpricker

eise his craftupon her. Hefoundtwo marks 0 thedevil’

s

ing for she could not feel thepin when it was put into

er of the said marks, nor did themarks bleed when thepintaken out agai n. When she was asked where she thought

pins were put in her, she pointed to a part of her body

mt from the real place. hey were pins of three inchesan h.

he‘s

t

e common prickers became at last so numerous, that

were considered nuisances. The judges refused to taker evidence, and in 1678 the privy council of S cotland conended to hear the complaint of an honestwoman , who had1 indecently ex posed by one of them, and ex pressed their

don that common prickers were common cheats.

int such an opinion was not formed in high places beforedreds of innocent persons had fallen victims. The Par

1ents had encouraged the delusion both in England and

bland ; and by arming these fellows with a sort of authority,in a manner forced themagistrates andmin isters to receiver evidence. The fate of one poor old gentleman who fellctim to the arts of Hopkins in 1646 , deserves to be re

led. Mr. Louis, a venerable clergyman , upwards of

M y years of age, and who had been rector of FramSufl

’

olk,for fifty years, ex cited suspicion that he was

aard. Being a violent royalist, hewas likely tomeet

Pitcairn’s Records of Justiciary.

THE WITCH MANIA.

no sympathy at that time ; and even his own parishioners,whom hehad served so longand sofaithfully, turned their backsupon him as soon as he was accused. Placed under thehands

of Hopkins, who knew so well how to bring the refractory toconfession, the old man, the light ofwhose intellecthad become

somewhat dimmed from age, confessed that he was a wizard

He said that he had two imps that continuall ex cited him to

do evil ; and that one day, when he was wal g on the see

coast, one of them promptedhim to ex press a wish that a s?whose sails were just visible in the distance, might sink . 0

consented, and saw the vessel sink before his eyes. He was,upon this confession tried and condemned. On his trial the

flame of reason burned up as brightly as ever. He denied all

that had been alleged againsthim,and cross- ex aminedHopkins

with great tact and severity. After his condemnation, he

beg ed that the funeral service of the church might be read

for im. The request was refused, and he repeated it forself from memory, as he was led to the scafl

'

old.

A poor woman in Scotlandwas ex ecuted upon evidenceevenless strong than this. John Bain , a common pricker

,swore

that,as he passed her door he heard her talking to the devil.

She said in defence, that it was a foolish practice she had of

talking to herself, and several of her neighbours corroboratedher statement ; but the evidence of the pricker was received.H e swore that none ever talked to themselves who were not

witches. The devil’

s mark being found upon her, the addi

tional testimony of her gu ilt was deemed conclusive, and she

was convict and brynt.”

From theyear 165 2 to 1682 , these trials diminished annuallyin number, and acquittals were by no means so

‘ rare as theyhad been . To doubt in witchcraft was no longer dangerous.Before country justices

, condemnations of themost absurd evi

dence was still continued, but when the judges of the land hadto charge the jury, they took a more humane and philosophicalview. By degrees the educated classes (comprised, in those

days, within very narrow limits), openly ex pressed their unbelief of modern witchcraft, although they were not bold enough

to deny its ex istence altogether . Between them and the be

lievers in the old doctrine fierce arguments ensued, and the

sceptics were designated Sadducees. To convince them, the

learned and reverend Joseph Glanvil wrote his well- known

m s wr'rcn MANIA. 313

work, Sadducismus Triumphatus, and The Collection of

Relations ; the first part intended as a hi los0phical inquirynto witchcrafi, and the power of thede

“to assumeamortalshape ;

”the latter containing what he considered a

of well- authenticatedmodern instances.But t]:

pir

pgress was made, it w

‘

as slow. In 1664, thevenerable tthew Hale condemned two wome

lg, nameddmonds

e optic fits. To discoverullender, the girl

’

s eyesand the witches were comand she was immediately

sail ed withafit. Upon this evidence they were sent to prison.

The girl was afterwards touched by an indifl'

erent person, and

the force of her imagination was so great, that, thinking it

was again the witches, she fell down in a violent fit as before.

This, however, was not received in favour of the accused.

The following ex tract, from the published reports of the

trial, will show the sort of evidence which was receivedSamuel Pacey, of Leystofl

'

, (a good, sober man,) beingsworn, said that, on Thursday the 10th of October last, hisyounger daughter, Deborah, about nine years old

,was sud

denly taken so 1ame that she could not stand on her ls

and so continued till the 17th of the same month, when t e

child desired to be carried to a bank on the east side of the

house, lookin towards the sea ; and, while she was sittingthere, Amy Ih ny came to this ex aminant

’

s house to buysome herrings, but was denied. Then she came twice more,but, being as often denied, she went away discontented and

grumbling. At this instant of time, the childwas taken withterrible fits, complaining of a pain in her stomach, as if she

was pricked with pins, shrieking out with a voice like a

whelp, and thus continued till the 80th of the same month.

This ex aminant further saith, that Amy Duny, having longvon. 1. 2 7

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- 'ITCH MANIA.

11. 111111, being io

im’fike

hf.”hkAnob’t.“ fiiiiounger c ont o oors, a'

o s wo

laveyforced itself into her month, at whi the child ran

this ex aminant could

fit, and vomited a twopenn nail, with

that, this ex aminant ask the child

nail, when she answered, The beeforced it into my mouth.

’

At other

told this ex aminant that she saw flies

bring her crooked pins. She would then fall into a fit, and

vomit such pins. One time the said child said she saw a

mouse, and crept under the table to look for it ; and afterwards, the child seemed to put something into her apron,saying, She had caught it.

’

She then ran to the fire, and

threw it in, on which theredid appear to this ex aminant something like a flash of gunpowder, although she does own she

saw nothing in the child’

s hand. Once the child,being

speechless, but otherwise very sensible, ran up and down the

house, crying, Hush ! hush as if shehad seen poultry ; butthis ex aminant saw nothing. At last the child catched at

something, and threw it into the fire. Afterwards, when the

child could speak, this ex aminant asked her what she saw at

the time ? She answered, that she saw a duck . Anothertime the youngest child said

,after a fit, that Amy Duny had

been with her, and tempted her to drown herself, or cut herthroat, or otherwise destroy herself. Another time they bothcried out upon Amy Duny andRose Cullender, saying, Whydon

’

t you come yourselves ? Why do you send your imps totorment us ?

’

0

The celebrated S ir Thomas Brown, the author of “VulgarErrors, was also ex amined as a witness upon the trial. Bemgdesired to give his opinion of the three persons in court, hesaid, he was clearly of opinion that they were bewitched. He

THE WITCH MANIA.

said, there had lately been a discovery of witches in Denmark,who used the same way of tormenting persons, by conveyingcrooked pins, needles, and nails into their bodies. That hethought, in such cases, the devil acted upon human bodies bynatural means, namely, by ex citing and stirring up the superabundant humours, he did afllict them in a more surprisingmanner by the same diseases their bodies were usually subjectto ; that these fits might be natural, only raised to a greatdegree by the subtlety of the devil, co- operating with the

malice of these witches.

The evidence being concluded, S ir Matthew Hale addressedthe jury . He said

,he wouldwaive repeating the evidence, to

prevent any mistake, and told the jury, there were two thingsthey had to inquire into. First

,Whether or not these chil

dren were bewitched ; secondly, Whether these women did

bewitch them. He said, he did not in the least doubt therewere witches ; first

,Because the Scriptures affirmed it ;

secondly, Because the wisdom of all nations, particularly our

own,had provided laws againstwitchcraft, which implied their

belief of such a crime. He desired them strictly to observethe evidence, and begged of God to direct their hearts in theweighty concern they had in hand

,since, to condemn the

innocent and let the guilty go free, are both an abominationto the Lord.

The jury then retired, and, in about half an hour, returneda verdict of guilty upon all the indi ctments, being thirteen innumber . The nex t morn ing the children came with their

father to the lodgings of S ir Matthew Hale, very well, andquite restored to their usual health. Mr. Pacey, being askedat what time their health began to improve, replied, that theywere quite well in half an hour after the conviction of the

pr1soners.

Many attempts were made to induce the unfortunate womento confess their gui lt ; but in vain

,and they were both hanged.

Eleven trials were instituted before Chief- Justice Holt for

witchcraft between the years 1694and 1701. The evidence

was of the usual character ; but Holt appealed so successfullyin each case to the common sense of the jury, that they wereevery one acquitted. A general feeling seemed to pervadethe country that blood enough had been shed upon these

absurd charges. Now and then, the flame of persecution

burnt up in a remete district ; but theee instancee were ne

longer lookedupon as merematters of course. They appear,on the contrary, to have ex citedmuch attention a sure proof,if no other were to be obtained, that they were becomingunfreqnent.

A case of witchcraft was tried m 1711, before Lord ChiefJ ustice Powell ; in which, however, the jury persisted m a

verdict of guilty, though the evidence was of the usual absurdand contradictory character, and the enlightened godidall

“

in his power tebring them te a ht eenclusion. The aecuwdn was one Jane Wenham, ter known as theWitch of

alkerne and the persons wlio were alleged to have sufl'

ered

from her witchcraft were two g women, named Thorns

and Street. A witness, namedi t?“Arthur Chauncy, deposed,

that he had seen Ann Thorns 1n several of her fits, and that

she always recovered upon prayers said, or if JaneWenham came to her. He related, that

bem

gmhad pricked therisoner several times in the arms

,but could never fetch any

lood from her ; that he had seen her vomi t pins, when therewere none in her clothes or within her reach ; and that behad preserved several of them,

which he was ready to produce.

The judge, however, toldhim thatwas needless, as he supposed

they were crooked p ins .

Mr. Francis Bragge, another witness, deposed, that strangecakes” of bewitched feathers having been taken from Ann

Thorne’

s pillow, he was anx ious to see them . He went into

a room where some of these feathers were, and took two of

the cakes, and compared them together. They were both of

a circular figure, something larger than a crown piece ; and

he observed that the small feathers were placed in a n ice

and curious order, at equal distances from each other, makinso many radi i of the circle, in the centre of which the quilends of the feathers met. He counted the number of thesefeathers, and found them to be ex actly thirty- two in each

cake. He afterwards endeavoured to pull ofl'

two or three of

them,and observed that they were all fastened together by a

sort of viscous matter, which would stretch seven or eight

times in a thread before it broke. Having taken off severalof these feathers, he removed the viscous matter with hisfingers, and found under it, in the centre, some short hairs,black and gray, matted toget

2

h7

er, which he verily behaved toi

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TH] WITCH MANIA.

e to the year 1736 , the populace raised at intervals:ry, and more than once endangered the lives of poorby dragging them through pends on suspicion ; butasephy of those who, from their position , sooner or'

e the tone to the Opin ions and morals of the poor,at] working a cure for the evil. The fear of witcheso epidemic, and became individual, lingering onlyfettered by inveterate prejudice or brutalizing superIn the year 1736 , the penal statute of James I. waslotted from the statute- book, and suffered no longer

co the advancing intelli ence of the country. Pre°

o w itchcraft, fortune- tel ers, conjurors, and all theirre liable only to the common punishment of rogues

s tore—imprisonment and the pillory.

etland, the delusion also assumed the same phases,gradually ex tingu ished in the light of civilization .

agland the progress of improvement was slow . Upear 166 5 , little or no diminution of the man ia was

1le . In 1643, the General Assembly recommended

Privy Council should institute a standing commission1 of any understanding gentlemen or magistrates,lo witches

,who were stated to have increased enor

f late years. In 1649 , an act was passed, confirma.he original statute of Queen Mary, ex plain ing some

the latter which were doubtful, and enacting severenot only against witches themselves, but against all

:n anted with them, or sought by their means to prysecrets of futurity

,or cause any evil to the life, lands,

of their neighbours. For the nex t ten years, themadness upon this subject was perhaps more furiousr ; upwards of four thousand persons suffered for thering that interval. This was the consequence of the

arliament and the unparalleled severity of the magis

:he latter frequently complained that for two witches

ned one day, there were ten to burn the nex t : theynought that they themselves were the cause of the

In a single circuit, held at Glasgow, Ayr, and

in 165 9, seventeen unhappy creatures were burned

in] sentence for traflicking with Satan . In one day,

ber 7 , the Privy Council issued no less than

commissions for trials in the provinces. Nex t year,

32 0 run wrrcu MANIA.

the violence of the persecution seems to have abated. F

166 2 to 1668, although the understanding gentlemenmagistrates, already mentiondamn, the High Court of J us

this class to deal with, and she

a common pricker, was orderedthe streets of Edinburgh forwitchcraft ; a fact which alone proves that the superior com,

sifted the evidence in these cases with much more care a ll

severity than it had done a few years previously. Tb.

enlightened S ir George Mackenzie,styled by Dryden,

“tho

noble wit of S cotland, laboured hard to introduce this ruleinto court—that the confessions of the witches should be h f

of little worth, and that the evidence of the prickers andointerested persons should be received with distrust and jealousy. This was reversing the old practice, and saved man

innocent lives. Though a firm believer both in ancient

modern witchcraft, he could not shut his eyes to the atrocitiudaily committed under the name of justice. In his workon

the Criminal L aw of S cotland, published in 1678, he says,From the horridness of this crime, I do conclude that,

of all others, i t requires the clearest relevancy and most cou

vincing probature ; and I condemn, nex t to the wretchesthemselves, those cruel and too forward judges who burn persons by thousands as uilty of this crime.

”In the same

year, S ir John Clerk p umply refused to serve as a commis

sioner on trials for witchcraft, alleging, by way of ex cuse,“that he was not himself good conjuror enough to be dulyqualified.

”The views entertained by S ir George Mackenzie

were so favourably received by the Lords of Session that hewas deputed, in 1680

,to report to them on the cases of a

number of poor women who were then in prison awaiting their

trial. S ir George stated that there was no evidence against

them whatever but their own confessions, which were absurd

and con tradictory, and drawn from them by severe torture.

They were immediately discharged.

For the nex t six teen years, the Lords of Session were unoe

cupied with trials for witchcraft ; not one is entered upon thirecord : but in 1697, a case occurred, which equalled in absur'

dity any of those that signalized the dark reign of KingJames. A girl, named Christiana Shaw, eleven years of age

ghter of J ohn Shaw of Bargarran, was subject to fits,11g of a spiteful temper, she accused her maid- servant,10m she had frequent quarrels, of bewitching her. H er

mfortunately, was believed. Encouraged to tell all the:tions of the devil which the maid had sent to tom cat

1 in the end concocted a romance that involved twentyaons. There was no other evidence against them butti es of this lying child, and the confessmns which pain

orted from them ; but upon this no less than five womenindemned, before Lord Blantyre and the rest of theu ioners, appointed specially by the Privy Council tol ease. They were burned on the Green at Paisley.

rlock of the party, one John Reed, who was also con

l, hanged himself in prison . It was the general beliefley that the devil had strangled him,

lest he should

avealed in his last moments too many of the unholyof witchcraft. This trial ex cited considerable disgust;land. The Rev. Mr. Bell

,a contemporary writer,

d that, in this business,“persons of more goodness

eem than most of their calumniators were defamed forHe adds, that the persons chiefly to blame were

u ministers of too much forwardness and absurd cre

and some topping professors in and aboutthis trial

,there again occurs a

.

lapse of seven years,be subject was painfully forced upon public attention

brutal cruelty of the mob at Pittenween . Two women

cused of having bewitched a strolling beggar, who wasto fits, or who pretended to be so, for the purpose of

commiseration . They were cast into prison , and

1 until they confessed. One of them,named Janet

it, contrived to escape, but was brought back to Pittenex t day by a party of soldiers. On her approach to

n,she was, unfortunately, met by a furious mob, com

1rincipally of fishermen and their wives, who seized

r w ith the intention of swimming her. They forcedsy to the sea- shore, and tying a repe around her body,the end of it to the mast of a fishing

- boat lying alongln this manner they ducked her several times. When

half dead, a sailor in the beat cut away the rope, and

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”edited by Sharpe.

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M W M A.

d in bedwith ugly enough forat she, also, was one of the cats that

fared so ill at the hands of the carpenter. The latter,a informed of the

npular suspicion, asserted that be dis

klym embered to re struck one of the eats a blowwith

back of his broadsword, which ought to have broken her

Nanny was immediatexdragged from her bed, and

mm into prison . Before 0 was put to the torture, she

binod, in a very natural and intelli gible manner, how she

broken her limb ; but this account did not give

the professional persuasions of thetorturermadeher tell a

treat tale, and she confessed that she was indeed a witch,had been wounded by Montgomery on the night statedthe two old women recently deceased were witches also,due about a score of others whom she named; The poor

red so much by the removal from her own home,the tortures inflicted upon her, that she died the nex t dayarisen . Happily for the persons she had named in her

fession, Dundas of Arniston, at that time the King’

s Advo

i - general, wrote to the SherifiT-depute, one Captain Ross of:ledean , cautioning him not to proceed to trial, the1g of too great difficulty, and beyond the jurisdiction of an

court. ” Dundas himself ex amined the precogn ition1 great care, and was so convinced of the utter folly of thedc case that he quashed all further proceedings.

Ve find this same Sherifildepute of Caithness very active

years afterwards in another trial for witchcraft. In spitehe warning he had received, that all such cases were to be(1 in future by the superior courts, be condemned to deathold woman at Dornoch, upon the charge of bewitching thes and pigs of her neighbours. This poor creature wasme, and actually laughed and clapped her hands at sight“the bonnie fire” that was to consume her. She had a

.ghter, who was lame both of her hands and feet, and one

:he charges brought against her was, that she had used thisighter as a pony in her ex cursions to join the devi l

’

s sab

h, and that the devil himself had shod her, and producedieness .

l‘his was the last ex ecution that took place in Scotland forchcraft. The penal statutes were repealed in 1736 , and,in England, whipping, the pillory, or imprisonment, were

324 m u wrrcu MANIA.

declared the future punishments of all pretenders to magic orwitchcraft.S till, for man years after this, the superstition lingered

both in Englandyand Scotland, and in some districts 1s far

from being ex tinct even at this day. But before we proceedto trace it any further than to its legal ex tinction , we haveyetto see the frightful havoc it made in continental Europe fromthe commencement of the seventeenth to the middle of the

eighteenth century. France, Germany, and Switzerlandwerethe countries which sufi

'

ered most from the epidemic . The

number of victims in these countries during the six teenth l

century has already been mentioned ; but, at the early part ofthe seventeenth, the numbers are so great, especially in Ger 1

many, that were they not to be found in the ofiicial records of 1

the tribunals, it would be almost impossible to believe that I

mankind could ever have been so maddened and deluded. To

use the words of the learned and indefatigable Horst,‘ “

the

world seemed to be like a large madhouse for witches and

devils to play their antics in .

”Satan was believed to be at

everybody ’

s call, to raise the whirlwind, draw down the lightning, blight the productions of the earth, or destroy the healthand paralyse the limbs of man . This belief, so insulting tothe majesty and beneficence of the Creator, was shared by themost pious min isters of religion . Those who in their mornin

gand evening prayers acknowledged the one true God, an

praised him for the blessings of the seed- time and the harvest,were convinced that frail human ity could enter into a compactwith the spirits of hell to subvert his laws and thwart all his

merciful intentions. S uccessive popes,from Innocent VIII.

downwards, promulgated this degrading doctrine, which spreadso rapidly that society seemed to be divided into two great

factions,the bewitching and the bewitched.

The commissioners named by Innocent VIII. to prosecutethe witch- trials in Germany, were Jacob Spren er

, so notori

ous for his work on demonolo y, entitled the filalleus Male

ficarum,

”or Hammer to neck down Witches

,Henry

Institor, a learned jurisconsult, and the Bishop of S trasburgb.

Bamberg, Treves, Cologne, Paderborn, and W ii rzburg, werethe chief seats of the commissioners, who, during the1r

Zauber Bibliothek. Theil 6 .

h a m demned to the stake, on a verymoderate calcula

icn, upwards of three thousand victims. The number of

acquitted unless the malice of the prosecutor be clearer than

the sun ; for it is so difi cult to bring full proof of this secret

crime, that out of a million of witches not one would be con

rioted if the usual course were followed !” Henri Bo et, a

witch-finder, who styled himself The Grand Ju e ofWitches for the Territory of St. Claude,

”drew up a e for

the guidance of all persons engaged in the witch- trials, con

sisting of seventy articles, quite as cruel as the code of Bodinus. In this document he afi rms, that a mere suspicion of

witchcraft justifies the immediate arrest and torture of the

suspected person . If the prisoner muttered, looked on the

ground, and did not shed any tears, all these were proofspositive of guilt ! In all cases of witchcraft

,the evidence of

the child on ht to be taken at its parent ; and personsof notoriousfy bad character, a though not to be believed upon

oaths on the ordinary occasions of dispute that mightarise between man and man, were to be believed, if they sworethat any person had bewitched them ! Who, when he hears

this diabolical doctrine was the universally receivedopinion of the ecclesiastical and civil authorities, can wonder

that thousands upon thousands of unhappy rsons should bebrought to the stake? that Cologne shonl for many cars

burn its three hundredwitches annually ? the district ofBumvon. 1. 2 8

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r enemies upside down, or twist them roundto

hough no witness was ever'

procured who saw persons in

horrible state, the witches confessed that they had the

and ex ercised it. Nothing more was wanting to insure

a.

d and swore that she one day looked through the window

ter hut, and saw Kornelis s1tting before a fire mutteringnothing to the devil. Shewas sure it was to the devil, be

se she heard him answer her. Shortly afterwards twelve

3k cats ascended out of thefloor, anddanced on their hind

3 aroundthewitchfor the space ofabouthalfan hour. Theyu van ishedwith a horrid noise, and leavin a disagreeableall behind them. She alsowas hanged an burned.

kt Bamberg, in Bavaria, the ex ecutions from theyear 1610[640were at the rate of about a hundred annually. Onenan ,

suspected of witchcraft, was seized because, having imderately praised the beauty of a child

,it had shortly after

rds fallen illand died. She confessed upon the rack that thei i had given her the power to work evil upon those shehated,speaking words in their praise If she said withunwonted

vour, What s strong man What a lovely woman

Vhat a sweet child 1”the devil understood her, and afflicted

m w ith diseases immediately. It is quite unnecessary to

be the end of this poor creature. Man women were ex e

cd for causing strange substances to l go in the bodies of

so who ofi'

ended them. Bits ofwood, nails,hair, e - shells,s of glass, shreds of linen and woollen cloth, pebb es, andin hot cindersandknives,were the articles generally chosen .

see were behaved to remain in the body till thewitches consed or were ex ecuted,when theywerevoided from the bowels,by the mouth, nostrils, or ears. Modern physicians haveon had cases of a similar description under their care,where

ls have swallowed needles, which have been voided on the

as, legs, and other parts of the body. But the science of

THE WITCH MANIA.

that day could not account for these phenomena otherwise thmby the power of thedevil ; and every needle swallowed

servant-maid cost an old woman her life. Nay, ifnomoreone sufi

'

ered in consequence, the district might thi nk itselffortunate. The commissioners seldom stopped short at onevictim.

The revelations of the rack in most cases implicated half ascore.

Of all the records of the witch- trials preserved for thewonder of succeeding ages, that of W ii rzburg, from 16 2 7 to

16 2 9 , is the most frightful. Hauber, who has preserved thilist in his Acta et S cripta Magica,

”says, in a note at the

end, that it is far from complete, and that there were a

many other burnings too numerous to specify. Thi s record,which relates to the city only, and not to the province of

W ii rzburg, con tains the names of one hundred and fifty- seven

persons, who were burned in two years in twenty- nine burnings, averaging from five to six at a time. The list comprisesthree play- actors, four innkeepers, three common councilman

of W iirzburg, fourteen vicars of the cathedral, the burgomaster ’s lady, an apothecary ’

s wife and daughter, two cho

risters of the cathedral, G iibel Babelin , the prettiest girl inthe town ,

and the wife, the two li ttle sons,and the daughter

of the councillor S tolzenberg. Rich and poor,young and

old, sufi'

ered alike. At the seventh of these recorded bumings, the victims are described as a wandering boy, twelveyears of age, and four strang

e men and women, found sleeping in the market- place.

'l hirty

- two of the whole numberappear to have been vagrants, of both sex es, who, failing to

give a satisfactory account of themselves, were accused and

found guilty of witchcraft. The number of children on the

list is horrible to think upon . The thirteenth and fourteenth

burnings comprised four persons, who are stated to have beena little maiden nine years of age, a maiden still less, her sis

ter,their mother, and their aunt, a pretty young woman of

twenty- four. At the eighteenth burn ing the victims were

two boys of twelve, and a girl of fifteen ; at the n ineteenth,the young heir of the noble house of Rotenhahn, aged nine,and two other boys, one aged ten, and the other twelve.

Among other entries appear the names of Baunach, thefattest, and S teinacher, the richest burgher in Wiirx burg.

What tended to keep up the delusion in this unhappy city,

m wn cn x s x n .

1d indeed all over Europe, was the number of hypochon

riac and diseased persons who came voluntarily forward,ad made confession of witchcraft. Several of the victims

t the foregoing hsg had only thcmsclves to blame

1ts. Many again, including the apothecary’

s

aughter already mentioned, pretended to sorcery.

oisons, or atta npted by means of charms and incantations

oraise the devil. But throughout all this fearful peri od the

blasion of the criminals was as great as that of the judges.

( w it

ty, sometimes with the hope of acquiring power over

heir ellows, and sometimes wi th the hope of securing impa

nity in this world by the protection of Satan . One of the

ersons ex ecuted at the first burning, a prostitute, was heard

speatingthe ex orcism,

which was supposed to have the

tower o raising the arch enemy in the form of a goat.

fhis precious specimen of human folly has been preserved byIorst, in his Zauberbibliothek. It ran as follows, and

ms to be repeated slowly, with many ceremonies and waiv

ugs of the hand

Lalle, Bachcra, Magette, Baphia, Dajam,

V agoth Beneche Ammi S agas, Adomator,Raphael Immanuel Christus, Tetragrammaton

Agra J ed Loi . Ki’

mig ! Kon ig !”

Phe two last words were uttered quickly, and with a sort of

cream ,and were supposed to be highly agreeable to S atan ,

rho loved to be called a king. If he did not appear immeIiately, it was necessary to repeat a further ex orcism. The

me in greatest repute was as follows, and was to be readmckwards, with the ex ception of the last two words

Anion , Lalle, Sabolea, Sade, Pater, Ax iel

Adonai Sade V agoth Agra, J ed,Baphra ! Komm !Komm l

”

When the witch wanted to get rid of the devil, who was

sometimes in the habit of prolonging his visits to an uncon

scionable len th, she had only to repeat the following, alsobackwards, w

ghen he generally disappeared, leaving behind

him a sufi'

ocating smell

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THE wrrcn MAN IA . 331

league with the powers of evil, the commissioner suggestedthat thehangman shoulddress himself in a bear

’

s skin,with the

horns, tail, and all the st esteras, and in this form penetrate

into her dungeon. The woman, in the darkness of her cell,could not detect the im tnre, aided as it was by her own

S e thought she was actually in thees of hell ; and when she was told tokeep

up her courage, and that she shouldbe relieved from thepowerofher enemies, she fell on her knees before the supposeddevil,and swore to dedicate herself hereafter body and soul to his

perhaps, the only country in Europewhere the delusion was so great as to have made such detestable verses as these the favourites of the people

Man shiekt sin HmksrskneehtZn ihr in Gefi ngniss n

’unter,

Den man hat kleidet recht,Miteiner Bl rnhaute,

Ale wenns der Teufel wl rAla ihm die Bu t ansehaute

Meints ihr Buhl kam daher.

81s sprach an ihm behende,Wis li est da mich so laug

In der Obrigkeit Hande l

Hilfmir aus ihren Zwang,Wie du mir hast verheisen ,

Ich bin ja eben dein ,Thu mich aue der Angst entreissen

O leibster Buhle mein

This rare poet adds, that in making such an appeal to the

hangman, the witch never imagined the meet that was to be

made of her, and puts in, by way of parenthesis, was not

that fine fun !”

Was das war filr ein Spiel As feathersthrown into the air show how thewind blows, so this trumperyballad shows the current of popular feeling at the time of its

composition .

All readers of history are familiar with the celebrated trial

They sent a hangman’s assi stant down to her in her prison ; they

clothed him properly in a bear’s skin, as if lie were the devil. H im , when

the wi tch saw, she thought he was her familiar. She said to him qu ickly,Why hast then left me so long in the magi strate

’s hands 1 Help me out of

their power, as thou hast prom sed, and I will be thine alone. Help mefrom this anguish, 0 then dearest devil [ or lover] mine I

”

THE WITCH MANIA.

of the Maréchale d’Ancre, who was ex ecuted in Paris in the

year 1617 . Although witchcraft was one of the accusations

brought against her, the real crime for which she suffered was

her ascendency over the mind of Mary of Medi cis, and the

consequent influence she ex ercised indirectly over the unworthyKing, Louis XIII. Her coachman gave evidence that shehad

sacrificeda cock at midn ight, in one of the churches, and othersswore they had seen her 0 secretly into the house of a noted

witch, named Isabella. TVhen asked by what means she had

acquired so ex traordinary an influence over the mind of the

Queen Mother, she replied boldly, that she ex ercised no other

power over her, than that which a strong mind can always exercise over the weak . She died with great firmness .

In two years afterwards scenes far more horrible than anythat had yet taken place in France were enacted at L abourt,at the foot of the Pyrenees . The Parliament of Bourdeaux ,scandalized at the number of witches who were said to infest

Labourt and its neighbourhood, deputed one of its own mem

bers, the noted Pierre de l’

Ancre, and its President, Espaignel,to inqu ire into the matter, with full powers to puni sh the ofl

'

en

ders. They arrived at Labourt in May 1619 . D e l’

An cre

wrote a book, setting forth all his great deeds, in this battleagainst the powers of evil. It is full of obscenity and shaur

dity ; but the facts may be relied on as far as they relate to

the number of trials and ex ecutions, and the strange confessionswhich torture forced from the unhappy criminals .

D e l’

Ancre states as a reason why somany witches were to befound at L abourt

,that the countrywasmountainous and sterile!

He discovered many of them from their partiality to smoking tobacco. It may be inferred from thi s that he was of the

Opin ion ofKing James, that tobacco was the devil’

s weed.

”

When the commission first sat,the number of persons brought

to trial was about forty a day. The acquittals didnot averageso many as five per cent. All the witches confessed that theyhad been present at the great Domdaniel, or Sabbath. Atthese saturnalia the devil sat upon a large gilded throne, sometimes ia the form of a goat sometimes as a gentleman, dressedall in black , with boots, spurs, and sword ; and very often as a

shapeless mass, resembling the trunk of a blasted tree, seen

indistinctly amid the darkness. They generally proceeded totheDomdaniel riding on spits, pitchforks, or broomsticks, and,

on their arrival, indulged with the fiends in everydebauchery. Upon one occasion they hadcelebrate this festival in the very heart of the city of Bourdeaux . The throne of the arch fiend was placed in the

middle of the Place de Gallienne, and the whole space was

covered with the multitude of witches andwizards who flockedto it from far and near ; some arriving even from distant

Scotland.

After two hundred poor wretches had been hanged and

burned, there seemed no diminution in the number of crimi

nals to be tried. Many of the latter were asked upon the“

rack what Satan had said, when he found that the commis

sioners were proceeding with such severity ? The generalrepl was, that he did not seem to care much about it. Some

of them asserted, that they had boldly reproached him forsuffering the ex ecution of their friends, sayin Out a on

thee, fa lse fiend thy promise was, that they 8 ou ld not ie

Look how thou hast kept thy word They have been

burned , and are a hea of ashes 1” Upon these occasions he

was never ofl'

ended. e would give orders that the sports ofthe Domdan iel should cease, and producing illusory fires thatdid not burn, he encouraged them to walk through, assuringthem that the fires lighted by the ex ecutioner gave no morepain than those. They would then ask him

, where theirfriends were, since they had not sufl

'

ered ; to which the

Father of Lies” invariably replied, that they were happyin a far country, and could see and hear all that was then

passing ; and that,if they called by name those they wished

to converse with, they might hear their voices in reply . Satan

then imitated the voices of the defunct witches so successfully,that they were all deceived. Having answered all objections,the orgies recommenced, and lasted till the cock crew.

D e l’

Ancre was also very zealous in the trial of unhappymonomaniacs for the crime of lycanthropy . Several whowere arrested confessed, without being tortured, that theywere weir- wolves, and that at night, they rushed out amongthe flocks and herds , killing and devouring. One young manat Besancon, with the full consciousness of the awful fate that

awaited him,voluntarily gave himself up to the commissioner

Espaignel, and confessed that he was the servant of a strongfiend, who was known by the name of the Lord of the

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THE WITCH MAN IA.

and the true character of which was known even at that time,merits no more than a passing notice in this place. It did

not spring from the

epidemic dread of sorcercy then so preve

lent, but was carrie on by wretched intriguers, who hadsworn to have the life of their foe. Such a charge could not

be refuted in 1634: the accused could not, as Bodinus

ex presses it, make the malice of the prosecutors more clearthan the sun and his own den ial, however intelligible,honest, and straightforward, was held as nothing in refutationof the testimony of the crazy women who imagined themselvesbewitched. The more absurd and contradictory their assertions, the stronger the ar umont employed by his enemies thatthe devil was in them. hi e was burned alive

, under circumstances of great crueltyA singular instance of the epidemic fear of witchcraft

occurred at Lille, in 1639 . A pious, but not very sane lady,

named Antoinette Bourignon , founded a school, or hosp ice, in

that city . One day, on entering the school- room,she imagined

that she saw a great number of little black angels flying aboutthe heads of the children . In great alarm,

she told her pupilsof what she had seen , warn ing them to beware of the devil

,

whose imps were hovering about them . The foolish woman

continued daily to repeat the same story, and Satan and his

power became the only subject of conversation , not only between the girls themselves, but between them and their instructors . One of them at this time ran away from the school.

On being brought back and interrogated, she said she had not

run away, but had been carried away by the devil— she was a

witch,and had been one since the age of seven . S ome other

little girls in the school went into fits at this announcement,and

,on their recovery, confessed that they also were witches.

At las t, the whole of them,

to the number of fifty, workedupon each other ’s imaginations to such a degree that they also

confessed that they were witches— that they attended the

A very graphic account of the ex ecution of this unfortunate gentleman

is to be found in the ex cellent romance of M . Alfred de Vigny. en ti tled

C inq Mars ; bu t if the reader wi shes for a fu ll and accurate detai l of all

the c ircumstances of one of the most ex traordinary trials upon record, he

is referred to a work published anonymou sly, at Amsterdam ,in 1693 ,

enti tled “ H i stoire des D iables de Loudun , ou de la Possess ion des Reli

gieuseszUrsulines, et de laCondemnation et du Supplies d’

Urbain Grandier.

”

THE WITCH MANIA.

Domdani el, or meeting of the fiends—that they could ride

through the air on broom- sticks, feast on infants’

flesh, or

creep through a key- hole.

The citizens of Lille were astounded at these disclosures.

The clergy hastened to investigate the matter ; many of them,to their credi t, openly ex pressed their Opin ion that the wholeafl

'

air was an imposture : not so the majority— they strenu

onely insisted that the confessions Of the chi ldren.

were valid,and that it was necessary to make an ex ample by burningthem all for witches. The poor parents, alarmed for theirOfl

'

spring, implored the ex amin ing Capuchins with tears in

their eyes to save their young lives, insisting that they werebewitched, and not bewitching. This Opinion also gained

ground in the town . Antoinette Bourignon, who had putthese absurd notions into the heads of the chi ldren, was

accused of witchcraft, and ex amined before the council. The

circumstances Of the case seemed so unfavourable towards herthat she would not stay for a second ex amination . D is

herself as she best could, she hastened out of Lille and escapursuit. If she had remained four hours longer, she wouldhave been burned by judicial sentence, as a witch and a hero

tic. It is to be hoped that, wherever she went, she learnedthe danger of tampering with youthful minds, and was never

again entrusted with the management of children .

The Duke of Brunswick and the Elector of Menz were

struck with the great cruelty ex ercised in the torture of sus

pected persons, and convinced at the same time that no rightcous judge would consider a confession ex torted by pain , andcontradictory in itself, as sufficient evidence to justify the ex ecution of any accused person . It is related of the Duke ofBrunswick that he invited two learned Jesuits to his house,who were known to entertain strong opinions upon the subjectOf witchcraft

,with a view of showing them the cruelty and

absurdity of such practices. A woman lay in the dungeon of

the city accused of witchcraft,and the Duke, having given

previous instructions to the Ofliciating torturers, went w ith thetwo Jesuits to hear her confession . By a series of artfulleading questions, the poor creature, in the ex tremity of her

angui sh, was induced to confess that she had often attended

the sabbath of the fiends upon the Brocken— that she had

seen two Jesuits there, who had made themselves notorious,

THE WITCH MANIA.

even among witches, for their abominations—that she hadseen them assume the form of oats, wolves, and other ani

mals ; and that.

many noted witc es had hom e them five, six ,and seven children at a birth, who had heads like toads and

legs like spiders. Being asked if the Jesuits were far fromher, she replied that they were in the room beside her. The

Duke of Brunswick led his astounded friends away, and ex

plained the stratagem. This was convincing proof to both of

them that thousands Of persons had suffered unjustly ; theyknew their own innocence, and shuddered to think what theirfate might have been, if an enemy, instead of a friend, hadputsuch a confession into the mouth of a criminal. One of these

Jesuits was Frederick Spec, the author of the Cautio Criminalis,

”

published in 1631. This work, ex posin thehorrors ofthewitch trials, had a most salutary effect in m an Schon

brunn , Archbishop and Elector ofMenz, abolished t e torture

entirely within his dominions,and his ex ample was imitated

by the Duke of Brunswick and other potentates. The num

ber of supposed witches immediately dimin ished, and the violen ce Of the mania began to subside. The Elector of Brandenburg issued a rescript, in 16 54, with respect to the case of

Anna of Ellerbrock,a supposed witch, forbidding the use of

torture, and stigmatizing the swimming of witches as an unjust,cruel, and deceitful test.

This was the beginning Of thedawn after the long- protracteddarkness . The tribunals no longer condemned witches to

ex ecu tion by hundreds in a year. Wurzburg, the grand theatre of the burnings, burned but one, where, forty years previously, it had burned threescore. From 1660 to 1670, theelectoral chambers in all parts of Germany constantly com

muted the sentence Of death passed by the provincial tribunalsinto imprisonment for life, or burning on the cheek .

A truer philosophy had gradually disabused the publicmind. Learned men freed themselves from the trammels ofa debasing superstition, and governments, both civil and eccle

siastical, repressed the popular delusion they had so longencouraged. The Parliament of Normandy condemned a

number of women to death, in the year 1670, On the Old

charge of riding on broomsticks to the Domdaniel ; but LouisXIV . commuted the sentence into banishment for life. The

Parliament remonstrated, and sent the King the followingV OL . 1. 2 9

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- I WITCH MANIA.

Ii ously pleased to t as oncemore your permission to con

inue the trials, andex ecute judgment upon those found gui lty.

And as, since we received the letter ofyour Secretary of State,we have also been made acquainted wi th the determination of

your Majesty, not onl to com ets the sentence of death

assed upon these witc es into one of perpetual banishment

m the province, but to re- estahlish them in the possession

of their goods andchattels, andof their fame and charac

ter, your Parliament have thought it duty, on occasion

of these crimes, the greatest whi ch men can commit, to make

you acquainted with the general and uni form feelings of the

people of this province with regard to them ; it bein more

over, a question in which are concerned the glory of and

the relief of your sufl'

erin subjects, who groanfears from the threats andmenaces of this sort of persons,and who feel the efl

’

ects of them every day in theex traordinary maladies whi ch attack them, and the surprisingdama e and loss of their possessions.

our Majesty knows well that there is no crime so opposedto the commands of God as witchcraft, which destroys thevery foundation of religion , and draws strange abominationsafter it. It is for this reason , S ire, that the Scriptures pronounce the punishment of death against ofl

’

enders, and that

the church and the holy fathers have fulminated their anathemas, and that canonical decisions have one and all decreedthe most severe punishments, to deter from thi s crime ; and

that the Church Of France, animated by the piety of the

your predecessors, has ex pressed so great a horror atit, that, not jud

'

ng the punishment of perpetual im risonment,the highest ithas the power to inflict, sufficient y severe, ithas left such criminals to be dealt with by the secular power.

It has been the general feeling of all nations that such

criminals ought to be condemned to death, and all the ancients

were of the same opinion . The law of the Twelve Tables,’

whi ch was the principal of the Roman laws, ordains the samepun ishment. All jurisconsults agreed in it, as well as the

con stitutions of the Emperors, and more especially those Of

Constantine and Theodosius, who, enlightened by the Gospel,not only renewed the same unishment, but also deprived,Pex pressly, all persons found guilty of witchcraft of the right

THE WITCH MANIA.

of appeal, and declared them to be unworthy of a prince’smercy. And Charles VIII.

, S ire, inspired by the same sentimen ts

,passed that beautiful and severe ordinance (cette balk

at seven ordonnance), which enjoined the judges to punishwitches according to the ex igencies Of the case, under a pc

nalty of being themselves fined or imprisoned, .or dismissed

from their office ; and decreed, at the same time, that all

persons who refused to denounce a witch, should be punishedas accomplices ; and that all, on the contrary, who gave evidence again st one, should be rewarded.

“From these considerations, S ire, and in the ex ecution of

so holy an ordinance, your parliaments, by their decrees,proportion their pun ishments to the guilt Of the ofl

'

enders :

and your Parliament of Normandy has never, until the present time, found that its practice was difl

'

erent from that of

other courts ; for all the books which treat upon this matter

cite an infin ite number Of decrees condemn ing witches to be

burnt, or broken on the wheel, or to other pun ishments . The

following are ex amples — In the time of Chilperic, as may beseen in Gregory of Tours, b

’

. vi . 0. 35 of his History of

France : all the decrees of the Parliament of Paris passedaccording to, and in conformity with, this ancient jurisprudence of the kingdom, cited by Imbert, in his JudicialPractice all those cited by Monstrelet, in 1459, against thewitches of Artois ; the decrees Of the same Parliament, of the13th of October 15 73, against Mary Le Fief, native of San

mur ; of the l t of October 15 96 , against the S ieur de Beaumont, who pleaded, in his defence, that he had only sought theaid of the devil for the purpose Of unbewitching the aflictedand of curing diseases ; of the 4th of July 1606 , against

Francis du Bose Of the 2 0th of July 1582 , against Abel dela Rue

, native of Coulommiers ; of the 2 d of October 1593,against Rousseau and his daughter ; of 1608, against anotherRousseau and one Peley, for witchcraft and adoration of the

devil at the Sabbath, under the figure of a he—goat, as con

fessed by them ; the decree of4th of February 1615 , againstLeclerc, who appealed from the sentence of the Parliament ofOrleans, and who was condemned for having attended the

Sabbath, and confessed, as well as two of his accomplices,who died in prison

,that he had adored the devil, renounced

his baptism and his faith in God, danced the witches’

dance,

m wr'ren m u .

and offered up unholy sacrifiees ; the deeress ef the 6th ef

May 1616, against a man named Leger, on a

tion ; the pardon granted byhrs

Charles IX. to Trois Echelles,upon condition of revealing his accomplices, but afterwardsrevoked for renewed so on his part ; the decree of theParliament of Paris, cited y Mornac in 1595 ; the judgments passed in consequence of the commission given byHenry IV. to the S ieur dc Lancre, councillor of the Parlia

especially in the ease of Gaufrédy in 1611 ; thedecrees of theParliament of Dijon, and those of the Parliament Of Rennes,following the ex ample of the condemnation of the Marshal de

Rays, who was burned 1441, for the crime of witchcraft,in presence of the Duke of Brittany ,

—all these ex amples,S ire, prove that the accusation of witchcraft has always beenpun ished with death by the Parliaments of your kingdom, and

justify the un iformity of their practice.

These, Sire, are the motives upon which your Parliamentof Normandy has acted 1n decreemg the punishment of deathagainst the persons lately brought before it for this crime. If

it has happened that, on any occasion , these Parliaments, andthe Parliament ofNormandy among the rest, have condemned

the guilty to a less punishment than that of death, it was for

the reason that their guilt was not of the deepest dye ; yourMajesty, and the Kings your predecessors, having left fullliberty to the various tribun als to whom they delegated the

admin istration of justice, to decree such punishment as was

warranted by the evidence brought before them.

After so many authorities, and punishments ordained byhuman and divine laws, we humbly supplicate your Majestyto reflect once more upon the ex traordinary results which proceed from themalevolence of this sort of people—on the deaths

from unknown diseases, which are Often the conse uenees of

their menaces—on the loss of the goods and chatte of your2 9”

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m WITCH MANIA.

hrist himself. An to the pretended pas

was, cites Bmtius, wholed more than eighty years after the

asides, there is still more convincingre same father establishes the truth of witchcraft in all his

ritinge, and more particularly in his City of God ;’

and inis first volume, question the 2 5th, wherein he states that ser

rry is a communion between man and the devil, which‘

all

red Christians ought to look upon with horror.

these things into consideration, Sire, the emeers

M you will

1m lled, for

e of their duty, to make known to your Majesty, that10 decrees the

ypassed against the sorcerers and witches

'ought before t cm,

were passed after a mature deliberation1 the part of all the judges present, and that nothing has beenme therein which is not conformable to the universal jurisn dence Of the kingdom,

and for the general welfare of yourajesty

’

s subjects,of whom there is not onewho can say that

1 is secure from the malevolence of such criminals . We

erefore supplicate your Majesty to sufi’

er us to carry intofeet the sentences we passed, and to w eed with the trial'

the other persons accused of the same crime ; and that the

ety of your Majesty will not suffer to be introduced duringmr reign an opinion contrary to the principles of that holyligion for which you have always employed so gloriously1th your cares and your arms.

”

Louis, as‘we have already mentioned, paid no attention to

is appeal. The lives of the old women were spared, andosecutions for mere witchcraft, unconnected with other

fences, were discontinued throughout France. In 1680an

t was passed for the punishment, not of witches, but of'

etenders to witchcraft, fortune- tellers, divineresses, and.isoners.

Thus the light broke in upon Germany, France, England

,

1d Scotland about the same time, gradually growing 0 carer

1d clearer till the middle of the eighteenth century, when

THE WITCH MANIA.

witchcraft was finally reckoned amongst ex ploded doctrines,and the belief in

'

it confined to the uttermost vulgar. Twice,however, did the madness burst forth again as furious, whileit lasted, as ever it had been . The first time in Sweden, in

1669,and the second in Germany, so late as 1749 . Both

these instances merit particular mention . The first is one of

the most ex traordinary upon record,and for atrocity and

absurdity is unsurpassed in the annals of any nation .

It having been reported to the King of Sweden that the

little village of Mohra,in the province of Dalecarlia, was

troubled ex ceedingly with witches,he appointed a commis

sion of clergy and laymen to trace the rumour to its source,with full powers to punish the guilty . On the 12 th of August16 69

,the commissioners arrived in the bewitched village, to

the great joy Of the credulous inhabitants. On the followingday the whole population, amounting to three thousand per

sons, assembled in the church. A sermon was preached,declaring the miserable case of those people that sufi

'

ered

themselves to be deluded by the devil, and fervent prayerwas offered up that God would remove the scourge fromamong them.

The whole assembly then adjourned to the rector ’s house,filling all the street before it, when the King

’

s commission

was read, charging every person who knew anything Of the

witchery, to come forward and declare the truth. A passionOf tears seized upon the multitude ; men , women, and children

began to weep and sob,and all promised to divulge what

they had heard or knew. In this frame Of mind they weredismissed to their homes. On the following day they wereagain called together, when the depositions of several personswere taken publicly before them all. The result was that

seventy persons, including fifteen children, were taken intocustody. Numbers also were arrested in the neighbouringdi strict Of Elfdale. Being put to the torture, they all con

fessed their guilt. They said they used to go to a gravel- pitthat lay hard by the cross- way, where they put a vest upon

their heads, and danced round and round and round about.They then went to the cross - way, and called three times uponthe devil ; the first time in a low still voice ; the second

, some

what louder ; and the third,very loudly, with these words,

Antecessor, come, and carry us to Blockula This inro

ntion never failed to bri ng him to their view.

apeared as a little old man, in a gray coat, with

He had he

rwn to his middle.

The first question he put to them was, whether they wouldn o him soul and body ? On their answering in the afirmare, he told them to make ready for the journey to Blockula.

.was necessary to procure, in the first place,“some scrap

gs of altars and filings of church clocks."

Antecesser

en gave them a hem , with some salve in it, wherewith theyminted themselves. These preparations ended, he broughts ets for them to ride upon, horses, asses, goats, and menup ; and, giving them a saddle, a hammer, and a nail, uttered

0 word of command, andaway theywent. Nothing stopped

eon . They flew over churches, highwalls, rocks, and moun

ins, until they came to the green meadow where Blockulats situated. Upon these occasions they carried as man

cyi ldren with them as they could ; for the devil, they sai

did plague and whip them if they did not procure him chil

en ,insomuch that they had no peace or qu1et for him.

”

Many parents corroborated a part Of this evidence, statin

at their children had repeatedly told them that they hen carried away in the ui ht to Blockula, where the devild beaten them black and lue. They had seen the marks

the morning, but they soon disappeared. One little girlLB ex amined, who swore positively that she was carriedrough the air by the witches, and when at a great height0 uttered the holy name of Jesus, she immediately fell toe ground, and made a great hole in her side. The devil,twever, picked her up, healed her side, and carried her awayBlockula.

”She added, and her mother confirmed the

ttement, that she had till that day an ex ceeding great.in in her side.

” This was a clencher, and the nail of constion was driven home to the hearts of the judges.

The place called Blockula, whither they were carried, waslarge house, with a gate to it, in a delicate meadow,

1ereOf they could see no end.

” Therewas a very long tableit,at which the witches sat down ; and in other rooms

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was looked upon as a criminal more than usually'

enty persons were condemned to death on these so awful

so ridiculous confessions. Twent - three of them were

ned to er, in one fire, in the e ef

rence O thousands of delighted spectators. On the follow

day fifteen children were murdered in the same manner ;red up in sacrifice to the bloody Moloch of superstition.

aremaining thirtfit

zo were ex ecuted at the neighbourin

'n of Fahluna.

'

des these, fifty- six children were foun

lty of witchcraft in a minor degree, and sentenced to

ieus pun ishmenu , such as running the gauntlet, imprison

nt, and public whipping once a week for a twelvemonth.

Long after the occurrence of this case, it was cited as one

the most convincing proofs upon record of the prevalence

witchcraft. When men wish to construct or support a

cry, how they torture facts into their service ! The lyingimsies of a few sick children, encouraged by foolishparents;Idrawn out by superstitious neighbours, were suflicient to

a country in a flame. If,instead of commissioners

t

ply sunk in the slough Of ignorance as the people they°

e sent amongst, there had been deputed a few men firm in

Lrage and clear in understanding, how difl’

erent would have

an the result ! Some of the poor children who were burnedald have been sent to an infirmary ; others would have beenLl flogged ; the creduli ty of the parents would have been

ghed at, and the lives of seventy persons spared. The

iof in witchcraft remains in Sweden to this day ; but,apily, the annals of that country present no more such ia

nces Of lamentable aberration of intellect as the one justad.

[11 New England, about the same time, the colonists were.red by similar stories Of the antics Of the devil. All at

so a fear seized upon the multitude,and supposed criminals

re arrested day after day in such numbers, that the prisonsre found too small to contain them. A girl, named Good1,the daughter of a mason , who was hypochondriac and

j cet to fits, imagined that an old Irishwoman,named Glo

had bewitched her. Her two brothers, in whose consti

.ions there was apparently a predisposition to similar fits,nt ofl

'

in the same way, crying out that the devil and Dameever were tormenting them. At times their joints were so

THE WITCH MANIA.

stifl'

that they could not be moved,while at others, said the

neighbours, they were so flex ible,that the bones appeared

softened into sinews . The supposed witch was seized, and,as she could not repeat the Lord’

s Prayer without making amistake in it, she was condemned and ex ecuted.

But the popular ex citement was not allayed. One victim

was not enough : the people waited agape for new disclosures.Suddenly two hysteric girls in another family fell into fitsdaily

,and the cry of witchcraft resounded from one end of

the colony to the other . The feeling of sufl’

ocation in the

throat,so common in cases of hysteria

,was said by the

patients to be caused by the devil himself, who had stuck ballsin the windpipe to choke them. They felt the pricking ofthorns in every part of the body, and one Of them vomited

needles. The case of these girls, who were the daughter andn iece (if a Mr. Parvis, the minister of a Calvin ist chapel,ex cited so much attention

,that all the weak women in the

colony began to fancy themselves similarly afllicted. The

more they brooded on it, the more convinced they became.

The contagion of this mental disease was as great as if it hadbeen a pestilence. One after the other the women faintedaway, asserting, on their recovery, that they had seen the

spectres of witches . Where there were three or four girls ina family, they se worked, each upon the diseased imaginationof the other, that they fell into fits five or six times in a day.

Some related that the devil himself appeared to them, bearingin his hand a parchment roll

,and promising that if they

would sign an agreement transferring to him their immortal

souls,they should be immediately relieved from fits and all

the ills of the flesh. Others asserted that they saw witches

only,who made them similar promises, threatening that they

should never be free from aches and pains till they had agreedto become the devil

’

s . When they refused,thewitches pinched,

or hit,or pricked them with long pins or needles. More than

two hundred persons named by these mischievous visionaries,were thrown into prison . They were of all ages and condi

tions of life, and many of them Of ex emplary character. No

less than nineteen were condemned and ex ecuted before reasonreturned to the minds Of the colonists. The most horriblepart of thi s lamentable history is, that amen the victims

there was a li ttle child only five years Old. %ome women

wil, and

refused to plead to theAs was the practice inIt rs told of the Sherifl

'

the ex ecution, that when

her-if ; a mamwho, if the truth

ee, and

Hoped to merit heaven by making earth a hell !

rgning still in the firm belief of witchcraft, the bereaved1eple began to inquire, when they saw their dearest friendsa tched away from them by thesewide

- spreading accusations,bother the whole proceedings were not carried on by the'ency of the devil. Might not the great enemy have putin testimony into the mouths of the witnesses, or might

bf. the witnesses be witches themselves ? Every man whoas in danger of losing his wife, his child, or his sister, em

aced thi s doctrine with avidity. The revulsion was as

an as the first frenzy. All at once, the colonists werevnvinced Of their error. The uj dges put a stop to the prose1tions, even of those who had confessed their guilt. The

tter were no sooner at liberty than the retracted all they1d said, and the greater number har y remembered the

rowals which agony had ex torted from them. Eight persons,ho had been tried and condemned, were set free ; and

radually girls ceased to have fits and to talk ofthe tions

: the devil. The judgewho hadc ondemned the criminal

recuted on this charge, was so smitten with sorrow and

umiliation at his folly, that he set apart the anniversary of

1s t day as one of solemn penitence and festin . He still

.ung to the belief 1n witchcrpaft ; no new light ha broken m

VOL . I .

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t happened so latc as the year 1749, to the astonishment

nd di sgust of the rest ofEuropeA number of young women i n a

moied themselves bewitched ; they felt like

ubjects, a sense of sufi'

ocation in the throat. Theywent into

ts repeatedly ; and one of them who had swallowed needles,

f the body. The cry of sorcery was raised, and-

a youngroman, named Maria Renata S i nger, was arrested on the

harge of ha leagued with the devil, to bewitch five of the

oung ladies. t was sworn on the trial that Maria had been

requently seen to clamber over the conventwalls in the sh

ip:fa pig—4hat, proceeding to the cellar, she used to drink

a t wine till she was intox icated ; and then start suddenly

p in her own form. Other girls asserted that she used to

M ] about the roof like a cat, and often penetrate into their

hamber, and frighten them by her dreadful howlings. It

as also said that she had been seen in the shape of a hare,nilking the cows dry in the meadows belonging to the con

ent ; that she used to perform as an actress on the boards ofDrury Lane Theatre in London, and, on the very same night,

upon a broomstick to Wiirzbur and afi ict the youngwith pains in all their limbs.

8Upon this evidence she

as condemned, and burned alive in the market- place of

Here ends this frightful catalogue of murder and superati.on . S ince that day, the belief in witchcraft has fled from thecpnlous abodes ofmen , and taken refuge in remote villages

nd districts too wild, rugged, and inhospitable to afford a

eating-

place for the foot of civilization . Rudefishers and unducated labourers still attribute every phenomenon of nature,rhich they account for, to the devil andwitches. Catalepsy,hat wondrous disease, is still thought b ignorant ossips toe the work of Satan ; and hypochon

'

acs, unin ormed bycience of the nature of their malady, devoutly believe in the

eality of their visions. The reader would hardly credit the

x tent of the delusion upon this subject in the very heart of

lngland at this day. Many an old woman leads a

misery from the unfeeling insults ofher neighbours, who raisehe scornful finger and hooting voice at her, because in her

lecrepitude she is ugly, spiteful, perhaps insane, and0 her personal appearance the description preserved by tra

THE WITCH MANIA.

dition of the witches of yore. Even in the na'

hbourhood of

great towns the taint remains of this once wide y- spread con

tagion . If no victims fall beneath it, the enlightenment of the

law is all that prevents a recurrence of scenes as horrid as

those of the seventeenth century. Hundreds upon hundreds

ofwitnesses could be found to swear to absurdities as greats

these asserted by infamous Matthew Hopkins .

In the AnnualRegister for 1760, an instance of the belief

in witchcraft is related, which shows how superstition lingeraAdispute arose in the littlevillage ofGlen , inLeicestershire, between two old women, each of whom vehemently accused the

other of witchcraft. The quarrel at last -

ran so high that a

challenge ensued, and they both agreed to be tried by the ordeal of swimming. They accordingly stripped to their shifts—procured some men , who tied their thumbs and great toestogether crosswise, and then, with a cart- rope about theirm iddle, suffered themselves to be thrown into a pool of water.

One of them sank immediately, but the other continued struggling a short time upon the surface of the water, which the

mob deeming an infallible sign ofher guilt, pulled her out, andinsisted that she should immediately impeach all her accom

plices in the craft. She accordingly told them that, in the

neighbouring village of Burton , there were several old womenas much witches as she was.

’ ’ Happily for her, this negativeinformation was deemed sufficient, and a student 111 astrology,or white- witch,

”coming up at the time, the mob, by his di

rection, proceeded forthwith to Burton 111 search of all the de

linquents. After a little consultation on their arrival, theywent to the old woman

’

s house on whom they had fix ed the

strongest suspicion . The poor old creature on their approachlocked the outer door, and from the window of an upstairsroom asked what they wanted. They informed her that she

was char ed of being guilty of witchcraft, and that they werecome to uck her ; remonstrating with her at the same time

upon the necessity of submission to the ordeal, that, if she

were innocent, all the world might know it. Upon her per

sisting in a positive refusal to come down, they broke open thedoor and carried her out by force, to a deep gravel- pit full ofwater . They tied her thumbs and toes together and threwher into the water, where they kept her for several minutes,drawing her out and in two or three times by the rope round

veswhether she

more

and to be imprisoned for a month ; and as manymorewere fined in small sums for theassault, andto keep the peace for a twelvemonth.

80 late as the year says Arnot, in

and abridgment of Criminal Trials in Scotland,“it was the

«atom among the sect of Seceders to readfrom the pulpit

annual confed on of sins, national and personal ; amongst theformer of which was particularly mentioned the Repeal byParliament of the penal statute against witches, contrary to

the ex press laws of God.

’

Many houses are still to be foundin England withthehorseshoe (the grand preservative againstwitchcraft)nailed againstthe threshold. If any over- wise philosopher should attemptto remove them, the chances are that hewould havemorebroken bones than thanks for his interference. Let any man

walk into Cross Street, Hatton Garden, and from thence into

Bleeding- heartYard

,and learn the tales still told and believed

of one house in that neighbourhood, andhe will ask himself inaston ishment if such thir

igs can be in the nineteenth century.

The witchcraft of Lady atton, the wife of the famous S ir

Christopher, so renowned for his elegant dancing in the daysof Elizabeth, is as devoutly behaved as theGospels. Theroom

is to be seen where the devil seized her after the ex piration of

the contract he hadmade with her, and bore her away bodilyto the pit of Tophet ; the pump against which he dashed her

is still pointed out, and the spot where her heart was found,after he had torn it out of her bosom with his iron claws, has

received the name of Bleeding-heart Yard, in confirmation of

the story. Whether the horse shoe still remains upon the

door of the haunted house, to keep away other witches, is un

certain ; but there it was, twelve or thirteen years ago. The

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In the sams town there rcsided a fishsm am—who is,bably, still alive, and whose name, for that reason, we for

self when he sat down . The result of these ex periments

tended to confirm their faith in his supernatural

was asserted that he never flinched. Such was

v robabl it is the same now..go

ln a? forth of!England, the superstition lingers to an

almost inconceivable ex tent. Lancashire abounds withdoctors, a set of quacks, who pretend to cure diseases inflictedby the devil. The practices of these worthies may be judgof by the following case, reported in the Hertfordformer, of the 2 3d of June, 1838. The witch- doctor al

laded to is better known by the name of the cann ing man,and has a large practice in the counties of Lincoln and Net

tingham. According to the writer in The Reformer,”the

dupe, whose name is not’

mentioned, had been for about two

years afflicted with a painful abscess, and had been prescribedfor without relief by more than one medical gentleman . He

was urged bysome of his friends, not onl

yin his own village,

but in neig bearing ones, to consult t e witch- doctor, as

they were convinced he was under some evil influence. He

11 eed, and sent his wife to the cann ing man , who lived in

[ger

w Saint Swithin’

s, in Lincoln. She was informed by thisignorant impostor that her husband

’

s disorderwas an inflictionof the devil, occasioned by his nex t- door neighbours, who hadmade use of certain charms for that purpose. From the de

scription he gave of the process, it appears to be the same asthat employed by D r. Fian and Gellie Duncan, to work weupon King James. He stated that the neighbours, instigatedby a witch, whom he pointed out, took somewax , and moulded

THE WITCH MANIA.

it before the fire into the form of her husband, as near as

they could represent him they then pierced the image with

pins on all sides—repeated the Lord’

s Prayer backwards, andofl

'

ered prayers to the devil that he would fix his stings into

the person whom that figure represented, in like manner asthey pierced it with pins. To counteract the efl

'

ects of this

diaboli cal process, the witch- doctor prescribed a certain medi

cine, and a charm to be worn nex t the body, on that part

where the disease principally lay. The patient was to repeat

the l 09th and 119th Psalms every day, or the cure would not

be efl'

ectual. The fee whi ch he claimed for this advice was a

guinea .

So eflicacious is faith in the cure of any malady, that thepatient actually felt much better after a three weeks ’ courseof this prescription . The notable charm which the quackhad given was afterwards opened, and found to be a piece of

parchment, covered with some cabalistic characters and signs

of the planets.

The nex t- door neighbours were in great alarm that the

witch- doctor would, on the solicitation of the recoveringpatient

, employ some means to punish them for their te

tended witchcraft. To escape the infliction, they feedanother cunning man, in Nottinghamshire, who told them of

a similar charm,which would preserve them from all the

malice of their enemies. The writer concludes by saying, thatthe doctor, not long after he had been thus consulted

, wrote

to say that he had discovered that his patient was not af

flicted by Satan, as he had imagined, but by God, and wouldcontinue, more or less in the same state till his life

’

s end.

”

An impostor carried on a similar trade in the nei bhour

hood of Tunbridge Wells, about the year 1830. a had

been in practice for several years, and charged enormous feesfor his advice. This fellow pretended to be the seventh son

of a seventh son,and to be endowed in consequence with

miraculous powers for the cure of all diseases, but especiallyof those resulting from witchcraft. It was not only the poetwho employed him, but ladies who rode in their carriages.

He was often sent for from a distance of six ty or seventymiles by these people, who paid all his ex penses to and fro,besides rewarding him handsomely. He was about eightyyears of age, and his ex tremely venerable appearance s 1dcd

co

sus icica to his son - ia- law, Bridier, and they both wentt a sort of idiot, named Baudouin, who passed for a

conjuror, or white witch. This man told them that Des

bourdes was certainly bewitched, and ofl'

ered to accompanythem to the house of an old man, named Renard, who hesa id, was undoubtedly the criminal. On the night of the2 3d of January all three proceeded stealthfly to

gthe dwell

ing of Renard, and accused him of afllictin persons withdiseases, by the aid of the devil. Besheur es fell on his

knees , and earnestly entreated to be restored to his formerhealth, promising that he would take no measures against

him for the evil he had done. The old man denied in thestrongest terms that he was a wizard ; and when Desbourdesstill pressed him to remove the spell from him, he said he

knew nothing about the spell, and refused to remove it. Theidiot Baudouin

,the white witch, now interfered, and told his

companions that no relief for themalady could ever be procureduntil the old man confessed his guilt. To force him to confos

sion they lighted some sticks of sulphur,which they had broughtwith them for the purpose, andplaced them under the oldman

’

s

nose. In a few moments, he fell down sufl'

ocated and a

p:patently lifeless. Theywere all greatly alarmsd ; u 1d ting that theyhad ki lled the man

,

81.

they carried him out and

threw him into a neighbouring pond, hopping to make itappear that he had fallen 111 accidentally. The pond, however,was not very deep, and the coolness of the water revivingthe old man

,he opened his eyes and sat up. Desbourdes

and Bridier, who were still waiting on the bank, were now

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THE SLOW POISONERS .

Pa cers . The like was never read of.

M ilena—In my judgment,To all that shall but hear it,

’t wi ll appear

A most impossiblc fable.Troth, I

’ll tell you ,

And briefly as I can, by what degreesThey fell into this madness .

TH E atrocious system Of poisoning, by poisons so slow in

thei r Operation, as to make the victim appear, to ordinaryObservers, as if dying from a gradual decay Of nature, hasbeen practised in all ages . Those who are curious in the

matter may refer tO Beckmann on Secret Poisons, in his

History Of Inventions, in which he has collected severalin stances Of it from the Greek and Roman writers. Early inthe six teenth century the crime seems tO have gradually increased, till, in the seventeenth, it spread over Europe like a

pestilence. It was Often ex ercised by pretended witches and

sorcerers, and finally became a branch Of education amon at

all who laid any claim tO magical and supernatural arts .

8In

the twenty- first year Of Henry VIII . an act was passed, rendering it high treason : those found guilty Of it

,were to be

boiled to death.

One Of the first in pOint Of date, and hardly second tO anyin poin t Of atrocity, is the murder by this means Of S ir

Thomas Overbury, which di sgraced the court Of James I.,in

the year 1613 . A slight sketch Of it will be a fitting introduction to the history Of the poisoning mania, which was soprevalent in France and Italy fifty years later.Robert Kerr, a S cotti sh youth, was early taken notice Of

by James I .,and loaded with honours, for no other reason

that the world could ever discover than the beauty Of his per

THE SLOW POISONERS .

son . James, even in his own da was suspected Of beingaddicted to the most abominable 0 all Ofl

'

ences, and the more

we ex amine his history new, the stronger the suspicion be 1

comes. However that may be, the handsome Kerr, lendinghis smooth cheek, even in public, to the disgusting ki sses ofhis royal master, rose rapidly in favour. In the year 1613,he was made Lord H igh Treasurer Of S cotland, and created

an English peer, by the style and title Of Viscount Rochester.Still further honours were in store for him.

In this rapid promotion he had not been without a friend.S ir Thomas Overbury, the King

’

s secretary—who appears,from some threats in his own letters, tO have been no betterthan a pander to the vices Of theKing, and privy to his dangerous secrets—ex erted all his backstair influence to forward thepromotion Of Kerr, by whom he was doubtless repaid in some

way or other. Overbury did not confine his friendship tothis

,if friendship ever could ex ist between two such men, but

acted the part Of an entremetteur, and assisted Rochester to

carry on an adulterous intrigue with the Lady Frances Howard

,the wife Of the Earl Of Essex . This woman was a person

Of violent passions, and lost to all sense Of shame. Her hus

band was in her way, and to be freed from him,she instituted

proceedings for a divorce, on grounds which a woman Of anymodesty or delicacy Of feeling would die rather than avow.

I-Ier scandalous suit was successful,andwas no sooner decided

than preparations, on a scale Of the reatcst magnificence,

were made for her marriage with Lordlltochester.

S ir Thomas Overbury, who hadwillingly assisted his patronto intrigue with the Countess Of Essex , seems to have imaginedthat his marriage with so vile a woman might retard his advancement ; he accordingly employed all his influence to dissuade him from it. But Rochester was bent on the match,and his passions were as violent as those Of the Countess.On one occasion , when Overbury and the Viscount were walking in the gallery Of Whitehall, Overbury was overheard tosay,

“Well, my Lord, if you do marry that base woman, youwill utterly ruin your honour and yourself. You shall never

do it with my advice or consent ; and,if you do, you had best

lOOk tO stand fast. Rochester flung from him in rage, exclaiming with an oath, I will be even with you for this.

”

These words were the death- warrant Of the unfortunate Over

THE SLOW POISONERS .

bury. He had mortall wounded the pride Of Rochester in'

nsinuating that by his Overbury’

s)means he might be lowP

‘

ed in the King’

s favour ; and he had endeavoured to curbthe burn ing passions Of a heartless, dissolute, and reckless

Overbury'

s imprudent remonstrances were reported to theCountess ; and from that moment, she also vowed the most

leadly vengeance against him. With a fiendish h ocrisy,1owever, they both concealed their intentions, and (Tribrbury,It the solicitation Of Rochester, was appointed ambassador tohe court Of Russia. This apparent favour was but the firstttcp in a deep and deadly plot. Rochester

, pretendi n to be

warmly attached to the interests of Overbury, advised im to'

ofuse the embassy, which, he said,was but a trick tO get him

rut Of the way. He promised, at the same time,to stand

aetween him and any evil consequences which mi ht result

From his refusal. Overbury fell into the snare, an declined

the embassy. James, Ofl'

ended, immediately ordered his committal tO the Tower.H e was now in safe custody, and his enemies had opportu

nity to commence the work of vengeance. The first thingRochester did was to procure, by his influence at court, thedism issal of the Lieutenant Of the Tower

,and the appointment

of S ir Jervis Elwes,one Of his creatures, to the vacant post.

This man was but one instrument, and another being neces

sary,was found in RichardWeston , a fellow who had formerly

been shopman to a druggist. H e was installed in the office

Of under- keeper,and as such bad the direct custody Of Over

bury . SO far,all was favourable to the designs Of the con

sp1rators .

In the mean time, the insidious Rochester wrote the most

friendly letters to Overbury, requesting him to hear his ill

fortune patiently, and promising that his imprisonment shouldnot be of long duration ; for that his friends were ex ertingthemselves to soften the K ing

’

s displeasure. S till pretendingthe ex treme Of sympathy for him

,he followed up the letters by

presen ts of pastry and other delicacies, which could not be

procured in the Tower . These articles were all poisoned.

Occasionally,presents Of a similar description were sent to

S ir Jervis Elwes, with the understanding that these articleswere not poisoned, when they were unaccompanied by lettersvOL . r. 81

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THE BLOW POISONERS .

die, your shame shall never die,but ever remain tO the world,

to make you the most odious man living.

” “I wondermuch you should neglect him to whom such secrets Of all kindshave passed.

” “Be these the fruits Of common secrets,

common dangers ?A ll these remonstrances

,and hints as to the dangerous

sec rets in his keeping, were ill- calculated to serve him with a

man ao reckless as Lord Rochester : they were more likely tosam e him to be sacrificed than tO be saved. Rochester appearsto have acted as if he thought so. He doubtless employed themurderer’s reasoning that “dead men tell no tales,

”when ,

after receiving letters Of this description , he complained to his

paramour Of the delay . Weston was spurred on to consum

mate the atrocity ; and the patience Of all parties being ex

hansted, a dose Of corrosive sublimate was administered to him,

in October 16 13,which put an end to his sufferings, after he

ha d been for six months in their hands. On the very day Of

his death, and before his body was cold,he was wrapped up

carelessly in a sheet,and buried without any funeral ceremony

in a pit within the precincts of the Tower .S ir Anthony Weldon

,in his Court and Character Of

James I .

, gives a somewhat different account Of the closingscene Of this tragedy . H e says

,

“Franklin andWeston came

into Overbury’

s chamber,and found him in infin ite torment

,

with contention between the strength Of nature and the working Of the poison ; and it being very like that nature had gotten the better in this con tention , by the thrusting out Of boils,blotches, and blains, they, fearing it might come to light bythe judgment of physicians, the foul play that had been offeredhim ,

consen ted to stifle him with the bedclothes, which accordingly was performed ; and so endedhis m iserable life, with theassurance Of the conspirators that he died by the poison ; nonethinking otherwise than these two murderers .

The sudden death— the indecent haste Of the funeral,and

the non - holding Of an inquest upon the body,strengthened

the suspicions that were afloat. Rumour,instead Of whisper

ing, began to speak out ; and the relatives Of the deceased

openly ex pressed their belief that their kinsman had beenmurdered. But Rochester was still all- powerful at court, andno one dared to utter a word to his discredit. Shortly afterwards

,his marriagewith the Countess Of Essex was celebrated

'rns snow Porsox ans .

with the utmost splendour, the King himself being present atthe ceremony .

It would seem that Overbury’

s knowledge OfJames’

s charac

ter was deeper than Rochester had given him credit for, andthat he had been a true prophet when he predicted that hismarriage would eventually estrange James from his minion.

At this time,however, Rochester stood higher than ever in

the royal favour ; but it did not last long—conscience, that

busy mon itor, was at work . The tongue Of rumour was neverstill ; and Rochester, who had long been a guilty, became atlast a wretched man . His cheeks lost their colour—his eyes

grew dim ; and he became moody, careless, and melancholy.

he King seeing him thus, tOOk at length no pleasure in hissociety, and began to lOOk aboutfor another favcurite. GeorgeVilliers

,Duke of Buckingham, was the man to his mind;

qu ick- witted, handsome, and unscrupulous. The two latter

qualities alone were suflicient to recommend him to James I.In propO1 t1on as the influence Of Rochester declined, that OfBuckingham increased. A falling favourite has no friends ;and Rumour wagged her tongue against Rochester louder andmore pertinaciously than ever. A new favourite, too, generally endeavours to hasten by a kick the fall Of the Old one;and Buckingham,

anx ious to work the complete ruin of his

forerunner 111 theKing’

s goodgraces, encouraged the relativesOf S ir Thomas Overbury tO prosecute their inquiries into thestrange death Of their kinsman .

James was rigorous enough in the punishment Of Ofl’

ences

when he was not himself involved. He piqued himself, moreover, on his dex terity in unravelling mysteries. The afl

'

air of

S ir Thomas Overbury found him congenial occupation . He

set to work by ordering the arrest Of S ir Jervis Elwes.

James, at this early stage Of the proceedin 8, does not seem

to have been aware that Rochester was aodeeply implicated.

S truck with horror at the atrocious system Of slow poisoning,the King sent for all the Judges. According to S ir AnthonyWeldon

,he knelt down m the midst Of them, and said,

“MyL O1ds the Judges, it is lately come to my hearing thaty

ou

have now in ex amination a business Of poi soning. Lord .

what a miserable condition shall this kin dom be (the onlyfamous nation for hospitality 1n the world)Iour tables shouldbecome such a snare, as that none could eatwithout danger Of

THE SLOW POISONEBB.

’e , and that Italian custom should be introduced among us !

he refore, my Lords, I charge you, as you will answer 1t at

a t great and dreadful day Of judgment, that you ex amine it

ric tly, without favour, affection, or partiality. And if you

1a ll spare any guilty Of this crime, God’

s curse light on you1d your posterity ! and if I spare any that are gu1lty, God

’

s

u se light on me and my posterity for ever !”

The imprecation fell but tOO surely upon the devoted housef S tuart. The solemn oath was broken , and God

’

s curse did

ght upon him and his posterity !The nex t person arrested after S ir Jervis Elwes, was Wes

)n ,the under- keeper ; then Franklin and Mrs. Turner ; and,

tatly, the Earl and Countess Of Somerset, tO which dignitylochester had been advanced since the death Of Overbury.

Weston was first brought to trial. Public curiosity was on

he stretch. Nothing else was talked Of, and the court on theay of trial was crowded tO suffocation . The S tate Trials”

sport, that Lord Chief Justice Coke“laid Open tO the jury

he baseness and cowardliness Of poisoners,who attempt that

ecrc tly against which there is no means Of preservation or

efence for a man’

s life ; and how rare it was to hear Of anypoison ing in England, so detestable it was tO our nation . But

he devi l had taught divers to be cunn ing in it,so that they

an poison in what distance Of space they please, by consuminghe nativum colidam

,or hum idum radicale

,in one month

,

we or three,or more

,as they list

, which they four manner Ofrays do ex ecute ; viz .

,kanatu

, g ustu , odore, and contacta .

When the indictment was read over,Weston made no other

eply than , “Lord have mercy upon me ! Lord have mercy1pon me 3

”

On being asked how he wouldbe tried, he refusedO throw himself upon a jury Of his country, and declared, thatlc would be tried by God alone. In this he persisted for some1me. The fear Of the dreadful pun ishment for contumacy*

The pun ishment for the contumacious was ex pressed by the words

nere. frlgm'l’,of fame. By the first was mean t that the culpri t shou ld be

x tendcd on his back 011 the ground, and weights placed over his body,

;radua lly increased, unti l he ex pired . S ometimes the pun ishment was not

x tendecl to this length,and the victim , being allowed to recover, underwent

be second portion , thefrigore, which consisted in his standing naked in the

open air, for a certain space, in the sight of all the people. The third, or

ome, was more dreadful, the statute saying, That he was to be preserved3 1*

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THE BLOW POISONERS .

omerset, his accomplice, could not be brought to public ex e

ntion w ith safety. Hence the dreadful tortures of James,hen he discovered that his favourite was so deeply implitted in the murder of Overbury. Every means was takeny the agonized King to bring the prisoner into what was

tlled a safe frame of mind. He was secretly advised to

lead gu ilty, and trust to the clemency of the King. The

true advice was conveyed to the Countess. Bacon was in

.ructed by the King to draw up a paper of all the points of

mercy‘

and favour” to Somerset which might result fromno evidence and Somerset was again recommended to pleaduilty, and promised that no evil should ensue to him.

The Countess was first tried. She trembled and shed tearsuring the reading of the indictment, and, in a low voice,leaded guilty . On being asked why sentence of death should

at be passed against her, she replied meekly, I can much

;gravate, but nothing ex tenuate my fault. I desire mercy1d that the lords will intercede for me with the King.

en ten ce of death was pas sed upon her.

N ex t day the Earl was brought to trial. He appears tow e m istrusted the promises of James

,and he pleaded not

l ilty . With a self- possession and confidence, which he felt,'

obably, from his knowledge of the King’

s character, he

gorously cross- ex amined the witnesses,and made a stubborn

sfen ce. After a trial which lasted eleven hours, he was

un d gu ilty, and condemned to the felon'

s death.

W hatever may have been the secrets between the crim inal1d the King, the latter, notwithstanding his terrific oath

,

afraid to sign the death- warrant. It might, perchance,i ve been his own . The Earl and Countess were committed

D the Tower,where they remained for nearly five years . At

ie end of this period,to the surprise and scandal of the com

tun ity, and the disgrace of its chief magistrate, they bothceived the royal pardon

,but were ordered to reside at a

istanos from the court. Having been found guilty of felony,1c estates of the Earl had become forfeited ; but Jamesran ted him out of their revenues an income of per

nnum ! Shamelessness could go no further .Of the after life of these crim inals nothing is known , ex cept

l at the love they had formerly borne each other was changed

THE SLOW POISONERS .

into aversion , and that they lived under the same roof for

months together without the interchange of a word.

The ex posure of their atrocities did not put a stop to the

practice of poison ing. On the contrary, as we shall see here

after, it engendered that msene imitation which 18 so strange

a feature of the human character. James himself 18 m

gposed,with great probability, to have fallen a victim to it.

the notes to “Harris’8 Life and Writings of James I. , there

is a good deal of information on the subject. The guilt of

Buckingham,although not fully established, rests upon cir

cumstances of suspicion stronger than have been sufficient to

lead hundreds to the scaffold. H is motives for committingthe crime are stated to have been a desire of revenge for thecoldness with which the King, in the latter years of his

reign , began to regard him ; his fear that James intended todegrade him ; and his hope that the great influence he possessed over the mind of the heir- apparent would last througha new reign , if the old one were brought to a close.

In the second volume of the Harleian Miscellany,there

is a tract, entitled the Forerunner of Revenge,”written by

George Eglisham,doctor of medicine, and one of the physi

eiaus to King James . Harris,in quoting it, says it is full of

rancour and prejudice. It is evidently ex aggerated ; but forms,nevertheless, a link in the chain of evidence. E lisham says:

The King being sick of an ague, the Duke too this Oppertuni ty, when all the King

’

8 doctors of physio were at dinner,and offered to him a white powder to take, the which he a longtime refused; but, overcome with his flattering importunity,he took it in wine, and immediately became worse and worse,falling into many swoon ings and pains

,and violent flux es of

the belly,so tormented, that his Majesty cried out aloud of this

white powder,

‘Would to God I had never taken it!’ He

then tells us“Of the Countess of Buckingham (the Duke

’

s

mother) applying the plaster to the King’

s heart and breast,whereupon he grew faint and short- breathed, and in agonyThat the physicians ex claimed

, that the King was poisoned;that Buckingham commanded them out of the room

,and com

m itted one of them close prisone1 to his own chamber,and

another to be 1emoved f1om court ; and that, after his Majesty 8death, his body and head swelled above measure ; his hair,with the skin of his head

,stuck to his pillow, and his nails

his fingers and toes. Clarendon, who, byw ay, was a partisan of the Duke’

s, gives a totally differentaount of James ’s death. He says,

“It was occasioned byague (after a short indisposition by the gout)which, meetmany humours in a fat unwieldy body of fifty

- oi ht years1, in four or five fits carried him out of the worl Afterose death many scandalous and libellous discourses were

sed, without the least colour or ground; as appeared upon1 strictest and most malicious ex amination that could be

de, long after, in a time of license, when nobody was afraidofl

'

ending majesty, and when prosecuting the highest

iroaches and contumelies against the royal family was held

7 meritorious.

