IGNORANCE OF MENTAL PHILOSOPHY.
Ignorance of mental philosophy has given rise to many superstitions.
Many persons have believed in the real, visible appearance of ghosts,
spirits, or apparitions. Yet these things are clearly and
satisfactorily explained on the established principles of mental
philosophy. And from this source we learn that they exist alone in
the _mind_, in the same manner as do other ideas and images, except
in the instances recorded in Scripture. They are caused by some
misconception, mental operation, or bodily disorder. We will give a
few examples to substantiate this position.
Dr. Ferriar relates the case of a gentleman travelling in the Highlands
of Scotland, who was conducted to a bed room which was reported to be
haunted by the spirit of a man who had there committed suicide. In the
night, he awoke under the influence of a frightful dream, and found
himself sitting up in bed with a pistol grasped in his right hand. On
looking around the room, he now discovered, by the moonlight, a corpse,
dressed in a shroud, reared against the wall, close by the window, the
features of the body and every part of the funeral apparel being
distinctly perceived. On recovering from the first impulse of terror,
so far as to investigate the source of the phantom, it was found to be
produced by the moonbeams forming a long, bright image through the
broken window.
"Two esteemed friends of mine," says Dr. Abercrombie, "while travelling
in the Highlands, had occasion to sleep in separate beds, in one
apartment. One of them, having awoke in the night, saw, by the
moonlight, a skeleton hanging from the head of his friend's bed, every
part of it being perceived in the most distinct manner. He got up to
investigate the source of the appearance, and found it to be produced
by the moonbeams falling back upon the drapery of the bed, which had
been thrown back in some unusual manner, on account of the heat of the
weather. He returned to bed, and soon fell asleep. But having awoke
again some time after, the skeleton was so distinctly before him, that
he could not sleep without again getting up to trace the origin of the
phantom. Determined not to be disturbed a third time, he now brought
down the curtain to its usual state, and the skeleton appeared no
more."
Dr. Dewar relates the case of a lady who was quite blind, and who never
walked out without seeing a little old woman, with a crutch and a red
cloak, apparently walking before her. She had no illusion when within
doors. Dr. Gregory once took passage in a vessel to a neighboring
country, to visit a lady who was in an advanced stage of consumption.
On his return, he had taken a moderate dose of laudanum, with the view
of preventing seasickness, and was lying on a couch, in the cabin, when
the figure of a lady appeared before him in so distinct a manner, that
her actual presence could not have been more vivid. He was quite awake,
and fully sensible that it was a phantom produced by the opiate, in
connection with his intense mental feeling; but he was unable by any
effort to banish the vision.
A gentleman, mentioned by Dr. Conolly, when in great danger of being
wrecked in a boat, on the Eddystone rocks, said he actually saw his
family at the moment. In similar circumstances of great danger, others
have described the history of their past lives, being represented to
them in such a vivid manner, that, at a single glance, the whole was
before them, without the power of banishing the impression. We have
read the account of a whole ship's company being thrown into the utmost
consternation by the apparition of a cook, who had died a few days
before. He was distinctly seen walking ahead of the ship, with a
peculiar gait, by which he was distinguished when alive, from having
one leg shorter than the other. On steering the ship towards the
object, it was found to be a piece of floating wreck!
There is a story on record, of a piratical cruiser having captured a
Spanish vessel, during the seventeenth century, and brought her into
Marblehead harbor, which was then the site of a few humble dwellings.
The male inhabitants were all absent on their fishing voyages. The
pirates brought their prisoners ashore, carried them at the dead of
night into a solitary glen, and there murdered them. Among the captives
was an English female passenger. The women who belonged to the place
heard her dying outcries, as they rose through the midnight air, and
reverberated far and wide along the silent shores. She was heard to
exclaim, "O, mercy, mercy! Lord Jesus Christ, save me! save me!" Her
body was buried by the pirates on the spot. The same piercing voice is
believed to be heard at intervals, more or less often, almost every
year, in the stillness of a calm starlight, or clear moonlight night.
