{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_54925/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_54925","id":"gutenberg_54925","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/54925","summary":null,"tags":["Category: History - Modern (1750+)","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Epistolary fiction, English -- 18th century"],"text":"THE\n  _Friendly D\u00e6mon_,\n  OR THE\n  Generous Apparition;\n  BEING\n  A True Narrative of a miraculous Cure,\n  newly perform'd upon that famous Deaf\n  and Dumb Gentleman,\n  Dr. _Duncan Campbel_,\n  By a familiar Spirit that appear'd to him in a\n  white Surplice, like a Cathedral singing Boy.\n\n  _By Daniel Defoe._\n\n        _If by our Senses Spirits we perceive,\n        Or from the strength of Fancy, so believe,\n        No Fault do we commit that merits blame,\n        If to the Publick we report the same;\n        For whether by our Eyes we Spectres see  \\\n        Or by a second Sight, we must agree,      |\n        Things are to us as they appear to be._  /\n\n  _LONDON_\n  Printed; and Sold by J. ROBERTS in _Warwick-Lane_.\n  MDCCXXVI.\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration]\n\n    _To my anonymous worthy Friend, Physician and Philosopher, whose\n    Name, for certain Reasons, I forbear to mention._\n\n\n  _SIR_,\n\nI CANNOT, without great Ingratitude, forget the friendly Visits and\nkind Advice I frequently receiv'd from you, during, not only, a\ndangerous but tedious Indisposition, which surprisingly seiz'd me in\nthe Year 1717, and, notwithstanding your extraordinary Care as well\nas unquestionable Judgment, continu'd upon me till the latter end of\nthe Year --25; in which long interval of Time, the Attendance you gave\nme, and the Trouble you gave yourself, abstracted from all Interest,\nmade you truly sensible of my unhappy Condition, and myself equally\napprehensive of the great Obligations I shall ever be under to so\nsincere a Friend.\n\nTHE first occasion of my Illness, as I have good reason to imagine,\nwas a very shocking Surprize given me by certain Persons, who\npretended to be my Friends in a considerable Affair then depending,\nwherein their Treachery threaten'd me with succeeding Ruin, had not\nProvidence interpos'd and deliver'd the Oppress'd from the cruel\nhands of such deceitful Enemies: Upon whose hard Usage, and the news\nof my Disappointment, I was struck at first with a kind of Epilepsy\nand depriv'd of all my Senses in an Instant, drop'd down in a publick\nCoffee-House, under violent Agitations, which, it seems, are generally\nconcomitant with this miserable Distemper; but being luckily assisted\nand kindly supported by some Gentlemen present, I happen'd to escape\nthose ill Consequences that might otherwise have attended me, during\nthe extremity of my Convulsions, which were reported, by those\nthat held me, to be so strong as to be almost insupportable, till\nthe Paroxism declin'd, which terminated in a cold Sweat, Trembling\nand Weeping, and this was the first Attack that ever this terrible\nAssailant made upon me; tho' afterwards he forc'd himself into a\nfurther familiarity with me (much against my Will) nor could your kind\nEndeavours, by the Art of Physick, back'd with my own strength of\nConstitution, fright away this evil Companion from me, till my good\nGenius, by the direction of Providence, communicated a particular\nSecret to me, which, with God's Blessing, has lately prov'd my\nDeliverance, in what manner, before I conclude, I shall very freely\nacquaint you, in hopes you will favour me with your candid Opinion in\nanswer thereunto.\n\nNEAR eight Years, was a long Time to continue under the frequent\nreturns and uncomfortable dread of such a shocking Affliction, which,\nupon every little disorder of Mind or disappointment in Business,\nnever fail'd to visit me; till, by convulsive or involuntary Motions\nin my Head and other Parts of my Body, my Eyes were bury'd in their\nSockets, my other Features contracted, my Limbs often distorted, my\nBowels sometimes wrack'd with intolerable Pains, and all the Faculties\nof my Mind so greatly weaken'd and impair'd, that I, who, for many\nYears before, had been esteem'd as an Oracle, by the most Polite and\nCurious part of both Sexes, was now, for want of strength of Mind and\nability of Body to imploy my Talent and excercise my Art as usual,\ntreated like an old Soldier, who had lost his Limbs in the Service of\nhis Country, and thought only worthy, by way of requital, to be made\na hobbling Pensioner in some starving Hospital; but, I thank my Stars,\nit prov'd not quite so bad with me, for tho' some Ladies were too hasty\nand importunate to bear with the least disappointment or admit of any\ndelay, without shewing their resentment, or refusing to trust their\nMoney till my Convulsions afforded me a rational Interval, wherein I\nmight be able to give them ample Satisfaction: Yet, others, of a more\nconsiderate, easy and compassionate Temper, were so highly concern'd\nfor my too apparent Indisposition, that, in order to drive out this\ntormenting Demon that possess'd me, they brought me all the old\nRecipes they could muster up among their crazy Aunts and Grandmothers,\npractis'd upon all Occasions in their several Families, perhaps ever\nsince the Times of _Galen_ and _Hippocrates_, but, having been long\nunder the Care and Friendship of so able a Physician as your self, tho'\nto little or no purpose, I could nor put Faith enough in old Womens\nMedicines to receive Benefit thereby, so, under