”Notwithstanding this confident declara

n, the world will hardly be persuaded that there was not

no truth in the rumours that were abroad. The inquiriesich were instituted were not strict, as he asserts, and all the

constitutional influence of the powerful favouritewas ex erteddefeat them. In the celebrated accusations brought againstckingham by the Earl of Bristol

,the poison ing of King

rnes was placed last on the list, and the pages of historyi t evidence of the summary mode in which they were, for1 time

, got rid of.

The man from whom Buckingham is said to have procured

poisons was one Dr . Lamb, a conjuror and empiric, who,sides dealing in poisons, pretended to be a fortune- teller.e popular fury, which broke with comparative harmlessnessainst his patron, was directed against this man, until he

11d not appear with safety in the streets of London . H is

e was melancholy. Walking one day in Cheapside, disised, as he thought, from all observers, he was recognisedsome idle boys, who began to hoot and pelt him with rub

.h,callin out,

“The poisoner ! the poisoner ! Down with1 wizard . down with him A mob very soon collected,d the Doctor took to hi s heels and ran for his life. He was

rsued and seized in Wood S treet, and from thence draggedthe hair through the mire to S t. Paul’s Cross ; the mobsting him with sticks and stones, and calling out,

“Kill thecard ! kill the poisoner !"

Charles I., on hearing of the riot

,rode from Whitehall to

ell it ; but he arrived too late to save the victim. Every bonehis body was broken, and he was quite dead. Charles was

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THE SHOW POISONERS .

11m , and as it has no taste at all, Gennaro will suspect

ng.

The Duke further informs us that the dose was duly admi

1istered; but that Gennaro, fortunately for himself, ate nothingz‘

or dinner that day but cabbage dressed with oil, which actingus an antidote, caused him to vomit profusely, and saved his

i fe. Hewas ex ceedingly ill for five days, but never suspectedthat he had been poisoned.

In process of time, ison vending becamea profitable trade.

Eleven years after t is period, it was carried on at Rome to

such an ex tent that the slu h government was roused to

interference. Beckmann, in History of Inventions,and Lebret, in his “Magasa

'

n sum Gebrauche der S‘taaten

Kit-eke Geschichtc,”

or Magazine of Materials for a Historyof a S tate Church, relates that, in the year 1659, itwas madeknown to Pope Alex ander VII. that great numbers of younwomen had avowed in the confessional that they had po1sonetheir husbands with slow poisons. The Catholic clergy, whoin general hold the secrets of the confessional so sacred, wereshocked and alarmed at the ex traordinary prevalence of the

crime. Although they refrained from revealing the names of

the penitents , they conceived themselves bound to apprise thehead of the church of the enormities that were practised. It

was also the subject of general conversation at Rome that

young widows were unusually abundant. It was remarked,too, that if any couple lived unhappily together, the husbandsoon took ill and died. The papal authorities

, when once theybegan to inquire

, soon learned that a society of young wiveshad been formed, and met n ightly, for some mysterious pur

pose, at the house of an old woman named H ieronyma Spara .

This hag was a reputed witch'

and fortune- teller, and acted as

president of the young viragos, several of whom,it was after

wards ascertained, belonged to the first families of Rome. In

order to have positive evidence of the practices of this femaleconclave, a lady was employed by the Government to seek an

interview with them. She dressed hei‘self out in the most

magn ificent style and having been amply provided with

money, she found but little difliculty, when she had stated her

object, of procuring an audience of La Spara and her sisterhood. She pretended to be in ex treme di stress of mind on

account of the infidelitigs and ill- treatment of her husband,

THE BLOW POISONER S .

and implored La Spara to furnish her with -

a few drops of

the wonderful eli x ir, the eflicacy of which in send'

husbands to their last long sleep was so much va

the ladies of Rome. La Spara fell into the snare, and sold

her some of her drops, at a price commensurate with the

supposed wealth of the purchaser.The liquor thus obtained was subjected to an analysis , and

found to be, as was suspected, a slow poison—c lear, tasteless,and limpid, like that spoken of by the Duke of Guise. Uponthis evidence the house was surrounded by the police, and LaSpara and her companions taken into custody. La Spara,who is described as having been a little

,u ly, old woman,

was put to the torture, but obstinately refusedto confess her

gu ilt. Another of the women , named L a Gratiosa , had lessfirmness, and laid bare all the secrets of the infernal sister

hood. Taking a confession, ex torted by angu ish on the rack,at its true value (nothing at all), there is still suflicient evi

dence to warrant posterity in the belief of their guilt. Theywere found guilty, and condemned

,according to their degrees

of culpability, to various punishments. L a S para , Gratiosa,and three young women , who had poisoned their husbands,were hanged together at Rome. Upwards of thirty womenwere whipped publicly through the streets ; and several, whosehigh rank screened them from more degrading pun ishment,were ban ished from the country, and mulcted in heavy fines.In a few months afterwards

,n ine women more were hanged

for poison ing ; and another bevy, including many young and

beautiful girls, were whipped half naked through the streetsof Rome.

This severity did not put a step to the practice, and jealouswomen and avaricious men , anx ious to step into the inheritanceof fathers

,uncles, or brothers, resorted to poison . As it was

qu ite free from taste, colour, and smell, it was administeredwithout ex citing suspicion . The skilful vendors compoundedit of different degrees of strength, so that the poisoners hadonly to say whether they wanted their victims to die in a week,

a mon th,or si x months, and they were suited with correspond

ing doses. The vendors were chiefly women , of whom the

most celebrated was a bag, named Tophania, who was in thisway accessory to the death of upwards of six hundred persons.This woman appears to have been a dealer in poisons from

THE BLOW POISONERS .

girlhood, and resided first at Palermo and then at Naples.

st entertaining traveller, Father Lebat, has given, in hishters from Italy

,many curious particulars relating to her.

1en he was at CivitaVecchia, in 1719, theViceroy of Naplescovered that poison was ex tensively sold in the latter citi that it went by the name of aqueta, or little

- water. 11

king further inquiry, he ascertained that Tophania (who5 by this time near seventy years of age, and who seems to

re begun her evil courses very soon after the ex ecution of

S para)sent large quantities of it to all parts of Italy inall vials, with the inscription Manna of S t. Nicholas ofrn .

I‘he tomb of S t. Nicholas of Barri was celebrated through

Italy. A miraculous oil was said to ooze from it, which

'

cd nearly all the maladies that flesh is heir to, provided1 recipient made use of it with the due degree offaith. La

phan ia artfully gave this name to her poison to elude the

ilanee of the custom- house oflicers, who, in common with

rybody else, had a pious respect for S t. Nicholas de Barri1 his wonderful oil.The poison was similar to that manufactured by La Spara.

1hnemann , the physician, and father of the homoeopathicstrine, writing upon this subject

,says it was compounded

arsen ical neutral salts,occasion ing in the victim a gradual

s of appetite, faintness, gnawing pains in the stomach, loss

strength, and wasting of the lungs . The Abbé Gagliardirs that a few drops of it were generally poured into tea,scolate, or soup

,and its effects were slow,

and almost

perceptible. Garelli,physician to the Emperor ofAustria,

a letter to Ilofln1ann , says it was crystallized arsen ic, dis

ved in a large quan tity of water by decoction , with the

dition (for some unex plained purpose)of the herb cymbala

1. The Neapolitans called it Aqua Tofl’m

'

na and it

came notorious all over Europe under the name of Aqua

Although this woman carried on her infamous traflic so

tensively, it was ex tremely diflicult to meet with her. She

ed in continual dread of discovery . She constantly changedr name and residence ; and pretending to be a person of

cat godliness, resided in monasteries for months together.henever shewas more than usually apprehensive ofdetection ,roa. 1 . 82

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THE BLOW POISONERS .

o the city with provisions, so long as it remained under the

an . There would have been too much inconvenience to

imself and his ghostly brethren in such a measure ; and, as

he Viceroy anticipated, the good Cardinal reserved his

handers for some other occasion .

S till there was the populace. To quiet their clamour and

.vert the impending insurrection, the agents of the govern

men t adroitly mingled with the people, and spread abroad a

sport that Tophan ia had poisoned all the wells and fountains

f the city. his was enough. The popular feeling turned

gainst her immediately. Those who, but a moment before,tad looked upon her as a saint, now reviled her as a devil,.nd were as eager for her punishment as they had before been'

or her escape. Tophania was then put to the torture. She

aonfessed the long catalogue of her crimes, and named all the

1arsons who had employed her. She was shortly afterwardstrangled, and her corpse thrown over the wall into the gardensf the convent, from whence she had been taken . This appears0 have been done to conciliate the clergy, by allowing them,

1t least, the burial of one who had taken refuge within their1recincts .

After her death the man ia for poison ing seems to have

1bated ; but we have yet to see what hold it took upon thefrench people at a somewhat earlier period. So rooted hadt become in France between the years 1670 and 1680, that

Vl adame dc Sevigne, in one of her letters, ex presses her fear.hat Frenchman and poisoner would become synonymous.erms .

As in Italy, the first notice the government received of the

Jrevalence of this crime was given by the clergy, to whomfemales of high rank, and some among the middle and lowerslasses, had avowed in the confessional that they had poisonedheir husbands . In consequence of these disclosures, twoItalians, named Ex ili and Glaser, were arrested, and throwninto the Bastille, on the charge of compounding and sellingthe drugs used for these murders. Glaser died 111 prison

, but

Ex ili remained without trial for several months ; and there,shortly afterwards, he made the acquaintance of another prisoner, named Sainte Croix , by whose ex ample the crime wasstill further disseminated among the French people.

The most notorious of the poisoners that derived their

THE BLOW POISONERS .

pernicious knowledge from this man was Madame de Brinvil

liers, a young woman connected both by birth and marriagewith some of the noblest families of France. She seems, from

her very earliest years, to have been heartless and depraved;and

,if we may believe her own confession , was steeped in

wickedness ere she had well entered her teens . She was,however, beautiful and accomplished ; and

, in the eye of the

world,seemed ex emplary and kind. Guyot de Pitaval, in the

Causes Célébres,”

and Madame de Sevigne, in her Letters,represent her as mild and agreeable in her manners, and

offering no traces on her countenance of the evil soul .within.

She was married in 165 1 to the Marqu is de Brinvilliers, withwhom she lived unhappily for some years. He was a loose,dissipated character, and was the means of introducing SainteCroix to his wife

,a man who cast a blight upon her life, and

dragged her on from crime to crime till her offences becameso great that the mind shudders to dwell upon them. For

this man she conceived a guilty passion , to gratify which sheplunged at once into the gu lf of sin . She was drawn to its

most loathsome depths ere retribution overtook her.

She had as yet shown a fair outside to the world, and foundbut little difficulty in efl

'

ecting a legal separation from her

husband,who had not the art to conceal his vices . The pro

ceeding gave reat oflence to her family. She appears, afterthis, to have t rown ofl

’

the mask completely, and carried on

her intrigues so openly with her lover, Sainte Croix , that herfather

,M . D

'

Aubray, scandalized at her conduct, procured alettre de cachet

,and had him imprisoned in the Bastille for a

twelvemonth.

Sainte Croi x , who had been in Italy, was a dabbler in poisons. He knew something of the secrets of the detestable

La Spara, and improved himself in them from the instructionsof Ex ili

,withwhom he speedily contracted a sort of friendship.

By him he was shown how to prepare,not only the liquid

poisons employed in Italy, but that known as succession w

der, which afterwards became so celebrated in France. ike

his mistress, he appeared amiable, witty, and intelligent, andshowed no signs to the world of the two fierce passions,revenge and avarice, which were gnawing at his heart. Boththese passions were to be sated on the unfortunate family of

D’

Aubray ; his revenge, because they had imprisoned him ;

TH] SLOW POISONERS .

it!his avarice, because they were rich. Reckless and ex trasgant , he was alwa s in want of money, and he had no one

"apply him but h adame de Brinvilliers,whose own portion

p far from sufi cient to satisfy his need. Groaning to thinki t any impediment should stand between him and wealth,l eonceived the horrid idea of poisoning M . D

’

Aubray her

H er, and her two brothers, that she might inherit the prop ty. Three murders were nothing to such a villain . He

h mun icated his plan to Madame de Brinvilliers ; and she,“cut the slightest scruple, agreed to aid him he undertookNon pound the poisons, and she to administer them. The

l l and alacrity with which she set to work seem hardly cre

Sainte Croix found her an apt scholar ; and she soon

m e as ex pert as himself in the manufacture of poisons.

1 try the stren h of the first doses, she used to administerI n to dogs, ra bits, and pigeons . Afterwards

,wishing to

more certain of their effects, she went round to the hos

als , and administered them to the sick poor in the soupsich she brought in apparent charity .

* None of the poisonsre in tended to kill at the first dose ; so that she could try

on ce upon an individual w ithout fear of murder . She

ed the same atrocious ex periment 11 on the guests at her

her'

s ta ble, by poisoning a pigeon -

pie To be more certainll, she nex t poisoned herself ! When convinced by this

sperate essay of the potency of the draught, she procuredan tidote from S ainte Croix , and all doubts being removed,mmenced operations upon her gray- headed father . She

min istered the first dose with her own hands, in his choco

te. The poison worked well. The old man was taken ill,1d his daughter, apparently full of tenderness and an x iety,i tched by his bedside. The nex t day she gave him some'oth, which she recommended as highly nourishing . Thisso was poisoned. In this manner she gradually were out

a frame, and in less than ten days he was a corpse ! H is

sath seemed so much the result of disease that no suspicionsere ex cited.

This is deni ed by Voltaire in his “Age of Lou is XIV but he does

wt state for what reason . His words are, Il est fau x qu’

elle eut essayé

s poisons dans les h6pitau x , com e 10 di sa it lo peuple et comme 11 est

rit dans les ‘Causes Celebres,’ouvrage d

’un avocat sans cause et fa1t

or la peuple.

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TH! SLOW POISONERS .

i s he appeared to be without friends or relatives, the policeook possession of his effects. Among other things was

ound a small box , to which was affix ed the following singularlocument

I humbly be that these into whose hands this box may'

all,will do me t e favour to deliver it into the hands only of

he Marchioness de Brinvilliers, who resides in the R ueNeuveit. Paul, as everything it contains concerns her, and belongs0 her alone and as , besides, there is nothing in it that can

10 of use to any person but her. In case she shall be dead1sfere me, it is my wish that it be burned, with everythingt contains, without open ing or altering anything. In orderhat no one may plead ignorance, I swear by the God that I1dore, and by all that is held most sacred, that I assert no

.hing but the truth : and ifmy intentions, just and reasonable18 they are, be thwarted in this point by any persons, Iharge their consciences with it, both in this world and that

vhich is to come, in order that I may unload mine. I proest that this is my last wi ll. Done at Paris

, the 2 5 th of

flay, 167 2 .

(S igned)“SAINTE Cnorx .

This earnest solicitation, instead of insuring respect as wasn tended, ex cited curiosity . The box was opened, and found.0 contain some papers, and several vials and powders. The

utter were handed to a chemist for analysis,and the docu

neu ts were retained by the police, and opened. Among.hem was found a promissory note of the Marchioness deBrinvilliers

,for thirty thousand francs, to the order of Sainte

Droi x . The other papers were of greater importance, as theymplicated both her and her servant, La Chaussée, in the°

ecent murders. As soon as she was informed of the death

1f Sainte Croi x , she made an attempt to gain possess ion of

1is papers and the box ; but, being refused, she saw there was10 time to be lost, and immediately quitted. Nex t morn ing.he police were on her trail ; but she succeeded in escaping toEngland. La Chaussée was not so fortunate. Altogether

gnorant of the fatal mischance which had brou ht his vil

an ies to light, he did not dream of danger. e was ar

'

ested and brought to trial : being put to the torture, he con'

essed that he had administered poison to the Messieurs

THE SLOW POISONERS .

d’

Aubray, that he had received a hundred pistoles, and the

prom ise of an annuity for life, from Sainte Croix andMadame

de Brinvilliers,for the job. He was condemned to be broken

alive on the wheel, and the Marchioness was, bydefault, sentenced to be beheaded. He was ex ecuted accordingly, in

March, 1673, on the Place de Greve, in Paris .

L a Brinvilliers appears to have resided for nearly three

years in England. Early in 16 76 , thinking that the rigour

of pursuit was over, and that she might venture to return tothe Continent, she proceeded secretly to Liege. Notwith

standing her care, the French authorities were soon apprisedof her return ; and arrangements were promptly made withthe municipality of that city

,to permit the agents of the

French police to arrest her within the limits of their jurisdiction . Desgrais, an cflicer of the marechaussée, accordinglyleft Paris for that purpose. On his arrival in Liege, hefound that she had sought shelter within the walls of a con

vent. Here the arm of the law,long as it is said to he, could

not reach her ; but D esgrais was not a man to be baflled, and

he resorted to stratagem to accomplish what force could not.

Having disguised himself as a priest, he sought admission to

the convent,and obtained an interview with La Brinvill iers.

He said,that being a Frenchman

,and passing through Liege,

he cou ld not leave that city without paying a visit to a ladywhose beauty and misfortunes were so celebrated. Her

van ity was flattered by the compliment. D esgrais saw, to use

a vulgar, but forc ible ex pression, that he had got on the blindside of her ; and he adroitly continued to pour out the language of love and admiration , till the deludedMarchioness wasthrown completely off her guard. She agreed, without muchsolicitation

,to meet him outside the walls of the convent,

where their amorous intrigue might be carried on more con

veniently than within . Faithful to her appointment with hersupposed new lover

,she came, and found herself, not in the

embrace of a gallant, but 111 the custody of a policeman .

Her trial was not long delayed. The proofs against her

were abundant. The dying declaration of La Chausséewouldhave been alone enough to convict her but besides that,there were the mysterious document attached to the box of

S ainte Croix ; her flight from France ; and, stronger andmoredamn ing proof than all

,a paper

,in her own handwritingg,

foundamong the effects of Sainte Croix , m which she detailed

Ti l l-1 snow wu so x nns . 381

to him the misdeeds ofher life,and spoke ofthe murder ofher

father and brothers,in terms that left no doubt of her guilt.

During the trial, all Paris was in commotion . La Brinvilliers

was the only subject of conversation . All the details of her

crimes were published and greedily devoured ; and the idea of

secret poisoning was first put into the heads of hundreds, whoafterwards became guilty of it.

On the l 6 th of July 1676 , the Superior Criminal Court of

Pa ri s pronounced a verdict of guilty against her, for the murder of her father and brothers

,and the attempt upon the life

of her sister. She was condemned to be drawn on a hurdle,w i th her feet bare. a rope about her neck, and a burn ing torchi n her hand, to the great entrance of the cathedral of NotreD ame where she was to make the amends honorable, in sight

of a ll the people ; to be taken from thence to the Place deG reve, and there to be beheaded. Her body was afterwardsto be burned, and her ashes scattered to the winds.

After her sentence, she made a full confession of her guilt.

S he s eems to have looked upon death without fear ; but itwasrecklessness, not courage, that supported her. Madame de

S evigne says, that when on the hurdle, on herway to the scaffold

,she entreated her confessor to ex ert his influence with

the ex ecutioner to place himself nex t to her,that his body

m ight hide from her view “that scoundrel

,D esgrais, who

had entrapped her.

”

She also asked the ladies who hadbeendrawn to their windows to witness the procession ,

what theywere looking at adding,

“a pretty sight you have come to

see,truly She laughedwhen on the scaffold

,dying as she

had lived,impen itent and heartless. On the morrow

,the

populace came in crowds to collect her ashes, to preserve themas relics . She was regarded as a martyred saint, and her ashes

were supposed to be endowed, by Divine Grace, with the powerof cu ring all diseases. Popular folly has often canon ized

persons whose preten sions to sanctitywere ex tremely equivocal;but the disgusting folly of the multitude, in this instance, has

never been surpassed.

Before her death, proceedings were instituted against M . de

Penautier,treasurer of the province of Languedoc, and R e

ceiver -

general for the clergy, who was accused by a lady,named S t. Laurent

, of hav1ng poisoned her husband, the lateReceiver-

general in order to obtain his appointment. The

circumstances of this casewere never di vulged, and the great

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THE BLOW POISONEBB.

he wanted to get rid of their husbands ; and, in some few

stances, to husbands who wanted to get rid of their wives.

heir ostensible occupation was that of midwives. They alsostended to be fortune- tellers, and were visited by personsevery class of society. The rich and poor thronged aliketheir mansardes, to learn the secrets of the future. Theirephecies were principally ofdeath. They foretold to womene approaching dissolution of husbands, and to needy heirs,e end of rich relatives, who had made them,

as Byron ex

esses it,“wait too, too long already. They generally

oh care to be instrumental in fulfilling their own predicon s. They used to tell their wretched employers, that some

gn of the approaching death would take place in the house,1ch as the breaking of glass or china ; and they paid servants1nsiderable fees to cause a breakage, as if by accident, ex actlyt the appointed time. Their occupation as midwives made

1em acquainted with the secrets of many families, which theyfterwards turned to dreadful account.It is not known how long they had carried on this awful

'

ade before they were discovered. Detection finally overtookaem at the close of the year 1679 . They were both tried,Jund gu ilty, and burned alive on the Place dc Greve, on the

2 d of February,1680

,after their hands had been bored

brough with a red- hot iron , and then cut off. Their nume

ous accomplices in Paris and in the provinces were also dis

overed and brought to trial. According to some authors,

hirty, and to others, fifty of them, chiefly women , wereanged in the principal cities .

L avoisin kept a list of the visitors who came to her house

0 purchase poisons . This paper was seized by the police on

er arrest, and ex amined by the tribunals. Among the namesrere found those of the Marshal de Lu x embourg, the Countesse S o issons, and the Duchess de Bouillon . The Marshalcome only to have been guilty of a piece of disc 1editable follya vis iti ng a woman of this description

,but the popular 1 oice

.t the time imputed to him something mei e than fo .lly The

uther of the “Memoirs of the Affairs of Europe since the’eace of Utrecht, says,

“The m iserable gang who dealt in1oison and prophecy alleged that he had sold himself to the

le1 1l and that a young girl of the name of D upin had been1oisoned by his means. Among other stories, they said he

1ad made a contract with the devil, in order to marry his son

THE SLOW POISONEBB.

to the daughter of the Marquis of Louvois. To this atrocious

and absurd accusation the Marshal, who had surrendered himself at the Bastille on the first accusation against him, replied,w ith the mingled sentiment of pride and 1nnocenee,

‘WhenMathieu de Montmorenci, my ancestor, married the w idow of

Louis le Gros, he did not have recourse to the devil, but to

the S tates- General, in order to obtain for the minor king thesupport of the house of Montmorenc1. This brave man wasimprisoned in a cell six feet and a half long, and his trial,which was interrupted for several weeks, lasted altogether

fourteen months. No judgment was pronounced upon him.

”

The Countess of Soissons fled to Brussels, rather than anderge the risk of a trial ; and was never able to clear herselffrom the stigma that attached to her

,of having made an

attempt to poison the Queen of Spain by doses of succession

powder. The Duchess of Bou illon was arrested, and tried bythe Chambre Ardente. It would appear

,however, that she

had nothin to do with the slow poisons, but had merelyendeavours to pry into the secrets of futurity, and gratifyher curiosity with a sight of the devil. One of the presidentsof the Chambre, La Reyn ie, an 11 ly little old man

,very seri

ously asked her whether she hadreally seen the devil ; to

which the lady replied, looking him full in the face,“Oh yes!

I see him now . He is in the form of a little ugly old man,ex ceedingly ill- natured, and is dressed in the robes of a coun

sellor of state.

”M . la R eyn ie prudently refrained from

asking any more questions of a lady with so sharp and readya tongue. The Duchess was imprisoned for several months

in the Bastille ; and nothing being proved against her, she wasreleased at the intercess ion of her powerful friends . The

severe pun ishmen t of criminals of this note might have helpedto abate the fever of imitation among the vulgar — their comparative impunity had a contrary tendency. The escape of

Penautier, and the wealthy Cardinal de Bouzy his employer,had the most pern icious effect. For two years longer thecrime continued to rage, and was not finally suppressed till

the stake had blazed,or the noose dangled, for upwards of a

hundred individuals.

E N D V O L . I .

MEMO I R S

E X T R A O R D I N A R Y

POPULAR DELU S IO S .

BY CHARLES MACKAY ,

3 01 8 0! 0!

rm ; m u ss Aim rrs rmnu'ram zs,

”rnn s on or run wonnn, n o.

I! eat bon do connaitre les dellres de l’esprit humain . Cheque peuple a

m fblles plus ou molns grosslé res.

”—Mn.w r.

VO L . I I .

PH IL AD EL P H IA :

L I N D S A Y A N D B L A K I S T O N .

1 8 5 0.

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ATIONAL DELUSIONS .

THE CRUSADES .

They heard, and up they sprung upon the winglnnumerable. As when the potent rodOf Amram

’

s son , in Egypt’s evil day,Waved round the coast, up call

’d a pitchy cloud

Of locu sts , warp ing on the eastern w ind

That o’

er the realm of 1mpiena Pharaoh hungLike n ight, and darken

'd all the realm of Nile,

So numberless were they .

i t s l » a a

Al l in a moment through the gloom were seen

Ten thou sand banners rise into the air,W ith orient colours waving . Wi th them rose

A forest huge of spears and thronging helmsAppear

’

d, and serried shields, in thi ck array,Of depth immeasurable. Paradise L ost.

age has its peculiar folly— some scheme, project, orrsy into which it plunges, spurred on either by the love1,the necessity of ex citement, or the mere force of imi

Failing in these,it has some madness, to which it is

l by political or religious causes, or both combined.

one of these causes influenced the Crusades,and con

to render them the most ex traordinary instance uponof the ex tent to which popular enthusiasm can be

1. H istory in her solemn page informs us,that the

cm were but ignorant and savage men, that their meu . 2

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THE CRUSADES .

en s of the Temple, on the solemn Mount of Olives, or thew fu l Calvary, where a God had bled for sinful men . To

hese p ilgrims every object was precious. Relics were eagerlyou ght after flagons of water from Jordan, or panniers of

nou ld from the hill of the Crucifix ion, were brought home,1nd sold at ex travagant prices to churches and monasteries.

More apocryphal relics, such as the wood of the true cross,;he tears of the Virgin Mary, the heme of her garments, thezoo - nails and hairmf the Apostles— even the tents that Pauland helped to manufacture—were ex hibited for sale by thekn avish in Palestine, and brought back to Europe with won

drous cost and care.

" A grove of a hundred oaks would not

have furnished all the wood sold in little morsels as remnantsof the true cross ; and the tears ofMary, if collected together,would have filled a cistern .

For upwards of two hundred ears the pilgrims met withno impediment in Palestine.

'the enlightened Haroun AlR eschid, and his more immediate successors, encouraged thestream which brought so much wealth into Syria, and treatedthe wayfarers with the utmost courtesy . The race of Fate

mite caliphs,— who

,although in other respects as tolerant,

were more distressed for money, or more unscrupulous in

obtain ing it, than their predecessors of the house ofAbbas,imposed a tax of a bezant for each pilgrim that entered J erusalem . This was a serious hardship upon the poorer sort

,

who had begged their weary way across Europe, and arrivedat the bourne of all their hopes without a coin . A great outcry was immediately raised, but still the tax was rigorouslylevied. The pilgrims unable to pay were compelled to remainat the gate of the holy city un til some rich devotee arrivingw ith his train, paid the tax and let them in. Robert of Nor

mandy, father of William the Conqueror,who, in common

w ith many others of the highest rank, undertook the pilgrimage, found on his arrival scores of pilgrims at the gate,an x iously ex pecting his coming to pay the tax for them.

Upon no occasion was such a been refused.

The sums drawn from this source were a mine of wealth to

the Moslem governors of Palestine, imposed as the tax had

been at a time when pilgrimages had become more numerousthan ever . A strange idea had taken possession of the popu

lar mind at the close of the tenth and commencement of the

THE CRUSADES .

eleventh century. It was un iversally behaved that the end

of the world was at hand ; that the thousand ears of the

Apocalypse were near completion, and that esus Christwould descend upon Jerusalem to judgemankind. All Christendem was in commotion . A panic terror seized upon theweak

,the credulous, and the gu ilty, who in those days formed

more than nineteen - twentieths of the population . Forsakingtheir homes, kindred, and occupation , they crowded to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Lord, lightened, as theyimagined, of a load of sin by their weary pil image. To

increase the panic,the stars were observed to fal from heaven,

earthquakes to shake the land, and violent hurricanes to blowdown the forests. All these, and more especially the meteoricphenomena, were looked upon as the forerunners of the ap

proaching judgments. Nat a meteor shot athwart the horizonthat did not fill a district with alarm,

and send away to Jerusalem a score of pilgrims, with stafl

'

in hand and wallet on

their back,praying as they went for the remission of their

sins. Men , women , and even children,‘

trudged in droves tothe holy city, in ex pectation of the day when the heavens

would open,and the Son of God descend in his glory.

ex traordinary delusion,while it augmented the numbers,

increased also the hardships of the pilgrims. Beggars becameso numerous on all the highways between the west of Europeand Constantinople that the monks, the great alms-

givers

upon these occasions, would have brought starvation within

sight of their own doors, if they had not economized their

resources, and left the devotees to shift for themselves as theycould. Hundreds of them were glad to subsist upon the

berries that ripened by the road, who, before this great flux ,mi

ght have shared the bread and flesh of the monasteries.

ut this was not the greatest of their difficulties . On their

arrival in J erusalem they found that a sterner race had ob

tained possession of the Holy Land. The caliphs of Bagdadhad been succeeded by the harsh Turks of the race of Seljook,who looked upon the pilgrims with con tempt and aversion.

The Turks of the eleventh century were more feroc ious and

less scrupulous than the S aracens of the tenth. They wereannoyed at the immense number of pilgrims who overran the

country, and still more so because they showed no intention

of qu itting it. The hourly ex pectation of the last judgment

m OBUBADH .

and the Turks, apprehensive of being atst driven soil by the swarms that were still arrivmg,aped up difi culties in their wa Persecution of every kind"s ited them. The were plun red, and beaten with stripes,dkept in suspense ormonthsat thegates ofJerusalem,unable

wythe golden bezant that was to facilitate their entrance.

hen the first epidemic terror of the day ofju ent began

subside, a few pilgrims ventured to return to urope, their

aerts big with indignation at the insults they had sufl'

ered.

rerywhere as they passed they related to a

1ditory the wrongs of Christendom. Strange to say, even

use recitals increased themania for pilgrimage. The greater

e dangers of the way, the more chance that sins of deepdye

mld be atoned for. D ifiiculty and suffering only heightenede merit, and freshhordes issued from every town and village,win favour in the sight of Heaven by a yisit to the holy

pnlchre. Thus did things continue through the whole of theeventh century.

The train that was to ex plode so fearfully was now laid, andere wanted but the hand to apply the torch. At last the

an appearedupon the scene. Like all who have ever achieved

great an end,Peter the Hermit was ex actly suited to the

;e ; neither behind it, nor in advance of it : but acute enough

penetrate its mystery ere it was discovered by any other.nthusiastic, chivalrous, bigoted, and, if not insane, not far

moved from insanity, he was the very prototype of the time.

rue enthusiasm is always persevering and always eloquent,1d these two qualities were un ited in no common degree into person of this ex traordinary reacher. He was a monkAm iens, and ere he assumed t e hood had served as a sol

er. He is represented as having been ill favoured and low

stature, but with an eye of surpassing brightness and intel

gence. Having been seized with the mania of the a e, be

sited Jerusalem, and remained there till hi s blood boi ed tose the cruel persecution heaped upon the devotees. On his

eturn home he shook the world by the eloquent story of theirron

Befire entering into any further details of the astoundings alts of his preaching, it will be advisable to cast a glance

the state of the mind of Europe, that we may understandl the better the causes of his

z

success. First of all, therewasi

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THE CRUSADES .

1ulpi t with regard to the life to come. War was the business

md the delight of their ex istence ; and when they were pron ised remission of all their sins upon the easy condition of

Follow ing their favourite bent, is it to be wondered at that therushed with enthusiasm to the onslaught, and became as sea

one in the service of the Cross as the

great majority of the

e0ple, who were swayed b more pure y religious motives ?

anaticism and the love of attle alike impelled them to the

war, while the kings and princes of Europe had still another

motive for encouraging their zeal. Policy opened their eyesto the great advantages which would accrue to themselves, bythe absence of so many restless, intriguing, and bloodthirstymen , whose insolence it required more than the small power

of royalty to restrain within due bounds. Thus every motivewas favourable to the Crusades . Every class of society wasalike incited to join or encours e the war ; kings and the clergyby policy

,the nobles by turb ence and the love of domin ion,

and the people by religious zeal and the concentrated enthu

siasm of two centuries, skilfully directed by their only instructors.

It was in Palestine itself that Peter the Hermit first conceived the grand idea of rousing the powers of Christendomto rescue the Christians of the East from the thraldom of the

Mussulmans,and the sepulchre of Jesus from the rude hands

of the infidel. The subject engrossed his whole mind. Evenin the visions of the night he was full of it. One dream made

such an impression upon him,that he devoutly believed the

Saviour of the world himself appeared before him,and pro

mised him aid and protection in his holy undertaking. If his

zeal had ever wavered before, this was suflicient to fix it for

ever.Peter, after he had performed all the penances and duties

of his pilgrimage, demanded an interview with S imeon, the

Patriarch of the Greek Church at Jerusalem. Though the

latter was a heretic in Peter ’s eyes, yet he was still a Christian

,and felt as acutely

'

as himself for the persecutions heapedby the Turks upon the followers of Jesus. The good prelateentered fully into his views, and, at his suggestion , wroteletters to the Pope, and to the most influential monarchs ofChristendom,

detailing the sorrows of the faithful, and ur ingthem to take up arms in their defence. Peter was not adag

THE CRUSADES .

gard in the work . Taking an affectionate farewell of the

Patriarch,he returned in all haste to Italy . Pope Urban II.

occupied the apostolic chair . It was at that time far from

being an easy seat. H is predecessor, Gregory, had be

quea thed him a host of disputes with the Emperor Henry IV.

of Germany, and he had made Philip I . of France his enemyby his strenuous opposition to an adulterous connex ion formedby that monarch. So many dangers encompassed him about,that the Vatican was no secure abode, and he had taken

refuge in Apulia, under the protection of the renownedRobert Guiscard. Thither Peter appears to have followedhim

,though in what spot their meeting took place is not

stated with any precision by ancient chroniclers or modernhistorians . Urban received him most kindly ; read, with

tears in his eyes, the epistle from the Patriarch S imeon, andlistened to the eloquent story of the Hermit with an attention

which showed how deeply he sympathized with the woes of

the Christian church. Enthusiasm is contagious, and the

Pope appears to have caught it instantly from one whose zeal

was so unbounded. Giving the Hermit full powers, he sent

him abroad to preach the holy war to all the nations and

potentates of Christendom. The Hermit preached, and

countless thousands answered to his call. France, Germany,and Italy started at his voice, and prepared for the delive

rance of Zion . One of the early historians of the Crusade,who was himself an eye

- witness of the rapture of Europe,*

describes the personal appearance of the Hermit at this time.

He says,that there appeared to be something of divine in

everything which he said or did. The people so highlyreverenced him,

that they plucked hairs from the mane of his

mule,that they m ight keep them as relics. While preaching,

he wore in general a woollen tun ic , with a dark - coloured mantle, which fell down to his heels. H is arms and feet were

bare, and he ate neither flesh nor bread, supporting himselfchiefly upon fish and wine. He set out

,

”says the chroui

cler, “from whence I know not ; but we saw him passin

through the towns and villages, preaching everywhere, anthe people surrounding him in crowds, loading him with offerings, and celebrating his sanctity with such great praises that

Guibert de Nogent.

I upon

any one Thus he went on, nntired, inflex ible, and full of

devotion , communicating his own madness to his hearers, untilEurope was stirred from its v depths.

While the Hermit was appang with

to the

W

ple, the Pope appealed with

o wcre to become the chiefs and leaders of the ex po

dition . His first step was to call a council at Placentia, inthe autumn of the year 1095 . Here, 111 the assembly of the

clergy, the Pope debated the grand scheme, and gave audi

ence to emissaries who had been sent from Constantin c bythe Emperor of the East to detail the p gressro made

o

by theTurks 1n their design of establishing themselves m EuropeThe clergy were of course unanimous in support of the Cru

sade, and the council separated, each individual member of itbeing empowered to preach it to his peo 10.

But Italy could not be ex pected to urnish all the aid re

quired ; and the Pope crossed the Alps to inspire the fierceand powerful nobility and chivalrous population of Gaul. H is

boldness m entering the territory, and placing himself 1n the

power of his foe, King Philip of France, 1s not the least surprising feature of his mission . Some have imagined that cool

policy alone actuated him,while others assert, that it was

mere zeal, as warm and as blind as that of Peter the Hermit.The latter opinion seems to be the true one. Soc iety did not

calculate the consequences of what it was doing. Every manseemed to act from impulse only and the Pope, 1n throwinghimself into the heart of France, acted as much from 1m also

as the thousands who responded to his call. A counci was

eventually summoned to meet him at Clermont, in Auvergne,to consider the state of the church, reform abuses, and, aboveall

,to make preparations for the war. It was in the midst

of an ex tremely cold winter, and the ground was covered withsnow . During seven days the council sat with closed doors,while immense crowds from all parts of France flocked intothe town , in ex pectation that the Pope himself would addressthe people. All the towns and villages for miles around werefilled with the multitude ; even the fields were encumberedwith people, who, unable to procure lodgings, pitched theirtents under the trees and by the wayside. All the neigh

bourhood presented the appearance of a vast camp.

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le chre of Christ is pmsessed b the heathen , the sacred

plpazl

es dishonoured by their vi lenesz. Oh, brave knights and

aithful people ! ofl'

spring of invincible fathers

w

l

‘lye will not

degenerate from your ancient renown. Ye not be re

strained from embarking in this great cause by the tender

fies of wife or little ones, but wi ll remember the words of the

Saviour of the world himself, Whosoever loves father and

mothermore than me, is not worthy of me. Whosoever shallabandon for my name

’

s sake his house, or his brethren, or his

sisters, or his father, or his mother, or his wife, or his chil

dren , or his lands, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall in

herit eternal life.

’

The warmthof thepontifl'

communicated itself to the crowd,and the enthusiasm of the ple broke out several times ere

he concluded his address. H:went on to portray, not onlythe spiritual but the temporal advantages that should accrueto those who took up arms in the corn ea of the Cross. Pa

lestine was, he said, a land flowing with milk and honey,and precious in the sight of God as the scene of the grandevents which had saved mankind. That land

,he promised,

should be divided among them. Moreover, they should have

full pardon for all their ofl'

ences, either against God or man .

Go, then , he added,“ in ex piation of your sins ; and go

assured, that after this world shall have passed away,impe

rishable glory shall be yours in the world which is to come.

”

The enthusiasm was no longer to be restrained, and loud

shouts interrupted the speaker ; the people ex claiming as if

with one voice, D ieu lo vau lt ! D ieu le veu lt With greatpresence of mind Urban took advantage of the outburst, andas soon as silence was obtained, continued : Dear brethren,to- day is shown forth in you that which the Lord has said byhis evangelist, When two or three are gathered together inmy name

,there will I be in the midst of them to bless them.

’

If the Lord God had not been in your souls, you would not

all have pronounced the same words ; or rather God himselfpronounced them by your lips, for it was He that put them

in your hearts. Be they, then, your war- cry in the combat,

for those words came forth from God. Let the army of the

Lord when it rushes upon H is enemies shout but that one

cry, D t’

an lc vau lt D im 1c veu lt Let whoever is inclinedto devote himself to this holy cause make it a solemn engage

THE CRUSADES .

ment, and bear the cross of the Lord either on his breast orhis brow till he set out, and let him who is ready to begin hismarch place the holy emblem on his shoulders, in memory ofthat precept of our Saviour, He who does not take up his

cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

’

The news of this council spread to the remotest parts of

Europe in an incredibly short space of time. Long before thefleetest horseman could have brought the intelligence it wasknown by the people in distant provinces, a fact whichwas

considered as nothing less than supernatural. But the sub

jcet was in everybody ’

s mouth, and the minds of men were

prepared for the result. The enthusiastic only asserted whatthey wished, and the event tallied with their prediction . This

was, however, quite enough in those days for a miracle, andas a miracle every one regarded it.For several months after the Council of Clermont, France

and Germany presented a singular spectacle. The pious, thefanatic, the needy

,the dissolute, the young and the old

, even

women and children, and the halt and lame, enrolled themselves by hundreds. In every village the clergy were busiedin keeping up the ex citement

,promising eternal rewards to

those who assumed the red cross, and fulminating the most

awful denunciations against all the worldly- minded who re

fused or even hesitated. Every debtor who joined the cru

sade was freed by the papal edict from the claims of his credi

tors ; outlaws of every gradewere made equal with the honestupon the same conditions. The property of those who went

was placed under the protection of the church, and S t. Pauland S t. Peter themselves were believed to descend from their

high abode, to watch over the chattels of the absent pilgrims.

S igns and portents were seen in the air to increase the fervourof the multitude. An aurora- borealis of unusual brilliancyappeared, and thousands of the crusaders came out to gaze

upon it,prostrating themselves upon the earth in adoration.

It was thought to be a sure prognostic of the interposition of

the Most High ; and a representation of his armies fightingwith and overthrowing the infidels. Reports of wonders wereeverywhere rife. A monk had seen two gigantic warriors onhorseback, the one representing a Christian and the other aTurk

,fighting in the sky with flaming swords, the Christian

of course overcoming the Paynim. Myriads of stars were said

THE CRUSADES .

have fallen from heaven, each representing the fall of a

agan foe. It was believed at the same time that the Empepr Charlemagne would rise from the grave, and lead on to

ctory the embattled armies of the Lord. A singular featurethe popular madness was the enthusiasm of the women .

verywhere they encouraged their lovers and husbands to forLkc all things for the holy war. Many of them burned the

gn of the cross upon their breasts and arms,and coloured

is wound with a red dye, as a lasting memorial of their zeal.

there, still more zealous, impressed the mark by the same

teens upon the tender limbs of young children and infants at

1e breast.Guibert dc Nogent tells of amonk who made a large incisionpon his forehead in the form of a cross, which he colouredi th some powerful i ngredient, telling the people that an

ngel had done it when he was asleep. This monk appears1 have been more of a rogue than a fool, for he contrived towe more sumptuously than any of his brother pilgrims, uponme strength of his sanctity. The crusaders everywhere gaveim presents of food and money, and he became qu ite fat eree arrived at Jerusalem, notwithstanding the fatigues of the

ray. If he had acknowledged 111 the first place that he had:1ade the wound himself, he would not have been thought

1ore holy than his fellows but the story of the angel was a

lincher.

A ll those who had property of any description rushed to the:1art to change i t into hard ca sh. Lands and houses could he

ad for a quarter of their value, while arms and accoutrcments

f war rose in the same proportion. Corn , which had beenx ces ~ i1 el1 dear in antic ipation of a year of scarc ity , suddenlyecame plentiful and s uch wa s the diminut ion in the m ine

f provis ions . that seven sheep w .

-

:rrt so ld for five denwrs.

he nobles mol tgagcd their es tate -2 for mcm triflcs to s

nd unbelievers. or conferred charters: of immun ity upon the

own s and commune ~ w ithin their fit:f for s ums which,a few

ears pre1 iously. tin - 1 would ha1 e rfjcctcd w ith disda in .

'l l

armer endea 1 ourt d to 4. . l r1 i plou,

rh. and the artisan his

ools . to purchase a s word for the d c zh u rancc of Jerusa lem

Vome 11 di - po- c d of t in t . . 1.l1 r t for thc same purpo

- c .

luring the spring and A n ia-er of thi year ( 1096 ,the roads

V OL . 11.

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m OBUBADI B.

Another afoot of. the crusade was, the religious obedience

rith which it inspired the people and the nobility for thatingular institution The Truce of God.

’

tent of the eleventhcentury, the clergy of France, sympathiing for the woes of the people, but unable to diminish them,

uy repressing the rapacity and insolence of the feudal chiefs,ndeavoured to promote universal g

ood-will by the promulga

ion of thefamous Peace of God.

’

All who conformed to it

m ud themselves by an oathnot to take revenge for any injury,101: to en

'

oy the fruits of property usurped from others, nor to'

we d y wzla

pons ; in reward of which they were to receive

emission of their sins. However benevolent the intentionbf this Peace,

”it ledto nothing but perjury, and violence

fi gned as uncontrolled as before. In the year 1041 anotheruttempt was made to soften the an passions of the semi

barbarous chiefs, and the Truce 50d” was solemnly proalaimed. The trace lasted from theWednesday evening to theMondaymorning ofevery week, in which interval itwas strictlyForbidden to recur to violence on any pretex t, or to seek re

venge for any injury . It was impossible to civilize men bythese means ; few even promised to become peaceable for so

unconscionable a period as five days a week or,if they did,

theymade ample amends on the two days left open to them.

The truce was afterwards shortened from the Saturday eve

ning to the Monday morn ing ; but little or no diminution of

violence and bloodshed was the consequence. At the Councilof Clermont, Urban II. again solemnly proclaimed the truce.

80 strong was the religious feeling, that every one hastened toobey. Allminor passions disappeared before the grand passionof crusading ; the noble ceased to Oppress, the robber to plunder, and the people to complain ; but one idea was in all hearts,and there seemed to be no room for any other.The encampments of these heterogeneous multitudes ofl

'

ered

a singular aspect. Those vassals who rangedthemselves underthe banners of their lord, erected tents around his castle

while those who undertook the war on their own account, con

structed booths and huts in the neighbourhood of the towns orvillages, preparatory to their joinin some popular leader of

the ex pedition . The meadows of rance were covered withtents . As the belligerents were to have remission of all theirsins on their arrival m Palestine, hundreds of themgave them

THB CRUSADES .

selves up to themost unbounded licentiousness : the courtesan,w ith the red cross upon her shoulders, plied her shameless

trade with sensual pilgrims, without scruple on either side : thelover ofgood cheer gave loose rein tohis appetite, and drunkenness and debauchery flourished. Their zeal in the service of

the Lord was to wipe out all faults and follies, and they hadthe same surety of salvation as the rigid anchorite. This reason ing had charms for the ignorant, and the sounds of lewd

revelry and the voice of prayer rose at the same instant from

the camp .

It is now time to speak of the leaders of the ex pedition.

Great multitudes ranged themselves under the command of

Peter the H ermit, whom,as the originator, they considered

the most appropriate leader of the war. Others joined thebanner of a bold adventurer, whom history has dign ified withno other name than that of Gautier sans Avoir, orWalter thePennyless, but who is represented as having been of a noblefamily, and well skilled in the art of war. A third multitude

from Germany flocked around the standard of a monk,named

Gottschalk, of whom nothing is known , ex cept that he was a

fanatic of the deepest dye. All these bands, which together

are said to have amounted to three hundred thousand men,women and children , were composed of the vilest rascality ofEurope. W i thout discipline, principle, or true courage, theyrushed through the nations like a pestilence, spreading terrorand death wherever they went. The first multitude that set

forth was led by Walter the Pennyless, early in the spring of1096

,wi thin a very few months after the Council of Clermont.

Each man of that irregular host aspired to be his own masterlike their nominal leader, each was poor to penury, and trustedfor subsistence on his journey to the chances of the road.

Rolling through Germany like a tide, they entered Hungary,where, at first, they were received with somedegree ofkindnessby the people. The latter had not yet caught suflicient ofthe

fire ofenthusiasm to join the crusades themselves, but were willing enough to forward the cause by aiding those embarked init. Unfortunately, this good understanding did not last long.

The swarm were not contented with food for their necessities,but craved for lux uries also they attacked and plundered thedwellings of the country people, and thought nothing of 1mur

der where resistance was ofl'

ered. On their arrival before Sem

THE CRUSADES .

lin the outragedHun rians collected 111 large numbers, and,king the rear of t e crusading host, slew a great many of

the stragglers, and, taking away their arms and crosses, aflix edthem as trophies to thewalls of the city. Walter appears tohave been 111 no mood or condition to make reprisals for his

army, destructive as a plague of locusts when plunder urgedthem on , were useless against any regular attack from a determined enemy. Their rear continued to be thus harassed bythe wrathful Hungarians until they were fairly out of theirterritory. On his entrance intoBulgaria,Walter met with nobetter fate ; the cities and towns refused to let him pass ; the

es deriied him provisions and the citizens and country

p e uniting, slaughtered his followers by hundreds. TheI

{

wo

l'ogress of the army was more like a retreat than an advance ;ut as it was impossible to stand still, Walter continued his

course till he arrived at Constantinople, with a force which

famine and the sword haddiminished to one- third of its original number .The greater multitude, led by the enthusiastic hermit, fol

lowed close upon his heels, with a bulky train of baggage,and women and children , sufficient to form a host of them

selves . If it were possible to find a rabble more vile than thearmy of Walter the Pennyless, it was that led by Peter theHermit. Being better provided with means, they were not

reduced to the necessity of pillage in their progress throughHungary ; and had they taken any other route than that whichled through Semlin ,

mi ht perhaps have traversed the countryw ithout molestation . On their arrival before that city, theirfury was raised at seeing the arms and red crosses of theirpredecessors hanging as trophies over the gates. Their pentup ferocity ex ploded at the sight. The city was tumultuouslyattacked, and the besiegers entering, not by dint of bravery,but of superior numbers, it was given up to all the horrorswhich follow when Victory, Brutality, and Licentiousness arelinked together . Every evil passion was allowed to revel withimpun ity, and revenge, lust, and avarice,—each had its hun

dred victims in unhappy Semlin . Anymaniac can kindle a

conflagration , but i t requires many wi se men to put it out.

Peter: :

the Hermit had blown the popular fury into a flame,but to cool it again was beyond his power. His followersrioted unrestrained, until the fear of retaliation warned them

8*

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It is said that the Hermit flcd fi'cm this fatal field to a

human

so dira

Hls cnplm ad braast.Sharp m dld tn thoun nd ptccu rivc,

”

or whether his fiery zeal stillured the eventual triumph of his cause. He, so lately the

or of a hundred thousand men, was now a soli skulkt

zyin the forests , liable at every instant to be discover by some

pursuing Bulgari angal

-

ran, and cut of 111mid career. Chance at lastrcught him within sight of an eminence where two or three

of his bravest knights had collected five hundred of the strag

flan These gladly received the Hermit, and a consultation

vmg taken place, it was resolved to gather together the

scattered remnants of the army. Fires were lighted on thehill

, and scouts sent out in all directions for the fugitives.

Horns were sounded at intervals to make known that friendswere near, and before nightfall the Hermit saw himself at thehead of seven thousand men . During the succeeding day he

was joined by twenty thousand more, and with this miserableremnan t of his force he pursued his route towards Constantineple. The bones of the rest mouldered i n the forests of Bul

Ou his arrival at Constantinople, where he foundWalterthe Pennyless awaiting him,

he was hospitably received by theEmperor Alex ius. It might have been ex pected that the sadreverses they had undergone would have taught his followers

common prudence but, unhappily for them,their turbulence

and love of plunder were not to be restrained. Althoughthey were surrounded by friends, by whom all their wants

were liberally supplied, they could not refrain from rapine.

[n vain the Hermit ex horted them to tranquillity , he.pos

sessed no more power over them,m subduing their passions,

than the obscurest soldier of thehost. They set fire to several

public buildings 1n ConstantinOple, out of pure mischief, and1tripped the lead from the roofs of the churches, which they1fterwards sold for old metal in the purlieus of the city.

From this time may be dated the aversion which the EmperorAlex ius entertained for the crusaders, and which was after

THE CRUSADES .

wards manifested in all his actions, even when he had to deal

with the chivalrous andmore honourable armies which arrivedafter the Hermit. H e seems to have imagined that the Turksthemselves were enemies less formidable to his power thanthese outpourings of the refuse of Europe : he soon found a

pretex t to hurry them into Asia Minor . Peter crossed theBosphorus with Walter, but the ex cesses of his followers weresuch

,that, despairing of accomplishing any good end by re

main ing at their head, he left them to themselves, and returnedto Constantinople, on the pretex t of making arrangementswith the government of Alex ius for a proper supply of pro

visions . The crusaders,forgetting that they were in the

enemy ’

s country, and that un ion, above all things, was desira

ble, gave themselves up to dissensions . Violent disputes arose

between the Lombards and Normans, commanded by Walter

thePennyless, and theFranks and Germans, led out by Peter.The latter separated themselves from the former

,and

,choosing

for their leader one Reinaldo, or Reinhold, marched forward,and took possession of the fortress of Ex orogorgon . The

S ultan Solimaun was on the alert, w ith a superior force. A

party of crusaders, which had been detached from the fort,and stationed at a little distance as an ambuscade, were surprised and cut to pieces, and Ex orogorgon invested on all

sides. The siege was protracted for eight days, during whichthe Chr istians snfiered the most acute agony from the want

of water . It is hard to say how long the hope of succour orthe energy of despair would have enabled them to hold out

their treacherous leader cut the matter short by renouncingthe Christian faith, and delivering up the fort into the handsof the Sultan . He was followed by two or three of his

officers ; all the rest, refusing to become Mahometans, wereruthlessly put to the sword. Thus perished the last wretchedremnant of the vast multitude which had traversed Europew ith Peter the Hermit.

Walter the Pennyless and his multitude met as miserable afate. On the news of the disasters of Ex orogorgon , they domanded to be led instantly against the Turks. Walter, whoonly wanted good soldiers to have made a good general, was

cooler of head, and saw all the dangers of such a step . His

force was wholly insufficient to make any decisive movement

in a country where the enemy was so much superior, and

m OBUSAD3 8 .

where, in case of defeat, he had no secure position to fall backupon ; and he therefore e reseed his opinion against ad

vancin until the arrival c reinforcements. This prudentcounse found no favour : the army loudly ex pressed theirdissatisfaction at their chief, and prepared to march forward

without him. Upon this, the brave Walter put himself at

their head, and rushed to destruction . Proceeding towardsNice, the modern Isnik, he was intercepted by the army of

the S ultan : a fierce battle ensued, in which the Turks madefearful havoc ; out of twenty

- five thousand Christians, twentytwo thousand were slain , and among them Gautier himself,who fell pierced by seven mortal wounds. The remainin

three thousand retreated upon Civitot, where they intrenchthemselves.

D isgusted as was Peter the Hermit at the ex cesses of the

multitude, who, at his call,had forsaken Europe, his heart

was moved with grief and pity at their misfortunes. All his

former zeal revived : casting himself at the feet of the Emperor Alex ius, he implored him, with tears in his eyes, to send

relief to the few survivors at C ivitot. The Emperor consented,and a force was sent, which arrived just in time to save them

from destruction . The Turks had beleaguered the place, andthe crusaders were reduced to the last ex tremity . Negotiations were entered into, and the las t three thousandwere con

ducted in safety to Constantinople. Alex ius had suffered toomuch by their former ex cesses to be very desirous of retain ingthem in his capital : he therefore caused them all to be dis

armed,and

,furnishing each with a sum of money, he sent

them back to their own country.

While these events were taking place, fresh hordes wereissu ing from the woods andwilds of Germany, all bent for theHoly Land. They were commanded by a fanatical priest,named Gottschalk, who, like Gautier and Peter the Hermit

,

took his way throughHungary . History is ex tremely meagrein her details of the conduct and fate of this host, which

amoun ted to at least one hundred thousand men . Robberyand murder seem to have journeyed with them, and the poorHungarians were rendered almost desperate by their numbersand rapacity . Karloman

,the king of the country, made a

bold efl'

ort to get ridof them ; for the resentment of his peoplehad arrived at such a height, that nothing short of the total

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m CRUSADES .

)anube were dyed with their blood. It was at Mersburg, on

he D anube, that the greatest slaughter took place,—a

.laughter so great as to amount almost to ex termination .

l‘he Hungarians for a while disputed the passage of the

-iver, but the crusaders forced their way across, and attackng the city with the blind courage of madness

, succeeded innuking a breach in the walls. At this moment of victory an

maccountable fear came over them. Throwing down their armsthey fled panic- stricken, no one know why, and no one knewwhither. The Hungarians followed, sword in hand, and cut

them down without remorse, and in such numbers, that thestream of the Danube is said to have been choked up by theirunburied bodies.

This was the worst parox ysm of the madness of Europe ;and this passed, her chivalry stepped upon the scene. Men

of cool heads, mature plans, and invincible courage stood forward to lead and direct the grand movement of Europe uponAsia . It is upon these men that romance has lavished hermost admiring epithets, leaving to the condemnation of historythe vileness and brutality of those who went before. Of these

leaders the most distinguished were Godfrey of Bou illon , Dukeof Lorraine, and Raymond, Count of Toulouse. Four otherchiefs of the royal blood of Europe also assumed the Cross,and led each his army to the Holy Land : Hugh, Count ofVermandois, brother of the King ofFrance ; Robert, Duke ofNormandy, the elder brother of William Rufus ; RobertJou n t of Flanders, and Boemund, Prince of Tarentum, eldest

on of the celebrated Robert Gu iscard. These men were all

ing ed with the fanaticism of the age, but none of them acted

n ti rely from religious motives. They were neither utterlyeckless likeGautier sans Avoir, crazy like Peter the Hermit,1or brutal like Gottschalk the Monk, but possessed each of

hese qualities in a milder form ; their valour b eing temperedby cau tion , their religious zeal by worldly views, and their'

eroeity by the spirit of chivalry. They saw whither led the.o rren t of the public will ; and it bein neither their wish nor

.he ir interest to stem it, they allowed t emselves to be carriedwith it, in the hope that it would lead them at last to a haven

af aggrandizement. Around them congregated many minorchiefs, the flower of the nobility of France and Italy, withsome few from Germany, England, and S pain . It was wisely

THE CRUSADES .

conjectured that armies so numerous would find a difi oultyin

procuring provisions if they all journeyed by the same road.They, therefore, resolved to separate, Godfrey de Bouillonproceeding through Hungary and Bulgaria, the Count of

Toulouse through Lombardy and Dalmatia, and the other

leaders through Apulia to Constantinople, where the several

divisions were to reun ite. The forces under these leaders

have been variously estimated. The Princess Anna Comnemtalks of them as having been as numerous as the sands on thesea- shore, or the stars in thefirmament. Fulcher of Chartresis more satisfactory

, and ex aggerates less magnificently, whenhe states, that all the divisions, when they sat down before

Nice in Bithyn ia, amounted to one hundred thousand horse

men, and six hundred thousand men on foot, ex clusive of the

priests,women, and children . Gibbon is of opin ion that this

amount is ex aggerated but thinks the actual numbers did

not fall very far short of the calculation . The Princess Anneafterwards gives the number of those under Godfrey of Bouillon as eighty thousand foot and horse ; and supposing thateach of the other chiefs led an army as numerous , the total

would be near half a million . This must be over rather thanunder the mark, as the army of Godfrey of Bouillon was con

fessedly the largest when it set out, and sufi'

ered less by thewe than any other.

he Count of Vermandois was the first who set foot on the

Grecian territory. On his arrival at Durazzo he was receivedwith every mark of respect and courtesy by the agents of the

Emperor,and his followers were abundantly supplied with

provisions. Suddenly, however, and without cause assigned,the Count was arrested by order of the Emperor Alex ius , andconveyed a close prisoner to Constantinople. Various motiveshave been assigned by different authors as having induced theEmperor to this treacherous and imprudent proceeding . Byevery writer he has been condemned for so flagrant a breachof hospitality and justice. The most probable reason for hisconduct appears to be that suggested by Guibert of Ncgent,who states that Alex ius, fearful of the designs of the crusadersupon his throne, resorted to this ex tremity in order afterwardsto force the Count to take the oath of allegiance to him,

as the

price of his liberation . The ex ample of a prince so eminent

as the brother of the King of France, would, he thought, he

IEII 'OIRHLADHEL

readily followed by the other chiefs of the Crusade. In theresult he was wofully disappointed, as every man deserves tobe who commits positive evil that doubtful good may ensue.

But this line of policy accorded well enough with the narrowmindedness of theEm ror, who, in the enervating atmosphereof hi s highly civflu efind lux urious court, dreaded the mflux

of the hardy and ambitious warriors of the West, and strove

to nibble away by unworthy means, the power which he hadnot energy enough to confront. If danger to himself had

ex isted from the residence of the chiefs in his dominions, hemight easily have averted it, by the simple means of placinghimself at the head of the European movement, and directingits ener

aées to their avowed object, the conquest of the Holy

Land. at the Emperor, instead of being, as he mi ht have

h en , the lord and leader of the Crusades, which he ad him

self aided in no inconsiderable degree to suscitate b his

embassies to the P0pe, became the slave of men who ated

and despised him. No doubt the barbarous ex cesses of the

followers of Gautier and Peter the Hermit made him lookupon thewhole body of them withdisgust, but it was the di sgustof a li ttlemind

,which is glad of any ex cuse to palliate or justifyits own irresolution and love of ease.

Godfrey of Bouillon traversed Hungary in the most quietand orderly manner. On his arrival at Mersburg he found

the country strewed with the mangled corpses of the Jewki llers

,and demanded of the King of Hungary for what reason

hi s people had set upon them. The latter detailed the atrocities they had committed, and made it so evident to Godfreythat the Hungarians had only acted in self-defence, that the

high- minded leader declared himself satisfied, and passed on

,

without giving or receiving molestation . On his arrival at

Philippopoli , he was informed for the first time of the impri

sonment of the Count of Vermandois. He immediately sent

messengers to the Emperor, demanding the Count’s release,and threatening, in case of refusal, to lay waste the countrywith fire and sword. After waiting a day at Philippopoli hemarched on to Adrianople, where be

‘

was met by his messen

gers returning with the Emperor’s refusal. Godfrey, thebravest and most determined of the leaders of the Crusade,was not a man to swerve from hi s word, and the country was

given up to pillage. Alex ius here committed another blunder.

VOL . IL 4

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THE CRUSADES .

It is impossible, notwithstanding his treachery, to avoid

sling some compassion for the Emperor, whose life at this

11e was rendered one long scene of misery by the presump1n of the crusaders, and his not altogether groundless fears'

the evil they might inflict upon him , should any untowardrcumstance force the current of their ambition to the con

nest of his empire. H is daughter, Anna Comnena, feelingly

plores his state of life at this time,and a learned German,*

a recent work, describes it, on the authority of the Princess,the following mannerTo avoid all occasion of offence to the crusaders, Al ex ius

implied with all their whims, and their (on many occas ions)1reasonable demands, even at the ex pense of great bodily:ertion , at a time when he was suffering severely under themt

,which eventually brought him to his grave. No cru

der who desired an interview with him was refused access

lis tened with the utmost patience to the long- winded ha

.ngues which their loquacity or zeal continually wearied himith : he endured. w ithout ex press ing any impatience, the uh

room ing and haughty language which they permitted them-lves to employ towards him , and severely reprimanded his

ficers when they undertook to defend the dignity of the

uperial s tation from these rude assaults ; for he trembledith apprehens ion at the slightest disputes , lest they m ightecome the occasion of greater evil. Though the Counts

iten appeared before him with trains altogether unsu itable1 their dign ity and to his— sometimes with an entire troop,hich emnpletely filled the royal apartment

— the Emperoreld his peace. lIe listened to them at all hours ; he often

sated himself on his throne at daybreak to attend to theirishes and requests , and the even ing twilight saw him still in

m same place. V ery frequently he could not snatch time

a refresh himself with meat and drink . During many n ights

e could not obtain any repose, and was obliged to indulge inn unrefreshing sleep upon his throne, w ith his head restingn his hands . Even this slumber was continually disturbed»y the appearance and harangues of some newly- arrived rude.nights . When all the courtiers, wearied out by the efforts.f the day and by n ight

- watching, could no longer keep them

M. Wilken’

s Geschichte der Kreuzzuge.

TEE CRUSADES.

selves on their feet, and sank down exhausted—some uponbenches and others on the floor—Alex ius still rallied his

strength to listen with seeming attention to the wearisome

chatter of the Latins, that they might have no occas ion or

pretex t for discontent. In such a state of fear and anx iety,how could Alex ius comport himself with dignity and like an

EmperorAlex ius, however, had himself to blame, in a great mea

sure,for the indign ities he suffered owing to his insincerity,

the crusaders mistrusted him so much, that it became at last

a common saying, that the Turks and Saracens were not such

inveterate foes to the Western or L atin Christians as the

Emperor Alex ius and the Greeks.

* It would be needless in

this sketch, which does not profess to be so much a history ofthe Crusades as of the madness of Europe, from which theysprang, to detail the various acts of bribery and intimidation,cajolery and hostility, by which Alex ius contrived to make

each of the leaders in succession,as they arrived, take the

oath of allegiance to him as their Suzerain . One way or

another he ex acted from each the barren homage on which he

had set his heart, and they were then allowed to proceed intoAsia Minor. One only, Raymond de S t. Gilles, Count of

Toulouse,obstinately refused the homage.

Their residence in Constan tinOple was productive of no

good to the armies of the Cross . Bickerings and contentions

on the one hand,and the influence of a depraved and lux u

rious court on the other,destroyed the elasticity of their

spirits, and cooled the first ardour of their enthus iasm. At

one time the army of the Count of Toulouse was on the

point of disbandin itself ; and, had not their leader ener

getically removed t cm across the Bosphorus,this would have

been the result. Once in Asia,their spirits in some de

gree revived, and the presence of danger and difficulty nervedthem to the work they had undertaken . The first operationof the war was the siege of Nice, to gain possession of which

all their efforts were directed.

Godfrey of Bou illon and the Count of Vermandois were

joined under its walls by each host in succession , as i t left

Constantinople. Among the celebrated crusaders who foughtat this siege, we find, besides the leaders already mentioned,

Wilton.

THE caus x oss . 41

the brave and generous Tancred, whose name and fame have

been immortalised in the Germalemme L iberate, the valorous

Bishop of Pay, Baldwin, afterwards King of Jerusalem,and

Peter the Hermit, now an almost solitary soldier, shorn of

all the power and influence he had formerly possessed. KilijAslaun , the Sultan of Roum, and chief of the SeljukianTurks, whose deeds, surrounded by the false halo of romance,are familiar to the readers of Tasso under the name of Soli

man, marched to defend this city, but was defeated afterseveral obstinate en ments, in which the Christians showed

a de cc of heroism t at quite astonished him. The Turkishchic had ex pected to find a wild undisciplined multitude, likethat under Peter the Hermit, without leaders capable of en

forcing obedience ; instead of which he found the most ex porienced leaders of the age at the head of armies that had justfanaticism enou h to be ferocious, but not enough to renderthem ungoverna Is . In these en agements many hundreds

both sides ; and on both sides the most revolting barbarity was practised: the crusaders cut off the heads of the

fallen Mussulmans, and sent them in pann iers to Constanti

neple, as trophies of their victory. After the tempor

defeat of Kilij Aslaun, the siege of Nice was carried on wit

redoubled vigour. The Turks defended themselves with the

greatest obstinacy, and discharged showers of poisoned arrowsupon the crusaders. When any unfortunate wretch was killedunder the walls, they let down iron books from above, anddrew the body up, which, after strippin and mutilating, theythrew back again at the besiegers. he latter were well

supplied with provisions, and for six - and- thirty days the siege

continued without any relax ation of the efl'

orts on either side.

Many tales are told of the almost superhuman heroism of the

Christian leaders—how one man put a thousand to flight ;and how the arrows of the faithful never missed their mark .

One anecdote of Godfrey of Bouillon , related by Albert of

Aix , is worth recording, not only as showing the high opinionentertained of his valour, but as showing the conta ious cre

dulity of the armies—a credulity which has often le them to

the very verge of defeat, as it incited them to victory. One

Turk,of gigantic stature, took his station day by day on the

battlements of Nice, and, bearing an enormous bow,commit

ted great havoc among the Christian host. Not a shaft he4*

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TH! CRUSADES .

allegiance, and with an army which, according to a mo

ite calculation, amounted to two hundred thousand men ,fly cavalry, he fell upon the first division of the Christiant in the valley of Dorylwum. It was early in themorningthe l st of J ul 1097 , when the crusaders saw the first1panics of the urkish horsemen pouring down upon them

11 the hills. Bohemund had hardly time to set himself in

er, and transport his sick and helpless to the rear, whenoverwhelming force of the Orientals was upon him. The'istisu army

, composed principally of men on foot, ave

r on all sides,and the hoofs of the Turkish steeds, an the

soned arrows of their bowmen, mowed them down by hunds . After having lost the flower of their chivalry, the'istians retreated upon their baggage, when a dreadful1ghter took place. Neither women nor children, nor thewere spared. Just as they were reduced to the last

remity, Godfrey of Bouillon and the Count of Toulousele their appearance on the field, and turned the tide of

;le. After an obstinate engagement the Turks fled, andr ri ch camp fell into the hands of the enemy . The loss

.he crusaders amounted to about four thousand men , with:ral chiefs of renown , among whom were Coun t Robert ofis and William the brother of Tancred. The loss of the

ks , which did not ex ceed this number, taught them to

sue a different mode of warfare. The Sultan was far from1g defeated. With his still gigantic army

,he laid waste

the country on either side of the crusaders. The latter,1 were unaware of the tactics of the enemy, found plentyprovisions in the Turkish camp ; but so far from economizingse resources, they gave themselves up for several days tomost unbounded ex travagance. They soon paid dearlytheir heedlessness. In the ravaged country of Phrygia,iugh which they advanced towards Antiochetta, they suf

d dreadfully for want of food for themselves and pasturetheir cattle. Above them was a scorching sun

,almost sufli

1t of itself to dry up the freshness of the land, a task whichfirebrands of the S ultan had but too surely effected, and

er was not to be had after the first da of their march.

pilgrims died at the rate of five hundred a- day. The

ses of the knights perished on the road, and the baggagech they had aided to transport, was either placed upon

1 l k'

l l l‘) U l l k k l i l u l i F l l l l U l l l l l l ''l l l l l I l l , i l l H l l l L

’

l C l l l L’

) l

the ir te n ts . l'

n rzl lw ht h\'

the hi tte r e x perienc e o f fit

the )“

aga i n : aw lhv lnw ln 11p m hm n y a n cl “ .M v .

O n the l h th of (‘

c tnhel‘ they sa t clown before the

city of Antioch,the s iege of which

,and the even ts to

it gave rise, are among the most ex traordinary incidelthe Crusade. The city, which is situated on an emix

and washed by the river Orontes,is naturally a very a

position , and the Turkish garrison were well suppli edprovisions to endure a long siege. In this respect the ltians were also fortunate, but, unluckily for themselves , 11]Their force, amounted to three hundred thousand figmen ; and we are informed by Raymond d

’

Argilles, that

had so much provision,that they threw away the greatm

of every animal they killed, being so dainty, that theyonly eat particular parts of the beast. So insane was

ex travagance, that in less than ten days famine beg.

stare them in the face. After making a fru itless attem

gain possession of the city by a coup de main , they, stathemselves, sat down to starve out the enemy, But

want came a cooling of enthusiasm. The chiefs began toweary of the ex pedition . Baldwin had previously dethimself from the main body of the army, and, proceediEdessa, had intrigued himself into the supreme power inlittle principality. The other leaders were an imated witzeal than heretofore. S tephen of Chartres and Ha;Vermandois began to waver, unable to endure the privawhich their own folly and profusion had brought uponEven Peter the Hermit became sick at heart ere all was

When the famine had become so urgent that they weduced to eat human flesh in the ex tremity of their ht]Bohemund and Robert of Flanders set forth on an e:

m CRUSADES .

procure a supply. They were in a slight degree suc

but the relief they brought was not economi zed, and

day s they were as destitute as before. Faticius, the

commander and representative of Alex ius, deserteds division under pretence of seeking for food, and his3 was followed by various bodies of the crusaders.

ry was rife among those who remained, and they stroveiate it by a diligent attention to signs and omens.

with ex traordinary visions seen by the enthusiastic, al

y cheeredand depressed them, accordin as they foretriumphor pictured the reverses of the 088 . At one

fiolent hurricane arose, levelling great trees with the

and blowing down the tents of the Christian leaders .

ther time an earthquake shook the camp, and was

to prognosticate somegreat impending evil to the causestendom. But a comet which appeared shortly aftern ised them from the despondency into which they hadtheir lively imaginations making it assume the formn ing cross leading them on to victory. Famine was

least of the evi ls they endured. Unwholesome food,impu re air from the neighbouring marshes, engenderedt ial diseases

,which carried them off more rapidly than

DW S of the enemy . A thousand of them died in a day,became at last a matter of ex treme difficulty to afford

trial. To add to their misery, eachman grew suspiciouse ighbour ; for the camp was infested by Turkish spies,nveyed daily to the besieged intelligence of the move

.nd distresses of the enemy. With a ferocity engen

ydespair

,Bohemund caused two spies, whom he had

to be roasted alive in the presence of the army, andsi

ght of the battlements of Antioch. But even this

3 ailed to reduce their numbers, and the Turks conti- be as well informed as the Christians themselves of alls passing in the camp.

news of the arrival of a reinforcement of soldiers fromwith an abundant stock of provisions, came to cheerhen reduced to the last ex tremity . The welcome suc

ided at S t. S imeon ,the port of Antioch, and about six

om that ci ty . Thitherwards the famishing crusadersed in tumultuous bands, followed by Bohemund and

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m CRUSADES .

his command an Armenian of the name of Phirouz,

he had intrusted with the defence of a tower on that

ifthe city wall which overlooked the passes of the menu. Bohemnnd, by means of a spy who had embraced them religion, and to whom he had given his own name at

n ,kept up a daily communication with this captain

,and

shimthe mostmagnificent promises of reward, if he wouldat up his post to the Christian knights . Whether themlwas first made by Bohemund or by the Armenian 1s

rain, but that a good understanding soon ex isted between,isundoubted; and a night was fix ed for the ex ecution of

reject. Bohemund communicated the scheme to Godfreyhe Count of Toulouse, with the stipulation that

,if the

are won, he, as the soul of the enterprise, should enjoy

guity of Prince of Antioch. The other leaders hesiambition and jealousy prompted them to refuse theirfurthering the views of the intriguer. More matureen tion decided them to acquiesce, and seven hundredbravest knights were chosen for the ex pedition, the realof which, for fear of spies, was kept a profound secrette rest of the army . When all was ready, a report wasgated, that the seven hundred were intended to form

uscade for a division of the Sultan’

s army,which was

to be approaching.

ything favoured the treacherous project of the Arme1ptain , who, on his solitary watch- tower, received dueion of the approach of the crusaders . The night was

1d stormy ; not a star was visible above,and the wind

so furiously as to overpower all other sounds ; the raintorrents, and the watchers on the towers adjoining toPhirouz could not hear the tramp of the armed knightsw ind

,nor see them for the obscurity of the n ight and

melness of the weather. When within shot of the walls,

and sent forward an interpreter to confer w ith the

ian . The latter urged them to make haste,and seize

'

ourable interval, as armed men, with lighted torches,ed the battlements every half hour, and at that instant

ad just passed. The chiefs were instantly at the foot

wall : Phirouz let down a rope ; Bohemund attached it

end of a ladder of hides, which was then raised by the

48 run enem as.

Armenian, and held while the knights mounted. A mo

ary fear came over the spirits of the adventurers, and

one hesitated. At last Bohemund, encouraged by P]from above, ascended a few steps on the ladder, and W!

lowed by Godfrey, Count Robert of Flanders, and a m

of other knights. As they advanced, others pressed foruntil their weight became too great for the ladder, 1breaking, precipitated about a dozen of them to the gt

where they fell one upon the other, making a great c

with their heavy coats of mail. For a moment they th

that all was lost ; but the wind made so loud a bowlingswept in fierce gusts through the mountain gorges—ar

Orontes, swollen by the rain, rushed so noisily alongthe guards heard nothing. The ladder was eas ily repand the knights ascended two at a time, and reached theform in safety. When si x ty of them had thus ascends:

torch of the coming patrol was seen to gleam at the amthe wall. Hiding themselves behind a buttress, they av

his coming in breathless silence. As soon as he arriv

arm ’

s length, he was suddenly seized, and, before beopen his lips to raise an alarm

,the silence of death 1

them up for ever. They nex t descended rapidly thestaircase of the tower, and, open ing the portal, admittewhole of their compan ions. Raymond of Toulouse, whon izant of the whole plan , had been left behind with thebody of the army, heard at this instant the signal

which announced that an entry had been efl'

ected, and, Is

on his legions, the town was attacked from within and wit

Imagination cannot conceive a scene more dreadfulthat presented by the devoted city of An tioch on that

of horror. The crusaders fought with a blind fury,fanaticism and suffering alike incited. Men, women , and

dren were indiscrim inately slaughtered till the street8 1

gore. Darkness increased the destruction ,for when mo

dawned the crusaders found themselves with their swm

the breasts of their fellow - soldiers, whom they had misfor foes . The Turkish commander fled, first to the ci

and that becoming insecure, to the mountains, whither h

V ida Willi am of Tyre.

!EIIIOUHUBAJNIB.

his grayhead brought back toAntioch

a trophy. At daylight the massacre ceased, and the cru

dars gave themselves up to plunder. They found gold, anduels, and silks, and velvets in abundance, but, of provisions,lich were of more importance to them, they found but littleany kind. Corn was ex cessively scarce, and they discoveredtheir sorrow that in this respect the besieged had been but

tle better off than the besiegers.

Before they had time to instal themselves in their new positu, and take the necessary measures for procuring a supply,a city was invested by . the Turks. The Sultan of Perms1d raised an immense army, which he intrusted to the com

and of Kerbogha, the Emir of Mosul,with instructions to

reap the Christian locusts from the face of the land. The

mir efl'

ected a junction with Kilij Aslaun, and the two armiesrronnded the city. Discouragement took complete posses1n of the Christian host, and numbers of them contrived toads the vigilance of the besiegers, and escape to Count Ste1011 of Blois at Alex andretta, to whom they related the most'

aggerated tales of the misery they had endured, and the

ter hopelessness of continuing the war. S tephen forthwithoke up his camp and retreated towards Constantinople. On

3 way he was met by the Emperor Alex ius, at the head of a

nsiderable force, hasten ing to take possession of the con

tests made by Christians in Asia. As soon as he heard of

eir woful plight, he turned back,and proceeded with the

1un t of Blois to Constantinople, leaving the remnant of theusaders to shi ft for themselves.

The news of this defection increased the discouragement atntioch. All the useless horses of the army had been slain

1d eaten , and dogs, cats, and rats were sold at enormousi ces . Even vermin were becoming scarce. With in

eas ing famine came a pestilence,so that in a short time

1t six ty thousand remained of the three hundred thousand.at had originally invested Antioch. But this bitter ex

em ity, while it annihilated the energy of the host, onlytrved to knit the leaders more firmly together ; and Boheund, Godfrey, and Tancred swore never to desert the

tuse as long as life lasted. The former strove in vain to

an imate the courage of his followers. They were weary1d sick at heart, and his menaces and prom1ses were abkeVOL . IL 5

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TH I CRUSADES.

the city of Antioch, where he led him into the church of S t.

Peter, at that time a Saracen mosque. The Apostle madehim stop by the pillar close to the steps by which theysend on the south side of the altar, where hung two lamps,which gave out a light brighter than that of the noondayam ; the younger man, whom he did not at that time know,standi ng afar ofi

'

, near the steps of the altar. The A tle

then descended into the ground and brought up a ance,

which he ave into his hand, telling him that it was the verylance that ad 0 ned the side whence had flowed the salva

tion of the worl With tears of joyhe held the holy lance,and implored the Apostle to allow h1m to take it away and

deliver it into the hands of Count Raymond. The Apostlerefused, and buried the lance again in the ground, commanding him, when the city was won from the infidels, to go with

twelve chosen men, and dig it up again in the same place.

The Apostle then transported him back to his tent, and the

two van ished from his sight. He had neglected, he said, to

deliver this message, afraid that his wonderful tale would not

obtain credence from men of such high rank. After some dayshe again saw the holy vision , as he was gone out of the campto look for food. This time the divine eyes of the youngerlooked reproachfully upon him. He implored the Apostle tochoose some one else more fitted for the miss ion , but the

Apostle refused, and smote him with a disorder of the eyes,as a punishment for his disobedience. With an obstinacyunaccountable even to himself, he had still delayed. A thirdtime the Apostle and his compan ion had appeared to him, as

he was in a tent with his master William at S t. S imeon . On

that occasion S t. Andrew told him to hear his command to

the Count of Toulouse not to bathe in the waters of the J or

dan when he came to it, but to cross over in a boat, clad in a

shirt and breeches of linen, which he should sprinkle with thesacred waters of the river. These clothes he was afterwardsto reserve along with the holy lance. H is master William,

alt ough he could not see the saint, distinctly heard the

voice giving orders to that effect. Again be neglected to

ex ecute the commission, and again the saints appeared to

him, when he was at the port of Mamistra, about to sail for

Cyprus , and S t. Andrew threatened him with eternal perdi

THE CRUSADES .

tion if he refused longer. Upon this he made up his mind todivulge all that had been revealed to him.

The Count of Toulouse, who, in all probability, concoctedthis precious tale with the priest, appeared struck with the

recital, and sent immediately for the Bishop of Pay and

Raymond of Altapnlto. The Bishop at once ex pressed his

disbelief of the whole story,and refused to have anything to

do in the matter. The Count of Toulouse, on the contrary,saw abundant motives

,if not for believing, for pretending to

believe ; and,in the end, he so impressed upon the mind

'

et

the Bishop the advantage that might be derived from it, inworking up the popular mind to its former ex citement, that

the latter reluctantly agreed to make search in due form forthe holy weapon . The day after the morrow was fix ed upon

for the ceremony,and

,in the mean time, Peter was consigned

to the care of Raymond, thé Count’

s chaplain , in order thatno profane curiosity might have an Opportun ity of crossex amining him, and putting him to a nonplus .

Twelve devout men were forthwith chosen for the under

taking, among whom were the Count of Toulouse and his

chaplain . They began digging at sunrise, and continued

unwearied ti ll near sunset, without finding the lance — theymight have dug till this day with no better success

, had not

Peter himself sprung into the pit, praying to God to bringthe lance to light, for the stren then ing and victory of his

people. Those who hide know wiltere to find ; and so it was

w ith Peter, for both he and the lance found their way into thehole at the same time. On a sudden , he and Raymond

,the

chaplain,beheld its point in the earth

,and Raymond, draw

ing it forth, kissed it with tears of joy, in sight of the multi

tude which had assembled in the church. It was immediatelyenveloped in a rich purple cloth, already prepared to receiveit, and ex hibited in this state to the faithful, who made the

bu ilding resound with their shouts of gladness .

