Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1891-01-24
THE MAGIC MIRRoR.
The Strange Survival of a Medieval super
sfition- Dealers In DenonologY

apostle, but the general persuasion Of
mankind has long been that we may see,
in glass, quite clearly, persons and OBJ
jects far removed by time ard space, says
the London News
In some notes of Mr.. Cloustons to
Chsucer's ''Squier's Tale, published a
few days ago by the Chaucer society, there
is an interesting essay on the magic mir
rors which reveal the absent A belief so
common in medieval times is not likely
TO have wanted precedents in the ancient
world. The spectrum is the natural home
of the spectra. Mr. Clouston is only able
TO give one classical instance, from Pau
sanias, who wrote a guide book to Ancient
Greece 1t is the twenty-frst chapter of
his seventh book, where he says that the
Achans. after making certain fumigations.
let down a mirror into the holy well Of
Demeter; they then looked into the mir
ror and discerned whether a sick person
would live or die. Mr.. Clouston says they
saw faces, healthy or distempered, in the
mirror. "a circumstance not mentioned by
Thomas Taylor in his translation. The
famous mirror in which Surray saw fair
Geraldine is discredited 10y Mr.. Clouston,
who does not rely on the directions given
in Reginald Scots Discovery Of Witch
craft. = written in 1885, classical text
with which he does not seem to be ac-
quainted. Any member of the p 'chcial
society may try the experiment n him.
self. la the first place be must conciliate
his good genius Then he retires into his
closet with a little table and silk carpet
and two waxed candles lighted, as also
with a crystal triangular stone ''about the
quantity Of an apple. Then. after a
prayer, he must sprinkle everything with
his own blood, and utter a magic charm
or two, and finally sit down with a Bible
in one hand and a crystal in the other,
The spirit comes in about a quarter of an
hour, but the curious thing is that various
pictures first appear in the glass, begin
ming with a beaten track or road, travel
ers, a shepherd with sheep strange
appearances, noises, glances and alright
meuts, which shows will all at last van
ish on the appearance Of the genius
Such things DR.. Dee may have behed in
his crystal, at least if we believe Goodwin
III his Lives OF the Neuomancers, not
exactly a contemporary authority. Ac-
ccrding to Joachim Camerarius. quoted
by Mr.. Clouston, the spectator must be a
young boy, or a person of the purest life.
Gianvil quotes a case Of one Compton. who
showed a certain Mr. Hill his wife in q
looking glass. Scott uses the Idea IN My
Aunt Marga ct 3 Mirror, but the great
masters of the art are the modern Egyp-
tians
Curious enough, and too late for Mr.
long tale of the Egyptian ink mirror in
his diarys for October, 1881 He was then
in London whore people were talking Of
the mystery on the evidence Of Lord Prud-
hoe, whom knew as an honorable man.
At Cairo Lord Prudhoe heard Of a magi-
clan from the interior Of Africa, who
gave an instance Ct his powers Lord
Prudhoe chose a Nuoian boy, in whose
hand the magician drew kind of pentacle
in ink. Through this, las if the substance
of the hand had been removed, the boy
saw what was asked for As In Ach8a Of
old, there were first ftmigatlons of incense
then flags and a sultan appeared These,
as in Reginald SCOTS account We're mere
preliminary apparitions. Then Shake
speare was ask for, and described in ac-
cordance with his portraits Then the
brother of one Of he English spectators
was correctly described he had lost an
arm, and this was mentioned In Malta
Sir Walter made inquiries, and found that
Shakespeare lshei6 spar D originally showed
in the complexion of an Arab. Oh the
whole, Sir Walter thought the whole affair
an imp0sture Six years later, in his
Egyptian book, Mr. Lane seemed more
creduous He gave long account Of the
affair
The boy first sees a man sweeping, then
a procession Of flags, then the sultan: fin
ally he saw and correctly described Lord
Nelson, ite has net lost his left arm, it
is placed to bis breast, where Nelson
pinned his empty sleeve. Mr. Lane was
puzzled not so Mr. king,ake, who tells
in "Eothen' how he asked for Keats, the
famous Elton headmaster, who was describ-
ed MS beautiful girl with golden hair-a
yuIy bad shot at some nOn.eXlstent Keats.
Mr. Clouston has found similar rites in
Southeran India. The Maories of New
Zealand Enthusiastically use a drop of
blood instead Of ink, In southern India
not a man but monkeys sweep the the floor
rs a preliminary vision. The interesting
point in all this farrago is the coincidence
Of human beliefs Plainly enough, if any
thing is seen at all, it is because the spec
tator has hypn0tized bv staring at the lit
tie pool Of ink. the crystal, OF what not,
which acts in the same way as the metal
disk in hypnotism. Tie then answers TO
suggestions Anybody can try for him
self vs. staring into his own ink pot, for
the fumigations pentacles end prayers
are all mere accidents and ornaments.
However, most Of Us might stare a long
time and beu1ne the wiser