a kind of despondency\nof every thing but Providence, I suffer'd my Distemper to take its own\nCourse, till my Fits encreas'd upon me, to at least twenty in a Day,\nand by their frequent reiterations brought, at length, such a dimness\nupon my Sight, such a weakness in my Joints, and tremor upon my Nerves,\nthat render'd me incapable of all manner of Business, especially that\nwhich I had so long profess'd and successfully perform'd, to the full\nSatisfaction and great Astonishment of Thousands; but being now unable\nto Write; and, for want of Speech, having no other way of communicating\nmy Answers to the demands of the Ladies and Gentlemen that apply'd\nthemselves to me, except by Digitation, which they understood not, I\nwas forc'd sometimes, when much disorder'd by my Convulsions, to send\n'em away dissatisfy'd, which, if it were any Mortification to them,\nprov'd a much greater to my self, because, upon my ready performances\nin the Mystery I am Master of, depends the welfare of my whole Family.\n\nUNDER these unhappy Circumstances I labour'd till the Month of\n_October_, in the Year --24, confin'd by my Distemper to my own\nHabitation, not daring to go abroad for fear of falling in the Streets,\nhaving been before surpriz'd by my Fits in St. _James_'s Park and\nseveral other Places; but, about this Time, being possess'd with a\nstrong Inclination to the Cold-Bath, near Sir _John Oldcastle_'s, and\nthe great desire I had to experience the same, being highly encourag'd\nby your Advice and Approbation, I summon'd all the Strength I had to my\nAssistance, and pursuant to the Dictates of my own restless Mind, had\nrecourse thither accordingly, attended by a proper Person to take due\nCare of me, for fear of the worst.\n\nI had not repeated this cold Expedient above twice or thrice, but I was\nsensible of the Benefits I receiv'd thereby, for my Distemper began to\ntreat me with less severity than usual, and my Fits were succeeded with\na greater Defluction of Tears than what was common, before I apply'd\nmy self to the Bath, so that, after my Weeping was over, I found my\nself much refresh'd and all my Faculties abundantly more alert, than\nat any Time they had been since my first Illness, insomuch, that,\nfrom a timely continuance of this external Application, I entertain'd\ngreat hopes of a perfect Recovery; but, notwithstanding my diligent\nProsecution of this sharp and shivering Method, I was, to my great\nSorrow, unhappily disappointed; for my Convulsions were as frequent,\ntho' not so violent as formerly, and I was now again divested of all\nhopes of Relief, except by the Hand of Providence, having nothing to\ntrust to, but that infallible Physician who can Cure all things in an\nInstant.\n\nTHE Despondency I was now under of any Assistance from humane Art, and\nthe slender Opinion you seem'd to entertain of my Recovery, made my\nIntervals as Melancholy as my Fits were troublesome; oppress'd with\nthese hard Circumstances, I supported a burthensome Life, and drag'd\non the tedious Hours till the latter end of the Year --25, about which\nTime, as I was slumbering one Morning in my Bed, after a restless\nNight, my good _Genius_ or Guardian Angel, Cloth'd in a white Surplice\nlike a singing Boy, appear'd before me, holding a Scrowle or Label\nin his right Hand, whereon the following Words were wrote in large\nCapitals.\n\n    _READ, BELIEVE AND PRACTISE, THE LOADSTONE SHALL BE YOUR CURE, WITH\n    AN ADDITION OF THE POWDER HERE PRESCRIB'D YOU; BUT KEEP THE LAST AS\n    A SECRET; FOR WITH THAT AND THE MAGNET YOU SHALL RELIEVE NUMBERS\n    IN DISTRESS, AND LIVE TO DO GREATER WONDERS THAN YOU HAVE HITHERTO\n    PERFORM'D; THEREFORE BE OF GOOD CHEAR, FOR YOU HAVE A FRIEND\n    UNKNOWN, WHO, IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE, WILL NEVER FAIL YOU._\n\nTHIS comfortable News, tho' deliver'd to me after so surprizing a\nmanner, yet, was it very welcome to a languishing Person under a\ncomplication of Misfortunes, notwithstanding I had a great struggle\nwith my natural Reason, before I could convince my self of what I was\nyet confident my very Eyes had seen, or at least had been represented\nto me after an extraordinary manner, for betwixt really seeing what we\ncall a Vision or verily believing we do see it, there is but a slender\ndifference; however, the intire Confidence I had put in Providence, and\nthe great desire I had to be reliev'd, were to me convincing Arguments,\nbeyond all Objection, that my Guardian Angel had actually appear'd and\ncommunicated to my Eyes the very Scrowle that I had read, the Words of\nwhich, lest my Memory should have prov'd treacherous, I enter'd in my\nPocket-Book as they are before recited, the Recipe only excepted.