Peter had another vision the same n ight, and became fromthat day forth dreamer of dreams,

”in general, to the army.

He stated on the following day, that the Apostle Andrew ,and

“the youth with the divine aspect appeared to him again,and directed that the Count of Toulouse, as a reward for hispersevering piety, should carry the Holy Lance at the head

of the army,and that the day on which it was found should

'tu CRUSADES.

1 observed as a solemn festival throughout Christendom.

t. Andrew showed him, at the same time, the holes in the

et and hands of his benign companion ; and he became

stood in the awful presence of mmExm nn.

Peter gained so much credit by his visions that dreamin

scams contagious. Other monks beside himself were visiy the saints, who promised victory to the best if it would

alian ti hold out to the last, and crowns of eternal lory to

lose w o fell in the fight. Two deserters, weari of the

stigasa and

(privations of the war, who had stealthily left

to camp, eu denly returned, and seeking Bohemund, toldim that they had been met by two apparitions, who,withgreat

r,had commanded them to return . The one of them

that be recognised his brother, who had been killed inattle some months before, and that he had a halo of gloryround his head. The other, still more hardy, asserted that10 apparition which had spoken to him was the Saviour him

1lf, who had promised eternal happiness as his reward if he

starned to his dut but the pains of eternal fire if be re

acted the cross. 0 one thought of disbelieving these men .

he courage of the army immediately revived ; despondencyave way to hope ; every arm grew stren again , and the

angs of hunger were for a time disregarded. The suthu

iasm which had led them from Europe burned forth once

1ore as brightly as ever, and they demanded, with loud cries,ube led against the enemy. The leaders were not unwilling .

n a battle lay their only chance of salvation ; and although

iodfrey, Bohemund, and Tancred received the story of the

mce with much suspicion, they were too wise to throw dis

redit upon an immaturewhich bade fair to open the gates oficterPeder the Hermit was previously sent to the camp of Ker

ogba to propose that the quarrel between the two religionshonld be decided by a chosen number of the bravest soldiersf each army. Kerbogha turned from him with a look of

ontempt, and said he could agree to no proposals from a set

'f such mi serable be are and robbers. With this uncourteousnewer Peter returngdto Antioch. Preparations were immeliately commenced for an attack upon the enemy : the latterontinued to be perfectly well informed of all the proceedings

5*

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mder their hoofs like stubble. S till the afi ay was doubtful ;z‘

or the Christians had the advantage of theground, and were

rapidly gaining upon the enemy, when t e overwhelmin

forces of Soliman arrived in the rear. Godfrey and Tancre

flew to the rescue of Bohemund, spreading disma in the

Turkish ranks by their fierce impetuosity. The ishop of

Puy was left almost alone with the Provencals to oppose thelegions commanded by Kerbogha in person ; but the presenceof the Holy Lance made a hero of the meanest soldier in his

train . Still, however, the numbers of the enemy seemed ia

terminable. The Christians, attacked on every side, began at

last to give way, and the Turks made sure of victory.

At this moment a cry was raised in the Christian host thatthe saints were fighting on their side. The battle- field was

clear of the smoke from the burn ing weeds , which had curled

away, and bang in white clouds of fantastic shape on thebrow

of thedistantmountains. Some imaginative zealot, seein this

dimly through the dust of the battle, called out to his fel owe,to look at the y of saints, clothed in white, and riding uponwhite horses, t at were pouring over the bills to the rescue.

All eyes were immediately turned to the distant smoke ; fai thwas in every heart ; and the old battle- cry, God wi lls it ! God

wi lls it! resounded through the field, as every soldier, believing that God was visibly sending H is armies to his aid,fought with an energy unfelt before. A panic seized the

Persian and Turki shhosts, and they gaveway in all di rections.

In vain Kerbogha tried to rally them. Fear is more conta

gious than enthusiasm,and they fled over the mountains like

deer pursued by the bounds. The two leaders, seeing the

uselessness of further efl'

orts, fled with the rest ; and that

immense army was scattered over Palestine, leaving nearlyseventy thousand of its dead upon the field of battle.

Their magn ificent camp fell into the hands of the enemy,with i ts rich stores of corn , and its droves of sheep and ox en .

J ewels, gold, and rich velvets in abundance were distributedamong the arm Tancred followed the fugitives over thehills, and reapedas much plunder as those who had remainedin the camp. The way, as they fled, was coveredwith valua

bles, and horses of the finest breed ofArabia became so plentiful

,that every kn ight of the Christians was provided with a

THE CRUSADES .

steed. The crusaders, in this battle, acknowledge to have

lost nearly ten thousand men .

Their return to Antioch was one of joy indeed : the citadel

was surrendered at once, and many of the Turkish garrisonembraced the Christian faith, and the rest were suffered todepart. A solemn thanksgiving was offered up by theof Pay, in whi ch the whole army joined, and the Holy Lancewas visited by every soldier.The enthusiasm lasted for some days, and the army loudly

demanded to be led forward to Jerusalem,the grand goal of

all their wishes : but none of their leaders was anx ious to

move — the more prudent among them, such as Godfrey andTancred, for reasons of ex pediency ; and the more ambitious,such as the Count of Toulouse and Bohemund

,for reasons of

self- interest. Violent dissensions sprang up again between allthe chiefs. Raymond of Toulouse, who was left at Antiochto guard the town , had summoned the citadel to surrender, assoon as he saw that there was no fear of any attack upon thepart of the Persians ; and the other chiefs found, upon their

return , his banner waving on its walls. This had given greatoffence to Bohemund, who had stipulated the principality ofAntioch as his reward for winning the town in the first iastance. Godfrey and Tancred supported his claim,

and, after

a great deal of bickering, the flag of Raymond was loweredfrom the tower, and that of Bohemund hoisted in its stead,who assumed from that time the title of Prince of Antioch.Raymond, however, persis ted in retaining possession of one of

the city gates and its adjacent towers, whi ch he held for severalmonths, to the res t annoyance of Bohemund and the scandal

of the army. he Count became in consequence ex tremelyunpopular, although his ambi tion was not a whit more un

reasonable than that of Bohemund himself, nor of Baldwin,who had taken up his quarters at Edessa, where be ex ercisedthe functions of a petty sovereign .

The fate of Peter Barthelemy deserves to be recorded.

Honours and consideration had come thick upon him after theafi

'

air of the lance, and he consequently felt bound in con

science to continue the dreams which had made him a personage of so much importance. The mischief of it was

, that like

many other liars he had a very bad memory,and he contrived

to make hi s dreams contradict each other in the most palpable

m CRUSADES .

.nner. St. J ohn one night appeared to him, and told one

o, a week after, St. Paul told a totally different story,11 held out be quite incom atible with those of his aposdc brother. he credulity 0 that age had a widemaw, and

tter’

s visions must have been absurd and outrageous indeed,1en the very men who had believed in the lance refused toallow any more of his wonders. Bohemund at last, for the

Lrpose of annoying the Count of Toulouse, challenged poorM to

prove the truth of his story of the lance by the fieryeter could not refuse a trial so common in that age,

1d bein besides encouraged by the Count and his chaplam,

aymond, an early day was appointed for the ceremony. The'ovious n

ight was spent in prayer and fasting, according to

(stem, an Peter came forth in themorning bearin the lance

his hand, and walked boldly up to the fire. be whole

my gathered round, impatient for the result, many thousandsill believing that the lance was genuine and Peter a holyan . Prayers having been said by Raymond d’Agilles, Peteralhed into the flames, andhad get nearly through, when painsneed him to lose his presence of mind : the heat too afl

'

ected

8 eyes, and, in his anguish, he turned round unwittingly,1d passed through the fire again , instead of stepping out of

as he should have done. The result was , that he was

trued so severely,that he never recovered, and, after linger

for some days,he ex pired in great agony.

i dost of the soldiers were sufl'

ering either from wounds, di s

813, or weariness, and it was resolved by Godfrey,— the

citly acknowledged chief of the enterprise,—that the army

ou ld have time to refresh itself ere they advanced uponrusalem. It was now July, and he proposed that they shouldas the hotmonths of August and September within the wallsA ntioch, andmarchforward in October with renewedvigour,d numbers increased by fresh arrivals from Europe. Thisvi ce was finally adopted, although the enthusiasts of the

my continued to murmur at the delay. In the mean time

0 Count of Vermandois was sent upon an embassy to thenperor Alex ius at Constantinople, to reproach him for hisas desertion of the cause, and urge him to send the reinrcements he had promised. The Count faithfully ex ecuted

9 m ission , (of whi ch, by the way, Alex ius took no notice

uatever,)and remained for some time at ConstantinOple, till

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ook a 1m farewell of all his friends, telling them 11m hewas

thout to leave this world. A few hours afterwards, the enemy1aving made a sortie, Anselme went out st them sword

n hand, and was struck on the forehead y a stone from a

Turkish sling, which sent him to heaven, to the beautiful

palace that was prepared for him.

”

New dis ntes arose between the Prince of An tioch and the

Count of Toulouse with regard to the capture of this town,which were with the utmost difi cult appeased by the other

chiefs. Delays also took place in the progress of the army,especiallybeforeArchas, and the soldiery were so ex asperated

that they were on the point of choosing new leaders to con

duct them to Jerusalem. Godfrey, upon this, set fire to his

camp at Archas, and marched forward. He was immediately

joined b hundreds of the Provencals of the Count of Tou

cuse. e latter, seeing the turn affairs were taking, has

tened after them,and the whole host proceeded towards the

holy city, so long desired amid sorrow,and suffering, and

danger. At Emmaus they were met by a deputation from the

Christians ofBethlehem,praying for immediate aid against the

Oppression of the infidels. The very name of Bethlehem,the

birthplace of the Saviour, was music to their ears, and manyof them wept with joy to think they were approaching a spotso hallowed. Albert ofAi x informs us that their hearts wereso touched that sleep was banished from the camp, and that,instead of waiting till themorning

’

s dawn to recommence theirmarch, they set out shortly after midnight, full of hope and

enthus iasm. For upwards of four hours the mail- clad legionstrumped steadfastly forward in the dark, and when the sun

1rose in unclouded splendour, the towers and pinnacles of

lernsalem gleamed upon their sight. All the tender feelings1f their nature were touched ; no longer brutal fanatics, butneck and humble pilgrims, they knelt down upon the sod, andvi th tears in their eyes, ex claimed to one another

,

“J eru

a lem .

’ J erusalem Some of them kissed the holy ground,.thers stretched themselves at full length upon it, in order thathei r bodies might come in contact with the greatest possible1x tent of it, and others prayed aloud. The women and chil

lren who had followed the camp from Europe, and shared in111 i ts dangers, fatigues, and privations, were more boisterous11 their joy ; the former from long- nourished enthusiasm, and

THE CRUSADES .

the latter from mere imitation ,*and prayed, and wept, and

Ian hed till they almost put the more sober to the blush.

he first ebullition of their gladness having subsided, the

army marched forward, and invested the city on all sides.

The assault was almost immediately begun ; but after the

Christians had lost some of their bravest knights, that modeof attack was abandoned, and the army commenced its preparations for a regular siege. Mangonels, moveable towers, andbattering rams, together with a machine called a sow, madeof

wood, and covered with raw hides, inside of which miners

worked to undermine the walls, were forthwith constructed;and to restore the courage and discipline of the army, whichhad sufi

'

ered from the unworthy dissensions of the chiefs, the

latter held out the hand of friendship to each other, and

Tancred and the Count of Toulouse embraced in the sight of

the whole camp . The clergy aided the cause with their

powerful voice, and preached un ion and good- will to the

highest and the lowest. A solemn procession was also orderedround the city, in which the entire army joined

,prayers being

offered up at every spot which ospel records had taught themto consider as peculiarly sacred.The Saracens upon the ramparts beheld all these menifee

tations without alarm. To incense the Christians, whom theydespised, they constructed rude crosses

,and fix ed them upon

the walls, and spat upon and pelted them with dirt and stones.

This insult to the symbol of their faith raised the wrath of thecrusaders to that height that bravery became ferocity and

enthusiasm madness . When all the engines of war were

completed, the attack was recommenced, and every soldier ofthe Christian army fought with a vigour which the sense of

private wrong invariably inspires . Every man had been personally outraged, and the kn ights worked at the batteringrams with as much readiness as the meanest soldier. The

Guibert de Nogent relates a curious instance of the imi tativeness of

these juven ile cru saders . He says that, during the siege of Antioch, the

Christian and S aracen boys used to issue forth every even ing from the town

and camp in great numbers under the command of captain s chosen from

among themselves . Armed w ith sticks instead of swords, and stones instead

of arrows, they ranged themselves in battle order, and shou ting each the

war - cry of their coun try, fought w i th the u tmost desperation . Some of them

lost their eyes, and many became cripples for life from the injuries theyreceived on these occasions.

run CRUSADES .

Saracen arrows and balls of fire fell thick and fast among;hem , but the tremendous rams still heaved against the walls,while the best marksmen of the host were busily employed inthe several floors of the moveable towers in dealing death

among the Turks upon the battlements. Godfrey, Raymond,Tancred, and Robert of Normandy, each upon his tower,

fought for hours with unwearied ener often repulsed, butever ready to renew the stru

ggle. he Turks, no longer

sin the enemy, defende themselves with the utmost

an bravery till darkness brou ht a cessation of hostili

ties . Short was the sleep that n ight in the Christian camp.

The priests ofl'

ered up solemn prayers in the midst of the

attentive soldiery for the triumph of the Cross in this last

great struggle, and as soon as morning dawned ever one was

In readiness for the afl'

ray. The women and chi dren lenttheir aid, the latter running unconcerned to and fro while the

arrows fell fast around them,bearing water to the thirsty

combatants. The saints were believed to be aiding theirefl

'

orts,and the army, impressed with this idea

, surmounteddifliculties under which a force thrice as numerous, but withouttheir faith, would have quailed and been defeated. Raymondof Toulouse at last forced his way into the city by escalade,while at the very same moment Tancred and Robert of Normandy succeeded in bursting Open one of the gates . The

Turks flew to repair the mischief, and Godfrey of Bouillon ,seeing the battlements comparative

};r deserted, let down the

drawbridge ofhis moveable tower, an sprang forward, followedby all the kn ights of his train . In an instant after

, the bannerof the Cross, floated upon the walls of Jerusalem. The cru

saders, raising once more their redoubtable war- cry, rushed onfrom every side

,and the city was taken . The battle raged

in the streets for several hours,and the Christians, remember

ing their insulted faith, gave no quarter to young or old,male

or female,sick or strong. Not one of the leaders thought

himself at liberty to issue orders for staying the carnage, andif he had, he would not have been obeyed. The Saracens fledin great numbers to the mosque of Soliman , but they had not

time to fortify themselves w ithin it ere the Christians wereupon them. Ten thousand persons are said to have perishedin that bu ilding alone.

Peter the Hermit, who had remained so long under the veilvon. 11 . 6

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rm: CRUSADES .

royal mantle before the Saracens menaced his capital. Withmuch vigour and judgment be ex erted himself to follow up the

advanta es he had gained, andmarching out tomeet the enemybefore t ey had time to besie e him in Jerusalem,

be ave

them battle at Ascalon, and efeated them with great oss.

He did not, however, live long to enjoy his new dignity, beingseized with a fatal illness when he had onl reigned nine

months. To him succeeded his brother, Bal win of Edessa.

The latter monarch did much to improve the condition of

Jerusalem and to ex tend its territory, but was not able to

make a firm footing for his successors. For fifty years, inwhich the history of Jerusalem is full of interest to the histor‘ical student, the crusaders were ex posed to fierce and con

stant hostilities, often gaining battles and territory, and as

often losing them, but becoming every day weaker and moredivided, whi le the Saracens became stronger and more united

to harass and root them out. The battles of this period wereof the most chivalrous character

,and deeds of heroism were

done by the handful of brave knights that remained in Syria,which have hardly their parallel in the annals of war. In the

course of time, however, the Christians could not avoid feelingsome respect for the courage, and admiration for the polishedmanners and advanced civilization of the Saracens, so muchsuperior to the rudeness and semi - barbarism of Europe at that

day . Difference offaithdidnot prevent them from forming alliances with the dark - eyedmaidens of theEast. One of thefirstto set the ex ample of taking a Payn im spousewasKing Baldwinhimself, and these connex ions in time became, not only frequent, but almost un iversal, among such of the kn ights as hadresolved to spend their lives in Palestine. These Easternladies were obliged, however, to submit to the ceremony of

baptism before they could be received to the arms of a Christian lord. These, and their offspring, naturally looked uponthe Saracens with less hatred than did the zealots who con

quered Jerusalem,and who thought it sin deserving the wrath

of God to spare an unbeliever . We find, in consequence, thatthe most obstinate battles waged during the reigns of the laterK ings of Jerusalem were fought by the new and raw levies

who from time to time arrivedfrom Europe, lured by the hopeof glory, or spurred by fanaticism . The latter broke withoutscruple the truces established between the original settlers andthe Saracens,and drewdown severe retaliation uponmanythou

THE CRU SADES .

sandsof their brethren in the faith, whose prudencewasstrongerthan their zeal, and whose chief desire was to live in peace.

Things remained in this unsatisfactory state till theclose of

the year 1145 , when Edessa, the strong frontier town of the

Christian kingdom ,fell into the hands of the S aracens. The

latter were commanded by Zenghi , a powerful and enterprisingmonarch, and, after his death, by his son Nourheddin ,

as powerful and enterprising as his father. An unsuccessful attempt

was made by the Count of Edessa to regain the fortress, butNourheddin ,

with a large army, came to the rescue, and after

defeating the Countwithgreat slaughter, marched in to Edessaand caused its fortifications to be rased to the ground, thatthe town might never more be a bulwark of

'defence for the

kingdom ofJerusalem . The road to the capital was now open,and consternation seized the hearts of the Christians. Nourheddin , it was known , was only waiting for a favourableOpportun ity to advance upon Jerusalem

,and the arm ies of the

Cross, weakened and divided, were not in a condition to make

any available resistance. The clergy were filled with grief andalarm

,andwrote repeated letters to the Pope and the sovereigns

ofEurope, urging the ex pedieney ofa new Crusade for the reliefof Jerusalem . By far the greater number of the priests ofPalestine were natives of France, and these naturally lookedfirst to their own country . The solicitations they sen t to Louisthe Seventh were urgent and oft repeated, and the chivalry ofFrance began to talk once more of arming in the defence ofthe birthplace of Jesus . The kings of Europe, whose in terestit had not been to take any part in the first Crusade, beganto bestir themselves in this ; and a man appeared, eloquentas Peter the Hermit

,to arouse the people as he had done.

We find,however, that the enthusiasm of the second did

not equal that of the first Cru sade : in fact, the man ia had

reached its climax in the time of Peter the Herm it, and decreased regularly from that period. The third Crusade wasless general than the second, and the fourth than the third,and so on

,until the public enthusiasm was qu ite ex tin ct, and

Jerusalem returned at last to the dominion of its old masters

without a convulsion in Christendom . Various reasons havebeen assigned for this ; and one very generally put forwardis,that Europe was wearied with continual struggles, and had

become sick of precipitating itself upon Asia . M . Guizot,in his admirable lectures upon European civilization

, success

THE CRUSADES.

Fully combats this opinion, and ofl'

ers one of his own, which isin more satisfactory. He as s, in his eighth lecture, Ithas been often re

fin ed, that urope was ti red of continually

invading Asia. is ex pression appears to me ex ceedinglyincorrect. It is not possible that human beings can be

wearied with what they have not done—that the labours oftheir forefathers can fatigue them. Weariness is a personal,not an inherited feeling. The men of the thirteenth centurywere not fatigued b the Crusades of the twelfth.

influenced by auot er cause. A t changein ideas, sentiments, and socia conditions . The same

ires and the! same wants were no longer felt. The same

things were no longer believed. The people refused to

believe what their ancestors were persuaded of.”

This is, in fact, the secret of the change ; and its truth

becomes more apparent as we advance in the histo of the

Crusades, and compare the state of the public min at the

different riods when Godfrey of Bouillon, Louis VII. and

Richard were chiefs and leaders of the movement. The

Crusades themselves were the means of operating a greatchange in national ideas , and advancing the civilization of

Europe. In the time of Godfrey, the nobles were all- powerful and all- oppressive, and equally obnox ious to kings and

people. During their absence along with that portion of the

commun ity the deepest sunk in ignorance and superstition ,both kings and people fortified themselves against the renewalof aristocratic tyranny, and in proportion as they became free,became civilized. It was during this period that in France,the grand centre of the crusading madness, the communes

began to acquire strength, and the monarch to possess a

tangible and not a merely theoretic authority. Order and

comfort began to take root, and, when the second Crusade

was preached, men were in consequence much less willing toabandon their homes than they had been durin the first.Such pilgrims as had returned from the Holy i and came

back with minds more liberal and ex panded than when theyset out. They had come in contact with a people more civi

lized than themselves ; they had seen something more of the

world, and had lost some portion, however small, of the pre'

udiec and bigotry of ignorance. The institution of chivalryalso ex ercised its human izing influence, and coming bright

6G

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THE CRUSADES .

and contented himself with the simple abbacy of Clairvaux , inorder that he might have the leisure he desired, to raise his

powerful voice against abuses wherever he found them. Vicemet in him an austere and uncompromising reprover no man

was too hi h for his reproach, and none too low for his sym

athy. l

i

fe was just as well suited for his age as Peter theHermit had been for the age preceding . He appealed moreto the reason, his predecessor to the passions ; Peter theHer

mit collected a mob, while S t. Bernard collected an army.

Both were endowed with equal zeal and perseverance, springing, in the one, from impulse, and in the other from convic

tion , and a desire to increase the influence of the church, that

great body of which he was a pillar and an ornament.One of the first converts he made was in himself a host.

Louis VII. was both superstitious and t rannical, and, in a

fit of remorse for the infamous slaughterhe had authorized atthe sacking of Vitry, he made a vow to undertake the journeyto the Holy Land.

* He was in this disposition when S t.

Bernard began to preach, and wanted but little persuasion toembark in the cause. Il is ex ample had great influence uponthe n obility, who, impoverished as many of them were by thesacrifices made by their father

'

s 111 the holy wars, were anx iousto repair their ruined fortunes by conquests on a foreignshore. These took the field with such vassals as they could

command, and, in a very short time, an army was raisedamoun ting to two hundred thousand men . At V ezelai the

monarch received the cross from the hands of S t. Bernard, 011a. platform elevated in sight of all the people. Several nobles,three bishops, and his Queen , Eleanor of Aquitaine, were

The sacking of Vitry reflects indelible disgrace upon Lou is V II. His

predecessors had been long engaged 111 resistance to theoutrageous powersa ssumed by the Popes , and Louis continued the same policy. The ecclesi

asti cal chapter of Bourges , having elected an Archbishop w i thou t his con

sen t, he proclaimed the election to be invalid, and took severe and promptmeasu res against the refractory clergy . Thibau lt, Count de Champagne,took up arms in defence of the Papal authori ty, and intrenched himself

in the town of Vitry. Lou is was immediately 111 the field to chastise the

rebel , and he besieged the town with so much vi gour, that the Count was

forced to surrender. Upwards of thirteen hundred of the inhabi tants ,fully one half of whom were women and chi ldren , took refuge in the

church ; and, when the gates of the city were opened, and all resistance

had ceased, Lou is inhumanly gave orders to set fire to the church, and a

thousand persons perished 1n the flames .

THE CRUSADES .

present at this ceremony, and enrolled themselves under thebahners of the Cross, S t. Bernard cutting up his red sacer

dotal vestments, and making crosses of them, to be sewn on

the shoulders of the people. An ex hortation from the Popewas read to the multitude, granting remission of their sins to

all who should join the Crusade, and directing that no man

on that holy pilgrimage should encumber himself w ith heavybaggage and vain superfluities, and that the nobles should nottravel with dogs or falcons, to lead them from the direct road,as had happened to so many during the first Crusade.

The command of the army was offered to S t. Bernard ; buthe wisely refused to accept a station for which his habits hadunqualified him . After cousecrating Lou is with great solemn ity, at S t. Den is

,as chief of the ex pedition , he continued

his course through the country, stirring up the people wher

ever hc went. be high an opinion was enterta ined of his

sanctity,that he was thought to be animated by the spirit of

prophecy, and to be giftedwith the power of working m iracles.Many women , ex cited by his eloquence, and encouraged byhis predictions

,forsook their husbands and children

,and,

clothing themselves in male attire, hastened to the war. St.

Bernard himself wrote a letter to the Pope, detailing his suc

cess, and stating, that in several towns there did not remaina single male inhab itant capable of bearing arms, and that

everywhere castles and towns were to be seen filled with

women weeping for their absent husbands . But in spite of

this apparent enthusiasm,the numbers who really took up

arms were inconsiderable, and not to be compared to the

swarms of the first Crusade. A levy of no more than twohundred thousand men

,which was the utmost the number

amounted to,could hardly have depopulated a country like

France to the ex tent mentioned by S t. Bernard. H is description of the state of the country appears, therefore, to havebeen much more poetical than true.

Suger, the able m in ister of Lou is, endeavoured to dissuadehim from undertaking so long a journey at a time when his

own dominions so much needed his presence. But the kin

was pricked in his conscience by the cruelties of Vitry, anwas anx ious to make the only reparation which the religion ofthat day considered suflicient. He was desirous moreover of

testifying to the world, that though he could brave the tempo

THE CRUSAD' .

ral power of the church when it encroached upon his reroga

tires, he could render all due obedience to its spirit decrees

whenever it suited his interest or talliedwith his prejudices tosodo. Su er, therefore implored in vain, and Louis receivedthe pilgrim s stafl

'

at St. Denis, and made all preparations forhis pil

'

mage.

In til

:mean time St. Bernard passed into Germany, wheresimilar success attended his preaching. The renown of his

sanctity had gonebefore him, and he found everywhere an ad

miri ng audience. Thousands of people, who could not under

stand a word he said, flocked around him to catch a glimpse of

so holy a man ; and the knights enrolled themselves in greatnumbers in the service of the Cross, each receiving from his

hands the symbol of the cause. But the people were not led

may as in the days of Gottschalk. We do not find that theyuse in such tremendous masses of two and three hundredhou sand men, swarming over the country like a plague of

acu sts . Still the enthusiasm was very great. The ex traerin ary tales that were told and believed of themiracles worked

y the preacher, brought the country people from far and near.Dev ils were said to vanish at his sight, and diseases of the

los t mali nant nature to be cured by his touch.

* The Empeor Conradcaught at last the contagion from his subjects, andec lat ed his intention to follow the Cross.

T he preparations were carried on so vigorously under therders of Conrad, that in less than three months he found himelf at the head of an army contain ing at least one hundrednd fifty thousand efl

'

ective men, besides a great number of

romen who followed their husbands and lovers to thewar. One

roop of them rode in the attitude and armour of men theirhiefs wore gilt spurs and buskins, and thence acquired the

pithet of the golden- footed lady. Conrad was ready to set

u t long before theFrenchmonarch, and in the month ofJune,147 , he arrived before Constantinople, having passed throughIungary and Bulgaria without offence to the inhabitants .

4“ Philip, Archdeacon of the cathedral of Liege, wrote a detai led account

I’

all the miracles performed by S t. Bernard during thirty - four days ofhis

sis-s ion . They averaged abou t ten per day . The disciples of S t. Bernardompla incd bitterly that the people flocked around their master in such

umbers , that they could not see half themiracles he performed. But theyrillingly trusted the eyes of others, as far as fai th in the miracles went,md seemed to viewith each other whose credulity should be greatest.

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nan Emperor into dangers and difieulties. It 1s certain,instead of guiding them through such districts Of Asia»r as affordedwater andprovisions, they led them into the1 of Cappadocia, where neither was to be procured, and0 they were sudden] attacked by the Sultana Ofthe Sel.n Turks, at the h

o

sedof an immense force. The guides,e treachery 1s app

parent from this fact alone, fled at the

sight Of the'Ihn' ish armyy, and the Christians were left

sge unequal warfare with their enemy, entangled and be1red 111 desertwilds. Toiling 111 theirheavymail, theGer1 could make but little efl

'

ective resistance to the attacks

0 Turkish light horse, who were down upon them one inand out of sight the nex t. Now in the front and now

0 hear, the agile foe showered his arrows upon them, en

them into swamps and hollows, from which they couldex tricate themselves after long struggles andgreat losses.Germans, confounded by this mode of warfare, lost all

aption Of the direction they were pursuing, and went backad Of forward. Suffering at the same t1me for want Of

isions, they fell an easy prey to their pursuers. Counthard

,one Of the bravest leaders of the German ex pedi

was surrounded,with his whole division , not one Of whom

bed the Turkish arrows. TheEmperor himselfhadnearly1 a victim,

and was twice severely wounded. SO perseg was the enemy, and so little able were the Germans toreven a show Of resistance

,that when Conrad at last

1cd the city of Nice, he found that,instead Of being at

tead of an imposing force Of one hundred thousand feet

seventy thousandhorse, he had but fifty or six ty thousandand these in the mostworn and wearied condition .

itally ignorant of the treachery Of the Greek Emperor,

ough he had been warned to beware of it,Louis VII .

aeded, at the head Of his army,through Worms and

Eben , towards Constantinople. At Ratisbon

,he was

b

ioa deputation from Manuel

,bearing letters so full Of

le and flattery, that Lou is 13 reported to have blushed1 they were read to him by the Bishop Of Langres. The

st of the deputation was to Obtain from the French King1mise to pass through the Grecian territories in a peaceand friendly manner, and to yield to the Greek Emperorconquest he might make 111 Asia Minor. The first part

THE CRUSADES .

Of the proposition was immediately acceded to,but no

was taken of the second and more unreasonable.

marched on , and, on passing through Hungary, pitchtents in the outskirts Of Constantinople.

On his arrival, Manuel sent him a friendly 1

enter the city, at the head Of a small train . Laccepted it, and was met by the Emperor at thepalace. The fairest promises were made ; cv

flattery could suggest was resorted to,and

employed, to induce him to yield his future c

Greek . Louis obstinately refused to pledgeturned to his army convinced that

not to be trusted. Negotiations we

for several days,to the great dissatisfaction of the

army . The news that arrived Of a treaty enteredtween Manuel and the Turkish Sultan changed their dimfaction into fury

,and the leude1s demanded to be led agam

Constantinople,swearing that they would rase the treachat

ous city to the ground. Louis did not feel inclined to a.

cede to this proposal, and, breaking up his camp, he cm“into Asia.

Here he heard,for the first time

,Of the mishaps of tbs

German Emperor, whom he found in a woful plight nubthe walls of Nice. The two monarchs united their forum,and marched together along the sea- coast to Ephesus ; IntConrad

,jealous

,it would appear, of the superior numbered

the French, and not liking to sink into a vassal,for the tin

being, Of his rival, withdrew abruptly with the remnant d'

his legions, and returned to Constantinople. Manuel was allsmiles and courtesy . He condoled with the German so fedingly upon his losses, and cursed the stupidity or treacheryOf the gu ides with such apparent heartiness, that Conrad washalf inclined to believe 111 his si ncerity.

Louis, marching onward in the direction of Jerusalem,came up with the enemy on the banks Of the Meander. The

Turks contested the passage of the river, but the French 1

bribed a peasant to point out a ford lower down ; crossing 11

the river without difficulty, they attacked the Turks withmuch vigour, and put them to flight. Whether the Turks 11

were really defeated, or merely pretended to be so,is doubt a

ful ; but the latter supposition seems to be the true one. It a

THE CRUSADES .

is probable that it was part of a concerted plan to draw the

invaders onwards to more unfavourable ground, where theirdestruction might bemore certain . If suchwere the scheme,it succeeded to the heart

’

s wish of its projectors. The crust»ders, on the “third day after their victory, arrived at a steepmountain- pass, on the summit Of which the Turkish host layconcealed so artfully, that not the slightest vestige of theirpresence could be perceived. With labouring steps and

slow,

"they toiled up the steep ascent, when suddenly a tre

mendons fragment of rock came bounding down the preci

piees with an awful crash, bearing dismay and death beforert. At the same instant the Turkish archers started fromtheir hiding

-

places, and discharged a shower of arrows u n

the foot soldiers, who fell by hundreds at a time. he

m ews rebounded harmlessly against the iron mail of the

kni hts, which the Turks observmg, took aim at their steeds,

tn horse and rider fell down the steep into the rapid tor

Pent which rushed below. Louis, who commanded the rear;uard, received the first intimation of the onslaught from the

light of his wounded and flying soldiers, and, not knowinghe numbers of the enemy, he pushed vigorously forward to

itay ,by his presence, the panic which had taken possession

)f his army. All his efl'

orts were in vain . Immense stones

rou tinued to be hurled upon them as they advanced, bearingnen and horse before them ; and those who succeeded in

forc ing their way to the top, were met hand- tO- hand by theTurks , and cast down headlong upon their companions.

Lou is himself fought with the energy Of desperation,but had

great difficulty to avoid falling into the enemy ’

s hands . He

escaped at las t under cover Of the night, with the remnant ofhis forces, and took up his position before Attalia. Here berestored the discipline and the coura e of his disorganizedand disheartened followers, and debate with his captains thelan that was to be pursued. After safi

'

ering severely bothgrom disease and famine, it was resolved that they should

march to Antioch, which still remained an independent principality under the successors of Bohemund of Tarentum. At

this time the soverei ty was vested in the person of Raymond, the uncle of leaner Of Aqui taine. This Prince, presumin upon his relationship to the French Queen, endea

veure to withdraw Louis from the grand Object of the CrusadeV OL . 11. 7

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m “W AD“.

themselves for the possession of a city whichwas still

being already a Prince of Antioch and

nee Of Tripoli, W enty claimants started

of D amascus, and a grand council of the leaders was

to determine the individual on whom the honour should

re. Many valuable days were wasted in this discussion,nen y in the meanwh11e gaining strength from their

vity. It was at len after a stormy deliberation,d that Count Robert O Flanders, who had twice visited

lely Land, should be invested with the dignity. The

claimants refused to recogn ise him, or to cO-operate in

age, until a more equitable arrangement had been made.

n on filled the camp ; the most sinister rumours of ia

na and treachery were set afloat ; and the discontented

dates withdrew at last to the other side of the city, and

enced operations on their own account, without a proba

of success . They were soon joined by the rest of theThe consequence was that the weakest side Of the city,

.hat on which they had already made considerable ro

in the work Of demolition, was left uncovered. he

ywas prompt to profit by the mistake, and received an

[ant supply of provisions, and refortified the walls, before

rusaders came to their senses again. When this de

[0 event happened it was too late. Saph Eddin, therful Emir of Mousoul

, was in the neighbourhood, at theOf a large arm advancing by forced marches to theOf the city . he siege was abruptly abandoned, andfoolish crusaders returned to Jerusalem,

having done

n

gto weaken the enemy, but everything to weaken

se ves .

.e freshness of enthusiasm had now completely subsided ;an the meanest soldiers were sick at heart. Conrad, from

s fierce zeal at the outset so much might have been ex

d, was wearied with reverses, and returned to Europethe poor remnant Of his best. Louis lingered a shortlonger, for very shame, but the pressing solicitations of1inister Suger induced him to return to France. Thusd the second Crusade. Its history is but a chronicle of

its. It left'

the kingdom Of Jerusalem in a worse state

when it quitted Europe, and gained nothing but disgracets leaders and discouragement for all concerned.

Bernard, who had prophesied a result so difl'

ereut, fen

7 6 THE CRUSADES .

after this into some disrepute, and ex perienced, like mmother prophets, the fate of being without honour in his 05 .

country . What made the matter worse, he could not obt. iit in any other. S till, however, there were not wanting zed“advocates to stand forward in his behalf, and stem the tidQ .‘incredulity, which, unopposed, would have carried awayreputation . The Bishop ofFreysinghen declared that prop!

"

were not always able to prophesy, and that the vices of

crusaders drew down the wrath of Heaven upon them.

the most ingenious ex cuse ever made for S t. Bernard is t o

found in his life by Geofl'

roi dc Clairvaux , where he per- i.ciously insists that the Crusade was not unfortunate. 3Bernard, he said, had prophesied a happy result

,and t

result could not be considered other than happy which apeopled heaven with so glorious an army of martyrs. GeoMwas a cunning pleader, and, no doubt, convinced a few of th,zealous ; but plain people, who were not wanting even in thandays, retained their own opinion, or

,what amounts to th.

same thing, were convinced against their will.”

We now come to the consideration of the third Crusade,and of the causes whi ch rendered it necessary. The epidemicfrenzy, which had been cooling ever since the issue of thefirstex pedition

, was now ex tinct,or very nearly so

,and the nations

of Europe locked with cold indifi'

ercnce upon the armamentsof their princes. But chivalry had flourished in its natural

element of war, andwas now in all its glory. It continued”supply armies for the Holy Land when the popular ranks tofused to deliver up their able- bodied swarms. Poetry, which,more than religion , inspired the third Crusade, was then but“caviare to the million ,

”who had other matters

,of sterner

import, to claim all their attention . But the knights and their

retainers listened with delight to the martial and amatorystrains of the minstrels, minnesiingers, trouveres, and troubadours, and burned to win favour in ladies

'

eyes by showingprowess in Holy Land. The third was truly the romanticera of the Crusades. Men fought then , not so much for the

sepulchre of Jesus, and the maintenance of a Christian kingdom in the East, as to gain glory for themselves in the best,and almost only field, where glory could be obtained. Theyfought, not as zealots, but as soldiers ; not for religion, butfor honour ; not for the crown of martyrdom, but for the favour

of the lovely.

m CRUSADES .

It is not necessary to enter into a detail of the events bywhich Saladin attained the sovereignty of the East, or how,after a succession of engagements, he planted the Moslembanner once more upon the battlements of Jerusalem. TheChristian knights and population, including the grand ordersof S t. John , the Hospitallers, and the Templars, were sunk inan abyss of vice, and, torn by unworthy jealousies and dissensions , were unable to resist the well- trained armies which thewise andmighty Saladin brought forward to crush them. Butthe news of their fall created a painful sensation among thechivalry of Europe, whose noblestmembers were linked to thedwellers in Palestine by many ties, both of blood and friendlhip. The news of the great battle of Tiberias , in which

Saladin defeated the Christian host with terrible slaughter,trrived first in Europe, and was followed in qu ick succession

by that of the capture of Jerusalem, Antioch, Tripoli, andi ther cities. Dismay seized upon the clergy. The Pepe

U rban III.)was so afi’

ected by the news that he pined away’or grief, and was scarcely seen to smile a

gain

,until he sank

nto the sleep of death.

* H is successor,Gregory VIII . felt

:he loss as acutely, but had better strength to bear it,and

nstructed all the clergy of the Christian world to stir up the

gople to arms for the recovery of the Holy Sepulchre.

illiam,Archbishop of Tyre, a humble follower in the path

of Peter the Hermit, left Palestine to preach to the Kings ofEu rope the miseries he had witnessed, and to incite them to

the rescue. The renowned Frederick Barbarossa, the Emperor of Germany

,speedily collected an army, and passing over

into Syria with less delay than had ever before awaited a

crusading force, defeated the Saracens, and took possessionof the city of Iconium . He was unfortunately cut 05 in the

middle of his successful career, by imprudentligbathing in the

Cydnus‘

l‘

while he was overheated, and the uke of S uabia

took the command of the ex p edition . The latter did not proveso able a general, andmet with nothing but reverses, although

J ames of Vitry—W illiam de Nangis .

1' The desire of compari ng two great men has tempted many wri ters to

drown Frederick in the river Cydnus , in which Alex ander so imprudently‘

bathed (Q . Curt. lib . i i i . c . 4, bu t, from the march of the Emperor, Irather j udge that his S aleph is the Calycadnus, a stream of less fame, but

of a longer course—Gun man

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to the King, hegging lrim to be oontent with the aid of

prayers, as the were too poor to contribute in any other

shape. Philip ugustus know better, and by way of givingthem a lesson, employed three nobles of the vici nity to laywaste the church lands. . The clerg ,

informedof the outrage,applied to the King for redress. I will aid you with my

P3 30“; said the monarch oondescen ly, and will ia

treat those gentlemen to let the church one. He did as

he had promised, but in such a manner, that the nobles, who

preciated the joke, continued their devastations as before.

gain the clcr applied to the King. What would youhave of meY

”c replied in answer to their remonstrances

You gave me your prayers in my necessity, and I have

given you mine in yours.

”The clergy understood the argu

mont,.

and thought it the wiser course to pay their quota of

Saladm's tithe without further parley.

This anecdote shows the unpopularity of the Crusade. If

the clergy disliked to contribute, it is no wonder that the

people felt still greater antipathy. But the chivalry of Eu

repe was eager for the afi'

ray : the tithe was rigorousl col

lected, and armies from England, France, Bur nd

fitaly,

Flanders, and Germany, were soon in the tielgi

.

l

e two

kings who were to have led it, were, however, drawn intobroils by an aggression of R ichard, Duke of Guienne, better known as R ichard Cmur de Lion , upon the territory of

the Count of Toulouse, and the proposed journey to Palestinewas delayed. War continued to rage between France and

England, and with so little probability of a speedy termination , that many of the nobles, bound to the Crusades, left thetwo monarchs to settle their differences at their leisure, and

proceeded to Palestine without them.

D eath at last stepped in and removed Henry II. from the

hostility of his fees, and the treachery and ingratitude of his

children . His son R ichard immediately concluded an alli

ance with Philip Augustus, and the two young, valiant, andimpetuous monarchs, united all their ener

'

se to forward the

Crusade. They met with a numerous and rilliant retinue at

Nonancourt in Normandy, where, in sight of their assembledchivalry, they embraced as brothers, and swore to live as

friends and true allies, until a period of forty days after theirreturn from the Holy Land. With a view of purging their

80 run causanss.

camp from the follies and vices which had proved so ruinous

to preceding ex peditions, they drew up a code of laws for the

government of the army . Gambling had been carried to a

great ex tent, and had proved the fruitful source of quarrelsand bloodshed, and one of their laws prohibited any person inthe army, beneath the degree of a knight; from playing at

any game for money .

* Knights and clergymen might playfor money, but no one was permitted to lose or ga in more

than twenty shillings in a day, under a penalty of one hundredshillings. The personal attendants of the monarchs were

also allowed to play to the same ex tent. The penalty intheir case for infraction was that they should be whippednaked through the army for the space of three days. Anycrusader, who struck another and drew blood, was ordered tohave his hand cut off and whoever slew a brother crusaderwas condemned to be tied alive to the corpse of his victim

and buriedwith him. N0 young women were allowed to follow

the army,to the great sorrow of many vicious and of many

virtuous dames, who had not courage to elude the decree bydressing in maleattire. But many high- minded and afi

'

ection

ate maidens and matrons,bearing the sword or the spear,

followed their husbands and lovers to the war in spite ofKinRichard

,and in defiance of danger. The only women allow

to accompany the army in their own habilimen ts, were washerwomen , of fifty years complete, and any other of the fair sexwho had reached the same age.

These rules having been promulgated, the two monarchsmarched together to Lyons, where they separated, agreeingto meet again at Messina. Philip proceeded across the Alpsto Genoa

,where he took ship, and was conveyed in safety to

the place of rendezvous. Richard turned in the direction of

Marseilles,where he also took ship for Messina. H is impe

tuons disposition hurried him into many squabbles by theway,and his knights and followers, for the most part as brave and

as foolish as himself,imitated him very zealously in this par

ticular. At Messina the S icilians charged themost ex orbitantprices for every necessary of life. Richard

'

s army in vain

remonstrated. From words they came to blows, and, as a

last resource, plundered the S icilians, since they could not

S trutt’a Sports and Pastimes.

an CRUSADES.

trade with than. Continual battles were thein one of which Lebrun, the favourite attendant oflost his life. The peasantry from far and near came flockingto the aid of the townspeople, and the battle soon became

general. Richard, irritated at the loss

mated by a report that Tancred, the

fightin at the head of his own peepls,bolfiest knighghts, and beatin back tlie S icilians, attacked

sword ln hand, storm the battlements, tore downof S icily, and planted his own in i ts stead. This

gave great offence to the King of France. who hecame from that time jealous of Richard, and apprehensive

that his desi was not so much to te- establish the ChristianKingdom of m od em, as to makeconquests for himself. He,however, ex erted his influence to restore peace between theE11 and S icilians, and shortly afterwards set sail forAcre,wit distrust of his ally germinating in his heart.R ichard remained behind for some weeks, 111 a state of 1n

activity quite unaccountable 111 one of his temperament. He

appears to have had no more squabbles with the S icilians, butto have lived an easy lux urious life, forgetting, 1n the lap of

pleasure, the objects for which he had quitted his own do

min ions, and the dangerous lax ity he was introducing into hisarmy. The supersti tion of his soldiers recalled him at length

to a sense of his duty a comet was seen for several succes

sive nights, which was thought to menace them with the ven

geance of Heaven for their delay. Shooting stars gave them

similar warning and a fanatic, of the name of Joachim, with

his drawn sword in his hand, and his long hair streamin

wildly over his shoulders, went through the camp, howling :fiht long, and predicting plague, famine, and every other

caIamity,gif they did not set out immediately. R ichard did

not deem it prudent to neglect the intimations ; and, after

doing humble penance for his remissness, he set sail for Acre.

A violent storm dispersed his fleet, but he arrived safely at

Rhodes with the princi al part of the armament. Here helearned that three of is ships had been stranded on the

rocky coasts of Cyprus, and the ruler of the island, IsaacComnenus, had permitted his people to pillage the unfortunatecrews, and had refused shelter to his betrothed bride, thePrincess Berengaria, and his sister, who, in one of the

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ifMessina still rankled, and the two monarchs refused to actn concert. Instead ofmakin a joint attack upon the town,the French monarch assail it alone, and was repulsed.

Richard did the same, andwith the same result. Philip tried

to seduce the soldiers of R ichard from their allegiance bythe odor of three 1d p1eces month to every kni ht who

would forsake theannera of ugland for those of

Richard met the bribe by another, and promised

to every French knight who should join the Lionin this unworthy rival their time was wasted, to the great

letriment of the disci

pe and efi ciency of their followers.

Some good was nevert eless effected ; for the mere presenceof two such armies prevented the bestebeakged tycity from receivingsupplies, and the inhabitants were eed by famine to the

most woful straits. Saladin did not deem it radent to risk

a general engagement by coming to their re , bnt preferred

to wait till d1ssension hadweakened his enemy, and made himan easy prey. Perhaps if he had been aware of the real

ex tent of the ex tremi ty in Acre, he would have changed his

plan ; but, cut off from the town, he did not know their

misery until it was too late. After a short truce the cit

capitulated upon terms so severe that Saladin afterw

refused to ratify them. The chief conditions were, that theone wood of the true cross, captured by the Moslems 1n

Jerusalem, should be restored ; that a sum of two hundred

thousand gold pieces should be paid ; and that all the Chris

tian prisoners in Acre should be released, together with twohundred knights and a thousand soldiers, detained 111 captivit

bySaladin. The eastern monarch, as may well be conceiv

di d not set much store on the wood of the cross, but was

nevertheless anx ious to keep it, as he knew its possession bythe Christians would do more than a victory to restore theircourage. He refused, therefore, to deliver it up, or to accede

to any of the conditions and R ichard, as he had previouslythreatened, barbarously ordered all the Saracen prisoners inhis ower to be put to death.

he possession of the city only caused new and unhappydissensions between the Christian leaders. The Archduke of

Austria unun ustifiably hoisted his flag on one of the towers of

Acre, whio R ichard no sooner saw than he tore it down

with his own hands, and trampled it under his feet. Philip,

THE CRUSADES .

though he did not sympathise with the Archduke, was piquedat the assumption of Richard, and the breach between the

two monarchs became wider than ever. A foolish disputearose at the same time between Guy of Lusignan and Conradof Montferrat for the crown of Jerusalem. The inferiorkn ights were not slow to imitate the pernicious ex ample, andjealousy, distrust, and ill- will reigned in the Christian camp.

In the midst of this confusion the King of France suddenlyannounced his intention to return to his own country.

R ichard was filled with indignation , and ex claimed,

“Eternalshame light on him, and on all France, if, for any cause, he

leave this work unfin ished ! But Philip was not to he

stayed. H is health had sufl'

ered by his residence in the

East, and, ambitious of playing a first part,he preferred to

play none at all,than to play second to King R ichard.

Leaving a small detachment of Burgundians behind, he returned to France with the remainder of his army ; and Cmur

de Lion, without feeling, in the multitude of his rivals,that

he had lost the greatest, became painfully convinced that

the right arm of the enterprise was lopped off.

After his departure, Richard re- fortified Acre, restored theChristian worship in the churches, and, leaving a Christian

garrison to protect it, marched along the sea- coast towards

Ascalon . Saladin was on the alert,and sent hi s light horse

to attack the rear of the Christian army, while he himself,

miscalculating their weakness since the defection of Philip,endeavoured to force them to a general engagement. The

rival armies met near Azotus. A fierce battle ensued, in

which Saladin was defeated and put to flight, and the road toJerusalem left free for the crusaders .

Again discord ex erted its baleful influence, and preventedRichard from following 11p his victory . H is o 1n1on was

constantly opposed by the other leaders, all jealous of his

bravery and influence ; and the army,instead of marching to

Jerusalem, or even to Ascalon , as was first intended, proceeded to J afl

'

a, and remained in idleness until Saladinpwas

again in a condition to wage war against them.

Many months were Spent in fruitless hostilities and as

fru itless negotiations. Richard’

s wish was to recapture Jerusalem ; but there were difficulties in the way, which even his

bold spirit could not conquer. Hi s own intolerable pride

I not the lcast cause of thc evi l ; for estranged many a

lerous spirit, who would have been willing to cc- opcrateall cordiality. At length it was agreed to march

the Holy City ; but the progress made was so slow and

inful, that the soldiers murmured, and the leaders medi

cd retreat. The weather was hot and and there was

;le water to be procured. Saladin had cho cd up the wells

d cisterns on the route, and the army had not real enough

forward amid such privation. At Bethlehem a coun

held, to debate whether they should retreat or adsRetreat was decided upon, and immediately com

need. It is said, that R ichard was first led to a hill,once he could obtain a . sight of the towers of J erusalem,

d that he was so afl'

ected at being so near it, and so unable

relieve it, that he hid his face behind his shield, and

M aloud.

The army separated into two divisions, the .smaller fallin

3k upon Jafl‘

a, and the larger commanded by R ichard an

1 Duke of Burgundy, returning to Acre. Before the

a lishmonarch had made all his reparations for his returnorope, a messenger reached ere with the intelligence

st Jafl’

a was besieged by Saladin, and that, unless reheved

mediately, the city would be taken. The French, under1 Duke of Burgundy, were so wearied with the war, that

sy refused to aid their brethren in Jeds . R ichard, blush

gwith shame at their pusillanimity, called his English to

s rescue, and arrived just in time to save the city. H is

ry name put the Saracens to flight, so great was theirand of his prowess. Saladin regardedhim with thewarmestmiration , and when R ichard

,after his victory, demanded

ace, willingly acceded. A truce was concluded for threeare and eight months, during which Christian pilgrims

re to enjoy the liberty of visiting Jerusalem without hin

mce or payment of any tax . The crusaders were allowed

retain the cities of Tyre and Jafl'

a, with the country interning . Saladin , with a princely generosity, invited manythe Christians to visit Jerusalem ; and several of the

ders took advantage of his ofl'

er to feast their eyes upon a

)t which all considered so sacred. Many of them were en'tained for several days in the Sultan

’

s own palace, fromich they returned with their

s

tongues laden with the praises'

OL . 11.

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ujoycd repose and toleration, and both were endangered bbe arrival of theGermans. They looked upon them 111 cenagp ence as ever- ofi cious intruders, and gave them no encou

sgoment in the warfare against Saphaddin . The'

result of

hi s Crusade was even more disastrous than the last- for thelermans contrived not only to embitter the Saracens at

he Christians of Judea, but to lose the strong city of afi’

a,

.nd cause the destruction of nine- tenths of the army withrhich they had quitted Europe. And so ended the fourth

lrusade.

The fifth was .more important, and had a result which itsarojecters never dreamed ef—no less than the sacking of Contantineple, and the placing of a French d asty upon the

mperial throne of the eastern Cmsars. fish succeedingPepe, however much he may have difl

'

ered from his prede

u sers on other points, zealously agreed in one, that of main

sin ing by every possible means the papal ascendency. Nocheme was so likely to aid in this endeavour as the Crusades.

ls long as they could persuade the kings and nobles of

Europe to fight and die in Syria, their own sway was secured.ver the minds of men at home. Such being their ob

iect,

hey never inquired whether a Crusade was or was not 1'

elye be successful, whether the time were well or ill chosen, orwhether men and money could be procured in suflicient abunlance. Pope Innocent III. would have been roud if he:ould have bent the refractory monarchs of ngland andfrancs into so much submission . But John and Philip Au

gustus were both engaged. Both had deeply

ofl'

ended the

:hurch, and had been la1d under her ban , and othwere occuried in important reforms at home ; Philipin bestowing imma1ities upon his subjects, and John in hav1ng them forced from1im . The emissaries of the Pope therefore plied them in

rain —but as in the first and second Crusades, the eloquence>f a powerful preacher incited the nobility, and throu h them1 certain portion of the people, Foulque, Bishop of euilly,an ambitious and enterprising prelate, entered fully into the

views of the Court of Rome, and preached the Crusade wherever he could find an audience. Chance favoured him to a

degree he did not himself ex pect, for he had in general foundbut few proselytes, and those few but cold in the cause. Theobald, Count of Champagne, had instituted a grand tourna

THE CRUSADES .

ment, to which he had invited all the nobles from far and

near. Upwards of two thousand knights were present withtheir retainers, besides a vast concourse of people to witnessthe sports . In the midst of the festivities Foulque arrived

upon the spot, and'

conceiving the opportunity to be a

able one, he addressed the multitude in eloquent Ian

and passionately called upon them to enrol themselves for the

new Crusade. The Count de Champagne, young, ardent,and easily ex cited

,received the cross at his hands . The en

thusiasm spread rapidly. Charles Count of Blois followedthe ex ample, and of the two thousandknights present, scarcelyone hundred and fifty refused. The popular frenzy seemed

on the point of breaking out as in the days of yore. The

Count of Flanders,the Count of Bar, the Duke of Burgundy,

and the Marqu is of Montferrat, brought all their vassals to

swell the train, and in a very short space of time an effective

army was on foot and ready to march to Palestine.

The dangers of an overland journey were too well understood, and the crusaders endeavoured to make a contract withsome of the Italian states to convey them over in their vessels.Dandolo

,the aged Doge of Ven ice, offered them the galleys

of the Republic ; but the crusaders, on their arrival in that

city, found themselves too poor to pay even half the sum de

manded. Every means was tried to raise money ; the crustders melteddown their plate, and ladies gave up their trinkets.Con tributions were solicited from the faithful, but came in so

slowly,as to make it evident to all concerned, that the faithful

of Europe were outnumbered by the prudent. As a last

source, Dandolo offered to convey them to Palestine at the

ex pense of the Republic, if they would previously aid in the

recapture of the city of Zara, which had been seized from theVenetians a short time previously by the King of Hungary.

The crusaders consented, much to the displeasure of the Pope,who threatened ex communication upon all who should be

turned aside from the voyage to Jerusalem. But notwith

standing the fulminations of the church,the ex pedition never

reached Palestine. The siege of Zara was speedily unden

taken . After a long and brave defence, the city surrenderedat discretion, and the crusaders were free, if they had so

chosen it, to use their swords against the Saracens . But the

an unusu al .

cumstances, elsewhere.

After the death of Manuel Comnenus, the Greek empirehad fallen a prey to intestine divisions. Hi s son Alex ius II.had succeeded h1m, but was murdered after a very short rei

by his uncle Andronicus, who seized u the throne.

reign alsowas but of short duration. saac Angelus, a member of the same family, took 11 arms against the usurper, and

having defeated and captured im in a pitched battle, hadhimt to death. He also mounted the throne only to be cast

wn from it. H is brother Alex ius deposed him, and to ih

capaci tate him from reigning, put out h e eyes, and shut him

up in a dungeon. Neither was Alex ius III. allowed to remainin peaceable possession of the throne; the son of the unhap yIsaac, whose name also was Alex ius, fled from Constantinople,and hearing that the crusaders had undertaken the siege of

Zara, made them the most magnificent ofl'

ers if they would

afterwards aid him in deposing his uncle. H is efl'

ers were,

that if by their means he was re- established in his father ’sdominions, he would place the Greek church under the au

thority of the Pope of Rome, lend the whole force of theGreekEmpire to the conquest of Palestine, and distribute two hundred thousand -marks of silver among the crusading army.

The offer was accepted, with a proviso on the part of some

of the leaders, that they should be free to abandon the de

s ign , if it met with the disapproval of the Pope. But this

was not to be feared. The submission of the schismatic

G reeks to the Sec of Rome was a greater bribe to the Pontifl'

,

than the utter annihilation of the Saracen power in Palestinewould have been .

The crusaders were soon in movement for the imperial city.

Their operations were skilfully and courageously directed, and

spread such dismay as to paralyse the e orts of the usurperto retain possession of his throne. After a vain resistance,be abandoned the city to its fate, and fled no one knewwhither. The aged and blind Isaac was taken from his dun

geon by his subjects, and placed upon the throne ere the

crusaders were apprised of the flight of his rival. H is son

Alex ius IV. was afterwards associated with him in the sove

rei nty.

But the conditions of the trgaty gave efl

'

ence to the GrecianQ

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res to themselves, Murau hlis fled, and

given over to be pillaged y the victors.'he wealth they found was enormous. In money alone thereras sufficient to distribute twenty marks of s1lver to each

night, ten to each squire or servant at arms, andfive to each

rcher. Jewels, velvets, silks, and every lux of attire,rith rare wines and fruits, and valuable merchan e of everycscription, also fell into their hands, and were bought bybe trading Venetians, and the proceeds distributed amonghe army. Two thousand persons were put to the sword ; but

ad there been less plunder to take up the attention of the

ictors, the slaughter would in all probability have been much

In many of the bloody wars whichdefile the page of history,re find that soldiers, utterly reckless of the works of God,rill destroy hi s master- piece, man , with ansparing brutality,ut linger with respect round the beautiful works of art‘hey will slaughter women and children, but spare a picture ;i ll bow down the sick, the helpless, and the hoary- headed,ut refrain from injuring a fine piece of sculpture. The Latins,11 their entrance into Constantinople, respected neither theforks of God nor man, but vented their brutal ferocity uponbe one and satisfied their avarice upon the other. Manycautiful bronze statues, above all price as works of art, were

reken into pieces to be sold as oldmetal. The finely- chiselled

rarble, which could be put to no such vile uses, was also

estroyed, with a recklessness, if possible,'

still more atrocious.

*

The following is a list of some of theworks of art thus destroyed, fromTicetas, a contemporary Greek author z— l st. A colossal J uno, from the

3m m of Constantine, the head of which was so large that four horses could

sl rcely draw it from the place where it stood to the palace. 2 d. The statue

f Paris presenting the apple to Venus . 8d. An immense bronze pyramid,rowned by a female figure, which turned wi th the wind

’

. dtb. The colossal

tatu e of Bellerephon , in bron ze, which was broken down and cast into the

arnaee. Under the inner nail of the horse’

s hind foot on the left side, was

rund a seal wrapped in a woollen cloth. 6 th. A figure of Hercules, by.ysimachus, of such vast dimensi ons that the thumb was equal in circum

erence to the waist of a man . 6 th. The Ass and his driver, cast by order

I Augustus after the battle of Actium, in commemoration of his having dis

overed the position of Antony through the means of an ass - driver. 7th.

'he Wolf suckling the twins of Rome. 8th. The Gladiator in combat with

lion . 9th. The Hippopotamus . l0th. The Sphinx es. 11th. An eagle

ghting with a serpent. 12 th. A beautiful statue of Helen . 18th. A group,rith a monster somewhat resembling a bull, engaged in deadly conflictwi thserpent ; and many other works of art, too numerous to mention.

THE CRUSADES .

The carnage being over, and the spoil distributed, six per

sons were chosen from among the Franks and si x from amongthe Venetians, who were to meet and elect an Emperor, previously binding themselves by oath to select the individual

best qualified among the candidates. The choice wavered

between Baldwin , Count of Flanders, and Boniface, Marquisof Montferrat, but fell eventually upon the former. He was

straightway robcd in the imperial purple, and became the

founder of a new dynasty. He did not live long to enjoy hispower, or to consolidate it for his successors, who, in their

turn , were soon swept away. In less than six ty years therule of the Franks at Constantinople was brought to as sudden

and disastrous a termination as the reign of Murzuphlis : and

this was the grand result of the fifth Crusade.

Pope Innocent III .,although he had locked w ith no very

unfavourable eye upon these proceedings, regretted that

nothing had been done for the relief of the Holy Land ; still,upon every convenient occasion , he enforced the necessity of

a new Crusade. Until the year 1 2 13, his ex hortations hadno other effect than to keep the subject in themind of Europe.Every spring and summer

,detachments of pilgrims continued

to set out for Palestine to the aid of their brethren , but not insufficient numbers to be of much service. These periodicalpassages were called the passag z

'

um Marta , or the passage ofMarch, and the passag ium J ohann is, or the passage of the

festival of S t. John . These did not consist entirely of soldiem,armed against the Saracen , but of pilgrims led by devotion,and in performance of their vows, bearing nothing w ith them

but their staff and their wallet. Early in the spring of 12 13

a more ex traordinary body of crusaders was raised 111 Franceand Germany . An immense number of boys and girls,amounting, according to some accounts

, to thirty thousand,were incited by the persuasion of two monks to undertake thejourney to Palestine. They were, no doubt, composed of the

idle and deserted children who generally swarm in great cities,nurtured in vice and daring, and ready for anything . The

object of the monks seems to have been the atrocious one ofinveigling them into slave ships

, on pretence of sending them

to Syria, and selling them for slaves 011 the coast of

See Jacob dc Voragine and Alberi cns.

those poor victims

u illes ; but the vessels, w1th the ex ception of two or three,were wrecked on the shores ef' Italy, and every soul

The remainder arrived safel in Africa, and were bought upas slaves, and sent of into e interior of the country. Another detachment arrived at Genoa ; but the accomplices in thishorrid lot having taken no measures at that port, ex pectingthem at Marseilles, they were induced to return to their

homes by the Genoese.

Fuller, in his quaint history of the Holy Warre, saysthat this Crusade was done by the instinct of the devil and

he adds a reason, which may revoke mirth new, but which

was put forth by the worthy isterian in all sobem ess and

sincerity. He says,“the devil, bein cloyedwiththemurder

'

ng of men , desired a cordial of c dren’

s blood to comfort( is weak stomac as epicures, when tired ofmutton, resort:o lamb for a change.

It appears from other authors that the preaching of therile monks had such an effect upon these deluded children

hat they ran about the country, ex claiming, O,Lord

leans , restore the cross to us and that neither bolts nor

rare, the fear of fathers, nor the love of mothers, was sufficientso restrain them from journeying to Jerusalem.

The details of these strange proceedings are ex ceedinglyneagre and confused, and none of the contemporary writersvho mention the subject have thought it worth while to state

:he names of the monks who originated the scheme, or the

i ts they met for their wickedness. Two merchants of Mar

seilles, who were to have shared in the profits, were, it is said,1rought to justice for some other crime, and suffered death ;mt we are not informed whether they divulged any circumltances relating to this matter.

,

Pope Innocent III . does not seem to have been,aware that

:he causes of thi s juvenile Crusade were such as have been

itated, for, upon bein informed that numbers had taken the3ross, and were marc

ghing to the Holy Land, he ex claimed,

‘These children are awake,while we sleep He imagined,

1pparently, that the mind of Europe was still bent on the'ecovery of Palestine, and that the seal of these children im

ilied a sort ofreproachupon his own lukewarmness. Very soontfterwards, he bestirred himself with more activity, and sent

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s ion of a

m, and was looked upon as the very key of the city.

hile congratulating themselves 11 n this success, anding in reve the time which sho dhave been employedaching the vantage, they received the news of thedeath

he wise Sultan Saphaddin . H is two sons, Cambel and

reddin, divided his empire between them. Syria andatine fell to the share of Cohreddin, while Egypt wasigned to the other brother, who had for some time ex er

l the functions of Lieutenant of that country. Beingvpular among the E

gptians, they revolted against him,

lg the crusaders a er Opportunity for making a con

t than they had ever enjoyed before. But, quarrelsomelicentious as they had been from time immemorial, theynot see that the favourable moment had come ; or, see

could not profit by it. While theywere revelling or fightamon

gthemselves, under the walls of Damietta, the revolt

put own , and Cambel firmly established on the throne

sgypt. In conjunction with his brother, Cohreddin, hiscare was to drive the Christians from Damietta, and, forards of three months, they bent all their efforts to throw

applies to the besieged, or draw on the besiegers to a

sral engagement. In neither were they successful ; and

famine in Damietta became so dreadful, that vermin of

y description were thought lux uries, and sold for ex orbi

prices. A dead dog became more valuable than a live

in time of prosperity. Unwholesome food brou ht on

use, and the city could hold out no longer, for a olute

t of men to defend the walls .

ohreddin and Camhel were alike interested in the preseron of so important a position, and, convinced of the certainof the city, they opened a conference with the crusadingfa, offering to yield the whole of Palestine to the Chriss, upon the sole condition of the evacuation of E t.

h a blindness and wrong- headedness almost incredi

’b‘le,

be advantageous terms were refused, chiefly through the

masion of Cardinal Pela ius, an ignorant and obstinatestie, who urged upon the guke of Austria and the FrenchEnglish leaders, that infidels never kept their word ; thatr ofi

'

ers were deceptive, and merely intended to betray.

THE CRUSADES .

The conferences were brought to an abrupt termination by thecrusaders, and a last attack made upon the walls ofDamietta.The besieged made but slight resistance, for they had no hope,and the Christians entered the city, and found, out of seventythousand people, but three thousand remaining : so fearfulhad been the ravages of the twin fiends, plague and famine.

Several months were spent in Damietta. The climate

either weakened the frames or obscured the understandings ofthe Christians ; for, after their conquest, they lost all energy,and abandoned themselves more unscrupulously than ever to

riot and debauchery . John of Brienne, who, by right of his

wife, was the nominal sovereign of Jerusalem, was so disgusted

with the pusillanimity, arrogance, and dissensions of the

chiefs,that he withdrew entirely from them, and retired to

Acre. Large bodies also returned to Europe, and CardinalPelagius was left at liberty to blast the whole enterprise

whenever it pleased him. He managed to conciliate John ofBrienne, and marched forward with these combined forces toattack Cairo. It was only when he had approached within afew hours’marchof that city, that hediscovered the inadequacyof his army . He turned back immediately, but the Nile hadrisen since his departure ; the sluices were opened

,and there

was no means of reaching Damietta. In this strait, he suedfor the peace he had formerly spurned

,and

,happily for him

self, found the generous brothers, Cambel and Cohreddin, stillwilling to rant it. Damietta was soon afterwards given up,and the Cardinal returned to Europe. John of Brienneretired to Acre, to mourn the loss of his kingdom, embitteredagainst the folly of his pretended friends , who had ruined

where they should have aided him. And thus ended the six th

Crusade.

The seventh was more successful. Frederic Emperorof Germany

,had often vowed to lead his armies to the defence

of Palestine,but was as often deterred from the journey by

matters of more pressing importance. Cohreddin was a mild

and enlightened monarch,and the Christians of Syria enjoyed

repose and toleration under his rule : but John of Briennewasnot willing to lose his kingdom without an effort ; and the

Popes in Europe were ever willing to embroil the nations for

the sake of ex tending their own power. No monarch of that

age was capable of rendering more effective assistance than

m O3 0M B”.

German To inspire him fi thmore aealfi t wasroposed that he ould wed the oung Phter of John of Brienne, an heiress of the kingdomfien salem. Frederic consented with joy and eagerness.

he Prinw ss was brought from Acre to Rome without delay,ad her marriage celebrated on a scale of great magnificence.

[or father, John of Brienne, abdicated all his rights . in favour

f his son- in- law, and Jerusalem had once more a Humhiscommenced,

ad in the course of six months the Emperor was at the head

I'

a well- disciplined army of six ty thousandmen . Matthew'aris informs us, that an army of the same amount was

at t in England ; and most of the writers upon the 0mades a

gppt

ihis s

l

t

ll

a

s

te

rrnt

ilWhen John of

En

tlinn

Emwas in

hglan be ore ug ter’

s marn a

fge wit a r

i s thought of, praying for the aid 0 Henry II I. sumoblea to recover his lost kingdom,

he did not meetwithmuch

acouragement. Grafton, in his Chronicle, says,“he departed

gain without any great comfort.”But when a man of more

ifluence in European politics appeared upon the scene, the

lnglish nobles were as ready to sacrifice themselves in the

w as as they had been in the time of Coeur de Lion .

The army of Frederic encamped at Brundusium ; but a

estilential disease having made its appearance among them,

heir departure was delayed for several months. In the meanime the EmpressViolante died in childbed. John ofBrienne,rho had already repented of his abdication, and was besidesaccused against Frederic for many acts of neglect and insult,10 sooner saw the only tie which bound them severed by the.eath of his daughter, than he began to bestir himself, andcake interest with the Pope to undo what he had done, and

ogain the honorary crown he had renounced. Pope Gregoryhe Ninth, a man of a proud, unconciliating, and revengeful;haracter, owed the Emperor a grudge for many an act of

lisobedience to his authority, and encouraged the overtures.f John of Briennemore than he should have done. Frederic,nowever, despised them both, and, as soon as his army wasmnvalescent, set sail for Acre. He had not been many daysst sea, when he was himself attacked with the malady

, and

lbliged to return to Otranto, tis

e nearest port. Gregory, whoV OL . II.

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it themselves, they were not willing to ex tend to others, and

my complained bitterly of the privi lege of free worship al

vwed to their opponents. Unmerited goodfortune hadmademom insolent, and they contested the right of the Emperor

3 become a party to any treaty, as lon as he remained underhe ecclesiastical ban. Frederic was with his new

ub'

ects but as theTom lars and Hos itallers remained true

0dim, he marched to Jerusalem to crowned. All the

barches were shut against him, and he could not even find a

riest to ofliciate at his coronation . He had despised the'apal authority too long to quail at it now, when it was so unu tifiably ex erted, and, as there was nobody to crown him,

he

ary wisely crowned himself. He took the royal diadem from

he altar with his own hands, and boldly and proudly placedt on his brow. No shouts of an applauding po ulace made

he welkin ring, no hymns of praise and tn M phresounded

mm the ministers of religion but a thousand swords startedrom their scabbards, to testify that their owners would defendhe new monarch to the death.

It was hardly to be ex pected that hewould renounce for anyonget period the dominion of his native land for the uneasyrown and barren soil of Palestine. He had seen quite enoughtf hi s new subjects before he was six months among them,

.nd more important interests called him home. John of Bri

rnne, openly leagued with Pope Gregory againsthim,was ac

ually employed in ravaging his territories at the head of a

iapal army. This intelligence decided his return . As a pre

iminary step, he made thosewho had contemned his authority'

eel, to their sorrow, that he was their master. He then set

ail, loadedwith the curses ofPalestine. And thus ended the

eventh Crusade, which, in spite of every obstacle and disadrantage, had been productive ofmore real service to the HolyLand than any that had gone before ; a result solely attributs>le to the bravery of Frederic and the generosity of the Sul

;an Camhel.

Soon after the Emperor’s departure a new claimant started

z'

or the throne ofJerusalem,in the person of Alice, Queen of

'

Jyprus, and half sister of theMary who, by hermarriage,had;ransferred her right to John of Brienne. The grandmilitaryird

firs, however, clung to Frederic, and Alice was obliged to

sit draw.

THE CRUSADES .

So peaceful a termination to the Crusade did not give ua

mix ed pleasure in Europe. The chivalry of France and England were unable to rest, and long before the conclusion of

the truce, were collecting their armies for an eighth ex pedition . In Palestine, also, the contentment was far from uni

versal . Many petty Mahomedan states in the immediate vici

n ity were not parties to the truce, and harassed the frontiertowns incessantly. The Templars, ever turbulent, waged bitterwar w ith the Sultan of Aleppo, and in the end were almost

ex terminated. So great was the slaughter among them that

Europe resounded with the sad story of their fate, andmanyanoble knight took arms to prevent the total destructi on of an

order associated with so many high and inspiring remembrances. Camhel, seeing the preparations thatwere making,thought that his generosity had been sufficiently shown

,and

the very day the truce was at an end assumed the ofl'

ensive,and marching forward to Jerusalem took possession of it

,after

routing the scanty forces of the Christians. Before this intelligence reached Europe a large body of crusaders was on the

march,headed by theKing ofNavarre, theDuke of Burgundy,

the Count de Bretagne, and other leaders . On their arrival,they learned that Jerusalem had been taken , but that the $111tan was dead, and his kingdom torn by rival claiman ts to the

supreme power. The di ssensions of their foes ought to have

made them un ited, but, as in all previous Crusades, each feudalchief was master of his own host

,and acted upon his own

responsibility, and without reference to any general plan.

The consequence was that nothing could be done. A temporary advantage was gained by one leader, who had no means

of improving it, while another was defeated, without means ofretrieving himself. Thus the war lingered till the battle of

Gaza, when the King of Navarrewas defeated with great loss,and compelled to savehimself from total destruction by entering into a hard and oppressive treaty with theEmir of Karac.

At this crisis aid arrived from England, commanded byR ichard, Earl of Cornwall, the namesake of Coeur de Lion,and inheritor of his valour . His army was strong, and fullof hope. They had confidence in themselves and in theirleader, and looked like men accustomed to victory . Theircoming changed the aspect of affairs . The new Sultan of

Egypt was at war with the Sultan of Damascus, and had not

THE 08 0M B” .

'

orces to oppose two enemies so werful. He

ueésengers to meet the Eng Earl, od'

ering an ex chan

sf risonera and the complete cession of the Holy Lan

l ie rd, who had not come to fight for the mere sake of

fighting, agreed at once to terms so advantageous, and became

he deliverer of Palestine without striking a blow. The Sul

an of Egypt then turned his whole force against his Moslemmemies, and the Earl of Cornwall returned to Euro Thus

ended the eighth Crusade, the most beneficial of Chris

endom had no further pretence for sending her fierce levies

o the East. To all appearance, the holy wars were at an

md : the Christians had entire possession of Jerusalem, Tri

mli , Antioch, Edessa, Acre, Jafi'

a, and, in fact, of near] all

ludea ; and, could theyhave been at peace amon themse ves,have overcome, without great difi c ty, the joalostility of their neighbours. A circumstance, as

unforeseen as it was disastrous, blasted this fair prospect, and'eillumed, for the last time, the fervour and fury of the

Drusades.

Gengis Khan and his successors had swept over Asia likea tropical storm,

overturning in their progress the landmarksof ages . Kingdom after kingdom was cast down as theyissued, innumerable, from the far recesses of the North and

East, and, among others, the empire of Korasmin was over

run by these all- conquering hordes. TheKorasmins, a fierce,unc ivilized race, thus driven from their homes

,spread them

selves, in their turn, over the south ofAsia withfire and sword,in search of a resting- place. In their impetuous course theydirected themselves towards Egypt, whose Sultan , unable to

withstand the swarm that had cast their longing eyes on the

fertile valleys of the Nile, endeavoured to turn them from theircourse. For this purpose, he sent emissaries to Barbaquan,their leader, inviting them to settle in Palestine ; and the offer

being accepted by the wild horde, they entered the countrybefore the Christians received the slightest intimation of theircoming . It was as sudden as it was overwhelming. On

wards, like the simoom,they came, burn ing and slaying, and

were at the walls of Jerusalem before the inhabitants hadtime to look round them. They spared neither life nor pro

perty they slew women and children, and priests at the

altar, and profaned even the{gr

aves of those who had slept

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rose up in massesto take vengeance upon them

dimin ished. No mercy was feat. Barba

quan , their leader,was slain, and after five years of desperate

struggles they were finall W ated, and Palestine becameonce more the territory 0 the ussulmans.

A short time previous to this devastatin irruption, LouisIX . fell sick in Paris, anddreamed in thed

'

um of his fever

that he saw the Christian and Moslem hosts fighting beforeJerusalem, and the Christians defeated with great slaughter.

The dream made a great immession on his superstitiousmind,and he made a solemn vow that if ever he recoveredhis health,he would take a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. When the

news of the misfortunes of Palestine, and the awful massacresat J erusalem and Jafl

'

a, arrived in Europe, St. Louis remem

bered him of his dream. More ersuaded than ever, that it.was an intimation direct from I'l

i

eaven, he prepared to takethe Cross at the head of his armies, and march to the deliverance of the Holy Sepulchre. From that moment he dofi

'

ed

the royal mantle of purple and ermine, and dressed in the

sober serge becoming a pilgrim. All his thoughts were

directed to the fulfilment of his design , and although his kingdom could but ill spare him,

he made every preparation to

leave it. Pope Innocent IV. applauded his zeal and afl'

orded

him every assistance. He wrote to Henry III. of England toforward the cause in his domin ions, and called upon the clergyand laity all over Europe to contribute towards it. WilliamLongsword, the celebrated Earl of Salisbury, took the Crossat the head of a great number of valiant knights andsoldiers.

But the fanaticism of the peo 10 was not to be awakenedeither in France or England. reat armies were raised, but

the masses no longer s mpathized. Tax ation had been the

great cooler of zeal. t was no longer a disgrace even to a

kn ight if he refused to take the Cross. Rutebeuf, a Frenchm instrel, who flourished about this time (12 50 composed a

dialogue between a crusader and a non - crass er, which the

reader will find translated in Way’

s Fabliaux .

”The cru

sader uses every argument to persuade the non - crusader to

take up arms, and forsake everything, in the holy cause ; but

it is evident from the es ter force of the arguments used bythe non - crusader, that ewas a favourite of the minstrel. To

THE CRUSADES.

a most urgent solicitation of his friend, the crusader, be re

plies,

I read thee right, thou boldest goodTo this same land I straight should his,

And win it back with mickle blood,Nor gains one foot of soil thereby.

While here dejected and forlorn,My wife and babes are left to mourn ;My goodly mansion rudely marred,All trusted to my dogs to gu ard.

Bu t I, fair comrade, well I wot

An ancient saw , of pregnant wi t,Doth bid us keep what we have got,And troth I mean to follow it.

This being the general feeling, it is not to be wondered at

that Louis IX . was occupied fully three years in organizinghis forces, and in making the necessary preparations for his a

departure. When all was ready he set sail for Cyprus, accom

panied by his Queen , his two brothers, the Coun ts d’

Anjouand d

’

Artois, and a long train of the noblest chivalry of

France. Il is third brother, the Count de Poitiers , remainedbehind to collect another corps of crusaders, and followed himin a few months afterwards . The army united at Cyprus, andamounted to fifty thousand men , ex clusive of the English en!saders under W illiam Longsword. Again , a pestilential disease made its appearance, to which many hundreds fell vietims . It was in consequence found necessary to remain inCyprus until the spring . Louis then embarked for Egyptwith his whole best ; but a violent tempest separated his fleet.andhe arrived before Damietta with only a few thousand men.

They were,however

,impetuous and full of hope ; and although

the S ultan Melick Shah was drawn up on the shore withaforce infinitely superior

,it was resolved to attempt a landing

without waiting the arrival of the rest of the army . Louis

himself in wild impatience sprang from his boat, and wadedon shore ; while his army

,inspired by his enthusiastic bravery,

followed, shouting the old war- cry of the first crusaders , D iesle veut .

’ D ieu le veut .

’ A panic seized the Turks . A bodyof their cavalry attempted to bear down upon the crusade",but the kn ights fix ed their large shields deep in the sands of

the shore,and rested their lances upon them, so that they

projected above,and formed a barrier so imposing, that the

THE CRUSADH .

Turks, afraid to breast it, turned round and fairly took to

flight. At the moment of this panic, a false report was

s read in the Saracen host, that the Sultan had been slain.

e confusion immediately became neral—the defeats wascomplete : Damietta itself was aban oned, and the same night

the victorious crusaders fix ed their head-

quarters in that city.

The soldiers who had been separated from their chief by the

tempest, arrived shortly afterwards ; and Louis was in a posi

tion to

gustify the hope, not only of thec onquest of Palestine,

but of gypt

But too much confidence proved the bane of his army.

They t hought, as they had accomplished so much, that

nothing more remained to be done, and gave themselves upto ease and lux u When, by the command of Louis, theymarched towards airo

,they were no lon er the same men ;

success, instead of inspiring, had unnerve them ; debaucheryhad brought on disease, and disease was aggravated by theheat of a climate to which none of them were accustomed.

Their progress towards Massoura,on the road to Cairo, was

checked by the Than isian canal, on the banks of which the

Saracens were drawn up to dispute the passage. Louis gaveorders that a bridge should be thrown across ; and the operations commenced under cover of two cat- castles, or highmove

able towers. The Saracens soon destroyed them by throwing quantities of Greek fire, the artillery of that day, uponthem ,

and Lou is was forced to think of some other means ofefl

'

ecting his design . A peasant agreed, for a considerablebribe, to point out a ford where the arm might wade across,and the Count d’

Artois was despatchs with fourteen hun

dred men to attempt it, while Louis remained to face the

Saracens with the main body of the army. The Countd’

Artois got safely over, and defeated the detachment that

had been sent to oppose his landing . Flushed with the vic

tory, the brave Count forgot the inferiority of numbers, and

pursued the anic- stricken enemy into Massoura. He was

now completely cut of from the aid of his brother- crusaders,the Moslems perceiving, took courage and returned

upon him, with a force swollen by the garrison of Massoura,

and by reinforcements from the surroundin districts. The

battle now became hand to hand. The hristians fought

with the energy of desperate men, but the continually in

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THE CRUSADES .