There is something, it is said, so wild, mysterious, and evidently
superhuman in the sound, as to strike a chill of dread into the hearts
of all who listen to it. A writer in the Marblehead Register, of April
3, 1830, declares that "there are not persons wanting at the present
day, persons of unimpeachable veracity and known respectability, who
still continue to believe the tradition, and to assert that they
themselves have been auditors of the sounds described, which they
declare were of such an unearthly nature as to preclude the idea of
imposition or deception." When "the silver moon holds her way," or when
the stars are glistening in the clear, cold sky, and the dark forms of
the moored vessels are at rest upon the sleeping bosom of the
harbor,--when no natural sound comes forth from the animate or
inanimate creation but the dull and melancholy note of the winding
shore, how often, at midnight, is the watcher startled from the
reveries of an excited imagination by the piteous, dismal, and terrific
screams of the unlaid _ghost_ of the murdered lady!
Erroneous impressions are often connected with some bodily disease,
more especially disease in the brain. Dr. Gregory mentions the case of
a gentleman liable to epileptic fits, in whom the paroxysm was
generally preceded by the appearance of an old woman in a red cloak,
who seemed to come up to him, and strike him on the head with her
crutch. At that instant he fell down in the fit. Another is mentioned
by Dr. Alderston, of a man who kept a dram shop, and who would often
see a soldier endeavoring to force himself into his house in a menacing
manner; and in rushing forward to prevent him, would find it a mere
phantom. This man was cured by bleeding and purgatives; and the source
of this vision was traced to a quarrel which he had had some time
before with a drunken soldier. In _delirium tremens_ such visions
are common, and assume a variety of forms.
Similar phantasms occur in various forms in febrile diseases. A lady
was attended by Dr. Abercrombie, having an affection of the chest. She
awoke her husband one night, at the commencement of her disorder, and
begged him to get up instantly, saying that she had distinctly seen a
man enter the apartment, pass the foot of her bed, and go into a closet
that entered from the opposite side of the room. She was quite awake,
and fully convinced of the reality of the appearance. But, upon
examining the closet, it was found to be a delusion, although it was
almost impossible to convince the lady it was not a reality.
A writer in the Christian Observer mentions a lady, who, during a
severe illness, repeatedly saw her father, who resided at the distance
of many hundred miles, come to her bedside, withdraw the curtain, and
talk to her in his usual voice and manner. A farmer, mentioned by the
same writer, on returning from market, was deeply affected by an
extraordinarily brilliant light, which he saw upon the road, and by an
appearance in the light, which he supposed to be our Savior. He was
greatly alarmed, and, spurring his horse, galloped home; remained
agitated during the evening; was seized with typhus fever, then
prevailing in the vicinity, and died in about ten days. It was
afterwards ascertained, that on the morning of the same day, before he
left home, he had complained of headache and languor; and there can be
no doubt, says this writer, that the spectral appearance was connected
with the commencement of the fever.
Analogous to this is the very striking case related by a physician, of
a relative of his, a lady about fifty. On returning home one evening
from a party, she went into a dark room to lay aside some part of her
dress, when she saw distinctly before her the figure of death, as a
skeleton, with his arm uplifted, and a dart in his hand. He instantly
aimed a blow at her with the dart, which seemed to strike her on the
left side. The same night she was seized with a fever, accompanied with
symptoms of inflammation in the left side, but recovered after a severe
illness.
We have read the account of a lady who had an illusion affecting both
her sight and hearing. She repeatedly heard her husband's voice calling
to her by name, as if from an adjoining room. On one occasion, she saw
his figure most distinctly, standing before the fire in the drawing
room, when he had left the house half an hour before. She went and sat
down within two feet of the figure, supposing it to be her husband, and
was greatly astonished that he did not answer her when she spoke to
him. The figure continued visible several minutes, then moved towards a
window at the farther end of the room, and there disappeared. On
another occasion, while adjusting her hair before a mirror, late at
night, she saw the countenance of a friend, dressed in a shroud,
reflected from the mirror, as if looking over her shoulder. This lady
had been for some time in bad health, being affected with a lung
complaint, and much nervous debility.
Another case of an illusion of hearing is reported of a clergyman, who
was accustomed to full living, and was suddenly seized with vomiting,
vertigo, and ringing in his ears, and continued in an alarming
condition for several days. During this time he heard tunes most
distinctly played, and in accurate succession. This patient had, at the
same time, a remarkable condition of vision, all objects appearing to
him inverted. This peculiarity continued about three days, and ceased
gradually; the objects by degrees changing their position, first to the
horizontal, and then to the erect.