\n\nHAVING thus subjected my Reason to my Senses, or at least my Faith,\nfor I either saw or believ'd I saw what I have here reported, I had\nnothing else to do, but to put in Practice the Receipt which my good\n_Genius_ had imparted to me, tho' how to come at a Loadstone, seem'd to\nme as difficult as to find out the Philosopher's Stone, having but a\nslender Knowledge of the thing it self, and much less of its Virtues;\nhowever, upon enquiry, I soon found out a certain Virtuoso, near\n_Moorfields_, who is an eminent dealer in such sort of Curiosities, and\nby his Assistance I presently furnish'd my self with what I wanted, and\nsending for some fat Amber and a certain preparation of Steel, which\nI privately dispens'd in a very particular manner, according to the\n_Recipe_ communicated by my _Genius_; then applying both as directed,\nwas miraculously deliver'd, in a great measure, from those wracking\nConvulsions which had so long afflicted me, and in less than a Month's\nTime my whole Microcosm was restor'd to such a happy State of Health,\nStrength and Vivacity, that Heaven be prais'd, I could do any thing as\nusual, but, if I leave off my Loadstone for two or three Days, which\nI have sometimes done, meerly out of Curiosity, my Fits, as yet, will\nremind me of my foolish Presumption, and force me to have recourse to\nmy wonderful Preservative, which has not only prov'd so great a friend\nto my self, but has reliev'd others in the like distress; and as I have\nfound by three or four late Experiments, is as effectual in suppresing\nVapours and removing or preventing Hysterick Fits in Women, as it is\nin Epilepsies and Convulsions in our own Sex, either Men or Children.\n\nNOW, Doctor, since I have happily conquer'd so stubborn an Enemy, by\nsuch miraculous means, as do not fail to afflict others as well as\nmy self, I desire you will vouchsafe me your real Sentiments of this\nuncommon way of Cure, your Notions of the _Genii_, and the wonderful\nmanner of communicating the _Recipe_, your Thoughts of the Loadstone\nand the Virtues thereof, your Opinion of Sympathy and the Cures\nperform'd thereby, for I know you are Philosopher sufficient, as well\nas Physician, to give a very good light into all these Mysteries, in\nwhich I own I am to seek; therefore hope you will condescend so far as\nto spend a leisure Hour upon the foregoing Particulars, and you will\ninfinitely oblige,\n\n  _Sir_,\n  _Your assured Friend_,\n  _and humble Servant_,\n  Duncan Campbel.\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration]\n\n    _To my Deaf and Dumb Friend, Mr._ Duncan Campbel, _in Answer to his\n    Letter to an anonymous worthy Friend, Physician and Philosopher_.\n\n\n  _SIR_,\n\nI RECEIV'D your Letter and read the same, with no less Surprise than\nSatisfaction; for, as I am greatly pleas'd at your miraculous Recovery,\nso, I am equally astonish'd at the wonderful Means by which it was\nobtain'd; I confess, I have been too great a Student in Physick and\nnatural Philosophy, to entertain any extraordinary Opinion of Miracles,\nno ways accountable to human Reason, except those that concern\nReligion, which are brought down to our Knowledge well attested and\nrecommended to our Faith by unexceptionable Authorities; not, but,\nthat I am ready to admit, that the Power of Healing is in the Hand of\nProvidence, and that some Patients, when their Distempers, thro' the\nfrailty of humane Judgment, derive their Essence from so obscure an\nOriginal that even puzzles the Physician, I am free to acknowledge,\nespecially when the Blessing of God accompanies the Administration,\nthat the most trifling application in the Eyes of Art, may recover such\nPersons from the most dangerous Infirmities: This, I look upon to be\nyour extraordinary Case, and therefore think not the means to which you\nascribe your Cure or the manner of the _Recipe_'s being communicated to\nyou, a proper subject for a Physical Enquiry, unless you had sent me\nthe Prescription of your _Genius_, which I understand by your Letter,\nyou are oblig'd to conceal, and then perhaps I should have been able\nto have judg'd, in some measure, which of the Applications are most\nEssential, the Powder or the Loadstone, also how far your Guardian\nAngel is a Regular Proficient in the modern Practise of Physick.\n\nHOWEVER, as you desire my Opinion of the _Genii_, the Loadstone, the\nPowder of Sympathy, and the like, I shall not be only willing to give\nyou my own Thoughts, but the Sentiments of others, before I take my\nleave, who have made the foregoing Particulars their principal Studies,\nand are therefore better acquainted with the nature of Spirits, than I\npretend to be.\n\nAS for _Genii_ or familiar Spirits, good and bad, believ'd and\nreported, by the most Wise and Learned of the Ancients, to attend\nMankind, and the various Operations they have had upon humane Minds\nas well as Bodies, I cannot but confess, seem very wonderful to\nmy defective Understanding; yet, when we observe what innumerable\nInstances have been handed to us by the most reputable Authors, both\nAntique and Modern, attested from Time to Time by unquestionable\nAuthorities, who, that, before he div'd into these Mysteries, look'd\nupon the same to be Whimsy, can forbear staggering in his Opinion?\n\nTHE most celebrated Instance of a _Genius_ among the Ancients, is that\nof _Socrates_, one of the wisest of the Philosophers in the Age he\nliv'd in, and that he had such a familiar Spirit to attend him, which\nthe _Greeks_ call'd _D\u00e6mon_, and the _Latins Genius_, is sufficiently\ntestify'd by three of his Contemporaries, _viz._ _Plato_, _Xenophon_\nand _Antisthenes_, also further confirm'd by _Laertius_, _Plutarch_,\n_Maximus Tyrius_, _Dion_, _Chrysostomus_, _Cicero_, _Apuleius_, and\n_Facinas_; besides others more Modern, as, _Tertullian_, _Origen_,\n_Clemens Alexandrinus_, &c. but that which is of greater Authority than\nall the Vouchers aforemention'd, is what _Socrates_ says of himself,\nin _Plato's Theage_, viz. _By some Divine Lot, I have a certain_\nD\u00e6mon, _which has follow'd me from my Childhood, as an Oracle_; _and\nthis Voice_, says he, for so he terms it, _whenever it speaks to me,\ndisswades me from engaging in what I am about to put in Action, but\nnever prompts me to attempt any thing_. This, I presume, might be the\nchief Reason, why _Socrates_ persu'd not his own Inclinations, which\nwere naturally Vicious, as himself confess'd to the Physiognomist, but\nwas always accompany'd with a divine Spirit that restrain'd him from\nit; for, in speaking to _Alcibiades_, a vicious Noble Man of _Athens_,\nbut reclaim'd by _Socrates_; says he, _My Tutor_ (meaning the Spirit\nthat attended him) _is wiser and better than you_. And to further shew,\nthat what he call'd his _D\u00e6mon_, was something more than a secret\nImpulse of the Mind, or Dictates of a good Conscience, _Theocritus_\naffirms in _Plutarch_, that a Vision attended _Socrates_ from his\nChildhood, going before him and guiding him in all the Actions of his\nLife, being a constant light to him in such Affairs as lay not within\nthe reach of humane standing, and that the Spirit often spoke to him,\ndivinely governing and inspiring his Intentions. A thousand Instances\nof the like nature, I could collect from the Ancients, to prove, that\nwhat you have reported to me, in your Letter, may be no Delusion, but\nreal Fact, with all it's surprising Circumstances, could the Task be\ncompris'd within the compass of a Letter, but, a Treatise of this\nnature, being much fitter for a Volume, I shall only proceed to a few\nfamiliar Instances of a more modern Date, that your wonderful Cure may\ngain Credit with the Publick, because I know your Sincerity.\n\nFROISSARD reports, That in the Time of _Edward_ the Third, there\nwas a certain Knight in _France_, call'd _Corasse_, who could tell\nevery thing Transacted throughout the whole World, in a Day or two at\nthe most, were the distance never so remote, and this he did by an\ninvisible Intelligencer or familiar Spirit, which he call'd _Orthone_,\nwho was always at his Command and brought him News continually for many\nYears, till, at last, he lost the Benefit of so useful a Companion,\nthrough a vain desire of gratifying his Curiousity after the following\nmanner, (_viz._) The Knight, having hitherto only heard the Voice of\nhis spiritual Emissary, was now infatuated with an earnest inclination\nto behold his Shapes, which favour he requested of _Orthone_;\naccordingly, whose Answer was, that the first thing he should see\non the morrow Morning, after he was risen from his Bed, should be\nthe Object he desir'd, or Words to that effect. The Knight, the next\nMorning, pursuant to the direction of his Spirit, arose from his Bed,\nlook'd about him, but could not discover any thing worthy of Remark;\nupon which disappointment, he upbraided _Orthone_, with being worse\nthan his Word, who reply'd he had kept his Promise, desiring the Knight\nto remind himself of what he had first observ'd after his rising; the\nKnight, upon recollection, reply'd, that he saw nothing uncommon, but\na couple of Straws tumbling upon the Ground and sporting with one\nanother, as if agitated by the Wind; _That was I_, saith the Spirit,\n_and therefore I kept my Word_. Then the Knight desir'd to see him once\nmore, in such a Shape as might induce him, the next Time, to take more\nnotice of him, to which the Spirit consented, saying, _the first thing\nyou see to morrow Morning, after your uprising, shall be me again_;\naccordingly, when the Time appointed was arriv'd and the Knight was\nrisen from his Bed, looking out of his Chamber Window, the first Object\nhe espy'd, was a Lean ill-favour'd Sow, so deform'd and ugly, that he\nwas not able to abide the sight of her; and not expecting _Orthone_\nto appear to him in so homely a manner, he set his Dogs upon the Sow,\nto drive her away, who being highly affronted at such unfriendly\nusage, immediately Vanish'd, to the Knight's great surprise; and his\nold acquaintance _Orthone_, never came near him after. This relation,\n_Froissard_ asserts he had from the Knight's own Mouth, with whom he\nwas very intimate.\n\nFROM hence I conclude, That the same sort of Spirit that attended\n_Corasse_, has been always a Friend to you, not only of late, in your\nmiraculous Recovery, but has at all Times assisted you in Writing\nthe Names of Strangers, discovering the most secret Intrigues and\nforetelling future Events, for which you have long been Famous. As a\nfurther Proof of the Existence of Spirits and that at some other Times,\nas well as in your Case, they have prescrib'd Physick to their living\nFriends, I shall quote an Instance out of Mr. _Glanvil_'s _Reports_,\nattested by the late Lord _Orrery_, the Famous Mr. _Greatrix_, and many\nothers, living in the Reign of King _Charles_ the Second.\n\nA Gentleman in _Ireland_, near to the Earl of _Orrery_'s House, sending\nhis Butler one Afternoon to a neighbouring Village to buy Cards, as he\npass'd a Field, espy'd a Company in the middle thereof, sitting round\na Table, with several Dishes of good Cheer before them, and moving\ntowards 'em, they all arose and Saluted him, desiring him to sit down\nand take part with them; but one of them whisper'd these Words in his\nEar, _viz._ _Do nothing this Company invites you to_: Whereupon, he\nrefusing to accept of their Kindness, the Table and all the Dainties\nit was furnish'd with immediately vanish'd, but the Company fell to\nDancing and playing upon divers Musical Instruments, the Butler being\na second Time solicited to partake of their Diversions, but would not\nbe prevail'd upon to engage himself with them; upon which, they left\noff their Merry-making and all fell to Work, still pressing the Butler\nto make one among 'em, but to no purpose; so that, upon his third\nrefusal, they all vanish'd and left the Butler alone, who in a great\nConsternation return'd home, without the Cards, fell into a Fit as he\nenter'd the House, but, soon recovering his Senses, related to his\nMaster all that had pass'd.