The Indianapolis journal., 1890-08-15
A FRENCH MIRACLE-W0RKER.
Many Hundreds of Persons Flocking to Him
at the Little Island of 0leron.

pearance Oh TIE phenomenon KNOWN as thC
miracle worker. The last time he cropped
up was in the person of the Zouave Jacob.
who turned Paris upside down with his per-
formance; to-day it is young man in the
country who has suddenly discovered him
self to be possessed of supernatural powers.
At first he was treated as myth. but the
rush of the credulOus and superstitiOus to
see him is so great that there can be no
longer any doubt of hisexistence Alphonse
Montaut is about eighteen years of age. of
powerful build, with large blue eyes and in
cipient mustache. He is what the ladies
call un beau brun. He lives In the lillIpu-
tian hamlet of Boulassiers, in the island
of Oleron, a spot dear to the rOmancists OF
the old school, not far from La Rochelle.
He is the youngest of family of nine chill
dren. One OF his sisters Is In a lunatlc asy-
Ium. and he himself is said to have had
mental hallucinations when only ten years
old At present he boards and lodges with
a farmer named Fleury, for whom he has
worked as an ordinary laborer for some
time, but now that he has become miracle
mong he is regarded by his landlord and
landlady as a superior being and is allowed
TO give his consultations IN their best room.
That diversity of opinion concerning his
real character should exist in the locality
is only natural; some say be is sorcerer
others a saint, but nearly all profess to be-
lieye III his miraculous gifts, and sick per-
sons from all parts are f1ocking to undergo
his cure. which consists chiefly In touching
their hands or feet and making the sign of
the cross.
An enterprising journalist has gone to
Oler0n to interview MOntaut. The task, it
appears, was not easy, owing TO the oppcsi-
tion of Nine. Fleury, who is taking the
greatest care of him. and is afraid that his
occult powers may be deteriorated by COM
ing into too close contact with vulgar
outsiders. He found the miracle worker
enjoying plate of soup and wine like a
common mortal. Four or five invalids
were waiting to be operated on. The jour
nalist desired to be present at the sight.
1T is too late to-day" replied the
good landlady. "Alphonse has already
worked too much to-day and you
must all come again tomorrow"
But the interviewer was not to be banked.
and asked 30 have short chat with Mon
taut. After further hesitation she consent
ed, and here Is what he said: Il under
stand perfectly what do. 1t is thanks to
the power which Providence has given me-
That power was revealed to me i'll a vision
when | was still very young but the voice
which told me l could cure sickness in
formed me at the same time that was yet
too young and too feeble to make use OF
the gift. At the age of fourteen L an
nounced Mime. Fleury that should cure
her of an intirmty from which she suffered
and for which she had in vain consulted
more than twenty doctors. On attaining
fourteen years and half a new vision
which l had assured me that 1 should
sOoh be able to exercise the power
bestowed on me by the Almighty. AS soon
as L felt strong enough began to work. L
have never stndied medicine and am ignOr-
ant of the maladies brought before me. and
yet there Is not a single illness L cannot
cure. Ny only book of medicine is this"
and he took up from the table an old copy
of the New Testament. 1t was evident from
his conversation that he did not know any
thing about medicine, but it was also evil
dent from certain mysterious phrases he
dropped that he had heard of books on
| magnetism and the like. The only explana-
tiOn he would give of his power was that it
| was a kind of fluid which first hypnOtZed
| and then cured his patients. At times he
| spoke in the oracular mood, and was SO in
coherent that the journalist failed to under
| stand what he uttered. And so the inter
view ended.
The journalist, however. managed to OBJ
| tain further information from a gen-darme
| who has been ordered to make an inquiry
| into the subject. 1T is really marvellous"
| said he; you must sec it to believe it. A
| few hours ago there were six women seated
In the room. Montaut made them laugh OF
| cry just as he pleased. One of them, while
waiting at the door for her turn. was seized
with a nervous tit. He had only to pass his
hand over her face and she immediately be-
| came calm and sensi BILE. 1t is all nonsense
to talk about fraud; the affair is clearly
genuine. When l entered the room he Of
| fered TO undress himself to show that he
had not got an electric pile hidden In his
| clothes" There is nothing very novel in
! this. save to the simple mind of the viii
| lage gen-darme. Wonderful cures, however,
are reported all the same. Among them
may be mentioned q man who had suffered
from rheumatism for seventeen years, and
who had been cured after one or two visits
| to the miracle-worker: another manihas hat
| lame leg set all right after one touch of
| his hand: a scrofulous girl has been turned
into q beauty, and an old woman who has
walked on crutches for fifteen years can
now run a race with nybody of her age.
Montaut scorns erything in the shape of
| physlc; his treatment is purely magnetic.
| He looks at his patient full in the face, he
| tells him at once what IS his allment, and
| then taking him by both hands, and placing
his feet on those of the invalid. he
| makes a few cabalistlc signs or passes
| over the affected part and oXclaims: go,
| you are healed" And the most miraculous
| portion of the operation is that the patients
| believe themselves cured. or at least con-
! siderably relieved, and go away joyful. 1t
/ is said that no fewer than hundred per-
sons apply to him daily. Some disbelievers
J have tried to catch him by feigning sick
! ness. but in vain-he detects them at once.
! He never asks for fees but accepts what is
| offered him, whether in money or kind.
| His famehas become such that the hamlet
| is unable TO provide accommodation for the
| lnuuA Ol SICK pllRTlInS, ana new nOUelS are
( being run up and wine shops established:
| in short, the whole island is in a state of
| feverish cOmmOtiOn.
AS a matter of course, the legal authori-
| ties have got their eyes on him. and young
MOntaut is afraid they will put stop TO his
| doings. for his science does not include a
| knowledge of the way to avoid the articles
| of the code relative to the unlawful prac-
| tice of medicine But he affects to have a
| mission and is willing to suffer for it if
necessary. So far the doctors have not
| lodged a complaint against him. They ap-
| pear TO think that his miracles will die out
| of themselves ere long. and that their pa
| tients will return to them wiser if not bet
| ter. In 6the meanwhile he is the lion
of the day. not only throughout his
| native district, but also on the Paris
bOulevards, where he is the latest
| topic of conversation. MOntaut like
| the Zouave Jacob. will probably make a
| fortune while the sun shines. At present
| he holds three consultations per week, from
| 3 to ) o'clock He says the strain on his
mental faculties is too great to permit of
| doing more work than that. Every body
who goes to him, whether rich OF poor. IS
placed on the same footing of equality. No
| favor is shown TO any one; each in his turn
is his motto But he demands absolute
| confidence. without w hich the miracle will
not be perfect. He is adverse to being
questioned; silence and faith are his chief
mediums. According to some accounts he
can neither read nor write; this may be the
he has made himself acquainted
somehow with the experiments OF
DR.. Charcot and other apostles of hypnot.
4 ism and that the plea of his Ohf ai mi 10