JUGGLING 
tiiofe parts, in order to produce all the effeCls. A child 
of five years old was then magnetifed ; but it felt nothing, 
except the heat which it had previoufly contracted in 
playing. 
Thele experiments were repeated by the commilTioners 
in various ways, upon many different perfons, of all 
claffes, and with the fame refults, differing only accord¬ 
ing to the difference of fufceptibility of the imagination 
of the individuals. They found effects conftantly experi¬ 
enced when no magnetifm was ufed, and viceverfa, (when 
the eyes were covered,) according to the direction of the 
patient’s attention by queftions put to him with addrefs. 
Now this practice could not lead to any error; fmce it 
only deceiver! their imagination. For, in truth, when 
they were not magnetifed, their only anfwer ought to have 
been that they felt nothing. 
Some faffs, communicated to the commiffioners by M. 
Sigault, an eminent pbyfician at Paris, place the power of 
the imagination in a ftrong light. “ Having announced,” 
lie fays, “ in a great houfe, that I was an adept in the art 
of Mefmer, I produced confiderable effeCts upon a lady 
who was there. The voice and ferious air which I affect¬ 
ed, made an impreffion upon her, which (he at firft at¬ 
tempted to conceal; but having carried my hand to the 
region of the heart, I found it palpitating. Her date of 
oppreflion indicated alfo a tightnefs in the chelt, and fe- 
veral other fymptoms fpeedily enfued; the mufdes of the 
face were affected with convulfive twitches, and the eyes 
rolled; fhe fell down in a fainting fit, vomited her din¬ 
ner, and had afterwards feveral motions from the bowels, 
and felt herfelf in a date; of incredible weaknefs and lan- 
gour. A celebrated artid, who gives leffons in drawing 
to the children of one of our princes, complained during 
feveral days of a fevere head-ache, which he mentioned to 
me when we met accidentally on the Pont-Royal. Hav¬ 
ing perfuaded him that I was initiated in the myderies of 
Mefmer, almod immediately, by means of a few gedures, 
J removed his pain, to his great adonifhment.” Dr. Si¬ 
gault judly remarks, that it is probably by fuch an im- 
preffion on the mind, that the fight of the dentid removes 
the tooth-ache, when the patient has gone to him for the 
purpofeof having his tooth drawn. He adds, that, being 
one day in the parlour at a convent, a young lady faid to 
him, “You go to M. Mefmer’s, I hear.” ‘Yes,’ he re¬ 
plied, ‘and I can magnetife you through the grate;’ pre- 
fenting his finger towards her at the fame time. She was 
alarmed, grew faint, and begged him to defid; and, in 
faff, her emotion was fo great, that, had he perfided, he 
had no doubt that fhe would have been feized with a fit. 
Rapport, p. 39-41. 
But, although the commiffioners were convinced, by 
their experiments, that the imagination was capable of pro¬ 
ducing different fenfations, of occafioning pain, and a 
fenfe of heat, and even actual heat, in all parts of the 
body; and therefore that it contributed much to the ef- 
fefts which were afcribed to animal magnetifm ; yet the 
effeffs of the latter had been much more confiderable, and 
the derangements of the animal economy, which it ex¬ 
cited, much more fevere. It was now, therefore, to be 
afcertained, whether by influencing the imagination, con- 
vulfions, or the complete crips witneffed at the public 
treatment, could be produced. In proof of this point, 
their experiments were not lefs conclufive, as the follow¬ 
ing relation of one or two of them will evince. As M. 
.Deflon acknowledged that the complete fuccefs of the expe¬ 
riments would depend upon the fubjeffs of them being en¬ 
dowed with fufficient (enfibility, he was requefted to fe- 
left fome of his patients, who had already proved their 
fufceptibility of the magnetic influence, upon whom the 
trials might be made. 
