physical dissertation, he had collected some memoirs
with that view; but that the occupations of visitor and superior in
the house of his congregation of Warsaw, had not allowed of his
putting his project in execution; that he has since sought in vain for
these memoirs or notes, which have probably remained in the hands of
some of those to whom he had communicated them; that amongst these
notes were two resolutions of the Sorbonne, which both forbade cutting
off the head and maiming the body of any of these pretended oupires or
vampires. He adds, that these decisions may be found in the registers
of the Sorbonne, from the year 1700 to 1710. I shall report by and
by, a decision of the Sorbonne on this subject, dated in the year
1691.

He says, moreover, that in Poland they are so persuaded of the
existence of these oupires, that any one who thought otherwise would
be regarded almost as a heretic. There are several facts concerning
this matter, which are looked upon as incontestable, and many persons
are named as witnesses of them. "I gave myself the trouble," says he,
"to go to the fountain-head, and examine those who are cited as ocular
witnesses." He found that no one dared to affirm that they had really
seen the circumstances in question, and that it was all merely
reveries and fancies, caused by fear and unfounded discourse. So
writes to me this wise and judicious priest.

I have also received since, another letter from Vienna in Austria,
written the 3d of August, 1746, by a Lorraine baron,[644] who has
always followed his prince. He tells me, that in 1742, his imperial
majesty, then his royal highness of Lorraine, had several verbal acts
drawn up concerning these cases, which happened in Moravia. I have
them by me still; I have read them over and over again; and to be
frank, I have not found in them the shadow of truth, nor even of
probability, in what is advanced. They are, nevertheless, documents
which in that country are looked upon as true as the Gospel.

Footnotes:

[644] M. le Baron Toussaint.

CHAPTER LX.

THE MORAL IMPOSSIBILITY OF THE REVENANS COMING OUT OF THEIR GRAVES.

I have already proposed the objection formed upon the impossibility of
these vampires coming out of their graves, and returning to them
again, without its appearing that they have disturbed the earth,
either in coming out or going in again. No one has ever replied to
this difficulty, and never will. To say that the demo