\n\nTHE following Night, one of the Ghostly Company came to the Butler's\nBed-side and told him, that if he offer'd to stir out the next Day, he\nwould be carry'd away; upon whose Advice, he kept within till towards\nthe Evening, and having then an Occasion to make Water, ventur'd to\nset one Foot over the Threshold of the Door, in order to ease himself,\nwhich he had no sooner done, but a Rope was cast about his Middle, in\nthe Sight of several Standers-by, and the poor Man was hurry'd from\nthe Porch with unaccountable Swiftness, follow'd by many Persons, but\nthey were not nimble enough to overtake him, till a Horseman, well\nmounted, happening to meet him upon the Road, and seeing many followers\nin pursuit of a Man hurry'd along in a Rope, without any Body to\nforce him, catch'd hold of the Cord and stop'd him in his Career, but\nreceiv'd, for his Pains, such a strap upon his Back with one End of\nthe Rope, as almost fell'd him from his Horse; however, being a good\nChristian, he was too strong for the Devil, and recover'd the Butler\nout of the Spirits Clutches and brought him back to his Friends.\n\nTHE Lord _Orrery_, hearing of these strange Passages, for his further\nSatisfaction in the Truth thereof, sent for the Butler, with leave of\nhis Master, to come and continue some Days and Nights at his House,\nwhich, in Obedience to his Lordship, the Servant did accordingly, who\nafter his first Night's Bedding there, reported to the Earl in the\nMorning, that his Spectre had again been with him, and assur'd him,\nthat on that very Day he should be spirited away, in spight of all the\nMeasures that could possibly be taken to prevent it: Upon which, he\nwas conducted into a large Room, with a considerable Number of holy\nPersons to defend him from the Assaults of Satan; among whom, was the\nfamous stroker of bewitch'd Persons, Mr. _Greatrix_, who liv'd in the\nNeighbourhood, and knew, as may be presum'd, how to deal with the Devil\nas well as any Body; besides several eminent Quality were present in\nthe House, among the rest, two Bishops, all waiting the wonderful Event\nof this unaccountable Prodigy.\n\nTILL part of the Afternoon was spent, the Time slid away in nothing\nbut Peace and Quietness, but, at length, the enchanted Patient was\nperceiv'd to rise from the Floor without any visible Assistance,\nwhereupon, Mr. _Greatrix_ and another lusty Man clapt their Arms over\nhis Shoulders, and endeavour'd to weigh him down with their utmost\nStrength, but to no purpose, for the Devil prov'd too powerful, and\nafter a hard struggle on both sides, made them quit their hold, and\nsnatching the Butler from 'em, carry'd him over their Heads and toss'd\nhim in the Air, to and fro, like a Dog in a Blanket; several of the\nCompany running under the poor Wretch to save him from the Ground, by\nwhich means, when the Spirits Frolick was over, they could not find\nthat in all this hurry-scurry, the frighted Butler had receiv'd the\nleast Damage, but was left in _Statu quo_, upon the same Premises, to\nprove the Devil a Liar.\n\nTHE Goblins, for this bout, having given over their Pastime, and left\ntheir Maygame to take a little repose, that he might in some Measure be\nrefresh'd against their next Sally, My Lord order'd, the same Night,\ntwo of his Servants to lie with him, for fear some Devil or other\nshould come and catch him Napping, notwithstanding which, the Butler\ntold his Lordship the next Morning, that the Spirit had again been\nwith him in the likeness of a Quack Doctor, and in his right Hand a\nwooden Dish-full of grey Liquor, like a Mess of Porridge, at sight of\nwhich, he endeavour'd to awake his Bedfellows, but the Spectre told him\nhis attempts were fruitless, for that his Companions were enchanted\ninto a deep Sleep, advising him not to be frighted, for he came as\na Friend, and was the same Spirit that caution'd him in the Field\nagainst complying with the Company he there met, when he was going\nfor the Cards; adding, that if he had not refus'd to come into their\nMeasures, he had been for ever miserable; also wonder'd he had escap'd\nthe Day before, because he knew there was so powerful a Combination\nagainst him; but assur'd him, that for the future there would be no\nmore attempts of the like Nature; further telling the poor trembling\nButler, that he knew he was sadly troubl'd with two sorts of Fits,\nand, therefore, as a Friend, had brought him a Medicine that would\nCure him of both, beseeching him to take it, but the poor Patient, who\nhad been so scurvily us'd by these sort of Doctors, and fearing the\nDevil might be at the Bottom of the Cup, would not be prevail'd upon to\nswallow the Dose, which made the Spirit Angry; who told him, however,\nhe had a kindness for him, and that if he would bruise the Roots of\nPlantane without the Leaves, and drink the the Juice thereof, it should\ncertainly Cure him of one sort of his Fits, but as a Punishment for\nhis Obstinacy in refusing the Liquor, he should carry the other to\nhis Grave, then the spiritual Doctor ask'd his Patient if he knew him;\nthe Butler answer'd, _No_. _I am_, says he, _the wandring Ghost of\nyour old Acquaintance_ John Hobby, _who has been dead and bury'd these\nseven Years_; _and ever since, for the wickedness of my Life, have\nbeen lifted into the Company of those Evil-Spirits you beheld in the\nFields, am hurry'd up and down in this restless Condition, and doom'd\nto continue in the same wretched State till the Day of Judgment_.