Bulletin

Admission of two new members.

Various communications: 1st Reading of several dissertations received outside the sessions.

2nd Letter from Mr. de Porry, of Marseille, presenting the Society with the second edition of his poem entitled Urania. The Society thanks the author for having allowed it to appreciate his talent and is happy to see him devote himself to Spiritist ideas. Clothed in the gracious form of poetry, these ideas have a charm that makes them more easily acceptable to those whom the severity of the dogmatic form might offend. 3rd Letter from Mr. L…, providing new details about the rapping and obsessing Spirit with which the Society has already concerned itself. (See the account further on).

4th Letter from the Misses G…, of the Department of the Indre, concerning the pranks in bad taste and the depredations of which they have been victims for several years, and which they attribute to a malevolent Spirit. They are six sisters; despite all the precautions they take, their clothes are taken from the drawers of their furniture, even when locked, and are often cut to pieces. 5th Mr. Th… relates a case of violent obsession, exerted upon the medium by an evil Spirit, which he succeeded in dominating and expelling. Addressing Mr. Th…, this Spirit wrote: I hate you, because you dominate me. From then on, it no longer appeared, and the medium ceased to be importuned in the exercise of his faculty.

6th Mr. Allan Kardec cites a personal case of an indication given by the Spirits, remarkable for its precision. In a conversation he had the day before with his familiar Spirit, the latter said to him: “You will find in today’s Siècle a long article on this subject which answers your question; it was we who inspired the author and the work he sets forth, which is connected with the great humanitarian reforms being prepared.” This article, of which neither Mr. Kardec nor the medium had any knowledge, was indeed found in the indicated newspaper, under the designated title, proving that Spirits can be aware of the publications of the material world. WORK OF THE SESSION. Spontaneous teaching. Communication signed by Cazotte, received by Mr. A. Didier. – Another, containing the laments of a suffering and selfish Spirit, received by Mrs. Costel.

Evocations. Second conversation with the gourmet Spirit, who took the name of Balthazar, and whom someone thought to recognize as being that of Mr. G… de la R…, which was confirmed by the Spirit. [v. Balthazar, the gourmet Spirit.]

Various questions. Questions addressed to Saint Louis about the rapping Spirit referred to in Mr. L…’s letter, as well as about the depredating Spirit of the Misses G… Concerning the latter, he says that it will be easier to overcome its resistance, considering that it is more of a prankster than evil.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1860.

(General Session.)

Various communications: Reading of several dissertations obtained outside the session: Entry of a guilty one into the world of Spirits, signed by Novel and received by Mrs. Costel. – The punishment of the selfish man, by the same lady. This communication continues another by the same Spirit, obtained in the previous session. – Another on free will, signed by Marcillac. – Reflections of the Spirit of Truth on the communications relating to the punishment of the selfish man, received by Mr. C… WORKS OF THE SESSION. Spontaneous Teaching. 1st The familiar sprite, signed by Charles Nodier and received by Mrs. Costel. – 2nd Parable of Lazarus, signed by Lamennais and received by Mr. A. Didier. – 3rd The Spirit Alfred de Musset presents himself through Miss Eugénie; he places himself at the disposal of the assembly to treat a subject of its choice; the choice being left to his judgment, he makes a remarkable dissertation on the consolations of Spiritism. As for the offer made to answer questions, he treats the following themes: What is the influence of poetry upon Spiritism? – Will there be a Spiritist art, as there was a pagan art and a Christian art? – What is the influence of woman in the nineteenth century? Evocations. Evocation of Cazotte, who had manifested himself spontaneously in the last session. Several questions were put to him about the gift of foresight he seemed to possess in life.

Various matters and problems. – On the ubiquity of Spirits in visual manifestations. – On the Spirits of darkness, apropos of the manifestations of Mr. Squire, which occur only in darkness.

Note. – We shall treat this question in a special article, speaking of Mr. Squire.

Mr. Jobard reads three charming poems of his own composition: The happiness of the martyrs, The bird of paradise, and The annexation, the latter a fable.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1860.

(Private Session.)

Administrative matters: Collective letter signed by several members concerning Mr. L…’s proposal. The conclusions adopted by the committee were accepted by the Society.

Letter from Mr. Sol…, begging the Society to accept his resignation as a member of the committee, by reason of the travels that keep him away from Paris during most of the year. – The Society expresses its regret at Mr. Sol…’s decision and hopes to be able to keep him among the number of its associates. The president is charged with replying to that effect. His replacement on the committee will be arranged. Various communications: 1st Spontaneous dictation, containing new explanations on ubiquity, signed by Saint Louis. Discussion concerning this communication.

2nd Another signed by Charles Nodier, received by a medium foreign to the Society and transmitted by Mr. Didier, the elder, apropos of the article in the Journal des Débats against Spiritism.

