My Library

talk. I cannot now repeat the ipsissima verba of what he said, but the substance, in reply to questions by the Emperor and myself, was in effect this: “ ‘The soul and its qualities, passions and volume are all clearly marked upon the physique, and are apparent to all who possess the proper key; to all others, the difficulty lies in correctly reading these signs, and a still greater in assigning to each faculty its actual, its possible, and its relative strength and value. Every act that a man does has an effect upon both his body and soul, and the imprints thereof are indelibly stamped upon his features; therefore his past—even his most secret act or thought—can be read by the adept with as much ease as if his face were a printed page, the type being large, smooth and clear. Every man is susceptible of being controlled mesmerically by another, because no man is collectively stronger than his weakest faculty; a chain is no stronger than its most defective link. Now I control men because I know at a glance which is the most vulnerable portion of their nature. Self-love, Emulation and Will are the trinity in unity around which the Psychal Republic revolves. One of these is always vulnerable; subdue that, and you subdue the man. Now, when I perform such experiments as those now being exhibited, I first mesmerize, not the entire brain, but a single faculty, which in turn speedily subdues all