The Saracens demanded, besides money, the cession of

Lore, Tripoli, and other cities of Palestine. Louis unhesiatingly refused, and conducted himself with so much prideand courage that the Sultan declared he was the roudest

ufidel hehad ever beheld. After a d deal of haggling, thelultan agreed to waive these con itions, and a treaty wasinally concluded. The city of Damietta was restored ; a

race of ten years d upon, and ten thousand golden benants paid for the re ease of Louis and the liberation of all

he captives . Louis then withdrew to Jafi'

a, and spent two

years i n putting that city, and Cesarea, with the other pos

wssions of the Christians in Palestine, into a proper state of

defence. He then returned to his own country, wi th great

W on as a saint, but very little as a soldier.

tthew Paris informs us that, in the ear 12 50, while

Louis was in E t, thousands of the nglish were re

solved to go to t e holy war,had not the King strictly

rded his ports and kept his people from running out of

core. When the news arrived of the reverses and captivityof the French King, their ardour cooled, and the Crusade

was sung of only, but not spoken of.

In France, a very difi'

erent feeling was the result. The

news of the King’

s capture spread consternation through the

country . A fanatic monk of Citeaux suddenly appeared inthe villages, preaching to the people, and announcing that

the Holy Virgin, accompanied by a whole army of saints andmart rs, had appeared to him,

and commanded him to stir upthe s epherds and farm labourers to the defence of the Cross.

To them only was his discourse addressed, and his eloquencewas such that thousands flocked around him, ready to followwherever he should lead. The pastures and the com - fields

were deserted, and the shepherds, or pastoureauz , as theywere termed, became at last so numerous as to amount to

upwards of fifty thousand men,—Millot says one hundredthousand men .

* The Queen Blanche, who governed as

Regent during the absence of the King, encouraged at

first the armies of the pastoureauz but the soon gave

way to such vile ex cesses that the peaces ly disposedwere driven to resistance. Robbery, murder, and violation

Elemens do l’Histoire do France.

THE CRUSADES .

marked their path and all good men, assisted b

government, un ited in putting them down . They weregdispersed, but not before three thousand of them hadfimassacred. Many authors say that the slaughter we}greater.The ten years

’

truce concluded in 12 64,and S t. LO“

urged by two powerful motives to undertake a second

tion for the relief of Palestine. These were fanaticismone hand, and a desire of retrieving his military famk wother, which had suffered more than his parasites h ilremind him of. The Pope, of course

,encouraged hi%4.

and once more the chivalry of Europe began to best. 5 tiselves. In 1 2 68

,Edward, the heir of the English mo m

announced hi s determination to join the Crusade ; and t heh(Clement IV .)wrote to the prelates and cler

gy to aid the d

by their persuasions and their revenues. n England, dagreed to contribute a tenth of their possessions ; and U

.

‘

parliamentary order, a twentieth was taken from the cor p '

movables of all the laity at Michaelmas.

In spite of the remonstrances of the few clear-hastatesmen who surrounded him

, urging the ruin thatm'

consequence fall upon hi s then prosperous kingdom,

made every preparation for his departure. The warlike $ 5lity were nothing loth, and in the spring of 1 2 70, theaset sail with an army of six ty thousand men . H e was dr’

by stress of weather into Sardinia, and while there, a ch‘

in his plans took place. Instead of proceeding to Acre, atoriginally intended, he shaped hi s course for Tunis

,on

African coast.’

The King of Tunis had some time previo'4

ex pressed himself favourably disposed towards the Christiand their religion, and Louis, it appears, had hopes ofverting him,

and securing his aid against the Sultan ofEgg“What honour would be mine, he used to say,

“ if I cbecome godfather to this Mussulman king .

” Filled withidea he landed in Africa, near the site of the city of Garthbut found that he had reckoned without his host. The Eof Tun is had no thoughts of renouncing his religion , nor in:tion of aiding the Crusaders in any way. On the contr

':

he opposed their landing with all the forces that could belected on so sudden an emergency . The French

,hows!

made good their first position , and defeated the Moslems

THE CRUSADES .

:onsiderable loss. They also gained some advantage over thereinforcements that were sent to oppose them ; but an infecious flux appeared in the army, and put a stop to all futurevi ctories . The soldiers died at the rate of a hundred in a day.

The enemy, at the same time, made as great havoc as the

plague. S t. Louis himself was one of the first attacked bythe disease. H is constitution had been weakened by fatigues,and even before he left France he was unable to bear the fullweight of his armour . It was soon evident to hi s sorrowingsoldiers that their beloved monarch could not long survive.

He lingered for some days, and died in Carthage, in the fiftysi x th year of his age, deeply regretted by hi s army and hi s

subjects, and leaving behind him one of the most singularreputations in history. He is the model- king of ecclesiasticalwriters, in whose eyes his very defects became virtues, becausethey were man ifested in furtherance of their cause. Moreunprejudiced historians

, while they condemn his fanaticism,

admit that he was endowed withmany high and rare qualities ;that he was in no one point behind his age, and, in many, inadvance of it.

H is brother,Charles of Anjou

,in consequence of a revolu

tion in S icily, had become king of that country. Before heheard of the death of Louis, he had sailed from Messina with

large reinforcements. On his landing near Carthage, he ad

vanced at the head of his army, amid themartialmusic of drumsand trumpets . H e was soon informed how inopportune was hisrejoicing, and shed tears before his whole army

,such as no

warrior would have been ashamed to shed. A peace was

Speedily agreed upon with the King of Tun is,and the armies

of France and S ici ly returned to their homes.

S o little favour had the Crusade found in England, that

even the ex ertions of the heir to the throne had only collecteda small force of fifteen hundred men . With these few PrinceEdward sa iled from D over to Bordeau x , in the ex pectationthat he would find the French King in that city . S t. Lou is,however, had left a few weeks previously ; upon which Edwardfollowed him to S ardin ia , and afterwards to Tun is . Before

his arrival in Africa, S t. Louis was no more, and peace had

been concluded between France and Tun is . H e determ ined,

however, not to relinqu ish the Crusade. Return ing to S icily,he passed the winter in that country, and endeavoured to

vo l 11. 10

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THE CRUSADES .

poison from his wound at the risk of her own life: to use the

words of old Fuller, It is a pity so pretty a story should not

be true ; and that so sovereign a remedy as a woman’

s tongue,anointed with the virtue of loving affection,

”should not have

performed the good deed.

Edward suspected, and doubtless not without reason, thatthe assassin was employed by the Sultan of Egypt. But it

amounted to suspicion only ; and b the sudden death of the

assassin, the principal clue to the dji

r

scovery of the truth was

lost for ever. Edward,on his recovery, prepared to resume

the offensive ; but the Sultan, embarrassed by the defence of

interests which, for the time being, he considered of moreimportance, made offers of peace to the crusaders. This

proof of weakness on the part of the enemy was calculated torender a man of Edward’

s temperament more anx ious to pro

secute the war ; but he had also other interests to defend.

News arrived in Palestine of the death of his father,King

Henry III. ; and his presence being necessary in England,he agreed to the terms of the Sultan . Those were, that theChristians should be allowed to retain their possessions in theHoly Land, and that a truce of ten years should be pro

claimed. Edward then set sail for England ; and thus ended

the last Crusade.

The after- fate of the Holy Land may be told in a few

words . The Christians, unmindful of their past sufferingsand of the jealous neighbours they had to deal with, firstbroke the truce by plundering some Egyptian traders nearMargat. The Sultan immediately revenged the outrage bytaking possession of Margat, and war once more raged between the nations. Margat made a gallant defence, but no

reinforcements arrived from Europe to prevent its fall. Tri

poli was the nex t, and other cities in succession , until at last

Acre was the only city of Palestine that remained in possession of the Christians.

The Grand Master of the Templars collected together hissmall and devoted band ; and with the triflin aid afforded bythe King of Cyprus, prepared to defend to t e death the last

possession of his order. Europe was deaf to his cry for aid,

the numbers of the foewere overwhelming, anddevoted braverywas of no avail. In that disastrous siege the Christians wereall but ex terminated. The King of Cyprus fled when he saw

that resistance was vain , and the Grand Master fell at the

THE CRUSADES .

head of his knights, pierced with a hundred wounds. Seven

Templars, and as many Hospitallers, alone escaped from the

dreadful carnage. The victorious Moslems then set fire to

the city,and the ru le of the Christians in Palestine was

brought to a close for ever.This intelligence spread alarm and sorrow among the

clergy of Europe, who endeavoured to rouse once more theenergy and enthusiasm of the nations, in the cause of the

Holy Land : but the popular mania had run its career ; thespark of zeal had burned its appointed time, and was never

again to be reillumined. Here and there a solitary knightannounced his determination to take up arms, and now and

then a king gave cold encouragement to the scheme ; but it

dropped almost as soon as spoken of,to be renewed again,

still more feebly, at some longer interval.Now what was the grand result of all these struggles

?

Europe ex pended millions of her treasures, and the blood oftwo millions of her children ; and a handful of quarrelsomekn ights retained possession of Palestine for about one hun

dred years Even had Christendom retained it to this day,the advantage, if confined to that, would have been too dearlypurchased. But notwithstanding the fanaticism that originated

,and the folly that conducted them,

the Crusades werenot productive of unmitigated evil. The feudal chiefs becamebetter members of society

,by coming in contact, in Asia,

with a civilization superior to their own the people securedsome small instalments of their rights ; kings, no longer at

war with their nobility,had time to pass some good laws ; the

human mind learned some little wisdom from hard ex perience,and

,casting off the slou h of superstition in which the Roman

clergy had so long envfioped it, became prepared to receivethe seeds of the approaching Reformation . Thus did the allwise Disposer of events bring good out of evil, and advance

the civilization and ultimate happiness of the nation s of the

West, by means of the very fanaticism that had led them

against the East. But the whole subject is one of absorbinginterest ; and if carried out fully in all its bearings, would consume more space than the plan of this work will allow . The

philos0phic student will draw his own conclusions ; and he

can have no better field for the ex ercise of his powers than

this European madness ; its advantages and disadvantages ;i ts causes and results.

HAUNTED HOUSES .

Here’

s a knocking indeed ! Knock ! knock ! knocki t i f Who’s there, i

’the name 0

'Beelzebub ?

i Who’s there, i’the devi l

’

s name ? Knock ! knock ! knock !-Never at quiet ?

Macbeth.

WH O has not either seen or heard of some house, shut upand un inhabitable, fallen into decay, and looking dusty and

dreary, from which, at midnight, strange sounds have been

heard to issue—aerial knockings—the rattling of chains,

and the groan ing of perturbed spirits —a house that peoplehave thought it unsafe to pass after dark

,and which has re

mained for years w ithout a tenant,and which no tenant would

occupy, even were he paid to do so ? There are hundreds of

such houses in England at the present day ; hundreds inFrance, Germany, and almost every country of Europe, whichare marked with the mark of fear—places for the timid to

avoid, and the pious to bless themselves at, and ask protectionfrom ,

as they pass— the abodes of ghosts and evil spirits.

There are many such houses in London ; and if any vain

boaster of the march of intellect would but take the trouble tofind them out and count them,

he would be convinced that in

tellect must yet make some enormous strides before such old

superstitions can be eradicated.

The idea that such houses ex ist is a remnant of the witch

creed, whichmerits separate notice from its comparative harmlessness, and from its being not so much a madness as a follyof the people. Unlike other notions that sprang from the be

lief in witchcraft,and which we have already dwelt upon at

sufficient length, it has sent no wretches to the stake or the

g ibbet, and but a few to thepillory only.

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HAUNTED HOUSES .

one pane of glass was broken andwhen thewindwas in a cer

tain quarter, the draught of air was so strong that it blew theloor to with some violence. There being no latch, it swung openagain ; andwhen there was a fresh gust, was again blown to.

The new proprietor lost no time in sendingfor a glazier, and

the mysterious noises ceased for ever. 'Ihe house was te

plastered and repainted, and once more regained its lost goodname. It was not before two or three years, however, that itwas thoroughly established in popular favour ; and many

persons, even then, would always avoid passing it, if they couldreach their destination by any other street.A similar story is narrated by S ir Walter Scott, in his Let

ters on Demonology and Witchcraft,the hero of which was a

gentleman of birth and distinction, well known in the politicalworld. Shortly after he succeeded to his title and estates,there was a rumour among his servants concerning a strangenoise that used to be heard at night in the family mansion,ind the cause of which no one could ascertain . The gentleman

resolved to discover it himself, and to watch for that purposewith a domestic who had grown old in the family, and who

,

ike the rest, had whispered strange things about the knockingraving begun immediately upon the death of his old master.Phese two watched until the noise was heard, and at last tracedt to a small store- room , used as a place for keeping provisions»f various kinds for the fami ly, and of which the old butlerlad the key. They entered this place, and remained for someime, without hearing the noises which they had traced thither.kt length the sound was heard, but much lower than it seemed0 be while they were further OE

,and their imaginations

rere more ex cited. They then discovered the cause without

lifli culty. A rat, caught in an old- fashioned trap, had occa

ioned the noise by its efforts to escape, in which it was able

0 raise the trap - door of its prison to a certain height, but washen obliged to drop it. The noise of the fall resoundingbrough the house had occasioned the mysterious rumours,which, but for the investigation of the proprietor, would, in all

probability,have acquired so bad a name for the dwelling that

no servants would have inhabited it. The circumstance wasold to S ir Walter S cott by the gentleman to whom it

lappened.

B ut, in general, houses that have acquired this character,

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have been more indebted for it, to the roguery of living men,than to accidents like these. S ix monks played of a clever

trick of the kind upon that worthy King, Louis, whose pietyhas procured him,

i n the annals of his own country, the designation of the saint. Having heard his confessor speakin terms of warm eulogy of the goodness and learn ing of the

monks of the order of Saint Bruno, he ex pressed his wish to

establish a commun ity of them near Paris. Bernard de laTour

,the superior, sent six of the brethren, and the King

gave them a handsome house to live in , in the village of

Chantilly . It so happened that, from their windows, thefihad a very fine view of the ancient palace of Vauvert, whie

had been built for a royal residence by King Robert, but desorted for many years. The worthymonks thought the palacewou ld just suit them, but their modesty was so ex cess ive that

they were ashamed to ask the King for a grant of it in due

form . This difficulty was not to be overcome, and themonksset their ingenuity to work to discover another plan . The

palace of Vauvert had never laboured under any imputationupon its character until they became its neighbours but,somehow or other, it almost immediately afterwards began toacqu i1e a bad name. F1 ightful shrieks were heard to proceedfrom it at n ight

— blue,red

,and green lights were suddenlv

observed to glimmer from the windows, and as suddenly to

disappear ; the clanking of chains was heard, and the howlipgas of persons in great pain . These disturbances continu

for several months,to the great terror of all the country

round,and even of the p ious King Louis, to whom, at Paris.

all the rumours were regularly carried, with whole heaps of

additions,that accumulated on the way. At last a great

spectre,clothed all 111 pea

-

green , with a long white beard anda serpent’s tail

,took his station regularly at midn ight in the

princ ipal window of the palace, and howled fearfully and

shook his fists at the passengers . The six monks of Chantilly,to whom all these things were duly nal rated were ex ceedinglywroth that the devil should play such antics right Oppositetheir dwelling, and hinted to the commissioners, sent downby Saint Louis to investigate the matter, that, if they wereallowed to inhabit the palace, they would very soon make a

clearance of the evil sp i rits . The King was quite charmed

with their piety, and ex pressed to them how grateful he felt

HAUNTED HOU SES .

for their disinterestedness. A deed was forthwith drawn up—the to al sign-manual was afli x cd to it, and the palace of

V auvert ecame the property of the monks of Saint Bruno.

The deed is dated in The disturbances ceased immediately

— the lights disappeared, and the green ghost (so said

the monks)was laid at rest for ever under the waves of the

Red Sea.

In the year 15 80, one Gilles Blaere had taken the lease of

a house in the suburbs of Tours, but repenting him of hi s bar

gain with the landlord, Peter Piquet, he endeavoured to pre

vail upon him to cancel the agreement. Peter, however, wassatisfied with his tenant andhis terms, and would listen to no

compromise. Very shortly afterwards, the rumour was

spread all over Tours that the house of Gilles Blaere washaunted. Gilles himself asserted that he verily believed hishouse to be the general rendezvous of all the witches and evil

spirits of France. The noise they made was awful, and quite

prevented him from sleeping. They knocked against the wall—howled in the chimneys— brokehis window-

glass— scattered

his pots and pans all over the k itchen , and set his chairs and

tables a dancing the whole n ight through. Crowds of personsassembled around the house to hear the mysterious noises ;and the bricks were observed to detach themselves from the

wall and fall into the streets upon the heads of thosewho hadnot said their paternoster before they came out in the morning . These things having continued for some time

,Gilles

Blaere made his complaint to the Civil Court of Tours, andPeter Piquet was summoned to show cause why the lease

should not be annulled. Poor Peter could make no defence,and the court unanimously agreed that no lease could hold

good under such circumstances,and annulled it accordingly,

condemn ing the unlucky owner to all the ex penses of the suit.

Peter appealed to the Parliament of Paris and, after a long

ex amination , the Parliament confirmed the lease.

“Not,

said the judge, because it has not been fully and satisfac

torily proved that the house is troubled' by evil spirits, butthat there was an informality in the proceedings before theCivil Court of Tours, that rendered its decision null and of no

efl'

ect.

Garinet. Histoire de la Magic en France, page 75 .

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HAUNTED HOUS‘ .

ed into the bedroom in compau with several logs ofwood,usurped the soft pillows inten ed for the commissioners.

the eighth and ninth ni hts, there was a cessation of hos

ies ; but on the tenth, the bricks in the chimneys became

motive, and rattled and danced about thefloors, and round

heads of the commissioners, all the night long. On therenth, the demon ran away with their breeches, and on the

lith filled their beds so full of pewter- platters that theyld not get into them. On the thirteenth night, the lass

ome imaccountably seized with a fit of crackin an fell

1 shivers in all parts of the house. On the ourteenth,re was a noise as if forty pieces of artille had been fired

and a shower of pebble- stones, which so a m od the com

sioners that, struck with great horror, they cried out to

1 another for help.

”

l'hey first of all tried the eflicacy of prayers to drive awayevil spirits ; but these proving unavailing, they beganions] to reflect whether it would not be much better to

ve t e place altogether to the devils that inhabited it.ey ultimately resolved, however, to try it a little longer ;Ihaving craved forgiveness of all their sins, betook themves to bed. That night they slept in tolerable comfort, butvas merely a trick of their tormentor to lull them into falseurity. When

, on the succeeding night, they heard no

see, they began to flatter themselves that the devil wasven out, and prepared accordingly to take up their quartersthewhole winter in the palace. These symptoms on theirrt became the signal for renewed uproar amon the fiends.

1 the l st of November, they heard something wa king with aw and solemn pace up and down the withdrawin - room,

and

mediately afterwards a shower of stones, brie s,mortar,

d broken glass pelted about their ears. On the 2 d,the

pa were again heard in the withdrawin - room, sounding to

air fancy very much like the treading ofan enormous bear,1ich continued for about a quarter of an hour. This noise

ving ceased,a large warming

-

pan was thrown violentlyon the table, followed by a number of stones and the jawne of a horse. Some of the boldest walked valiantly into thethdrawing room, armed with swords, and pistols ; but couldicover nothing . They were afraid that ni ht togo to sleep

,

.d sat up, making fires in every room,an burnmg candles

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and lamps in great abundance ; thinking that, as the fiendsloved darkness, they would not disturb a company surroundedwith so much light. They were deceived, however : bucketsof water came down the chimneys and ex tinguished the firesand the candles were blown out, they knew not how. Some

of the servants who had betaken themselves to bed were

drenched wi th putrid ditch- water as they lay, and arose in

great fright, muttering incoherent prayers, and ex po to

the wondering eyes of the commissioners their linen all'

pping with green moisture, and their knuckles red w ith the

blows they had at the same time received from some invisible

tormentors. While they were still speaking, there was a noiselike the loudest thunder, or the firing of a whole park of artillery

, upon which they all fell down upon their knees and im

plored the protection of the Almighty . One of the commis

sioners then arose, the others still kneeling, and asked in acourageous voice, and in the name of God, who was there, andwhat they had done that they should be troubled in that man

ner. No answer was returned, and the noises ceased for a

while. At length, however, as the commissioners said,

“the

devil came again , and brought with it seven devils worse thanitself. Being again in darkness, they lighted a candle and

placed it in the doorway, that it might throw a light upon thetwo chambers at once ; but it was suddenly blown out, and

one commissioner said that he had “seen the sim ilitude ofa

horse’

s hoof striking the candle and candlestick into the middle of the chamber, and afterwards making three scrapes onthe snufl

'

to put it out. Upon this,the same person was so

bold as to draw his sword ; but be asserted positively that hehad hardly withdrawn it from the scabbard before an invisible

hand seized hold of i t and tugged with him for it, and pre

vailing, struck him so violent a blow with the pommel that hewas qu ite stunned. Then the noises began again ; upon which,with one accord

,they all retired into the presence- chamber,

where they passed the night, praying and singing psalms.

They were by this time convinced that it was useless to

struggle any longer with the powers of evil, that seemed a

determined to make Woodstock their own . These things

happened on the S aturday n ight and,being repeated on the

S unday, they determined to leave the place immediately, and

return to London . By Tuesday morning early, all the1r pre

HAUNTED HOUSES .

rot ations were completed ; and, shaking the dust of their

bet, and devoting Woodstock and all its inhabitants to thenfernal gods, they finally took their departure.

*

Many years elapsed before the true cause of these distur

u n ces was discovered. It was ascertained, at the Restoration,hat the whole was the work of Giles Sharp, the trusty clerkbf the commissioners. Thisman

, whose real namewas JosephJollins, was a concealed ro alist

,and had passed his early life

within the bowers of W stock ; so that he knew every hole1nd corner of the place, and the numerous trap- doors andlccret passages that abounded in the building. The commisdoners never suspected the true state of his Opinions, butrelieving him to be revolutionary to the backbone, placed the1tmost reliance upon him ; a confidence which be abused in:he manner above detailed, to his own great amusement, and

that of the few cavaliers whom he let into the secret.Qu ite as ex traordinary and as cleverly managed was the

wick played of at Tedworth, in 16 6 1,at the house of Mr.

Mompesson, and which is so circumstantially related by theRev. Joseph Glanvil, under the title of “The Demon of Ted

worth,”

and appended, among other proofs of witchcraft, torisnotedwork, called Sadducismus Triumphatus.

” About theniddle of Apri l, in the year abovementioned, Mr. Mompesson,raving returned to his house, at Tedworth, from a journey herad taken to London , was informed by his wife, that duringris absence they had been troubled with the most ex traordi

1ary noises. Three nights afterwards he heard the noise

1imself and it appeared to him to be that of a greatmock ing at his doors, and on the outside of his walls.

”He

mmediately arose, dressed himself, took down a pair of

1istols , and walked valiantly forth to discover the disturber,under the impression that it must be a robber : but

,as he

ren t, the noise seemed to travel before or behind him ; and

rhen he arrived at the door from which he thought it pro

ceded, he saw nothing, but still heard a strange hollowcund.

”He puzzled his brain for a long time, and searched

very corner of the house ; but, discovering nothing, he went

0 bed again . He was no sooner snug under the clothes, than

D r. H . More’s Continuation of Glenvil

’

s Collection of Relations in prooff W i tchcraft.von. 11 .

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HAUNTED HOU SES .

done and then, in sight of the company, the chairs walkedabout the room of themselves, the children

’

s shoes were hurledover their heads, and every loose thing moved about the

chamber. At the same time, a bed- stafl'

was thrown at the

min ister, which hit him on the leg, but so favourably, that alock of wool could not have fallen more softly.

”On another

occasion, the blacksmith of the villa e, a fellow who caredneither for ghost nor devil, slept with ohn, the footman , that

he also might hear the di sturbances, and be cured of his in

credulity, when there came a noise in the room,as if one

had been shoeing a horse, and somewhat came, as it were,with a pair of pincers, snipping and snapping at the poorblacksmith

’

s nose the greater part of the night. Nex t day itcame, panting like a dog out of breath ; upon which some

woman present took a bed- staff to knock at it, which was

caught suddenly out of her hand, and thrown away ; and

company coming up, the room was presently filled with a

bloomy noe’

some smell, and was very hot, thofigh without fire,in a very sharp and severe winter. It continued in the bed,

panting and scratchinglfor an hour and a half

,and then went

mto the nex t room,w ere it knocked a little, and seemed to

rattle a chain .

The r umour of these wonderful occurrences soon spread all

over the country, and people from far and near flocked to thehaunted house of Tedworth, to believe or doubt

, as theirnatures led them, but all filled with intense curiosity. It

appears, too, that the fame of these events reached the royalear, and that some gentlemen were sent by the King to investigate the circumstances, and draw up a report of what theysaw or heard. Whether the royal commissioners were moresensible men than the neighbours of Mr. Mompesson, and

requ iredmore clear and positive evidence than they, orwhetherthe powers with which they were armed to punish anybodywho might be found carrying on this deception , frightened theevil- doers, is not certain ; but Glanvil himself reluctantly con

fesses, that all the time they were in the house, the noises

ceased, and nothing was heard or seen .

“However, sayshe,

“as to the quiet of the house when the courtiers were

there, the intermission may have been accidental, or perhapsthe demon was not willing to give so public a testimony of

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those transactions which might possibly convince those who,he had rather, should continue in unbelief of his ex istence.

As soon as the royal commissioners took their departure,the infernal drummer recommenced his antics, and hundredsof persons were daily present to hear and wonder . Mr. Mom

pesson’

s servant was so fortunate as not only to hear, but tosee this pertinacious demon ; for it came and stood at the foot

of his bed.

“The ex act shape and proportion of it he could

not discover ; but he saw a great body, with two red and glaringeyes, which, for some time, were fix ed steadily on him

, and at

length disappeared.

” Innumerable were the antics it played.Once it purred like a cat beat the children ’

s legs black and

blue ; put a long spike into Mr. Mompesson’

s bed, and a knifeinto his mother ’s ; filled the porringers with ashes ; hid a Bibleunder the grate ; and turned the money black in people

’

s

pockets. One n ight, said Mr. Mompesson, in a letter toMr . Glanvil, there were seven or eight of these devils in the

shape of men, who, as soon as a gun was fired, would shuflle

away into an arbour ;"

a circumstance which might have con

vincedMr. Mompesson of themortal nature of his persecutors,if he had not been of the number of those worse than blind,who shut their eyes and refuse to see.

In the mean time the drummer, the supposed cause of all

the mischief, passed his time in Gloucester gaol, whither hehad been committed as a rogue and a vagabond. Beingvisited one day by some person from the neighbourhood of

Tedworth, he asked what was the news in W iltshire, and

whether people did not talk a great deal about a drumming ina gentleman

’

s house there? The visiter replied, that he heard

of nothing else ; upon which the drummer observed,I have

done it ; I have thus plagued him ; and he shall never be quietuntil he hath made me satisfaction for taking away my drum.

"

No doubt the fellow,who seems to have been a g ipsy, spoke

the truth, and that the gang of which he was a member knewmore about the noises at Mr . Mompesson

’

s house than any

body elsc . Upon these words,however, he was brought to

trial at S alisbury,for witchcraft ; and, being found gui lty, was

sentenced to transportation ; a sentence which, for i ts len iency,ex cited no little wonder in that age, when such an accusation,whether proved or not, generally insured the stake or the

gibbet. Glanvil says, the noises ceased immediately the

HAUNTED HOUSES .

drummer was sent beyond the seas ; but that, somehow or

other, he managed to return from transportation ; by raisingstorms and afl

'

righting the seamen , it was said; when the dis

turbances were forthwith renewed, and continued at intervalsfor several years. Certainly, if the confederates of this rovinggipsy were so pertinacious in tormenting poor weak Mr. Mom

pesson , their pertinacity is a most ex traordinary instance of

what reven

ggis capable of. It was believed by many, at the

time, that r. Mompesson himself was privy to the whole

matter, and permitted and encouraged these tricks in his housefor the sake of notoriety ; but it seems more probable that the

gipsies were the real delinquents, and that Mr. Mompesson

was as much alarmed and bewildered as his credulous neigh

hours, whose ex cited imaginations conjured up no small por

tion of these stories,

Whi ch rolled, and as they rolled, grew larger every hour.

Many instances, of a similar kind, during the seventeenth

century, might be gleaned from Glanvil and other writers ofthat period ; but they do not difler sufliciently from these to

justify a detail of them. The most famous of all haunted

houses acquired its notoriety much nearer our own time and

the circumstances connected with it are so curious, and affordso fair a specimen of the easy credulity even of well- informedand sensible people, as to merit a little notice in this chapter.The Cook Lane Ghost, as it was called, kept London in com

motion for a considerable time, and was the theme of conversation among the learned and the illiterate, and in everycircle, from that of the prince to that of the peasant.At the commencement of the year 1760, there resided in

Cock Lane, near West Smithfield, in the house of one Parsons,the parish clerk of S t. Sepulchre

’

s, a stockbroker, named

Kent. The wife of this gentleman had died in childbedduring the previous year, and his sister- in - law

,Miss Fanny

,

had arrived from Norfolk to keep his house for him. Theysoon conceived a mutual afl

’

ection , and each of them made a

will in the other ’s favour . They lived some months in the

house of Parsons, who, being a needy man , borrowed moneyof his lodger. Some difl

'

erence arose betwix t them,and Mr.

11*

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HAUNTED HOUSES .

pari sh and several other gentlemen on the following day, to

report upon the mystery.

On the following night he returned, bringing withhim threemen , and about twenty other persons, including two

negroes, when , upon a consultation withParsons, they resolvedto sit up the whole night, and await the ghost

’

s arrival. It

was then ex plained by Parsons, that although the host would

never render itself visible to anybody but hrs dau ter, it had

no objection to answer the questions that might be put to it,by any person present, and that it ex pressed an aflirmation

by one knock, a negative by two, and its displeasure by a

hn d of scratching. The child was then put into bed alongwith her sister, and the clergymen ex amined the bed and bed

clothes to satisfy themselves that no trick was played, byknocking upon any substance concealed among the clothes.

As on the previous night, the bed was observed to shakeviolently.

After some hours, during which they all waited wi th ex em

plary patience, the mysterious knocking was heard in the

wall, and the child declared that she saw the ghost of poorFanny. The following questions were then gravely put bythe clergyman , through the medium of one Mary Frazer

,the

servant of Parsons,and to whom it was said the deceased

lady had been much attached. The answers were in the usual

fashion , by a knock or knocksD o you make this disturbance on account of the ill usage

you received from Mr. Kent ?”

Yes.

Were you brought to an untimely end by poison ?Yes.

”

How was the poison admin istered, in beer or in purl ?In purl.

”

H ow long was that before your death About threehours .

”

Can your former servant Carrots, give any information

thout the poison Yes.

Are you Kent’

s wife’

s sister ? Yes.

Were you married to Kent after your sister’

s death ?‘N o.

”

Was a

lgybody else, besides Kent, concerned in your murO.

HAUNTED HOUSES .

Can you, if you like, appear visibly to any one ?

Yes.

Will you do so ? Yes.

Can you go out of this house ? Yes .

Is it your intention to follow this child about everywhere Yes.

”

Are you pleased in being asked these questions ?Yes.

Does it ease your troubled soul ? Yes .

[Here there was heard a mysterious noise, which some

wiseacre present compared to the fluttering of wings.]“How long before your death did you tell your servant,

Carrots,that you were poisoned - An hour ? Yes.

[Carrots, who was present, was appealed to ; but she statedpositively that such was not the fact, as the deceased was

qu ite Speechless an hour before her death. This shook the

faith of some of the spectators, but the ex amination was al

lowed to continue ]H ow long did Carrots live with you ? Three or four

daysf’

[Carrots was again appealed to, and said that this was

true ]IfMr Kent is arrested for this murder, will he confess ?Yes .

Would your soul be at rest if he were hanged for it ?Yes.

W ill he be hanged for it ? Yes.

How long a time first ?” Three years.

H ow many clergymen are there in this room Three.

How many negroes Two.

”

Is this watch (held up by one of the clergymen)white?

No.

Is it yellow ?” No.

Is it blue No.

”

Is it black ? Yes.

[The watch was in a black shagreen case ]“At what time this morning will you take your depar

ture

The answer to this question was four knocks,very di stinctly

heard by every person present ; and accordingly, at four

o’

clock precisely, the ghost took its departure to the Wheat»

HAUNTED HOUSES .

sheaf public house, close by, where it frightened mine host

and his lady almost out of their wits by knocking in the

cei li ng right above their bed.The rumour of these occurrences very soon spread over

London , and every day Cock Lane was rendered impassableby the crowds of people who assembled around the house of

the parish clerk, in ex pectation of either seeing the ghost, orof hearing the mysterious knocks. It was at last found ne

cessary, so clamorous were they for admission within the

haunted precincts, to admit these only who would pay a

certain fee, an arrangement which was ver convenient to the

needy and money- loving Mr. Parsons. Ihdeed, things hadtaken a turn greatly to his satisfaction ; he not only had hisrevenge, but he made a profit out of it. The ghost, in conse

quence, played its antics every night, to the great amusementof many hundreds of people and the great perplex ity of a

still greater number.Unhappily, however, for the parish clerk, the ghost w

induced to make some promises which were the means of

utterly destroying its reputation . It promised, in answer tothe questions of the Reverend Mr. Aldritch of Clerkenwell,that it would not only follow the little Miss Parsons wherevershe went, but would also attend him, or any other gentleman ,into the vault under S t. John ’

s Church, where the body of

the murdered woman was deposited, and would there givenotice of its presence by a distinct knock upon the coflin . As

a preliminary, the girl was conveyed to the house of Mr. Aldritch near the church, where a large party of ladies and

gen tlemen, eminent for their acqu irements , their rank , or

their wealth, had assembled. About ten o’

clock on the n ight

of the l st of February, the girl having been brought fromCock Lane in a coach, was put to bed by several ladies in thehouse of Mr. Aldritch ; a strict ex amination having been

previously made that nothing was hidden in the bedclothes.

While the gentlemen , in an adjoining chamber, were delibe

rating whether they should proceed in a body to the vault,they were summoned into the bedroom by the ladies, who

affirmed,in great alarm ,

that the ghost was come, and that

they heard the knocks and scratches. The gentlemen enteredaccordingly, with a determination to sufl

‘

er no deception . The

li ttle girl, on being asked whether she saw the ghost, replied,

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HAUNTED HOU SES .

ier . There being no answer, the question was put by Mr.

“dri tch, who conjured i t, if it were indeed a spirit, to end

heir doubts—make a sign of its presence, and point out the

gu ilty person . There being still no answer for the space of

ralf an hour, during which time all these boobies waited with;he most raiseworthy perseverance, they returned to the

mouse of r. Aldritch, and ordered the girl to get up and

lress herself. She was strictly ex amined,but persisted in her

statement that she used no deception, and that the ghost

had really appeared to her.

So many persons had, by their openly ex pressed belief ofthe reality of the visitation, identified themselves with it,that Parsons and his family were far from being the only persons interested in the continuance of the delusion . The resultof the ex periment convinced most people ; but these were notto be convinced by any evidence, however positive, and they,therefore, spread abroad the rumour, that the ghost had not

appeared in the vault because Mr. Kent had taken carebeforehand to have the eedin removed. That gentleman,whose position was a very painful one, immediately procuredcompetent witnesses, in whose presence the vault was enteredand the coflin of poor Fanny opened. Their deposition was

then published : and Mr . Kent indicted Parsons and his wife,

his daughter, Mary Frazer the servant,the Reverend Mr.

Moor, and a tradesman , two of the most prominent patronsof the deception , for a conspiracy. The trial came on in the

Court of King’

s Bench, on the 10th of July, before LordChief Justice Mansfield, when , after an investigation which

lasted twelve hours, the whole of the conspirators were found

guilty . The Reverend Mr. Moor and his friend were severelyreprimanded in open court, and recommended to make some

pecuniary compensation to the prosecutor for the aspersionsthey had been instrumental in throwing upon his character.Parsons was sentenced to stand three times in the pillory,and to be imprisoned for two years : his wife to one

'

year’

s,

and his servant to six months’

imprisonment in the Bridewell.A printer, who had been employed by them to publish an

account of the proceedings for their profit, was also fined fiftypounds, and discharged.

The precise manner in whi ch the deception was carried on

has never been ex plained. The knocking in the wall appears

HAUNTED HOUSES .

to have been the work of Parsons’ wife, while the

part of the business was left to the little girl. Th

trivance so clumsy could have deceived anybody,to ex cite our wonder. But thus it

persons can only be found to takehowever great, there is sure to be pleusheep in a field, if one clears the stile,About ten years afterwards, London was ags i

the story of a haunted house. Stockwell, nearscene of the antics of this new ghost, became al

brated in the annals of superstition as CockGoldin an elderly lady, who residedAnne fil obinson , was sorely surprisTwelfth- Day, 177 2 , to observe a mos

tion among her crockery. Cthe chimney— pots and pansthrough the windows ;disported themselves

them. This, at least,came to ; and being greatly alarmed, she invited some

neighbours to stay with her, and protect her from the ovione. Their presence, however, did not put a stop to the ih

surrection of china, and every room in the house was in a

short time strewed with the fragments. The chairs and table

joined, at last, in the tumult, and things looked altogether l

serious and inex plicable, that the neighbours, dreading thatthe house itself would nex t be seized with a fit of motion, andtumble about their ears. left poor Mrs. Golding to bear thebrunt of it by herself. The ghost in this case was solemnlyremonstrated with, and urged to take its departure ; but thedemolition continu ing as great as before, Mrs . Golding finmade up her mind to quit the house altogether. She

refuge with Anne Robinson in the house of a neighbour ; buthis glass and crockery being immediately subjected to the

same persecution , he was reluctantly compelled to'

ve her

notice to quit. The old lady thus forced back to i er own

house, endured the disturbance for some days longer, when

suspecting that Anne Robinson was the cause of all the min

chief,she dismissed her from her service. The ex traordinary

appearances immediately ceased, and were never afterwardsrenewed ; a fact which is of itself sufiicient to point out the

HAUNTED HOUSES .

seal disturber. A long time afterwards, Anne Robinson conf'

eused the whole matter to the Reverend Mr. Brayfield. Thisgen tleman confided the story to Mr. Hone, who has publishedan ex planation of the mystery. Anne, it appears, was anx iousto have a clear house, to carry on an intrigue with her lover,and resorted to this trick to efi

‘

ect her purpose. She placedthe china on the shelves in such a manner that it fell on the

slightest motion, and attached horse-hairs to other articles, sothat she could jerk them down from an adjoining room with

out being perceived by any one. She was ex ceedingly dexterous at this sort ofwork, and would have proved a formi

dable rival tomany a juggler by profession . A full ex planationof the whole ad

'

air may be found in the“Every- day Book.

”

The latest instance of the popular pan ic occasioned by a

house supposed to be haunted, occurred in Scotland, in the

winter of the year 1838 . On the 5 th of December, the inmatesof the farm- house ofBaldarroch

,in the district of Banchory,

Aberdeenshi re, were alarmed by observing a great number ofsticks, pebble- stones, and clods of earthflying about their yardand premises. They endeavoured, but in vain

, to discoverwho was the delinquent ; and the shower of stones continuingfor five days in succession, they came at last to the conclusion

that the devil and his imps were alone the cause of it. The

rumour soon spread over all that part of the country, and

hundreds of persons came from far and near to witness the

antics of the devils of Baldarroch. After the fifth day, theshowers of clodsand stones ceased on the outside ofthepremises,and the scene shifted to the interior. Spoons, kn ives, plates,mustard- pots, rolling- pins

,and flat- irons appeared suddenly

endued with the power of self-motion , and were whirled fromroom to room

,and rattled down the chimneys in a manner

which nobody could account for. The lidof amustard-

potwas

put into a cupboard by the servant- girl in thepresence of scoresof people, and in a fewminutes afterwards camebouncing downthe chimney to the consternation of everybody. There was

also a tremendous knocking at the doors and on the roof, and

pieces of stick and pebble- stones rattled against the windows

and broke them . The whole neighbourhood was a scene of

alarm and not only the vulgar, but persons of education,respectable farmers, within a circle of twentymiles, ex pressedtheir belief in the supernatural character of these events, andvon. 11 . 12

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HAUNTED HOUSES .

Among the persons drawn to Baldarroch by these occurnces were the heritor, the minister, and all the elders of the .

irk, under whose superintendence an investigation was im

ediately commenced. Their proceedings were not promul

sted for somedays ; and, in the mean time, rumour continuedtravel through all the Highlands, magn ifying each myste

ous incident the further it got from home. It was said, that

hen the goodwife put her potato-

pot on the fire, each potato,a the water boiled, changed into a demon , and grinned horbl at her as she lifted the lid ; that not only chairs and

.h es, but carrots and turn ips,skipped along the floor in the

art iest manner imaginable ; that shoes and boots went

trough all the evolutions of the Highland fling without anysible wearers directing their motions ; and that a piece ofcat detached itself from the hook on which it hung in the

mtry, and placed itself before the fire, whence all the efl'

orts

the people of the house were unable to remove it until it

as thoroughly roasted ; and that it then flew up the chimneyith a tremendous bang . At Baldarroch itself the belief was)t qu ite so ex travagant ; but the farmer was so convinced

rat the devil and his imps were alone the cause of all the dis

rbance, that he travelled a distance of forty miles to an old

mjuror, named Willie Foreman , to induce him,for a hand

me fee, to remove the enchantment from his property.

here were, of course, some sensible and educated people,

be, after stripping the stories circulated of their ex aggeram , attributed all the rest to one or other of two causes ; first,[at some gipsies, or strolling mendi cants, hidden in the neighwring plantation , were amusing themselves by working on

10 credulity of the country people ; or, secondly, that themates of Baldarroch carried on this deception themselves,r some reason or other

,which was not very clear to any

idy. The last opin ion gained but few believers, as the

rmer and his family were much respected ; and so manyersons had, in the most open manner, ex pressed their beliefthe supernatural agency, that they did not like to stultify

nemselves by confessing that they had been deceived.

At last, after a fortnight’

s continuance of the noises, the

hole trick was discovered. The two servant lasses wererictly ex amined, and then committed to prison . It appearedtat they were alone at the bottom of the whole afl

‘

air, and

HAUNTED HOUSES .

that the ex traordinary alarm and credulity of their master

and mistress, in the first instance, and of the neighbours andcountry people afterwards

,made their task comparatively

easy. A little common dex terity was all they had used ; and,being themselves unsuspected, they swelled the alarm by thewonderful stories they invented. It was they who loosenedthe bricks in the chimneys, and placed the dishes in sucha

manner on the shelves, that they fell on the slightest motion.

In short, they played,

the same tricks as those used by theservant girl at S tockwell, with the same results, and for thesame purpose— the gratification of a love of mischief. Theywere no sooner secured in the county gaol than the noises

ceased, and most people were convinced that human agencyalone had worked all the wonder. Some few of the most do

voutly superstitious still held out in their first belief, and refused to li sten to any ex planation .

These tales of haunted houses, especially those of the last

and present century, however they may make us blush forpopular folly, are yet gratifying in their results ; for theyshow that society has made a vast improvement. Had Par

sons and his wife, and the other contrivers of the Cock Lanedeception, lived two hundred years earlier, they would not,

perhaps, have found a greater number of dupes , but theywould have been hanged as witches, instead of being imprisoned as vagabonds . The ingenious Anne R obinson and

the sly lessee of Baldarroch would, doubtless, have met asimilar fate. Thus it is pleasant to reflect, that though theremay be as much folly and credulity in the world as ever, inone clas s of society, there is more wisdom andmercy in another

than ever were known before. Lawgivers, by blotting fromthe statute- book the absurd or sangu inary enactments of their

predecessors, have made one step towards teaching the people.It is to be hoped that the day is not far distant when law

givers will teach the people by some more direct means, andprevent the recurrence of delusions like these, and manyworse, which might be cited

,by securing to every child born

within their domin ions an education in accordance with theadvancing state of civilization . If ghosts and witches are not

yet altogether ex ploded, it is the fault, not so much of the

ignorant people, as of the law and the government that haveneglected to enlighten them.

PH IL OS OPHICAL DELU S IONS.

DIS SATISFACTION with his lot seems to be the characteristiccfman in all ages and climates. So far, however, from beingan evi l, as at first might be supposed, it has been the greatcivilizer of our race ; and has tended, more than anything else,toraise as above the condition of the brutes. But the same

fiscontent which has been the source of all improvement, hasbeen the parent of no small progeny of follies and absurdities ;to trace these latter is the object of the present volume. Vastas the subject appears, i t is easily reducible within such limits

as wi ll make it comprehensive without being wearisome, andrender its study both instructive and amusing.

Three causes especially have ex cited our discontent ; and,

by impelling us to seek for remedies for the irremediable, havebewildered us in a maze of madness and error . These are

death, toil, and ignorance of the future— the doom of man

upon this sphere, and for which he shows his antipathy by hislove of life

,his longing for abundance

,and his craving curio

sitv to pierce the secrets of the days to come. The first hasled many to imagine that they might find means to avoid

death, or, failing in this, that they might, nevertheless, so prolong ex istence as to reckon it by centuries instead of units.

From this sprang the search,so long continued and still pur

sued, for the elix ir vitae, or water of life, which has led thousands to pretend to it and millions to believe in it. From the

second sprang the absurd search for the philosopher’s stone,

whi ch was tocreate plenty by changing all metals into gold;and from the third, the false sciences of astrology, divination,and their divisions of necromancy, chiromancy, augury, withall their train of signs, portents, and omens .

In tracing the career of the erring philosophers, or the wilful cheats, who have encouraged or preyed upon the credulityof mankind, it will simplify and elucidate the subject, if wedivide it into three classes — the first comprising alchymists,

12 "

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B O OK I.

THE ALCHYMISTS ,

OE SEARCHER S FOR THE PHILOSOPHER ’

S STONE AND THE

WATER OF LIFE.

Harem -

y (109mm ).—The mischief a secret any of them know, above the

season ing of coals and drawing of usquebaugh ! Howsoever they mayunder the specious names of Geber, Arnold, Lulli , or bombast of

aim, to commi t miracles in art, and treason against nature ! As if

file title of philosopher, that creature of glo were to be fetched out of a

hrnace ! I am their crude, and their sub'

mate, their precipitate, andtheir auctions ; their male and their female, sometimes their hermaphrodite

-what they list to style me ! They will calcine you a grave matron , as it

might be a mother of the maids , and spring up a young virg in out of her

ashes , as fresh as a phmni x : lay you an old courtier on the coals , like a

sausage or a bloat- herring, and, after they have broiled him enough, blow

a soul into him, wi th a pair of bellows ! See ! they begin to muster again ,

and draw their forces out a ain st me ! The gen ius of the place defend meB l ! J ox sox is Masque creary vindicatedfrom the Alchymists .

”

PART I.

H ISTO R Y OF ALCH YMY FR OM THE EAR L IEST PER IOD S TO TH E

FIFTEENTH CENTU R Y .

Pratended antiquity of the art—Geber—Alfarabi—Avicenna—Albertu sHagnus

—Thomas Aquinas—Artephius—Alain de L isle—Arnold de Vi llena ve—Pietro d’Apone—Raymond Lulli—Roger Bacon—Pope J ohn XXIIJ san do Mu ng—Nicholas H amel—G eorge R ipley—Basil Valentine—Bernard of Treves—Trithemius—The Maréchal dc Rays—J acques Occur—Inferior adepta.

FOR more than a thousand years the art of.

alchymy captivated many noble spirits, and was believed in by millions.

Its origin is involved 111 obscurity. Some of its devotees have

THE ALCHYMISTS .

claimed for it an antiquity coeval with the creation

of man himself ; others, again, would trace it back no

further than the time of Noah. Vincent de Beauvais argues,indeed, that all the antediluvians must have possessed a know

ledge of alchymy ; and particularly cites Noah as having beenacquainted with the eli x ir vitae, or he could not have lived to so

prodigious an age, and have begotten children when upwardsof five hundred. Lenglet da Fresnoy, in his

“History of thel

Hermetic Philosophy, says, “Most of them pretended thatShem,

or Chem, the son of Noah,was an adept in the art,

and thought it highly probable that the words chemistry and

alchymy were both derived from his name.

” Others say,the art was derived from the Egyptians, amongst whom it

was first founded by Hermes Trismegistus . Moses, who is

looked upon as a first- rate alchymist, gained his knowledgein Egypt ; but he kept it all to himself

,and would not in

struct the children of Israel in its mysteries . All the writersupon alchymy triumphantly cite the story of the golden calf,in the 32 d chapter of Ex odus

,to prove that this great law

giver was an adept,and could make or unmake gold at his

pleasure. It is recorded, that Moses was so wroth with theIsraelites for their idolatry, “that he took the calf which

they had made, and burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder

,and strewed it upon the water, and made the children of

Israel drink of it.” This, say the alchymists, he never

could have done, had he not been in possession of the philoso

pher’

s stone ; by no other means could he have made the

powder of gold float upon the water . But we must leave this

knotty point for the consideration of the adepts in the art, it

any such there be, and come to more modern periods of itshistory. The Jesuit, Father Martini, in his HistoriaS in ica , says

,it was practised by the Chinese two thousand

five hundred years before the birth of Christ ; but his asser

tion , being unsupported,is worth nothing. It would appear,

however, that pretenders to the art of making gold and sil

ver ex isted in Rome in the first centuries after the Christianera, and that, when discovered, they were liable to punishment as knaves and impostors . At Constantinople, in the

fourth century, the transmutation of metals was very generally believed in , and many of the Greek ecclesiastics wrote

treatises upon the subject. Their names are preserved, and

m ALCHYH ISTS .

sotico of their works given, in the third volume of Len.u Freaney s Hi story of the Hermetic Philosophy.

’

notion appears to have been, that all metals were com

of two substances ; the one,metallic earth ; and the

a red inflammable matter, which they call sulphur.

are union of these substances formed gold ; but other

1 were mi x ed with and contaminated by various foreignlients . The object of the philosopher ’s stone was to

re or neutralize all these ingredients, by which iron,copper, and all metals would be transmuted into the

al gold. Many learned and clever men wasted theirtheir health, and their energies, in this vain pursuit ;r several centuries it took no great hold upon the ima

on of the people. The history of the delusion appears,tanner

,lost from this time till the eighth century, when

cared amongst the Arabians. From this period it beeasier to trace its progress . A master then appeared,me long looked upon as the father of the science, and

name is indissolubly connected with it.

Games .

this phi losopher, who devoted his life to the study of

my, but few particulars are known . He is thought to

lived in the year 730. H is true name was Abounah Djafar, to whichwas added Al Sofi, or The Wise,

”

e was born at Hauran , in MeSOpotaniia.

* Some have

ht he was a Greek, others a Spaniard, and others a

1 of Hindostan : but, of all the mistakes which havemade respecting him, the most ludicrous was that made0 French translator of Sprenger

’

s History of Medi

who thought, from the sound of his name, that he was

man , and rendered it as the D onnateur,

”or Giver. No

s of his life are known , but it is asserted, that he wrotethan five hundred works upon the philosopher

’

s stone

1c water of life. He was a great enthusiast in his art,

empared the incredulous to little children shut up in a

wroom, without windows or aperture,who

,because they

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THE ALOHYH ISTS .

.8 much as he needed. This wandering mode of life at

roved fatal to him . He had been on a visit to Mecca,

much for religious purposes, when, returning throughhe stopped at the court of the Sultan Seifeddoulet,

ras renowned as the patron of learn ing. He presentedIf in his travelling attire, in the presence of that me

and his courtiers ; and, without invitation coolly sat

If down upon the sofa, beside the Prince. The courand wise men were indignant ; and the Sultan, who did

new the intruder, was at first inclined to follow their ex2 . He turned to one of his ofiicers, and ordered him to

the presumptuous stranger from the room ; but Alfarabi,-u t moving, dared them to lay hands upon him

,and

ng himself calmly to the prince, remarked, that he didmow who was his guest, or he would treat him with

ar, not with violence. The Sultan , instead of being still

.sr incensed, as many potentates would have been , adl his coolness ; and requesting him to sit still closer toon the sofa, entered into a long conversation with him1 science and divine philosophy. All the court weremedwith the stranger. Questions for discussion were proided, on all of which he showed superior knowledge. He

inced every one that ventured to dispute with him ; and

:e so eloquently upon the science of alchymy,that he

at once recognised as only second to the great Geberelf. One of the doctors present inqu ired whether a manknew so many sciences was acquainted with music ? Al

Di made no reply, but merely requested that a lute should'

ought him. The lute was brought ; and he played such

hing and tender melodies, that all the court were meltedtears. He then changed his theme, and played airs so

htly, that he set the grave philosophers, Sultan and all,

in as fast as their legs could carry them. He then

them again by a mournful strain, and made them

sud sigh as if broken - hearted. The S ultan , highly deed with his powers, entreated him to stay

,od

'

ering him7 inducement that wealth, power, and dignity could

ly; but the alchymist resolutely refused, it bein decreed,1d, that he shou ld never repose till he had iscovered

1hilosopher’

s stone. He set ou t accordingly the same

ng, and was murdered by some thieves in the deserts of

THE AL CHYHISTS .

Syria. His biographers give no further particulars of his

life beyond mentioning, that he wrote several valuable tm

tises on his art,all of which, however, have been lost. His

death happened 1n the year 954.

Avrom s .

Avicenna,whose real name was Ebn Cinna, another great

alchymist, was born at Bokhara, 111 980. Hi s reputation asa physician and a man skilled 111 all scienceswas so great, that

the Sultan Magda] D ouleth resolved to try his powers in the

great science of government. He was accordingly made

rand Vizier of that Prince, and ruled the state with some

advantage : but, in a science still more diflicul t, he failedcompletely. He could not rule his own passions, but gavehimself up to wine and women , and led a life of shameless

debauchery. Amid the multifarious pursuits of business andpleasure, he nevertheless found time to write seven treatisesupon the philosopher ’s stone, whichwere formany ages looked

upon as of great value by the pretenders to the art. It is

rare that an eminent physician, as Avicenna appears to havebeen , abandons himself to sensual gratification ; but so com

pletely did he become enthralled in the course of a few years,that he was dismissed from his high office, and died shortlyafterwards, of premature old age and a complication ofmala

dies, brought on by debauchery . H is death took place in

the year 1036 . After his time,few philosophers of any note

in Arabia are heard of as devoting themselves to the study ofalchymy but it began shortly afterwards to attract greaterattenti on in Europe. Learned men in France, England,Spain, and Italy ex pressed their belief m the science, and

many devoted their whole energies to it. In the twelfth and

thirteenth centuries especially, i t was ex tensively pursued,and some of the brightest names of that age are connected

wi th it. Among the most eminent of them are

ALBERTU S Mas s es AND Tnoms s Aoum a.

The first of these philosophers was born in the year 1193,

THE ALCHYHISTS .

of a noble family at Lawingen , in the duchy of Neuburg, onthe Danube. For the first thirty years of his life, he appearedremarkably dull and stupid

,and it was feared by every one

that no good could come of him. He entered a Dominicanmonastery at an early age ; but made so little progress in hisstudies, that he was more than once upon the point of abandon ing them in despair ; but he was endowed with ex traordinary perseverance. As he advanced to middle age, his

mind ex panded, and he learned whatever he applied himselfto w ith ex treme facility. So remarkable a chan e was not,

in that age, to be accounted for but by a miracle. It was

asserted and believed that the Holy Virgin , touched with his

great desire to become learned and famous, took pity upon hisincapacity, and appeared to him in the clo1ster where he sat

,

almost despairing, and asked him whether he wished to ex cel

in philosophy or divinity . He chose philosophy,to the cha

grin of the Virgin, who reproached him in mild and sorrowfulaccents that he had not made a better choice. She

,however,

granted his request that he should become the most ex cellent

philosopher of the age ; but set this drawback to his pleasure,that he should relapse, when at the height of his fame, into

his former incapacity and stupidity . Albertus never took thetrouble to contradict the story

,but prosecuted his studies with

such un remitting zeal that his reputation speedily spread overall Europe. In theyear 1 244, the celebratedThomas Aqu inasplaced himself under his tuition . Many ex traordinary stories

are told of the master and his pupil. While they paid all due

etten tion to other branches of science,they never neglected

the pursuit of the philosopher ’s stone and the elix ir vitae.

l lthough they discovered neither, it was believed that Albertlad seized some portion of the secret of life, and found means0 an imate a brazen statue, upon the formation of which

,

mder proper conjunctions of the planets, he had been occu

ried m any years of his life. H e and Thomas Aquinas comdeted it together, endowed it with the faculty of speech, andnade it perform the functions of a domestic servant. In this

apac ity it was ex ceedingly useful ; but, through some defect

n the machinery, it chattered much more than was agreeable0 e ither philosopher. Various remedies were tried to cure it

>f i ts garrulity, but in vain ; and one day, Thomas Aqu inaswas so enraged at the noise it made, when hewas in the midstvor . 11. 18

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

veet song- bird, sang hymns from every tree. The Earl and

is attendants wondered greatly ; but they ate their dinner,i d in recompense for it

,Albert got his piece of ground to

l ild a convent on . He had not,however, shown them all

is power. Immediately that the repast was over,he gave

no word, and dark clouds obscured the sun— the snow fell in

.rge flakes—the singing

- birds fell dead—the leaves droppedcm the trees, and the winds blew so cold, and howled so

.ournfully, that the guests wrapped themselves up in theirtick cloaks, and retreated into the house to warm themselves

the blazing fire in Albert’

s kitchen .

*

Thomas Aqu inas also could work wonders as well as his

naster. It is related of him, that he lodged in a street atologne, where he was much annoyed by the incessant clatteruade by the horses

’

hoofs, as they were led through it daily1 ex ercise by their grooms. He had entreated the latter toalect some other spot where they might not disturb a philobpher, but the grooms turned a deaf ear to all his solicitations .

1 this emergency he had recourse to the aid of magic . He

mstructed a small horse of bronze, upon which he inscribedertain cabalistic characters, and buried it at midnight in the.idst of the highway. The nex t morning, a troop of groomstme riding along as usual ; but the horses, as they arrived at

re spot where themagic horse was buried, reared and plunged.olently

— their nostrils distended w ith terror— their manes

rew erect, and the perspiration ran.

down their S ides in

reams . In vain the riders applied the Spur— in vain theyiax ed or threatened, the animals would not pass the spot.11 the following day, their success was no better. Theyere at length compelled to seek another spot for their ex erse, and Thomas Aquinas was left in peace.TAlbertus Magnus was made Bishop of Ratisbon in 12 59 ;rt he occupied the see only four years, when he resigned, on1e ground that its duties occupied too much of the time which9 was anx ious to devote to philosophy . Hedied in Cologne1 1 2 80

,at the advanced age of eighty seven . The Domini

in writers deny that he ever sought the philosopher’

s stone,

i t his treatise upon minerals sufliciently proves that he did.

Lenglet, H istoire de la Philosophie Hermetique. See also, God

in’s Lives of the Necromancers.

”

1' Naudé , Apologie des Grands Hommes accuses de Magi c chap. x vu .

THE ALCHYHISTS .

Anrs pnms.

Artephius, a name noted in the annals of alchymy, was bornin the early part of the twelfth century. He wrote two fa

mous treati ses the one upon the philosopher ’8 stone, and theother on the art of prolonging human life. In the latter hevaunts his great qualifications for instructing mank ind on sucha matter, as he was at that time in the thousand and twentyfifth year of his age ! He had many disciples who believedin his ex treme age, and .who attempted to prove that he was

Appolon ius of Tyana, who lived soon after the advent ofJesusChrist, and the particulars of whose life and pretended miracles have been so fully described by Philostratus . H e took

good care never to contradict a story, which somuch increasedthe power he was desirous of w ielding over his fellow- mortals.On all convenient occasions he boasted of it ; and having an

ex cellent memory, a fertile imagination , and a thorough knowledge of all ex isting history, he was never at a loss for an nu

swer when questioned as to the personal appearance, the manners

,or the character of the greatmen of antiqu ity . H e also

pretended to have found the philosopher’

S stone ; and sa id that,i n search of it, he had descended to hell, and seen the devil

sitting on a tlirone of gold w ith a legiori of 1mps and fiends

around him. H is works on alchymy have been tran slated intoFrench

,and were published in Paris in 1609 or 16 10.

ALAIN DE LIS LE.

Contemporary with Albertus Magnus was Alain de Lisle,ofFlanders

, who was named, from his great learn ing , the uni

versal doctor. He was thought to possess a knowledge ofallthe sciences, and, likeArtephius, to have discovered the elix ir

vim H e became one of the friars of the abbey of C iteaux ,and died in 12 98

,aged about one hundred and ten years.

It was said of him,that he was at the point of death when in

his fiftieth year , but that the fortunate discovery of the elix irenabled him to add S ix ty years to his ex istence. H e wrote a

commentary on the prophecies of Merlin .

THE ALOHYHISTS .

ARNOLD Da VILLENEUVE.

This philosopher has left a much greater reputation . Heas born in the year 1 245

,and studied medicine with great

1ccess in the University of Paris. He afterwards travelled-r twenty years in Italy and Germany, where he made ao

1aintance with Pietro d’

Apone a man of character akin to

s own , and addicted to the same pursuits. AS a physician , heas thought, in his own lifetime

,to be the most able the

orld had ever seen . Like all the learnedmen of that day, hetbbled in astrology and alchymy, and was thought to have

ade immense quantities of gold from lead and copper. Whenietro d

’

Apone was arrested in Italy,and brought to trial as

sorcerer, a similar accusation was made against Arnold;it he managed to leave the country in time and escape the

to of his unfortunate friend. He lost some credit by predict

g the end of theworld, but afterwards regained it. The time

his death is not ex actly known but itmust have been priorthe year 1311

,when Pope ClementV . wrote a circular letter

all the clergy of Europe who lived under his Obedience,aying them to use their utmost efl

'

orts to discover the famoussa tise ofArnold on The Practice OfMedicine.

”The au

Or had promised, during his lifetime, to make a present of

13 w ork to the Holy S ee, but died without fulfilling it.In a very curious work by Monsieur Longeville IIarcouet,ti tled The History Of the Persons who have lived severalntu ries, and then grown young again ,

there is a receipt,id to have been given by Arnold deVilleneuve, by means of

ri ch any one might prolong his life for a few hundred yearsso . In thefirst place, say Arnold andMonsieur I-Iarcouet

,

the person intending to so prolong his life must rub himself

all, two or three times a week,with the ju ice or marrow of

ssia (moe’

lle de la casse). Every night, upon going to bed,must put upon his heart a plaster, composed Of a certain

1antity Of Oriental safl'

ron,red rose- leaves

,sandal- wood,

oes, and amber,liquefied in oil of roses and the best white

1 x . In the morn ing he must take it off and enclose it carelly in a leaden box till the nex t night, when it must be again

iplied. If he be of a sangu ine temperament, he shall take11t chickens— if phlegmatic, twenty- five— and if melan

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

to him ; and he might, if it pleased him, ex cel Homer in poetry, Apelles in painting, or Pythagoras himself in philosophy.

Although he could make gold out of brass, it was said of him

that he was very sparing of his powers in that respect, andkept himself constantly supplied with money by other and

less creditable means. Whenever he disbursed gold, he muttered a certain charm,

known only to himself ; and nex t morning the gold was safe again in his own possession . The traderto whom he gave it might lock it in his strong box , and haveit guarded by a troop of soldiers ; but the charmed metal flewback to its old master. Even if it were buried in the earth,or thrown into the sea

,the dawn of the nex t morn ing would

behold it in the pockets of Pietro. Few people, in conse

quenes, liked to have dealings with such a personage, especially for gold. Some, bolder than the rest, thought that hispower did not ex tend over silver ; but, when they made the

ex periment, they found themselves mistaken . Bolts and barscould not restrain it, and it sometimes became invisible intheir very hands

,and was whisked through the air to the

purse of the magician . He necessarily acquired a very badcharacter ; and, having given utterance to some sentiments

regarding religion which were the very reverse of orthodox ,he was summoned before the tribunals of the Inquisition to

an swer for his crimes as a heretic and a sorcerer. He loudlyprotested his innocence, even upon the rack

,where he sufl

'

ered

more torture than nature could support. He died in prisonere his trial was concluded, but was afterwards found guilty.

H is bones were ordered to be dug up, and publicly burned.

H e was also burned in efligy in the streets of Padua .

RAYMOND LULLL

While Arnold de Villeneuve and Pietro d’

Apone flourishedin France and Italy

,a more celebrated adept than either ap

peared in Spain . This was Raymond Lulli, a name which

s tands in the first rank among the alchymists. Unlike manyof his predecessors, he made no pretensions to astrology or

necromancy ; but, taking Geber for his model, studied intentlythe nature and composition of metals, without reference to

charms, incantations, or any foolish ceremonies. It was not,

THE ALCHYMISTS .

however, till late in life that he commenced his study of the

art. H is early and middle age were spent in a difl'

erent man

ner, and his whole history is romantic in the ex treme. He

was born of an illustrious family, in Majorca, in the year 1 2 35 .

When that island was taken from the Saracens by James L,King of Aragon, in 1 2 30, the father of Raymond

,who was

originally of Catalon ia, settled there, and received a conside

rable appointment from the Crown . Raymond married at an

early age ; and,being fond of pleasure, he left the solitudes

of his native isle,and passed over with his bride into S pain.

He was made Grand Seneschal at the court of King James,and led a gay life for several years. Faithless to his wife, hewas always in the pursuit of some new beauty, till his heartwas fix ed at last by the lovely, but unkind Ambrosia de Castello. This lady, like her admirer, was married ; but, unlikehim

,was faithful to her vows, and treated all his solic itations

with disdain . Raymond was so enamoured, that repulse onlyincreased his flame ; he lingered all n ight under her w indows,wrote passionate verses in her praise, neglected his afl

'

airs,and made himself the butt of all the courtiers. One day,while watching under her lattice, he by chance caught sight

of her bosom, as her neckerchief was blown aside by the wind.

The fit of inspiration came over him,and he sat down and

composed some tender stanzas upon the subject,and sent

them to the lady . The fair Ambrosia had never before eon

descended to answer his letters ; but she replied to this . She

told him,that she could never listen to his su it ; that it was

unbecoming in a wise man to fix his thoughts, as he had done,on any other than his God ; and entreated him to devote him

self to a religious life, and conquer the unworthy passionwhich he had suffered to consume him. She, however, ofl

'

ered,i f he w ished it

,to show him thefa ir bosom which had so cap

tivated him . R aymond was delighted. He thought the lat

ter part of this epistle but ill corresponded w ith the former,

and that Ambrosia, in spite of the good advice she gave him,

had,at last

, relented, and would make him as happy as he

desired. He followed her about from place to place,en treat

ing her to fulfil her promise : but stillAmbrosia was cold,and

implored him w ith tears to importune her no longer ; for thatshe never cou ld be his

,and never would, if she were free to

morrow.

“What means your letter, then said the despair

THE ALCHYH IBTB.

ing lover. I will show you ! replied Ambrosia, who immediately uncovered her bosom,

and ex posed to the eyes of herhorror- stricken admirer, a large cancer, which had ex tended

to both breasts. She saw that he was shocked ; and, ex tend

ing her hand to him, she prayed him once more to lead a re

ligious life, and set his heart upon the Creator, and not upon

the creature. He went home an alteredman . He threw up,on the morrow, his valuable appointment at the court, separated from his w ife, and took a farewell of his children

,after

dividing one- half of his ample fortune among them. The

other half he shared among the poor . He then threw himselfat the foot of a crucifix

,and devoted himself to the service of

God, vowing, as the most acceptable atonement for his errors,:hat he would employ the remainder of his days in the taskbf converting the Mussulmans to the Christian religion. In

1is dreams he saw Jesus Christ,who said to him,

“Raymond!l aymond ! follow me The vision was three times repeated,tu d Raymond was convinced that it was an intimation direct'

rom H eaven . Having put his afl'

airs in order, be set out 011

pi lgrimage to the shrine of S t. James of Compostello, and.fterwards lived for ten years in solitude amid the moun tains

»f A randa. Here he learned the Arabic, to qualify himself'

or his mission of converting the Mahometans. He also

tu died various sciences, as taught in the works of the learnednen of theEast

,and first made acquain tance with the writings

»f Geber, which were destined to ex ercise so much influencetver his future life.

At the end of this probation, and when he had entered his'

ortieth year, he emerged from his solitude into more active

ife . W ith some remains of his fortune, which had accumu

ated during his retirement, he founded a college for the studypf Arabic, which was approved of by the Pope

,with many

ommendations upon his zeal and piety . At this time he nar

'

owly escaped assassination from an Arabian youth whom he1ad taken into his service. Raymond had prayed to God, inome of his accesses of fanaticism,

that he might sufi'

er mar

yrdom in his holy cause. IIis servant had overheard him ;1nd

,being as great a fanatic as his master

,he resolved to

rratify his wish, and punish him, at the same time, for the

urses which he incessantly launched against Mahomet and all

vho believed in him,by stabbing him to the heart. He, there

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THE ALCHYMIBTB.

nviting him to settle in his states. They add, that Lullirladly accepted the invitation , and had apartments assignedor his use in the Tower of London

,where he refined much

gold ; superintended the coinage of rose- nobles ;”and made

gold out of iron, qu icksilver, lead, and pewter, to the amount

1f six millions. The writers in the Biographie Universelle,”

m ex cellent authority in general, deny that Raymond was

ever in England, and say, that in all these stories of his wonirous powers as an alchymist, he has been mistaken for ano

ther Raymond, a J ew, of Tarragona. Naude, in his “Apologic, says, simply, that six millions were given by RaymondLulli to King Edward, to make war against the Turks and

other infidels ; not that he transmuted so much metal into

but, as he afterwards adds, that he advised Edward totax upon wool, which produced that amount. To show

that Raymond went to England, his admirers quote a workattributed to him,

D e Transmutatione An imm Metallorum,

in which he ex pressly says, that he was in England at the

intercession of the king.

* The hermetic writers are not agreedwhether it was Edward I .

, or Edward II., who invited him

over ; but, by fix ing the date of his journey in 131 2 , they makeit appear that it was Edward II. Edmund D ickenson

,in his

work on the Qu intessences of the Philosophers,

”says

,that

Raymond worked in Westminster Abbey,where, a long time

after his departure, there was found in the cell which he had

occupied, a great quantity of golden dust, of which the architeets made a great profit. In the biographical sketch of JohnCremer, Abbot of Westminster, given by Lenglet, it is said,that it was chiefly through his instrumentality that Raymondcame to England. Cremer had been himself for thirty yearsoccupied in the vain search for the philosopher’s stone, whenhe accidentally met Raymond in Italy, and endeavoured to

induce him to commun icate his grand secret. Raymond toldhim that he must find it for himself, as all great alchymistshad done before him. Cremer, on his return to England,spoke to King Edward in high terms of the wonderful attainments of the philosopher, and a letter of invitation was forthwith sent him. Robert Constantinus

,in the “Nomenclatore

Vidimus omnia ista dam ad Anglian tram umua, p rop ter ink rcem’

oncm

Domi ni R aga) Edoardi illm tn'

n imi .

THE ALCHYMISTB.

S criptorum Medicorum,published in 15 15 , says, that after

a great deal of research, he found that Raymond Lulli residedfor some time in London, and that he actually made gold, bymeans of the philosopher

’

s stone, in the Tower ; that he hadseen the golden pieces of his coinage, which were still named

in England the nobles of Raymond, or rose- nobles . Lullihimself appears to have boasted that he made gold ; for, in hiswell- known Testamentum

,he states, that he converted no

less than fifty thousand pounds weight of qu icks ilver, lead,and pewter into that metal.* It seems highly probable thatthe English K ing, believing in the ex traordinary powers of

the alchymist, invited him to England to make test of them,and that he was employed in refining gold and in coin in

Camden , who is not credulous in matters like these, afl'

oulshis countenance to the story of his coinage of nobles ; and

there is nothing at all wonderful in the fact of a man famous

for his knowledge of metals being employed in such a capacity.

Raymond was, at this time, an old man,in his seventy- seventh

year,and somewhat in his dotage. He was w illing enough to

have it believed that he had discovered the grand secret, andsupported the rumour rather than contradicted it. He did

not long remain in England ; but returned to Rome, to carryout the projects which were nearer to his heart than the pro

fession of alchymy. He had proposed them to several successive Popes with little or no success. The first was a plan forthe introduction of the Oriental languages into all the monas

terica of Europe ; the second, for the reduction into one of all

the military orders,that, being un ited, they might move more

eflicaciously against the Saracens ; and,the third

,that the

Sovereign Pontifl'

should forbid the works of Averroes to beread in the schools

, as being more favourable toMahometanism

than to Christian ity. The POpe did not receive the old man

with much cordiality ; and, after remaining for about two yearsin Rome, he proceeded once more to Africa, alone and naprotected to preach the Gospel of Jesus. He landed at Bona in1314; and so irri tated the Mahometans by cursing their prophet

,that they stoned him,

and left him for dead on the sea

shore. He was found some hours afterwards by a party of

Converti una vice in aurum ad L milli s pondo argenti vivi , plumbi, ct“anti —L ull i: Ta tamentum.

'

rns ALcnvm srs.

moese merchants, who conveyed him on heard their vessel,d sailed towards Majorca. The unfortunate man stilleathed, but could not articulate. He lingered 111 this state

r some days,and ex pired just as the vessel arrived within

ght of his nati ve shores. H is body was conveyed with greatmp to the church of S t. Eulalia, at Palms , where a publicneral was instituted in his honour . Miracles were aftertrds said to have been worked at his tomb.

Thus ended the career of Raymond Lulli, one of the most

traordinarymen of his age ; and,with the ex ception of his

st boast about the six millions of gold, the least inclined to

lackery of any of the professors of alchymy. H is writingsare very numerous, and include nearly five hundred volumes,on grammar, rhetoric, morals, theology, politics, civi l and

non law, physics, metaphysics, astronomy, medi cine, and

em istry.

Roesa BACON .

The powerful delusion of alchymy seized upon a mind still

eater than that of Raymond Lulli . Roger Bacon firmly beved in the philosopher’s stone, and spent much of his time

search of it. H is ex ample helped to render all the learnedn of the time more convinced of its practicab ility, andmore

ger in the pursuit. He was born at Ilchester, ln the countyS omerset, i n the year 12 14. 1Ie studied for some time in

a un iversity of Ox ford, and afterwards 111 that of Paris, in1ich he received the degree of doctor of divin ity. Returnto England 111 1 240

,he became a monk of the order of S t.

anc is . Hewas by far the most learnedman ofhis age and

l acqu irements were so much above the comprehension of

1 contemporaries, that they could only account for them by

pposing that he was indebted for them to the devil. V ol

re has not inaptly designated him De l’

or encrouté de

ates les ordures de son siécle but the crust of superstitionat envelopedhis powerfulmind, though it may have dimmed,uld not obscure the brightness of his gen ius . To him,

and

parently to him only, among all the 1nqu iring spirits of thene, were known the properties of the concave and convex

xs. He also invented the magic lantern ; that pretty play

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THE ALOHYH IBTS .

These, it is clear, they say, relate only to poor alchymists,and therefore false ones. He died in the year 1344

,leaving

in his cofl'

ers a sum Of eighteen millions Of florins. Popularbelief alleged thathehadmade, and not amassed, this treasureand alchymists complacently cite this as a proof that the philosopher

’

s stone was not such a chimera as the incredulouspretended. They take it for granted that John really leftthis money, and ask by what poss ible means he could have

accumulated it. Replying to their own question,they say

triumphantly, H is book shows that it was by alchymy, thesecrets of which he learned from Arnold de Villeneuve and

RaymondLulli . But hewas as prudent as all other hermetic

phi losophers. Whoever would read his book to find out his

secret, would employ all his labour in vain ; the Pope took

good care not to divulge it. Unluckily for their own credit,all these gold

-makers are in the same predicament ; their greatsecret loses its worth most wonderfully in the telling, and

therefore they keep it snugly to themselves. Perhaps theythought that, if everybody could transmute metals, goldwouldbe so plentiful that it would be no longer valuable, and that

some new art would be requ isite to transmute it back again

into steel and iron . If so,society is much indebted to them

for their forbearance.

JEAN ns MEUNG.

All classes of men dabbled in the art at this time ; the last

mentioned was a Pope, the one Of whom we now speak was a

poet. Jean de Meung, the celebrated author of the Roman

de la Rose,”

was born in the year 12 79 or 12 80, and was a

eat personage at the courts of Louis X ., Philip the Long,

harles IV.,and Philip de Valois. H is famous poem Of the

Roman de la Rose,”which treats Of every subject in vogue

at that day, necessarily makes great mention Of alchymy.

Jean was a firm believer in the art,and wrote,

’

besides hisRoman , two shorter poems, the one entitled The Remon

strance of Nature to the wandering Alchymist, and “The

R eply of the Alchymist to Nature. Poetry and alchymywere his delight, and priests and women were his abom1nat1on .

A pleasant story is related of him and the ladles Of the court

THE ALOHYMISTB.

of Charles IV . He had written the following libellous coupletupon the fair sex

Tontes etes, sores, on fates

De fai t on de volonté , putains,Et qu i , tres bien vous chercherait

Toutes puta ins, vous

This naturally gave great offence ; and being perceived oneday, in the King

’

s antechamber, by some ladies who were

waiting for an audience, they resolved to punish him . To the

number Of ten or twelve, they armed themselves w ith canes

and rods ; and surrounding the unlucky poet, called upon the

gentlemen present to strip him naked, that they might wreakjust vengeance upon him

,and lash him through the streets Of

the town . Some of the lords present were in no wise loth,and promised themselves great sport from his punishment.But Jean de Mcung was unmoved by their threats , and stood

up calmly in the midst of them begging them to hear himfirst

,and then ,

if not satisfied,they might do as they liked

with him. S ilence being restored, he stood upon a chair,and

entered on his defence. He acknowledged that he was the

author of the obnox ious verses,but denied that they bore

reference to all womankind. H e only meant to Speak of the

vicious and abandoned,whereas those whom he saw around

him,were patterns Of virtue, loveliness, and modesty . If,

however,any lady present thought herself aggrieved, he would

consent to be stripped,and she might lash him till her arms

were wearied. It is added, that by this means Jean escaped

his flogging, and that the wrath Of the fair ones immediatelysubsided. The gentlemen present were, however, of opinion,that if every lady in the room,

whose character correspondedwith the verses

,had taken him at his word

,the poet would,

in all probability,have been beaten to death. A ll his life

long he evinced a great an imosity towards the priesthood, andhis famous poem abounds with passages reflecting upon their

avarice,cruelty, and immorality . At his death he left a large

box,filled w ith some weighty material, which he bequeathed

to the Cordeliers, as a peace- offering for the abuse he had

These verses are but a coarser ex pression Of the slanderous line of

Pope, that every woman is at heart a rake.

"

THE ALOHYHIBTS .

w ished upon them. As his practice of alchymy was wellnown, it was thought the box was filled with gold and silver,nd the Cordeliers congratulated each other on their rich ac

uisition . When it came to be Opened, they found tO their

.orror that it was filled only with slates, scratched with hierolyphic and cabalistic characters. Indignant at the insult,hey determined to refuse him Christian burial, on pretencebat he was a sorcerer. He was, however, honourably burieda Paris, the whole court attending his funeral.

NICHOLAS FLAMEL .

The story of this alchymist, as handed down by tradition,nd enshrined in the pages of Lenglet da Fresnoy, is not a

ttle marvellous. He was born at Pontoise Of a poor but repectable family, at the end Of the thirteenth, or beginning of

me fourteenth. century. Having no patrimony, he set out

1r Paris at an early age, to try his fortune as a public scribe.

[e had received a good education, was well skilled in the

sarned languages, and was an ex cellent penman . He soon

rocured occupation as a letter- writer and coypist, and used

sit at the corner Of the Rue de Marivaux , and practise hisalling : but he hardly made profits enough tO keep body and

m l together. To mend his fortunes he tried poetry ; but1is was a more wretched occupation still. As a transcribere had at leas t gained bread and cheese ; but his rhymes wereot worth a crust. He then tried painting with as little suc

ess ; and as a last resource, began to search for the philoso

her ’s stone, and tell fortunes . This was a happier idea ; he)On increased in substance, and hadwherewithal to live com

1rtably. He,therefore, took unto himself his wife Petro

ella , and began to save money ; but continued to all outward

ppearance as poor andmiserable as before. In the course Offew years, he became desperately addicted to the study Of

lchymy, and thought of nothing but the philosopher’

s stone,

as elix ir Of life,and the un iversal alkahest. In the year

2 5 7 , he bought by chance an old book for two florins, which3011 became the sole study and Object Of his life. It was'ri tten with a steel instrument upon the bark of trees, andontained twenty- one, or as he himself always ex pressed it,

14*

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

be hom e ; and Nicholas resolved to discover the great secretby himself, without troubling the philosophers. He found on

the first page, of the fourth leaf, the picture Of Mercury, attacked by an Old man resembling Saturn or Time. The

latter had an hourglass on his head, and in his hand a scythe,with which he aimed a blow at Mercury's feet. The reverseOf the leaf represented a flower grow ing on a mountain top,shaken rudely by the w ind, with a blue stalk, red and white

blossoms, and leaves Of pure gold. Around it were a greatnumber Of dragons and griflins. On the first page of the

fifth leaf was a fine garden, in the midst of which was a rosetree in full bloom,

supported against the trunk of a gigantic

oak. At the foot of this there bubbled up a fountain Of milkwhite water, which forming a small stream,

flowed throughthe garden , and was afterwards lost in the sands . On the

second page was a king, with a sword ii1 his hand, superintending a number Of soldiers

,who, in ex ecution Of his orders,

were killing a great multitude of young children , spurn ingthe prayers and tears of their mothers, who tried to save

them from destruction . The blood of the children was carefully collected by another party of soldiers

,and put into a

large vessel,in which two allegorical figures Of the S un and

Moon were bathing themselves .

