Story of a damned soul.

Mr. de la Roche, full member, communicates the following fact, which is within his personal knowledge: In a small house near Castelnaudary strange noises and various manifestations occurred, which led to its being considered as haunted by some evil genius. On that account, it was exorcised in 1848, and a great number of images of saints were placed in it. Then, wishing to inhabit it, Mr. D…. had repairs made and the engravings removed. After a few years, he died there suddenly. His son, who currently occupies it, or at least occupied it until recently, one day received, upon entering a room, a strong slap from an invisible hand. As he was completely alone, he did not doubt that it came from a hidden source. Now he no longer wishes to remain there and is going to leave it definitively. There is, in the region, a tradition according to which a great crime was supposedly committed in that house. Questioned about the possibility of evoking the one who slapped, Saint Louis answered yes. When summoned, the Spirit manifests itself by signs of violence; the medium is seized with extreme agitation, seven or eight pencils are broken, several are thrown at those present, a page is torn and covered with insignificant marks, made in anger. All efforts to calm him prove powerless. Pressed to answer the questions addressed to him, he writes with the greatest difficulty an almost indecipherable no.

(To Saint Louis) Would you have the goodness to give us some information about this Spirit, since he himself cannot or will not give it? Answer. – He is a Spirit of the worst kind, a veritable monster. We made him come, but it was not possible for us to compel him to write, despite all that was said to him. He has his free will; but, unhappy one, he makes sad use of it.

Is it long since he died as a man?

Answer. – Take information; it was he who committed the crime, the legend of which exists in the region.

Who was he in life?

Answer. – You will know it by yourselves.

Is it he, then, who haunts the house at present?

Answer. – Without doubt, for it was thus that I had your attention called to him.

Were the exorcisms performed unable to drive him out?

Answer. – By no means.

Has he anything to do with the sudden death of Mr. D….?

Answer. – Yes.

In what manner did he contribute to that death?

Ans. – Through terror.

Was it he who gave the slap to the son of Mr. D….?

Answer. – Yes.

Could he have given another to any one of us?

Ans. – But, certainly; the will was not lacking in him.

Why did he not do it?

Answer. – He was not permitted.

Would there be a means of dislodging him from that house? What would it be?

Answer. – If they wish to rid themselves of the obsession of such Spirits, it will be easy, by praying for them: that is what they always neglect to do. They prefer to frighten them with formulas of exorcism, which amuse them greatly.

By giving the persons concerned the idea of praying for this Spirit, and by praying ourselves for him, would it be possible to dislodge him? Answer. – Yes. But note that I said to pray, and not to have prayers said.

Is this Spirit susceptible of improvement?

Answer. – Why not? Are not all so, this one like the others? Nevertheless, difficulties must be faced. But, however perverse he may be, good in return for evil will end by touching him. Let them first pray and evoke him within a month; thus you will be able to judge of the change that will have been worked in him.

This Spirit is suffering and unhappy. Can you describe the kind of sufferings he endures? Answer. – He is convinced that he must remain eternally in the situation in which he finds himself. He sees himself constantly at the moment when he committed the crime: every other recollection has been effaced for him, and all communication with another Spirit forbidden. On Earth he can only be in that house and, when in space, in darkness and solitude.

Where did he come from, before the last incarnation? To what race did he belong?

Answer. – He had had an existence among the most ferocious and most savage tribes and, previously, he came from a planet inferior to Earth.

If this Spirit were to reincarnate, in what category of individuals would he find himself? Answer. – That will depend on him and on the repentance he experiences.

In his next bodily existence could he be what is called a man of good?

Answer. – That would be difficult. Whatever he may do, he will not be able to avoid a rather tempestuous existence. Observation. – Mrs. X…., a seeing medium who was attending the session, saw this Spirit at the moment when they wanted him to write: he was shaking the medium's arm; his aspect was terrifying; he wore a shirt covered with blood and had a dagger.