\nAdding, that _Had you serv'd your Creator in the days of your Youth,\nand offer'd up your Prayers that Morning, before you were sent for the\nCards, you had not been treated by the Spirits that tormented you, with\nso much Rigour and Severity_.\n\nAFTER the Butler had reported these marvellous Passages to my Lord and\nhis Family, the two Bishops, that were present, among other Quality,\nwere thereupon consulted, whether or no, it was proper for the Butler\nto follow the Spirit's Advice, in taking Plantane Juice for the Cure of\nhis Fits, and whether he had done well or ill, in refusing the Liquid\nDose which the Spectre would have given him; the Question, at first,\nseem'd to be a kind of moot Point, but, after some struggle in the\nDebate, their Resolution was, that the Butler had acted, through the\nwhole Affair, like a good Christian, for that it was highly sinful to\nfollow the Devil's Advice in any thing, and that no Man should do Evil\nthat Good might come of it; so that, in short, the poor Butler, after\nall his Fatigue, had no amends for his trouble, but was deny'd, by the\nBishops, the seeming Benefit that the Spirit intended him.\n\nI do not introduce this old surprising Story to amuse you, but to let\nyou know, that it is no new thing for Spectres to turn Doctors to such\nailing Persons as they retain a Respect for, and that your _Genius_ was\nnot the first Spirit that ever practis'd Physick; therefore, if this\nNarrative reported by _Glanvil_, _Beaumont_, and others, may obtain\nCredit, upon the Authorities of my Lord _Orrery_, Mr. _Greatrix_,\nand divers Persons, who were in a great measure Eye-Witnesses of the\nmatter, I see no Reason I have to doubt the Truth of your Letter, since\nI know your Integrity; besides, it has always been allow'd by such\nD\u00e6monologers as have Publish'd their Thoughts upon the visibility of\nSpirits, that _Scotland_, is never without such a sort of People as\nthey call Second-sighted, who have not only the Power of discerning\nApparitions, but, by their frequent Conversation with Spirits, foretel\nfuture Events, to the great Astonishment of all Persons that consult\nthem: That there are such sort of Diviners in the World, especially\nin _Scotland_, I am throughly convinc'd; of which Number I take your\nself to be one, but how to account for your mysterious Performances, I\nreadily confess, I know not, and therefore shall submit that Task to\nsuch as are qualify'd with a more subtil Penetration.\n\nI doubt I have tir'd your Patience with too much Prolixity upon\nfamiliar Spirits, therefore, to make you amends, I will be but short\nin my Dissertation upon the Loadstone; which in the first place, is,\na very ponderous Fossile, found in different Climates, and seems in\nits Nature and Qualities to be nearly related to Iron Oar, from whence\nit is endow'd with a peculiar property of drawing Iron to its self by\nthe Power of Sympathy, or the natural Disposition it has to Embrace\nthat particular Metal. In _\u00c6gypt_ there are large Mines of it, some\nfew Magnets have been found in _\u00c6thiopia_, which have attracted Iron\nvery forcibly; but two sorts are dug up at the foot of the _Sardinian_\nMountains, of such different Natures, that as one draws Iron, the other\nwill repel it; as you will find it reported by _Johannes Jonstonus_, in\nhis History of _Nature_, also by _Pliny_, in his Second Book, who, for\nthe aforesaid Reason, calls this Stone _Theamedes_: As to the singular\nVirtues hitherto discover'd in the common Loadstone, the most admirable\nof all are the strict Correspondence it maintains with the two Poles,\nand the wonderful Property it communicates, by a touch, to the Needle,\nfor the Benefit of Mariners. The Power of its Attraction, is thought\nby some Virtuosos to be owing to a clammy bituminous Substance, by\nwhich the Contexture of the more solid Parts are closely semented and\nconfirm'd; to prove this, work a Loadstone in the Fire and it shall\ncast forth a blewish Flame, like that of lighted Brimstone, and so\ncontinue, till it spends its Life and loses the Power of Attraction.\nThere is a great deal of Sulphur in Iron as well as in the Loadstone,\nwhich is the principal Cause of their Sympathising with each other,\nand if you destroy the first in either, the last will fail in course,\nwhich is the Reason, why the Loadstone will not attract the Rust of\nIron, tho' it will the Filings, because in the former, the bituminous\nMatter is quite spent and nothing left but a kind of _Caput mortuum_.\nThe Loadstone hath also two Poles, which answer those in the Heavens,\nif you touch the Needle with the North Pole of the Stone, it will\npoint to the Artick, if with the South part thereof, as it stood\nposited in the Mine, it will point to the Antartick, but not with the\nutmost exactness, except it stands in the Meridian: But to be further\nsatisfy'd in these Mysteries, have recourse to _Libavius_, _Cardanus_,\n_Pliny_, _Bodin_, _Porta_, our own _Philosophical Transactions_, and\nsuch Authors as have treated more largely upon this Subject: for, I\nsuppose, all that you want to know of me is, if ever I have heard from\nothers, or discover'd by my own Experience, any such Physical Virtue\nin the Loadstone, as may tend to the Cure of any Chronical or other\nDisease incident to humane Bodies, that may strengthen the Opinion you\nseem to entertain of it in such Cases, from the Benefit your self has\nlately receiv'd in so extraordinary a manner.