For twenty- one years poor Nicholas wearied himself withthe study of these pictures, but still he could make nothingOf them . H is wife Petronella at last persuaded him to find

out some learned Rabbi ; but there was no Rabbi in Parislearned enough to be Of any service to him. The Jews metbut small encouragement to fix their abode in France, and all

the chiefs of that people were located in Spain . To Spain

accordingly Nicholas Flamel repaired. He left his book inParis for fear, perhaps, that he might be robbed of it on the

road ; and telling his neighbours that he was going on a pil

grimage to the shrine of S t. James of Compostello, he

trudged on foot towards Madrid in search of a Rabbi . H e

was absent two years in that country,and made himself

known to a great number of Jews, descendants of those who

had been ex pelled from France in the reign Of Philip Au

gustus . The believers in the philosopher's stone give the fol

lowing account of his adven tures — They say that at Leonhe made the acquaintance of a converted J ew,

named Cauches,

THE ALCHYMISTS .

a very learned physician, to whom he ex plained the title and

the nature of his little book . The Doctor was transportedwith joy as soon as he heard it named, and immediately te

solved to accompany Nicholas to Paris, that he might have asight of it. The two set out together ; the Doctor on the wayentertain ing his compan ion with the history Of his book,which, if the genuine book he thought it to be, from the de

scription he had heard Of it, was in the handwriting of Abraham himself, and had been in the possession Of personages noless distingu ished than Moses, Joshua, Solomon , and Esdras.It contained all the secrets of alchymy and of many other

sciences, and was the most valuable book that had ever ex

isted 111 this world. The Doctor was himself no mean adept,and Nicholas profited greatly by his discourse, as in the garb

of poor pilgrims they wended their way to Paris, convincedof their power to turn every Old shovel in that capital intopure gold. But

,unfortunately, when they reached Orleans,

the Doctor was taken dangerously ill. Nicholas watched byhis bedside

,and acted the double part of a physician and

nurse to him but he died after a few days, lamenting with

his last breath that he had not lived long enough to see the

precious volume. Nicholas rendered the last honours to his

body ; and with a sorrowful heart, and not one sons in his

pocket,proceeded home to his wife Petronella. H e immedi

ately recommenced the study of hi s pictures ; but for two

whole years he was as far from understanding them as ever.At last

,in the third yea1 , a glimmer Of light stole over his

understanding . H e 1ecalled some ex pression Of his friend

the Doctor,which had hitherto escaped his memory, and he

found that all his previous ex periments had been conducted

on a wrong basis . He recommenced them now w ith renewedenergy, and at the end of the year had the satisfaction to see

all his toils rewarded. On the 13th January 138 2, says

Lenglet, he made a projection on mercury, and had some

very ex cellent silver . On the 2 5 th April following, he con

verted a large quantity Of mercury in to gold, and the greatsecret was his .

Nicholas was now about eighty years Of age, and still a

hale and stout old man . H is friends say that, by the simul

taneous discovery of the elix ir of life, he found means to

keep death at a distance for another quarter Of a century ;

THE ALOHYMISTS .

d that he died in 1415,at the age of 116 . In this in

°

val he had made immense quantities Of gold, though to all

tward appearance he was as poor as a mouse. At an earlyriod of his changed fortune, he had, like a worthy man

,

ten counsel with his Old wife Petronella, as to the best usecould make of his wealth. Petronella replied, that as unrtunately they had no children , the best thing he could do,.s to bu ild hospitals and endow churches. Nicholas thoughttoo, especially when he began to find that his eli x ir couldt keep off death, and that the grim foe was making rapidvances upon him. He richly endowed the church of S t.

eques de la Boucherie, near the Rue de Marivau x , wherehad all his life resided, besides seven others in difl

'

erent

rts of the kin dom. He also endowed fourteen hospitals,d bui lt three c

‘hapels.

The fame Of his great wealth and his mun ificent benefac

us soon spread over all the country,and he was vis ited

,

1ong others,by the celebrated D octors of that day, Jean

Arson ,Jean de Courtecuisse, and Pierre d

’

Ailli . They found[ 1 in his humble apartment, meanly clad, and eating por

ge out Of an earthen vessel ; and w ith regard to his secret,

impenetrable as all his predecessors in alchymy . H is fame

1ched the ears of the King, Charles VI .,who sent M . de

amoisi , theMaster Of Requests, to find out whether Nicholas1 indeed discovered the philosopher

’

s stone. But M . dc

smo isi took nothing by his visit ; all his attempts to sound

1 alchymist were unavailing, and he returned to his royalster no wiser than he came. It was in this year

,1414

,

t he lost his faithful Petronella . H e did not long survivebut died in the follow ing year, and was buried with great

np by the grateful priests Of S t. J acques de la Boucherie.

The great wealth of N icholas Flame] is undoubted, as theords Of several churches and hospitals in France can testify .

at he practised alchymy is equally certain,as he left behind

'

eral works upon the subject.Those who knew him well, and who were incredulous aboutphilosopher

'

s stone, give a very satisfactory solution Of

9 secret of his wealth. They say that he was always a

;er and a usurer ; that his journey to Spain was undertaken

h very different motives from those pretended by the alchy1ts ; that, in fact, he went to collect debts due from Jews

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

e design ing tyrant, who would make use of it to enslave

country . This alarm appears soon to have subsided for,.he year 145 5 , King Henry by advice of his council

parliament, granted four successive patents and commis

s to several knights, citizens of London , chemists, monks,s- priests, and Others , to find out the philosopher ’s stone

elix ir, “ to the great benefit,”

said the patent, “Of them,

and the enabling Of the King to pay all the debts ofCrown . 111 real gold and silver. " Prinn, 1n his Aurum

;inae, Observes, as a note to this passage, that the King’

8

son for granting this paten t to ecclesiastics was, that they9 such good artists in transubstantiating bread and wine

he Eucharist, and therefore the more likely to be able toat the transmutation of baser metals into better. N0 gold,oursc, was ever made ; and

,nex t year, theKing, doubting

7 much Of the practicability of the thing, took furtherice, and appointed a commission of ten learned men

,and

sons of emi nence, to judge and certify to him whether thensmutation of metals were a thing practicable or no. It

1 not appear whether the commission ever made any report11 the subject.

n the succeeding reign , an alchymist appeared who pre

led to have discovered the secret. This was GeorgeIey ,

the canon of Bridlington , in Yorkshire. He studied

twenty years in the un iversities Of Italy, and was a great.u rite w ith Pope Innocent VIII.

,who made him one of

domestic chaplains,and master of the ceremonies in his

sebold. Return ing to England in 1477 , he dedicated to

g Edward IV . his famous work,

The Compound of

hymy ; or,the Twelve Gates leading to the Discovery of

Philosopher'

s S tone. These gates he described to be

ination , solution, separation , conjunction ,

putrefaction,

gelation, c ibation, sublimation , fermentation , ex altation

,

tiplication , and projection to which he might have added

eratz’

on , the most important process Of all. He was veryand allowed it to be believed that he could make gold

of iron . Fuller, in his “Worthies of England, saysan English gentleman Of good credit reported that

,in

travels abroad,

-he saw a record in the island of Malta,

ch declared that Ripley gave yearly to the kn ights of thatad, and Of Rhodes, the enormous sum Of one hundred

168 THE ALcrm u s'rs.

thousand pounds sterling, to enable them to carry on the war

against the Turks. In his Old age, he became an anchoritenear Boston, and wrote twenty- five volumes upon the subjectof alchymy, the most important Of which is the D uodecim

Portarum,already mentioned. Before he died, he seems to

have acknowledged that he had misspent his life in this vain

study, and requested that all men , when they met w ith anyOf his books, would burn them, or afford them no credit, asthey had been written merely from his opin ion , and not from

proof ; and that subsequent trial had made man ifest to him

that they were false and vain .

*

BAS IL VALENTINE.

Germany also produced many famous alchymists in the fif

teenth century, the chief Of whom are Basil Valentine, Bernard of Treves, and the Abbot Trithemius . Basil Valentinewas born at Mayence, and was made prior Of S t. Peter ’s, atErfurt, about the year 1414. It was known , dur ing his life,that he diligently sought the philosopher

’

s stone, and that he

had written some works upon the process of transmutation.

They were thought, for many years, to be lost ; but were, afterhis death, discovered enclosed in the stone work of one of the

pillars in the Abbey . They were twenty - one in number, andare fully set forth in the third volume Of Lenglet

’

s HistoryOf the Hermetic Philosophy . The alchymists asserted, thatHeaven itself conspired to bring to light these ex traordinaryworks ; and that the pillar in which they were enclosed was

m iraculously shattered by a thunderbolt ; and that, as soon as

the manuscripts were liberated, the pillar closed up again of

i ts own accord !

BERNARD OF TR EVEs.

The life of this philosopher is a remarkable instance of l,talent and perseverance misapplied. In the search of his

chimera nothing could daunt him . Repeated disappointment

Fu ller’

s Worthies of England.

THE ALCHYMIBTB.

never diminished his hopes ; and, from the age of fourteen tothat Of eighty- five, he was incessantly employed among thedrugs and furnaces Of his laboratory, wasting his life with theview of prolonging it, and reducing himself to beggary in thehopes of growing rich.

H e was born at either Treves or Padua, in the year 1406 .

H is father is said by some to have been a physician in thelatter city ; and by others, to have been Count Of the Marchesof Treves, and one Of the most wealthy nobles Of his country.

At all events, whether noble or physician , he was a rich man ,and left his son a magn ificent estate. At the age of fourteenhe first became enamoured Of the science Of alchymy, and readthe Arabian authors in their own lan nage. He himself hasleft a most interesting record of hisIabours and wanderings,from which the following particulars are chiefly ex tractedThe first book which fell into his bands, was that of the Ara

bian philosopher, Rhazes, from the reading of which he ima'

ned that he had discovered the means Of augmenting gold a

undred fold. For four years he worked in his laboratory,

with the book of Rhazes continually before him . At the end

of that time,he found that he had spent no less than eight

hundred crowns upon his ex periment,and had got nothing but

ire and smoke for his pains. He now began to lose confidencen R hazes, and turned to the works Of Geber. He studied

tim ass iduously for two years ; and,being young, rich, and

redulous, was beset by all the alchymists Of the town , who

i n dly assisted him in spending his money . H e did not lose

ris fai th in Geber, or patience with his hungry assistants, untilto had lost two thousand crowns—a very considerable sum in

hose days.

Among all the crowd of pretended men Of science who sur

'

on nded him, there was but one as enthusiastic and as disin

c rested as himself. W ith this man,who was a monk of the

1rder of S t. Francis, he contracted an intimate friendship, andspent nearly all his time. Some Obscure treatises of Ruperissa and Sacrobosco having fallen into their hands, they were)ersua ded, from reading them,

that highly rectified spirits Ofwine was the universal alkahest, or dissolvent, which would aid

:hem greatly in the process of transmutation . They rectified:he alcohol thirty times, till they made it so strong as to burst:he vessels which contained it After they had worked threeV O L . II .

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THE ALcnYm s'r

‘

s.

d discovered the philosopher’s stone,he set out forGermany

pay him a visit. He had, as usual, surroundedhimselfwith a

t Ofhungr

yidependants, several Ofwhom determinedtoaecom

.ny him. e had not heart to refuse them, and he arrived at

icuna withfiveOf them . Bernard sent a polite invitation totheinfessor, and gave him a sumptuous entertainment, at whi chare present nearly all the alchymists Of Vienna. Masterenry frankly confessed that he had not discovered the phiBopher

’

s stone, but that he had all hi s life been employed in

arching for it, and would so continue, till he found it —Or

ed. This was a man after Bernard’

s own heart, and theytwedwitheach other an eternal friendship. It was resolved,supper, that each alchymist present should contribute a

rtain sum towards raising forty- two marks of gold, which,five days, it was confidently asserted by Master Henry,>uld increase, in his furnace, fivefold. Bernard, being the

hest man , contributed the lion’

s share, ten marks of gold,

aster Henry five, and the others one or two apiece, ex cepte dependants Of Bernard, who were obliged to borrow theirlota from their patron . The grand ex periment was dulyade ; the golden marks were put into a crucible, with a

1antity of salt,copperas, aquafortis, egg

- shells, mercury,ad

,and dung. The Alchymists watched this precious mess

th intense interest, ex pecting that it wouldagglomerate into.e lump of pure gold. At the end Of three weeks they gave1the trial, upon some ex cuse that the crucible was not strongough, or that some necessary ingredient was wanting .

hether any thief had put his hands into the crucible is not

1own , but it is certain that the gold found therein at the

me of the ex periment was worth only six teen marks, insteadthe forty- two

,which were put there at the beginn ing.

Bernard, though he made no gold at Vienna, made awayth a very considerable quantity. He felt the less so acutely,at he vowed to think no more of the philosopher

’

s stone.

i s wise resolution he kept for two months ; but he was mirable. He was in the condition of the gambler, who cannot

sist the fascination Ofthe game while he has a coin remain

g, but plays on with thehope ofretrieving former losses, tillape forsakes him,

and he can live no longer. He returned.ce more to his beloved crucibles

,and resolved to prose

te his journey in search Of a philosopher who haddiscovered

THE ALCHYMISTS .

the secret, and would communicate it to so zealous and perse

vering an adept as himself. From Vienna he travelled to

Rome,and from Rome to Madrid. Taking ship at Gibraltar

,

he proceeded to Messina ; from Messina to Cyprus ; fromCyprus to Greece ; from Greece to Constantinople ; and thenceinto Egypt, Palestine, and Persia. These wanderingspied him about eight years. From Persia he made hi

back to Messina, and from thence into France. He after

wards passed Over into England, still in search of his greatchimera ; and this occupied four years more of his li fe. He

was now growing both old and poor ; for he was s ix ty- two

years of age, and had been obliged to sell a great portion of

his patrimony to provide for his ex penses. H is journey toPersia had cost upwards Of thirteen thousand crowns

,about

one- halfofwhichhad been fairlymelted in his all- devouring furnaces the other half was lavished upon the sc phants thathe

made it his business to search out in every town he stopped at.On his return to Treves he found

,to his sorrow, that, if not

an actual beggar, he was notmuch better. H is relatives lookedupon him as a madman , and refused even to see him . TOO

proud to ask for favours from any one, and still confident that,some day or other, he would be the possessor of unboundedwealth

,he made up his mind to retire to the island of Rhodes,

where he m ight, in the mean time, hide his poverty from the

eyes Of all the world. Here he might have lived unknownand happy but

,as ill luck would have it, he fell in with a

monk as mad as himself upon the subject of transmutation.

They were, however, both so poor that they could not afford

to buy the proper materials to work with. They kept upeachother ’s spirits by learned discourses on the Hermetic Philoso

phy, and in the reading of all the great authors who hadwritten upon the subject. Thus did they nurse their folly, as the

goodwife ofTam O’

Shanter didherwrath,“to keep it warm.

After Bernard had resided about a year in Rhodes, a mer

chant, who knew his family, advanced him the sum of eight

thousand florins, upon the security Of the last remain ing acresof his formerly large estate. Once more providedw ith funds,he recommenced his labours w ith all the zeal and enthusiasm

of a young man . For three years he hardly stepped out Of

his laboratory : he ate there, and slept there, and did not even

give himself time to wash his hands and clean his beard, so

THE ALCHYMISTB.

me was his application . It is melancholy to think thatwonderful perseverance should have been wasted in so

a pursuit, and that energies so unconquerable should haveno worthier field to strive in . Even when he had fumed7 his last coin, and had nothing left in prospective to keepOld age from starvation, hope never forsook him. Hedreamed of ultimate success, and sat down a gra headed

of eighty to read over all the authors of the ermetic

series, from Geber to his own day, lest he shouldhavemis1rstood some process, which it was not yet too late to re

nence. The alchymists say, that he succeeded at last,discovered the secretof transmutation inhis eighty- second

They add, thathe lived three years afterwards to enjoyvealth. He lived, it is true, to this great age, and madelnable discovery,—more valuable than gold or gems. He

1ed, as he himself informs. us, just before he had attained

1ighty- third year, that the great secret Of philosophy was

entment with our lot. Happy would it have been for

if he had discovered it sooner, and before he became deit, a beggar, and an ex i le

e died at Rhodes, in the year 1490, and all the alchymists

{urope sang elegies over him,and sounded his praise as

“good Trevisan .

”H e wrote several treatises upon his

era, the chief of which are, the“Book of Chemistry,

”

"Verbum dimissum,and an essay “D e Natura Ovi . ”

TR ITIIEMIL’

S .

he name of this eminent man has become famous in the

18 Of alchymy, although he did but little to gain so ques1ble an honour . He was born in the year 146 2 , at thege Of Trittheim,

in the electorate Of Treves. H is fatherJohn Heidenberg, a vine-

grower, in easy circumstances,dying when his son was but seven years Old, left him to

:are Of his mother. The latter married again very shortly'wards

,and neglected the poor boy, the offspring of her

marriage. At the age Of fifteen he did not even knowletters, and was, besides, half starved, and otherwise ill

:ed by his step- father ; but the love of knowledge germid in the breast Of the unfortunate youth, and he learned

154"

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THE ALCHYMIBTB.

nity Of Abbot of Spannheim for twenty- one years, when the

monks, tired of the severe disc ipline he maintained, revoltedaga inst him, and chose another abbot in his place. He was

afterwards made Abbot of St. James, in Wurtzburg, where hedied in 15 16 .

During his learned leisure at Spannheim,he wrote several

works upon the occult sciences, the chief Of which are an essayon geomancy, or divination by means Of lines and circles on

the ground ; another upon sorcery ; a third upon alchymy ;and a fourth upon the government Of the world by its presiding angels, whichwas translated into Engli sh, and publi shedby the famous William Lilly in 1647 .

It has been alleged by the believers in the possibility of

transmutation, that the prosperity of theAbbey of Spannheim,

while under his superintendence, was owing more to the philosOpher

’

s stone than to wise economy . Trithemius, in com

mon withmany other learned men , has been accused Of magic ;and a marvellous story is told of his having raised from the

grave the form Of Mary of Burgundy, at the intercession of

her w idowed husband, the Emperor Max imilian . H is workon steganographie, or cabalistic writing, was denounced to theCoun t Palatine, Frederic II .

,as magical and devi lish ; and it

was by him taken from the shelves Of his library and throwninto the fire. Trithemius is said to be the first writer whomakes mention Of the wonderful story of the Devil and Dr.Faustus, the truth Of which he firmly believed. He also re

coun ts the freaks Of a spirit,named H udekt

’

n,by whom he

was at times tormented.

*

THE MARECHAL DE RAYS .

One of the greatest encouragers Of alchymy in the fifteenthcentury was Gilles de Laval, Lord Of Rays and a Marshal ofFrance. H is name and deeds are little known ; but in the

annals Of crime and folly, they might claim the highest and

worst pre- eminence. Fiction has never invented anythingwilder or more horrible than his career ; andwere not the de

tails but too well authenticated by legal and other documents

Biographie Universelle.

176 THE ALCHYMISTS .

which admit no doubt, the lover Of romance might easilyimagine they were drawn to please him from the stores Of theprolific brain, and not from the page Of history.

He was born about the year 142 0, of one Of the noblestfamilies of Brittany . H is father dying when Gi lles had at»tained his twentiethyear, he came into uncontrolled possession,at that early age, Of a fortune which the monarchs Of Francemight have envied him. He was a near kinsman of theMont

morencys, the Roncys, and the Craons ; possessed fifteen

princely domains, and had an annual revenue of about threehundred thousand livres. Besides this, he was handsome,learned, and brave. H e distingu ished himself greatly in the

wars of Charles VII., and was rewarded by that monarch

with thedign ity Of a marshal of France. But he was ex trava

gant and magn ificent in his style Of living, and accustomed

from his earliest years to the gratification Of every wish and

passion ; and this, at last, led him from vice to vice, and from

crime to crime, till a blacker name than his is not to be found

in any record of human iniquity.

In his castle of Champtoce, he lived with all the splendourOf an Eastern Caliph. He kept up a troop of two hundred

horsemen to accompany him wherever he went ; and his ex curo

sions for the purposes of hawking and hunting were the wonderOf all the country around

,so magn ificent were the caparisons

Of his steeds and the dresses of his retainers. D ay and night,his castle was Open all the year round to comers Of everydegree. He made it a rule to regale even the poorest beggarw ith w ine and hippocrass. Every day an ox was roastedwhole in his spacious kitchens

,besides sheep, pigs, and poultry

sufficient to feed five hundred persons. H e was equally magnificent in his devotions. H is private chapel at Champtocewas the most beautiful in France, and far surpassed any of

those in the richly- endowed cathedrals Of Notre Dame inParis, of Amiens, Of Beauvais, or Of Rouen . It was hungwith cloth of gold and rich velvet. All the chandeliers wereOf pure gold, curiously inlaid with silver. The great crucifixover the altar was of solid silver

, and the chalices and incense

burners were of pure gold. He had, besides, a fine organ,which he caused to be carried from one castle to another, onthe shoulders Of six men

,whenever he changed his residence.

He kept up a choir Of twenty- five young chi ldren Ofboth sex es,

THE ALCHYMISTS .

1 were instructed in singing by the first musicians Of theThe master Of his chapel he called a bishop, who had

ler him his deans, archdeacons, and vicars, each receivingat salaries ; the bishop four hundred crowns a year, and thet in proportion .

i e also maintained a whole troop Of players, including tenwing

-

girls and as many ballad- singers, besides morris1cers, jugglers, and mountebanks Of every description .

e theatre on which they performed was fitted up without

r regard to ex pense ; and they played mysteries, or dancedmorris—dance, every even ing, for the amusement of himself

lhousehold,and such strangers as were sharing his prodigal

pitality.

i t the age of twenty- three, he married Catherine, the11thy heiress of the house of Touars, for whom he refur

1ed his castle at an ex pense Of a hundred thousand crowns.

1 marriage was the signal for new ex travagance, and henched out more madly than ever he had done before ; sendfor fine singers or celebrated dancers from foreign conn

8 to amuse him and his spouse, and instituting tilts and

rnaments in his great court- yard almost every week for all

kn ights a! !

nd nobles of the province Of Brittany. The

ke Of Brittany ’

s court was not half so Splendid as that of

Maré ehal de Rays. H is utter disregard Of wealth was so

I known that he was made to pay three times its value forrything he purchased. H is castle was filled with needyasites and pandcrers to his pleasures, amongst whom he

ished rewards w ith an unsparing hand. But the ordinary1nd Of sensual gratification ceased at last to afford him

ight : he was Observed to be more abstemious 1n the pleaes of the table, and to neglect the beauteous dancing-

girlso used formerly to occupy so much Of his attention . He

3 sometimes gloomy and reserved ; and there was an unna

al w ildness 111 his eye, which gave indications of incipientdness . S till, his discourse was as reasonable as ever ; his1anity to the guests that flocked from far and near to Champé sufl

'

ered no diminution ; and learned priests, when they1versed w ith him

,thought to themselves that few of the

flea Of France were so well- informed as Gilles de Laval.t dark rumours spread gradually cver the country ; murder,1, if possible, still more atrocious deeds were hinted at ; and

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THE ALCHYMIBTG.

iasion, that he might marry her at the preper time to anyarson he chose, or to himself if he liked it better. Thisan entered into the new plans Of his master with great zeal,1d introduced to him one Prelati, an alchymist Of Padua,1d a physician of Poitou, who was addi cted to the same

1rsuits.

The Marshal caused a splendid laboratory to be fitted upr them, and the three commenced the search for the philou

pher’

s stone. They were soon afterwards joined by another'

stended philosopher, named Anthony Of Palermo, who

ded in their Operations for upwards of a year. They all

red sumptuously at the Marshal’s ex pense, drain ing him Of

e ready money he possessed, and leading him on from dayday with the hope that theywould succeed 1n the Object Ofeir search. From time to time new aspirants from the re

ctest parts Of Europe arrived at his castle, and for months

1 had upwards of twenty alchymists at work—trying to

an smute copper into gold, and wasting the gold, which was

ill his own in drugs and elix irs .

But the Lord of Rays was not a man to abide patientlyeir lingering processes. Pleased with their comfortable1arters, they jogged on from day to day, and would have

me so for years, had they been permitted. But he suddenlysmissed them all

, with the ex ception Of the Italian Prelati,1d the physician Of Poitou . These he retained to aid him

discover the secret Of the philosopher’s stone by a holder

ethod. The Poitousan had persuaded him that the devil

as the great depositary Of that and all other secrets, andat he would raise him before Gilles, who might enter into1y contract he pleased with him . Gilles ex pressed his

adiness, and promised to give the devil an thing but his

111, or do any deed that the arch- enemy mig t impose uponm. Attended solely by the physician, he proceeded at

idn ight to a wild- looking place in a neighbouring forest ;e physician drew a magi c circle around them on the sward,1d muttered for half an hour an invocation to the Eviloirit to arise at his bidding, and disclose the secrets of al

1ymy. Gilles looked on with intense interest, and ex pected'

ery moment to see the earth Open,and deliver to his. gaze

e great enemy ofmankind. At last the eyes of the physieu became fix ed, his hair stood on end, and he spoke, as if

THE ALCHYMIBTB.

addressing the fiend. But Gilles saw nothing ex cept his

companion . At last the physician fell down on the award as

if insensible. Gilles looked calmly on to see the end. Aftera few minutes the physician arose, and asked him if he had

not seen how angry the devil looked ? Gilles replied, thathe had seen nothing ; upon which his compan ion informedhim that Beelzebub had appeared in the form Of a wild

leopard, growled at him savagely, and said nothing ; and

that the reason why the Marshal had neither seen nor heardhim

, was that he hesitated in his own mind as to devotin

himself entirely to the service. D e Rays owned that he haindeed misgivings, and inquired what was to be done to makethe devil speak out, and unfold his secret ? The physicianreplied

,that some person must go to Spain and Africa to

collect certain herbs which only grew in those countries, andoffered to go himself, if D e Rays would provide the neces

sary funds . D e Rays at once consented ; and the physicianset out on the following day with all the gold that his dupe

could spare him. The Marshal never saw his face again .

But the eager Lord Of Champtoce could not rest. Gold

was necessary for his pleasures ; and unless, by supernaturalaid

,he had no means of procuring many further supplies.

The physician was hardly twenty leagues on his journey, before Gilles resolved to make another efl

'

ort to force the devilto divulge the art Of gold

-making. He went out alone for

that purpose, but all his conjurations were Of no efl'

ect.

Beelzebub was obstinate, and would not appear. Determinedto conquer him if he could

,he unbosomed himself to the

Italian alchymist, Prelati . The latter ofl'

ered to undertakethe business, upon condition that De Rays did not interferein the conjurations

,and consented besides to furn ish him

with all the charms and talismans that might be required.

He was further to Open a vein in his arm,and sign with his

blood a contract that he would work the devil’

s will in all

things, and Ofl’

er up to him a sacrifice of the heart, lungs,hands

, eyes, and blood Of a young child. The grasping monomaniac made no hesitation ; but agreed at once to the dis

gusting terms proposed to him. On the following n ight,Prelati went out alone ; and after having been absent forthree or four hours

,returned to Gilles

,who sat anx iously

awaiting him. Prelati then informed him that he had seen

THE ALCHYMISTB.

the devil in the shape of a handsome youth of twenty. He

further said, that the devil desired to be called B arron in all

futu re invocations ; and had shown him a great number ofingots of pure gold, buried under a large oak in the neigh

bouring forest, all of which, and as many more as he desired,should become the property of the Maréchal de Rays if heremained firm, and broke no condition of the contract. Pre

lati further showed him a small casket of black dust,which

would turn iron into old ; but as the process was very troublesome, he advised t at they should be contented with the

ingots they found under the oak tree, and which would morethan supply all the wants that the most ex travagant imagination could desire. They were not, however, to attempt to

look for the gold till a period of seven times seven weeks, orthey would find nothing but slates and stones for their pains.

Gilles ex pressed the utmost chagrin and disappointment, andat once said that he could not wait so long a period if the

devi l were not more prompt, Prelati might tell him,that the

Maréchal de Rays was not to be trified with, and would de

cline all further commun ication with him . Prela’

ti at last

persuaded him to wait seven times seven days. They thenwen t at midnight with picks and shovels to dig up the groundunder the oak, where they found nothing to reward them but

a great quantity of slates,marked with hieroglyphics. It

was now Prelati’

s turn to be angry ; and he loudl swore thatthe devil was nothing but a liar and a cheat. he Marshal

joined cordially in the opin ion , but was easily persuaded bythe cunning Italian to make one more trial. He promised at

the same time that he would endeavour, on the followingnight, to discover the reason why the devil had broken his

word. He went out alone accordingly, and on his return informed his patron that he had seen B arron

,who was ex

ceedingly angry that they had not waited the proper timeere they looked for the ingots. B arron had also said

,that

the Maréchal do Rays could hardly ex pect any favours fromhim ,

at a time when he must know that he had been meditating a pilgrima e to the Holy Land

,to make atonement for

his sins. The§talian had doubtless surmised this, from some

incautious ex pression of his patron,for D e Rays frankly con

fessed that there were times when , sick of the world and allvon. 11. 16

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THE ALOHYMIBTS.

1d religion . Gilles tenderly embraced Prelati, saying,Farewell, friend Francis In this world we shall never

set again but let us’place our hope in God we shall see

uh other in P aradise. Out of consideration for his high

mk and connex ions, the punishment of the Marshal was soit mitigated, that he was not burned alive like Prelati . He

as first strangled, and then thrown into the flames ; his:ody, when half consumed, was given over to his relatives for1terment ; while that of the Italian was burned to ashes, and

1011 scattered in the winds.

*

Jacquss Coma.

This remarkable pretender to the secret of the philosopher’

s

;one, was contemporary with the last mentioned. He was a

reat personage at the court of Charles VII.,and in the events

Fhis reign played a prominent part. From a very humblerigin he rose to the highest honours of the state

,and amassed

mormons wealth,by peculation and the plunder of the country

hich he should have served. It was to hide his delinquencies1 this respect, and to divert attention from the real source ofis riches

,that he boasted of having discovered the art of

'ansmuting the inferior metals into gold and silver.H is father was a goldsmith in the city of Bourges ; but so

educed in circumstances towards the latter years of his life,1at he was unable to pay the necessary fees to procure hism

’

s admission into the gu ild. Young Jacques became, howver

,a workman in the Royal Mint of Bourges, in 142 8

,

nd behaved himself so well, and showed so much knowadge of metallurgy, that he attained rapid promotion in thatstablishment. H e had also the good fortune to make the

cquaintance of the fair Agnes Sorel, by whom he was pa

ron ized andmuch esteemed. Jacques had now three things1 his favour— ability

,perseverance, and the countenance of

he King’

s mistress. Many a man succeeds with but one of

hese to help him forward : and it would have been strange1deed, if Jacques Omur, who had them all, should have lan

For full deta ils of this ex traordinary tr ial, see Lobineau’s Nouvelle

[istoire de Bretagne ; and D’

Argentre’s work on the same subject.

THE ALCHYMIBTS .

guished in obscurity. While still a young man he was made

Master of the Mint, in which he had been a journeyman,and

installed at the same time into the vacant office ofGrand Treasurer of the royal household.

He possessed an ex tensive knowledge of finance, and turnedit wonderfully to his own advantage as soon as he became intrusted with ex tensive funds. He speculated in articles ofthefirst necessity, and made himself very unpopular by buyingupgrain , honey, wines, and other produce, till there was a scar

city, when he sold it agaih at enormous profit. S trong in theroyal favour, he did not hesitate to oppress the poor by con

tinual acts of forestalling andmonopoly. As there is no enemyso bitter as the estranged friend, so of all the tyrants and

tramplers upon the poor,there is none so fierce and reckless

as the upstart that sprang from their ranks. The ofl'

ensive

pride of Jacques Coeur to his inferibrs was the theme of indignant reproach in his own city

,and his cringing hum ility to

those abovehim was as much an object of contempt to thearistocrats, into whose society he thrust himself. But Jacquesdid not care for the former, and to the latter he was blind.

He continued his career till he became the richest man in

France, and so useful to theKing that no important en terprisewas set on foot till he had been consulted. He was sent in

1446 on an embassy to Genoa, and in the following year toPope Nicholas V . In both these missions he acquitted himself to the satisfaction ofhis sovereign , andwas rewarded by alucrative appointment, in addition to those which he alreadyheld.

In the year 1449,the English in Normandy, deprived of

their great general, theDuke ofBedford, broke the truce withthe French King, and took possession of a small town he

longing to the Duke of Brittany. This was the signal for therecommencement of a war, in which the French regained possession of nearly the whole province. The money for this warwas advanced

, for the most part, by Jacques Coeur . WhenRouen yielded to the French, and Charles made his triumphalentry into that city

,accompan ied by Dunois and his most fa

mous generals, J acques was among the most brilliant of his

cortege. H is chariot and horses vied with those of the Kingin the magn ificence of their trappings ; and his enemies said

of him that be publicly boasted that he alone had driven out

TH! ALOHYI IBTB.

the English, and that the valour ofthe troops wouldhavebeennothing withouthis gold.

Dunois appears, also, tohave been partly ofthe same Opinion .

W ithout disparagin the courage of the army, he acknowledgedthe utility of the ab efinancier, by whose means they had beenfed and paid, and constantly afl

'

orded him his powerful protection .

When peace returned, Jacques ain devoted himself to

commerce, and fitted up several ga leys.

to trade wi th the

Genoese. He also bought large estates i n various parts of

France ; the chief of which were the baronies of St. Far eau,

Menetou, Salone, Maubranche, Meanne, St. Gerant deflu x,

and St. Aon de Boissy the earldoms or counties of La Pa

lisse, Champignelle, Beaumont, andVilleneuve la Genet, andthe mar aisato of Toucy. He also procured for his son , JeanCwur, w 0had chosen the church for his profession, a post noless distinguished than that of Archbishop of Bourges.

Everybody said that so much wealth could not have beenhonestly acquired ; and both rich and poor longed for the daythat should humble the pride of the man , whom the one class

regarded as an upstart and the other as an oppressor. Jaoques was somewhat alarmed at the rumours that were afloatrespecting him,

and of dark hints that he had debased thecoin of the realm and forged the King

’

s seal to an importantdocument, by which he had defrauded the state of very con

siderable sums. To silence these rumours, he invited manyalchymists from foreign countries to reside with him,

and cir

culated a counter- rumour, that he haddiscovered the secret of

the phiIOSOpher’

s stone. He also bu ilt a magn ificent house inhis native city, over the entrance of which he caused to be

sculptured the emblems of that science. Some time afterwards

,he bu ilt another

,no less splendid

,at Montpellier,

which he inscribed in a similar manner. He also wrote a

treatise upon the hermetic philosophy,in which he pretended

that he knew the secret of transmuting metals.

But all these attempts to disguise his numerous acts of

peculation proved unavailing ; and he was arrested in 145 2 ,and brought to trial on several charges. Upon one only,which the malice of his enemies invented to rui n him,

was he

acquitted ; which was, that he had been accessory to the death,by poison, of his kind patroness, Agnes Sorel. Upon the

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TH E ALC IIYMISTS . 187

tion . The monarchs of Europe were no less persuaded thantheir sub

’

sets of the possibility of discovering the philosopher’

s

Henry VI. and Edward IV. of England encouragedalch y. In Germany, the Emperors Man milian

, Rodolph,and

’

c H . devoted much of their attention to it ; and

every inferior potentate within their dominions imitated theirex ample. It was a common practice in Germany, among then obles andpetty sovereigns, to invite an alchymist to take uphis residence among them,

that they might confine him in a

duny on till he made gold enough to pay millions for his ran

som. Many poor wretches sufl'

ered perpetual imprisonmentin consequence. A similar fate appears to havebeen intendedby Edward II . for Raymond Lulli , who, upon the pretencethat he was thereby honoured, was accommodatedwith apartments in the Tower of London. He found out in time thetrick that was about to be played him, and managed to makehis escape, some of his biographers say, by jumpmg into theThames, and swimming to a vessel that laywaiting to receivehim. In the six teenth century, the same system was pursued,as will be shown more fully in the life of Seton the Cosmopolite, in the succeeding chapter.The following is a catalogue of the chief authors upon al

chymy, who flourished during this epoch, and whose lives andadventures are either unknown or are unworthy of more detailed notice. John Dowston , an Englishman, lived in 1315 ,and wrote two treatises on the philosOpher

’

s stone. Richard,

or, as some call him

,Robert, also an Englishman , lived in

1330,and wrote a work entitled “Correctorium Alchymiw,

”

which was much esteemed till the time of Paracelsus. In the

same year lived Peter of Lombardy, who wrotewhat he calleda Complete Treatise upon the Hermetic Science,

”an abridg

ment of which was afterwards published by Lacini, a monk of

Calabria. In 1330 the most famous alchymist of Paris wasone Odomare, whose work “D e Practica Magistri

”was, for a

long time, a handbook among the brethren of the science.

John de Rupecissa, aFrench monk of the order of St. Francis,flourished in 1357 , and pretended to be a prophet as well as

an alchymist. Some of his pro hecies were so disagreeableto Pope Innocent VI .

,that the ontifl

'

determined to put a

stop to them, b

ylocking up the prophet in the dun eons of

the Vatican . t is generally believed that he di there,

THE M .

though there is no evidence of the fact. His chief works al lthe Book of Light,

”the “Five Essences,

”the “Heaven of

Philosophers, andhis grandwork“De Confectione Lapidis.

"

He was not thought a shining light among the adepts . Ortholani was another pretender, of whom nothing is known, butthat he ex ercised the arts of alchymy and astrology at Parigshortly before the time of Nicholas Flame] . H is work on the

practice of alchymy was written in that city in 135 8 . Isaacof Holland wrote

,it is supposed, about this time ; and his son

also devoted himself to the science. Nothing worth repeatingis known of their lives. Boerhaave speaks m th commendationof many passages in their works, and Paracelsus esteemedthem highly : the chief are

“D e Triplici Ordine Eli x iria dL apidis Theoria,

” printed at Berne in 1608 ; and MineraliaOpera, seu de Lapide Philosophico,

” printed at M iddleburg h1600. They also wrote eight other works upon the same subject. Kofl

‘

stky, a Pole, wrote an alchymical treatise, entitledThe Tincture of Minerals, about the year 1488. In this

list of authors a royal name must not be forgotten . CharlaVI . of France, one of the most credulous princes ofwhose court absolutely swarmed with alchymists , conjurou;astrologers, and quacks of every description, made several

attempts to discover the philosopher’s stone, and thought he

know so much about it, that he determined to enlighten the

world with a treatise. It is called the Royal Work of

Charles VI . of France, and the Treasure of Philosophy.

”It

is said to be the ori inal from which Nicholas Flamel took theidea of his “Désir ésiré .

” Lenglet du Fresnoy says it isvery allegorical and utterly incomprehensible. For a more

complete list of the hermetic philosophers of the fourteenthand fifteenth centuries

,the reader is referred to the third

volume of Lenglet’

s History already quoted.

THE ALCHYMISTS .

PART II.

Progress of the infatuation during the si x teenth and seventeenth centuries—Augurello - Cornelius Agrippa—Paracelsus—George Agricola—DenysZachaire—Dr. Dee and Edward Kelly—The Cosmopolite—SendivogiusThe Rosicrucians—Michael Mayer—Robert Fludd—J acob Bohmen

J ohn Heydn—J oseph Francis Borri—Alchym ical writers of the seven

teen th century—De Lisle—Albert Aluys—Count de S t. Germaine—Cagliostro—Present state of the sc ience.

DU R ING the six teenth and seventeenth centuries, the searchfor the philosopher ’s stone was continued by thousands of the

enthusiastic and the credulous ; but a great change was intro.duced during this period. The eminent men who devoted

themselves to the study,totally changed its aspect, and

referred to the possession of their wondrous stone and elix ir,

not only the conversion of the base into the precious metals,but the solution of all the difficulties of other sciences . Theypretended that by its mean man would be brought into closercommun ion with his Maker ; that disease and sorrow would be

ban ished from the world ; and that the millions of spiritualbeings who walk the earth unseen

”would be rendered visible,

and become the friends, compan ions, and instructors of mankind. In the seventeenth century more especially, these poetical and fantastic doctrines ex cited the notice ofEurope ; andfrom Germany

,where they had been first disseminated by

Rosencreutz,spread into France and England, and ran away

with the sound judgment ofmany clever, but too en thusiastic,searchers for the truth. Paracelsus, D ee, and many othersof less note, were captivated by the grace and beauty of the

new mythology, which was arising to adorn the literature of

Europe. Most of the alchymists of the si x teenth century,although ignorant of the Rosicrucians as a sect, were, in some

degree, tinctured with their fanciful tenets : but before we

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THE ALOHYN ISTS .

1owers. He could turn iron into gold by his moreword. All

he spirits of the air, and demons of the earth, were under his

sommand, and bound to Obey him in everything. He could

raise from the dead the forms of the great men Of other days,ind make them appear

“in their habit as the lived,”to the

gaze of the curious who had courage enoug to abide their1resence.

H e was born at Cologne in .

1486 , and be 11, at an earlyg o, the study of chemistry and philosophy . y some means)r other, which have never been very clearly ex plained, hemanaged to impress his contemporaries with a great idea of hiswonderful attainments. At the early age of twenty, so cat

was his reputation as an alchymist, that the princ1pal adiaptsof Paris wrote to Cologne, inviting him to settle in France,and aid them with his ex perience 111 discovering the philoso

pher’

s stone. Honours poured upon him in thick succession ;and he was highly esteemed by all the learned men of his

time. Melancthon speaks Of him with respect and commenda

tion . Erasmus also bears testimony in his favour ; and the

general voice Of his age proclaimed him a light Of literatureand an ornament to philosophy . Some men, by dint Of ex cessive egotism,

manage to persuade their contemporaries thatthey are very great men indeed : they publish their acquirements so loudly in people’

s ears, and keep up their own praisesso incessantly, that the world

’

s applause is actually taken bystorm . Such seems to have been the casewith Agrippa. He

called himself a sublime theologian, an ex cellent j urisconsult,an able physician, a great philosopher, and a successful

alchymist. The world, at last,took him at his word ; and

thought that a man who talked so big, must have some meritto recommend him—that it was, indeed, a great trumpetwhichsounded so Obstreperous a blast. He was made secretary tothe Emperor Max imilian , who conferred upon him the title of

Chevalier, and gave him the honorary command Of a regiment.He afterwards became Professor Of Hebrew and the belles let

tres, at the University of D 61e, in France ; but quarrelling withthe Franciscan monks upon some knotty point of divin ity, hewas obliged to quit the town . He took refuge in London,where he taught Hebrew and cast nativities, for about a year.From London he proceeded to Pavia, and

gave lectures upon

the writings, real or supposed, of Hermes rismegistus ; and

19 2 m s ALGHYMISTS .

might have lived there in peace and honour, had he not again

quarrelled with the clergy. By their means his position became so disagreeable, that he was glad to accept an ofl

'

er made

him by themagistracy ofMetz, to become their Syndic andAdvocate- General. Here, again, his love of disputation made himenemies : the theological wiseacres Of that city asserted, that

S t. Anne had three husbands, in which Opinion they wereconfirmed by the popular belief of the day. Agrippa need

lessly ran foul of this Opinion , or prejudice as he called it,and thereby lost much of his influence. Another dispute,more creditable to his character, occurred soon after, andsank him for ever in the estimation of the Metzians. Eu

manely taking the part of a young girl who was accused of

witchcraft,his enemies asserted

,that he was himself a sor

cerer, and raised such a storm over his head, that he wasforced to fly the city. After this, he became physician to

Louisa de Savoy, mother Of King Francis I. This lady wascurious to know the future, and required her physician to

cast her nativity . Agrippa replied, that he would not encon

rage such idlc curiosity . The result was, he lost her confidenceand was forthwith dismissed. If it had been through his helief in the worthlessness of astrology, that he had made hisanswer, we might admire his honest and fearless independence;but

,when it is known that

,at the very same time

,he was in

the constant habit of divination and fortune- telling ; and that

he was predicting splendid success, in all his undertakings, tothe Constable Of Bourbon

,we can only wonder at his thus

estranging a powerful friend through mere petulance and

perversity .

H e was, about this time, invited both by Henry VIII. of

England, and Margaret of Austria, Governess of the Low

Countries, to fix his residence in their dominions . H e chose

the service of the latter, by whose influence he was made

historiographer to the Emperor Charles V . Unfortunately forAgrippa, he never had stability enough to remain long in one

position , and offended his patrons by his restlessness and pre

sumption . After the death of Margaret, he was imprisonedat Brussels, on a charge of sorcery . He was released after ayear ; and

,quitting the country

,ex perienced many vicissi

tudes. He died in great poverty, in 15 34, aged forty- eight

years .

THE ALOHYMISTS .

While in the service of Margaret of Austria, he resided

1rincipally at Louvain, in which city he wrote his famouswork on the Van ity and Nothingness of Human Knowledge.

He also wrote, to please his Royal Mistress, a treatise upon.he Superiority of the Female Sex , which be dedicated to her,11 token of his gratitude for the favours she had heaped upon1im . The reputation he left behind him in these provinceswas anything but favourable. A great number of the mar

rellous tales that are told of him,relate to this period of his

ife. It was said, that the gold which he paid to the traderswith whom he dealt always looked remarkably bright, butnvariably turned into pieces of slate and stone in the course)f four- and- twenty hours. Of this spurious gold he was be.ieved to have made large quantities by the aid of the devil,who, it would appear from this

,had but a ver superficial

mowledge of alchymy, and much less than the {l aré chal deRays gave him credit for. The Jesuit Delrio, in his book on

Magic and Sorcery, relates a still more ex traordi nary story of

1im . One day, Agrippa left his house, at Louvain ; and,

n tending to be absent for some time, gave the key of his

study to his wife, with strict orders that no one should enter.t during his absence. The lady herself, strange as it mayappear, had no curiosity to pry into her husband’

s secrets,

and never once thought of entering the forbidden room ; buta young student

, who had been accommodated with an attic

in the philosopher'

s house, burned with a fierce desire to

ax amine the study ; hoping, perchance, that he might purloinsome book or implement which would instruct him in the art

of transmuting metals. The youth, being handsome, eloquent,and

,above all

,highly complimentary to the charms of the

lady, she was persuaded, without much difliculty, to lend him

the key, but gave him strict orders not to remove anything.

The student promised implicit Obedience, andenteredAgrippa’

s

study. The first Object that caught his attention , was a large

yrimoire, or book of spells, which lay Open on the philoso

pher’

s desk. He sat himself down immediately and began toread. At the first word he uttered, he fancied he heard a

knock at the door. He listened ; but all was silent. Thinking that his imagination had deceived him,

he read on , when

immediately a louder knock was heard, which so terrified him,

that he started to his feet. He tried to say,“Come in but

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

enough to believe in tales of magic and sorcery ; and when, asAgrippa

’

s case, the alleged magician gave himself out for

such, and claimed credit for the wonders he worked, it is notsurprising that the age should have allowed his pretensions.

It was dangerous boasting, which sometimes led to the stakeor the gallows, and therefore was thought to be not without

foundation . Paulus Jovins,in his Eulogia D octorum Viro

rum,says

,that the devil

,in the shape of a large black dog,

attended Agrippa wherever he went. Thomas Nash, in hisAdventures of JackWilton , relates, that at the request of LordSurrey, Erasmus, and some other learnedmen, Agrippa called

up from the grave many Of the great philosophers of anti

qui ty ; among others, Tully, whom be caused to redeliver hiscelebrated oration for Roscius. He also showedLord Surrey,when in Germany

,an ex act resemblance in a glass Of his mis

tress the fair Geraldine. She was represented on her couch

weeping for the absence of her lover . Lord Surrey made a

note of the ex act time at which he saw this vision , and asoertained afterwards that his mistress was actually so employedat the very minute. To Thomas Lord Cromwell

,Agrippa

representedKing Henry VIII . hunting 111W indsor Park,with

the principal lords of his court ; and to please the EmperorCharles V. he summoned King David andKing Solomon fromthe tomb .

Naude, in his“Apology for the Great Men who have been

falsely suspected of Magic, takes a great deal of pains toclear Agrippa from the imputations cast upon him by Delrio

,

Paulus Jowns,and other such ignorant and prejudiced serib

blers. Such stories demanded refutation 1n the days OfNaude

but they may now be safely left to decay 111 their own ah

surdity . That they should have attached,however, to the

memory of a man , who claimed the power of making iron Obeyhim when he told it to become gold, and who wrote such a

work as that upon magic, which goes by hi s name, is not at

all surprising .

PARACEL SUS .

This philosopher, called by Naudé “

the zenith and risingsun ofall the alchymists,

”

was born at Einsiedeln, near Zurich,

THE ALCHYMISTS .

in the year 1493 . H is true name was Hohenheim ; towhich,as he himself informs us

,were prefix ed the baptismal names

of Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastes Paracelsus. The last of

these he chose for his common des ignation while he was yet a

boy ; and rendered it, before he died, one of the most famous

in the annals of his time. H is father, who was a physician,educatedhis son for the same pursuit. The latter was an apt

scholar, and made great progress . By chance the work ofIsaac Hollandus fell into his hands, and from that time he

became smitten w ith the mania of the philosopher’s stone.

All his thoughts henceforth were devoted to meta llurgy ; andhe travelled into Sweden that he might visit the m ines of that

country, and ex amine the ores while they yet lay in the bowelsOf the earth. He also visited Trithemius at the monastery ofSpannheim,

and Obtained instructions from him in the science

of alchymy. Continuing his travels, he proceeded throughPrussia and Austria into Turkey, Egypt, and Tartary

,and

thence returning to Constantinople, learned, as he boasted,the art of transmutation , and became possessed of the d in ?

vitce. He then established himself as a physician in his native

Switzerland at Zurich, and commenced writing works upon

alchymy and medicine, which immediately fix ed the attention

of Europe. Their great Obscurity was no impediment to their

fame ; for the less the author was understood, the more the

demonologists, fanatics, andphilosopher’

s- stone- hun ters seemedto appreciate him. His fame as a physician kept pace withthat which he enjoyed as an alchymist, owing to his havingefl

'

ected some happy cures by means of mercury and opium ;drugs unceremoniously condemned byhis professional brethren.

In the year 15 2 6 , he was chosen Professor of Physics and

Natural Philosophy in the University Of Basle, where his lectures attracted vast numbers Of students. He denounced the

writings of all former physicians as tending to mislead ; and

publicly burned the works of Galen and Avicenna, as quacksand impostors . He ex claimed, in presence Of the admiringand half- bewildered crowd, who assembled to witness the ceremony

,that there was more knowledge in his shoestrings than

in the writings Of these physicians. Continuing in the same

strain,he said all the un iversities in the world were full Of

ignorant quacks ; but that he, Paracelsus, overflowed with

wisdom. You will all follow my new system,

"said he, with

THE ALCHYMISTS .

'

urious gesticulations, Avicenna, Galen, Rhazis, Montag1ana, Meme—you will all follow me, e professors of Paris,Montpellier, Germany, Colo ne, and ienna ! and all e that

[well on the Rhine and the anube—ye that inhabit t e isles

bf the sea ; and ye also, Italians, Dalmatians, Athenians,Arabians, Jews—ye will all follow my doctrines, for I am the

nonarch of medicine!”

But he did not long enjoy the esteem of the good citizens

Df Basle. It is said that he indulged in wine so freely, as not1nfrequently to be seen in the streets in a state of intox ication .

This was ruinous for a physician , and his good fame decreased'apidly. H is ill fame increased in still greater roportion,especially when he assumed the airs of a sorcerer. He boastedDf the legions of spirits at his command ; and of one especially,which he kept imprisoned in the hilt of his sword. Wetterus

,

who lived twenty- seven months in his service, relates that heiften threatened to invoke a whole army Of demons, and show

1im the great authority which he could ex ercise over them.

He let it be believed, that the spirit in his sword had custody)f the elix ir of life

,by means of which he couldmake any one

ive to be as Old as the antediluvians. He also boasted that1e had a spirit at his command, called

“Azoth,

”whom he

( ept imprisoned in a jewel ; and in many of the Old portraits he8 represented with a jewel, inscribedwith the word “Azoth,

”

n his hand.

If a sober rophet has little honour in his own country, alrunken one lias still less . Paracelsus found it at last con

ren ient to qu it Basle, and establish himself at S trasbourg .

l‘

he immediate cause Of this change of residence was as fol

ows —A citizen lay at the point of death, andwas given over)y all the physicians of the town . As a last resource Para:elsus was called in

,to whom the sick man promised a mag

1ificent recompense, if by his means he were cured. Paraelsus gave him two small pills, which the man took and

°

apidly recovered. When he was quite well, Paracelsus sent

For his fee ; but the citizen had no great opinion Of the value

)f a cure which had been so speedily efl'

ected. He had no

notion Of paying a handful of goldfor two pills, although theyhad saved his life

,and he refused to pay more than the usual

fee for a single visit. Paracelsus brought an action against

him , and lost it. This result so ex asperated him,that he left

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THE ALCHYMIBTB.

dence withGalen from hell ; and that he Often summonedAvi

cenna from the same regions to dispute with him on the false

notions he had promulgated respecting alchymy, and es e

c ially regarding potable gold and the elix ir of life. Himagined that gold could cure ossification of the heart, and,in fact, all diseases, if it were goldwhich had been transmutedfrom an inferior metal bymeans of the philosopher ’s stone, andif it were applied under certain conjunctions of the planets.

The mere list of the works in which he advances these franticimaginings, which he called a doctrine, would occupy several

pages.

Gsoaos Aamcona .

This alchymist was born in the province of Mien ia, in1494. His real name was B auer

,meaning a husbandman,

which, in accordance with the common fashion of his age, he

Latinized into Agricola. From his early youth, be delightedin the visions of the hermetic science. Ere he was si x teeen,he longed for the great eli x ir which was to make him live forseven hundred years, and for the stone which was to procurehim wealth to cheer him in his multiplicity Of days. He

published a small treatise upon the subject at Cologne, in15 31, which Obtained him the patronage Of the celebratedMaurice, Duke Of Sax ony . After practi sing for some yearsas a physician at Joach1msthal in Bohemia

,he was employed

byMaurice as superintendent Of the silver mines of Chemn i tz . He led a happy life among the miners, making various ex periments in alchymy while deep i n the bowels Of theearth. He acquired a great knowledge Of metals, and gradually got rid of his ex travagant notions about the philosopher

’

3

stone. The miners had no faith 1n alchymy and they con

verted him to their way of thinking, not only 111 that but in

other respects. From their legends, he became firmly con

vinced that the bowels of the earth were inhabited by goodand evil spirits, and that firedamp and other ex plosions sprangfrom no other causes than the mischievous propensities of thelatter . He died in the year 15 5 5 , leaving behind him the

reputation of a very able and intelligent man .

THE ALCHYH ISTS.

Dams Zacnm n.

Autobiography, written by a wise man who was once a

fool,is not only the most instructive, but the most delightful

of reading. Den is Zachaire, an alchymist of the six teenth

century, has performed this task, and left a record of his fo.

ll

yand infatuation in pursu it of the philosopher ’8 stone, whio

well repays perusal. He was born in the year 15 10, of anancient family 111 Guienne, and was early sent to the univer

sity Of Bourdeaux,under the care of a tutor to di rect his

studies . Unfortunately his tutor was a searcher for the

grand elix ir,'

and soon rendered his pu il as mad as himself

upon the subject. With this introduction, we will allow

Den is Zachaire to speak for himself, and continue his narra

tive in his own words — “I received from home, says hethe sum Of two hundred crowns for the ex penses of myself

and master ; but before the end of the year, all our moneywent away in the smoke of our furnaces. My master, at thesame time

,died of a fever, brought on by the parching heat

Of our laboratory,f1om which he seldom or never stirred

,and

which was scarcely less hot than the arsenal of Venice. His

death was the more unfortunate for me, as my parents tookthe opportun ity of reducing my allowance, and sendi ng me

only suflicient for my board and lodging, instead of the sum

I required to continue my operations in alchymy .

To meet this difliculty and get out Of leading- strings, l

1 eturned home at the age of twenty- five, and mortgaged partof my property for four hundred crowns. This sum was

necessary to pe1form an operation of the science, which had

been commun icated to me by an Italian at Toulouse,and

who,as he said

,had proved its efficacy. I retained this man

in my service, that we might see the end of the ex periment.I then

, by means of strong distillations, tried to calcinate

gold and silve1 ; but all my labour was in vain . The weight

Of the gold I drew out Of my furnace was diminished by one

half since I put it in , and my four hundred crowns were verysoon reduced to two hundred and thirty. I gave twenty Of

these to my Italian, In order that he might travel to Milan,where the author Of the receipt resided, and ask him the ex

planation of some passages which we thought Obscure. I re

THE ALOHYMIBTS .

l at Toulouse all the winter, in the hope of his return ;night have remained there till this day if I had waited1,for I never saw his face again .

the succeeding summer there was a eat pla e,

forced me to quit the town . I did not, owever, ldse

if my work . I went to Cahors, where I remained six

1, and made the acquaintance of an Old man , who wasonly known to the people as the Philosopher ;

’

a name

in country places, is Often bestowed'

upon people whose1erit is, that they are less ignorant than their neigh

I showed him my collection Of alchymical receipts,sked his Opin ion upon them. He picked out ten or

of them,merely saying that they were better than the

When the plague ceased, I returned to Toulouse,commenced my ex periments in search of the stone. Il to such effect that my four hundred crowns were re

to one hundred and seventy.

1at I might continue my work on a safer method, I1cquaintance, in 15 37 , with a certain Abbe, who residedneighbourhood. He was smitten w ith the same man ia.elf, and told me that one Of his friends, who had folto Rome in the retinue of the Cardinal d’

Armagnac,at him from that city a new receipt, which could not

transmute iron and copper, but which would cost twod crowns. I provided half this money, and the Abbét ; and we began to operate at our joint ex pense. As

[uired spirits of wine for our ex periment,I bought a

ex cellent vin de Gaillac. I ex tracted the spirit,and

d it several times . We took a quantity of this,into

we put four marks Of silver, and one of gold, that hadudergoing the process of calcination for a month. We

is mix ture cleverly into a sort of horn- shaped vessel,

nother to serve as a retort ; and placed the whole ap1 upon our furnace, to produce congelation . This exnt lasted a year ; but, not to remain idle, we amused'

es.

w ith many other less important Operations. We

lu1te as much profit from these as from our great

1e whole of the year 1537 passed over without proda1y change whatever : in fact we might have waited tilllay for the congelation of our spirits a! wine. "aw

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THE ALOHYMISTB.

lid not want to part with my money to any of them,remem

>ering how Often I had been the dupe Of such promises.

“A Greek at last presented himself ; and with him I worked1 long time uselessly upon nails

,made of cinnabar, or vermi

i on . I was also acquainted with a foreign gentleman newlyarrived in Paris, and Often accompan ied him to the shops ofthe goldsmiths, to sell pieces Of old and silver, the produce,as he said

,Of his ex periments. Hstuck closely to him for a

long time, in the hope that he would impart his secret. He

refused for a long time, but acceded, at last, on my earnestentreaty, and I found that it was nothing more than an inge

aious trick . I did not fail to inform my friend, the Abbe,whom I left at Toulouse, Of all my adventures ; and sent him

,

among other matters, a relation of the trick by which this

gentleman pretended to turn lead into gold. The Abbé stillimagined that I should succeed at last, and advised me to

remain another year in Paris, where I had made so good a

beginn ing. I remained there three years ; but, notwithstanding all my efforts, I had no more success than I had had else

where.

I had just got to the end Of my money, when I received

a letter from the Abbé,telling me to leave everything, and

join him immediately at Toulouse. I went accordingly, andfound that he had received letters from the King of Navarre

[grandfather of Henry IV .) This Prince was a great lover ofphilosophy, full Of curiosity, and had written to the Abbe,that I should visit him at Pan ; and that he would give me

three or four thousand crowns, if I would communicate the

secret I had learned from the foreign gentleman . TheAbbé ’sears were so tickledwith the four thousand crowns, that he letme have no peace

,n ight or day, until he had fairly seen me

111 the road to Pau . I arrived at that place in the month Of

May, 1542 . I worked away,and succeeded, according to the

'eceipt I had Obtained. When I had finished, to the satisfac

;ion Of the king, he gave me the reward that I ex pected.

Although he was wi lling enough to do me further service, hewas dissuaded from it by the lords of his court ; even by many)f those who had been most anx ious that I should come. He

1ent me then about my business, with many thanks ; saying,.hat if there was anything in his kingdom which he could give

ne—such as the produce of confiscations. or the like—he

THE ALCHYMISTB.

should be most happy. I thought I might stay long enoughfor these prospective confiscations, and never get them at last;

and I therefore determined to go back to my friend, the Abbe.I learned, that on the road between Pau and Toulouse,

there resided a monk , who was very skilful in all matters ofnatural philosophy. On my return , I paid him a visit. He

pitied me very much, and advised me, with much warmth and

kindness of ex pression, not to amuse myself any longer withsuch ex periments as these, which were all false and sophistical;but that I should read the good books Of the Old philosOphers,where I might not only find the true matter Of the science of

alchymy, but learn also the ex act order Of operations whichought to be followed. I very much approved of thi s wise

advice ; but, before I acted upon it, I went back to my Abbé,of Toulouse, to give him an account of the eight hundred

crowns, which we had had in common ; and, at the same time,share with him such reward as I had received from the Kingof Navarre. If he was little satisfied with the relation Of myadventures since our first separation, he appeared still less

satisfied when I told him I had formed a resolution to renouncethe search for the philosopher’s stone. The reason was

,that

he thought me a good artist. Of our eight hundred crowns,there remained but one hundred and seventy- six . When Iquitted the Abbe, I went to my own house, with the intention

of remain ing there, till I had read all the old philosophers,and Of then proceeding to Paris.

I arrived in Paris on the day after All Saints , of theyear1546 , and devoted another year to the assiduous study of greatauthors . Among others

,the ‘Turba PhilOSOphorum

’

of the

Good Trevisan,’

The Remonstrance of Nature to the wandering Alchymist,

’ by Jean de Mcung ; and several others ofthe best books : but

,as I had no right principles, I did not

well know what course to follow.

At last I left my solitude ; not to see my former acquaiatances, the adepts, and operators

,but to frequent the society

Of true philosophers . Among them I fell into still greateruncertainties ; being, in fact, completely bewildered by the

variety Of operations which they showed me. S purred on,

nevertheless, by a sort of frenzy or inspiration, I threw myselfinto the works of Raymond Lulli and of Arnold de Villeneuve.

The reading of these, and the reflect1ons I made upon them,

THE ALCHYMISTB.

1cupied me for another year, when I finally determined on

w course I should adopt. I was obliged to wait,however,

atil I had mortgaged another very considerable portion of

.y patrimony. This business was not settled until the begining Of Lent, 1549, when I commenced my operations. I.id in a stock of all that was necessary

,and began to work

1c day after Easter. It was not, however, without some

isquietude and opposition from my friends who came aboutno ; one asking me what I was going to do, andwhether I hadat already spent money enough upon such follies. Anotherusured me that, if I bought so much charcoal, I should

;rengthen the suspicion already ex isting, that I was a coiner

f base money. Another advised me to purchase some place1 the magistracy, as I was already a Doctor Of Laws. Mydations spoke in terms still more annoyin to me, and even

1reatened that, if I c ontinued to make suc a fool of myself,my would send a posse Of police- Officers into m house, and

reak all my furnaces and crucibles into atoms. was wearied[most to death by this continued persecution ; but I foundsmfort in my work and in the progress ofmy ex periment, to'

hich I was very attentive, and which went on bravely fromay to day. About this time, there was a dreadful plague in'

aris, which interrupted all intercourse between man andman,

ad left me as much to myself as I could desire. I soon had1c satisfaction to remark the progress and succession Of the

1ree colours which,according to the philosophers, always

rognosticate the approaching perfection of the work . Ibserved them distinctly, one after the other ; and nex t year,sing Easter S unday, 15 50, I made the great trial. Some

1mmon quicksilver, which I put into a small crucible on the

re, was, in less than an hour, converted into very good gold.

on may judge how great was my joy, but I took care not to

Jast Of it. I returned thanks to God for the favour he had1own me, and prayed that I might only be permitted to

ake such use of it as would redound to his glory .

“On the following day, I went towards Toulouse to find10 Abbe

,in accordance with a mutual promise that we

1ould communicate our discoveries to each other. On myay, I called in to see the sage monk who had assisted me

ith his counsels ; but I had the sorrow to learn that theyere both dead. After this, I would not return to my ownV OL . 11 . 18

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THE ALCHYMISTI .

in the year 15 2 7, and very early manifested a love for study.

At the age of fifteen he was sent to Cambridge, and deli htedso much 1n his books, that he passed regularly eighteenhoursevery day among them. Of the six others, be devoted fourto sleep and two for refreshment. Such intense applicationdid not injure his health, and could not fail to make him one

of the first scholars of his time. Unfortunately, however, hequ itted the mathematics and the pursuits of true philosophyto indulge in the unprofitable reveries Of the occult sciences.

H e stud1ed alchymy, astrology, and magic, and thereby ren

dered himself Obnox ious to the authorities at Cambrid e. To

avoid persecution, he was at last obliged to retire to t e uni

versity of Louvain ; the rumours of sorcery that were currentrespecting him rendering his longer stay in England not alto

gether without danger. He found at Louvain many kindredspirits who had known Cornelius Agrippa while he residedamong them,

and by whom he was constantly entertainedwith the wondrous deeds of that great master of the hermeticmysteries. From their conversation he received muchenconragement to continue the search for the philosopher’s stone,

which soon began to occupy nearly all his thoughts.

H e did not long remain on the Continent, but returned toEngland in 15 5 1, being at that time in the twenty- fourthyear of his age. By the influence of his friend, S ir JohnCheek , he was kindly received at the court of King EdwardVI . , and rewarded (it is difficult to say for what)with a pen

sion of one hundred crowns. He continued for several yearsto practise in London as an astrologer casting nativities,telling fortunes, and pointing out lucky and unlucky days.

During the reign of Queen Mary he got into trouble, beingsuspected of heresy, and charged with attempting Mary ’

s life

by means of enchantments . He was tried for the latterofl

'

ence, and acquitted but was retained in prison on the for

mer charge, and left to the tender mercies of Bishop Bonner.He had a very narrow escape from being burned in Smithfield, but he, somehow or other, contrived to persuade that

fierce bigot that his orthodox y was unimpeachable, and wasset at liberty in 15 5 5 .

On the accession of Elizabeth, a brighter day dawned uponhim. During her retirement at Woodstock, her servantsappear to have consulted him as to the time of Mary’s death,

THE ALCHYMIBTS .

which circumstance, no doubt, first gave rise to the serious

charge for which he was brought to trial. They now came to

consult him more openly as to the fortunes of their mistress ;and Robert Dudley, the celebrated Earl of Leicester, wassent by command of the Queen herself to know the most aus

picious day for her coronation . SO great was the favour heenjoyed that, for some years afterwards, Elizabeth conde

scended to pay him a visit at his house in Mortlake, to view

his museum of curiosities, and, when he was ill, sent her own

physician to attend upon him.

Astrology was the means whereby he lived, and be con

tinned to practise it with great assiduity ; but his heart was inalchymy. The philosopher’s stone and the elix ir of life

haunted his daily thoughts and his nightly dreams . TheTal

mudic mysteries, which he had also deeply studied, impressedhim with the belief

,that he might hold converse with spirits

and angels, and learn from them all the mysteries of the uni

verse. Holding the same idea as the then Obscure sect of the

Rosicrucians, some of whom he had perhaps encountered inhis travels in Germany, he imagined that

,by means of the

philosopher’s stone, he could summon these kindly spirits at

his will. By dint of continually brooding upon the subject,his imagination became so diseased

,that he at last persuaded

himself that an angel appeared to him, and promised to be

hi s friend and compan ion as long as he lived. H e relatesthat

,One day, in November, 15 82 , while he was engaged in

fervent prayer, the window of his museum looking towardsthe west suddenly glowed with a dazzling light, in the midst

of which, in all his glory, stood the great angel Uriel. Awe

and wonder rendered him speechless ; but the angel smiling

graciously upon him, gave him a crystal

, of a convex form,

and told him that,whenever he wished to hold converse with

the beings Of another sphere, he had only to gaze in tentlyupon it, and they would appear in the crystal and unveil to

him all the secrets of futurity .

* This saying, the angel dis

The crystal alluded to appears to have been a black stone, or pieceof polished coal . The follow ing account of it is g iven in the Supplementto Granger

’

s Biographical l listory .

”The black stone into which Dee

u sed to call his spi rits was in the collection of the Earls of Peterborough.

from whence i t came to Lady Eli zabeth Germaine. It was nex t the pro

perty of the late Duke of Argyle, and is now Mr. Walpole’s. It appears

THE ALCHYMIBTS .

red. Dee found from ex perience of the crystal that itecessary that all the faculties of the soul should be con

tted upon it, otherwise the spirits did not appear. He

1nnd that he could never recollect the conversation hei th the angels. He therefore determined to communi

he secret to another person , who might converse with.irite while he (Dee) sat in another part of the room,

oh down in wu ting the revelations which they made.

had at this time in his service, as his assistant, one EdKelly, who, like himself, was crazy upon the subject of

1ilosopher’

s stone. There was the difference, however,en them, that, while D ee was more of an enthusiast

an impostor,Kelly was more of an impostor than an

siest. In early life he was a notary,and had the mis

ia to lose both his ears for forgery. This mutilation,ding enough in any man , was destructive to a philoso

Kelly, therefore, lest his wisdom should sufl'

er in the'

s Opin ion , wore a black skull- cap, which, fitting close to

ad, and descending over both his cheeks, not only con

1 his loss, but gave him a very solemn and oracularrance. S O well did he keep his secret, that even D ee,whom he lived so many years

,appears never to have

en d it. Kelly, with this character, was just theman toon any piece of roguery for his own advantage, or to

re the delusions of his master for the same purpose. NOr did D ee inform him Of the visit be had received fromlorious Uriel, than Kelly ex pressed such a fervour of

that Dee’

s heart glowed with delight. He set aboutlting his crystal forthwith, and on the 2 d of December,the spirits appeared

,and held a very ex traordinary

u se with Kelly, which D ee took down in writing. The

18 reader may see this farrago of nonsense among the

ian MS S . in the British Museum. The later consulta

were published in a folio volume, in 165 9, by Dr. Meric1bon , under the title Of A True and Faithful Relation1at passed between Dr. J ohn Doe and some Spirits ;

x amination to be nothing more than a polished piece of can s] coal ;s is what Butler means when he says,

u cKelly did all his feats uponThe devi l

’s looking

-

glass—a stone.

18*

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THE ALOHYMIBTB.

duced to the Pole.* An interesting conversation ensued,

which ended by the stranger’

s inviting himself to dine with

the astrologer at his house at Mortlake. Dee returned homein some tribulation, for he found he had not money enou h,without

Opawning his plate, to entertain Count Laski and

retinue i n a manner becoming their dignity. In this emerex press to the Earl of Leicester

, statingunder, and praying histo her Majesty. Eli

Of twen ty pounds.

On the appointed day, Count Laski came, attended by a

numerous reti nue, and ex pressed such open and warm admi

ration of the wonderful attainments of his host,that D ee

turn ed over, in his own mind, how he could bind irretrievablyto his interests a man who seemed so well inclined to becomehis friend. Long acquaintance with Kelly had imbued himwi th all the roguery of that personage ; and be resolved tomake the Pole pay dearly for his dinner. He found out,

before many days, that he possessed great estates in his owncountry, as well as great influence ; but that an ex travagantdi sposition had reduced him to temporary embarrassment.He also discovered, that he was a firm believer in the philoSopher ’s stone and the water of life. He was, therefore, justthe man upon whom an adventurer might fasten himself.

Kelly thought so too ; and both of them set to work, to weavea web, in the meshes of which they might firmly entangle the

rich and credulous stranger. They went very cautiouslyabout it ; first throwing out Obscure hints of the stone and the

elix ir ; and, finally, of the Spirits, by means of whom theycould turn over the pages Of the Book Of Futurity, and read

Albert Laski , son of Jaroslav, was Palatine of S iradz, and afterwards ofSendomir, and chiefly contributed to the election of Henry Of Valois, the

Third of France, to the throne of Poland, and was one of the delegates

who went to France in order to announce to the new monarch his elevationto the sovereignty of Poland. After the deposition of Henry, Albert Laskivoted for Max imi lian Of Austria . In 15 83 he visi ted England, when QueenElizabeth received him wi th great distincti on . The honours which were

shown him during his visi t to Ox ford, by the especial command Of the

Queen , were equal to those rendered to sovereign princes . H is ex traordi

nary prodigality rendered his enormou s wealth insufli cicnt to defray his

ex penses, and he therefore became a zealous adept 1n alchymy, and took

from England to Poland wi th him two known alch mists.— Count Valerian

Krasim lci’

e H istorical Sketch of the Reformation m Iyoland.

THE ALOHYMIBTS .

the awful secrets inscribed therein . Laski eagerly imploredthat he might be admitted to one of their mysterious interviews with Uriel and the angels ; but they knew human naturetoo well to accede at once to the request. To the Count'sentreaties they only replied by hints of the difiiculty or im

propriety Of summoning the spirits in the presence of a

stranger ; or Of one who might, perchance, have no other mo

tive than the gratification of a vain curiosity : but they onlymeant to whet the edge of his appetite by this delay, andwouldhave been sorry indeed if the Count had been discouraged.

To show how ex clusively the thoughts both of D ee and Kellywere fix ed upon their dupe, at this time, it is only necessaryto read the introduction to their first interview with the spirits,related in the volume Of Dr. Casaubon. The entry made byD ee, under the date of the 2 5 th of May, 15 83 , says, thatwhen the spirit appeared to them,

I [John D ee] , andE. K.

[Edward Kelly] , sat together conversing with that noble POlonian Albertus Laski

,his great honour here with us Obtained,

and of his great liking among all sorts Of the people.

”NO

doubt they were discussing how they might make the most ofthe “

noble Polonian, and concocting the fine story with

which they afterwards ex cited his curiosity, and drew him

firmly within their toils . Suddenly,”

says D ee, as theywere thus employed, there seemed to come out of the ora

tory, a spiritual creature,like a pretty girl, of seven or nine

years Of age, attired on her head, with her hair rolled upbefore, and hanging down behind ; with a gown of silk, ofchangeable red and green , and with a train . S he seemed

to play up and down , and seemed to go in and out behind thebooks ; and

,as she seemed to go between them,

the booksdisplaced themselves, and made way for her.

W ith such tales as these they lured on the Pole from dayto day ; and at last persuaded him to be a witness Of their

mysteries. Whether they played off any optical delusionsupon him ; or whether, by the force of a strong imagination,he deluded himself

,does not appear ; but certain it is , that he

became a complete tool in their hands, and consented to do

whatever they wished him. Kelly, at these interviews, placedhimself at a certain distance from the wondrous crystal

,and

gazed intently upon it ; while D ec took his place in a corner,ready to set down the prophecies as they were uttered by the

THE ALCHYMISTS .

spirits. In this manner they prophesied to the Pole, that heshould become the fortunate possessor of the philosopher’sstone ; that he should live for centuries

,and be chosen King

of Poland ; in which capacity he should gain many great victories over the Saracens, and make his name illustrious overall the earth. For this purpose it was necessary, however,that Laski should leave England, and take them with him,

together with their wives and families ; that he should treatthem all sumptuously, and allow them to want for nothing:

Laski at Once consented ; and very shortly afterwards theywere all on the road to Poland.

It took them upwards Of four months to reach the Count’sestates , in the neighbourhood Of Cracow . In the mean time,they led a pleasant life, and spent money with an unsparinghand. When once established in the Count’s palace, theycommenced the great hermetic operation Of transmuting ironinto gold. Laski provided them with all necessary materials,and aided them himself with his knowledge of alchymy : but,somehow or other, the ex periment always failed at the verymoment that it ought to have succeeded ; and they wereobliged to recommence Operations on a grander scale. But

the hopes of Laski were not easily ex tinguished. Already,in

idea, the possessor of countless millions,he was not to be

cast down for fear of presen t ex penses . He thus continued

from day to day, and from mouth to month,till he was

,at

last, obliged to sell a portion of his deeply mortgaged estates,

to find aliment for the hungry crucibles of D ee and Kelly,and the no less hungry stomachs of their wives and families .

It was not till ruin stared him in the face,that he awoke

from his dream of infatuation— too happy, even then , to find

that he had escaped utter beggary . Thus restored to his

senses, his first thought was how to rid himself of his ex pen

sive visiters. Not wishing to quarrel w ith them,he proposed

that they should proceed to Prague, well furn ishedw ith lettersof recommendation to the Emperor Rudolph. Our alchymists

too plainly saw that nothing more was to be made Of the

almost destitute Count Laski . Without hesitation , therefore,they accepted the proposal, and set out forthw ith to the Im

p)erial residence. They had no difliculty, on their arrival atrague, in obtaining an audience of the Emperor. Theyfound him willing enough to believe that such a thing as the

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'rnn ALCHYMISTS . 2 15

1 with disgrace, when they met with another dupe, to111 they eagerly transferred their services. This was Countanberg, a nobleman Of large estates

,at Trebona, in Bohe

So comfortable did they find themselves in the palace1is mun ificent patron , that they remained nearly four yearshim, faring sumptuously, and having an almost unlimited

mand of his money. The Count was more ambitious than'icious : he had wealth enough, and did not care for the

OSOpher’

s stone on account of the gold, but of the length

lays it would bring him . They had their predictions,.rdingly, all ready framed to suit his character. They1hesied that he should be chosen king of Poland ; and pro1d, moreover, that he should live for five hundred years to-y his dignity ; provided always

,that he found them sufli

t money to carry on their ex periments.

ut now,while fortune smiled upon them ; while they

lled in the rewards of successful villany, retributive justicee upon them in a shape they had not anticipated. J eal

r and mistrust sprang up between the two confederates,led to such violent and frequent quarrels, that D ee wasonstant fear of ex posure. Kelly imagined himself a muchiter personage than D ee ; measuring, most likely, by thedard Of impudent roguery ; and was displeased that on all

LS lOIl S,and from all persons

,D ee received the greater share

toueur and consideration . H e often threatened to leave

to shift for himself; and the latter, who had degeneratedthe mere tool Of his more daring associate

,was distressed

and measure at the prospect of his desertion . His mind

so deeply imbued with superstition, that he believed theasodies of Kelly to be, in a great measure, derived fromintercourse w ith angels ; and he knew not where

,in the

ls world,to look for a man of depth and wisdom enough

.uccced him . As their quarrels every day became moremore frequent, D ee wrote letters to Queen Elizabeth, toire a favourable reception on his return to England ;:her he intended to proceed if Kelly forsook him . He

sent her a round piece of silver,which he pretended he

made of a portion of brass cut out of a warming -

pan . Ile

rwards sent her the warming-

pan also, that shemight con

0 herself that the piece of silver corresponded ex actly withhole which was cut into the brass . While thus preparing

2 16 rm: Amnvm s'rs.

for the worst, his chief design was to remain in Bohemia withCount Rosenberg, who treated him well, and reposed muchconfidence in him. Neither had Kelly any great objection toremain ; but a new passion had taken possession of his brea

'

st,and he was laying deep schemes to gratify it. H is own will

was ill- favoured and ill- natured; Dee’

s was comely and agree

able : and he longed to make an ex change of partners, withoutex citing the jealousy or shocking the morality of D ec . Th

'

l

was a difficult matter ; but, to a man like Kelly, who was l ldeficient in rectitude and right feeling as he was full of impadence and ingenuity, the difiiculty was not insurmountabla

He had also deeply studied the character and the foibles of

D ee ; and he took hi s measures accordin ly. The nex t time

they consulted the spirits,Kelly pretended to be shockedat

their language, and refused to tell Dee what they said. Deeinsisted, and was informed that they were henceforth to havetheir wives in common . Dee, a little startled, inquiredwhetherthe spirits might not mean that they were to live in common

harmony and good- will ? Kelly tried again, with apparent

reluctance,and said the spirits insisted upon the literal inter

pretation . The poor fanatic, D ee, resigned himself to their

will ; but it suited Kelly’

s purpose to appear coy a little

longer . He declared that the spirits must be spirits,good, but of evil ; and refused to consult them any more. He

thereupon took his departure,saying that he would never

return .

D ee,thus left to himself, was in sore trouble and distress of

mind. He knew not on whom to fix as the successor to Kellyfor consulting the Spirits ; but at last chose his son Arthur, 0.boy of eight years of age. He consecrated him to this servicewith great ceremony, and impressed upon the child

’

s mind the

dign ified and awful nature Of the duties he was called upon toperform ; but the poor boy had neither the imagination, thefaith

,nor the artifice ofKelly. He looked intently upon the

crystal,as he was told; but could see nothing and hear no

thing . At last,when his eyes ached, he said he could seea

vague indistinct shadow ; but nothing more. D ee was in

despair . The deception had been carried on so long, thathe

was never so happy as when he fancied he was holding con

verse with superior beings ; and he cursed the day that had

put estrangement between him and his dear friend Kelly.

flfl£5 1ALCBHHIIBT8 .

Ehis was ex actly what Kelly had foreseen ; and, when he

bought the Doctor had grieved sufficiently for his absence, heeturned unex pectedly, and entered the room where the littlehrthur was in vain endeavouring to di stinguish something in

he crystal. D ee, in entering this circumstance in his journal,sudden return to a

“mi raculous fortune,”and a

divine fate ; and goes on to record that Kelly immediatelylaw the spirits, which had remained invis ible to little Arthur.h e of these spirits reiterated the previous command, that theshould have their wi ves in common. Kell

’

y bowed his heamd submitted ; and D ee, in all humility

, consented to the

m angement.

Thi s was the ex treme depth of the wretched man ’

s degrada'

.ion . In this manner they continued to live for three or four

nonths, when, new quarrels breaking out,they separated once

more. This time their separation was final. Kelly, taking:he elix ir which he had found in Glastonbury Abbey

, pro

:eeded to Prague, forgetful of the abrupt mode in which hei ad previously been ex pelled from that city . Almost immeliately after his arrival, he was seized by order of the EmperorRudolph, and thrown into prison . Hewas released after somenonths

’

confinement, and continued for five years to lead a

vagabond life in Germany, telling fortunes at one place, andpretending to make gold at another. He was a second time

shrown into prison , on a charge of heresy and sorcery ; and

me then resolved if ever he obtained his liberty, to return toEngland. He soon discovered that there was no prospect of;hi s, and that his immisonment was likely to be for life. He

:wisted his bed- clothes into a rope, one stormy n ight in

February 15 95 , and let himself down from the window of his

lungeon , situated at the top of a very high tower. Being a

sorpulent man , the rope gave way, and he was precipitatedto the ground. He broke two Of his ribs, and both his legs1nd was otherwise so much injured, that he ex pired a few

la 8 afterwards .

ee, for a while, had more prosperous fortune. The warmng

-

pan he had sent to Queen Elizabethwas not without efi'

ect.