Mr. and Mrs. E…, who were attending the session as listeners, although they were not yet members, from that same night heeded the recommendation made on behalf of the unhappy Spirit and prayed for him. They obtained several communications, as well as from his victims. We shall narrate them in the order in which they were received, along with those that, on the same subject, were obtained at the Society. Besides the interest attached to this dramatic story, there stands out a teaching that will escape no one. (Second session – home of Mr. E…)

(To the familiar Spirit) Can you tell us anything about the Spirit of Castelnaudary? Answer. – Evoke him.

Will he be evil?

Answer. – You will see.

What must we do?

Answer. – Do not speak to him, if you have nothing to say to him.

If we speak to him to lament his suffering, will that do him good?

Answer. – Compassion always does good to the unhappy.

Evocation of the Spirit of Castelnaudary.

Answer. – What do they want of me?

We have called you in order to be useful to you.

Answer. – Oh! your pity does me good, because I suffer…. oh! How I suffer!…. May God have pity on me!…. Pardon!…. Pardon!

Will our prayers be salutary to you?

Answer. – Yes; pray, pray.

Well then! We shall pray for you.

Answer. – Thank you! You, at least, do not curse me.

Why did you not want to write at the Society, when they called you?

Answer. – Oh! malediction!

Malediction for whom?

Answer. – For me, who expiate most cruelly the crimes in which my will had but a small part. Observation. – In saying that his will took only a small part in his crimes, he wishes to attenuate them, as was learned later.

If you repent, will you be pardoned?

Answer. – Oh! never!

Do not despair.

Answer. – Eternity of sufferings, such is my lot.

What is your suffering?

Answer. – The most horrible there is; you cannot comprehend it.

Have they prayed for you since last night?

Answer. – Yes; but I suffer still more.

How so?

Answer. – How should I know!

Observation. – This circumstance will be explained later.

Should anything be done regarding the house where you have installed yourself?

Answer. – No, no! Do not speak to me of it…. Pardon, my God! I have already suffered much.

Must you remain there?

Answer. – To that I am condemned.

Is it so that you may constantly have your crimes in sight?

Answer. – That is it.

Do not despair; everything can be pardoned with repentance.

Answer. – No; there is no pardon for Cain.

So you killed your brother?

Answer. – We are all brothers.

Why did you want to do harm to Mr. D….?

Answer. – Enough! for pity's sake, enough!

Then, farewell; have confidence in divine mercy!

Answer. – Pray.

(Third session.)

Evocation.

Answer. – I am beside you.

Are you beginning to have hope?

Answer. – Yes, my repentance is great.

What was your name?

Answer. – You will know later.

For how many years have you suffered?

Answer. – For 200 years.

At what time did you commit the crime?

Ans. – In 1608.

Can you repeat the dates to confirm them for us?

Answer. – Useless; once is enough. Farewell; I will speak to you tomorrow. A force calls me. (Fourth session.)

Evocation.

Answer. – Thank you, Hugo (baptismal name of Mr. E…).

Do you wish to speak of what happened at Castelnaudary?

Answer. – No; you make me suffer when you speak of this. It is not generous of you.

You know very well that if we speak of this it is with a view to being able to clarify your position and not to aggravate it. So, speak without fear. How were you led to commit this crime? Answer. – A moment of hallucination.

Was there premeditation?

Answer. – No.

That cannot be true. Your sufferings prove that you are more guilty than you say. You already know that only by repentance will you be able to soften your lot, and not by lying. Come now! Be frank. Answer. – Well! Since it must be, so be it.

Was it a man or a woman that you killed?

Answer. – A man.

How did you cause the death of Mr. D….?

Answer. – I appeared to him visibly and found myself so hideous that the mere sight of me killed him.

Did you do it on purpose?

Answer. – Yes.

Why?

Answer. – He wanted to defy me; and I would still do as much again, if he came to provoke me.

If I were to go and live in that house, would you do me harm?

Answer. – Oh! no, certainly; you have pity on me and wish me well.

Did Mr. D…. die instantly?

Answer. – No; he was seized by fear, but he did not die until two hours later.

Why did you limit yourself to giving a slap to Mr. D…. the son?

Answer. – It was too much to have killed two men.

(Fifth session. – Society, December 16, 1859.)

