The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1845-10-31

o the FAIRNESS Win winch every thing mad been
transacted indeed, how could it be otherwise
If deception were praciiced, IL scas The Commit
tee ,chieh d" Hambugged" The audience. and not
Professor DE Bonneville. But, Fellow Citizens,
you are well acquainted with these men, and you
need not 10 be convinced, that they would not i'm
pose upon you, if they could. Their testimony is
credible, and they have testified that they could
not see when the bandage was properly applied
to their eyes, and they did not believe that "the
little Mis-" could see under like conditions.
Now, mark well. here are six honorable and dis
interested men, who testify that the handage was
sufficient 10 exclude light. a testimony which
fully exculpates Mrs. De Bonneville, who made
the ~bapdage, from every possible suspicion and
further. we pray you TO observe that if the sub
ject did see, II was the fault of the committees.
who must have misapplied the ~bandage, and not
OF MIR. De Bonneville, who surrendered every
thing into their hands. But the details of this ar
gument will be presented on a future occasion.
Every thing proceeded under the auspices of
good order and good feeling, until Tuesday night.
The harmony of the meeting, the social enioy-
ment, the ommuna privileges and rights. of Your
free citizens, who had convened to Judge for
themselves without foreign interference, were
rudely and obstreporously invaded by DR.. War
ner.
When a man factiously obtrudes himself upon
others, whom he UNNECESSARILY denounces. and
ridicules as "Humbugs - and ssimpos,ors," and
as being contederates and deluded. he makes him.
self liable to scrutiny the most searching for we
are strongly impressed with the conviction, that
where men. who appeal to passion instead Of
reason. raise a clamor against impOstUrs they are
themselves exceedingly liable to suspicion. In
attacking Mr.. De Bonneville and his lady, DIR.
Warner has assaulted all who believe them hon
est, and advocates of truth Mr.. De Bonneville
did nat assail him or his colleagues, nor have any
of the Magnetsts with whom we are acquainted
What right. therefore. has he to ieopardize our
lives by exciting a mob against them ? We re-
peat, what have we, who believe and advocate
Magnetism. done 10 merit such hostility from
these persons and their satellites? If they do not
believe, OF consider it " Humbug, - they need not
trouble the public with their interference: let
them talk against it as much as they please in
their own lecture rooms. AS TO our being con-
federates, or paid to defend Mr.. De Bonneville.
our confederation is a cOnfederacy for what we he
lleve In common a cnnfederacy for life. liberty,
justice and the pursuit of happiness! Our de.
fence of Magnetism and lis advocates, is sponia-
neous. and without fee, or hope of reward beyond
the triumph of Truth. We have no malevnIence
against persons TO crafty we wish all men well ;
but, if, impelled by interest. prejudice, or pride of
opinion, they wantonly attack our rights. privi-
leges, and faith, they may lay their account with
such a literary casilgatlon as their sins may de-
serve. Let them, however, forhear to threaten
our lives, and To excite mnbs: Our principle is not
To avenge ourselves; we trust the law, aided by
all the friends of liberty and the rights of men,
will protect us-io this we appeal, confiding in
the power Of truth, and the providence of God.
On the assumption, that Magnetism is = NEGRO
mancyC)" as The quixotic Humhug deteclors very
ignoranlly declare, that does not Justify them in
mobbing those of a contrary conviction. Granting,
for the sake of argument, that Nj. De Bonneville
and lady were impnstors, and that we have heen
deIuded by them, what have the Professors Of The
Medical College, or certain of the city doctors to
do with that? If we who pay for admission
choose TO be "Humbugged, - the Constitution of
the Union guarantees 10 US the right of being so,
If it is Onr will and pleasure. Some are said TO
take a pleasure in being cheated ; it is a part of
their happiness, and the law protects them in
the pursuit of happiness" without let or hin
drance from Professors or their tools. But, fell
low citizens. there are many of you who believe
In Magnetism, and have too much penetration 10
be cheated by such persons into the notion, that
you are inca pable of Judging Of what you see IN
less they interfere to direct your view! Grant
us your attention while we prove to you that i'm
posture is not with NJ. De Bonneville, hut with
those. who on Saturday night, jeopardized not on
ly his life, but the lives also of your fellow .cili-
zens, who were his friends. Allow us to REGAL
N''''N NV 49, ~ fRiAo VI Nhdb w
Mrs. de Bonneville delivered a very spirited
address TO a crowded assembly, in which she
called for a certain unnamed person, the Pro
fessor of Surgery" TO come forward and submit
10 be banddged Nth the bandage in question,
and then read before that audience if he could;
for, if ,cheR property applied, he could not see
10 describe objects, then neither could The little
girl under like circumstances He did not re
spond to the call. When, in the after part of the
evening he did appear, we understood him to say
he heard the call,-but it can be proven by the
door keeper, that he did not enter the room till
after The lecture Of Mrs. de b.. She having re-
tired, Mr.. de b. read certain conditions upon
which a committee should be appointed. The
committee chosen agreed 10 abide by those con-
dttions. They retired to select articles for the
clalrvoyante. During their absence, magnetic
experiments were performed upon gentlemen in
different parts of the audience, standing up on
their seats. When they returned much time was
consumed in adjusting the bandage on the eyes OF
the committee. DIR. Warner was called up iC
aid in the mysteries Of lie night. 1t was pro
posed to try the bandage on some child, TO see i
he could read. Though there were several near
the stage, q boy ,cas called for by DR.. Warner
IhIs gentleman, in the iniamatory speech which
he afterwards delivered, said he had brought Thu
boy; but correcting himself, he said he caused
him TO be called. It is probable that both state
mPUtS were trup . and tbat hc dij brino him n,