He was rewarded, soon after Kelly had left him, with an in

ritation to return to England. H is pride, which had beenmrely humbled, sprang up again to its pristine dimensions ;md heset out from Bohemiawitha train of attendants becomingvon. 1n 19

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THE ALCHYMIBTB.

sums of money at various times ; but, Dee still continuing his

somplaints, a commission was appointed to inquire into his

eircumstances. He finally Obtained a small appointment as

Chan cellor Of S t. Paul’s Cathedral, which be ex changed, in

16 9 5 , for the wardenship Of the college at Manchester. He

remained in this capacity till 1602 or 1603, when , his strengthand intellect beginn in to fail him

,he was compelled to resign .

He retired to h1s oldswelling at Mortlake,in a state not far

removed from actual want,supporting himself as a common

fortune- teller, and being often obliged to sell or pawn his

books to procure a dinner. James I . was Often applied to on

his behalf, but he refused to do anything for him . It maybe said to the discredit of this King, that the only reward hewould grant the indefatigable S towe, in his days of old age

and want,was the royal permission to beg ; but no one will

blame him for neglecting such a quack as John Dee. He

died in 1608, in the eighty- first year of his age, and was

buried at Mortlake.

T1111 COSMOPOL ITE.

Many di sputes have arisen as to the real name of the

alchymist who wrote several works under the above designation . The general opin ion is that he was a S cotsman , namedS eton ; and that by a fate very common to alchymists, who

boasted too loudly of their powers Of transmutation , he ended

his days miserably in a dungeon, into which he was thrownbya German potentate until he made a million of gold to paylns ransom. By some he has been confounded with MichaelSendivo

g, or Sendivogius, a Pole, a professor of the same art

,

who ma 0 a great noise in Europe at the commencement,Of

the seventeenth century. Lenglet du Fresnoy, who is in

general well- informed with respect to the alchymists, inclines

to the belief that these personages were distinct ; and givesthe following particulars

'

Of the Cosmopolite, ex tracted from

George Morhofl'

,in his “Epistola ad Langelottum,

”and other

writers.

About the year 1600, one Jacob Haussen, a Dutch pilot,

was shipwrecked on the coast Of Scotland. A gentleman,named Alex ander Seton, put OH in a boat, and saved him

2 2 0 m s ALCHYMISTS .

from drowning, and afterwards entertained him hospit§ afor many weeks at his house on the shore. Haussen saw

he was addicted to the pursuits Of chemistry, but no conv\~

tion on the subject passed between them at the time. Qa year and a half afterwards, Haussen being then at he

Enkhuysen , in Holland, received a visit from his formerHe endeavoured to repay the kindness that had beenhim ; and so great a friendship arose between them

sSeton, on his departure, offered to make him acquainteQthegreat secret of the philosopher

'

s stone. In hi s pre s

the S cotsman transmuted a great quantity of base metalpure gold, and gave it him as a mark of hi s esteem. S,then took leave of his friend, and travelled into GermanDresden he made no secret of his wonderful powers ; iiit is said, performed transmutation successfully before aMassemblage of the learnedmen of that city. The circumstancoming to the ears of the Duke or Elector of S ax ony, he gay,orders for the arrest Of the alchymi st. He caused him to b'imprisoned in a high tower, and set a guard of forty men towatch that he did not escape, and that no strangers were admi tted to his presence. The unfortunate S eton receivedseveral visits from the Elector, who used every art of persua

sion to make him divulge his secret. Seton obstinaw re

fused either to commun icate hi s secret, or to make any goldfor the tyrant ; on which he was stretched upon the rack, to

see if the argument of torture would render him more tractable. The result was still the same,—neither hope of rewardnor fear of anguish could shake him. For several months heremained in prison, subjected alternately to a sedative anda

violent regimen, till his health broke, and he wasted away 3almost to a skeleton .

There happened at that time to be in Dresden a learnedPole

,named Michael Sendivogius, who had wasted a good

deal of his time and substance in the unprofitable pursuits ofalchymy. He was touched with pity for the hard fate, andadm1ration for the intrepidity of Seton ; and determined, if

possible, to aid him in escaping from the clutch of his oppressor. He requested the Elector ’s permission to see the

alchymist, and obtained it with some difficulty. He found

him in a state of great wretchedness,—shut up from the light

of day in a noisome dungeon, andwith no better couch or fare

m ALOHYHISTS.

an those allotted to the worst of criminals. Seton listened

gerly to the proposal of escape, and promised the generous1 e that he wouldmake him richer than an Eastern monarchby his means he were liberated. Sendivogius immediatelymmenced operations. He sold some property which he posseed near Cracow, andwith the proceeds led a merry life atreeden . He gave the most elegant suppers, to whi ch he

gnlarly invited the officers of the guard, and especially those10 did duty at the risen Of the alchymist. He insinuated

mself at last into t eir confidence, and Obtained free ingresshi s friend as often as he pleased ; pretending that he wasing his utmost endeavours to conquer his obstinacy and

1m his secret out of him. When their project was ripe, a.y was fix ed upon for the grand attempt ; and Sendivogiuste ready with a post- chariot to convey him with all speedto Poland. By drugging some wi ne which he presented toe guards of the prison, he rendered them so drowsy that hesily found means to scale a wall unobserved, with Seton,1d effect his escape. Seton

’

s wife was in the chariot await

g him,having safely in her possession a small packet of a

ack powder, which was, in fact, the philosopher’

s stone,or

gredient for the transmutation of iron and copper into gold.

my all arrived in safety at Cracow ; but the frame of Setonso wasted by torture. Of body and starvation, to say

thing of the anguish Of mind he had endured, that he did»t long survive. He died in Cracow in 1603 or 1604

,and

buried under the cathedral church of that city. Such is

0 story related of the author of the various works wh ichar the name of the Cosmopolite. A list of them may be

and in the third volume of the “History of the Hermetic1i1080phy.

Snnmvoems.

On the death of Seton, Sendivogius married his w idow,

ping to learn from her some of the secrets of her deceased'd in the art of transmutation . The ounce of black powder10d him,

however, in better service ; for the alchymists sayat, by its means, be converted great quantities Of quickver mto the purest gold. It is also said that he performed

19*

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German alchymist, named Muhlenfels, who resided in his

house, and told him all that had been done. Muhlenfels

entreated that he might have a dozen mounted horsemen at

his command, that he might instantly ride after the philoso

pher, and either rob him of all his powder or force from him

the secret of making it. The Prince desired nothing better ;and Muhlenfels, being provided with twelve men well mountedand armed, pursued Sendivogius in hot haste. He came upwith him at a lonely inn by the roadside, just as he was

si tting down to dinner. He at first endeavoured to persuadehim to divulge the secret ; but, findin this of no avail, be

caused his accomplices to strip the unfortunate Sendivogiusand tied him naked to one of the pillars of the house. He

then took from him his golden box , containing a small quantityof the powder ; a manuscript book on the philosopher

’

s stone ;

a golden medal with its chain, presented to him by the Em

peror Rudolph ; and a rich cap ornamented wi th diamonds,of the value of one hundred thousand rix - dollars. With thisbooty hedecamped, leaving Sendivogius still naked and firmlybound to the pillar. H is servants had been treated in a

similar manner ; but the people of the inn released them all

as soon as the robbers were out Of sight.Sendivogius proceeded to Prague, and made his complaint

to the Emperor. An ex press was instantly sent OK to the

Prince, with orders that he should deliver up Muhlenfels and

all his plunder. The Prince, fearful of the Emperor’

s wrath,caused three large gallows to be erected in his court- yard ; onthe highest ofwhich he hanged Muhlenfels, with another thiefon each side of him. He thus propitiated the Emperor, and

got rid of an ugly witness against himself. He sent back, atthe same time, the bejewelled hat, the medal and chain , and

the treatise upon the philosopher ’s stone, which had beenstolen from Sendivogius. As regarded the powder, he said he

had not seen it,and knew nothing about it.

This adventure made Sendivogius more prudent ; he wouldno longer perform the process of transmutation before anystrangers, however highly recommended. He pretended, also,to be very poor ; and sometimes lay in bed for weeks together,that people might believe he was sufl

’

ering from some dangerous malady, and could not therefore by an possibility be theowner of the philosopher

’

s stone. He wo d occasionally coin

THE ALOHY11m .

false money, and pass it of as gold ; preferring to be esteemda cheat rather than a successful alchymist.

Many other ex traordinary tales are told of this personage

by his steward Brodowski , but they are not worth repeating.

He died in 1636 , aged upwards of eighty, and was buried inhis own chapel at Gravarna. Several works upon alchymyhave been published under his name.

Tim Rosmaucu x s.

It was during the time of the last-mentioned author that the

sect of the Rosicrucians first began to create a sensation in

Europe. The influence which they ex ercised upon opin ionduring their brief career, and the permanent impression whichthey have left upon European literature, claim for them espe

cial notice. Before their time, alchymy was but a grovellindelusion ; and theirs is the merit of having spiritualized andrefined it. They also enlarged its sphere

,and supposed the

possession of the philosopher ’s stone to be, not only the meansof wealth, but of health and happiness ; and the instrument

by which man could command the services Of superior beings,control the elements to his will, defy the obstructions of timeand space, and acquire the most intimate knowledge of all the

secrets of the universe. W ild and vis ionary as they were,they were not without their uses ; if it were only for havingpurged the superstitions of Europe of the dark and di sgustingforms with which the monks had peopled it, and substituted,in their stead, a race of mild

, graceful, and beneficent beings.They are said to have derived their names from Christian

Rosencreutz, or Rose- cross,

”a German philosopher, who

travelled in the Holy Land towards the close of the fourteenthcentury . While dangerously ill at a place called D amcar, he

was visited by some learned Arabs, who claimed him as their

brother in science,and unfolded to him,

by inspiration , allthe secrets of his past life, both Of thought and Of action .

They restored him to health by means of the philosopher’

s

stone, and afterwards instructed him in all their mysteries.

H e returned to Europe in 1401, being then only twenty - threeyears of age ; and drew a chosen number Of his friends aroundhim

, whom he initiated into the new science, and bound by

TH! ALOHYHIBTS .

solemn oaths to keep it secret for a century. He is said to

have lived eighty- three years after this period, and to have

died in 1484.Many have denied the ex istence of such a personage as

Rosencreutz, and have fix ed the origin of this sect at a much

later epoch. The first dawning of it, they say, is to be found

in the theories of Paracelsus, and the dreams Of D r. D ee, who,without intending it, became the actual, though never therecognised founders of the Rosicrucian philosophy. It is now

diflicult, and indeed impossible, to determinewhether D ee and

Paracelsus Obtained their ideas from the then obscure and

unknown Rosicrucians, or whether the Rosicrucians did butfollow and improve upon them. Certain it is, that their ex istence was never suspected till the year 1605 , when they beganto ex cite attention in Germany. No sooner were their doctrinespromulgated, than all the visionaries, Paracelsists, and alebymists

,flocked around their standard, and vaunted Rosencreutz

as the new regenerator of the human race. Michael Mayer, acelebratedphysician ofthat day, andwhohadimpairedhishealthand was ted hi s fortune in searching for the philosopher

’

s stone,

drew up a report Of the tenets and ordinances of the new fraternity, whichwas published at Cologne, in the year 16 15 . Theyasserted

,in the first place, that themeditations of their foun

ders surpassed everything that had ever been imagined since

the creation of the world, without even ex cepting the revelations Of the Deity ; that they were destined to accomplish the

general peace and regeneration Of man before the end of the

world arrived ; that they possessed all wisdom and piety in a

supreme degree ; that they possessed all the graces Of nature,and could distribute them among the rest Of mankind according to their pleasure ; that they were subject to neither hunger,n or thirst, nor disease, nor Old age, nor to any other inconven ience of nature ; that they knew by inspiration, and at the

first glance, every one who was worthy to be admitted into

their society ; that they had the same knowledge then whichthey would have possessed if they had lived from the beginning of the world, and had been always ac u iring it ; that

they had a volume in which they could read a 1 that ever wasor ever would be written in other books till the end Of time ;that the could force to, and retain in their service the most

powerf spirits and demons ; that, by the virtue of their

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THE ALOHYH ISTS .

For eight years these enthusiasts made converts in Ger

many ; but they ex cited little or no attention in other partsof Europe. At lest they made their appearance in Paris,and threw all the learned, all the credulous, and all the

lovers of the marvellous into commotion . In the beginningof March 16 2 3, the good folks of that city, when they arose

one morain were surprised to find all their walls placarded

with the fofiowing singular man ifesto

We, the deputies of theprincipal College of the B rethrenof the R ose- cross, have taken up our abode, visible and in

visible, in this city, by the grace of the Most H igh, towards

whom are turned the hearts of the just. We show and teach

w ithout books or signs, and speak all sorts of languages inthe countries where we dwell, to draw mankind, our fellowe,from error andfrom death.

”

For a long time this strange placard was the sole topic ofconversation in all public places. Some few wondered ; butthe greater number only laughed at it. In the course of a

few weeks two books were published, which raised the firstalarm respecting this mysterious society, whose dwelling- placeno one knew,

and no members of which had ever been seen .

The first was called a history of The frightful Compactsentered into between the Devil and the pretended Invisible t

wi th their damnable Instructions,the deplorable Ru in of

their Disciples,and their miserable End.

”The other was

called an“Ex amination of the new and unknown Cabala of

the Brethren of the Rose- cross, who have lately inhabited

blaze of light, and discovered a very fair vault. At the upper end of it

was a statue of a man in armour, sitting by a table, and leaning on his

left arm . He held a truncheon in his right hand, and had a lamp burningbefore him. The man had no sooner set one foot within the vau lt, than

the statue, erecting i tself from its leaning posture, stood bolt upright ; and,upon the fellow

’

s advancing another step, lifted up the truncheon in his

ri ght hand. The man still ventured a third step when the statue, w ith a

furi ous blow, broke the lamp into a thou sand pieces , andJ eft his guest insu dden darkness. Upon the report of this adventure, the country peoplecame w i th lights to the sepulchre, and discovered that the statue, which

was made of brass, was nothing more than a piece of clock - work ; that the

floor of the vault was all loose, and underlaid wi th several springs, which,upon any man

’s entering, naturally produced that which had happened.

Rosiereucius, say his disciples, made use of this method to show the

world that he had re- invented the ever- burn ing lamps of the ancients,though he was resolved no one should reap any advantage from the dis

covery .

THE m an ners.

the City of Paris ; with the History of their Manners, the

Wonders worked by them, and many other Particulars .

These books sold rapidly. Every one was anx ious to know

something of this dreadful and secret brotherhood. The

badauds of Paris were so alarmed that they daily ex pected to

see the arch- enemy walking in propria persona among them.

It was said in these volumes, that the Rosicrucian societyconsisted of six - and- thirty persons in all, who had renounced

their baptism and hope of resurrection . That it was not bymeans of good angels, as they pretended, that they workedtheir prodigies ; but that it was the devil who gave them

power to transport themselves from one end of the world tothe other with the rapidity of thought ; to speak all lan

guages ; to have their purses always full of money, howevermuch they might spend ; to be invisible, and penetrate intothe most secret places, in spite of fastenings of bolts and

bars ; and to be able to tell the past and future. Thesethirty- six brethren were divided into bands or companies

six of them only had been sent on the mission to Paris,six

to Italy, six to Spain, six to Germany, four to Sweden, and

two into Switzerland ; two into Flanders, two into Lorraine,and two into Franche Comte. It was generally believed thatthe missionaries to France resided somewhere in Marais da

Temple. That quarter of Paris soon acquired a bad name ;and people were afraid to take houses in it

,lest they should

be turned out by the six invisibles of the Rose- cross . It was

believed by the populace, and by many others whose educa

tion should have taught them better, that persons of a mystsrious aspect used to visit the inns and hotels of Paris, andeat of the best meats, drink of the best wines, and then end

denly melt away into thin air when the landlord came with

the reckoning. That entle maidens, who went to bed alone,often awoke in the nig t and found men in bed with them

,of

shape more beautiful than the Grecian Apollo, who immediately became invisible when an alarm was raised. It was

also said that many persons found large heaps of pure goldin their houses

, without knowing from whence they came. All

Paris was in alarm. No man thought himself secure of his

goods, no maiden of her virginity, or wife of her chastity,

while these R osicrucians were abroad. In the midst of the

commotion, a second placard was issued to the followingefl

’

ect

1f any one desires to see the brethren of the R ose- cross

from curiosity only, he wi ll never commun icatewith us. But

if his w111fl really induces him to inscribe his name in the

abode. Thought alone, in un ison with the sincere will ofthoee who desirc to know us, is swflicient to makc ue known tothem,

and them to us.

Though the ex istence of such a society as that of the Rose

cross was problematical, it was quite evident that somebodyor other was concerned i n the promul tion of these placardswhich were stuck up on every wall 111%aris. The police en

deavoured i n vain to find out the ofl'

enders, and their want of

success only served to increase the perplex ity of the public.

The church very soon took up the question ; and the Abbe

Gaultier, a Jesuit, wrote a book to prove that, by their enmityto the Pope, they could be no other than disciples of Luther,sent to promulgate his heresy. Their very name, he added

,

proved that they were heretics ; a cross surmounted by a rose

being the heraldic device of the arch- heretic Luther. One

Garasse said they were a confraternity of drunken impostorsand that their name was derived from the garland of roses,

in the form of a cross, hun over the tables of taverns in

Germany as the emblem o secrecy, and from whence was

derived the common saying, when one man communicated a

secret to another, that it was said“under the rose.

” Othersinterpreted the letters F . R . C . to mean, not Brethren of the

Rose- cross, but Fratres B oris C’oocti , or Brothers of BoiledD ew and ex plained this appellation by alleging that theycollected large quantities of morning dew,

and boiled it, inorder to ex tract a very valuable ingredient 111 the compositionof the philosopher’8 stone and the water of life.

The fratern ity thus attacked defended themselves as well

as they were able. The denied that they used magic of anykind

,or that they consu ted the devil. They said they were

all happy that they had lived more than a century, and

ex pected to live many centuries more and that the intimate

knowledge which they possessed of all nature was communi

cated to them by God himself as a reward for their piety and

utter devotion to his service Those were in error who deV OL . 11 .

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THE ALOHYH ISTS .

dines, to be beloved by a woman . The object of this passion,in returning their love, imparted a portion of that celestial fire

to the soul and from that time forth the beloved became equalto the lover, and both, when their allotted course was run,

entered together into the mansions of felicity. These spirits,they said, watched constantly over mankind by night and

day. Dreams, omens, and presentimentswere all their works,and the means by which they gave warning of the approachof danger. But

, though so well inclined to befriend man fortheir own sakes, the want of a soul rendered them at times

capricious and revengeful : they took ofl'

ence on slight causes,and heaped injuries instead of benefits on the heads of those

who ex tinguished the light of reason that was in them,by

gluttony, debauchery, and other appetites of the body.

The ex citement produced in Paris by the placards of thebrotherhood, and the attacks of the clergy, wore itself awayafter a few months . The stories circulated about them he

came at last too absurd even for that age of absurdity, andmen began to laugh once more at those invisible gentlemenand their fantastic doctrines. Gabriel Naudé at that con

juncture brought out his Avis a la France sur les Fréres dea Rose- croix

,

”in which he very successfully ex posed the

folly Of the new sect. This work, though not well written ,was well timed. It quite ex tinguished the Rosicrucians of

France ; and, after that year, li ttle more was heard of them .

Swindlers, in difl'

erent parts of the country, assumed the

name at times to cloak their depredations and now and then

one of them was caught, and hanged for his too great in

genuity in enticing pearls and precious stones from the

pockets Of other people into his own, or for passing ofl’

lumpsof gilded brass for pure gold, made by the agency of the

philosopher ’s stone. With these ex ceptions, oblivion shroudedthem .

The doctrine was not confined to a sphere so narrow as

France alone ; it still flourished in Germany, and drew manyconverts in England. The latter countries produced two

eat masters, in the persons of Jacob BOhmen and Robertludd ; pretended philosophers, of whom it is diflicult to say

which was themore absurd and ex travagant. It would appearthat the sect was divided into two classes,—the brothersR oscw Gracie, who devoted themselves to the wonders of this

2 32 111111m urm urs.

sublunary sphere ; and the brothersAuras C‘m ci s, who were

wholly occupied in the contemplation of things divine. Fludd

belonged to the first class, and B iihmen to the second. Fludd

ma be called the father of the English Rosicrucians, and as

sue merits a conspicuous niche in t e temple of FollyH e was born in the year 15 74, at Milgate, in Ken

was the son of S ir Thomas Fludd, Treasurer ofElizabeth. He was originally intended for the army ; but he

was too fond of study, and of a disposition too quiet and

retiring to shine in that sphere. His father would not, there

fore, press him to adopt a course of life for which he was an

suited, and encouraged him in the study of medicine, for

which be early manifested a partiali ty. At the age of twen

'thyfive he proceeded to the Continent ; and being fond of e

abstruse, themarvellous, and the incomprehensible, he becamean ardent disciple of the school of Paracelsus,whom he lookedupon as the regenerator, not only of medicine, but of phi

losophy. He remained six years in Italy, France, and Germany ; storing his mind with fantastic notions, and seekingthe society of enthusiasts and visionaries. On his return to

England, in 1605 , he received the degree of Doctor ofMedi

cine from the University of Ox ford, and began to practise asa physician in London .

He soon made himself conspicuous. He Latinized hisname from Robert Fludd into Robertus d Fluctibus

,and

began the promulgation of many strange doctrines . He

avowed his belief in the philosopher’s stone, the water of life,and the universal alkahest ; and maintained that there werebut two principles of all things,

— which were, condensation,the boreal or northern virtue ; and rarefaction , the southernor austral virtue. A number of demons, he said

,ruled over

the human frame, whom he arranged in their places in a

rhomboid. Every disease had its peculiar demon who pro

duced it,which demon could only be combated by the aid of

the demon whose place was directly opposite to his in the

rhomboidal figure. Of his medical notions we shall havefurther occasion to speak in another part of this book

, when

we consider him in his character as one of the first foundersof the magnetic delusion, and its off

- shoot, animal magnetism,

which has created so much sensation in our own day.

As if the doctrines alreadymentionedwerenotwild enough,

THE ALOHYH IBTG.

he joined the Rosicrucians as soon as they began to make a

sensation in Europe, and succeeded in raising himself to highconsideration among them. The fratern ity having been vio

lent

Lyattacked by several German authors, and among others

by ibavius, Fludd volunteered a reply, and published, in16 16

, his defence of the Rosicrucian philosophy, under thetitle of the “Apologia, compendi

'

aria, Fraternitatem de Rosea

cruce, Suspicionis et Infamise maculis aspersam,abluens.

”

This work immediately procured him great renown upon the

Continent, and he was henceforth looked upon as one of the

high- priests of the sect. Of so much importance was he con

sidered, that Keppler and Gassendi thought it necessary torefute him and the latter wrote a complete ex amination

of his doctrine. Mersenne also, the friend of Descartes, andwho had defended that philosopher when accused of havingjoined the Rosicrucians, attacked Dr. 1 Fluctibus, as be preferred to be called, and showed the absurdity of the Rose- crossin general, and Dr. 1 Fluctibus in particular. Fluctibus wrotea long reply, 111 whi ch he called Mersenne an ignorant calumniator

,and reiterated that alchymy was a profitable science,

and the Rosicrucians worthy to be the regenerators of the

world. This book was published at Frankfort, and was entitled Summum Bonum,

quod est Magise, Cabalee, Alchimies,FratrumHoseas - Crucis verorum, et adversus Mersenium Calumn iatorem. Besides this, he wrote several other works uponalchymy, a second answer to L ibavius upon the Rosicrucians,and many medical wei ks He died i n London i n 1637 .

After his time there was some diminution of the sect in

England. They ex cited but little attention , and made no

efl'

ort to bring themselves into notice. Occasiop ally, some

Obscure and almost incomprehensible work made i ts appearance

,to show the world that the folly was not ex tinguished.

Eugenius Philalethes, a noted alchymist, who has veiled his

real name under this assumed one, translated“The Fame and

Confession of the Brethren of the Rosie Cross,”which was

published in London in 16 5 2 . A few years afterwards,another enthusiast, named John Heydon, wrote two works on

the subject . the one entitled The Wise \Ian’

s Crown , or theGlory of the Rosie Cross and the other, “The Holy Guide,leading the way to unite Art and Nature, with the RosieCrosse uncovered. Neither of these attracted much notice.

2 0“

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TH! ALOHYMIBTB.

isaaks, Sir Christopher Heydon, who had no mouths, andnot eat, but lived by the breath of their

;rils ; ex cept when they took a far j ourney, and then theyided there diet with the smell of flowers. He said that inly pure air there was a fine forci fatness,

”with which

as sprinkled by the sunbeams, an which was quite sufli

it for the nourishment of the generality of mankind.

so who had enormous appetites he had no objection to see

9 animal food, since they could not do without it ; but he

i nately insisted that there was no necessity wh they11d eat it. If they put a plaster of nicely cookedmeat11 their epigastrium,

it would be suflicient for the wants of

most voracious ! They would by that means let in no

ases, as they did at the broad and common gate, the mouth,me might see by ex ample of drink ; for, all the while a

1 sat in water, he was never athirst. He had known, he1, many Rosicrucians, who, by applying wine in this man

had fasted for years together. In fact, quoth Heydon,may easily fast all our life, though it be three hundredrs, without any kind of meat

,and so cut ofl

'

all danger of

‘his “

sage philosopher further informed the wonderingtemporaries that the chiefs of the doctrine always carriedat with them to their place of meeting their symbol, calledR . C .

,which was an ebony cross, flourished and decked

1 roses Of gold the cross typifying Christ’

s sufferingsn the Cross for our sins

,and the roses of gold the glory

beauty of his Resurrection . This symbol was carried'm ate to Mecca, Mount Calvary

,Mount S inai, Haran

,

to three other places,which must have been in mid- air

,

ed Cascle, Apamia, and Ulzaulateau V irissa Cannach,ire the Rosicrucian brethren met when they pleased, andle resolution of all their actions . They always took theiri sures in one of these places, where they resolved all ques

18 of whatsoever had been done, was done, or should be

e, in the world, from the beginn ing to the end thereof.11dt

hese, he concludes, are the men called Rosiorui s

.

‘owards the end of the seventeenth century, more rational18 took possession Of the sect

,which still continued to

st of a few members. They appear to have considered

2 86 'rmi m ariners.

that contentment was the true phi losopher’

s stone, and to

have abandoned the insane search for a mere phantom of the

imagination . Addison , in The gives an ac

count Of his conversation with a Rosicrucian ; from which it

may be- inferred that the sect had grown wiser in their deeds,

though in their talk they were as foolish as ever. I wasonce, says he, engaged in discourse with a R osicrucian

about the cat secret. H e talked of the secret as of a spiritwhich live within an emerald, and converted everything thatwas near it to the highest perfection that it was capable of.‘It gives a lustre,

’

says he,‘to the sun , and water to the

diamond. It irradiates every metal, and enriches lead withall the properties of gold. It heightens smoke into flame,flame into light, and 11 ht into glory.

’

He further added

that a single ray of it di ssipates pain , and care, and melancholy from the person on whom it falls. In short

,says be,

‘its presence naturally changes every place into a kind of

heaven .

’ After he had gone on for some time in this unin

telligible cant, I found that he jumbled natural and moral

ideas together into the same discourse,and that his great

secret was nothing else but content.”

JACOB BOHMEN .

It is now time to speak of Jacob Bohmen , who thought hecould discover the secret of the transmutation of metals in

the Bible, and who invented a strange heterogeneous doctrineof m ingled alchymy and religion, and founded upon it a sect

of the Aurea - crucians. He was born at GOrlitz, in UpperLusatia

,in 15 75 ; and followed, till his thirtieth year, the oc

cupation of a shoemaker . In this obscurity he remained,with the character of a visionary and a man of u nsettled

mind, until the promulgation of the Rosicrucian phi losophyin his part of Germany, towards the year 1607 or 1608.

From that time he began to neglect his leather, and buriedhis brain under the rubbish of metaphysics. The works of

Par. celsus fell into his hands ; and these, with the reveries ofthe ltosicrucians

,so completely engrossed his attention that

No. 5 74. Fri day, July 3011 , 1714.

THE ALOHYMIBTS .

eabandoned his trade altogether, sinking at the same time,em a state of comparative independence into poverty and

But he was nothing daunted by the miseries11d privations of theflesh ; his mindwas fix edupon the beingsf another sphere, and in thought he was already the new

pestle of the human race. In the year 1612 , after1tion of four ears, he published hi s first work, entitled

Aurora ; or, he R ising of the Sun embodying the ridi1lous notions of Paracelsus, and worse confounding the con!sion of that writer. The philosopher’s stone might, he conmded, be discovered by a diligent search of the Old and'

ew Testaments, and more especially of the Apocalypse,hich alone contained all the secrets of alchymy. He

intended that the Divine Grace Operated by the same

flea, and followed the same methods, that the Divine Proidence observed in the natural world ; and that the minds

imen were purged from their vices and corruptions in the

ary same manner that metals were purified from their dress,amely, by fire.

Besides the sylphs, gnomes, undines, and salamanders, he

:knowledged various ranks and orders of demons. He pre

n ded to invisibility and absolute chastity. He also said

it pleased him, he could abstain for years from meat1d drink, and all the necessities of the body. It is needless,1wever, to pursue his follies any further. He was repri

anded for writing this work by the magistrates of Gorlitz,1d commanded to leave the pen alone and stick to his wax ,1at his family might not become chargeable to the parish.

e neglected this good advice, and continued his studies ;im ing minerals and purifying metals one day, and mystify

g the Word of God on the nex t. He afterwards wrote

1ree other works, as sublimely ridiculous as the first.be one was entitled Metallurgia,

”and has the slight merit

bein the least obscure of his compositions. An other

as cal ed The Temporal Mirror of Eternity ; and the

st hi s Theosophy revealed,”full Of allegories and meta

All strange and geason ,Devoid of sense and ordinary reason .

Bohmen died in 16 24, leaving behind him a considerableumber of admiring disciples. Many of them became, during

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THE AL CHYMIBTS .

nes, or water- sprites. German romance and lyrical poetry

em with allusions to sylphs, gnomes, undines,.

and salaman

1rs ; and the French have not been behind i n substitutingism,

in works of fiction , for the more cumbrous mythologyGreece and Rome. The sylphs, more especially, have beenas favourites of the bards, and have become so familiar to

16 popular mind as to be,in a manner, confounded with that

her race of ideal beings, the fairies, who can boast of an

1tiquity much more venerable in the annals of superstition.

.eving these obligations to the Rosicrucians, no lover of

1stry can wish, however absurd they were, that such a sect'

phi1080phers had never ex isted.

BORR I .

Just at the time that Michael Mayer was making known to1e world the ex istence of such a body as the Rosicrucians,m mwas born in Italy a man who was afterwards destined1 become the most conspicuous member of the fratern ity.

he alchymic man ia never called forth the ingenuit of a

ore consummate or more successful impostor than Josephrancis Borri . He was born in 16 16 according to some eu

1orities,and in 16 2 7 according to others, at Milan ; where

is father, the S ignor Branda Borri, practised as a physician .

.t the age of si x teen , Joseph was sent to finish his educationthe Jesui t’s College in Rome, where he distinguished himlf by his ex traordinary memory. He learned ever thing1 which he applied himself w ith the utmost case. In the

cat voluminous works no fact was too minute for his retenou ,

and no study was so abstruse but that he could masterbut any advantages he might have derived from this faci

ty, were neutralized by his ungovernable passions and hisive of turmoil and debauchery . He was involved in continual

ifi culty, as well with the heads of the college as with the

slice of Rome,and acqu ired so bad a character that years

mld not remove it. By the aid of his friends he establishedimself as a phy sician in Rome, and also obtained some situa

on in the Pope’

5 household. In one of his fits of studious

ess he grew enamoured of alchymy, and determined to devoteis energies to the discoverv of the philosopher

’

8 stone. Of

240 m s m an ners.

unfortunate propensities he had quite sufi cient, besides this,to brin him to poverty. H is pleasures were as ex pensive as

hi s stu'

es, and both were of a nature to destroy his health

and ruin his fair fame. At the age of thirty- seven he found

that he could not live by the practice of medicine, and began

to look about for some other employment. He became, in

1653 , private secretary to the Marquis di Mirogli, the minister of theArchduke of Innspriick at the court of R ome. He

continued in thi s capacity for two years ; leading, however,the same abandoned life as heretofore, frequenting the seein

gof gamesters , debauchees, and loose women, involving himsein dis raceful street quarrels, and alienating the patrons who

were esirous to befriend him.

All at once a sudden chan e was observed in his conduct.

The abandoned rake put on t e outward sedateness of a hi~

losopher the scofling sinner proclah ed that he had forei enhis evil ways

,and would live henceforth a model of virtue.

To his friends this reformation was as pleasing as it was unex

pected and Borri gave Obscure hints that it had been broughtabout by some miraculous man ifestation of a superior power.He pretended that he held converse with beneficent spirits ;that the secrets of God and nature were revealed to him ; andthat he had Obtained possession of the philosopher ’

s stone.

Like his predecessor, Jacob BOhmen , be mix ed up religious

questions with his philosophical jargon, and took measures fordeclaring himself the founder of a new sect. This, at Romeitself, and in the very palace of the Pepe, was a hazardous

proceeding and Borri just awoke to a sense of it in time to

save himself from the dungeons of the Castle of S t. Angelo.

H e fled to Innspriick, where he remained about a year, andthen returned to hi s native city Of Milan .

The reputation of his great sanctity had gone before him;and he found many persons ready to attach themselves to his

fortunes. All who were desirous of entering into the new

communion took an oath of poverty, and relinquished theirpossessions for the general good of the fratern ity . B orri toldthem that he had received from the archangel Michael aheavenly sword

,upon the hilt of which were engraven the

names of the seven celestial Intelligences. Whoever shall

refuse,

said he,“to enter into my new sheepfold, shall be

destroyed by the papal armies, of whom God has predestined

THE ALCHYMISTS .

me to be the chief. TO those who follow me, all joy shall be

granted. I shall soon bring my chemical studies to a happyconclusion by the discovery of the philosopher ’s stone

,and b

this means we shall all have as much gold as we desire. lam assured of the aid of the angelic hosts, andmore especiallyof the archangel Michael

’

s. When I began to walk in the

way of the Sp i rit, I had a vision of the night, andwas assuredb an angelic voice that I should become a prophet. In sign

ofit I saw a palm- tree, surroundedwith all the glory of Paradise. The angels come to me whenever I call, and reveal tome all the secrets Of the universe. The sylphs and elemen

tary spirits obey me, and fly .to the uttermost ends of the

world to serve me, and those whom I delight to honour.” By

force of continually repeating such stories as these,Borri

soon found himself at the head Of a very considerable numberof adherents. As he figures in these pages as an alchymist,and not as a religious sectarian, it M“be unnecessary torepeat the doctrines which he taught with regard to some of

the dogmas of the Church of Rome, and which ex posed him tothe fierce resentment of the papal authority. They were to

the full as ridiculous as his philosophical pretensions. As the

number of his followers increased, he appears tohave cherishedthe idea of becoming one day a newMahomet

,and of founding,

in his native city of Milan , a monarchy and religion of which

he should be the king and the prophet. He had taken mea

sures, in the year 1658, for seizing the guards at all the gatesof that city, and formally declaring himself the monarch Of

the Milanese. Just as he thought the plan ripe for ox eention , it was discovered. Twenty of his followers were arrested

,

and he himself managed, with the utmost difficulty, to escape

to the neutral territory of Switzerland, where the papal dis

pleasure could not reach him .

The trial of his followers commenced forthwith,and the

whole of them were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. Borri ’s trial proceeded in his absence

,and lasted for

upwards of two years. He was condemned to death as a

heretic and sorcerer in 1661,and was burned in efligy in

R ome by the common hangman .

Borri, in the mean time,lived

quietly in Switzerland

,

indulging himself in railing at the nquisition and its pro

ceedings. He afterwards v

gpnt to S trasbourg, intending

V O L . 11.

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

merchant, named D e Meer, to aid, as he said, in discoveringthe water of life. He also Obtained six diamonds, of greatvalue, on pretence that he could remove the flaws from them

w ithout diminishing their weight. With this bootyhe stole

away secretly by n ight, and proceeded to HamburgOn his arrival in that city, he found the celebrated Chris

tina, the ex - Queen of Sweden . He procured an introductionto her, and requested her patronage in his endeavour to discover the philoso

’

pher ’s stone. She gave him some encouragement ; but Berri, fearin that the merchants of Amsterdam,

who had connex ions ingHamburgh, might ex pose his deliu

gzuencies if he remained in the latter city, passed over toopenha en , and sought the protection of Frederic III .

,the

King of enmark.

This Prince was a firm believer in the transmutation of

metals. Being in want of money, be readily listened to theplans of an adventurer who had both eloquence and ability torecommend him. He provided Borri wi th the means to makeex periments, and took a great interest in the progress of hisoperations. He ex pected every month to possess riches thatwould buy Peru ; and

,when he was disappointed, accepted

patiently the ex cuses of Berri who, upon every failure, wasalways ready w ith some plausible ex planation . He became,in time, much attached to him ; and defended him from the

jealous attacks of his courtiers, and the indignation of those

who were grieved to see their monarch the easy dupe of a

charlatan . Berri endeavoured, by every means in his power,to find aliment for this good opinion . H is knowledge of

medicine was useful to him in this respect, and often stood

between him and disgrace. He lived six years in this mannerat the court of Frederic ; but that monarch dying in 1670, hewas left without a protector .As he had mademore enemies than friends in Copenhagen,

and had nothing to hope from the succeeding sovereign , hesought an asylum in another country . He went first toS ax ony ; but met so little encouragement, and encounteredso much danger from the emissaries Of the Inquisition

,

that he did not remain there many months. Anticipatin

n othing but persecution in every country that acknowledgedthe spiritual authority of the Pope, he appears to have takenthe resolution to dwell in Turkey, and turn Mussulman . On

THE ALCHYMISTS .

his arrival at the Hungarian frontier, on his way to Constantinople, he was arrested on suspicion of being concerned inthe conspiracy of the Counts Nadasdi and Frangipan i , whi chhad just been discovered. In vain he protested his innocence,and divulged his real name and profession . He was detained

in prison , and a letter despatched to the Emperor Leopold toknow what should be done with him. The star of his fortuneswas on the decline. The letter reached Leopold at an unluckymoment. The Pope’

s Nuncio was closeted with his Majesty;and he no sooner heard the name of Joseph Francis Berri,than he demanded him as a prisoner of the Holy S ee. The

request was complied with and Berri , closely manacled, was

sent under an escort of soldiers to the prison of the Inquisitionat Rome. He was too much Of an immstor to be deeply tingedwith fanaticism,

and was not unwilling to make a publicrecantation of his heresies if he could thereby save his life.

When the proposition was made to him,he accepted it with

eagerness. H is pun ishment was to be commuted into the

hardly less severe one Of perpetual impri sonment ; but he wastoo happy to escape the clutch of the ex ecutioner at any price,and he made the amends honorable in face Of the assembledmultitudes of Rome on the 2 7th of October, 167 2 . He was

then transferred to the prisons of the Castle of S t. Angelo,where he remained till his death, twenty - three years after

wards. It is said that, towards the close of his life, conside

rable indulgence was granted him ; that he was allowed to

have a laboratory, and to cheer the soli tude of his dungeon

by searching for the philosopher’s stone. Queen Christina,during her residence at Rome, frequently visited the Old man,to converse with him upon chemistry and the doctrines of theRosicrucians. She even obtained permission that he should

leave his prison occasionally for a day or two, and reside in herpalace, she being responsible for his return to captivity . She

encouraged him to searchfor the great secret of the alchymists,and provided him with money for the purpose. It may well

be supposed that Borri benefited most by this acquain tance,and that Christina got nothing but ex perience. It is not sure

that she gained even that for,until her dying day, she was

convinced of the possibility of finding the philosopher’

s stone,

and ready to assist any adventurer ei ther zealous or impudentenough pretend to it.

THE ALCHYMISTB.

After Borri had been about eleven years in confinement, a

small volume was published at Cologne, entitled The Keyof the Cabinet of the Chevalier Joseph Francis Berri ; inwhich are contained many curious Letters upon Chemistryand other Sciences, written bf him ; together with a Memoir

of his Life.

” This book contained a complete ex position of

the Rosicrucian phi losophy,and afl

'

orded materials to the

Abbede Villars for his interesting Count de Gabalis, which

ex cited so much attention at the close of the seventeenth

century.

Borri lingered in the prison Of S t. Angelo till 1695, when

he died in his eightieth ear. Besides The Key of the

Cabinet, written original y in Copenha en, in 1666 , for the

edification of King Frederic III.,he pu lished a work upon

alchymy and the secret sciences, under the title of The

Mission of Romulus to the Romans.

”

INFER IOR ALCHYMISTS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY .

Besides the pretenders to the philosopher ’s stone whose

lives have been already narrated,this and the preceding cen

tury produced a great number of writers, who inundatedli terature with their books upon the subject. In fact

,most

of the learned men of that age had some faith in it. V an

H elmont, Borrichius, Kirchen , Boerhaave, and a score of

others, though not professed alchymists, were fond Of the

science, and countenanced its professors . Helvetius, the

g randfather of the celebrated philosopher of the same name,asserts that he saw an inferior metal turned into gold by a

stranger, at the Hague, in 1666 . He says that, sitting one

day in his study, a man,who was dressed as a respectable

burgher of North Holland, and very modest and simple inhis appearance, called upon him with the intention of dis

pelling his doubts relative to the philosopher ’s stone. He

asked Helvetius if he thought he should know that rare gemif he saw it. To which Helvetius replied that he certain lyshould not. The burgher immediately drew from his pocketa small ivory box , contain ing three pieces of metal, of the

colour of brimstone, and ex tremely heavy ; and assured Hel

vetiua, that of them he could make as much as twenty tons of

gold. Helvetius informs 11

2 ,“that he ex amined them very

1

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

to refute this formidable antagonist. One Solomon de Blaii

en stein was the first to grapple with him,and attempted to

convict him of wilful misrepresentation , by recallin to his

memory the transmutations ofSendivogius, before the mperor

Frederic III ., and the Elector of Mayence ; all performed

within a recent period. Zwelfer and Glauber also enteredinto the dis ute

,and attributed the enmity of Father Kircher

to spite andjealousy against adepts who had been more successful than himself.

It was also pretended that Gustavus Adolphus transmuteda quantity of quicksilver into pure gold. The learned Borrichius relates

,that he saw coins which had been struck of this

gold ; and Lenglet du Fresnoy deposes to the same circumstance. In the Travels Of Monconi s the story is told in thefollowing manner A merchant of Lubeck, who carried on

but little trade,but who knew how to change lead into very

good gold, gave the King of Sweden a lingot which he had

made, weighing, at least, one hundred pounds. The Kingimmediately caused it to be coined into ducats ; and becausehe knew positively that its origin was such as had been stated

to him,he had his own arms graven upon the one side

,and

emblematical figures of Mercury and Venus on the other.I,”continued Moncon is,

“have one of these ducats in my

possession and was credi bly informed, that, after the deathof the Lubeck merchant, who had never appeared very rich,a sum of no less than one million seven hundred thousandcrowns was found in hisS uch stories as these, confidently related by men high in

station , tended to keep up the infatuation of the alchymists

in every country of Europe. It is aston ishing to see the num

ber of works which were written upon the subject during the

seventeenth century alone,and the number of clever men who

sacrificed themselves to the delusion . Gabriel de Castaigne,a monk of the order of St. Francis, attracted so much notice

in the rei of Louis XIII ., that that monarch secured him in

his houselil

bld, and made him his Grand Almoner. He pre

tended to find the elix ir of life ; and Louis ex pected, by hismeans, to have enjoyed the crown for a century . V an Hel

mont also pretended to have once performed with success the

Voyages de Monconis, tome p. 879 .

248 Tim ALcnri i i srs.

process of transmuting quicksilver ; and was, in consequence,invited by the Emperor Rudolph II. to fix his residence at the

court of Vienna. Glauber, the inventor of the salts which

still bear his name, and who practised as a physician at Am

sterdam about the middle of the seventeenth century, established a public school in that city for the study of alchymy,and gave lectures himself upon the science: John JoachimBecher, of Spire, acquired great reputation at the same pe

ried ; and was convinced that much gold might be made out

of flint stones by a peculiar process, and the aid Of that grandand incomprehensible substance, the philosopher

’

s stone. He

made a proposition to the Emperor Leopold of Austria, to aidhim in these ex periments ; but the hope of success was too te

mote, and the present ex pense too great to tempt that me

nareh ; and he therefore gave Becher much of his praise,but

none of his money . Becher afterwards tried the S tates- Osneral of Holland

,with no better success.

With regard to the innumerable tricks by which impostorspersuaded the world that they had succeeded in mak ing gold,and of which so many stories were current about this period,a very satisfactory report was read by M . Geofl

'

roy, the elder,at the sitting of the Royal Academy of Sciences, at Paris, onthe 15 th of April, 17 2 2 . As it relates principally to the

alchymic cheats of the six teenth and seventeenth centuries,the follow ing abridgment of it may not be out of place in thisportion of our history :— The instances of successful transmutation were so numerous, and apparently so well authenticated,that nothing short of so able an ex posure as that of M . Geodroy could disabuse the public mind. The trick to which theyoftenest had recourse, was to use a double- bottomed crucible,the under surface being of iron or copper, and the upper oneof wax , painted to resemble the same metal. Between the

two they placed as much gold or silver dust as was necessaryfor their purpose. They then put in their lead

,qu icksilver,

or other ingredients, and placed their pet upon the fire. Of

course, when the ex periment was concluded, they never failedto find a lump of gold at the bottom . The same result wasproduced in many other ways. Some of them used a hollow

wand,filled with gold or silver dust

,and stopped at the ends

with wax or butter. With this they stirred the boiling metalin their crucibles, taking care to accompany the operation

THE ALCHYHISTS .

with many ceremonies, to divert attention from the real pur

pose Of the manoeuvre. They also drilled holes in lumps ofead, into which they poured molten gold, and carefully closedthe aperture with the original metal. Sometimes they washeda piece of gold with quicksilver . When in this state theyfound no difliculty in palming it ofl

'

upon the un in itiated as an

inferior metal, and very easily transmuted it into fine sono

rous gold again, with the aid of a little aquafortis.

Others imposed by means of nails, half i ron and half gold

or silver . They pretended that they really transmuted the

precious half from iron , by dipping it in a strong alcohol. M .

Geofl'

roy produced several of these nails to the Academy of

S ciences, and showed how n icely the two parts were solderedtogether . The golden or silver half was painted black to re

semble iron, and the colour immediately disappeared when thenail was dipped into aquafortis. A nail Of this descri tionwas

,for a long time

,in the cabinet of the Grand Duke of

Tuscany. Such also,said M . Gcofl

’

roy, was the kn ife presented by a monk to Queen Elizabeth of England ; the bladeof which was half gold and half steel. Nothing at one time

was more common than to see coins, half gold and half silver,

which had been operated upon by alchymists, for the same

purposes of trickery . In fact, says M . Geofl'

roy, in con

cluding his long report, there is every reason to believe thatall the famous histories which have been handed down to us

,

about the transmutation of metals into gold or silver, by meansof the powder of projection , or philosophical cli x irs, are foundedu pon some successful deception of the k ind above narrated.

These pretended philos0phers invariably disappeared after thefirst or second ex periment, or their powders or elix irs havefailed to produce their effect, either because attention beingex cited they have found no opportun ity to renew the trickw ithout being discovered, or because they have not had sufli

c ient gold dust for more than one trial.The disinterestedness Of these would- be philosOphers looked,

at first sight, ex tremely imposing. Instances were not rare,in which they generously abandoned all the profits of theirtransmutations—e ven the honour of the discovery ! But this

apparent disinterestedness was one of the most cunn ing of

their manoeuvres . It served to keep up the popular ex pectation ; it showed the possibility of discovering the philosopher

’

s

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THE ALCHYMIBTS .

of his operations is given in a letter addressed by M . de!

Ce

y, the Prior of Chateauneuf, in the Diocese of Riez, inProvence, to the Vicar of S t. Jacques du Hautpas, at Paris,and dated the 18th of November, 1706

I have something to relate to you, my dear cousin , whichwill be interestin to you and your friends. The philoso

pher’

s stone, whio so many persons have looked upon as a ,

chimera, is at last found. It is a man named Delisle, of theparish of Sylanez, and residing within a quarter of a league

of me, that has discovered this great secret. He turns leadinto gold, and iron into silver, by merely heating these metalsred hot, and pouring upon them,

in that state, some Oil and

powderhe is possessed of so that it would not be impossiblefor any man to make a million a- day, if he had suflicient of

this wondrous mix ture. Some Of the pale gold which he hadmade in this manner, he sent to the jewellers of Lyons, tohave their opin ion on its quality. He also sold twenty poundsweight Of it to a merchant at Digne, named Tax is. All the

jewellers say they never saw such fine gold in their lives. He

makes nails, part gold, part iron , and part silver. He pro

mised to give me one of them,in a long conversation which I

had with him the other day, by order of the Bishop of Senés,who saw his operations with his own eyes, and detailed all the

c ircumstances to me.

The. Baron and B aroness de Rheinwald showed me a

lingot of gold made out of pewter before their eyes by M .

D elisle. My brother - in - law Sauveur, who has wasted fifty

years of his life in this great study, brought me the other daya nail which he had seen changed into gold by Delisle, andfully convinced me that all his previous ex periments werefounded on an erroneous principle. This ex cellent workmanreceived, a short time ago, a very kind letter from the superintendent of the royal household, which I read. He ofl

'

ered

to use all his influence with the ministers to prevent any at

tempts upon his liberty, which has twice been attacked by theagents of government. It is believed that the oil he makesuse of

,is gold or silver reduced to that state. He leaves it

for a long time ex posed to the rays of the sun . He told me

that it generally took him si x months to make all his preparations. I told him that, apparently, the King wanted to see

him. He replied that he could not ex ercise his art in every

2 5 2 THE sw immers.

place, as a certain climate and temperature were absolutelynecessary to his success. The truth is, that this man appearsto have no ambition . He only keeps two horses and two

men - servants. Besides, he loves his liberty, has no politeness,and speaks very bad French ; but his judgment seems to be

solid. He was formerly no more than a blacksmith, but excelled in that trade without having been taught i t. All the

great lords and seigneurs from far and near come to visit him,

and pay such court to him,that it seems more like idolatry

than anything else. Happy would France be if this manwould discover the secret to the Kin to whom the superin

tendent has already sent some lingots But the happiness istoo great to be hoped for ; for I fear that the workman and

his secret will ex pire together . There is no doubt that thisdiscovery will make a great noise in the kingdom,

unless the

character of the man, which I have just depicted to you, prevent it. At all events, posterity will hear of him.

”

In another letter to the same person,dated the 2 7th of

January,1707 , M. de Ce

'

risy says, My dear cousin , I spoketo you in my last letter of the famous alchymist of Provence,M . Delisle. A good deal of that was only hearsay, but nowI am enabled to speak from my own ex perience. I have inmy possession a nail

,half iron and half silver

,which I made

myself. That great and admirable workman also bestowedastill greater privilege upon me—he allowed me to turn a pieceof leadwhich I had brought with me into pure gold, by meansof his wonderful oil and powder. All the country have theireyes upon this gentleman : some deny loudly

,others are incre

dulous ; but those who have seen acknowledge the truth. I

have read the passport that has been sent to him from Court,with orders that he should present himself at Paris early inthe spring. He told me that he would go willingly, and thatit was himself who fix ed the spring for his departure ; as he

wanted to collect his materials,in order that, immediately on

his introduction to the King, he might make an ex perimentworthy of his Majesty

,by converting a large quantity of lead

into the finest gold. I sincerely hope that he will not allow

his secret to die with him,but that he will communicate it to

the King . As I had the honour to dinewith him on Thursdaylast

,the 2 0th of this month, being seated at hi s side, I told

him in a whisper that he could, if he liked, humble all the

THE ALCHYMIBTB.

mice of France. He did not deny it, but began to smile.

fact, this man is the miracle of art. Sometimes he employsoil and powder mix ed, sometimes the powder only, but insmall a quantity that, when the lingot which I made wasabed all over with it, it did not show at all.

”

l‘his soft- headed priest was by no means the only personthe neighbourhood who lost his wits in hopes of the bound1wealth held out by this clever impostor. Another priest,ned D e Lions, a chanter in the cathedral of Grenoble,ting on the 30th January, 1707, says, M. Mesnard, theate of Montier, has written to me

, stating that there is a11, about thirty- five years of age, named Delisle, who turns1and iron into gold and silver ; and that this transmutationo veritable and so true, that the goldsmiths aflirm that hisd and silver are the purest and finest they ever saw. For1 years, this man was looked upon as a madman or a cheat ;the public mind is now disabused with respect to him. He

r resides with M . de la Palu, at the chfiteau of the same

ne. M . de la Palu is not very easy in his circumstances,

Iwants money to portion his daughters, who have remained

file till middle age, no man being willing to take them

out a dowry. M. Delisle has promised to make them the

met girls in the province before he goes to Court, having11 sent for by the King . He has asked for a little time

are his departure,in order that he may collect powder

ugh to make several quintals of gold before the eyes of hisjesty, to whom he intends to present them . The principalster of his wonderful powder is composed of simples, prini lly the herbs L u naria maj or and minor . There is a good1 of the first planted by him in the gardens of La Palu ;l he gets the other from the mountains, that stretch about1 leagues from Montier. What I tell on now is not a

'

O story invented for your diversion Mesnard can

1g forward many witnesses to its truth ; among others, the

hop of Senes,who saw these surprising operations per

ned ; and M . de Cerisy, whom you know well. Delislei smutes his metals in public. He rubs the lead or ironh hi s powder

,and puts it over burn ing charcoal. In a

rt time it changes colour ; the lead becomes yellow,and is

nd to be converted into ex cellent gold : the iron becomeste, and is found to be pure silver. Delisle is altogether

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THE ALOHYMISTB.

recommended to me by an influential family of this province,to prosecute Delisle for some ofl

'

ence or other which it wasalleged he had committed. But this person , in his anger

against him,having told me that he had himself been several

times the bearer of gold and silver to the goldsmiths of Nice,Aix , and Avignon, whi ch had been transmuted by Delislefrom lead and i ron , I began to waver a little in my Opinionsrespecting him . I afterwards met D eslisle at the house of

one of my friends. To please me, the famil asked D eslisleto operate before me, to which he immediately consented. Ioffered him some iron nails, which he changed into silver inthe chimney- place before six or seven credible witnesses . Itook the nails thus transmuted, and sent them by my almoner

to Imbert, the jeweller of Aix , who, having subjected them to

the necessary trial, returned them to me, saying they werevery good silver. S till, however, I was not quite satisfied.

M . de Pontchartrain havin hinted to me, two years previonely, that I should do a t ing agreeable to his Majesty if Iex amined into this business of Delisle, I resolved to do so

n ow . I therefore summoned the alchymist to come to me at

Castellane. He came ; and I had him escorted by eight or

ten vigilant men , to whom I had given notice to watch his

hands strictly. Before all of us he changed two pieces of

lead into gold and silver. I sent them both to M . de Pontchartrain ; and he afterwards informed me by a letter, nowlying before me, that he had shown them to the most ex peri

enced goldsmiths of Paris, who unanimously pronounced themto be gold and si lver of the very purest quality, and withoutalloy. former bad opinion of Delisle was now indeedM

lt was much more so when he performed transmutation five or six times before me at Senés, and made me per

form it myself before him without his putting his hand to

anything. You have seen , sir, the letter of my nephew, the

Pere Berard, of the Oratoire at Paris, on the ex perimentthat he performed at Castellane, and the truth of which Ihereby attest. Another nephew of mine, the S ieur Bourget,who was here three weeks ago, performed the same ex peri

ment in my presence, and will detail all the circumstances toon personally at Paris. A hundred persons in my diocesehave been witnesses of these things. I confess to you, sir,that, after the testimony of so many spectators and so many

THE ALCHYMISTS .

goldsmiths, and after the repeatedly an

that I saw performed, all my prejudices vanished

reason was convinced by my eyes ; and the phamtoms of impossibility which I had conjured up were dissipated by the

work of my own hands.

It now only remains for me to speak to you on the subjectof hi s person and conduct. Three suspicions have been ex

cited against him : the first, That he was implicated in some

criminal proceedings at Cisteron, and that he falsified the

coin of the realm ; the second, That the King sent him two

safe- conducts without efl'

ect ; and the third, That he still

delays going to court to operate before the King . You maysee

,sir

,that I do not hide or avoid anythin

g;As regards

the business at Cisteron , the S ieur Delisle as repeatedlyassured me that there was nothing against him which could

reasonably draw him within the pale of justice, and that he

had never carried on any calling injurious to the King’

s

service. It was true that,six or seven years ago, he had

been to Cisteron to gather herbs necessary for his powder,and that he had lodged at the house of one Pelouse, whom hethought an honest man . Pelouse was accused of clippin

L ou is d’

ors and as he had lodgedwithhim,hewas suspected

of being his accomplice. This mere suspicion, without anyproof whatever, had caused him to be condemned for contu

macy a common case enough with judges, who always procecd with much rigour against those who are absent. Durin

gmy own sojourn at Aix,it waswell known that a man

,name

Andre Aluys, had spread about reports injurious to the

character of Delisle, because he hoped thereby to avoid paying him the sum of forty L ou is that he owed him. But permitme, sir, to 0 further, and to add that, even if there werewell- founde suspicions against Delisle, we should look withsome little indulgence on the faults of a man who possesses asecret so useful to the state. As re ards the two safe- con

ducts sent him by the King, I think can answer certainlythat it was throu b no fault of his that he paid so little atten

tion to them. His year, strictly speaking, consists only of

the four summer months ; and when by any means he is

prevented from making the proper use of them,he loses a

whole year. Thus the first safe- conduct became useless bythe irruption of the Duke of Savoy in 1707 and the second

THE ALOHYMISTS .

had hardly been obtained, at the end of J11110 1708, when thesaid Delislewas insulted by a party of armed men, pretendingto act under the authority of the Count de Grignan , to whomhe wrote several letters of complaint, without receiving anyanswer, or promise that his safety would be attended to.

What I have now told you, sir, removes the third objection,and is the reason why, at the present time, he cannot go to

Paris to the King, in fulfilment of his promises made two

years ago. Two, or even three, summers have been lost tohim, owing to the continual inquietude he has laboured under.H e has, in consequence, been unable to work, and has not

collected a suflicient quantity of his oil and powder, or brou htwhat he has got to the necessary degree of perfection . Forthis reason also he could not give the S ieur dc Bourget the

portion he promised him for your inspection . If the otherday he changed some lead into gold with a few grains of his

powder, they were assuredly all he had ; for he told me that

suchwas the fact long before he knewmy nephewwas coming.

Even if he had preserved this small quantity to operatebefore the King, I am sure that

,on second thoughts, hewould

n ever have adventured with so little ; because the slightest

obstacles in the metals (their being to hard or to soft, which

is only discovered in operating)would have caused him to be

looked upon as an impostor,if,in case his first powder had

proved inefl'

ectual,he had not been possessed ofmore to renew

the ex periment and surmount the difliculty.

Permit me, sir, in conclusion , to repeat that such an artistas this should not be driven to the last ex tremity, nor forcedto seek an asylum Offered to him in other countries, but whichhe has despised, as much from his own inclinations as fromthe advice I have given him. You risk nothing in givinghim a little time

,and in hurrying him you may lose a great

deal. The genuineness of his gold can no longer be doubted,after the testimony of so many jewellers of Ai x , Lyons, andParis in its favour . As it is not his fault that the previoussafe- conducts sent to him have been of no service, it will benecessary to send him another ; for the success of which Iwill be answerable, if you will confide the matter to me, andtrust to my zeal for the service of his Majesty, to whom Ipray you to commun icate this letter, that I may be spared thejust reproaches he might one day heap upon me if heremained

2 2 “

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THE ALOHYMISTB.

of which the alchymist was seized at the castle of La Palu, inthe month of June 1711, and carried off to be imprisoned inthe Bastille.

The gendarmes were aware that their prisoner was supposedto be the lucky possessor of the philosopher’s stone, and on

the read they conspired to rob and murder him. One of them

pretended to be touched with pity for the misfortunes of thephilosopher, and ofl

'

ered to give him an opportunity to escapewhenever he could divert the attention of his companions.

Delislewas profuse in his thanks, little dreaming of the snarethat was laid for him. His treacherous friend gave notice of

the success of the stratagem so far ; and it was agreed that

D eli sle should be allowed to struggle with and overthrow one

of them while the restwere at some distance. They were thento pursue him and shoot him through the heart ; and afterrobbing the corpse of the philosopher’s stone, convey it toParis on a cart, and tell M . Desmartes that the prisoner hadattempted to escape, and would have succeeded if they hadnot fired after him and shot him through the body. At a

convenient place the schemewas ex ecuted. At a given signal

from the friendly gendarme Delisle fled, while another gendarme took aim and shot him through the thigh. Some pea

sants arriving at the instant, they were prevented from killinghim as they intended ; and he was transported to Paris

,

maimed and bleeding . He was thrown into a dungeon in the

Bastille, and obstinately tore away the bandages which the

surgeons applied to his wound. He never afterwards rosefrom his bed.

The Bishop of Senes visited him in prison, and promisedhim his liberty if he would transmute a certain quantity of

lead into gold before the King . The unhappy man had no

longer the means of carrying on the deception ; he had no

gold, and no double- bottomed crucible or hollow wand to con

ceal it in, even if he had. He would not, however, confess

that he was an impostor ; but merely said he did not knowhow to make the powder of projection , but had received a

quantity from an Italian philosopher,and had used it all in

his various transmutations in Provence. He lin ered forseven or eight months in the Bastille, and died from t e efl

'

ects

of his wound, in the forty- first year of his age.

2 60 TH! m ariners.

ALBERT At om .

This pretender to the philosopher’s stone, was the son,

by a former husband, of the woman Aluys, withwhom Delislebecame acquainted at the commencement of his career, in thecabaret by the roadside, and whom he afterwards married.

Delisle performed the part of a father towards him,and

thought he could show no stronger proof of his regard, than

by giving him the necessary instructions to carry on the de

ception which had raised himself to such a pitch of greatness.The young Aluys was an apt scholar, and soon mastered all

the jargon of the alchymists . He discoursed learnedly uponprojections, cimentations, sublimations, the elix i r of life, and

the un iversal alkahest ; and on the death of Delisle gave out

that the secret of that great adept had been commun icated to

him,and to him only . H is mother aided in the fraud, with

the hope they might both fasten themselves, in the true alebymical fashion , upon some rich dupe, who wouldenterta in themmagnificently while the operation was in progress . The fate

of Delisle was no inducement for them to stop in France. The

Provencals, it is true, entertained as high an opin ion as everof his skill, and were well inclined to believe the tales of the

young adept on whom hismantle hadfallen but the dungeons

of the Bastille were yawn ing for their prey, and Aluys and

his mother decamped with all convenient ex pedi tion . Theytravelled about the Continent for several years, sponging uponcredulous ri ch men , and now and then performing successful

transmutations by the aid of double- bottomed cruc ibles andthe like. In the year 17 2 6 , Aluys, without his mother, whoappears to have died in the interval, was at Vienna, where heintroduced himself to the Duke de R ichelieu , at that time

ambassador from the court of France. He completely deceivedthis nobleman ; he turned lead into gold (apparently)on seve

ral occasions, and even made the ambassador himself turn an

iron nail into a silver one. The Duke afterwards boasted toLenglet du Fresnoy of his achievements as an alchymist, and

regretted that he had not been able to discover the secret ofthe precious powder by which he performed them.

Aluys soon found that, although he might make a dupe of

the Duke dc Richelieu, he could not get any money from him.

THE ALOHYMISTS .

On the contrary, the Duke ex pected all his pokers and fire

shovels to be made silver, and all his pewter utensils gold ;and thought the honour of his acquaintance was rewardsufi cient for a roturier

,who could not want wealth since he

possessed so invaluable a secret. Alays seeing that so much

was ex pected of him,bade adieu to his Ex cellency, and pro

ceeded to Bohemia, accompanied by a pupil,and by a young

girl who had fallen in love with him in Vienna. Some noblemen in Bohemia received him kindly, and entertained him at

their houses for months at a time. It was his usual practiceto pretend that he possessed only a few grains of his powder,with which he would operate in any house where he intended

to fix his quarters for the season . He would make the

proprietor a present of the piece of gold thus transmuted,and promise him millions

,if he could only be provided with

leisure to gather his L unaria major and minor on their

mountain - tops, and board, lodging, and loose cash for himself,his wife, and his pupil in the interval.H e ex hausted in this manner the patience of some dozen of

p‘eople

,when

,thinking that there was less danger for him in

rance, under the young king Loui s XV ., than under his old

and morose predecessor, he returned to Provence. On his

arrival at Ai x,he presented himself before M . le Bret, the

President of the province, a gentleman who was much attachedto the pursuits of alchymy, and had great hopes of being himself able to find the philosopher ’s stone. M. le Bret, contraryto his ex pectation, received him very coolly, in consequence ofsome rumours that were spread abroad respecting him ; and

told him to call upon him on the morrow. Aluys did not likethe tone of the voice, or the ex pression of the eye of the

learned President, as that functionary looked down upon him.

S uspecting that all was not right, he left Aix secretly thesame evening, and proceeded to Marseilles. But the policewere on the watch for him ; and he had not been there fourand- twenty hours, before he was arrested on a charge of coining , and thrown into prison .

As the proofs against him were too convincing to leave him

much hope of an acquittal, he planned an escape from durance.

It so happened that the gaoler had a pretty daughter, andAluys soon discovered that she was tender- hearted. He en

deavoured to gain her in his favour, and succeeded. The

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THE ALOHYMISTB.

1retended to have discovered the elix ir of life, by means ofwhi ch. he could make any one live for centuries and allowed

t to be believed that his own age was upwards of two then1and years. He entertained many of the opinions of the

Rosicrucians ; boasted of his intercourse with sylphs and salananders ; and -O f his power of drawing diamonds from the

earth, and pearls from the sea, by the force of his incantations.

He did not lay claim to the merit of having discovered the

philosopher’

5 stone; but devoted so much of his time to the

stations of alchymy, that it was very generally believed,t, if such a thing as the philosopher

’

9 stonehad ever ex isted,or could be called

8into ex istence, he was the man to succeed

in finding it.

It has never yet been discovered what was his real name,or in what country he was born . Some believed, from the

J ewish cast of his handsome countenance, that he was the“wandering J ew ;

”others asserted, that he was the issue of

Arabian princess, and that his father was a salamander ; whileothers, more reasonable, aflirmed him to be the son of a Por

tuguese J ew, established at Bourdeaux . He first carried on

his imposture in Germany, where he made considerable sums

gynaeuing an elix ir to arrest the progress of old age. The

rechal deBelle- Isle purchased a dose of it ; andwas so captivated with the wit, learning, and good manners of the char

latan, and so convinced of the justice of his most preposterousetensions, that be induced him to fix his residence in Paris.

tinder the Marshal’s patronage, he first appeared in the gayc ircles of that capital. Every one was delighted with the

mysterious stranger ; who, at this period of his life, appearsto have been about seventy years of age, but did not lookmore than forty- five. H is easy assurance imposed upon mostpeople. H is reading was ex tensive, and his memory ex traordinarily tenacious of the slightest circumstances. H is pre

ten sion to have lived for so many centuries naturally ex posedhim to some puzzling questions, as to the appearance, life, andconversation of the great men of former days ; but he wasnever at a loss for an answer . Many who questioned him forthe purpose of scofling at him,

refrained in perplex ity,qui te

bewildered by his presence of mind, his ready replies, and hisaston ishing accu1acy on every point mentioned in history. To

increase themystery by which he was surrounded, he permitted

his letters to the l\ 1ng of Prus s ia , men tions him a

pour me and s tates,that he pretended to haw

the holy fathers, at the Council of Tren t !In the Memoirs ofMadame du IIausset

,chat

to Madame da Pompadour,there are some amusin

of this personage. Very soon after his arrivalhad the en trée of her dressing- room a favour onh

the most powerful lords at the court of her royaldame was fond of conversing with him , and, i n h

he thought fit to lower his pretensions very cousit

he often allowed her to believe that he had lived 1hundred years, at least.

“One day, says Madar

set,“Madame said to him in m presence,

‘Wpersonal appearance of Francis I . He was a ki

have liked.

’ ‘He was, indeed, very captivating,’

Germain ; and he proceeded to describe his faceas that of a man whom he had accurately observepity he was too ardent. I could have given him

advice, which would have saved him from all his 1

but he would not have followed it ; for it seems as

attended princes, forcing them to shut their ears Icounsel.

’ ‘Was his court very brilliant ?’ inqu irdu Pompadour. ‘Very,

’ replied the Count ; but

grandsons surpassed it. In the time of MaryIargaret of Valois, it was a land of enchantmen

sacred to pleasures of every kind.

’ Madame sai‘l seem to have seen all this .

’ I have an e

THHEKAJ KHEYEIHHTS .

padour to him on another occasion ; and yet you pretendyouare very old. The Countess de Gergy, who was, I believe,ambassadress at Vienna some fifty years ago, says she saw

you there, ex actly the same as you now appear. ’

It is true, Madam,

’

replied S t. Germain ; I knew Ma

dame de Gergy many years ago.

But, according to her account, you must be more than a

hundred years old i ’

That is not impossible,’

said he, laughing ; but it is

much more possible that the good lady is in her dotage.

’

You gave her an elix ir, surprising for the efl'

ects it pro

duced ; for she says, that during a length of time, she onlyr

espect ed to be eighty- four ; the age at which she took it.hy don

’

t you'

ve it to the king ?’

0 Madam he ex claimed, the physicians would haveme broken on the wheel, were I to think of drugging his

Mwi ty.

9 2 9

en the world begins to think ex traordinary things of anindividual, there is no telling where its ex travagance will stop.

People, when once they have taken the start, vie with each

other who shall believe most. At this period all Paris resounded with thewonderful adventures of the Count de St. Germain ;and a company of waggish young men tried the followingex periment upon its credulityz

—A clever mimic, who, on

account of the amusement he afl'

orded, was admitted into oed

society, was taken by them, dressed as the Count de S t. i ermain, into several houses in the Rue da Marais. He imitated

the Count’s peculiarities admirabl and found his auditors

open-mouthed to believe any absur'

ty he chose to utter. N0fiction was too monstrous for their all- devouring credulity.

H e spoke of the Saviour of the world in terms of the greatestfamiliarity ; said he had supped with him at the marriage inCanaan of Galilee, where the water was miraculously turnedinto wine. In fact, he said he was an intimate friend of his,and had often warned him to be less romantic and imprudent

,

or he would finish his career miserably. This infamous blasphemy, strange to say, found believers ; and, ere three dayshad elapsed, 1t was currently reported that S t. Germain wasborn soon after the deluge, and that he would never die!S t. Germain himself was too much a man of the world to

assert anything so monstrous ; but he took no pains to con

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

sand pounds sterling. The Baron de Gleichen, in his Memoirs,

” relates, that the Count one day showed him so manydiamonds, that he thought he saw before him all the treasuresof Aladdin ’

s lamp ; and adds,that he had had great ex peri

ence in precious stones, and was convinced that all those possessed by the Count were genuine. On another occas ion , St.Germain showed Madame du Pompadour a small box , con

taining topazes, emeralds, and diamonds, worth half a millionof livres. He affected to despise all his wealth, to make theworld more easily believe that he could

,like the Rosicrucians,

draw precious stones out of the earth by the ma ic of his songHe gave away a great number of thesejewels to t e ladies of the

court ; and Madame du Pompadour was so charmed with hisgenerosity, that she gave him a richly- enamelled snuff- box , as

a token of her regard ; on the lid of which was beautifullypainted a portrait of Socrates, or some other Greek sage, to

whom she compared him. He was not only lavish to the mistresses, but to the maids. Madame du Hausset says, The

Count came to see Madame du Pompadour, who was very ill,and lay on the sofa. He showed her diamonds enough to

furnish a king’

s treasury. Madame sent for me to see all

those beautiful things. I looked at them with an air of the

utmost astonishment ; but I made signs to her, that I thoughtthem all false. The Count felt for something in a pocketbook about twice as large as a spectacle- case ; and, at length,drew out two or three little paper packets, which he unfolded,and ex hibited a superb ruby . He threw on the table, with a

contemptuous air, a little cross of green and white stones.

I looked at it,and said it was not to be despised. I then

put it on, and admired it greatly . The Count begged me toaccept it. I refused. H e urged me to take it. At length,he pressed so warmly

, that Madame, seeing it could not be

worth more than a thousand livres, made me a sign to accepti t. I took the cross, much pleased with the Count’5 politeness .

How the adventurer obtained his wealth remains a secret.H e could not have made it all by the sale of his eli x ir vitae i nGermany though, no doubt, some portion of it was derivedfrom that source. Voltaire positively says, he was in the payof foreign governments and in his letter to the King of

Prussia, dated the 5th of April, 175 8, says, that he was ini ti

THE ALOHYMIBTB.

ated in all the secrets of Choiseul, Kaunitz, and Pitt. Of

what use he could be to any of those ministers, and to Choiseul

especially, is a mystery of mysteries.

There appears no doubt that he possessed the secret of te

moving spots from diamonds ; and, in all probability, he gainedconsiderable sums by buyin at inferior prices, such as had

flaws in them, and afterwar disposing of them at a profit ofcent. per cent. Madame du Hausset relates the followin

anecdote on this particular TheKing,”says she, order

a middling- sized di amond, whichhad a flaw in it, to be brought

to him. After having it weighed, his Majesty said to the

Count,‘The value of this diamond, as it is, andwith the flaw

in it, is six thousand livres ; without the flaw,

it would be

worth, at least, ten thousand. Will you undertake to makeme a gainer of four thousand livres St. Germain ex amined

it very attentively, and said, It is possible ; it may be done.

I will bring it you again in a month.

’

At the time appointed,the Count brought back the diamond, without a spot

, andgave

it to the King. It was wrapped in a cloth of amianthos,which he took ofl

’

. The King had it weighed immediately,and found it very little dimin ished. H is Majesty then sent it

to his jeweller, by M. de Gontant, without telling him of anything that had passed. The jeweller gave nine thousand e1x

hundred livres for it. The King, however, sent for the dis

mond back again , and said he would keep it as a curiosity.

He could not overcome his surprise ; and said M. de S t. Ger

main must be worth millions ; especially if he possessed thesecret of making large diamonds out of small ones. The

Count neither said that he could, or could not ; but positivelyasserted, that he knew how to make pearls grow, and give

them the finest water. The King paid him great attention,and so did Madame -du Pompadour. M. du Quesnoy once

said, that St. Germain was a quack ; but the King repri

manded him. In fact, his Majesty appears infatuated byhim ; and sometimes talks of him as if his descent were illus

trious.

”

St. Germain had a most amusing vagabond for a servant,to whom he would often appeal for corroboration, when re

latin some wonderful event that happened centuries before.

Thefellow, who was not wi thout ability, enerally corrobo

ratedhim in a most satisfactory manner. pon one occasion,

THE ALCHYHISTS .

is master was telling a party of ladies and gentlemen, atinner, some conversation he had had in Palestine, with KingLicherd I. of England, whom he described as a very partien1r friend of his. S igns of astonishment and incredulity wereisible on the faces of the company ; upon which S t. Germain

z?coolly turned to his servant, who stood behind his chair,asked him if he had not spoken truth ? I really cannot

ty,”

re lied the man, without moving a muscle ; you for

et, sir, have only been five hundred years in your service!”

Ah ! true,"

said his master ; I remember now ; it was a

ttle before our time !”

Occasions. ly, when with men whom he could not so easily1pe, he gave utterance to the contempt wi th which he could

:arcely avoid regarding such gaping credulity.

“Theseole of Parisians, said he, to the Baron de Gleichen, be

ave me to be more than five hundred years old ; and, sincemy will have it so, I confirm them in their idea. Not but

1at I really am much older than I appear.”

Many other stories are related of this strange impostor ;1t enough have been quoted to show his character and pre

usions . It appears that he endeavoured to find the philo1pher

’

s stone ; but never boasted of possessing it. The

rince of Hesse Cassel, whom he had known years before, inermany, wrote urgent letters to him, entreating him to quitaris, and reside with him. S t. Germain at last consented.

othing further is known of his career . There were no gos

pping memoir- writers at the court of Hesse Cassel to chro

cle his sayings and doings. He died at S leswig, under theof of his friend the Prince, in the year 1784.

CAGL los'rRo.

This famous charlatan, the friend and successor of S t.

ermain , ran a career still more ex traordinary. He was the'

eh- quack of his age, the last of the great pretenders to the1i1030pher

’

s stone and the water of life, and during his briefs een of prosperity one of the most conspicuous characters'

Europe.

H is real name was Joseph Balsamo. He was born at

alerme about the year 1743 , of humble parentage. He had2 3’

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THE ALOHYMISTB.

ing the unlucky silversmith to recover or die at his leisure.

Nature chose the former course ; and soon after da light hewas restored to his senses, smarting in body from his lows and

in spirit for the deception of which he had been the victim.

H is first impulse was to denounce Balsamo to the ma istratesof the town ; but on further reflection he was afrai of the

ridicule that a full ex posure of all the circumstances woulddraw upon him : he therefore took the truly Italian resolution

of being revenged on Balsamo by murdering him at the firstconvenient opportunity. Having

'

ven utterance to this

threat in the hearing of a friend of lsamo, it was reportedto the latter, who immediately packed up his valuables and

quitted Europe.

H e chose Medina, in Arabia, for his future dwelling- place,and there became acquainted with a Greek named Altotas, a

man ex ceedingly well versed in all the langua es of the East,and an indefatigable student in alchymy. Ife possessed an

invaluable collection of Arabian manuscripts on his favouritescience, and studied them with such unremitting industrythat he found he had not suflicient time to attend to his crucibles andfurnaceswithout neglecting his books. Hewas lookinabout for an assistant when Balsamo opportunely presentedhimself, and made so favourable an impression that he was

at once engaged in that capacity. But the relation ofmasterand servant did not long subsist between them ; Balsamo wastoo ambitious and too clever to play a secondary part, andwi thin fifteen days of their first acquaintance they were boundtogether as friends and partners. Altotas , in the course of a

long life devoted to alchymy, had stumbled upon some

valuable discoveries in chemistry, one of which was an ingredient for improving the manufacture of flax , and impartingto goods of that material a gloss and softness almost equal tosilk . Balsamo gave him the good advice to leave the philoso

pher ’a stone for the present undiscovered, and make gold out

of their flax . The advice was taken, and they proceededtogether to Alex andria to trade, with a lar e stock of that

article. They stayed forty days in Alex an ria,and gained

a considerable sum by their venture. They afterwards visitedother cities in Egypt, and were equally successful . Theyalso visited Turkey, where they sold drugs and amulets. Ontheir return to Europe, they were driven by stress of weather

THE ALOHYMIBTS .

into Malta, and were hospitably received by Pinto, the GrandMaster of the Knights, and a famous alchymist. Theyworked in his laboratory for some months, and tried hard tochange a pewter- platter into a silver one. Balsamo, havingless faith than his compan ions, was sooner wearied ; and ob

tain ing from his host many letters of introduction to Romeand Naples, he left him and Altotas to find the philosopher

’

s

stone and transmute the pewter- platter without him:

He had long since dropped the name of Balsamo on

account of the many ugly associations that clung to i t ; and

during his travels had assumed at least half a score of others,wi th titles annex ed to them. He called himself sometimes

the Chevalier de Fischio, the Marquis de Melissa, the Baronde Belmonte, de Pelligrin i, d

’

Anna, de Feni x , de Harat, butmost common] the Count de Cagliostro. Under the lattertitle he entere Rome, and never afterwards changed it. In

this city he gave himself out as the restorer of the Rosicrucianphilosophy ; said he could transmute all metals in to gold;that he could render himself invisible, cure all di seases, and

administer an elix ir against old age and decay . H is letters

from the Grand Master Pinto procured him an introductioninto the best families. He made money rapidly by the sale

of his eli x ir vitae; and, like other quacks, performed manyremarkable cures by inspiring his patients with the most com

plete faith and reliance upon his powers ; an advantage which

the most impudent charlatans often possess over the regularpractitioner.While thus in a. fair way of making his fortune, he became

acquainted with the beautiful Lorenza Feliciana, a younglady of noble birth, but without fortune. Cagliostro soon

discovered that she possessed accomplishments that wereinvaluable. Besides her ravishing beauty, shehad the readiestwit, the most engaging manners, the most fertile imag ination,and the least principle of any of the maidens of Rome. She

was just the wife for Cagliostro, who proposed himself to her,and was accepted. After their marriage, he instructed hisfair Lorenza in all the secrets of his calling

— taught her

pretty lips to invoke angels, and genii, sylphs, salamanders,and undines

,and

, when need required,devils and evi l spirits .

Lorenza was an apt scholar : she soon learned all the jargonof the alchymists and all the spells of the enchanters ; and

THE ALOHYMIBTB.

la accomplished the hopeful pair set out on their travels, tocontributions on the superstitious and the credulous.

They first went to Sleswig on a visit to the Count de St.