Questions addressed to Saint Louis – Is the Spirit who communicated with Mr. and Mrs. E… really the one of Castelnaudary? Answer. – Yes.

How was he able to communicate with them so promptly?

Answer. – The Society still was unaware of it. He had not repented; repentance is everything.

Is the information given by him about the crime accurate?

Answer. – It is for you to verify and to come to an understanding with him.

He said that the crime was committed in 1608 and that he had died in 1659. Is it, then, 200 years that he has been in that state? Answer. – This will be explained to you later.

Could you describe his kind of torment?

Answer. – It is atrocious for him. As you know, he was condemned to remain in the house where the crime was committed, unable to direct his thought to anything other than the crime, always before his eyes, and he believes himself condemned to that torture forever and ever.

Is he plunged in darkness?

Answer. – Darkness, when he wishes to withdraw from that place of exile.

What is the most terrible kind of torment that a Spirit can experience, in this case? Answer. – There is no possible description of the moral tortures that are the punishment of certain crimes. He who experiences them himself would have difficulty giving you an idea. But the most horrible is the certainty of being condemned without appeal.

He has found himself in this situation for two centuries. Does he gauge time as he did when incarnate, that is, does time seem more or less long to him, as when he was alive? Answer. – It seems rather longer to him: for him sleep does not exist.

We were told that, for Spirits, time did not exist and that, for them, a century is a point in eternity. Is it not the same for all? Answer. – Certainly not. It is so only for Spirits arrived at a very elevated degree of progress; but for inferior Spirits time is sometimes very long, above all when they suffer.

This Spirit is punished very severely for the crime he committed. Now, you told us that before this last existence he had lived among the most barbarous tribes. There he must have committed acts at least as atrocious as the last one. Was he punished in the same way? Answer. – He was less punished, because, being more ignorant, he understood less the import of it. Observation. – All observations confirm this fact, eminently in conformity with the justice of God, that the penalties are proportional, not to the nature of the fault, but to the degree of intelligence of the guilty one and to the possibility of understanding the evil he does. Thus, less grave in appearance, a fault may be more severely punished in a civilized man than an act of barbarity in a savage.

Is the state in which this Spirit finds himself that of the beings commonly called the damned? Answer. – Absolutely; there are others still much more horrible. The sufferings are far from being the same for all, even for similar crimes, for they vary according to whether the guilty one is more or less accessible to repentance. For this one, the house where he committed the crime is his hell; others carry it within themselves, through the passions that torment them and that they cannot satisfy. Observation. – Indeed, we have seen misers suffer at the sight of gold, which had become for them a veritable chimera; proud ones, tormented by envy of the honors they saw rendered and that were not addressed to them; men who had commanded on Earth, humiliated by the invisible power that constrained them to obey and by the sight of their subordinates, who no longer bowed before them; atheists suffering the anguish of uncertainty and finding themselves in an absolute isolation amid immensity, without finding any being who could enlighten them. If in the world of the Spirits there are joys for all the virtues, there are penalties for all the faults, and those that are not reached by the laws of men are always reached by the law of God.

Despite his inferiority, this Spirit feels the good effects of prayer; we have seen the same on the part of other Spirits equally perverse and of the most brutish nature. How is it possible for more enlightened Spirits, of more developed intelligence, to show a complete absence of feeling; to smile at all that is most sacred; in a word, to be touched by nothing nor to grant the least truce to their cynicism? Answer. – Prayer has no effect except in favor of the Spirit who repents. He who, impelled by pride, revolts against God and persists in his deviations, even exaggerating them, as the unhappy Spirits do, upon these prayer can do nothing nor will it be able to, except when a glimmer of repentance manifests in them. For them the ineffectiveness of prayer is also a punishment. It relieves only those who are not totally hardened.

When we see a Spirit inaccessible to the good effects of prayer, is there a reason to abstain from praying for him? Answer. – No, certainly, because sooner or later it may triumph over his hardening and cause salutary thoughts to germinate in him. (Sixth session. – At the home of Mr. F…).

Evocation.

Answer. – Here I am.

So, can you now leave the house of Castelnaudary whenever you wish?

Answer. – They permit me, because I profit from your good counsels.