3rd Mr. D…, of the Department of Vienne, insistently begs that Mr. Jean-Baptiste D…, his father-in-law, be evoked. The Society never lends itself to such kinds of requests when they enclose only a private interest, especially in the absence of the persons concerned and when these are not directly known. However, in view of the honorable character and official position of the correspondent, the particular circumstances presented by the deceased, and the atheism the latter professed throughout his life, the Society thinks that such an evocation may offer a profitable subject of study. Consequently, it places it on the agenda. 4th Several members relate an interesting phenomenon of physical manifestation of which they were witnesses. It consists in the lifting of a person by the mediumistic influence of two young girls of 15 and 16 who, placing two fingers on the rungs of the chair, raise it approximately one meter, whatever its weight, in the same way as they would the lightest of bodies. This phenomenon was repeated several times, always with the same ease. (We shall give the explanation of it in a special article). 5th Mr. Jobard reads an article of his own authorship, entitled The conversion of a peasant.

WORKS OF THE SESSION. Spontaneous teaching. Dissertation on ubiquity, signed by Channing and received by Miss Huet. – Another on the article in the Journal des Débats, signed by André Chénier and received by Mr. A. Didier. – Another signed by Rachel and received by Mrs. Costel.

A fact worthy of note, recalled apropos of the first two communications, is that, when a subject of a certain importance is on the agenda, it is very common to see it treated by several Spirits, through different mediums and places. It seems that, taking an interest in the question, each one wishes to contribute to the teaching that will result from such communications. Evocations: 1st Jean-Baptiste D…, referred to above, and of his brother, both materialists and atheists. The situation of the first, who committed suicide, is truly lamentable.

2nd Evocation of Mr. C. de B…, of Brussels, at the request of Mr. Jobard, who had known him personally.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1860.

(Private Session.)

Admission of Mr. C…, professor in Paris, as a free associate.

Various communications: Reading of a dissertation signed by the Spirit of Truth, received in a private session, at the home of Mr. Allan Kardec, apropos of the definition of art, as well as of the distinction between pagan art, Christian art, and Spiritist art.

Mr. Theub… completes this definition by saying that pagan art may be considered as the expression of material sentiment; Christian art, the expression of expiation; and Spiritist art, the expression of triumph.

WORKS OF THE SESSION. Spontaneous Spiritist teaching. Dissertation signed by Lamennais, received by Mr. A. Didier. – Another signed by Charles Nodier, received by Miss Huet. It continues the subject begun on August 24, 1860, although no one had retained the memory of it nor could recall it. Another, signed by Georges and received by Mrs. Costel. Evocation of Dr. Kane, American traveler and explorer of the north pole, who discovered a free sea beyond the circle of the polar ice. Very just appreciation on the part of the Spirit regarding the results of this discovery.

Various questions. Questions addressed to Charles Nodier about the causes that may influence the nature of the communications in certain sessions, notably on that day, on which the Spirits did not have their habitual eloquence. Discussion concerning this point.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1860.

(General Session.)

Mr. Indermuhle, of Bern, presents the Society with a German pamphlet published in Glaris, in 1855, entitled: Eternity is no longer a secret, or The most evident revelations about the world of Spirits.

Various communications: 1st Reading of a very interesting evocation and of several Spiritist dissertations obtained outside the sessions.

2nd Fact of visual manifestation related by Mr. Indermuhle in the letter he addressed to the Society.

3rd Personal fact that occurred with Mr. Allan Kardec, and which may be considered as a proof of identity of the Spirit of an ancient personage. Miss J… received several communications from John the Evangelist, always with a very characteristic handwriting completely different from her habitual penmanship. Mr. Allan Kardec having, at her request, evoked that Spirit through Mrs. Costel, it was found that the writing had exactly the same character as that of Miss J…, although the new medium was unaware of the fact; moreover, the movement of the hand had an uncommon delicacy, which constituted yet another similitude; finally, the answers agreed on every point with those that had been given through Miss J…, and there was nothing in the language that was not on the level of the evoked Spirit. 4th Notice sent by Mr. D… about a remarkable case of vision and revelation, which occurred with a farmer a few days before his death.

WORKS OF THE SESSION – Spontaneous Spiritist communications. The three types: Hamlet, Tartuffe, and Don Juan, signed by Gerard de Nerval and received by Mr. A. Didier. – Fantasy, signed by Alfred de Musset and received by Mrs. Costel. – The judgment, signed by Leo X and received by Miss Eugénie.

Evocation of the farmer, of whom we spoke a little above. He gives some explanations about his visions. A remarkable particularity is the absolute absence of spelling and a language completely similar to that of country folk.

Various questions addressed to Saint Louis about the facts connected with the evocation treated above.