.rmain, their great predecessor in the art of making dupes,dwere received by him in the most magn ificent manner..ey no doubt fortified their minds for the career they11 chosen , by the sage discourse of that worshipful gentlesn ; for immediately after they left him, they began their

stations. They travelledfor three or four years in Russia,land, and Germany, transmuting metals, telling fortunes,sing spirits, and selling the elix ir vita wherever they went ;t there is no record of their doings from whence to draw a

11's particular detail. It was not until they made their

pearance in England in 1776 , that the names of the Countd Countess di Cagliostro began to acquire a European te

tatien . They arrived in London in the July of that year,ssessed of property, plate, jewels, and s ecie to the amount

about three thousand pounds. They ired apartments inhitcombe S treet, and lived for somemonths quietly. In the

nehouse there lodged a Portuguese woman named Blavary,10, being in necessitous circumstances, was engaged by the.unt as interpreter. Shewas constantly admitted into his

wratory, where he s ent much of his time in search of the

ilosopher’

s stone. he spread abroad the fame of her en'tainer in return for his hospitality, and laboured hard to

press everybody with as full a behef in his ex traordinarywere as she felt herself. But as a female interpreter of the1k and appearance of Madame Blavary did not ex actlyrrespond with the Count

’

s notions either of dignity or

comm,he hired a person named Vitellini , a teacher of

1guages, to act in that capacity. Vitellini was a desperatembler ; a man who had tried almost every resource to

pair his ruined fortunes, including among the rest the1rch for the philosOpher

’

s stone. Immediately that he saw

a Count’

s operations, hewas convinced that the great secret8 his, and that the golden gates of the palace of fortunere Open to let him in . With still more enthusiasm thanadame Blavary, he held forth to his acquaintance, and inpublic places, that the Count was an ex traordinary man,true adept, whose fortune was immense, and who couldmsmute into pure and solid gold, as much lead, iron, and

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

1emonth, to the no small astonishment anddeli ht of Cagliro, who thereupon resolved to try fortune forhimself, andfor others. To all the entreaties ef Scot and his lady thatwould predict more numbers for them, he turned a deaf

even while he still thought him 11 lord and a man of honour.

t when he discovered that he was a mere swindler, and the;tended Lady Scot an artful woman of the town, he closed

door upon them and on all their gang.

Having complete faith in the supernatural powers of the

ant, they were in the deepest distress at having lost his

mtenance. They tried b every means their ingenuity11d 8 est, to propitiate him again ; the implored, theyeatene and endeavoured to bribe him. ut all was vain .

gliostro would neither see nor correspond with them. In1mean time they lived ex travagantly ; and in the he e of

are, ex hausted all their present ains. They were re need

the last ex tremity, when Miss ry obtained access to the

untose, and received a guinea from her on the representau that she was starvin Miss Fry, not contented with

s, begged her to interce e with her husband, that for the

t time he would point out a lucky number in the lottery.

e Countess promised to ex ert her influence, and Cagliostroentreated, named the number eight, at the same time

terating his determination to have nothing more to do with7 of them. By an ex traordinary hazard, which fil led Ca)stro with surprise and pleasure, number eight was the

1atest prize in the lottery. Miss Fry and her associates

ared fifteen hundred guineas by the adventure; and becamere than ever convinced of the occult powers of Cagliostro,i strengthened in their determination never to quit himtil they had made their fortunes. Out of the proceeds ,as Fry bought a handsome necklace at a pawnbroker’s forM y guineas. She then ordered a richly chased gold box ,ring two compartments, to be made at a jeweller

’

s, and put

g the necklace in the one, filled the other with a fine aro

tic snufl’

. She then sought another interview withMadame

Cagliostro, and urged her to accept the box as a small

:en of her esteem and gratitude, without mention ing the

uable necklace that was concealed in it. Madame di Os

ostro accepted the present, andwas from that hour ex posedthe most incessant persecution from all the confederates,

THE ALOHYMIBTB.

Blavary, Vitellini , and the pretended Lord and Lady Scot.They flattered themselves they had regained their lost footingin the house, and came day after day to know lucky numbersin the lottery ; sometimes forcing themselves up the stairs, andinto the Count’s laboratory, in spite of the efforts of the ser

vants to prevent them. Cagliostro, ex asperated at their pertinacity, threatened to call in the assistance of the magis

trates ; and taking Miss Fry by the shoulders, pushed her intothe street.

From that time may bedated themisfortunes of Cagliostro.

Miss Fry, at the instigation of her paramour, determi ned on

vengeance. Her first act was to swear a debt of two hundredpounds against Cagliostro, and to cause him to be arrested

for that sum. While he was in custody in a spon'

ng-house,

S cot, accompanied by a low attorney, broke into is labora

tory, and carried off a small box , containing, a’

s they believed,the powder of transmutation, and a number of cabalistic ma

nuscripts and'

treatises upon alchymy. They also bro ht an

action against him for the recovery of the necklace ; an MissFry accused both him and his Countess of sorcery and witch

craft, and of foretelling numbers in the lottery by the aid ofthe devil. This latter charge was actually heard beforeMr.

Justice Miller. The action of trover for the necklace wastried before the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas , whorecommended the parties to submit to arbitration . In the

mean time Cagliostro remained in prison for several weeks,till having procured bail, he was liberated. Hewas soon after

waited upon by an attorney named Reynolds,also deep in the

plot, who offered to compromise all the actions upon certain

condi tions. Scot, who had accompanied him, concealed him

self behind the door,and suddenly rushing out, resented a

pistol at the heart of Cagliostro, swearing hewoul shoot him

instantly, if he would not tell him truly the art of predictinglucky numbers

,and of transmutin metals. Reynolds pre

tending to be very angry, disarmo his accomplice, and en

treated the Count to satisfy them by fair means, and dis

close his secrets, promising that if he would do so, they would

discharge all the actions, and ofl'

er him no further molestation . Cagliostro replied, that threats and entreaties werealike useless ; that he knew no secrets ; and that the powder oftransmutation of which they had robbed him, was of no value

THE ALCHYMISTS .

mybody but himself. He ofl'

ered, however, if they wouldharge the action, and return the powder and the manu

pts, he would forgive them all the money they had ewin

l him out of. These conditions were refused ; and ScotReynolds departed, swearing vengeance against him.

agliostro appears to have been qmte ignorant of the formslaw in England, and to have been without a friend to ad

him as to the best course he should pursue. While heconversing wi th his Countess on the difficulties that besetm, one of h e bail called, and invited him to ride in a hack'

coach to the house of a person who would see him ri hted.

;liostro consented, and was driven to the King'

s Bench1011, where his friend left him. He did not discover foreral hours that he was a prisoner, or in fact understand the

of being surrendered by one’

s bail.Io regained his libert in a few weeks ; and the arbitratorsween him and Miss ry made their award against him.

was ordered to pay the two hundred pounds she had sworninst him,

and to restore the necklace and gold box which

I been presented to the Countess. Cagliostro was so dis

.ted, that he determined to quit England. H is

pretensions,

ides,had been unmercifully ex posed by a

'

rcnchman,ned Morande, the Editor of the Courier de l

’

Europe, pub

.cd in London . To add to his distress, he was recognisedWestminster Hall, as Joseph Balsamo, the swindler of

ermo. Such a complication of dis race was not to he

ne. He and his Countess packed up t eir small effects, and

England with no more than fifty pounds out of the threeusand they had brought w ith them.

l‘hey first proceeded to Brussels, where fortune was more

picious. They sold considerable quantities of the elix ir of

performed many cures, and recruited their finances .

ey then took their course through Germany t o Russia, and'ays with the same success. Gold flowed mto their coffers

ter than they could count it. They quite forgot all tlu

as they had endured in England, and learned to be more

mmspect in the choice of their acqua intance.

[n the y ear 1780, they made their appearance in S tras

trg. Their fame had reached that c ity be fore them.

ey took a magnificent hotel, and invited all the princi pal

sons of the place t o their table. Their wealth appearmlon. 11.

‘

24

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

ment of his arrival had passed away. People began to reasonwith themselves, and to be ashamed of their own admiration .

The populace, among whom he had lavished his charity witha bountiful hand, accused him of being the Antichrist, the

J ew,the man of fourteen hundred years of age, a

demon in human shape, sent to lure the ignorant to their

destruction ; while the more opulent and better informedcalled him a spy in the pay of foreign governments, an agent

of the police, a swindler, and a man of evil life. The cut

cry grew at last so strong, that be deemed it prudent to tryhi s fortune elsewhere.

He went first toNaples, but that city was too near Palermo ;he dreaded recognition from some of his early friends, andafter a short stay, returned to France. He chose Bourdeauxas his nex t dwelling

- place,and created as great a sensation

there as he had done in Strasbour He announced himself as

the founder of a new school 0 medicine and philosophy,boasted of his ability to cure all diseases, and invited the

poor and sufl'

erin to visit him,and he would relieve the dis

tress of the one cIass, and cure the ailings of the other. All

day long the street opposite his magnificent hotel was crowdedby the populace ; the halt and the blind

, women with sickbabes in their arms, and persons suffering under every speciesof human infirmity

,flocked to this wonderful doctor. The

relief he afforded in money more than counterbalanced the

failure of his nostrums ; and the influx of people from all the

surrounding country became so great, that the j urats of thecity granted him a military guard, to be stationed day and

n ight before his door, to keep order . The anticipations ofCagliostro were realized. The richwere struck with admirationofhi s charity and benevolence, and impressedwitha full conviction of his marvellous powers. The sale of the elix ir went onadmirably. H is saloons were thronged with wealthy dupeswho came to purchase immortality. Beauty, that would endurefor centuries, was the attraction for the fair sex ; health and

strength for the same period were the baits held out to the

other . His charming Countess in the mean time brought

grist to the mill, by telling fortunes and casting nativities, or

granting attendant sylphs to any ladies who would pay sufli

ciently for their services . What was still better, as tending

THE ALCHYMIBTS .

to keep up the credit of her husband, she gave the most magnificent parties in Bourdeaux .

But as at S trasbourg the popular delusion lasted for a few

months only, and burned itself out ; Cagliostro forget, in theintox ication of success, that there was a limit to quackery,which once passed, inspired distrust. When he pretended tocall spirits from the tomb

,people became incredulous. He

was accused of being an enemy to reli

gion—of denying

Christ, and of being the Wandering J ew. e despised theserumours as long as they were confined to a few ; but when

they spread over the town— when he received no more feeswhen his parties were abandoned, and his acquaintancesturned away when they met him in the street, he thought ithigh time to shift his quarters.

He was by this time wearied of the provinces, and turnedhis thoughts to the capital. On his arrival, he announced

himself as the restorer of Egyptian Freemasonry and the

founder of a new philosophy. He immediately made his wayinto the best society by means of his friend the Cardinal deRohan . His success as a magician was quite ex traordinarythe most considerable persons of the time visited him. He

boasted of being able, like the Rosicrucians, to converse withthe elementary spirits ; to invoke the mighty dead from the

grave, to transmute metals, and to discover occult things, bymeans of the special protection of God towards him . LikeDr. D ee, he summoned the angels to reveal the future ; and

they appeared, and conversed with him in crystals and underglass bells.

* There was hardly,

says the B iographie derUon temporains, a fine lady in Paris who would not sup with

the shade of Lucretius in the apartments of Cagliostro—a

military oflicer who would not discuss the art of war w ith

Caesar,Hann ibal, or Alex ander ; or an advocate or counsellor

who would not argue legal points with the ghost of C icero.

These interviews with the departed were very ex pensive ; for,as Cagliostro said, the dead would not rise for nothing . The

Countess, as usual, ex ercised all her ingenuity to support herhusband’

s credit. She was a great favourite with her own

sex ; to many a delighted and wondering auditory of whom

;(See the Abbe Fiard, and “Anecdotes of the Reign of Lou is XV I.

p .

THE ALCHYMIBTS .

she detailed the marvellous powers of Cagliostro. She saidhe could render himself invisible, traverse the world with therapidity of thought, and be in several places at the same

time.

*

He had not been long at Paris before he became involvedin the celebrated affair of the Queen ’

s necklace. H is friend,

the Cardinal de Rohan,enamoured of the charms of Marie

Antoinette, was in sore distress at her coldness, and the dis

pleasure she had so often manifested against him. There wasat that time a lady

,named La Motte, in the service of the

Q ueen, of whom the Cardinal was foolish enough to make a

confidant. Madame de la Motte, in return , endeavoured tomake a tool of the Cardinal, and succeeded but too well in

her projects . In her capacity of chamber- woman , or lady of

honour to the Queen, she was present at an interview betweenher Majesty and M . Boehmer, a wealthy jeweller of Paris

,

when the latter offered for sale a magnificent diamond necklace, valued at francs, or about sterlinThe Queen admired it greatly, but dismissed the jeweller, witthe ex pression of her regret that she was too poor to purchaseit. Madame de la Motte formed a plan to get this costlyornament into her own possession, anddetermined to make theCardinal de Rohan the instrument by which to effect it. She

therefore sought an interview with him,and pretending to

s

ympathize in his grief for the Queen

’

s displeasure, told him8 e knew a way by which he might be restored to favour.She then mentioned the necklace, and the sorrow of the Queenthat she could not afford to buy it. The Cardinal, who wasas wealthy as he was foolish, immediately offered to purchasethe necklace, andmake a present of it to the Queen . Madame

de la Motte toldhim by no means to do so, as hewould therebyofl

'

end her Majesty . His plan would be to induce the jewellerto give her Majesty credit, and accept her promissory note

for the amount at a certain date, to be hereafter agreed upon .

The Cardinal readily agreed to the proposal, an instructed

the jeweller to draw up an agreement, and he would procurethe Queen ’

s signature. He placed this in thehands ofMadame

de la Motte, who returned it shortly afterwards, with the

Biographie des Contemporains , article “Cagliostro. See also

Hi stoire de la Magic en France,”par M. J ules Garinet, p . 2 84.24”

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THE ALCHYMISTS .

Cagliostro, who had seized and taken it to pieces, to swell

the treasures of his immense unequalled fortune.

”She spoke

of him as an empiric, a mean alchymist, a dreamer on the

phi losopher’

s stone, a false prophet, a profaner of the true

worship, the self- dubbed Count Cagliostro She furthersa id that he originally conceived the project of ruining the

Cardinal de Rohan ; that he persuaded her, by the ex erciseof some magic influence over her mind, to aid and abet thescheme ; and that he was a robber, a swindler

,and a sorcerer !

After all the accused parties had remained for u wards of

si x months in the Bastille, the trial commenced. he deposi tiena of the witnesses having been heard, Cagliostro, as the

principal culprit, was first called upon for his defence. He

was listened to with the most breathless attention . He put

himself into a theatrical attitude, and thus began —“I am

Oppressed — I am accused — I am calumniated Have I deserved this fate ? I descend into my conscience, and I therefind the peace that men refuse me ! I have travelled a greatdeal— I am known over all Europe, and a great part of Asiaand Africa. I have everywhere shown myself the friend of

my fellow - creatures. My knowledge, my time,my fortune

have ever been employed in the relief of distress ! I havestudied and practised medicine, but I have never degradedthat most noble andmost consoling of arts by mercenary spe

culations of any kind. Though always giving, and never re

ceiving, I have preserved my independence. I have even

carried my delicacy so far as to refuse the favours of kings.

I have given gratuitously my remedies and my advice to the

rich : the poor have received from me both remedies and

money. I have never contracted any debts, and my mannersare pure and uncorrupted.

” After much more self- laudation

of the same kind, he went on to complain of the great hardships he had endured in being separated for so many monthsfrom his innocent and loving wife, who, as he was given to

understand, had been detained in the Bastille, and perhapschained in an unwholesome dungeon . He denied unequivo

cally that he had the necklace, or that he had ever seen it ;and to silence the rumours and accusations against him, which

his own secrecy with regard to the events of his life had per

haps originated, he ex pressed himself ready to satisfy thecuriosity of the public, and to give a plain and full account of

2 84 m s At cnrms'rs.

his career. He then told a romantic and incredible tale,which imposed upon no one. He said be neither knew the

place of his birth nor the name of his parents , but that hespent his infancy in Medina in Arabia, and was brought upunder the name of Acharat. He lived in the palace of the

Great Muphti in that city, and always had three servants to

wait upon him,besides his preceptor, named Althotas . This

Althotas was very fond of him,and told him that his father

and mother, who were Christians and nobles, died when he

was three months old,and left him in the care of the Muphti.

He could never, he said, ascertain their names, for wheneverhe asked Althetas the question , he was told that it would bedangerous for him to know. Some incautious ex pressionsdropped by his preceptor gave him reason to think they werefrom Malta. At the age of twelve he be an his travels, and

learned the various languages of the ast. He remainedthree years in Mecca, where the Cherif, or governor, showedhim so much kindness, and spoke to him so tenderly and

affectionately, that he sometimes thought that personage washis father . He quitted this good man with tears in his eyes,and never saw him afterwards : but he was convinced that he

was, even at that moment, indebted to his care for all the ad

vantages he enjoyed. Whenever he arrived in any city, eitherof Europe or Asia

,he found an account Opened for him at the

principal bankers ’ or merchants’. He could draw upon them

to the amount of thousands and hundreds of thousands and

no questions were ever asked beyond his name. H e had 0

2?to mention the wordAcharat, and all his wants were suppliHe firmly believed that the Cherif of Mecca was the friendto whom all was owing . This was the secret of his wealth,and he had no occasion to resort to swindlin for a livelihood.

It was not worth his while to steal a diamon necklace when

he had wealth enough to purchase as many as he pleased,and

more magn ificent ones than had ever been worn by a Queenof France. As to the other charges brought against him byMadame de la Motte, he had but a short answer to give. She

had called him an empiric . He was not unfamiliar wi th the

word. If itmeant a man who, without being a physician , hadsome knowledge of medicine, and took no fees—who cured

both rich and poor,

and took no money from either, heconfessed that he was such a man, that he was an empiric.She had also called him a mean alchymist. Whether hewere

THE ALCHYHIS‘I‘S .

an alchymist or not, the epithet mean could only be appliedto those who begged and cringed, and he had never doneeither. As regarded his being a dreamer about the philosoher ’s stone, whatever his opinions upon that subject mighthe had been silent, and had never troubled the public with

his dreams. Then, as to his being a false prophet, he had not

always been so ; for he had prophesied to the Cardinal deRohan that Madame de la Motte would prove a dan erous

woman, and the result had verified the prediction . Heden iedthat he was a profaner of the true worship, or that he hadever striven to bring religion into contempt on the contrary,he respected every man ’

s religion , and never meddled with it.

H e also denied that hewas a Rosicrucian, or that he had ever

pretended to be three hundred years of age, or to have had

one man in his service for a hundred and fifty years. In con

elus ion , he said every statement that Madame de la Motte had

made regarding him was false, and that she was mentz'

r is im

ntissime, which two words he beggedher counsel to transte for her, as it was not polite to tell her so in French.

S uch was the substance of his ex traordinary answer to the

charges against him ; an answer which convinced those who

were before doubtful that he was one of the most impudentimpostors that had ever run the career of deception . Counselwere then heard on behalf of the Cardinal de Rohan and

Madame de la Motte. It appearing clearly that the Cardinalwas himself the dupe of a vile conspiracy ; and there being no

evidence against Cagliostro, they were both acquitted. Ma

dame de la Motto was found guilty, and sentenced to be pub

licly whipped, and branded with a hot iron on the back .

Cagliostro and his wife were then discharged from custody .

On applying to the officers of the Bastille for the papers andefi

'

ects whi ch had been seized at his lodgings, he found thatmany of them had been abstracted. Ile thereupon broughtan action against them for the recovery of his MS S . and a

small portion of the powder of transmutation . Before the

afi'

air could be decided, he received orders to quit Paris withinfour- and- twenty hours. Fearin that if he were once more

inclosed in the dungeons of the astille he should never see

daylight again, he took his departure immediately and pro

ceeded to England. On his arrival in London he made the

acquaintance of the notorious Lord George Gordon, who

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m ALOHYHIBTB.

spurious brother of alchymy. Many valuablediscoveries havebeen made in that search for the impossible, which mightotherwise have been hidden for centuries yet to come. Roger

Bacon , in searching for the phi losopher’

s stone,discovered

gunpowder, a still more ex traordinary substance. V an Hel

mont, in the same pursuit, discovered the properties of gas ;Geber made discoveries in chemistry which were equally im

portant and Paracelsus, amidst his perpetual visions of thetransmutation ofmetals, found that mercury was a remedy forone of themost odious and ex cruciating of all the diseases that

amict humanity.

In our day, no mention is made in Europe of any new

devotees of the science. The belief in witchcraft which isscarcely more absurd, still lingers in the popular mind: butnone are so credulous as to believe that any elix ir could makeman live for centuries, or turn all our iron or pewter into gold.

Alchymy, in Europe, may be said to be wholly ex ploded ; butin the East it still flourishes in as great repute as ever.Recent travellers make constant mention of it, especially inChina

,Hindostan

,Persia, Tartary, Egypt, and Arabia.

BOOK I I.

FORTUNE - TELLING .

And men still grope t’ anticipateThe cabinet designs of Fate

Apply to w i zards to foreseeWhat shall and what shall never be.

H udc'

bras, part i ii . canto 3.

IN accordance with the plan laid down in the introductionto this volume

, we proceed to the consideration of the follies

into which men have been led by their eager desire to piercethe thick darkness of futurity. God himself, for his own wise

purposes, has more than once undrawn the impenetrable veilwhich shrouds those awful secrets ; and, for purposes just aswise, he has decreed that, ex cept in these instances, ignoranceshall be our lot for ever. It is happy for man that he doesnot know what the morrow is to bring forth ; but, unaware ofthis great blessing, he has, in all ages of the world, presumptuously endeavoured to trace the events of unborn centuries,and anticipate the march of time. He has reduced this pre~sumption into a study . He has divided it into sciences and

systems without number, employing his whole life in the vain

pursuit. Upon no subject has it been so easy to deceive the

world as upon this. In every breast the curiosity ex ists in a

greater or less degree, and can only be conquered by a longcourse of self- ex amination

,and a firm reliance that the future

would not be hidden from our sight, if it were right that weshould be acquainted with it.An undue opinion of our own importance in the scale of

renrunn- rn m e.

creation is at the bottom of all our unwarrantable notions inthis respect. How flattering to the pride of man to think thatthe stars in their courses watch over him,

and t pify, by theirmovements and aspects, the joys or the sorrows that await him !H e, less in proportion to the universe than the all but invisibleinsects that feed in myriads on a summer’s leaf are to this

great globe itself, fondly imagines that eternal worlds werechiefly created to rognosticate his fate. How we should pitythe arrogance of t e worm that crawls at our feet, if we knewthat it also desired to know the secrets of futurity, and ima

gined that meteors shot athwart the sky to warn it that a

tom- tit was hovering near to gobble it up ; that storms and

earthquakes, the revolutions of empires, or the fall of mightymonarchs, only happened to predict its birth, its progress, andi ts decay ! Not a whit less presuming has man shown himself;not a whit less arrogant are the sciences, so called, of astrology,augury, necromancy, geomancy, palmistry, and divination of

every kind.

Leaving out of view the oracles of pagan antiquity and

religious predictions in general, and confining ourselves solelyto the persons who, in modern times, have made themselves

most conspicuous in foretelling the future, we shall find thatthe six teenth and seventeenth centuries were the golden age

of these impostors. Many of them have been already mentioned in their character of alchymists. The union of the two

pretensions is not at all surprising. It was to be ex pectedthat those who assumed a power so preposterous as that of

prolonging the life of man for several centuries, should pretend, at the same time, to foretell the events which were to

mark that preternatural span of ex istence. The world wouldas readily believe that they had discovered all secrets, as thatthey had only discovered one. The most celebrated astrolo

ore ofEurope, three centuries ago, were alchymists. Agrippa,Paracelsus, Dr. Dee, and the Rosicrucians, all laid as much

stress upon their knowledge of the days to come, as upontheir pretended possession of the philosopher ’s stone and the

elix ir of life. In their time, ideas of the wonderful, the diabolical, and the supernatural, were rifer than ever they werebefore. The devil or the stars were universally believed to

meddle constantly in the afl'

airs of men and both were to

be consulted with proper ceremon ies. Those who were of a

vor.. 11 . 2 5

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FORTUNE- TELLING.

mons, his assured friends, and able to take his part againstthe Presbyterians, who would have silenced his predictions ifthey could. He afterwards carried his plan into ex ecution,and when his book was published, went with another astrolo

ger named Booker to the head- quarters of the parliamentaryarmy at Windsor, where they were welcomed and feasted in

the rden where General Fairfax lodged. The were afterward:introduced to the General, who receive them verykindly, and made allusion to some of their predictions. He

hoped their art was lawful and agreeable to God’

s word ; but ,

he did not understand it himself. He did not doubt, however,that the two astrologers feared God, and therefore he had a

good opin ion of them. Lilly assured him that the art of as

trology was quite consonant to the Scriptures ; and confidentlypredicted from his knowledge of the stars, that the parliamentary army would overthrow all its enemies. In Oliver’s Protectorate this quack informs us that he wrote freely enough.

H e became an Independent, and all the soldiery were hisfriends. When he went to Scotland, he saw a soldier standing in front of the army

, with a book of prophecies in hishand, ex claiming to the several companies as they passed byhim,

L o !hear what Lilly saith : you are in this month pro

mised victory ! Pi ht it out, brave boys and then read that

month’

s predictionAfter the great fire of London

, which Lilly says he hadforetold, he was sent for by the committee of the House of

Commons appointed to inquire into the causes of the calamity.

In his Monarchy or no Monarchy,

” published in 16 5 1, he

had inserted an hieroglyphics ] plate, representing on one side

persons in winding sheets digging graves and on the other alarge city in flames. After the great fire some sapient memberof the legislature bethought him of Lilly ’

s book, and havingmen tioned it in the house, it was agreed that the astrolo er

should be summoned. Lilly attended accordingly, when ir

R obert Brooke told him the reason of his summons,and called

u pon him to declare what he knew. This was a rare oppor

tun ity for the vain -

glorious Lilly to vaunt his abilities ; and

he began a long speech in praise of himself and his pretendedscience. He said, that after the ex ecution of Charles I .

,he

was ex tremely desirous to know what might from that time

forth happen to the Parliament and to the nation in general.

FORTUNE- TELLING.

He, therefore, consulted the stars and satisfied himself. The

result of his judgment he put into emblems and hieroglyphics,without any commentary, so that the true meaning might beconcealed from the vulgar, and made man ifest on ly to the

wise ; imitating in this the ex ample of many wise philosopherswho had done the like.

“D id you foresee the year of the fire ? said a member.No !

” quoth Lilly,

nor was I desirous : of that I made no

scrutiny.

” After some further parley the house found theycould make nothing of the astrologer, and dismissed him with

great civility.

One specimen of the ex planation of a prophecy given byLilly

,and related by him with much complacency

,w ill be

sufficient to show the sort of trash by which he imposed upon

the million .

“In the year 1588, says he, there was a pro

phecy printed in Greek characters, ex actly deciphering the

long troubles of the English nation from 1641 to 16 60; and

it ended thus — “And after him shall come a dreadfu l deadman

,and with him a royal G

, of the best blood in the world,and he shall have the crown ,

and shall set England on the

right way, and put out all heresies. The following is the

ex planation of this oracular absurdi ty

Monkery being ex tingu i shed above eighty or n in ety years,and the L ord General

’

s name being Monk, is the dead man.

The rogal G . or C, [ it is gamma in the Greek, in tending C.

in the L atin , being the third letter in theA l habet] is CharlesII . , who for his ex traction may be said to beof the best bloodof the world.

In France and Germany astrologers met even more encou

ragement than they received in England. In very early ages,Charlemagne and his successors fulminated their wrath against

them in common with sorcerers. Louis XL , that most superstitious of men , entertai ned great numbers of them at his

court ; and Catherine de Medicis, that most superstitious ofwomen , hardly ever took any affair of importance w ithout

consulting them. She chiefly favoured her own countrymen ;and during the time she governed France, the land was overrun by Italian conjurors, necromancers, and fortune- tellers of

every kind. But the chief astrologer of that day, beyond all

FORTUNE—TELLING.

doubt, was the celebrated Nostradamus, physician to her husband, King Henry II. He was born in 1503, at the town of

S t. Remi , in Provence, where his father was a notary . He

did not acquire much fame till he was past his fiftieth year,when his famous Centuries, a collection of verses, wri ttenin obscure and almost unintelligible language, began to ex cite

attention . They were so much spoken of m 15 5 6 , that HenryII. resolved to attach so skilful a man to his service, and ap

pointed him his physician . In a biographical notice of him

prefix ed to the edition of his Vraies Centuries,” published

at Amsterdam in 1668 , we are informed that he often dis

coursed with hi s royal master on the secrets of futurity, andreceived many great presents as his reward, besides his usualallowance for medi cal attendance. After the death of Henry,he retired to his native place, where Charles IX . paid him a

visit in 15 64, and was so impressed with veneration for hiswondrous knowledge of the things which were to be, not in

France only,but in the whole world, for hundreds of years to

come, that he made him a counsellor of state, and his own

physician,besides treating him in other matters with a royal

liberality.

“In fine,”continues his biographer, I should be

too prolix were I to tell all the honours conferred upon him,

and all the great nobles and learned men that arrived at his

house, from the very ends of the earth,to see and converse

with him,as if he had been an oracle. Many strangers, in

fact, came to France for no other purpose than to consult

him .

’

The prophecies of Nostradamus consist of upwards of a

thousand stanzas, each of four lines, and are to the full as ob

scure as the oracles of old. They take so great a latitude,both as to time and space, that they are almost sure to befulfilled somewhere or other 111 the course of a few centuries .

A little ingenuity like that evinced by Lilly, 1n his ex planat ion about General Monk and the dreadful dead man

,might

eas ily make events to fit some of them.

Let us try. In his second century, prediction 6 6 , he says,From great dangers the captive i s escaped.

A little time, great fortune changed.

In the palace the people are caught.

By good augury the ci ty is besieged.

What is this, a believer might ex claim,“ but the escape of Napoleon

2 6“

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FORTUNE- TELLING.

name was Antiochus Tibertus.

* At that time nearly all the

petty sovereigns of Italy retained such men in their service ;and Tibertus having studied the mathematics with great success at Paris, and delivered many predictions, some of which,for guesses, were not deficient in

‘

shrewdness, was taken intothe household of Pandolfo di Malatesta

,the sovereign of

B imin i. H is reputation was so great, that his study was continually thronged, either with v1siters who were persons of

di stinction, or w ith clients who came to him for advice, and in

a short time he acquired a considerable fortune. Notwithstanding all these advantages he passed his lifemiserably, andended it on the scafl

'

old. The following story afterwards gotinto circulation, and has been often triumphantly cited bysucceeding astrologers as an irrefragable proof of the truth of

their science. Itwas said, that long before he died he u tteredthree remarkable prophecies ; one relating to himself, anotherto his friend, and the third to his patron , Pandolfo di Mala

testa . The first delivered was that relating to his friend,Guido di Bogu i, one of the greatest captains of the time.

Gu ido was ex ceedingly desirous to know his fortune,and so

immrtuned Tibertus, that the latter consulted the stars, andthe lines on his palm, to satisfy him. He afterwards told himwith a sorrowful face, that according to all the rules of astrology and palmistry, he should be falsely suspected by his bestfriend, and should lose his life in consequence. Guido thenasked the astrologer if he could foretell his own fate ; uponwhich Tibertus again consulted the stars

,and found that it

was decreed from all eternity that he should end his days onthe scaffold. Malatesta, when he heard these predictions, soun likely, to all present appearance, to prove true, desired hisastrologer to predict his fate also ; and to hide nothing fromhim,

however unfavourable it might be. Tibertus complied,

and told his patron, at that time one of the most flourishingand powerful princes of Italy, that he should sufl

’

er greatwant, and die at last

,like a beggar, in the common hospital

of Bologna : and so it happened 111 all three cases. Guido diBogni was accused by his own father- in - law

,the Count di

Bentivoglio, of a treasonable design to deliver up the city of

Les Anecdotes de Florence on l’H istoire secrete de la Maison di Mo

dicis, p . 818 .

FORTUNE- TELLING.

R imini to the papal forces, and was assassinated afterwards

by order of the tyrant Malatesta,as he sat at the supper

table, to which he had been invited in all apparent friendship.

The astrologer was, at the same time, thrown into prison, asbeing concerned in the treason of his friend. He attemptedto escape, and had succeeded in letting himself down from hisdungeon window into a moat

, when he was discovered by thesentinels. This being reported to Malatesta, he gave ordersfor his ex ecution on the following morn ing.

Malatesta had, at this time, no remembrance of the pro

phecy ; and his own fate gave him no uneasiness : but events

were silently working its fulfilment. A conspiracy had beenformed, though Guido di Bogn i was innocent of it, to deliverup Rimini to the Pope ; andall the necessary measures havingbeen taken, the city was seized by the Count de V alentinois.

In the confusion, Malatesta had barel time to escape fromhis palace in di sguise. He was pursue from place to placeby his enemies, abandoned by all his former friends, and,finally, by his own children . He at last fell ill of a languish

ing di sease, at Bologna ; and, nobody caring to afl'

ord him

shelter, he was carried to the hospital, where he died. The

only thing that detracts from the interest of this remarkablestory is the fact, that the prophecy was made after the event.

For some weeks before the birth of Louis XIV .,an astro

loger from Germany,who had been sent for by the Marshal

de Bassompierre and other noblemen of the court,had taken

up his residence in the palace, to be ready, at a moment’

s

notice, to draw the horoscope of the future sovereign of

France. When the Queen was taken in labour, he was

ushered into a contiguous apartment, that he might receivenotice of the very instant the chi ld was born . The result ofhis observations were the three words, din , duré , felic itermeaning, that the new - born Prince should live and reign long,with much labour

,and with great glory. No prediction less

favourable could have been ex pected from an astrologer, whohad his bread to get, and whowas at the same time a courtier.

A medal was afterwards struck in commemoration of the

event ; upon one side of which was figured the nativity of thePrince, representing him as driving the chariot of Apollo,with the inscription Ortus solis Gallici,

”— the rising of the

Gallic sun .

FORTUNE-TELLING.

The best ex cuse ever made for astrology was that offered

y the great astronomer, Keppler, himself an unwilling prac

ser of the art. He had many applications from his friends1 cast nativities for them,

and generally gave a positive re

1sal to such as he was not afraid of ofl'

ending by his frankess . In other cases be accommodated himself to the pre

ailing delusion . In sending a copy of his “Ephemerides”

1 Professor Gerlach, he wrote that they were nothing but'orthless conjectures but he was obliged to devote himself tomm, or he would have starved. Ye overwise philosophers,

”

e ex claimed,in his Tertius Interveniens “

ye censurel is daughter of astronomy beyond her deserts ! Know ye

at that she must support her mother by her charms ? The

:anty reward of an astronomer would not provide him with

read, if men did not entertain hopes of reading the future in10 heavens.

”

NECROMANCY was, nex t to astrology, the pretended science1ost resorted to, by those who wished to pry into the future.

'he earliest instance upon record is that of the Witch of Eu

or and the spirit of S amuel. Nearly all the nations of antiuity believed in the possibility of summoning departed ghostso disclose the awful secrets that God made clear to the dismbodied. Many passages in allusion to this subject, will atnce suggest themselves to the classical reader ; but this art

'as never carried on openly in any country. All govern1ents looked upon it as a crime of the deepest dye. Whilestrology was encouraged, and its professors courted and re

farded, necromancers were universally condemned to the staker the gallows. Roger Bacon , Albertus Magnus, Arnold offilleneuve, and many others, were accused, by the publictpinion of many centuries, of meddling in these unhallowed

i atters. So deeprooted has always been the popular deluion with respect to accusations of this kind, that no crimeras ever disproved with such toil and difliculty. That it met,reat encouragement, nevertheless, is evident from the vast

.umbers of pretenders to it ; who, in spite of the danger, havex isted in all ages and countries.

GEOMANCY, or the art of foretelling the future by means ofines and circles, and other mathematical figures drawn on

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FORTUNE- TELLING.

The following list of the various species of Divinationrmerly in use

,is given by Gaule, in his

“Magastromancer,”

d quoted in Hone’

s“Year Book

,p . 15 17 .

areomancg , or diviningb

by'

the elements.

eromancg , or divining~ y the air.

yromancy,by fire.

ydromancg , by water.eomancg , by earth.

heomaneg , pretending to divine by the revelation of the

Spirit, and by the Scriptures, or word of God.

emonomancg , by the aid of devils and evil spirits.

lolomancg , by idols, images, and figures.

sgchomancg , by the soul,afl

'

ections, or dispositions ofmen.

ntinopomaneg , by the entrails of human beings.

heriomancg , by beasts.

m ithomancg, by birds.

rhthgomancy, by fishes.

otanomancg , by herbs.

ithomancg , by stones.

'

leromancy, by lots.

neiromancg , by dreams.

nomancy, by names.

ri thmancg , by numbers.

ogarithmancg , by logarithms.

ternomancg , by the marks from the breast to the belly.

lustromancg , by the sound of

, or marks upon, the belly.

mphelomancg , by the navel.

hiromaneg , by the hands.

’

a damancy, by the feet.n chgomaneg , by the nail'

ephaleonomancg , by asses’

heads.

'uphramancg , by ashes.

apnomancg , by smoke.

ivanomancy, by the burning of 1ncense.

feromancg , by the melting of wax .

ecanomaneg , by basins of water.fatox tromancg , by looking-

glasses.

hartomancg , by writing in papers, and by Valentines.

facharomancg , by knives and swords.

'rgstallomancg , by crystals.

FORTUNE- TELLING.

D actglomancg , by rings.

Koseinomancg , by sieves.

A x inomancy, by saws;

Kaltabomancg , by vessels of brass, or other metal.Spatalamancg , by skins

,bones, Ste.

R oadomancg , by stars.

S ciomancy, by shadows.

Astragalomancy, by dice.

Oinomancy, by the lees of wine.

a

ggcomancg , by figs .

gpomancg , by cheese.

A lphitomancy, by meal, flour, or bran .

Krithomancg , by corn or grain .

A leetromancg , by cocks.

G—gromancg , by circles .

L ampadomancy, by candles and lamps.

ONEIRO- CR ITICISM,or the art of interpreting dreams, is a

relic of the most remote ages, which has subsisted through all

the changes that moral or physical revolutions have operatedin the world. The records of five thousand years bear abundant testimony to the universal diffusion of the belief, that theskilful could read the future in dreams. The rules of the art,

if any ex isted in ancient times,are not known ; but in our

day, one simple rule opens the whole secret. Dreams, say allthe wiseacres in Christendom,

are to be interpreted by con

traries . Thus,if you dream of filth

, you will acquire some

thing valuable if you dream of the dead, you will hear newsof the living ; if you dream of gold and silver, you run a risk

of being without either ; and if you dream you have manyfriends, you will be persecuted by many enemies. The rule,however, does not hold good in all cases . It is fortunate todream of little pigs, but unfortunate to dream of big bullocks.

If you dream you have lost a tooth, you may be sure that youwill shortly lose a friend ; and if you dream that your houseis on fire, you will receive news from a far country. If you

dream of vermin,it is a sign that there w ill be sickness in

your family ; and if you dream of serpents, you will have

friends who,in the course of time, will prove your b itterest

enemies ; but, of all dreams, it is most fortunate if you dreamthat you are wallowing up to your neck in mud and mire.

FORTUNE- TELLING.

Clear water is a sign of grief ; and great troubles, distress,and perplex ity are predicted, if you dream that you stand

naked in the public streets, and know not where to find a gar

ment to shield you from the gaze of the multitude.

In many arts of Great Britain, and the continents of

Europe and erica, there are to be found elderly women inthe villages and country- places whose interpretations ofdreamsare looked upon with as

,much reverence as if they were ora

cles. In districts remotefrom towns it is not uncommon to

find the members of a family regularly every mernin nar

rating their dreams at a breakfast- table, and becoming appyor miserable for the day according to their interpretation .

There is not a flower that blossoms,or fruit that ripens, that,

dreamed of,is not ominous of either good or evil to such peo

ple. Every tree of the field or the forest is endowed with a

similar influence over the fate of mortals, if seen in the night

visions. To dream of the ash, is the sign of a long journey ;and of an oak, prognosticates long life and prosperity. To

dream you strip the bark ofl'

any tree, is a sign to a maiden

of an approaching loss of character ; to a married woman ,of a family bereavement ; and to a man, of an accession of

fortune. To dream of a leafless tree, is a sign of great sorrow ; and of a branchless trunk, a sign of despair and suicide.

The elder- tree is more auspicious to the sleeper ; while the firtree, better still, betokens all manner of comfort and prosperity . The lime- tree predicts a voyage across the ocean ;while the yew and the alder are ominous of sickness to theyoung and of death to the old.

* Among the flowers and

frui ts charged with messages for the future, the following is a

It is qui te astonishing to see the great demand there is, both in England and France, for dream - books, and other trash of the same kind. Two

books in England enjoy an ex traordinary populari ty, and have run through

u pwards of fifty editions in as many years in London alone, besides beingreprinted in Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow , and Dublin . One is“Mother Bridget

’

s Dream - book and Oracle of Fate the other i s the

Norwood Gipsy.

”It i s stated on the authori ty of one who i s curiou s in

these matters, that there is a demand for these works, which are sold at

sums varying from a penny to si x pence, chiefly to servant- girls and imperfectly

- educated eople, all over the country, of upwards of eleven thousandannually ; and at at no period du ring the last thirty years has the ave

rage number sold been less than thi s. The total number during this periodwould thus amount tovon. 11.

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FORTUNE- TELLING.

R oses, denote happy love, not unmix edwith sorrow from other

sources.

S orrel. To dream of this herb 1s a sign that you will shortlyhave occasion to ex ert all your prudence to overcome some

great calamity .

S unflowers, show that your pride will be deeply wounded.

V iolets, predict evi l to the single and j oy to the married.

Yallow-flowers of any kind predict jealousy.

Yew- bem es, predict loss of character to both sex es.

It should be observed that the rules for the interpretationof dreams are far from being universal. The checks of the

peasant girl of England glow with pleasure in the morn ingafter she has dreamed of a rose, whi le the paysanne of Normandy dreads disappointment and vex ation for the very samereason. The Switzer who dreams of an oak tree does not

share m the Englishman’

8 joy ; for bem e ines that the vision

was a warning to him that, from some trifling cause, an overwhelmin calamity w ill burst over him. Thus do the 1gno

ran t andthe credulous torment themselves ; thus do theyspread their nets to catch vex ation , and pass their lives between hopes which are of no value and fears which are a positive evil.

Ottawa—Among the other means of self- annoyance uponwhich men have stumbled, in their vain hope of discoveringthe future, signs and omens hold a conspicuous place. Thereis scarcely an occurrence in nature which, happening at a

certain time, is not looked upon by some persons as a prognos

ticator either of good or evil. The latter are in the greatestnumber, somuchmore ingen ious arewe in tormenting ourselvesthan in discovering reasons for enjoyment in the things that

surround us. We go out of our course to make ourselves uncomfortable ; the cup of life is not bitter enough to our palate,and we distil superfluous poison to put into it, or conjure uphideous things to frighten ourselves at

,whichwould never ex ist

if we did not make them. We sufl'

er, says Addison,* as

much from trifling accidents as from real evils. I have knownthe shooting of a star spoil a night

’

s rest, and have seen a man

“Spectator, No. 7, March 8th, 1710- 11.

FORTUNE- TELLING.

in love grow pale and lose his appetite upon the plucking of amerry - thought. A screech- owl at midnight has alarmed a fa

mily more than a band of robbers ; nay, the voice of a crickethas struck more terror than the roaring of a lion . There isnothing so inconsiderable whichmay not appear dreadful to animagination that is filledwith omens and prognostics . A rustynail or a crooked pin shoots up into prodigies.

The century and a quarter that has passed away since Ad

dison wrote has seen the fall of many errors. Many fallaciesand delusions have been crushed under the foot of time since

then ; but this has been left unscathed, to frighten the weakminded and embitter their ex istence. A belief in omens is

not confined to the humble and uninformed. A general, wholed an army with credit, has been known to feel alarmed at a

winding- sheet in the candle ; and learned men , who had ho

nourably and fairly earned the highest honours of literature,have been seen to gather their little ones around them,

and

fear that one would be snatched away, because,

When stole upon the time the dead of night

And heavy sleep had closed up mortal eyes,

a dog in the street was howling at the moon . Persons whowould acknowledge freely that the belief in omens was unwor

thy of a man of sense, have yet confessed at the same time

that, in spite of their reason,they have been unable to con

quer their fears of deathwhen they heard the harmless insectcalled the death- watch ticking in the wall, or saw an oblonghollow coal fly out of the fire.

Many other evil omens besides thosementioned above alarmthe vulgar and the weak. If a sudden shivering comes oversuch people, they believe that, at that instant, an enemy istreading over the spot that will one day be their grave. If

they meet a sow when they first walk abroad in the morn ing,it is an omen of evil for that day. To meet an ass, is in likemanner unlucky . It is also very unfortunate to walk undera ladder ; to forget to eat goose on the festival of S t. M ichael ;to tread upon a beetle, or to eat the twin nuts that are some

times found in one shell. Wo, in likemanner, is predicted tothat wight who inadvertently upsets the salt ; each grain thatis overthrown wi ll bring to him a day of sorrow. If thirteen

FORTUNE-TELLING;

persons sit at table, one of them will die within the year ; andall of them will be unhappy. Of all evil omens, this is the

worst. The facetious Dr. Kitchener used to observe that

therewas one case in which he believed that it was really nulucky for thirteen persons to sit down to dinner, and that waswhen there was only dinner enough for twelve. Unfortu

nately for their peace of mind, the great maijority of people

do not take this wise view of the matter. 11 almost everycountry of Europe the same superstition prevails, and some

carry it so far as to look upon the number thi rteen as in everyway ominous of evil ; and if they find thi rteen coins in their

area, cast away the odd one like a polluted thing. The phi

osOphic Beranger, 1n his ex qu isite song,“Thirteen at Table,

”

has taken a poetical view of this humiliating superstition , andmingled, as is his wont, a lesson of genuine wisdom in his lay.

Being at dinner, he overthrows the salt,and, lookin round

the room, discovers that he 18 the thirteenth gu .est Is he

is mourning his unhappy fate, and conjuring11l visions of dis

ease and sufl'

ering, and the grave, he i s suddenly startled bythe apparition of Deathherself, not in the shape of a grim foe,with skeleton ribs andmenacing dart, but of an angel of light,who shows the folly of tormenti ng ourselves with the dread of

her approach, when she 18 the friend, rather than the enemy,of man , and frees us from the fetters which bind us to the dust.If men could bring themselves to look upon death in this

manner, living well and wi sely till her inevitable approach,how vast a store of grief and vex ation would they spare themselves !

Among good omens, one of the most conspicuous is to meeta p iebald horse. To meet two of these an imals is still morefortunate ; and if on such an occasion you spit thrice, andform an reasonable wish, it will be gratified within threedays. Ii is also a sign of good fortune if you inadvertently

put on your stocking wrong side out. If you wilfully wearyour stocking 111 this fashion, no good will come of it. It is

very lucky to sneeze twice ; but if you sneeze a third time, the

omen loses its power, and your good fortune will be nipped 1n

the bud. If a strange dog follow you, and fawn on you, and

wish to attach itself to you, it is a sign of very great pros

parity. Just as fortunate 18 it if a strange male cat comes toyour house and manifests friendly intentions towards your

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FORTUNE- TELLING.

future destiny will be revealed to her in a dream. Thischarm fails of its efl

'

ect if tried any other day of the

ear.

Valentine D ay.—Let a single woman go out of her own

door very early in the morning, and if the first personshe meets be awoman, she will notbemarried that yearif she meet a man

,she will be married within three

months.

L ady D ay.- The following charm may be tried this day

with certain success — S tring thirty- one nuts on a string,composed of red worsted mix ed with blue silk, and tie 1t

round your neck on going to bed, repeating these lines

Oh, I wish ! oh, I wish to see

Who my true love is to be

Shortly after midnight, you will see your lover in a

dream,and be informed at the same time of all the prin

cipal events of your future life.

S t. S within’

s Eva— Select three things you most wish to

know ; write them down with a new pen and red ink on

a sheet of fine- wove paper, from which you must pre

viously cut ofi’

all the corners and burn them. Fold thepaper into a true- lover ’s knot, and wrap round it threehairs from your head. Place the paper under your pillow for three successive nights, and your curiosity to

know the future will be satisfied.

S t. Mark’

s Eva— Repair to the nearest churchyard as the

clock strikes twelve, and take from a grave on the south

side of the church three tufts of grass, (the longer andranker the better,)and on going to bed place them underyour pillow, repeating earnestly three several times,

The Eve of S t. Mark by predi ction is blest,Set therefore my hopes and my fears all to rest

Let me know my fate, whether weal or wo ;Whether my rank

’

s to be high or low ;Whether to live single, or be a bride,And the destiny my star doth provide.

’

Should you have no dream that night, on will be sin leand miserable all your hfe. If you cam of than or

FORTUNE-TELLING.

and lightning, your life will be one of great dificultyand sorrow .

Candlemas Eva—Ou this night which is the purificationof the Virgin Mary), let three, ve, seven , or nine youngmaidens assemble together in a s uare chamber. Hangin each corner a bundle of sweet erbs, mi x ed wi th rue

and rosemary. Then mix a cake of flour, olive oil, and

white sugar ; every maiden havin an equal share in the

making and the ex pense of it. fterwards, it must becut into equal pieces, each one marking the piece as she

cuts it with the initials of her name. It is then to bebaked one hour before the fire, not a word being spokenthe whole time, and the maidens sitting with their armsand knees across. Each piece of cake is then to be

wrapped up in a sheet of paper, on which each maiden

shall write the love part of Solomon ’

s Songs. If she

put this under her pillow,she will dream true. She will

see her future husband and every one of her children,and will know, besides, whether her family will be pooror prosperous— a comfort to her, or the contrary .

M idsummer.— Take three roses, smoke them with sulphur,

and ex actly at three in the day, bury one of the rosesunder a yew tree ; the second in a newly-made grave,and put the third under your pillow for three n ights,and at the end of that period burn it in a fire of charcoal. Your dreams during that time will be propheticof your future destiny, and what is still more cu rious andvaluable (Mother Bridget loqu itur), the man whom you

are to wed will know no peace till he comes and visits

you . Besides this, you will perpetually haun t his dreams.

S t. J ohn’

s Eva—Make a new pincushion of the very bestblack velvet (no inferior quality will answer the purpose),and on one side stick your name in full length with the

very smallest pins that can be bought (none other willdo). On the other side, make a cross with some verylarge pins, and surround it with a circle. Put this into

your stocking when you take it ofl'

at night, and hang it

up at the foot of the bed. All your future li fe will passbefore you in a dream.

F irst New Moon of the Year.—On the first new moon in

the year, take a pint of clear spring- water, and infuse

FORTUNE- TELLING.

into it the white of an egg laid by a white hen, a glassof white wine, three almonds peeled white, and a tablespoonful of white rose- water. Drink this on goin to

bed, not making more nor less than three draughts o? it ;repeating the following verses three several t1mes in a

clear distinct voice, but not so loud as to be overheard

by anybody

If I dream of water pureBefore the coming morn ,

’Tis a sign I shall be poor,And unto wealth not born .

If I dream of tasting beer,Mi ddling then will be my cheer

Chequer’

d wi th the good and bad,Sometimes joyfu l, sometimes sad ;But should I dream of drinking wine,Wealth and pleasure will be mine.

The stronger the drink, the better the cheer

Dreams of my destiny, appear, appear !’

Twenty- n inth of February — This day, as it only occurs

once in four years, is peculiarly auspicious to those who

desire to have a glance at futurity, especially to youngmaidens burning with an x iety to know the appearanceand complex ion of their future lords. The charm to be

adopted is the following : S tick twenty - seven of the

smallest pins that are made, three by three, into a tallow

candle. Light it up at the wrong end, and then place itin a candlestick made out of clay, which must be drawnfrom a V irgin

’

s grave. Place this on the chimney- place,in the left- hand corner, ex actly as the clock strikestwelve, and o to bed immediately. When the candle is

burnt out,tai e the pins and put them into your left shoe ;

and before nine n ights have elapsed your fate will be

revealed to you .

We have now taken a hasty review of the various modes ofseeking to di scover the future, especially as practised in

modern times. The main features of the folly appear essen

tially the same in all countries. National character and

peculiarities operate some difi’

erence of interpretation . The

mountaineer makes the natural phenomena which he most

frequently witnesses prognosticative of the future. The

dweller in the plains, in a simi lar manner, seeks to know his

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BOOK III.

THE MAGNETISERS .

Some deemed them wondrous wise, and some believed them mad.

Beattie’s Minstrel.

THE wonderful influence of imagination in the cure of dis

eases is well known . A motion of the hand, or a glance of

the eye, will throw a weak and credulous patient into a fit ;and a pill made of bread

,if taken with suflicient faith

,will

operate a cure better than all the dru

gs 1n thepharmacopceia.

The Prince of Orange, at the siege 0 Breda, m 16 2 5,cured

all his soldiers who were dying of the scurvy, by a philanthropic piece of quackery,whichhe playedupon them with the

knowledge of the physicians, when all othermeans had failed.

*

Many hundreds of instances, of a simi lar kind, mi ht be te

lated, especially from the history of witchcraft. he mum

meries, strange esticulations, and barbarous jargon of witches

and sorcerers,w ich frightened credulous and nervous women,brought on all those symptoms of hysteria and other similar

See V an der Mye’a account of the siege of Breda. The garrison , being

afi icted with scurvy, the Prince of Orange sent the physicians two or threesmall phials , conta1n1n

(gs decoction of chamomile, wormwood, and camphor,

telling them to preten that it was a medicine of the greatest value and

ex tremest rarity, whi ch had been procured wi th very much danger and

di fi cu lty from the East ; and so strong, that two or three drops wouldimpart a healing virtue to a gallon of water. The soldiers hadfai th in their

commander ; they took the medicine with cheerful faces, and grow well

rapidly. They afterwards thronged about the Prince in groups of twentyand thirty at a time, praising his skill, and loading him with protestationsof gratitude.

812 mm ax ons-

n ears .

diseases, so well understood now, but which were then supposed to be the work of the devil, not only by the victims

and the public in general, but by the operators themselves.

In the age when alchymy began to fall into some disrepute,and learning to lift up its voice against it, a new delusion,based upon this power of imagination, suddenly arose, and

found apostles among all the alchymists . Numbers of them,

forsaking their old pursuits, made themselves magnetisers . It

appeared first in the shape of mineral, and afterwards of ani

mal, magnetism, under which latter name it survives to this

day, and numbers its dupes by thousands .

The mineral magnetisers claim the first notice, as the

worthy predecessors of the quacks of the present day. The

honour claimed for Paracelsus of being the first of the Rosi

crucians has been disputed ; but his claim to be consideredthe first of the magnetisers can scarcely be challenged. It

has been already mentioned of him,in the part of this work

which treats of alchymy, that, like nearly all the distinguishedadepts, he was a physician and pretended, not only to make

gold and confer immortality, but to cure all diseases. He

was the first who, with the latter view,attributed occult and

m iraculous powers to the magnet. Animated ap arently bya sincere conviction that the magnet was the p

'

losopher’

s

stone, which, if it could not transmute metals, could soothe

all human sufl'

ering and arrest the progress of decay, hetravelled for many years in Persia and Arabia

,in search of

the mountain of adamant, so famed in oriental fables . Whenhe practised as a physician at Basle

,he called one of his

nostrums by the name of azoth— a stone or crystal, which, hesaid, contained ma netic properties, and cured epilepsy, hysteria, and spasmo

'

c affections. He soon found imitators.

H is fame spread far and near ; and thus were sown the first

seeds of that error which has since taken root and flourishedso widely. In spite of the denial of modern practitioners,this must be considered the origin ofmagnetism for we find

that,beginning with Paracelsus, there was a regular succes

sion of mineral magnetisers until Mesmer appeared, and gave

a new feature to the delusion .

Paracelsus boasted of being able to transp lant diseases

from the human frame into the earth,by means of the mag

net. He said there were six ways by which this might be

THE MAGNETISERS .

efi’

ected. One of them will be quite suflicient,as a specimen.

“If a person sufl'

er from disease, either local or general, letthe following remedy be tried. Take a ma net

,impregnated

with and mix ed with rich eart in this earthsow some seeds that have a congruity or homogeneity withthe disease : than let this earth, well sifted and mix ed with

mummy, be laid in an earthen vessel ; and let the seeds com

mitted to it be watered daily with a lotion in which the dis

eased limb or body has been washed. Thus will the diseasebe transplanted from the human body to the seeds which are

in the earth. Having done this, transplant the seeds fromthe earthen vessel to the round, and wait till they beginto sprout into herbs : as t ey increase, the disease will diminish ; and when they have arrived at their full growth, itwill disappear altogether.

”

Kircher the Jesuit, whose quarrel with the alchymists was

the means of ex posing many of their im ostures, was a firm

believer in the efficacy of the magnet. aving been appliedto by a patient afflicted with hernia, he directed the man to

swallow a small magnet reduced to powder, while he applied,at the same time, to the ex ternal swelling a poultice, made of

filings of iron . He ex pected that by thi s means the magnet,when it got to the corresponding place inside, would drawin the iron , and with it the tumour ; which would thus

,he

sa id, be safely and ex peditiously reduced.

As this new doctrine of magnetism spread, it was found thatwounds inflicted with any metallic substance could be cured

by the magnet. In process of time the delusion so increased,‘5 Mummies were of several kinds, and were all of great use in magnetic

medicines. Paracelsus enumerates si x kinds of mummies ; the first four,on ly differing in the composi tion u sed by different people for preservingtheir dead, are the Egyptian , Arabian , Pisasphaltos, and Lybian . The fifthmummy of pecu liar power was made from criminals that had been hanged ;for from such there is a gentle siccation , that ex pungeth the watery

humour, wi thout destroying the oil and spirituall , which is cherished bythe heavenly luminaries, and strengthened continually by the afl uence and

impulses of the celestial spiri ts ; whence it may be properly called by thename of constellated or celesti al mummie.

”The si x th kind of mummy

was made of corpuscles , or spiri tual eflluences, radiated from the livingbody ; though we cannot get very clear ideas on this head, or respectingthe manner in whi ch they were caught Medicine D iatastica ; or, Symathetical Mummie, abstracted from the Works of Paracelsus , and trans

ated out of the Latin, by Fernando Parkhurst, Gent.”

London, 1658 , pp.

2 , 7 . Quoted by the Foreign Quarterly Review ,

”vol. x i i . , p. 415 .

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THE MAGNETISERS .

Hyplocrisma Spongus ; or, a Splinge to wipe away the

Weapon - Salve in which he declared, that it was as bad as

witchcraft to use or recommend such an unguent ; that it was

invented by the devil, who, at the last day, would seize uponevery personwhohadgiven it the slightest encouragement. In

fact,”said Parson Foster, the devil himself gave it to Para

celsus ; Paracelsus to the Emperor ; the Emperor to the courtier ; the courtier to Baptista Ports ; and Baptista Porta toDr . Fludd, a doctor of physic, yet living and practising inthe famous city of London

,who now stands tooth and nail for

it.

” Dr . Fludd, thus assailed, took up the pen in defence of

his unguent, in a reply called “The Squeezing of Parson Foster’s Spi

’

ln e ; wherein the Spunge- Bearer’s immodest Carriege and ehaviour towards his Brethren is detected ; thebitter Flames of his slanderous Reports are, by the sharpVinegar of Truth, corrected and quite ex tinguished ; and

,

lastly, the virtuous Validity of his Spiinge in wiping awaythe Weapon - Salve, is crushed out and clean aboli shed.

Shortly after this dispute a more distinguished believer inthe weapon - salve made his appearance, in the person of S ir

Kenelm Digby, the son of S ir Everard Digby, who was ex e

outed for his participation in the Gunpowder Plot. Thisgentleman , who, in other respects, was an accomplished scholarand an able man , was imbued with all the ex travagant notionsof the alchymists. He believed in the philosopher’s stone,

and wished to engage Descartes to devote his energies to thediscovery of the elix ir of life

,or some other means by which

the ex istence Of man might be prolonged to an indefin ite

period. He gave his wife, the beautiful Venetia AnastasiaS tanley, a dish of capons, fed upon vipers

,according to the

plan supposed to have been laid down by Arnold of Villeneuve,in the hope that she might thereby preserve her loveliness fora century. If such a man once took up the idea of the

weapon - salve, it was to be ex pected that he would make themost Of it. In his hands, however, it was changed from an

unguent into a powder,and was called the o wder of sympa

thy . He pretended that he had acquired t e knowledge of it

from a Carmelite friar, who had learned it in Persia or Armen ia

,from an oriental philosopher of great renown . Kin

gJames, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Buckingham,an

many other noble personages, believed in its efficacy. The

THE MAGNETISERS .

following remarkable instance of his mode of cure was readby S ir Kenelm to a society of learned men at Montpellier.Mr. James Howell, the well- known author of the “D endro

logia,”and of various letters, coming by chance as two of his

best friends were fighting a duel, rushed between them,and

endeavoured to part them . He seized the sword of one of

the combatants by the hilt, while, at the same time, he graspedthe other by the blade. Being transported with fury one

against the other, theg

struggled to rid themselves of the

hindrance caused by t eir friend ; and in so doing, the one

whose sword was held by the blade by Mr . Howell, drew itaway roughly, and nearly cut his hand ofi

'

, severing the nervesand muscles, and penetrating to the bone. The other, almostat the same instant, disengaged his sword, and a imed a blowat the head Of his antagonist, which Mr. Howell observing,raised his wounded hand with the rapidity of thought, to pre

vent the blow . The sword fell on the back of his alreadywounded hand

,and cut it severely.

“It seemed, said Sir

Kenelm Digby,“as if some .unlucky star raged over them,

that they should have both shed the blood of that dear friend,for whose life they would have given their own

,if they had

been in their proper mind at the time. Seeing Mr . Howell’

s

face all besmeared with blood from his wounded hand, theyboth threw down their swords and embraced him,

and boundup his hand with a garter, to close the veins, which were cut,

and bled profusely . They then conveyed him home, and sent

for a surgeon . King James, who was much attached to Mr.Howell

,afterwards sent his own surgeon to attend him . We

must continue the narrative in the words Of S ir KenelmDigby It was my chance, says he,

“to be lodged hard

by him , and, four or five days after, as I was making myselfready, he came to my house, and prayed me to view his

wounds ;‘for I understand,

’

said he, that you have ex traor

dinary remedies on such occasions ; and my surgeons appre

hend some fear,that it may grow to a gangrene, and so the

hand must be cut In effect, his countenance discoveredthat he was in much pain

,which

,he said

,was insupportable,

in regard to the ex treme inflammation . I told him I wouldwillingly serve him ; but if, haply, he knew the manner howI could cure him, without touching or seeing him, it might be

that he would not ex pose himself to my manner of curing ;

THE MAGNETISERS .

because he would think it, peradventure, either inefi‘

ectual or

superstitious. He replied, The many wonderful things whichpeople have related unto me of your way of medicinement,makes me nothing doubt at all of its efficacy ; and all that Ihave to say unto you is comprehended in the Spanish proverb,H agase el milagro y hagalo Mahoma—Let the miracle bedone, thou h Mahomet do it.

’

I askedhim then for anything that had the blood uponit : so he presently sent for hi s garter, wherewith his handwas first bound; and, as I called for a basin of water

, as if Iwould wash my hands, I took a handful of powder of vitriol

,

which I had in my study; and presently dissolved it. As soon

as the bloody garter was brought me, I put it in the basin ,observing, in the interim,

what Mr. Howell did, who stood

talking with a gentleman in a corner of my chamber, notregardin at all what I was doing. He started suddenly, asif he h found some strange alteration in himself. I askedhim what he ailed ? ‘I know not what ails me ; but I findthat I feel no more pain. Methinks that a pleasing kind of

freshness, as it were a wet cold napkin, did spread over my

hand, which hath taken away the inflammation that tormented

me before.

’ I replied, S ince, then, you feel already so much

good of my medicament, I advise you to cast away all yourplasters ; only keep thewound clean , and in a moderate temper,betwix t heat and cold.

’ This was presently reported to the

Duke of Buckingham, and a little after, to the king, who wereboth very curious to know the circumstances of the businesswhich was

,that after dinner, I took the garter out of the

water, and put it to dry before a great fire. It was scarcedry before Mr. Howell

’

s servant came runn ing, and sayingthat his master felt as much burn ing as ever he had done, ifnot more ; for the heat was such as if his hand were betwix tcoals of fire. I answered, that althou b that had happenedat present, yet he should find ease in a short time ; for I knewthe reason of this new accident, andwould provide accordinglyfor his master should be free from inflammation, it might be,before he could possibly return to him : but, in case he found

no ease, I wished him to come presently back again ; if not,

he might forbear coming. Thereupon he went ; and, at the

instant, I did put the garter again into the water ; thereuponhe found his master without any pain at all. To be brief,

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THE MAGNETISERS .

be much more useful than their plan of causing persons to

read with their great or seeing, with their eyes shut

,

into other people s bodies, and counting the number of arteriestherein .TContemporary with S ir Kenelm Digby, was the no less

famous Mr. Valentine Greatraks who, without mentioningmagnetism, or laying claim to any theory, practised uponhimself and others a deception much more akin to the animal

magnetism of the present day, than the mineral magnetism itwas then so much the fashion to study. He was the son of

an Irish entleman, of good education and property, in .the

county 0 Cork. He fell, at an early age, into a sort of

melancholy derangement. After some time, he had an im

pulse, or strange persuasion in his mind, which continued to

resent itself, whether he were sleepin or waking, that Godd given him the power Of curing the

gking

’

s evil. He men

tioned this persuasion to his wife, who very candidly told him

that he was a fool ! He was not quite sure Of this, notwith

standing the high authority from which it came, and determined to make trial of the power that was in him. A fewdays afterwards, he went to one William Maher, of Salters~bridge, in the parish of Lismore, who was grievous] afflicted

wi th the king’

s evil in his eyes, cheek, and throat. {lpon thisman , who was of abundant faith, he laid his hands, strokedhim, and prayed fervent] He had the satisfaction to see

him heal considerably in t e course Of a few days ; and, finally,with the aid of other remedies

,to be uite cured. This suc

cess encouraged him in the belief that 0 had a divinemission.

D ay after day he had further impulses from on high, that he

was called upon to cure the ague also. In the course of time

be ex tended his powers to the curing of epilepsy, ulcers,aches

,and lameness. All the county of Cork was in a com

motion to see this ex traordinary physician, who certainlyoperated some very eat benefit in cases where thewas heightened by ypochondria and depression of spirits.

According to his own account,1suchgreat multitudes resorted

Wirth’s “Theoris des Stmnambulismes, p. 79 .

f Report of the Academic Royals dc Medwins, —csse of MademoiselleCeline Sauvage, p . 186 .

Boil

Greatrahs’

Account of himself, in a letter to the Honourable Roberty e.

THE MAGNETISERS .

to him from divers places, that he had no time to follow his

own business, or enjoy the company of his family and friends.

He was obliged to set aside three days in the week, from six

in the morning till six at n ight, during which time only helaid hands upon all that came. Still the crowds which

thronged around him were so great, that the neighbouringtowns were not able to accommodate them. H e thereuponleft his house in the country, and went to Youghal, where theresort of sick people, not only from all parts of Ireland

,but

from England, continued so great, that the magistrates wereafraid they would infect the place by their diseases. Several

of these poor, credulous people no sooner saw him than theyfell into fits, and be restored them by waving his hand in theirfaces, and praying over them. Nay, he afi rmed, that the

touch of his glove had driven pains away, and, on one occa

sion,cast out from a woman several devils, or evil spirits, who

tormented her day and n ight. Every one of these devils,”

says Greatraks, was like to choke her, when it came up into

her throat. ” It is evident, from this, that the woman’

s com

plaint was nothing but hysteria.

The clergy of the diocese of Lismore, who seem to have

had much clearer notions of Greatraks’ pretensions than theirparishioners, set their faces against the new prophet and

worker of miracles. He was cited to appear in the Dean ’

s

Court,and prohibited from laying on his hands for the future ;

but he cared nothing for the church. He imagined that he

derived his powers direct from Heaven, and continued to

throw people into fits, and bring them to their senses again,as usual

,almost ex actly after the fashi on of modern magne

tisers . His reputation became, at last, so great, that LordConway sen t to him from London, begging that he would

come over immediately,to cure a grievous headache which

his lady had suffered for several years, and which the principalphysicians of England had been unable to relieve.

Greatraks accepted the invitation , and tried his man ipulations and prayers upon Lady Conway . He failed, however,in affording any relief. The poor lady ’

s headache was

ex cited by causes too serious to allow her any help, even fromfaith and a lively imagination . He lived for some months in

Lord Conway ’

s house, at Ragley, in Warwickshire, Operatingcures similar to those he had performed in Ireland. He

THE MAGNETISERS .

’terwards removed to London, and took a house in Lincoln ’

s

1n Fields, which soon became the daily resort of all the

arvoas and credulous women of the metropolis. A veryunsing account of Greatraks at this time is given in

[0 second volume of the “Miscellanies of S t. Evremond,”

1der the title of the Irish prophet. It is the most graphic{etch ever made of this early magnetiser. Whether his preznsions were more or less absurd than those of some of his

1ccessors, who have lately made their appearance among us,

ould be hard to say.

“When M . de Comminges, says S t. Evremond, “was

nbassador from his most Christian Majesty to the King of

reat Britain , there came to London an Irish rophet, who

sssed himself ed as a great worker of miracles. Some personsquality having begged M . de Comminges to invite him to

is house, that they might be witnesses Of some of his mirase, the ambassador promised to satisfy them,

as much froms own curiosity as from courtesy to his friends ; and gave

otice to Greatraks that he would be glad to see him.

A rumour of the prophet’s coming soon spread all over1e town

,and the hotel of M . de Comminges was crowded by

ck persons, who came full of confidence in their speedy cure.

he Irishman made them wait a considerable time for him,

1t came at last,in the midst of their impatience, with a grave

zid simple countenance, that showed no signs of his being a

mat. Monsieur de Comminges prepared to question him

rictly, hoping to discourse with him on the matters that bead read of in V an Helmet and Bodinus ; but he was not

ole to do so, much to his regret, for the crowd became so

res t,and cripples and others pressed around so impatiently

1 be the first cured, that the servants were obliged to use

treats, and even force, before they could establish ordernong them,

or place them in proper ranks.

The prophet affirmed that all diseases were caused byril spirits. Every infirmity was with him a case Of diabolicalossession . The first that was presented to him was a man

lfl'

ering from gout and rheumatism,and so severely that the

hysicians had been unable to cure him. Ah,

’

said the

iracle- worker,I have seen a good deal of this sort Of

1irits when I was in Ireland. They are watery spirits, whoing on cold shivering, and ex cite an overflow Of aqueous

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THE MAGNETISERS .

the influence of themind upon the body. Nothing was spokenof in London but his prodigies ; and these prodigies weresupported by such great authorities, that the bewilderedmultitude believed them almost without ex amination, while

more enli htened people did not dare to reject them fromtheir own nowledge. The public opinion , timid andenslaved,respected this imperious and, apparently, well- authenticatederror. Those who saw through thedelusion kept their opinionto themselves, knowing how useless it was to declare theirdisbelief to a people filled with prejudi ce and admiration .

About the same time that Valentine Greatraks was thusmagnetising the people of London, an Italian enthusiast,named Francisco Bagnone, was performing the same tricks inItaly, and with as great success. He had only to touchweakwomen with his hands, or sometimes (for the sake Of workingmore efl

’

ectively upon their fanaticism)with a relic, to makethem fall intofits and manifest all the symptoms ofmagnetism.

Besides these, several learned men, in difl’

erent parts of

Europe, directed their attention to the study of the magnet,believing it might be rendered efficacious in many diseases .

V an Helmont,in articular, published a work on the efl

'

ects

ofp agnetism on t e human frame ; and Balthazar Grecian, aS paniard, rendered himself famous for the boldness of his

views on the subject. The magnet,”said the latter

,

“at

tracts iron ; iron is found everywhere ; everything, therefore,is under the influence ofmagnetism. It is only a modificationof the general principle, which establishes harmony or fomentsdivisions among men . It is the same agent which gives riseto sympathy, antipathy, and theBaptista Porta, who, in the whimsical genealogy of the

weapon - salve, given by Parson Foster in his attack upon Dr.9. Fluctibus, is mentioned as one of its fathers, had also greatfaith in the eflicacy of the magnet, and operated upon theimagination of his patients in a manner which was then con

sidered so ex traordinary that he was accused Of being a magi

oian , and prohibited from practising by the Court of Rome.

Among others who distingu ished themselves by their faith inmagnetism, Sebastian Wirdig and William Max well claim

Introduction to the S tudy of An imal Magnetism, by Baron Dupotet

de S ennevoy, p . 815 .

824 m muacm rssas.

especial notice. Wirdig was professor Of medicine at the

University of Rostock in Mecklenburgh, and wrote a treatisecalled The New Medicine of the Spirits,

”which he presented

to the Royal Society Of London . An edition of this work wasprinted in 1673 , in which the author “

maintained that a magnetic influence took place, not only between the celestial and

terrestrial bodies, but between all living things . The whole

world, he said, was under the influence of magnetism : life was

preserved by magnetism ; death was the consequence of magnetism !

Max well, the other enthusiast, was an admiring disciple of

Paracelsus,and boas ted that he had irradiated the Obscurity

in which too many of the wonder- working recipes of that greatphilosopherwere enveloped. H isworkswere

grinted at Frank

fort, in 1679 . It would seem,from the fo lowing passage,

that he was aware of the great influence Of imag1nation, as

well in the production as in the cure of di seases.

“If you

wish to work prodigies,”says he, abstract from the materi

ality of beings— increase the sum of spirituali ty in bodiesreuse the spirit from its slumbers . Unless you do one or

other of these things—unless you can bind the idea, you can

never perform anything good or great.” Here, in fact, Lies

the whole secret of magnetism,and all delusions of a similar

kind : increase the spiritualit— rouse the spirit from its slum

bers, or, in other words, wori upon the imagination— induce

belief and blind confidence, and you may do anything . Thispassage, which is quoted with approbation by M. D upotet in

a recent work,* as strongly corroborative of the theory new

advanced by the an imal- magnetists, is just the reverse. If

they believe they can work all their wonders by the means sodimly shadowed forth by Max well, what becomes of the uni

versal fluid pervading all nature,and which they pretend to

pour into weak and diseased bodies from the tips of their

fingers ?Early in the eighteenth century, the attention of Europe

was directed to a very remarkable instance of fan aticism,

which has been claimed by the an imal magnetists, as a proofof their science. The convu lsionar ies of S t. Medard

,as they

were called,assembled in great numbers round the tomb of

“Introduction to the S tudy of Animal Magnetism,

” p. 818 .

THE MAGNETISERS .

their favourite saint, the Jansenist priest Paris, and taughtone another how to fall into convulsions. They believed thatS t. Paris would cure all their infirmities ; and the number ofhysterical women andweak -minded persons of all descriptionsthat flocked to the tomb from far and near was so great, asdaily to block up all the avenues leading to the spot. Working themselves up to a pitch of ex citement, they went Ofl

'

one

after the other into fits, while some of them,still in apparent

possession of all their faculties, voluntarily ex posed themselvesto sufi

'

erings, which on ordinary occasions would have beensufli cient to deprive them of life. The scenes that occurredwere a scandal to civilization and to religion—a stranggmixture Of obscenity, absurdity, and superstition . While some

were praying on bended knees at the shrine of S t. Paris,

others were shrieking and making the most hideous noises.

The women especially ex erted themselves. On one side of

the chapel there might be seen a score of them,all in convul

sions, while at another as many more, ex cited to a sort of

frenzy, yielded themselves up to gross indecencies. Some Of

them took an insane delight in being beaten and trampledupon . One in particular, according to Montegre, whose ac

count we quote,* was so enraptured with this ill usage, that

nothing but the hardest blows would satisfy her. While a

fellow of herculean strengthwas beating her with all his might

with a heavy bar of iron, she kept continually urgin him to

renewed ex ertion . The harder he struck the better 5i s likedit, ex claiming all the while,

“Well done, brother ; well done ;oh, how pleasant it is ! what goodyou are doing me! courage,my brother, courage ; strike harder ; strike harder still !

”

Another of these fanatics had, if possible, a still greater lovefor a beating. Carré de Montgeron ,

who relates the circumstance, was unable tO satisfy her wi th six ty blows of a largesledge hammer. He afterwards used the same weapon, withthe same degree of strength, for the sake of ex periment, andsucceeded in battering a hole in a stone wall at the twentyfifth stroke. Another woman

,named S onnet, laid herself

down on a red- hot brazier without flinching, and acquired forherself the nickname of the salamander ; while others, desirous

D ictionnaire des Sciences Medicales—Article “Convuls ionnalrei , par

Montegre.

vor. 11.

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THE MAGNETISERS .

degrees in 1766 , and chose the influence Of the planets on thehuman body as the subject of his inaugural dissertation .

Having treated the matter quite in the style of the old astrologi cal physicians, he was ex posed to some ridicule both thenand afterwards. Even at this early period some faint ideas

Of his great theory were germinating in his mind. He main

tained in his dissertation ,

“that the sun,moon , and fix ed

stars mutually afi'

ect each other in their orbits ; that theycause and direct in our earth a flux and reflux not only in thesea

,but in the atmosphere, and afl

’

ect in a similar manner allOrgan ized bodies through the medium of a subtile and mobilefluid

,which pervades the un iverse and associates all things

together in mutual intercourse andharmony.

” This influence,he said

,was particularly ex ercised on the nervous system,

and

produced two states, which he called intension and remission ,

which seemed to him to account for the difl'

erent periodicalrevolutions observable in several maladies. When in afterlife he met with Father Hell

,he was confirmed by that per

son’

s Observations in the truth of many Of his own ideas.

Having caused Hell to make him some magnetic plates, bedetermined to try ex periments with them himself for his

further satisfaction .

He tried accordingly, and was astonished at his success.

The faith of their wearers operated wonders with the metallicplates . Mesmer made due reports to Father Hell Of all he

had done,and the latter published them as the results of his

own happy invention,and speaking of Mesmer as a physician

whom he had employed to work under him. Mesmer tookOfl

'

ence at being thus treated, considering himself a far greaterpersonage than Father Hell. He claimed the invention as

his own, accused Hell of a breach of confidence, and stigma

tized him as a mean person , an x ious to turn the discoveries ofothers to his own account. Hell replied, and a very prettyquarrel was the result

,which afi

'

orded small talk for monthsto the literati of Vienna. Hell ultimately gained the victory.

Mesmer, nothing daunted, continued to promulgate his views,till he stumbled at last upon the anim al theory.

One Of his patients was a young lady named Oesterline,who sufi

'

ered under a convu lsive malady. Her attacks wereperiodical

,and attended by a rush of blood to the head

,fol

lowed by delirium and syncope. These symptoms he soon

THE MAGNETISERS.

succeeded in reducing under his system Of planetary influence,and imagined he could foretell the periods of accession and

remission . Having thus accounted satisfactorily to himselffor the origin of the disease, the idea struck him that he could

Operate a certain cure, if he could ascertain beyond doubtwhat he had long believed, that there ex isted between the

bodies which compose our globe, an action equally reciprocaland similar to that of the heavenly bodies, by means of whichhe could imitate artificially the periodical revolutions of the

flux and reflux before-mentioned.

He soon convinced himself that this action did ex ist . Whentrying the metallic plates of Father Hell, he thought theirefficacy depended on their form ; but he found afterwards thathe could produce the same effects without usin them at all,merely by passing his hands downwards towargls the feet of

the patient—even when at a considerable distance.

This completed the theory of Mesmer. He wrote an

account of his discovery to all the learned societies of Europe,soliciting their investigation . The Academy of Sc iences at

Berlin was the only one that answered him,and their answer

was anything but favourable to his system or flattering to himself. S till he was not discouraged. He main tained to all

who would listen to him that the magnetic matter, or fluid,pervaded all the un iverse— that every human body conta ined

it,and could commun icate the superabundance of it to another

by an ex ertion of the will. Writing to a friend from Vienna,he said, I have Observed that the magnetic is almost the

same thing as the electric fluid,and that it may be propagated

in the same manner, by means of intermediate bodies . S teel

is not the only substance adapted to this purpose. I haverendered paper, bread, wool, silk, stones, leather, glass, wood,men

,and dogs

— in short,everything I touched, magnetic to

such a degree that these substances produced the same efl’

ects

as the loadstone on di seased persons . I have charged jarswi th magnetic matter in the same way as is done with elec

tricity.

”

Mesmer did not long find his residence at Vienna as agreeable as he wished. H is pretensions were looked upon with

contempt or indifference,and the case Of Mademoiselle Oes

terline brought him less fame than notoriety. He determ inedto change his sphere Of action, and travelled into Swabia and

THE MAGNETISERS .

Switzerland. In the latter country hemetwith the celebratedFather Gassner, who, like Valentine Greatraks, amused himself by casting out devils

,and healing the sick bymerely lay

ing hands upon them. At his approach puling girls fell intoconvulsions, and the hypochondriac fancied themselves cured.

H is housewas daily besieged by the lame, the blind, and the

hysteric. Mesmer at once acknowledged the efficacy of his

cures, and declared that they were the Obvious result of his

own newly- discovered power of magnetism. A few of the

Father’s patientswere forthwith subjected to themanipulationsof Mesmer, and the same symptoms were induced. He then

tried his hand upon some paupers in the hospitals of Berneand Zurich, and succeeded, according to his own account, but

no other person ’

s, in curing an Ophthalmia and a gutta serena.

W ith memorials of these achievements he returned toVienna,in the hOpe of silencing his enemies, or at least forcing them

to respect his newly- acquired reputation,and to ex amme his

system more attentively.

H is second appearance in that capital was not more aus

picious than the first. He undertook to cure a Mademoiselle

Paradis,who was quite blind, and subject to convulsions. He

magnetised her several times, and then declared she was

cured ; at least, if she was not, it was her fault, and not his.

An eminent oculist of that day, named Barth, went to visit

her, and declared that she was as blind as ever ; while herfam ily said she was as much subject to convulsions as before.

Mesmer persisted that she was cured. Like the French philosOpher, he would not allow facts to interferewi th his theory.

*

H e declared that there was a conspiracy against him ; and

that Mademoiselle Paradis, at the instigation of her family,feigned blindness in order to injure his reputation !The consequences of this pretended cure taught Mesmer

that Vienna was not the sphere for him. Paris, the idle, thedebauched, the pleasure- hunting, the novelty- loving, was the

scene for a philosopher like him,and thither be repaired

An enthusiastic philosopher, of whose name we are not informed, had

constructed a very satisfactory theory on some subject or other, and was

n ot a little proud of i t. But the facts , my dear fellow ,

”said his friend,

the facts do not agree wi th your theory.

