“In this case, automatic writing confirmed the details seen hallucinatorily, or in dream; these details were most certainly unknown to M. Meurice as well as to myself. I will add that even had I mentioned my friend’s name, which I can affirm I did not do, that name would have been of no assistance to M. Meurice, inasmuch as he does not know my friend, much less his cousin in Paris.
“This is the most precise case, in which M. Meurice has given me correct details unknown to myself.
“If we examine in a general manner the character of the H. B. personification, we are, perhaps, obliged to admit that it presents a spiritistic appearance. This appearance is all the more singular, in that it manifests in a centre where the spiritistic hypothesis is looked upon with disfavour. I am well aware of the fact, that tendencies opposed to those of the normal personality are often observed in secondary personalities.
“Young girls of a most timid and reserved disposition, normally, sometimes show obscene parasitic personalities, under the influence of which they give utterance to the most filthy language, and perform most indecent acts. The processes of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries are most instructive from this point of view, especially those of Loudun and Louviers. It is not surprising, therefore, to see personifications calling themselves spirits emerge in a non-spiritistic centre; it is probably a phenomenon comparable to that of the secondary personalities just spoken of. A different synthesis of psychological elements is formed, which follows an opposite bent to the one normally followed. It is as though the poles were changed, and a secondary personality reveals itself as the very reverse of the first personality.
“The interesting point to seek for, however, is not the genesis of the personification, for there are so many hypotheses which might explain it, but to determine which explanation concerning the personification best suits the particular circumstances.
“My observations upon the H. B. personification—the most thorough I have so far been able to make—do not permit me to form a definite conclusion; at the same time, they do not tend to make me look favourably upon the spirit hypothesis. If we resume the details given by H. B.:—
- “A. About himself, his person, we find:
- “1. 2. Two ways of wearing his beard.
- “3. A peculiar mark near the eye.
- “4. 5. A very peculiar walk: right leg shorter than the left.
- “6. The hair was fairly well described.
- “7. The eyes were not well described.
- “B. Details about his clothes and habits:
- “8. An unusual shape of slipper.
- “9. The shape and colour of his cravats.
- “10. His walking-stick.
- “11. The manner in which he passed the last six years of his life in an armchair.
- “12. The shawl which habitually covered his legs.
- “13. His habit of taking a glass of brandy and water every afternoon at 5.30.
- “14. His allusions to his brother L. and to his death.
- “15. A gold chain and pendants which he never possessed: followed, however, by the rectification of the error.
- “16. The detail of the Temps.
“That is to say: two inexact, two doubtful, and twelve accurate details.
“It may be of interest to draw attention to the process employed by this personification to prove his identity; it is worthy of some attention, because it touches on precise details. Those particular signs which are of capital importance in the identification of persons, we find in details 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 13, 14, and it would be most unjust to refuse to recognise in these indications at least an appearance of volition and intelligence.