Thilorier, the physicist.

— Thilorier was actively engaged in the search for a motor intended to replace steam, and thought he had found it in carbonic acid, which he had managed to condense. At that time steam was regarded as a crude and primitive means of locomotion. In this regard, the following item is read in the chronicle of the Patrie, of September 22, 1859: If Thilorier had found a motor of unequaled power, beside which steam was a mere puerility, he would still have had to regulate its force, and three or four times the trials he had attempted proved fatal to him. On exploding, the apparatus covered him with numerous wounds, causing an almost complete deafness in this martyr of science. Meanwhile, it was deemed advisable to reproduce the experiment of the condensation of carbonic acid at the Collège de France. Through imprudence or through a fatal accident, the apparatus broke, exploded, gravely wounded several people, cost the life of one of the professor's assistants, and tore off one of Thilorier's fingers. It was not the finger that he lamented, but the discredit cast upon the new motor he had discovered. Fear took hold of all the scientists, and they refused to yield to all those ingenuous arguments of Thilorier: “My condensation apparatus has already burst twenty times in my hands, but this is the first time it has killed anyone! It had never done more than wound me.” The mere name of carbonic acid put to flight the whole Institute, not to mention the Sorbonne and the Collège de France. Somewhat saddened, Thilorier withdrew into his laboratory more than he was accustomed to do. Those who esteemed him noticed at once that a profound change was taking place in his habits. He would spend whole days without thinking of putting his cat on his knees, he walked with great strides and no longer touched his retorts and alembics. When, by chance, he left the house, it was simply to stop in the middle of the street, paying no attention to the curiosity and astonishment he aroused in passers-by. As he was a man of gentle and distinguished countenance, with fine hair that was beginning to whiten, and as he wore on the lapel of his blue frock coat the insignia of the Legion of Honor, they looked at him without much mockery. Moved by compassion, a young woman one day took him by the arm and accompanied him on his walk. He did not even think to thank his kind benefactress. He passed beside his best friends without perceiving them and without answering when they addressed him. The fixed idea had taken hold of him, that imperceptible nuance which separates genius from madness. One day he was conversing in his laboratory with one of his friends.

Well, said he, I have finally solved my problem! As you know, a few weeks ago my condensation apparatus broke at the Sorbonne…

— A few weeks? I interrupted him. But several years have already passed!

— Ah! he continued without being disconcerted; so I took that long to solve my problem? After all, what do a few weeks or years matter, since I have the solution! Yes, my friend, not only is an explosion impossible, but, moreover, that terrible force, I master it! I do with it what I will! It is my slave! I can employ it at will to drag enormous masses, to set gigantic machines in motion, or to compel it to move with the most delicate and fragile impulses! And as I regarded him with stupefaction:

— Word of honor, he doubts what I am telling him! he exclaimed, laughing. But look at these plans, these drawings; and if you do not believe your eyes, listen to me!

Then, with a lucidity that left no room for doubt, even for a man unacquainted with the arcana of Science, he discoursed on the means at his disposal to set his work in action. Not a single objection could be raised against him: on every point his theory was irrefutable. — I need three days to make my apparatus, he continued. I want to build it entirely with my own hands. Come to see me the day after tomorrow… And you, who have not abandoned me, you who did not doubt me, you whose pen defended me, you shall be the first to enjoy and to share in my success. I was faithful, indeed.

When I passed by the lodge, the concierge called me.

— Ah! Sir, she said to me, what a great misfortune, is it not? Such a good man! A true son of goodness! To die so soon!

— But who?

— Mr. Thilorier. He died just now.

Unfortunately she was telling the truth. My unfortunate friend had been stricken with sudden death in his laboratory.

What became of his discovery? With him no trace was found of the drawings he had shown me; his notes, if indeed he left any, were likewise lost. Had he solved the great enigma he was seeking? God alone knows! God, who had not permitted him to transmit his sublime, or mad, thought except to a layman, incapable of discerning the true from the false and, above all, of remembering the theory upon which the inventor based himself. Be that as it may, today the condensation of carbonic acid is no more than a curious experiment, which professors rarely demonstrate in their courses.

If Thilorier had lived a few more days, who knows whether carbonic acid might not have changed the face of the world?

Sam.

— Had Thilorier found what he sought, or not? In any case, it would be interesting to know what he thought about it as a Spirit.

Evocation.

Answer. — Here I am, glad to be in your company.

We wish to converse with you, because we think we could only gain from a conversation with the Spirit of a scientist, such as you were in life.

Answer. — The Spirit of a learned man is often more elevated on Earth than in Heaven. However, when science is the companion of probity, this will be a guarantee of Spiritist superiority.

As a physicist, you occupied yourself especially with the search for a motor to replace steam, and you thought you had found it in condensed carbonic acid. What do you think of that now?

Answer. — My idea was so fixed on this subject that I dreamed, on the eve of my death, or, to be more exact, at the moment of my spiritual resurrection.

A few days before dying, you thought you had found the solution to the practical difficulty. Did you really find that means?

