A history of the ridiculous extravagancies of Monsieur Oufle / occasioned by his reading books treating of magick, the black art, dæmoniacks, conjurers, of elves, fairies, of dreams, the philosopher's-stone, judicial astrology, with notes containing a multitude of quotations out of those books, which have either caused such extravagant imaginations, or may serve to cure them. Written originally in French, by the Abbot B-----, and now tr. into English.

  • Bordelon, Laurent, 1653-1730.
Date:
1711
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A history of the ridiculous extravagancies of Monsieur Oufle / occasioned by his reading books treating of magick, the black art, dæmoniacks, conjurers, of elves, fairies, of dreams, the philosopher's-stone, judicial astrology, with notes containing a multitude of quotations out of those books, which have either caused such extravagant imaginations, or may serve to cure them. Written originally in French, by the Abbot B-----, and now tr. into English. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    79/322 (page 67)
    :âer ground, ïn order to join themfelves to Bodies, which perhaps are interr’d at the other end of the World, (i) and tnav it not thus happen, that fome V ine-Tiller or Plowman may happen to break up the Ground at the very place where it paffes, and may it not come out at that Aperture and ap¬ pear to him ? And if aifo what is faid, be true, and which confequently I believe ; that the Soul refembles a Glafs- Bowl, with Eyes on all Sides, (4) this rolling Soul, feeing fo clearly, finceit has fo manv Eyes, can it not at Pleafuremake choice of thofe People who are moft fufceptible of Fear and Terror, in order to affright them > Will you Brother after this dare to rally me on my pretended eafy credulity ? Cer¬ tainly, you wou’d not thus ridicule what I believe, if yon Knew what I know. You wou’d not Scoff io much, T fa y J if you had, as 1 have, read enough, ro know that there are People who quit their Souls whenever they pleafe, {/) fince you w-offd conclude from thence, that the Souls being thus come out of their Bodies, have full leifure to appear wherever they pleafe : you will be again very furpris’d wheu I fhall prove to you, that, yourfelf daily produce an infinite Number of Spe&res and Phantoms, a prodigious Number of Souls. Compute between to morrow Morning when you wake, and to morrow Night when you fall afieep, how many Pul¬ fations of the Heart you have, and 1 will afterwards affure you, that as many as you fhall have of thele Pulfations, fo many Souls you will have produc’d, (m) which will rove to sfll Quarters, and perhaps vifit Men as incredulous as your feif, and who will yet be affrighted at the fight of them. Is k not true, that at the lame time that I tell you thele Things, ‘ 1 extremely pity you, ? Yet whole Nations think as 1 fay, and (i) Some tell us that a Soul rolls from Place to place, for feveral hundred Leagues under ground, and incites its felf to a Body which is interr’d. at the other end of the W orld. World be¬ witch’d 2 77 - (k) A Learned Man afferts that the Figure of the Soul is like a Spherical Glafs-Veflel, which has Eyes on all Sides Delrio Difcjuiju. Mag p. 29 (l) Pliny /. 7. c, n. and Plutarch in the life of Romulus, lay that one ^ripms quitted aad re- affum d his Soul, when he pleas’d, and that when it left bus Body, the Spe&ators Taw it appear in the Shape of a Stag. (m) Amongft the Caribnes, every one believes that he has as many Souls, as Pulfations of his Heart { that the prin¬ cipal one is the Heart it ielf, that the other wander in feveral Places, accor¬ ding to the Quality and Nature otthole which have ’em } that the Heart goes to their Gocj. Montanus- World be• witch’d i 117. (») Tk§