\n\nIN answer to this, I confess, I have heard it affirm'd (but not by a\nPhysician) that the Loadstone hath withdrawn the Inflamation and given\nEase in the Gout, and by changing the Application of it from one side\nto the other, has at length chas'd it away, to the perfect recovery\nof the Patient; but in any other Case, excepting your own, I never\nheard of a Cure so much as facilitated or attempted to be perform'd\nthereby; therefore, as the Use of it in any Disease is quite Foreign to\nthe common Practice of Physick, if others, as well as your self, have\nreceiv'd Benefit by this new Discovery, I think not my self oblig'd\nto account for it, till it becomes practical among my own Fraternity,\nand then it will be Time enough for any Physician to give his Thoughts\nthereon; besides, I am a Stranger to the Preparation prescrib'd to you\nby your _Genius_, and without the knowledge of that material Secret,\nit is impossible for any Physician, in your Case, to make a clear\nJudgment, or to know which of the two your Cure is chiefly owing to,\nthe Powder or the Loadstone; for how far the latter may operate upon\na Body prepar'd by _Pulvis Martis_ or other Chalybeates, I shall not\npretend to determine, tho', for ought I know, wonderful Cures may be\nperform'd in that way, but upon what Reason in Nature, such a new\nSystem can be founded, seems very remote from my present understanding;\nbut, since you are become sole Master of so wonderful a Secret, my\nAdvice is, that you keep the _Recipe_ to your self, in Obedience to\nyour _Genius_, and tho' you Assist others, never to do it without Fee\nor Reward, for all useful Discoveries ought to be render'd Profitable.\n\nIN answer to the last Article of your Request, I shall now proceed to\nsay something of Sympathy, and the Cures reported to have been done\nthereby. The Sympathetick Powder, so highly esteem'd about a hundred\nYears since, by Men of Art in this Kingdom, was first brought into\n_Europe_ by a Religious _Carmelite_, who in his Travels thro' _India_,\n_Persia_, and _China_, had made himself Master of this Secret, and from\nsome of those _Eastern_ Countries, came over into _Tuscany_, where he\nperform'd many considerable Cures by this occult Method, to the great\nAstonishment of the most eminent Physicians and Surgeons in those\nParts; insomuch that the Duke of _Tuscany_ himself was very desirous of\nbecoming Master of this surprizing _Arcanum_, but, the honest Fryar by\nmany handsome Excuses brought himself off, and would not be prevail'd\nupon to communicate his _Nostrum_ to his Highness.\n\nSOME few Months after this, our Famous _English_ Virtuoso, Sir _Kenelm\nDigby_, happening in his Travels to be at the Grand Duke's Court, an\nOpportunity fell accidentally in the Knight's way to do the Fryar a\nService, which the good old Man took so kindly at his hands, that\nhe recompenc'd the Curtesy with a Discovery of his Secret; and soon\nafter returning into _Persia_, left no Man in _Europe_ Master of the\nsame but Sir _Kenelm_, who was the first Person that brought the\n_Recipe_ into _England_, and that here wrought Cures by it himself, and\nrecommended it to the Practice of others; so that, in a little Time,\nevery Mother-Midwife, and Country Fleabeard, became topping Surgeons,\nespecially for the Cure of Green-Wounds; for it is not to be trusted\nto, in other Cases.\n\nTHIS Sympathetick Powder, by which many Miracles have been perform'd\nat great Distances, is nothing more than the Simple Powder of _Roman\nVitriol_, either Chymically prepar'd, or imperfectly calcin'd in the\nBeams of the Sun; from whence, 'tis said, it derives a very balsamick\nVirtue; a little of this apply'd to any Instrument that has done\nMischief, or to a Rag dip'd into, or stain'd with, the Blood of a\nWound, never fails of Curing the Patient at the widest Distance,\nprovided the Wound be Curable.\n\nSIR _Kenelm Digby_, to advance the Credit of this surprising Medicine,\nspeaks very largely in Commendation thereof, in a little Treatise of\nhis, written first in _French_, upon the same Subject; wherein he\nboasts of a remarkable Cure perform'd by himself, in a most wonderful\nmanner, with only the use of this astonishing Powder; and, therefore,\nas in religious Cases, Example goes beyond Precept, so, to convince you\nof the Miracles perform'd by Sympathy, Instances, perhaps, may prove\nmore effectual than Arguments; for which Reason, I shall proceed to\nfurnish you with a notable Experiment of this Magical Powder, and so\nconclude.\n\n    \"MR. _James Howel_, a trusty Servant to King _James_ the\n    First, famous in those Days for Compiling a Treatise, entitled\n    _Dendrologia_, and afterwards for his Legacy to the World, call'd,\n    _Epistoli\u00e6 Ho-Elian\u00e6_, happen'd, when he was a Young Gentleman, to\n    accidently come by, when two of his dearest Friends were fiercely\n    Engag'd in a very dangerous Duel, and to prevent the Mischief very\n    likely to ensue, too rashly catch'd hold, with his naked Hand, of\n    his Sword, whose Passion prompted him to be the most desperate; in\n    which attempt, the Weapon, being drawn through Mr. _Howel_'s Palm,\n    cut the Nerves and Muscles thereof to the very Bone, and, as they\n    were thus Scuffling, holding up the same Hand to defend one of his\n    Friends from a Blow upon his Head, receiv'd another cut upon the\n    back of his Hand, cross all the Veins and Tendons, more terrible\n    than the former, which, his Friends perceiving, put a sudden stop\n    to their inebrious Fury, run both to embrace him and to express\n    their sorrow for the unhappy Accident, lending him their Assistance\n    to bind up his Wounds with one of his own Garters, and so conducted\n    him to his Lodgings, where they sent immediately for a Surgeon, who\n    found the Case desperate, for he bled abundantly.