Answer. — I tell you that the over-excitation of the imagination had induced in me a fantastic dream, which I uttered while awake. It was, in exact terms, what you call madness. What I had dreamed was absolutely not applicable.

Were you here when the item concerning you was read?

Answer. — Yes.

What do you think of it?

Answer. — Little; I rest in the bosom of my guardian angel, for my poor soul came out quite bruised from my miserable body.

In spite of that, could you answer some questions relating to the sciences?

Answer. — Yes; for a moment I even wish to enter the labyrinth of Science.

Do you think that one day steam will be replaced by another motor?

Answer. — This one will be still more perfected. Nevertheless, I believe that in the future human intelligence will find a means to simplify it still further.

What do you think of condensed air as a motor?

Answer. — Condensed air is an excellent motor, lighter than steam and more economical. When men know how to direct its use, it will have more force and, therefore, more speed.

What do you now think of condensed carbonic acid, used for such a purpose?

Answer. — I was still very backward. Numerous experiments and long and difficult studies will be necessary to arrive at a satisfactory result. Science still has so much to do!

Of the different motors with which men occupy themselves, which of them do you judge will triumph?

Answer. — Steam, now; later, condensed air.

Have you seen Arago again?

Answer. — Yes.

Do you discuss the sciences among yourselves?

Answer. — Sometimes the faculties of our intelligence turn toward human studies. We greatly enjoy attending the experiments that are made. But when one returns to Heaven, one thinks no more of it; and besides, as I have already told you, I am resting.

One more question, if you please, but a very serious one. In case you cannot answer it yourself, have the kindness to have yourself assisted by a more competent Spirit. We have always been told that Spirits suggest ideas to men and that many discoveries have this origin. But since not all Spirits know everything and, for that reason, seek to instruct themselves, could you tell us whether some of them carry out research and make discoveries in the state of Spirit? Answer. — Yes. When a Spirit has reached a sufficiently advanced degree, God entrusts him with a mission and charges him to occupy himself with this or that science useful to men. It is then that this intelligence, obedient to God, seeks in the secrets of Nature, which God permits it to glimpse, all that is necessary for it to learn for this purpose. And when it has studied enough, it addresses itself to a man capable of grasping what, in turn, it can teach. Suddenly this man is tortured by a thought; he thinks only of it; he speaks of it at every moment; he dreams of it every night; he hears celestial voices that speak to him. Then, when everything is well developed in his head, this man announces to the world a discovery or an improvement. It is thus that men, for the most part, are inspired.

We are grateful for the kindness of the answers and for having abandoned your repose for a few moments to attend to us.

Answer. — I will ask God to watch over you and to inspire you.

Note. – Mrs. G…, who sometimes sees the Spirits, describes the impressions received during the evocation of Thilorier: she saw a Spirit whom she believes to be his.

(To Saint Louis) Could you tell us whether it really was the Spirit of Thilorier that Mrs. G… saw?

Answer. — It is not exactly that Spirit which this lady has just seen; later her eyes will be accustomed to discern the form of the perispirit, and she will distinguish the Spirits perfectly. At the moment it is a kind of mirage. Note. – The complementary questions that follow were also addressed to Saint Louis.

If the authors of discoveries are assisted by Spirits who suggest ideas to them, how is it that some men believe they are inventing and invent nothing, or invent only chimeras?

Answer. — It is that they are deluded by deceiving Spirits who, finding their brain open to error, take hold of them.

How is it to be explained that the Spirit so frequently chooses men incapable of bringing a discovery to a good end?

Answer. — It is brains devoid of human foresight that are the most capable of receiving the dangerous seed of the unknown. The Spirit does not choose such a man because he is incapable; it is the man who does not know how to make the seed given to him bear fruit.

But, then, it is Science that suffers from this, and this does not explain why the Spirit does not preferentially address a capable man.

Answer. — Science does not suffer, for what one sketches another completes, and, during the interval, the idea matures.

When a discovery is made prematurely, may providential obstacles oppose its dissemination?

Answer. — The development of a useful idea is never halted. God would not permit it; it must follow its course.

When Papin discovered the motive force of steam, numerous trials were made to utilize it and quite satisfactory results were obtained, but they remained in the state of theory. How is it to be explained that so great a discovery lay dormant for so long, since its elements were possessed? There was no lack of men capable of fecundating it. Was this due to the insufficiency of knowledge, or had the moment not yet come for the revolution it was to bring about? Answer. — For the dissemination of discoveries that transform the outward aspect of things, God lets the idea mature, like the ears of grain, whose development winter does not prevent, but only retards.

The idea must germinate for a long time, in order to burst forth at the moment when all are calling for it. The same occurs with moral ideas, which first germinate and only take root when they reach maturity. Spiritism, for example, at this moment when it has become a necessity, will be welcomed as a benefit, because all the other philosophies have already been tried, uselessly, to satisfy the aspirations of man. [see Correspondence of Mr. Jobard concerning Thilorier.]

Saint Louis. n [1]

[see Saint Louis.]