” Don’

t they 1” replied the philosopher, shrugging his shoulders, then , tant pis pour les faits —ao

much the worse for the facts.

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THE MAGNETISER S .

1, and disposed in radu , with their necks outwards. Wateras then poured into the vessel so as just to cover the bottles,1d filings Of iron were thrown in occasionally to hei hten

to magnetic effect. The vessel was then covered wigh an

on cover, pierced through with many holes, and was calledto baquet. From each hole issued a long movable rod Of

on , which the patients were to apply to such parts of their1dies as were afflicted. Around this baguet the patientsare directed to sit

,holding each other by the hand, and

ing their knees together as closely as possible to facilitate1e passage of the magnetic fluid from one to the other.Then came in the assistant magnetisers, generally strong,sndsome young men , to pour into the patient from their

nger- tips fresh streams Of the wondrous fluid. They em

raced the patients between the knees, rubbed them gentlyown the spine and the course Of the nerves, using gentleressure upon the breasts of the ladies, and staring them out

fcountenance to magnetise them by the eye All this time

19 most rigorous silence was maintained, with the ex ceptionf a few wi ld notes on the harmonica or the piano- forte, or1e melodious voice of a hidden Opera- singer swelling softlyt long intervals. Gradually the cheeks of the ladies began1 glow,

their imaginations to become inflamed ; and ofl’

theycut, one after the other, in convulsive fits. Some Of them

1bbed and tore their hair, others laughed till the tears ran

'

Om their eyes,while others shrieked and screamed and

elled till they became insensible altogether.This was the crisis of the delirium . In the midst Of it, the

bief actor made his appearance, waving his wand, like Prosero, to work new wonders. Dressed in a long robe of lilac

110ured silk,richly embroidered with gold flowers, bearing

1 his hand a white magnetic rod ; and, with a look of dignityhich would have set well on an Eastern caliph, he marchedith solemn strides into the room . He awed the still sensible

yhis eye, and the violence of their symptoms diminished.

e stroked the insensible with his hands upon the eyebrowsnd down the spine ; traced figures upon their breast and

bdomen with his long white wand, and they were restored toonsciousness . They became calm,

acknowledged his power,nd said they felt streams of cold or burning vapour passing

882 m s uaenarrsnas.

through their frames, according as he waved his wand or his

fingers before them.

It is impossible, says M. D upotet, to conceive the sen

sation which Mesmer ’8 ex periments created in Paris. NOtheological controversy, in the earlier ages of the CatholicChurch, was ever conducted with greater bitterness . H is

adversaries denied the discovery some calling him a quack,others a fool, and others, again , like the Abbé Fiard, a manwho had sold himself to thedevil ! H is friends were as ex trava

gant in their praise, as his foes were in their censure. Pariswas inundated with pamphlets upon the subject, as manydefending as attacking the doctrine. At court, the Queenex pressed herself 1n favour of it, and nothing else was to be

heard of 111 society.

By the advice ofM . D ’

Eslon,Mesmer challenged an ex a

mination of his doctrine by the Faculty of Medicine. He

proposed to select twenty- four patients, twelve of whom he

would treat magnetically, leaving the other twelve to be

treated by the faculty according to the Old and approvedmethods . He also stipulated, that to prevent disputes, the

government should nominate certain persons who were not

physicians, to be present at the ex periments ; and that the

Object of the inquiry should be,not how these efl

'

ects wereproduced, but whether they were really efficacious in the cureof any disease. The faculty objected to limit the inquiry inthis manner, and the proposition fell to the ground.

Mesmer now wrote to Marie Antoinette, with the view of

securing her influence in Obtain ing for him the protection of

government. He wished to have a chateau and its lands

given to him,with a handsome yearly 1ncome, that he mi ht

be enabled to continue his ex periments at leisure, untroub edby the persecution of his enemies. He hinted the duty of

governments to support men of science, and ex pressed hisfear, that if he met no more encouragement, he should be

compelled to carry his great discovery to some other landmore willing to appreciate him. In the eyes of your Ma

jesty,”said he,

“four or five hundred thousand francs,ap

plied to a good purpose, are of no account. The welfare and

happiness of your people are everything . My discoveryought to be received and rewarded with a mun ificence worthyOf the monarch to whom I shall attach myself.” The govern

THE MAGNETISERS .

ment at last Ofi'

ered him a pension of twenty thousand francs,and the cross of the order of S t. Michael, if he had made anydiscovery in medicine, andwould communicate it to physiciansnominated by the Kin The latter part of the propositionwas not agreeable toMesmer . He feared the unfavourablereport Of the King

’

s physicians ; and, breaking off the nego

tiation, spoke of his disregard of money, and his wish to havehi s discovery at once recognised by the government. He

then retired to Spa, in a fit of disgust, upon pretence of drinking the waters for the benefit of his health.

After he had left Paris, the Faculty of Medicine called

M . B’

Eslon , for the third and last time, to renounce the

doctrine of animal magnetism,or be ex pelled from their body.

M . D’

Eslon, so far from doing this, declared that he had discovered new secrets, and sohcited further ex amination . Aroyal commission Of the Faculty Of Medicine was, in conse

quence, appointed on the 12 th of March,1784, seconded by

another commission of the Academic des S ciences, to investi

gate the phenomena and report upon them. The first com

mission was composed of the principal physicians of Paris ;whi le, amon the eminent men comprised in the latter

,were

Benjamin ranklin,Lavoisier, and Bailly

,the historian of

astronomy . Mesmer was formally invited to appear beforethis body, but absented himself from day to day, upon one

pretence or another . M . D’

Eslon was more honest, becausehe thoroughly believed in the phenomena, which it is to be

questioned if Mesmer ever did,and regularly attended the

sittings and performed ex periments.

Bailly has thus described the scenes of which he was a wit

ness in the course of this investigation . The sick persons,arranged in great numbers and in several rows around the

net, receive the magnetism by all these means : by the ironro which convey it to them from the baquet

— by the cordswound round their bodies—by the connex ion of the thumb,which conveys to them the magnetism of their neighboursand by the sounds of a piano- forte

,or Of an agreeable voice,

difl’

using the magnetism in the air. The patients were also

directly magnetised by means of the finger and wand of the

magnetiser moved slowly before their faces, above or behindtheir heads, and on the diseased parts, always Observing the

direction Of the holes. The magnetiser acts by fix ing his

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THE MAGNETISERS .

Among the patients in convulsions there are always observedreat many women , and very few men .a

sl'hese ex periments lasted for about five months. They had

hardly commenced, before Mesmer, alarmed at the loss both offame and profit, determined to return to Paris. Some patientsof rank and fortune, enthusiastic believers in his doctrine, hadfollowed him to Spa. One of them,

namedBergasse, proposedto open a subscription for him, of one hundred shares, at one

hundred louis each, on condition that he would disclose his

secret to the subscribers, who were to be permitted to makewhatever use they pleased of it. Mesmer readily embracedthe proposal ; and such was the infatuation, that the subscription was not onl filled 111 a few days, but ex ceeded by no lessa sum than onehundred and forty thousand francs.

With this fortune he returned to Paris, and recommencedhis ex periments, while the royal commission continued theirs.

His admiring pupils, who had paid him so handsomely for hisinstructions, spread the delusion over the country

,and esta

blished in . all the principal towns of France, Societies of

Harmony,”for trying ex periments and curing all diseases by

means of magnetism. Some of these societies were a scandal

to morali ty, being joined by profligate men of depraved appe

titee, who took a disgusting delight in witnessing young girlsin convulsions. Many of the pretended magnetisers werenotorious

.

libertines, who took that opportun i ty of gratifyingtheir passions. An illegal 1ncrease of the number of Frenchcitizens was anything but a rare consequence in S trasburg,Nantes, Bourdeaux , Lyons, and other towns, where these

societies were established.

At last the Commissioners published their report, whichwas drawn up by the illustrious and unfortunate Bailly. For

clearness of reasoning and strict impartiality it has never beensurpassed. After detailing the various ex periments made,and their results, they came to the conclusion that the onlyproof advanced in support of Animal Magnetism was the

efi'

ects it produced on the human body— that those effects

could be produced without passes or other magnetic manipulations—that all these manipulations, and passes, and ceremonies never produce any efi

'

ect at all if employedwithout the

Rapport des Commissaires, rédigé par M. Bailly.—Paris, 1784.

886 mmm am a s.

patient’s knowledge ; and that therefore imagination did, andan imal magnetism did not, account for the phenomena .

This report was the ruin ofMesmer's reputation in France.

He quitted Paris shortly after, with the three hundred and

forty thousand francs which had been subscribed by his admi

rers, and retired to his own country,where he died in 1815,

at the adavnced'

age of eighty- one. But the seeds he had

sown fructified of themselves, nourished and brought to maturity by the kindly warmth of popular credulity . Imitatorssprang up in France, Germany, and England, more ex trava

gant than their master, and claiming powers for the new

science which its founder had never dreamt of. Among others,Cagliostro made oed use of the delusion in ex tending his

claims to be considered a master of the occult sciences. But

he made no discoveries worthy to be compared to those of the

Marquis de Puysegur and the Chevalier Barbarin,honest

men , who began by deceiving themselves before they deceivedothers.

The Marquis de Puysegur, the owner of a co nsiderableestate at Busancy, was one of those who had entered into thesubscription for Mesmer. After that individual had quittedFrance, he retired to Busancy with his brother to try AnimalMagnetism upon his tenants, and cure the country people ofall manner of di seases. He was a man of great simplicity andmuch benevolence, and not only magnetised bu t fed the sick

that flocked around him. In all the neighbourhood, and indeed within a circumference of twenty miles, he was lookedupon as endowed with a power almost di vine. H is great discovery, as he called it, was made by chance. One day he

had magnetised his gardener ; and observing him to fall into

a deep sleep, it occurred to him that hewould address a question to him

,as he would have done to a natural somnambulist.

He did so, and the man replied with much clearness and pre

cision . M . de Puysegur was agreeably surprised : he continuedhis ex periments

,and found that

,in this state of magnetic

somnambulism, the sou l of the sleeper was en la rged and

brought into more intimate commun ion w ith all nature,and

more e ecially w ith him, M de P uysegur. H e found that

all furlher man ipulations were unnecessary ; that,w ithout

speaking or making any sign , he could convey his wi ll to the

THE MAGNETISERS .

patient ; that he could, in fact, converse with him, soul to soul,

without the employment of any physical operation whatever !S imultaneously with this marvellous discovery he made

another, which reflects equal credit upon his understanding .

Like Valentine Greatraks, he found it hardwork to magnetiseall that came—that he had not even time to take the reposeand relax ation which were necessary for his health. In this

emergency he hit upon a clever ex pedient. He had heardMesmer say that he could magnetise bits ofwood—why shouldhe not be able to magnetise a whole tree ? It was no sooner

thought than done. There was a large elm on the village

green at Busancy, under which the peasant girls used to danceon festive occasions

,and the old men to sit

, drinking their vinda aye on the fine summer even ings. M. de Puysegur procee ed to this tree and magnetised it, by first touching it withhis hands and then retiring a few steps from it ; all the whiledirecting streams of the magnetic fluid from the branchestoward the trunk, and from the trunk toward the root. Thisdone, he .

caused circular seats to be erected around it,and

cords suspended from it in all directions . When the

patients had seated themselves, they twisted the cords roundthe diseased parts of their bodies, and held one another firmlyby their thumbs to form a di rect channel of communication

for the passage of the fluid.

M. de Puysegur had now two hobbies— the man with the

enlarged soul,and the magnetic elm. The infatuation of

himself and his patients cannot be better ex pressed than in

his own words . Writing to his brother, on the 17th ofMay,1784, he says

,If you do not come, my dear friend, you will

not see my ex traordinary man, for his health is now almost

quite restored. I continue to make use of the happy powerfor which I am indebted to M . Mesmer. Every day I blesshis name ; for I am very useful, and produce many salutarefl

'

ects on all the sick poor in the neighbourhood. They flockaround my tree ; there weremore than one hundred and thirtyof them this morning. It is the best baquet possible ; not a

leaf of it but commun icates health all feel, more or less, the

good efl'

ects of it. You will be delighted to see the charmingp icture of humanity which this presents. I have only one

regret— it is, that I cannot touch all who come. But 1

1

1

-

1

lyemagnetised man—my intelligence— sets me at ease.

VOL. IL 2 9

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THE MAGNETIS EBB.

dictate to him, but as truth requires. When he wants to add

more than I deem it prudent strangers should hear, I stop theflow of his ideas, and of his conversation in the middle of a

word,and give it quite a different turn

Among other persons attracted to Busancy by the reportof these ex traordinary occurrences was M . Cloquet, the Receiver of Finance. H is appetite for the marvellous beingsomewhat insatiable, he readily believed all that was told him

by M . de Puysegur. He also has left a record of what he

saw,and what he credited, which throws a still clearer light

upon the progress of the delusion .

* He says that the patientshe saw in the magnetic state had an appearance of deep sleep

,

during which all the physical faculties were suspended, to the

advantage of the intellectual faculties. The eyes of the

patients were closed ; the sense of hearing was abolished, andthey awoke only at the voice of their magnetiser.

“If anyone touched a patient during a crisis

,or even the chair on

which he was seated, says M . Cloquet,

“ it would cause him

much pain and sufl'

ering, and throw him into convulsions.

D uring the crisis, they possess an ex traordinary and supernatural power, by which, on touching a patient presented tothem,

they can feel what part of his body is diseased,even by

merely passing their hand over their clothes . Another sin

gularity was, that these sleepers who could thus discoverdiseases— see into the interior of other men

’

s stomachs,and

point out remedies— remembered absolutely nothing after themagnetiser had thought proper to disenchant them . The time

that elapsed between their entering the crisis and their comingout of it was obliterated. Not only had the magnetiser the

power of making himself heard by the somnambulists,but he

could make them follow him by merely pointing his finger atthem from a distance

,though they had their eyes the whole

time completely closed.

Such was An imal Magnetism under the auspices of the

Marquis de Puysegur . While he was ex hibiting these fooleriesaround his elm tree, a magnetiser of another class appearedin Lyons

,in the person of the Chevalier de Barbarin . This

person thought the efl'

ort of the will, without any of the para

;3“ Introduction to the S tudy of Animal Magnetism, by Baron Dupotet,

p .

THE MAGNETISEBS .

phernalia of wands or baguets, was sullicient to throw patients

1nto the magnetic sleep . He tried it and succeeded. Bysitting at the bedside of his patients, and praying that theymight be magnetised, they went off into a state very similar tothat of the persons who fell under the notice of M . de Puyse

gur. In the course of time, a very considerable number ofmagnetisers

,acknowledging Barbarin for their model, and called

after him Barbarinists, appeared in difl'

erent parts, and werebelieved to have effected some remarkable cures. In Sweden

and Germany this sect of fanatics increased rapidly, and werecalled sp iritualism, to distingu ish them from the followers ofM.

de Puysegur, who were called cx perimentalists . They maintained that all the efl

'

ects ofAn imal Magnetism,whichMesmer

believed to be producible by a magnetic fluid dispersed throughnature, were produced by the mere efl

'

ort of one human soul

acting upon another ; that when a connex ion had once beenestablished between a magnetiser and his patient, the formercould communicate his influence to the latter from any dis

tan ce, even hundreds of miles, by the will ! One of them thus

described the blessed state of a magnetic patient In such

a man animal instinct ascends to the highest degree adm issible

in this world. The clairvoyan t is then a pure animal,w ithout

any admix ture of matter . H is observations are those of a

spirit. He is similar to God. H is eye penetrates all the

secrets of nature. When his attention is fix ed on any of the

objects of this world— on his disease, his death, his well- be

loved, his friends , his relations, his enemies,— in spirit he sees

them acting ; he penetrates into the causes and the conse

quences of their actions ; he becomes a physician , a prophet,a divine

L et us now see what progress these mysteries made in

England. In the year 1788, Dr . Mainaiiduc, who had beena pupil, first of Mesmer, and afterwards of D

’

Eslon , arrivedin Bristol, and gave public lectures upon magnetism . H is

success was quite ex traordinary. People of rank and fortunehastened from London to Bristol to be magnetised, or to placethemselves under his tuition . Dr. George Winter, in his H istory ofAnimal Magnetism, gives the following list of them“They amounted to one hundred and twenty - seven, among

See Foreign Review, Continental Miscellany, vol. v. p . 113 .

THE MAGNETISERS .

whom therewere one duke, one duchess, one marchioness, twocountesses, one earl, one baron , three baronesses, one bishop,five right honourable gentlemen and ladies

,two baronets

,

seven members of Parliament, one clergyman , two physicians,seven surgeons, besides ninety- two gentlemen and ladies of

respectability.

”He

'

afterwards establishedhimself in London,where he performed with equal success.

H e began bflpublishing proposals to the ladies for the for

mation of a ygeian Society. In this paper he vaunted

highly the curative effects of Animal Magnetism,and took

great credit to himself for being the first person to introduceit into England, and thus concluded — “As this method of

cure is not confined to sex , or college education , and the fairsex being in general the most sympathising part of the creation , and most immediately concerned in the health and careof its ofl

'

spring, I think myself bound in gratitude to you,ladies, for the partiality you have shown me in midwifery, tocontribute

,as far as lies in my power, to render you addi

tionally useful and valuable to the community. With this

view,I propose forming my Hygeian Society, to be incorpo

rated with that of Paris. As soon as twenty ladies have givenin their names, the day shall be appointed for the first meeting at my house, when they are to pay fifteen guineas, which

will include the whole ex pense.

”

Hannah More,in a letter addressed to Horace Walpole 111

S eptember 1788, speaks of the demoniacal mummeries of

Dr . Mainaiiduc, and says he was in a fair way of gaining a

hundred thousand pounds by them,as Mesmer had done by

his ex hibitions in Paris.

So much curiosity was ex cited by the subject that,about

the same time, a man, named Holloway, gave a course of lee

tures on An imal Magnetism in London, at the rate of five

guineas for each pupil, and realized a considerable fortune.

Loutherbourg, the painter, and his wife,followed the same

profitable trade ; and such was the infatuation of the peopleto be wi tnesses of their strange manipulations, that, at times,upwards of three thousand persons crowded around their houseat Hammersmith, unable to gain admission . The tickets soldat prices varying from one to three guineas. Loutherbourgperformed his cures by the touch, after the manner of Valentine Greatraks, and finally pretended to a Divine mission.

2 9“

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THE MAGNETISERS .

vented and took out a patent for the celebrated Metallic

Tractors. He pretended that these tractors, which weretwo small pieces of metal strongly magnetised, something re

sembling the steel plates which were first brought into notice

by Father Hell, would cure gout, rheumatism, palsy, and

in fact, almost every disease the human frame was subjectto, if applied ex ternally to the afflicted part, and moved about

gently, touching the surface only . The most wonderful stories soon obtained general circulation , and the press groanedwith pamphlets, all vaunting the curative efl

'

ects of the tractors, which were sold at five guineas the pair. Perkins gainedmoney rapidly. Gouty subjects forgot their pains in the

presence of this new remedy ; the rheumatism fled at its ap

proach ; and toothache, which is often cured by the meres ight of a dentist, vanished before Perkins and his marvellous steel plates. The benevolent Quakers, of whose body hewas a member, warmly patron ised the invention . Desirousthat the poor, who could not afl

'

ord to pay Mr. Perkins fiveguineas, or even five shillings, for his tractors, should also

share in the benefits of that sublime discovery, they subscribeda large sum, and built an hospital, called the Perkinean Institution

,

”in which all comers might be magnetised free of cost.

In the course of a few months they were in very general use,and their lucky inventor in possession of five thousand pounds.

Dr. Haygarth, an eminent physician at Bath,recollecting

the influence of imagination in the cure of disease, hit uponan ex pedient to try the real value of the tractors. Perkins

’

s

cures were too well established to be doubted ; and Dr . Hay

garth, without gainsaying them, quietly, but in the face of

numerous witnesses,ex posed the delusion under which people

laboured with respect to the curative medium. He suggested

to Dr. Falconer that they should make wooden tractors, paintthem to resemble the steel ones, and see if the very same

effects would not be produced. Five patients were chosen

from the hospital in Bath, upon whom to Operate. Four ofthem sufl

'

ered severely from chronic rheumatism in the ankle,knee, wrist, and hip ; and the fifth had been afflicted for seve

ral months with the gout. On the day appointed for the ex

periments, Dr. Haygarth and his friends assembled at the

host .a l, and with much solemnity brought forth the fictitioustractors. Four out of the five patients said their pains were

THE MAGNETISERS .

immediately relieved ; and three of them said they were not

only relieved, but very much benefited. One felt his kneewarmer, and said he could walk across the room . H e triedand succeeded, although on the previous day he had not beenable to stir . The gouty man felt his pains diminish rapidly,and was quite easy for nine hours, until he went to bed, whenthe twitching began again . On the following day the realtractors were applied to all the patients

, when they describedtheir symptoms in nearly the same terms.

Tomake still more sure, the ex periment was tried in theBristol Infirmary, a few weeks afterwards, on a man who had a

rheumatic afl’

ection in the shoulder, so severe as to incapacitate him from lifting his hand from his knee. The fictitious

tractors were brought and applied to the afllicted part, one ofthe physicians, to add solemnity to the scene, drawing a stopwatch from his pocket to calculate the time ex actly

, while

another,with a pen in his hand, sat down to write the change

of symptoms from minute tominute as they occurred . In less

than four minutes the man felt so much relieved, that helifted his hand several inches without any pain in the shoulder!An account of these matters was published by Dr . Haygarth,

in a small volume entitled,Of the Imagination , as a Cause

and Care of D isorders, ex emp lified by fictitious Tractors.

The ex posure was a coup de grace to the system of Mr. Perkins. H is friends and patrons

,still unwilling to confess that

they had been deceived,tried the tractors upon sheep, cows,

and horses,alleging that the an imals received benefit from

the metallic plates, but none at all from the wooden ones.

But they found nobody to believe them ; the Perkinean Institution fell into neglect ; and Perkins made his ex it from England, carrying w ith him about ten thousand pounds, to soothe

his declin ing years in the good city of Phi ladelphia .

Thus was magnetism laughed out of England for a time.

In France,the Revolution left no leisure for such puerilities .

The S ociétés de l’

Harmonie, of S trasburg, and othergreat towns, lingered for a whi le

,till sterner matters occupy

ing men’

s attention,they were one after the other abandoned,

both by pupils and professors . The system thus driven fromthe first two nations of Europe

,took refuge among the

dreamy philosophers of Germany. There the wonders of themagnetic sleep grew more and more wonderful every day;

THE MAGNETISERS .

the patients acqui red the gift of prophecy— their vision ex

tended over all the surface of the globe - they could hear andsee with their toes and fingers, and read unknown languagesand understand them too, by merel

yv having the book placed

on their bellies . Ignorant clodpo es, when once entrancedby the grand Mesmeric fluid

,could spout philosophy diviner

than Plato ever wrote, descent upon the m steries of the

mind with more eloquence and truth than t e profoundestmetaphysicians the world ever saw,

and solve knotty pointsof divin ity with as much ease as waking men could undo theirshoe- bucklesDuring the first twelve years of the present century, little

was heard of Animal Magnetism in any country of Europe.

Even the Germans forgot their airy fancies ; recalled to the

knowledge of this every- day world by the roar of Napoleon’

s

cannon and the fall or the establishment of kingdoms. Duringthis period, a cloud of obscurity hung over the science, which

was not dispersed until M . Deleuze published in 1813,his

Histoire Critique du Magnétismo An imal. This work

gave a new impulse to the half- forgotten delusion ; news

papers, pamphlets, and books again waged war upon each

other on the question of its truth or falsehood ; and manyeminent men in the profession of medicine recommenced in

quiry, with an earnest design to discover the truth.

The assertions made in the celebrated treatise of Deleuzeare thus summed up There is a fluid continually escaping from the human body

, and “forming an atmospherearound us, which

,as“ it has no determined current, pro

duces no sensible effects on surrounding individuals. It is,however, capable of being directed by the will ; and, when

so directed,“ is sent forth in currents,

”with a force corre

sponding to the energy we possess. Its motion is similar tothat of therays from burning bodies

“it possesses differentqualities 111 difl

'

erent individuals.

”It is capable of a high

degree of concentration, and ex ists also in trees.

”The

will of the magnetiser, guided by a motion of the hand,several times repeated in the same direction,

”can fill a tree

with this fluid. Most persons, when this fluid is poured into

S ee the very calm, clear, and dispassionate article upon the subject inthe fifth volume (1880)of The Foreign Review,

” page 96 , at seq.

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THE MAGNETISERS .

Imagine that it is in your power to take the malady inhand, and throw it on one side.

N ever reason for si x weeks after you have commenced the

study.

Have an active desire to do good ; a firm belief in the powerof magnetism,

and an entire confidence in employing it. In

short, repel all doubts ; desire success, and act with simplicityand attention .

That is to say,“be very credulous ; be very persevering ;

reject all past ex perience, and do not listen to reason,”

and

you are a magnetiser after M . D eleuze’

s own heart.Having brought yourself into this edifying state of faus ti

c ism,

“remove from the patient all persons who might betroublesome to you : keep with you only the necessary witn esses—a single person, if need be ; desire them not to occupythemselves in any way with the processes you employ and the

efl’

ects which result from them, but to join with you in the

desire of doing good to your patient. Arrange yourself so as

neither to be too hot nor too cold, and in such a manner thatnothing may obstruct the freedom of your motions ; and takeprecautions to prevent interruption during the sitting . Make

your patient then sit as commodiously as possible, and placeyourself opposite to him

,on a seat a little more elevated, in

such a manner that his knees may be betwix t yours, and yourfeet at the side of hi s. First

,request him to resign himself ;

to think of nothing ; not to perplex himself by ex amining the

efl'

ects which may be produced ; to banish all fear ; to surrender himself to hope, and not to be disturbed or discouraged ifthe action of magnetism should cause in him momentary pains.

After having collected yourself, take hi s thumbs between yourfingers in such a way that the internal part of your thumbsmay be in contact with the internal part of his, and then fix

you r eyes u on him You must remain from two to five

m inutes in t is situation , or until you feel an equal heat between your thumbs and his. This done, you will withdrawyour hands

,removing them to the right and left ; and at the

same time turn ing them till their internal surface be outwards,and you will raise them to the height of the head. You will

now place them upon the two shoulders, and let them remainthere about a minute ; afterwards drawing them gently alongthe arms to the ex tremities of the fingers, touching very

848 m s u x ous'rrssas.

slightly as you go. You will renew this pass five or si x times,

always turning your hands, and removing them a little fromthe body before you lift them. You will then place them

above the head ; and, after holding them there for an instant,lower them,

passing them before the face, at the distance of

one or two inches, down to the pit of the stomach. There

you will stop them two minutes also, putting your thumbsupon the pit of the stomach and the rest of your fingers belowthe ribs. You will then descend slowly along the body to theknees, or rather, if you can do so without deran ng yourself,to the ex tremity of the feet. You will repeat t e same

cesses several times during the remainder of the sitting . YO

will also occasionally approach your patient, so as to placeyour hands behind his shoulders, 1n order to descend slowlyalong the spine of the back and the thighs, down to the kneesor the feet. After the first passes, you may dispense with

putting your hands upon the head, and may make the eubeaquent passes upon the arms, beginning at the shoulders, and

upon the body, beginn ing at the stomach.

Such was the process of magnetising recommended by Deleuze. That delicate, fanciful, and nervous women, when sub

jected to it, should have worked themselves into convulsions

will be readily believed by the sturdiest opponent of AnimalMagnetism. To sit in a constrained posture—be stared out

of countenance by a fellow who enclosed her knees betweenhis

, while he made passes upon difl'

erent parts of her body,was quite enough to throw any weak woman into a fit, espe

cially if she were predisposed to hysteria, and believed 1n the

efficacy of the treatment. It is just as evident that those of

stronger minds and healthier bodies should be sent to sleep bythe process. That these efl

'

ects have been produced by thesemeans there are thousands of instances to show. But are

they testimony in favour of An imal Magnetism—do they

prove the ex istence of the magnetic fluid? Every unprejudiced person must answer in the negative It needs neithermagnetism,

nor ghost from the grave, to tell us that s ilence,monotony, and long recumbency 111 one position , must producesleep, or that ex citement, imi tation, and a strong imag i nation,acting upon a weak body, will bring on convulsions . It willbe seen hereafter that magnetism produces no efl

'

ects bu t thesetwo ; that the gift of prophecy— supernatural eloquence—the

THE MAGNETISERS .

transfer of the senses, and the power of seeing through opaquesubstances, are pure fictions, that cannot be substantiated byan

fihing like proof.D eleuze

’

s book produced qu ite a sensation in Francethe study was resumed with redoubled vigour. In the follow

ing year, a journal was established devoted ex clusively to thescience, under the title of Annales du MagnétismeAnimal ;and shortly afterwards appeared the “Bibliotheque du Magné tisme Animal

,

”and many others . About the same time,

the AbbeFaria,

the man of wonders, began to magnetise ;and the belief being that he had more of the Mesmeric fluidabout him

, and a stronger will, than most men, he was verysuccessful in his treatment. H is ex periments afl

'

ord a con

vincing proof that imagination can operate all,and the

supposed fluid none, of the results so confidently claimed as

evidence of the new science. He placed his patients in an

arm - chair ; told them to shut their eyes and then,in a loud

and commanding voice, pronounced the single word, S leep !H e used no man ipulations whatever—had no baguet, or con

ductor of the fluid ; but he nevertheless succeeded in causingsleep in hundreds of patients . He boasted of having in his

time produced five thousand somnambulists by this method.

It was often necessary to repeat the command three or four

times ; and if the patient still remained awake, the Abbegotout of the difficulty by dismissing him from the chair, anddeclaring that he was incapable of being acted on. And hereit should be remarked that the magnetisers do not lay claim

to a universal efficacy for their fluid ; the strong and the

healthy cannot be magnetised ; the incredulous cannot be

magnetised those who reason upon it cannot be magnetised ;those who firmly believe in it can be magnetised; the weak inbody can be magnetised, and the weak in mind can be magnetised. And lest, from some cause or other, individuals of thelatter classes should resist the magnetic charm,

the apostles ofthe science declare that there are times when even they cannot

be acted upon ; the presence of one scorner or unbeliever mayweaken the potency of the fluid and destroy its eflicacy. In

M . D eleuze’

s instructions to a magnetiser, he ex pressly says,Never magnetise before inquisitive persons Yet the

followers of this delusion claim for it the rank of a sc ience !

at Histoire Critique du Magnetismeman ,

" p . 60.

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THE MAGNETISERS .

18 2 5 , and so many converts were made, that the magnetisersbecame clamorous for a new investigation . M . de Foissac, a

young physician, wrote to the Académie R oyale du Medecine

a letter, calling for inquiry, in which he complained of the

unfairness of the report of Messrs. Bailly and Franklin in1784, and stated that, since that time, the science had whollychanged by the important discovery ofmagnetic somnambulism.

He informed theAcademy that he had under his care a youngwoman , whose owers of divination when in the somnambulicstate were of t e most ex traordinary character. He invited

the members of that body to go into any hospital, and choose

persons afflicted with any diseases, acute or chronic, simple or

complex , and his somnambulist, on being put en rapport, or

in magnetic connex ion , with them, would infallibly point outtheir ailings and name the remedies. She, and other som

nambulists, he said, could, by merely laying the hand succes

sively on the head, the chest, and the abdomen of a stranger,immediately discover his maladies, with the pains and difl

'

erent

alterations thereby occasioned. They could indicate, besides,whether the cure were possible, and, if so

,whether it were

easy or diflicult, near or remote, and what means should be

employed to attain this result by the surest and readiest way.

In this ex amination they never departed from the sound principles of medicine.

“In fact,”

added M . de Foissac, I gofurther

,and assert that their inspirations are allied to the

genius which animated HippocratesIn the mean time ex periments were carr ied on in various

hospitals of Paris. The epileptic patients at the Salpétriere

were magnetised by permission of M . Esquirol. At the Ri

cetre also the same results were obtained. M . dc Foissacbusied himself with the invalids at the Hospice de la Charité,and M . D upotet was equally successful in producing sleep orconvulsions at V al de Grace. Many members of the Chamberof Deputies became converts, and M . Chardel, the Comte deGestas, M . de Lascases, and others, opened their saloons to

those who were desirous of being instructed in an imal magnetism.

* Other physicians united with M. de Foissac incalling for an inquiry ; and ultimately the Academy nomi

nated a preliminary committee of five of its members, namely,

Dupotet’s Introduction to the S tudy of An imal Magnetism, page 2 8 .

85 2 'rnn MAGNETISBRB.

Messrs . Adelon, Burdin , Marc, Pariset, and Husson , to in

vestigate the alleged facts, and to report whether the

Academy, without any compromise of its dignity, could

appoint a new commission .

Before this committee, M . de Foissac produced his famoussomnambulist ; but she failed in ex hi biting any one of the

phenomena her physician had so confidently predicted : she

was easily thrown into the state of sleep, by long habit andthe monotony of the passes and manipulations of her magnetiser ; but she could not tell the diseases of persons put enrapport with her. The committee of five framed ex cuses for

this failure by saying, that probably the magnetic fluid wasobstructed

,because they were inexperienced, distrustful,

and perhaps impatient. After this , what can be said for

the judgment or the impartiality of such a committee ? Theygave at last their opin ion

,that it would be advisable to

appoint a new commission . On the 13th of December,18 2 5 ,

they presented themselves to the Académie to deliver theirreport. A debate ensued, which occupied three days

,and in

which all the most distingu ished members took part. It was

finally decided by a majority of ten , that the commission

should be appointed, and the following physicians were chosenits members — They were eleven in number

,viz.

, Bourdois de

la Motte,the President ; Fouquier, Gueneau de Mussy

,Guer

sent, H usson,Itard

,Marc

,J. J. Leroux , Thillay, Double, and

Majendie.

These gentlemen began their labours by publishing an

address to all magnetisers, inviting them to come forward and

ex hibit in their presence the wonders of animal magnetism.

M . D upotet says that very few answered this amicable appeal,because they were afraid of being ridiculed when the reportshould be published. Four magnetisers, however, answeredtheir appeal readily, and for five years were busily engagedin bringing proofs of the new science before the commission.

These were M . de Foissac,M . D upotet, M . Chapelain

,and

M . de Geslin . It would be but an unprofitable,and by no

means a pleasant task to follow the commissioners in theirerratic career, as they were led hither and thither by the fourlights of magnetism above mentioned ; the four Wi lls - o

’

the Wisp which dazzled the benighted and bewildered doctors on that wide and shadowy region of metaphysical inquiry

THE MAGNETISERS .

—the influence of mind over matter. It will be better tostate at once the conclusion they came to after so long and

laborious an investigation , and then ex amine whether theywere warranted in it by the evidence brought before them.

The report, which is ex ceedingly voluminous, is classed

under thirty difl'

erent heads, and its general tenor is favourable to magnetism. The reporters ex pressly state their beliefin the ex istence of the magnetic fluid, and sum up the resultof their inquiries in the four assertions which follow1 . Magnetism has no efl

'

ect upon persons in a sound state

of health, nor upon some diseased persons.2 . In others its efl

’

ects are slight.

3 . These efl'

ects are sometimes produced by weariness orenn u i , by monotony, and by the imagination .

4. We have seen these cfl’

ects developed independently of

the last causes, most probably as the efl'

ects of magnetism

alone.

It will be seen that the first and second of these sentences

presuppose the ex istence of that magnetic power, which it isthe object of the inquiry to discover. The reporters begin,by saying, that magnetism ex ists

,when, after detailing their

proofs, they should have ended by aflirming it. For the sakeof lucidity, a favourite ex pression of their own , let us put thepropositions into a new form,

and new words, without alteringthe sense.

1 . Certain effects,such as convulsions, somnambulism, &c . ,

are producible in the human frame, by the will of others, bythe will of the patient himself, or by both combined, or bysome unknown means we wish to discover, perhaps by magnetism.

2 . These effects are not producible upon all bodies. Theycannot be produced upon persons in a sound state of health,nor upon some diseased persons ; whi le in other cases, the

cfl’

ects are very slight,3 . These efl

'

ects were produced in many cases that fell underour notice, in which the persons operated upon were in a weakstate of health

, by weariness or ennu i,by monotony, and by

the power of imagination .

4. But in many other cases these efl'

ects were produced, andwere clearly not the result of weariness or ennu i , of monotony,or of the power of the imagination . They were, therefore, pro

80'

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THE MAGNETISERS .

sometimes vertigo - the epileptic attacks were entirely sus

pended, and did not return till eight months afterwards.

Upon this case and the first mentioned, the Committee rea

soned thus These cases appear to us altogether worthy ofremark . The two individuals who formed the subject of theex periment, were ignorant of what was done to them. The

one, indeed, was not in a state capable of knowing it ; and theother never had the slightest idea of magnetism. Both, however, were insensible of its influence ; and most certainly it isimpossible in either case to attribute this sensibility to the

imagination .

”The first case has been already disposed of.

W ith regard to the second, it is very possible to attribute all

the results to imagination . It cannot be contended,that be

cause the lad was deaf and dumb he had no understanding,that he could not see the strange manipulations of the magnetiser, and that he was unaware that his cure was the objectof the ex pe'riments that were thus made upon him . Had he

no fancy merely because he was dumb ? and could he, for the

same reason,avoid feeling a heaviness in his eyelids, a numb

ness, and a sleepiness, when he was forced to sit for two or

three hours while M . Foissac pointed his fingers at him ? As

for the amelioration in his health, no argument can be adducedto prove that he was devoid of faith in the remedy ; and that,having faith, he should not feel the benefit of it as well as

thousands of others who have been cured by means wholly as

1mag1nary.

The third case is brought forward with a still greater show

of authority. Having magnetised the child and the dumbyouth with results so ex traordinary, M . Foissac nex t tried hishand upon a Commissioner . M . Iterd was subjected to a

course of manipulations ; the consequences were a flow of

saliva,a metallic savour in the mouth

,and a severe headache.

These symptoms, say the reporters, cannot be accounted for

by the influence of imagination . M . Itard,it should he

remarked, was a confirmed valetudinarian ; and a believer,before the investigation commenced

, in the truth ofmagnetism.

He was a man,therefore, whose testimony cannot be received

with implicit credence upon this subject. He may have

repeated, and so may his brother Commissioners, that theresults above stated were not produced by the power of theimagination . The patients ofPerkins, ofValentine Greatraks,

85 6 m s.m enmrssss.

of S ir Kenelm Digby, of Father Gassner, wereall equallypositive ; but what availed their assertions ? Ex perience soon

made it manifest, that no other power than that of imaginationworked the wonders in their case. M . Itard

’

s is not half so

ex traordinary ; the only wonder is, that it should ever havebeen insisted upon.

The Commissioners having, as they thou ht, establishedbeyond doubt the ex istence of the magneticfluid, (and theseare all their proofs,)nex t proceeded to investigate the moremarvellous phenomena of the science ; such as the transfer ofthe senses ; the capability of seeing into one

’

s own or otherpeople’

s insides, and of divining remedies ; and the power ofprophecy. A few ex amples will suffice.

M . Petit was magnetised by M. D upotet, who as serted that

the somnambulist would be able to choose, wi th his eyes shut,a mesmerised coin out of twelve others. The ex periment wastried, and the somnambulist chose the wrong one.

*

Baptiste Chamet was also magnetised by M. D upotet, and

fell in to the somnambulic state after eight minu tes. As he

appeared to be sufl'

ering great pain, he was asked what ailed

him, when he poin ted to his breast, and said he felt pain

there. Being asked what part of his body that was , he said

his liver.TMademoiselle Martineau was magnetised by M . D upotet,

and it was ex pected that her case would prove not only thetransfer of the senses, but the power of divin ing remedies.

Her eyes having been bandaged, she was asked if she could

not see all the persons present ? She replied, no ; but she

could hear them talking. N0 one was speaking at the time.

She said she would awake after five or ten minutes sleep . Shedid not awake for six teen or seventeen minutes . She nu

nounced that on a certain day she wouldbe able to tell ex actlythe nature of her complaint

,and prescribe the proper reme

dies. On the appointed day she was asked the question,and

could not answer.IMademoiselle Couturier, a patient of M . de Geslin, was

thrown into the state of somnambulism,and M . de Geslin said

she would ex ecute his mental orders. One of the Committee

R eport of the Commissioners , p. 15 3 . 1 Ibid, p . 187 .

I Report of the Commissioners, p . 139 .

THE MAGNETIBERS .

then wrote on a slip of paper the words Go and sit down on

the stool in fron t of the piano. He handed the paper to M .

de Geslin , who having conceived the words mentally, turnedto his patient, and told her to do as be required of her. She

rose up, went to the clock,and said it was twenty m inu tes

past n ine. Shewas tried n ine times more, andmade as manym1stakes .

*

Pierre Cazot was an epileptic patient, and was said to have

the power of prophecy . Being magnetised on the 2 2 d of

April,he said that in n ine weeks he should have a fit

,in three

weeks afterwards go mad, abuse his wife, murder some one,

and finally recover in the month of August. After which heshould never have an attack again .1

’ In two days after uttering this prophecy, he was run over by a cabriolet and killed.1A post- mortem ex amination was made of his body

,when it

was ascertained beyond doubt, that even had he not met with

this accident, he could never have recovered.§The inquest which had been the means of eliciting these,

along with many other facts, having sat for upwards of five

years, the magnetisers became an x ious that the report shoulde received by the solemn conclave of the Academic . At

length a day (the 2 0th of June, 1831)was fix ed for the reading . All the doctors of Paris thronged around the hall to

learn the result ; the street in front of the bu ilding was

crowded with medical students ; the passages were obstructedby philosophers .

“So great was the sensation , says M.

D upotet,“that it might have been supposed the fate of the

nation depended on the result. ” M . Husson , the reporter,appeared at the bar and read the report, the substance of

which we have just ex tracted. H e was heard at first w ith

great attention

,but as he proceeded signs of impatience and

issent were man ifested on all sides. The unreasonable inferences of the Commissioners— their false conclusions— theirtoo positive assertions

,were received with repeated marks of

disapprobation . Some of the academ icians started from theirseats

, and apostrophising the Commissioners, accused them of

Idem, p . 139 . 1 Idem, p . 180.

1 Foreign Quarterly Review ,vol . x i l . , p . 439 .

4At the ex tremi ty of the plex us choroidea was found a substance, yellow

w ithin , and white wi thout, containing small hydatids.—c ort of the (Jam

sioners, p. 186 .

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THE MAGNETISERS .

new science. The Commissioners met for thefirst time onthe 2 7th of February, and delivered their report, which wasdrawn up by M. Dubois d’Amiens, on the 2 2 d of August followin After a careful ex amination of all the evidence,they decided, as Messieurs Bailly and Franklin had done in1784, that the touchings, imagination, and the force of imitation would account satisfactorily for all the phenomena ; thatthe supposed Mesmeric fluid would not ; that M . Berna, themagnetiser, laboured under a delusion ; and that the facts

brought under their notice were anything but conclusive infavour of the doctrine of Animal Magnetism,

and could have

no relation either with physiology or with therapeutics.

The following abridgment of the report will show that the

Commissioners did not thus decide without abundant reason .

On the 3d of March they met at the house of M . Roux,the

President, when M . Berna introduced his patient, a youngirl of seventeen, of a constitution apparently nervous and

delicate, but with an air suflicientl cool and self- suflicient.

M . Berna offered eight proofs of n imal Magnetism,which

he would elicit in her case,and which he classed as follow

1 . He would throw her into the state of somnambulism.

2 . He would render her quite insensible to bodily pain .

3 . He would restore her to sensibility by his mere will,without any visible or audible manifestation of it.

4. H is mental order should deprive her ofmotion .

5 . He would cause her, by a mental order, to cease eu

swering in themidst of a conversation, and by a secondmental order would make her begin again .

6 . He would repeat the same ex periment, separated fromhis patient by a door.

7 . He would awake her.

8 . He would throw her again into the somnambulic state,and by his will successively cause her to lose and re

cover the sensibility of any part of her body.

Before any attempt at magnetisation was made by M .

Berna, the Commissioners determined to ascertain how far,in her ordinary state, she was sensible to pricking . Needlesof a moderate size were stuck into her hands and neck

,to the

depth of half a line, and she was asked by Messieurs Rouxand Caventou whether she felt any pain. She replied that

860 m s ns ensrrsss s.

she felt nothing ; neither did her countenance ex press anypain . The Commissioners, somewhat surprised at this, te

peated their question, and inquiredwhether she was absolutelyinsensible. Being thus pressed, she acknowledged that she

felt a little pain .

These preliminaries having been completed,M . Berna madeher sit close by him. He looked steadfastly at her, butmade

no movements or passes whatever. After the lapse of abouttwo minutes she fell back as leep, and M. Berna told the Commissioners that she was now in the state ofmagnetic somnam

baliem. He then arose, and again looking steadfastly at her

from a short distance, declared, after another minute, that

she was struck with general insensibility.

To ascertain this,the girl

’

s e es havin been previouslybandaged, Messieurs Bouillard, mery, an Dubois prickedher one after the other with needles. By word she cpmplained

of no pain and her features, where the banda e allowed them

to be seen, appeared calm and unmoved. But M . Duboishaving stuck his needle rather deep under her chin , she immediately made with much vivacity a movement of deglutition.

This ex periment having failed, M. Berna tried another,saying that he would, by the sole and tacit intervention of his

will, paralyze any part of the girl’

s body the Comm issionersmight mention . To avoid the possibility of collusion , M.

Dubois drew up the following conditions That M . Berna

should maintain the most perfect silence, and should receivefrom the hands of the Commissioners papers, on which should

be written the parts to be deprived of motion and sensibility,and that M . Berna should let them know when he had done

it by closing one of his eyes, that they might verify it. The

parts to be deprived of sensibility were the chin , the right

thumb,the region of the left deltoid, and that of the right

patella . M . Berna would not accept these condi tions, givingfor his reason that the parts pointed out by the Commissionerswere too limited ; that, besides, all this was out of his pro

gramme, and he did not understand why such precautionsshould be taken aga inst him.

M. Berna had written in his programme that he would

deprive the whole body of sensibility, and then a part only.

110 wou ld afterwards deprive the two arms of motion—then

the two legs—then a leg and an arm— then the neck, and

THE MAGNETISERS .

lastly the tongue. All the evidence he wished the Commissioners to have was after a very unsatisfactory fashion . Hewould tell the somnambulist to raise her arm

,and if she did

not raise it, the limb was to be considered paralysed. Besides

this,the Commissioners were to make haste with their Ohaer

vations. If the first trials did not succeed,they were to be

repeated till paralysis was produced.

“These,”as the Com

mi ssioners very justly remarked,“were not such conditions

as men of sc ience, who were to give an account of their com

mission, could ex actly comply wi th.

" After some time spentin a friendly discussion Of the point

,M . Berna said he could

do no more at that meeting. Then placinghimself opposite

the girl, be twice ex claimed, Wake She awakenedcordin ly, and the sitting terminated.

At t e second meeting, M . Berna was requested to paralysethe right arm only of the girl by the tacit intervention of his

w ill,as he had confidently assured the Commissioners he

could. M . Berna, after a few moments, made a sign with

his eye that he had done so,when M . Bouillard proceeded to

verify the fact. Being then requested to move her left arm,

she did so. Being then requested to move her right leg, shesaid the whole of her right side was paralysed— she could

neither move arm nor leg. On this ex periment the Commissioners remark : M . Berna ’

s programme stated that he had

the power of paralysing either a single limb or two limbs at

once, we chose a single limb, and there resulted, in spite of

his will,a paralysis of two limbs.

”Some other ex periments

,

equally unsatisfactory, were tried with the same girl. M .

Berna was soon convinced that she had not studied her partwell, or was not clever enough to reflect any honour upon thescience, and he therefore dismissed her. Her place was filledby a woman , aged about thirty

,also of very delicate health ;

and the following conclusive ex periments were tried uponher

The patient was thrown into the somnambulic state, and

her eyes covered with a bandage. At the invitation of the

magnetiser, M . Dubois d'Amiens wrote several words upon a

card, that the somnambule might read them through herbanda es

, or through her occiput. M . Dubois wrote the

word antagruel, in perfectly distinct roman characters , thenplacing himself behind the somnambule, he presented the cardVOL . 11. 81

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THE MAGNETISERS

gated as to what she could see. She hesitated ; appeared tostruggle with herself, and at last said she saw a card. But

what do you see on the card After a little hesitation, she

said she could see black and red, (thinking of the court card.)The Commissioners allowed M . Berna to continue the

ex amination in his own way. After some fruitless efl'

orts to

get a more satisfactory answer from the somnambule, heinvited M . Dubois to pass his card before her head, closeagainst the bandage covering her eyes. This having beendone, the somnambule said she could see better . M. Bernathen began to put some leading questions, and she repliedthat she could see a figure. Hereupon , there were renewedsolicitations from M . Berna. The somnambule, on her part,appeared to bemaking great efforts to glean some informationfrom her magnetiser, and at last said that she could distin

guish the knave. But this was not all ; it remained for herto say which of the four knaves. In answer to further in

quiries, she said there was black by the side of it. Not beingcon tradicted at all, she imagined that she was in the ri ht

track ; and made, after much pressing, her final guess, t at

i t was the Knave of Clubs.

M . Berna, thinking the ex periment finished, took the card

from the hands ofM . Dubois, and in presence of all the Com

m issioners saw that it was entirely blank. Blank was his owndismay .

As a last ex periment, she was triedwith a silver medal. It

was with very great difliculty that any answers could be eli

cited from her. M . Cornac held the object firmly closed in

his hand close before the bandage over her eyes. She firstsaid she saw something round ; she then said it was flesh

coloured— then yellow— then the colour of gold. It was as

thick as an on ion ; and,in answer to incessant questions, she

said it was yellow on one side, white on the other, and badblack above it. She was thinking, apparently, of a gold

watch, with its white dial and black figures for the hours.

S olicited, for the last time, to ex plain herself clearly— to say,at least the use of the Object and its name, she appeared tobe an x ious to collect all her energies, and then uttered onl

the word “hour. Then, at last, as if suddenly illumined,

she cried out that “ it was to tell the hour. "

Thus ended the sitting. Some difliculties afterwards arose

O THE MAGNETISERS .

between the Commissioners and M. Berna, who wished that acopy of the proves verbal should be given him . The Commissioners would not agree ; and M . Berna in his turn

,refused

to make any fresh ex periments . It was impossible that anyinvestigation could have been conducted more satisfactorilythan this. The report of the Commissioners was qu ite con

elusive ; and An imal Magnetism since that day lost much of

its repute in France. M . D upotet, with a perseverance and

ingenuity worthy a better cause,has found a satisfactory ex

cuse for the failure of M. Berna. Having taken care in hiswork not to publish the particulars, be merely men tions, inthree lines, that M . Berna failed before a committee of the

Royal Academy of Medicine in an endeavour to produce someof the hi her magnetic phenomena.

“There are a variety of

incidental circumstances, says that shining light of magnetism,

which it is diflicult even to enumerate. An overanx iety to produce the eflects, or any incidental suggestions

that may disturb the attention of the magnetiser, will oftenbe suflicient to mar the successful issue of the

S uch are the miserable shifts to whi ch error reduces its vota

ries !While D upotet thus conveniently forbears to dwell upon

the unfavourable decision of the committee of 1837 , let us

hear how he dilates upon the favourable report of the previouscommittee of 1835 , and how he praises the judgmen t and theimpartiality of its members.

“TheAcadémie Royale dedecine,

”says he,

"‘put upon record clear and authenticated

evidence in favour ofAnimal Magnetism. The Commiss ionersdetailed circumstantially the facts which they witnessed, !

and

the methods they adopted to detect every possible sourceof deception . Many of the Commissioners, when they enteredon the investigation , were not only unfavourable to magnetism,

but avowedly unbelievers ; so that their evidence in any courtof justice would be esteemed the most unex ceptionable that

could possibly be desired. They were inquiring, too, not intoany speculative or occult theory, upon which there might bea chance of their being led away by sophistical representations

, but they were inquiring into the ex istence of facts only

In troduction to the S tudy of Animal Magnetism, by Baron Dupotetde S ennevoy, London , 1838 , p . 159 .

THE MAGNETISERS .

’

-

plain demonstrable facts, which were in their own nature

palpable to eve M. D upotet might not nurse

sonably he asks whether the very same arguments on ht notto be applied to the unfavourable report drawn up by t e ableM . Dubois d’

Amies and his coadjutors in the last inquiry . If

the question were asked, we should, in all probability, meet

some such a reply as this —“True, they might ; but then youmust consider the variety of incidental circumstances, too nu

merous to mention ! M. Bernamay have been over- an x ious ; infact, the ex periments must have been spoiled by an incidental

suggestion !

A man with a faith so lively as M. Dupotet was just the

person to undertake the diflicult mission of converting the

English to a belief in magnetism. Accordingly we find that,very shortly after the last decision oftheAcademic,M . D upotet

turned his back upon his native soil and arrived in En land,loaded with the magnetic fluid

, and ready to re- enact a l the

fooleries of his reat predecessors, Mesmer and Puyse ur.

S ince the days O Perkinism and metallic tractors,until 1 33,

magnetism had made no progress, and ex cited no attention in

England. Mr. Colquhoun, an advocate at the Scottish bar,

gublished in that year the, till then, inedited report of therench commission of 1831, to ether with a history of the

science, under the title of IsisRevelata ; or, an Inquiry intothe Ori in

,Progress, and present State of Animal Magnet

ism. §V1r. Colquhoun was a devout believer, and his workwas full of enthusiasm . It succeeded in awaken ing some in

terest upon a subject certainly very curious, but it made fewor no converts. An interesting article, ex posing the delusion,appeared in the same year in the “Forei n Quarterly Review ;

”and one or two medical works notice the subject after

wards, to scout it and turn it into ridicule. The arrival ofM .

D upotet, in 1837 , worked quite a revolution, and raised Animal Magnetism to a height of favour, as great as it had ever

attained even in France.

He began by addressing letters of invitation to the principalphilosophers and men of science, physicians, editors of newspapers, and others, to witness the ex periments, which were at

first carried on at his own residence, in Wigmore Street, Ca

Introduction to the Study of Animal Magnetism, p. 2 7 .

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THE MAGNETISER S .

reports which were published from time to time, partook so

largely of the marvellous, and were corroborated by the evidence of men whose learning, judgment, and integrity it wasimpossible to call in question, that the public opinion was

staggered. Men were ashamed to believe, and yet afraid todoubt ; and the subject at last became so engrossing that a

committee of some of the most distinguished members of themedical profession undertook to investigate the phenomena,and report upon them.

In the mean time Dr. Elliotson and M . Dupotet continued

the public ex hibition at the hospital ; while the credulous

gaped.

with wonder, and only some few daring

spirits had

temerity enough to hint about quackery and de usi on on the

part of the doctors, and imposture on the part of the patients.

The phenomena induced i n two young women, sisters, namedElizabeth and Jane Okey, were so ex traordinary that theybecame at last the chief, if not the only proofs of the sciencein London . We have not been able to meet with any reportsof these ex periments from the pen of an unbeliever, and are

therefore compelled to rely solely upon the reports publishedunder the authorit of the magnetisers themselves, and given

to the world 111 he Lancet”gn

and other medical journals.

Elizabeth Okey was an intelli ent girl, aged about seven

teen , and was admitted into thefilniversitygCollege hospital,

sufl'

ering under attacks of epilepsy. She was magnetised

repeatedly by M . D upotet 111 the autumn of 1837, and afterwards by Dr. Elliotson at the hospital, during the spring and

summer of 1838 . By the usual process, she was very easilythrown into a state of deep unconscious sleep, from which she

was aroused into somnambulism and delirium . In her wakingstate she was a modest, well- behaved girl, and spoke but little.

In the somnambulic state, she appeared quite another beingevinced considerable powers of mimicry sang comic songs

was obedient to every motion of her magnetiser and was

believed to have the power of prophesying the return of her

i llness—the means of cure, and even the death or recovery of

other patients in the ward.

Mesmer had often pretended in his day that he could 1m

part the magnetic power to pieces of metal or wood, strings

of silk or cord, &c. The reader will remember his famousbattery, and the no less famous tree of M. de Puysegur.

THE MAGNETISERS .

During the ex periments upon Okey, it was soon discoveredthatall the phenomena could be produced in her, if she touched

any Object that had been previously mesmerised by the willor the touch of her magnetiser. At a si tting, on the 5 th of

July,1838, it was mentioned that Okey, some short time pre

viously, and while in the state of magnetic lucidity, had pro

phesied that, if mesmerised tea were placed in each of her

hands, no power in nature would be able to awake her until

after the lapse of a quarter of an hour . The ex periment wastried accordingly. Tea which had been touched by the manetiser was placed in each hand, and she immediately fasleep. After ten minutes, the customary means to awakenher were tried, but without effect. She was qu ite in sensibleto all ex ternal impressions. In a quarter of an hour

, theywere tried with redoubled energy, but still in vain . She was

left alone for six minutes longer ; but she still slept, and it

was found quite impossible to wake her. At last some one

present remarked that this wonderful sleep would, in all pro

bability, last till the tea was removed from her hands . The

sug cation was acted upon , the tea was taken away,and she

awo e in a few seconds .

*

On the 12 th of July, just a week afterwards, numerous ex

periments as to the capabili ty of different substances for con

veying the magnetic influence were tried upon her. A slipof crumpled paper, magnetised by being held in the hand,produced no efl

'

ect. A penkn ifemagnetised her immediately.

A piece of oi lslcin had no influence. A watch placed on her

palm sent her to sleep immediately, if the metal part werefirst placed in contact with her ; the g lass did not afl

'

ect her

so quickly . As she was leaving the room,a sleeve- cufi

’

made

of brown holland, which had been accidentally magnetised bya spectator, stopped her in mid career, and sent her fast to

sleep . It was also found that, on placing the point of herfinger on a sovereign which had been magnetised, she was

immediately stupified. A pile of sovereigns produced sleep ;but if they were so placed that she could touch the surface ofeach coin , the sleep became intense and protracted.

S till more ex traordinary circumstances were related of this

patient. In her state of magnetic sleep, she said that a tall

“Lancet, vol. 11. 1887 - 8 , p. 685 .

THE MAGNETISERS .

black man, or negro, attended her, and prompted the answersshe was to give to the various perplex ing questions that wereput to her. It was also asserted that she could use the back

of her hand as an organ of vision . The first time this re

markable phenomenon was said to have been ex hibited was a

few days prior to the 5 th of July. On the latter day, beingin what was called a state of loquacious somnambulism, she

was asked by Dr. Elliotson ’

s assistant whether she had an eye

her hand. She replied that “it was a light there, and not

an eye. Have you got a light anywhere else — “No,n one anywhere else.

”Can you see with the inside as well

the out Yes ; but very little with the inside.

”

On the 9th of July bread with butter was given to her, andwhile eating it she drank some magnetised water, and fallinginto a stupor dropped her food from her hand and frowned.

The eyes, partially closed, had the abstracted aspect thatalways accompan ies stupefaction . The right hand was open,the palm u wards ; the left, with its back presented anteriorly,was relax e and curved. The bread being lost, she movedher left hand about convulsively until right over the bread,when a clear view being Obtained, the hand turned suddenlyround and clutched it eagerly. Her hand was afterwardswrapped in a handkerchief ; but then she could not see with

it,and laid it on her lap with an ex pression of despair .These are a few only of the wonderful feats of Elizabeth

Okey . Jane was not quite so clever ; but she neverthelessmanaged to bewilder the learned men almost as much as her

sister. A magnetised sovereign having been placed on the

floor, Jane, then in the state of delirium,was di rected to stoop

and pick it up. She stooped, and having raised it aboutthree inches, was fix ed in a sound sleep in that constrainedposition . Dr . Elliotson pointed his finger at her, to dischargesome more of the mesmeric fluid into her, when her hand immediately relax ed its grasp of the coin, and she re- awoke intothe state of delirium, ex claiming, God bless my soul

It is now time to mention the famous gold- chain ex periment

which was performed at the hospital upon Elizabeth Okey, inthe presence Of Count Flahaut, Dr. Lardner, Mr. Knatchbullthe professor of Arabic in the University of Ox ford, and

many other gentlemen . The Object of the ex periment was todemonstrate that, when Okey held one end of a gold chain,

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THE MAGNETISERS .

ex pected‘

them to believe,that, when this species of stupefac

tion was produced while she was employed in any action,the

action was repeated as long as the mesmeric influence lasted.

For instance, it was asserted that she was once deprived of

the motion of every part of her body, ex cept the right forefinger, with which she was rubbing her chin ; and that, whenthrown into the trance, she continued rubbing her chin for

several minutes, until she was unmagnetised, when she ceased.

A similar result was obtained when she was smoothing down

her hair ; and at another time when she was imitating the

laughter of the spectators, ex cited beyond control by herclever mimicry . At another time she was suddenly throwninto the state of delirious stupor while pronouncing the word

you,”of which she kept prolonging the sound for several

m mutes, with a sort ofvibrating noise, until shewas awakened.

At another time, when a ma etised sovereign was given to

her, wrapped up in paper, sh]

; caught it in her hand, andturned it roundflatwise between her fingers, saying that it waswrapped up very neatl

yindeed.

”The mesmeric influence

caught her in the remar which she kept repeating over andover again , all the while twirling the sovereign round

l '

and

round until the influence in the coin had evaporated.

We are also told of a remarkable instance of the force of themagnetic power. WhileElizabeth Okey was one do. employedin writing, a sovereign which had been imbued wit theflu idwas placed upon her boot. In half a minute her leg was

paralysed— rooted to the floor—perfectly immovable at the

joints, and visited, apparently, with pain so intense that the

girl writhed in agony. The muscles of the leg were found,”

says the report, as rigid and stifl'

as if they had been carvedin wood. When the sovereign was removed, the pain left her ina quarter of a minute. On a subsequent day, a mesmerisedsovereign was placed in her left hand as it hun at her side

,

with the palm turned slightly outwards. Thegband and arm

were immediately paralysed— fix edwithmarble- like firmness.

”

NO general stupor having occurred, she was requested to moveher arm ; but she could not lift it a hair ’s- breadth from her

side. On another occasion, when in a state of delirium,in

which she had remained three hours, shewas asked to describeher feelings when she handled anyma etised object andwentOfl

'

into the stupor. She had never fore, although several

37 2 m u naus ea-

Issue.

times asked, given any information upon the subject. She

now replied that, at the moment of losing her senses throughany man ipulations, she ex perienced a sensation of open ing inthe crown of her head ; that she never knew when it closed

again ; but that her eyes seemed to become ex ceedingly large;— three times as big as before. On recovering from this state,

she remembered nothing that had taken place in the in terval,whether that interval were hours or days ; her only sensation

was that of awaken ing, and of something being lifted fromher eyes.

The regular publication of these marvellous ex periments,authenticated as they were by many eminent names

,naturally

ex cited the public attention in an ex treme degree. An imalMagnetism became the topic of discussion in every circlepolitics and literature were for a time thrown into the shade,so strange were the facts, or so wonderful was the delusion.

The public journals contented themselves in many instanceswith the mere relation of the results, without giving any opi

nion as to the cause. One of them which gave a series ofreports upon the subject

,thus described the girl, and avowed

its readiness to believe all that was related of her.

* Her

appearance as she sits, as pale and almost as still as a corpse,is strangely awful. She whistles to oblige Dr. Elliotson : an

incredulous bystander presses his fingers upon her lips : she

does not appear conscious of the nature of the interruption ;but when asked to continue, replies in childish surprise

,

‘ it

can’

t.’ This state of magnetic semi - ex istence will con tinue we

know not how long. She has continued in it for twelve daysat a time

,and when awakened to real life forgets all that has

occurred in the magnetic one. Can this be deception ? We

have conversed with the poor child in her ordinary state as she

sat by the fire in her ward, sufl'

ering from the headache, which

persecutes her almost continually when not under the soothinginfluence of the magnetic operation, and we confess we neverbeheld anybody less likely to prove an impostor . We have

seen Professor Faraday ex erting his acute and sagacious

powers for an hour together, in the endeavour to detect somephysical discrepancy in her performance, or elicit some blushof mental confusion by his naive and startling remarks. But

Morning Post, March 2 , 1888.

THE MAGNETISERS .

there was nothing which could be detected, and the Professorcandidly confessed that the matter was beyond his philosophyto unravel. ”

Notwithstanding this sincere, and on the point of integrity,un impeachable evidence in her favour ; notwithstanding that

she appeared to have no motives for carrying on so ex traor

dinary and long- continued deception

,the girl was an impostor

,

and all these wise, learned, and contemplative men her dupes.

It was some time, however, before this fact was clearly esta

blished, and the delusion dissipated by the clear light of truth.

In the mean time various other ex periments on the efficacy of

the supposed magnetic power were tried in various parts of

England ; but the country did not furn ish another epilepticgirl so clever as Elizabeth Okey. An ex hibition of the kindwas performed on a girl named Sarah Overton , at the workhouse of the parish of S t. Martin ’

s- in - the- Fields. The magnetiser on this occasion was Mr. Bainbridge, the parish sur

geon . It is but justice to him to state, that he conducted the

ex periments with the utmost fairness, and did not pretend to

produce any of the wondrous and incredible phenomena of

other practitioners. This girl, whose age was about twenty,had long been subject to epileptic fits, and appeared remarkably simpleand modest in her manners and appearance. She

was brought into the room and placed in a chair . Mr. Bainbridge stationed himself behind, and pointed his fingers at herbrain

,while his assistant in front made the magnetic passes

before her eyes, and over her body. It cannot be said that

her imagination was not atwork ; for she had been previouslymagnetised, and was brought in with her eyes open , and incomplete possession of all her faculties. N0 means had beentaken to prevent interruption during the sittings new visiterscontinually arrived

,and the noise of the opening and shutting

of the door repeatedly called from Mr. Bainbridge a requestthat all should be kept silent. The girl herself constantlyraised her head to see who was coming in ; but still, in directcontradiction to M . D upotet, and, indeed, all the magnetisers,who have repeated over and over again , that interruptiondestroys the magnetic power, she fell into a deep sleep at the

end of about twelve minutes. In this state,which is that

called Mesmeric Coma,”

she was quite insensible. Thoughpulled violently by the hair, and pricked on the arm with a

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THE MAGNETISERS .

o’

clock it is,and I

’

ll give you another shilling The girl atthis time seemed to be relapsing into a deep sleep ; but on

being shaken , aroused herself with a convulsive start. “In

reply to further questions, she said,

she could see a clock,11 very pretty clock, indeed!

”She was then asked five or

six times, what the hour was : she at last replied that “it

was ten minutes to two.

”The watch bein taken out of her

bosom,it was found to be on the stroke 0 two. Every one

present, including the magnetiser, confessed that there was

nothing wonderful in the conjecture she had hazarded. She

knew perfectly well what hour it was before she was broughtinto the ward, as there was a large clock in the workhouse,and a bell whichran at dinner time ; she calculated mentallythe interval that hadsince elapsed, and guessed accordingly.

The same watch was afterwards advanced four or five hours,and put into her bosom without a word being said in her

hearing . On being again asked what o’

clock it was b that

watch, and promised another shilling if she would te lfi he

still replied that it was near two— the actual time. Thus, asMr. Bainbridgehad predicted, the ex periment came to nothing.

The whole case of this girl ofl'

cred a striking instance of the

power of ima ination, but no proof whatever of the supposedex istence of t e magnetic fluid.

The Medical Committee of the Un iversity College Hospitaltook alarm at a very early period at the injury which mightbe done to that Institution , by the ex hibitions of Okey and

her magnetisers. A meeting was held in June, 1838, at whichDr. Elliotson was not present, to take into consideration the

reports of the ex periments that had been published in the

Medical Journals. Resolutions were then passed to the efl'

ect,that Dr. Elliotson should be requested to refrain from furtherpublic ex hibitions ofmesmerism ; and, at the same time, statingthe wish of the Committee not to interfere with its privateemployment as a remedial agent, if he thought it would be

eflicacious upon an of the patients of the Institution. Dr.Elliotson replied, that no consideration should prevent himfrom pursuing the investigation of Animal Magnetism ; but

that he had no desire to make a public ex hibition of it. He

had only given lectures and demonstrations when numbers ofscientific gentlemen were present ; he still continued to re

ceive numerous letters from learned and eminent men, en

THE MAGNETISERS .

treating permission to witness the phenomena ; but if theCommittee willed it, he should admit no person wi thout theirsanction . He shortly afterwards sent a list of the names of

individuals who were an x ious to witness the ex periments.

The Committee returned it to him unread, with the reply thatthey could not sanction any ex hibition that was so entirelyforeign to the objects of the Hospital.

‘

In answer to this, Dr.Elliotson reiterated his full belief in the doctrines of Animal

Magnetism,and his conviction that his ex periments would

ultimately throw a light upon the Operations of nature, whichwould equal, if not ex ceed, that elicited by the greatest discoveries of bygone ages . The correspondence dropped here;and the ex periments continued as usual.

The scene, however, was drawing to a close. On the 2 5 th

of August, a notice was published in the Lancet, to the efl'

ect,

that some ex periments had been performed on the girls Elizabeth and Jane Okey

,at the house of Mr . Wakley, a report of

whi ch was only withheld in the hope that the Comm i ttee of

Members of theMedical Profession, then si tting to investigate

the phenomena of mesmerism, would publish their report of

what they had witnessed. It was further stated, that whetherthat Committee did or did not publish their report, the resultof the ex periments at Mr. Wakley

’

s house should certainly bemade known in the nex t number of that journal. Accordingly,on the l st of September appeared a statement, which overthrew,

in the most complete manner, the delusion Of mesmerism. Nothing could have been better conducted than these

ex periments ; nothing could be more decisive of the fact, that

all the phenomena were purely the results of the ex cited

imaginations of the girls, aided in no slight degree by theirwilful deception .

The first ex periments were performed on the l 6th of

August, in the presence of Mr. Wakle M . D upotet, Dr.Elliotson

, Dr . Richardson , Mr. Herring,Mr. Clarke, and Mr.

G. Mills, the writer of the published reports of the ex perimentsat the University College H ospital. Dr. Elliotson had said

,

that n ickel was capable of retain ing and transmitting the magnetic flu id in an ex traordinary degree ; but that lead possessedno such virtues. The effects of the n ickel, he was confident,would be qu ite astounding ; but that lead might always beapplied with impuni ty. A piece of nickel was produced by

THE MAGNETISERS .

the Doctor, about three quarters of an ounce in weight,together with a piece of lead of the same shape and smooth

ness, but somewhat larger. Elizabeth Okey was seated in a

chair ; and,by a few passes and manipulations

,was thrown

into the state of “ecstatic delirium.

” A piece of thick pasteboard was then placed in front of her face, and held in that

situation by two of the spectators, so that she could not see

what was passing either below or in front of her. Mr. Wakleyhaving received both the nickel and the lead, seated himself

opposite the girl, and applied the lead to each hand alternately, but in such a manner as to lead her to behave that bothmetals had been used. No efl

'

ect was produced. The nickelmagnetised by Dr. Elliotson was, after a pause, applied in a

similar manner. NO results followed. After another pause,the lead was several times applied, and then again the nickel.After the last application of the nickel, the face of the patientbecame violently flushed

,the eyes were convulsed into a

startling squint, she fell back in the chair, her breathing washurried, her limbs rigid, and her back bent in the form Of a

bow . She remained 111 this state for a quarter of an hour.This ex periment was not considered a satisfactory proof of

the magnetic powers of the n ickel ; and Dr. Elliotson sug

gested that, in the second ex periment, that metal should alonebe tried. Mr. Wakley was again the operator ; but, beforecommencing, he stated privately to Mr. Clarke, that insteadof using nickel only, he would not employ the nickel at all.Mr. Clarke

,unseen by any person present, took the piece of

n ickel ; put it into his waistcoat pocket ; and walked to thew indow,

where he remained during the whole of the ex peri

ment. Mr . Wakley again sat down , employing both hands,but placing his fingers in such a manner, that it was impossible for any person to see what substance he held. Presently,on applying his left hand, thegirl

’

s vision being still Obstructedby the pasteboard

,Mr. Herring, who was standing near, said

in a whisper, and with much sincerity, “Take care, don’

t ap

ply the n ickel too strongly.

” Immediately the face of the

girl became violently red, her eyes were fix ed in an intense

squ int, she fell back convulsively in her chair, and all the

previous symptoms were produced more powerfully than before. Dr. Elliotson observed that the effects were most ex traordinary ; that no other metal than nickel could produce

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THE MAGNETISERS .

tery, produced no results. Altogether twenty- nine ex peri

ments were tried, which convinced every one present, ex ceptDr. Elliotson, that Animal Magnetism was a delusion, that

the girls were of very ex citable imagination , and arrant im

postors.

Their motives for carrying on so ex traordinary a deceptionhave often been asked. The question is easily answered.

Poor girls, unknown and unnoticed, or,if noticed, perhaps

despised, they found themselves all at once the observed of

all observers,by the really remarkable symptoms of their

disease, which it requi red no aid from magnetism to produce.

Flattered by the oft- repeated ex periments and constant atten

tions of doctors and learned men , who had begun by deludingthemselves, they imagined themselves persons of vast importance, and encouraged by degrees the whims of their physicians

,as the means of prolonging the consideration they

'

so

unex pectedly enjoyed. Constant practice made them at last

all but perfect in the parts they were performing ; and theyfailed at last

,not from a want of ingenuity, or of a most won

derful power over their own minds, and by their minds, upontheir bodies, but from the physical impossibility Of seeingthrough a thick pasteboard

, or into the closed hands of Mr.Wakley. The ex posure that was made was complete and

decisive. From that day forth, magnetism in England hashid its diminished head, and afl

'

ronted no longer the common

sense Of the age. M . D upotet is no more heard of, the girlsOkey afl

'

ord no more either wonder or amusement by theirclever acting, and reason has resumed her sway in the publicmind.

A few more circumstances remain to be stated. ElizabethOkey left the hospital ; but was re- admitted some weeks afterwards, labouring under ischuria, a fresh complaint, uncon

useted with her former malady . As ex periments in magnetismwere still tried upon her privately, notwithstanding the recentex posure, and the all but un iversal derision of the public, theHouse Committee of the hospital, early in December, met toconsider the ex pediency of ex pelling the girl. Dr . Elhotson,on that occasion , ex pressed his Opinion that it was necessaryto retain her in the hospital, as she was too ill to be dis

charged. It was then elicited from the nurse, who was ex

amined by the Committee, that Okey, when in the state of

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magnetic delirium, was in the habit of pro hesy'in the

death or recovery of the patients in the ward ; t at, wit the

consent of Dr . Elliotson , she had been led in the twi light intothe men

’

s ward, and had prophesied in a similar manner ; herpredictions being taken down in writing, and given in a sealed

paper to the apothecary, to be opened after a certain time,that it might be seen whether they were verified. Dr. Elliotson did not deny the fact. The nurse also stated more particularly the manner in which the prophecies were delivered.She said that, on approachin the bed of a certain patient,Okey gave a convulsive shudder, ex claiming that “GreatJacky was sitting on the bed- clothes .

”On being asked to

ex plain herself, she said that Great Jacky was the angel of

death. At the bedside of another patient she shudderedslightly, and said Little Jacky was there! Dr . Elliotsondid not altogether discredit the predictions ; but imag ined theymight ultimately be verified by the death or recovery of the

patient. Upon the minds of the patients themselves, enfeebled as they were by disease and sufl

'

ering, the worst efl'

ects

were produced. One man’

s death was accelerated by the despondency it occasioned, and the recovery of others was se

riously impeded.

When these facts became known, the Council of the Collegerequested the Medical Committee to dischar e Okey and pre

vent any further ex hibitions of An imal agnetism in the

wards. The latter part of this request having been communi

cated to Dr . Elliotson,he immediately sent in his resignation.

A successor was afterwards appointed in the person of Dr.

Copland. At his inau ural lecture the students of the collegeman ifested a riotous disposition , called repeatedly for their

old instructor, and refused to allow the lecture to proceed ;but it appears the disturbance was caused by their respect andafl

'

ection for Dr. Elliotson individually, and not from any par

ticipation in his ideas about magnetism.

Ex travagant as the vagaries of the English professors of

magnetism may appear, they are actual common sense in com

parison with the aberrations of the Germans . The latterhave revived all the ex ploded doctrines of the Rosicrucians ;and in an age which is called enlightened, have disinterred

from the rubbish of antiquity, the W ildest superstitions oftheir predecessors, and bui lt upon them theories more wild

THE MAGNETISER S .

and startling than anything before attempted or witnessed

among mankind. Paracelsus and Bb'

hmen , Borri and Meyer,with their strange heterogeneous mix ture of alchymy and re

ligion, but paved the way for the stranger, and even moreex travagant mix ture of magnetism and religion , as now practised in Germany. Magnetism,

it is believed, is the key of

all knowledge, and opens the door to those forbidden regionswhere all the wonders of God’

s works are made clear to the

mind ofman . The magnetic patient is possessed of all gifts—can converse with myriads of spirits, and '

even with God

himself—be transported with greater rapidity than the light

ning’

s flash to the moon or the stars,and see their inhabitants,

and hold converse with them on the wonders and beauties of

their separate spheres, and the power andgoodness of the Godwho made them . Time and space are to them as if annihi

lated— nothing is hidden from them— past, present, or future.

They divine the laws by which the universe is upheld,and

snatch the secrets of the Creator from the darkness in which,to all other men , it is enveloped. For the last twenty or

thirty years these daring and blasphemous notions have

flourished in rank lux uriance and men of station in society,learning, and apparen t good sense in all the usual afl

'

airs of

life, have publicly given in their adhesion,and encouraged

the doctrine by their ex ample, or Spread it abroad by theirprecepts. That the above summary of their tenets may not

be deemed an ex aggeration we enter into particulars, and

refer the incredulous thathuman folly in the present age couldever be pushed so far

,to chapter and verse for every allega

tion .

In a work published in Germany, in 1817 , by J. A . L .

R ichter, entitled Considerations on An imal Magnetism,

”

the author states that in magnetism is to be found the solu

tion of the enigmas of human ex istence, and particularly theen igmas of Christianity

,on the mystic and obscure parts of

which it throws a light which permits us to gaze clearly on

the secrets of the mystery. Welfart'

s“Annals of An imal

Magnetism, aboundwith similar passages ; and Kluge’

s cele

bruted work is written in the same spirit. Such is thewon

derful sympathy,”says the latter, between the magnetiser

and the somnambulist that he has known the latter to vomit

and be

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THE MAGNETISERS .

state of somnambulism. She said that in those eyes therewasa spiritual spark, which was the mirror of the soul. If a magn etised rod were laid on her right eye, every Object on whichshe gazed appeared magn ified.

It was by this means that she was enabled to see the in

habitants of the moon . She said, that on the left side of the

moon, the inhabitants were great bu ilders, and much happierthan those on the right side.

“I often see,

”said she to her

magnetiser,“many spirits withwhom I do not come into cen

tact. Others come to me, and I speak to them ; and theyoften spend months in my company . I hear and see otherthings at the same time ; but I cannot turn my eyes from the

spirits ; they are in magnetic rapport with me. They looklike clouds, thin , but not transparent ; though, at first, theyseem so. Still, I never saw one which cast a shadow. Theirform is similar to that which they possessed when alive ; but

colourless, or gray. They wear clothing ; and it appears as

if made of clouds, also colourless and misty gray. The

brighter and better spirits wear long garments, wh1ch hang in

graceful folds, with belts around the1r waists. The ex pressionof their features is sad and solemn . Their eyes are bright,like fire ; but none of them that I ever saw bad hair upontheir heads . They make noises when they wish to ex cite the

attention of those who have not the gift of seeing them.

These noises consist of sounds in the air,sometimes sudden

and sharp, and causing a shock . Sometimes the sounds are

plaintive and musical ; at other times they resemble the rus

tling of silk, the falling of sand,or the rolling of a ball. The

better spirits are bri hter than the bad ones, and their voiceis not so strong. hiany, particularly the dark , sad spirits,when I uttered words of religious consolation , sucked them in,as it were ; and I saw them become brighter andquite gloriousin consequence : but I became weaker. Most of the spiritswho come to me are of the lowest regions of the spiritualworld,

.

which are situated just above our atmosphere. Theywere, 111 their life, grovelling and low - minded people, or such

as dld not die in the faith of Jesus ; or else such as , in ex

plrlng, clung to some earthly thought or afl'

ection, which now

presses upon them, and prevents them from soaring up to

heaven . I once asked a spirit whether children grew afterdeath? Yes

,

’

replied the spirit,‘the soul

gradually eXpands,

unti l i t becomes as large as it would have I

THE MAGNETISERS .

cannot effect the salvation of these spirits ; I am only theirmediator. I pray ardently with them,

and so lead them bydegrees to the great Saviour of theworld. It costs an infin ityof trouble before such a soul turns again to the Lord.

’

It would, however, serve no good purpose to ex tend to

greater length the reveries of this mad woman , or to set down

one after the other the names of the magnetisers who encou

raged her in her delusions— being themselves deluded. To

wade through these volumes of German mysticism is a taskboth painful and dis usting

— and happily not necessary.

Enough has been state to show how gross 1s the superstitioneven of the learned ; and that errors, like comets, run in one

eternal cycle—at their apogee in one age, at their perigee inthe nex t, but return ing in one phase or another for men to

wonder at.

In England the delusion ofmagnetism may for the presentbe considered as fairly ex ploded. Taking its history from the

commencement, and tracing it to our own day, it can hardlybe said

, delusion though itwas, that it has been wholly withoutits uses. To quote the words of Bailly, in 1784, “Magnetism

has not been altogether unavailing to the philosophy whichcondemns it : it is an additional fact to record among the

errors of the human mind,and a great ex periment on the

strength of the imagination .

” Over that vast inquiry of the

influence of mind over matter,— nu inquir which the em

bodied intellect ofmankind will never be ab e to fathom com

pletely,— it w ill, at least, have thrown a feeble and imperfect

light. Itw ill have aflordedan additional proof of the strengthof the unconquerable will, and the weakness of matter as com

pared with it ; another illustration of thewords of the inspiredPsalmist

,that “we are fearfully and wonderfully made. If

it serve no other purpose than this, its history will prove use

ful. Truth ere now has been elicited by means of error ; andAnimal Magnetism,

like other errors,may yet contribute its

quota towards the instruction and improvement of mank ind.

T H E E N D .