According to the principles of the magnetifers, when a 
tree had been touched by them, and charged with mag¬ 
netifm, every perfon who flopped near the tree would feel 
the effeffs of this agent, and either fall into a fwoon or into 
con vulfions. Accordingly, in Dr. Franklin’s garden at Paf- 
4 05 
fy, an apricot-tree was feleffed, which flood fufficlently dif- 
tant from the others, and was w-ell adapted for retaining 
tiie magnetifm communicated to it. M. Deflon, having 
brought thither a young patient of twelve years of age, 
was fhovvn the tree, which lie magnetifed, while the patient 
remained in the houfe, under the obfervation of another 
perfon. It was wifhed that M. Deflon fbould be abfent 
during the experiment; but lie affirmed that it might fail, 
if he did not direff his looks and his cane towards the 
tree. The young man was then brought out, with a ban¬ 
dage over his eyes, and fucceflively led to four trees, which 
were not magnetifed, and was direfted to embrace each dur¬ 
ing two minutes; M. Deflon at the fame time Handing at 
a confiderable diftance, and pointing his cane to the tree 
aftually magnetifed. At the firff tree, the young patient, 
on being queflioned, declared that he fweated pro£ufely ; 
he coughed and expefforated, and faid that he felt a pain 
in the head -. he was (till about twenty-feven feet from 
the magnetifed tree. At the fecond tree, he found liim- 
felf giddy, with the head-ache as before ; he was now 
thirty feet from the magnetifed tree. At the third, the 
giddinefs and head-ache were much increafed ; he faid he 
believed he w»as approaching the magnetifed tree ; but he 
w r as Hill twenty-eight feet from it. At length, when, 
brought to the fourth tree, not magnetifed, and at the dif¬ 
tance of twenty-four feet from that which was, the crifis 
came on; the young man fell down in a lfate of infenfi- 
bility, his limbs became rigid, he was carried to a grafs- 
plot, where M. Deflon went to his affilfance, and recovered 
him. 
This experiment, then, was altogether adverfe to the 
principle of magnetifm, not negatively, but pofitively and 
direCtly. If the patient, faid the commiffioners, had ex¬ 
perienced no effeCt under the tree actually magnetifed, it 
might have been fuppofed that he was not in a ftate of 
fufficient fufceptibility; but lie fell into the crifis. under 
one which was not magnetifed; therefore not from any 
external phyfical caufe, but folely from the influence of 
the imagination. He knew that he was to be carried to the 
magnetifed tree; his imagination was routed,, and luccef- 
fively exalted, until, at the fourth tree, it had rifen to the 
pitch neceffary to bring on the crifs. 
Many other experiments furnifhed the fame refults. 
M. Deflon was requefted to feleCt, from among his poor 
patients, tiiofe who had fliown the greateft fenfibility to 
the magnetifm ; and he accordingly brought two women 
to Pafly. While he was magnetifing Dr. Franklin and 
feveral perfons in another apartment, the two women were 
put into feparate rooms. Three of the commiffioners re¬ 
mained with one of the women, the firft to queftion her, 
the fecond to write, and the third to represent M. Deflon, 
who (they perfuaded her after having bandaged her eyes) 
was brought into the room to magnetife her. One of them 
pretended to fpeak to M. Deflon, requeuing him to' be¬ 
gin ; but nothing was done-, the commiffioners remained 
quiet, only oblerving the woman. In the lpace of three 
minutes, the began to feel a nervous (hivering,, (frilfon 
nerveux ;) then (he felt in fucceflion a pain in the head 
and in the arms, and a pricking in the hands, (he became 
(fiff, ftruck her hands together, got up from her feat, and 
(lamped with her feet; in a word, the crills was com¬ 
pletely characterized. Two of the commiffioners were in 
an adjoining room with the other woman, whom they 
placed by the door, which was (hut, with her fight at li¬ 
berty, and made her believe that M. Deflon .was on the 
other fide of the door, magnetifing her. She had fcarcely 
been feated a minute before the-door when a (bivering 
began; in one minute more (lie had a clattering of the 
teeth, but yet a general warmth over the body ; and, by 
the end of three minutes, the crifis was complete. The 
breathing became hurried ; fhe ftretched out her arms be¬ 
hind her back, writhing them ftrongly, and bending the 
body forwards; a general tremor of the whole body came 
on; the clattering of the teeth was fo loud as to be heard 
out of the room; and she bit her hand fo as to leave the 
marks 