Do you experience any relief?

Answer. – I begin to have hope.

If we could see you, under what appearance would we see you?

Answer. – You would see me in a shirt and without the dagger.

Why would you no longer have the dagger? What have you done with it?

Answer. – I curse it; God spares me the sight of it.

If Mr. D…. the son returned to the house, would you still do him harm?

Answer. – No, for I am repentant.

And if he again wished to defy you?

Answer. – Oh! do not ask me that; I could not master myself; this would be beyond my strength…. because I am nothing but a wretch.

Would the prayers of Mr. D…. the son be more salutary to you than those of other persons? Answer. – Yes, for it is to him that I did the greatest harm.

Very well! We will continue to do for you what we can.

Answer. – Thank you. At least I have found in you charitable souls. Farewell.

(Seventh session.)

Evocation of the murdered man.

Answer. – Here I am.

What name did you have when alive?

Answer. – I was called Pierre Dupont.

What was your profession?

Answer. – I was a sausage-maker in Castelnaudary, where my elder brother, Charles Dupont, murdered me with a dagger, in the middle of the night of the 6th of May 1608.

What was the cause of the crime?

Answer. – My brother thought that I wanted to court a woman whom he loved, and whom I saw very frequently. But he was mistaken, for I had never thought of it.

How did he kill you?

Answer. – I was sleeping; he wounded me in the throat, then in the heart. In wounding me, he woke me; I wanted to struggle, but I soon succumbed.

Did you pardon him?

Answer. – Yes; at the moment of his death, 200 years ago.

At what age did he die?

Answer. – At 80 years.

So he was not punished in life?

Answer. – No.

Who was accused of your death?

Answer. – No one; in that time of confusion little attention was paid to such things; it would have been of no use.

What became of the woman?

Answer. – Shortly after she was murdered in my house by my brother.

Why did he murder her?

Answer. – Frustrated love. He had married her before my death.

(Eighth session.)

Why does he not speak of the murder of that woman?

Answer. – Because mine is the worse for him.

Evocation of the murdered woman.

Answer. – Here I am.

What name did you have in life?

Answer. – Marguerite Aeder, Madame Dupont.

How long were you married?

Answer. – Five years.

Pierre told us that his brother suspected criminal relations between the two of you. Is that true? Answer. – No criminal relation existed between us. Do not believe it.

How long after the death of his brother Charles did he murder you?

Answer. – Two years afterward.

What motive impelled him?

Answer. – Jealousy and the desire to keep my money.

Can you relate the circumstances of the crime?

Answer. – He seized me and wounded me in the head, in the work-shop, with his sausage-maker's knife.

How is it that he was not prosecuted?

Answer. – What for? Everything was disorder in those unfortunate times.

Was Charles's jealousy founded?

Answer. – Yes, but it did not authorize him to commit such a crime, because in this world we are all sinners.

How long had you been married, at the time of Pierre's death?

Answer. – For three years.

Can you specify the date of your death?

Answer. – Yes: the 3rd of May 1610.

What did they think of Pierre's death?

Answer. – They made it believed to be murderers who wanted to rob.

Observation. – Whatever may be the authenticity of these accounts, which seem difficult to control, there is one notable fact: the precision and the concordance of the dates and of all the events. By itself this circumstance is a curious subject of study, if we consider that these three Spirits, called at different intervals, in no way contradict one another. What would seem to confirm their words is that the principal guilty one in the case, evoked by another medium, gave responses identical.

(Ninth session.)

Evocation of Mr. D….

Answer. – Here I am.

We wish to ask for some details about the circumstances of your death. Could you give them to us? Answer. – Willingly.

Did you know that the house in which you dwelt was haunted by a Spirit?

Answer. – Yes; but I wanted to defy him and acted wrongly in doing so. It would have been better to pray for him. Observation. – From this it is seen that the means generally employed to rid ourselves of importunate Spirits are not the most effective. Threats excite them more than they intimidate them. Benevolence and commiseration have more power than the employment of coercive means, which irritate them, or of formulas, at which they laugh.

How did this Spirit appear to you?