Some profess to have visions or sights relative to the world of
spirits. This was the case with Swedenborg. He relates some of them in
the following language: "I dined very late at my lodgings at London,
and ate with great appetite, till, at the close of my repast, I
perceived a kind of mist about my eyes, and the floor of my chamber was
covered with hideous reptiles. They soon disappeared, the darkness was
dissipated, and I saw clearly, in the midst of a brilliant light, a man
seated in the corner of my chamber, who said to me, in a terrible
voice, _Eat not so much_. At these words, my sight became obscured;
afterwards it became clear by degrees, and I found myself alone. The
night following, the same man, radiant with light, appeared to me, and
said, I am God the Lord, Creator and Redeemer. I have chosen you to
unfold to men the internal and spiritual sense of the sacred writings,
and will dictate to you what you ought to write. At that time, I was
not terrified, and the light, although very brilliant, made no
unpleasant impression upon my eyes. The Lord was clothed in purple, and
the vision lasted a quarter of an hour. The same night, the eyes of my
internal man were opened, and fitted to see things in heaven, in the
world of spirits, and in hell; in which places I have found many
persons of my acquaintance, some of them long since dead, and others
lately deceased." In another place, he observes, "I have conversed with
apostles, departed popes, emperors, and kings; with the late reformers
of the church, Luther, Calvin, and Melancthon, and with others from
different countries." In conversing with Melancthon, he wished to know
his state in the spirit world, but Melancthon did not see fit to inform
him; "wherefore," says Swedenborg, "I was instructed by others
concerning his lot, viz., that he is sometimes in an excavated stone
chamber, and at other times in hell; and that when in the chamber, he
appears to be clothed in a bear's skin by reason of the cold; and that
on account of the filth in his chamber, he does not admit strangers
from the world, who are desirous of visiting him from the reputation of
his name."
The apparitions of Swedenborg were probably caused by his studies,
habits, and pursuits. They bear the marks of earthly origin, although
he firmly believed they were from heaven. Overloading his stomach at
late meals, no doubt, caused some of them. He was in the habit of
_eating too much_, as he himself admits. Hence his brain may have
been disturbed. We have all heard of the case of an elderly lady, who,
being ill, called upon her physician one day for advice. She told him,
among other things, that on the preceding night her sleep had been
disturbed--that she had seen her grandmother in her dreams. Being
interrogated whether she ate any thing the preceding evening, she told
the doctor she ate half a mince pie just before going to bed. "Well,
madam," said he, "if you had eaten the other half, you might have seen
your grandfather also."
The slightest examination of the accounts which remain of occurrences
that were deemed supernatural by our ancestors will satisfy any one, at
the present day, that they were brought about by causes entirely
_natural_, although unknown to them. We will close this part of
our investigation by relating the following circumstances, attested by
the Rev. James Pierpont, pastor of a church in New Haven:--
"In the year 1647, a new ship of about one hundred and fifty tons,
containing a valuable cargo, and several distinguished persons as
passengers, put to sea from New Haven in the month of January, bound to
England. The vessels that came over the ensuing spring brought no
tidings of her arrival in the mother country. The pious colonists were
earnest and instant in their prayers that intelligence might be
received of the missing vessel. In the course of the following June, a
great thunder storm arose out of the north-west; after which, (the
hemisphere being serene,) about an hour before sunset, a ship of like
dimensions of the aforesaid, with her canvas and colors abroad,
(although the wind was northerly,) appeared in the air, coming up from
the harbor's mouth, which lies southward from the town, seemingly with
her sails filled, under a fresh gale, holding her course north, and
continuing under observation, sailing against the wind, for the space
of half an hour. The phantom ship was borne along, until, to the
excited imaginations of the spectators, she seemed to have approached
so near that they could throw a stone into her. Her main topmast then
disappeared, then her mizzen topmast, then her masts were entirely
carried away, and finally her hull fell off, and vanished from sight,
leaving a dull and smoke-colored cloud, which soon dissolved, and the
whole atmosphere became clear. All affirmed that the airy vision was a
precise copy of the missing vessel, and that it was sent to announce
and describe her fate. They considered it the spectre of the lost ship,
and the Rev. Mr. Davenport declared in public 'that God had
condescended, for the quieting of their afflicted spirits, this
extraordinary account of his sovereign disposal of those for whom so
many fervent prayers were made continually.'"