\n\n    \"MR. _Howel_, being a Gentleman much respected by the Quality, the\n    News of his Misfortune soon reach'd the Court; and his Majesty,\n    having, also, a great regard for him, sent one of his own Surgeons\n    to attend him, who found the Case to be so very bad that he seem'd\n    doubtful of a Cure, without cutting off his Hand, which occasion'd\n    Mr. _Howel_, about five Days after the Hurt receiv'd, to apply\n    himself to his good Friend and Neighbour, Sir _Kenelm Digby_,\n    who, at that Time was famous for the Sympathetick-Powder, begging\n    his Assistance in that painful Extremity, telling him, that his\n    Surgeons were apprehensive of a Gangrene.\n\n    \"SIR _Kenelm_, opening the Wounds, found a terrible Case of it,\n    and a dangerous Inflamation upon the Part, which, Mr. _Howel_\n    acknowledg'd, gave him such intolerable Pain as was scarce\n    supportable; the Knight, ask'd him, if he had any Bandage with the\n    Blood upon it, Mr. _Howel_ answer'd, _Yes_; accordingly sent his\n    Servant for the bloody Garter which had first bound up his Wounds,\n    and deliver'd it to Sir _Kenelm_, who, calling for a Bason of\n    Water, went into his Closet for a handful of his Powder, which he\n    infus'd therein, and then soak'd the Garter in the same Liquor;\n    whilst Mr. _Howel_ was talking with another Gentleman, at the\n    further End of the Room, not knowing in the least what Sir _Kenelm_\n    was doing, who, after he had bath'd the Garter in the Bason about a\n    Minute, call'd to his Patient and ask'd him how he found himself,\n    who answer'd, _So wonderful Easy that the Inflamation seems to be\n    totally Extinguish'd, the Pain quite gone off, and my Hand I find\n    as cool and as much refresh'd, as if it was wrap'd up in a wet\n    Napkin_. _Then_, reply'd the Knight, _fling off your Dressings,\n    meddle no more with Plasters, only keep your Wounds clean and\n    from the Air, and I doubt not, but in a few Days Time, I shall\n    effectually Cure you, without putting you to any further Trouble_.\n    Much Comforted with this Assurance, Mr. _Howel_ took a thankful\n    Leave of Sir _Kenelm_, and so departed.\n\n    \"MR. _Howel_, had not been gone above a Quarter of an Hour, but\n    the Knight took the Garter out of the Liquor, to dry it before the\n    Fire, and carelesly hanging it a little too near, the extraordinary\n    Heat, by the Concatination of Effluvia's, had such an Effect upon\n    the Patient, that he made as many wry Faces as a Cook that had\n    burnt his Fingers; dispatching his Servant, with all imaginable\n    Expedition, to let his Doctor know what a Condition he was relaps'd\n    into.\n\n    \"SIR _Kenelm_, who presently conjectur'd the Cause of this\n    Disaster, smiling at the Message the Servant had deliver'd, and\n    snatching the Garter from the Fire, told him, that his Master\n    should be very Easy by the Time he could return to him, which\n    the Footman, by the acknowledgment of his Master, found to be\n    true accordingly; Sir _Kenelm_, doing nothing more to work this\n    change, than cooling the wreaking Garter by a speedy Repetition\n    of his former Application; so that, without any further Accident\n    interposing, the Patient was thoroughly cur'd, in five or six Days\n    Time, by this extraordinary Method, to the inexpressible Admiration\n    of all his Majesty's Surgeons.\"\n\n  _SIR_,\n\nThis is all, at present, I am at Leisure to say in Answer to your\nLetter, and I doubt you will think it enough too, except more to\nthe purpose: What extraordinary Cures you happen to perform by your\nnew Method, I desire you will communicate to me as soon as you\ncan conveniently, for to hear of your Success, will be no little\nSatisfaction to,\n\n  _Sir_,\n  _Your assured Friend\n  and humble Servant_.\n\n\n_FINIS._\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration]\n\n_POSTSCRIPT._\n\n\nTHE Powder, communicated to Doctor _Campbel_ by his _Genius_, together,\nwith the Use of the Loadstone, having wrought many wonderful Cures\nupon other Patients as well as himself; this Postscript is to acquaint\nthe Publick, that any Person labouring under one or more of the\nfollowing Calamities, _viz._ Hypochondriacal, Hysterical, Epileptical,\nConvulsive, or any other sort of Fits that either Sex can be subject\nto, may be reliev'd, after the same manner as aforemention'd; at Doctor\n_Campbel_'s House, in _Buckingham_-Court, over against _Old Man_'s\nCoffee-House at _Chairing-Cross_, where they may be readily furnish'd\nwith his _Pulvis Miraculosus_, and the finest sort of _\u00c6gyptian_\nLoadstones, ready arm'd and fitted for the purpose, which if apply'd\nand continu'd according to Direction never fail of Success.\n\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\nTranscriber's Notes:\n\n  Obvious punctuation and spelling errors repaired.","title":"The Friendly Daemon, or the Generous Apparition: Being a True Narrative of a Miraculous Cure, Newly Perform'd Upon That Famous Deaf and Dumb Gentleman, Dr. Duncan Campbel, by a Familiar Spirit That Appear'd to Him in a White Surplice, Like a Cathedral Singing Boy","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":7369}