Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1908-07-04

praesentlre, feel or perceive before
rect, though vague, perception OF Il
future event or feeling which seems
to be such perception Specifically,
II is an antecedent impression or con-
viction, produced instipctively and
without any known cause, of some-
thing about to happen. Though pre-
sentiments of good are common and
often fulfilled, as their results are
not traglcal they are seldom remem-
bered or COMPOUNDED with hope, and
for this reason the word PRESENT.
ment is confined almost exclusively
to the anticipation of impending evil,
and is practically the equivalent of
foreboding. Dreams often afford
similar materials for erroneous reas
onings, but as they originate in the
mind, they are sometimes so similar
to presentiments that 1t is impossible
to decide whether presentiment
caused the dream or the dream the
presentimapA
Noveln bGgts, and q istorl-
ans, have SO often told us OF present
lments, have so often attributed them
to their real or fictitious personages,
that we have come to regard this sort
of obscure vision of the future as
common and natural phenomenon.
The historian tells us of Captain So
and-So, who, overwhelmed on the eve
Of battle with the fatal presentiment
that he should not survive the COM
bat, actually met his death; the nov
elist attributes to his heroine the pre-
sentiment of a catastrophe impend-
Ing over her soldier lover, which hap
pens in realization of her gloomy
forebodings, and they speak of these
things as constantly recurring, well
established facts of which there are
numerous examples that could not
we'll be disputed. Even animals are
said to be gifted with presentiment
of danger Thus, according to Buff
fon, birds of passage have been OBJ
served to stay away from their nests
at the approach of an earthquake;
according to Raynal, dogs by contln-
ual long bowling manifested their
presentiment of an approaching
earthquake, and it is a generally pre-
vailing belief that rats will, a few
days before the occurrence, leave a
house that is about to fall down or a
ship that Is about to sink.
But, while in animals this phe-
nomenon admits of an explanation
by the assumption OF instinct, which
seems to be given them by nature for
their preservation, this convenient
apology for our ignorance cannot be
made in the case of man, because he
has reason, instead of instinct, for
his guide. Yet it has been contend
ed, and by persons Of no mean under
standing, that fatal presentimentsa are
conveyed to the mind by means, II
not supernatural, at all events mys-
FERROUS and wonderful. and numerous
examples, as we shall presently see,
have been adduced In proof of the
certainty of the warning, as well as
of it's mysterious occurrence.
Plutarch, in his tragic account OF
| Julius Caesars assassination, men
lions the foreboding dream of Gaze
sar's wife, Calpurnia, In the night
preceding the fatal event. In her
dream she first saw blood flowing
from her husbands statue, and then
she dreamed that the roof of her
house was falling down and that Gaze
sar. his body all covered with blood
expired in her arms. Terrified by
these dreams she related them to
Caesar, imploring him not to go out
on that day. Caesar, however
laughed at her fears, went to the Sen
ate, and was stabbed to death by his
Rssassins. 1t is related that not only
did Henry Nv himself have a present.
iment of his death, but also Maria dc
Medicis was forewaTned in a dream
Of the danger threatening the, king
One night she started from her sleeE
with shrek and her eyes bathed in
tears. Asked by Henry w for the
cause of her terror, she replied, 81
dreamed you were murdered" Tt
remove her fears the king said smil
ing: Fortunately, dreams, accord
ing to the saying, are but fumes Of
the stomach" A few days later the
dagger of a fanatic robbed France Of
the best of her kings. 1t must, how
ever, be added that to-day the queer
Is much suspected of having plotted
with d'Epernon the kings assassina
ton, or at least of having had some
knowledge OF the plot; her vague
terror, therefore, only expressed hel
own part in the matter. Mozart'i
premonition of his death is ever
more wonderful. A stranger having
called on him to order a requiem, ht
at once felt the presentiment tina
this requiem was destined to servt
for his own funeral, contracted al
incurable disease and died immedi
ately after composing 1t. Presiden
Lincoln, as Is well known, had pre-
sentiment of impending death. A
numerous, mostly amplifed, versions
exist of this incident, we give 1t her,
as published by Gideon Welles in al
article printed in The Galaxy TO
April, 1872: "In the lasd, cablne
meeting in the Executive Mansion o
Friday, April IA, which was also at
tended by Mr.. Welles, General Gran
expressed his anxiety as to the new
from Sherman. The President re
marked that the news would com
Ioon and come favorably, he had NJ
loubt, for he had last night his usua
iream which had preceded nearly ey
sTy event of the war. Welles in
auired the particulars of this remark
able dream. The President said |
was in Welles' departmental relat
I'd to water; that he seemed to be II
4 singular and indescribable vessel
but always the same, and that he wa
moving with great rapidity toward
lark and indefinite shore; that h
Dad had this singular dream proceed
ing the firing on Sumter, the battle