The results of modern science enable us to explain the mysterious
appearance. It is probable that some Dutch vessel, proceeding slowly,
quietly, and unconsciously on her voyage from Amsterdam to the New
Netherlands, happened at the time to be passing through the Sound. At
the moment the apparition was seen in the sky, she was so near, that
her image was painted or delineated to the eyes of the observers, on
the clouds, by the laws of optics, now generally well known, before her
actual outlines could be discerned by them on the horizon. As the sun
sunk behind the western hills, and his rays were gradually withdrawn,
the visionary ship slowly disappeared, and the approach of the night,
while it dispelled the vapors from the atmosphere, effectually
concealed the vessel as she continued her course along the Sound.
The optical illusions that present themselves, on the sea shore, by
which distant objects are raised to view, the opposite islands and
capes made to loom up, lifted above the line of the apparent
circumference of the earth, and thrown into every variety of shape
which the imagination can conceive, are among the most beautiful
phenomena of nature, and they impress the mind with the idea of
enchantment and mystery, more perhaps than any others. But they have
received a complete solution from modern discovery.
It should be observed that the optical principles that explain these
phenomena have recently afforded a foundation for the science, or
rather the _art_, of _nauscopy_. There are persons, it is said, in some
places in the Isle of France, whose calling and profession it is to
ascertain and predict the approach of vessels by their reflection in
the atmosphere and on the clouds, long before they are visible to the
eye or through the glass.
Our vision is at all times liable to be disturbed by atmospheric
conditions. So long as the atmosphere between our person and the object
we are looking at is of the same density, we may be said to see in a
straight line to the object. But if, by any cause, a portion of that
atmosphere is rendered less or more dense, the line of vision is bent,
or refracted, from its course. A thorough comprehension of this truth
in science has banished a mass of superstition. It has been found that,
by means of powerful refraction, objects at great distances, and round
the back of a hill, or considerably beneath the horizon, are brought
into sight. In some countries this phenomenon is called _mirage_. The
following is one of the most interesting and best-authenticated cases
of the kind. In a voyage performed by Captain Scoresby, in 1822, he was
able to recognize his father's ship, when below the horizon, from the
inverted image of it which appeared in the air. "It was," says he, "so
well defined, that I could distinguish, by a telescope, every sail, the
general rig of the ship, and its particular character, insomuch that I
confidently pronounced it to be my father's ship, the Fame,--which it
afterwards proved to be--though on comparing notes with my father, I
found that our relative position, at the time, gave our distance from
one another very nearly thirty miles, being about seventeen miles
beyond the horizon, and some leagues beyond the limit of direct
vision!"
Dr. Vince, an English philosopher, was once looking through a telescope
at a ship which was so far off that he could only see the upper part of
the masts. The hull was entirely hidden by the bending of the water;
but, between himself and the ship, he saw two perfect images of it in
the air. These were of the same form and color as the real ship; but
one of them was turned completely upside down.
In the sandy plains of Egypt, the mirage is seen to great advantage.
These plains are often interrupted by small eminences, upon which the
inhabitants have built their villages in order to escape the
inundations of the Nile. In the morning and evening, objects are seen
in their natural form and position; but when the surface of the sandy
ground is heated by the sun, the land seems terminated, at a particular
distance, by a general inundation; the villages which are beyond it
appear like so many islands in a great lake; and an inverted image of a
village appears between the hills.
The Swedish sailors long searched for a supposed magic island, which,
from time to time, could be descried between the Island of Aland and
the coast of Upland. It proved to be a rock, the image of which was
presented in the air by mirage. At one time, the English saw, with
terror, the coast of Calais and Boulogne, in France, rising up on the
opposite side of the Channel, and apparently approaching their island.
But the most celebrated example of mirage is exhibited in the Straits
of Messina. The inhabitants of the Calabrian shore behold images of
palaces, embattled ramparts, houses, and ships, and all the varied
objects of towns and landscapes, in the air--being refracted images
from the Sicilian coast. This wonderful phenomenon is superstitiously
regarded by the common people as the work of fairies.