Answer. – Upon my arrival at home he was visible and was looking at me fixedly; I could not escape; I was seized by terror and expired under the terrible gaze of this Spirit whom I had despised, and toward whom I had shown myself so little charitable.

Could you not ask for help?

Answer. – Impossible; my hour had come, and it is thus that I was to die.

What appearance did he have?

Answer. – That of a furious one disposed to devour me.

Did you suffer in dying?

Answer. – Horribly.

111.. Did you die suddenly?

Answer. – No; two hours later.

What reflections did you make, feeling that you were dying?

Answer. – I could not reflect; I was seized with an inexpressible terror.

Did the apparition remain visible until the end?

Answer. – Yes; it did not leave my poor Spirit for a single instant.

When your Spirit detached itself did you perceive the cause of your death?

Answer. – No; everything was finished. Only later did I understand.

Can you indicate the date of your death?

Answer. – Yes: the 9th of August 1853. (The precise date could not yet be verified; but it is accurate, approximately). (Tenth session. – Society, January 13, 1860.)

When this Spirit was evoked, on December 9, Saint Louis advised calling him again within a month, in order to judge of the progress he should have made in the interval. It was already possible to judge it, by the communications of Mr. and Mrs. E…, by the change worked in his ideas, thanks to the influence of the prayers and of the good counsels. A little more than a month having elapsed after his first evocation, he was again called to the Society, on January 13.

Evocation.

Answer. – Here I am.

Do you remember having been called among us about a month ago?

Answer. – How could I forget it?

Why then could you not write?

Answer. – I did not want to.

Why did you not want to?

Answer. – Ignorance and brutishness.

Have your ideas changed since then?

Answer. – Much. Several among you were obliging and prayed for me.

Do you confirm all the information that was given by you and by your victims?

Answer. – If I did not confirm it, that would be to say that I had not given it, and it was I myself who gave it.

Do you foresee the end of your penalties?

Answer. – Oh! not yet. It is already much more than I deserve to know that, thanks to your intercession, they will not last forever.

Describe the situation in which you were before our first evocation. You will understand that we ask it of you for our instruction, and not as a motive of curiosity. Answer. – As I told you, I had consciousness of nothing, in the world, except of my crime, and I could not leave the house where I committed it except to rise into space, where everything around me was solitude and obscurity. I could not give you an idea of it; I never understood it. As soon as I rose above the air, all was black and empty; I do not know what it was. Today I experience much more remorse, but, as the communications prove to you, I am no longer constrained to remain in that fatal house. They permit me to wander on Earth and to seek to enlighten myself through my observations. Now I understand better the enormity of my crimes. If, on the one hand, I suffer less, on the other my tortures increase through remorse; but, at least, I have hope.

If you had to resume a bodily existence, which would you choose?

Answer. – I have not yet seen enough, nor reflected enough, to know it.

Do you meet your victims?

Answer. – Oh! may God keep me from it!

Observation. – It has always been said that the sight of the victims is one of the torments of the guilty. This one has not yet seen them, because he was in isolation and in darkness; it was a punishment.

But he dreads that sight, and perhaps therein lies the complement of his torment.

During your long isolation and, one may say, your captivity, did you feel remorse? Answer. – Not in the least, and that is why I suffered so much. It was only when I began to experience it that, in spite of myself, the circumstances were provoked which led to my evocation, to which I owe the beginning of my liberty. Thanks, then, to you, who had pity on me and enlightened me. Observation. – This evocation is not the work of chance. As it was to be useful to this unhappy one, the Spirits who watched over him, seeing that he was beginning to understand the enormity of his crimes, judged the moment had come to render him an effective assistance, and then brought him to the propitious circumstances. It is a fact that we have seen occur many times.

In this connection, they asked what would have become of him, if he had not been able to be evoked, as happens with all the suffering Spirits who also cannot be, and of whom no one thinks. To this it was answered that the ways of God, for the salvation of His creatures, are innumerable.

Evocation may be a means of assisting them, but, assuredly, it is not the only one. God leaves no one in oblivion. Moreover, collective prayers must also exert their influence upon the Spirits accessible to repentance. [see Study on the Spirit of living persons.]