e demons had nothing to do with them; and the last, above all,
is perfectly quashed by the report of Marescot, a celebrated
physician, who was deputed by the Faculty of Theology to examine this
girl who performed so many wonders. Here are his own words, which may
serve as a general reply to all these kind of adventures:--_A natura
multa plura ficta, a Daemone nulla._ That is to say, that the
constitution of Martha Brossier, who was apparently very melancholy
and hypochondriacal, contributed greatly to her fits of enthusiasm;
that she feigned still more, and that the devil had nothing to do with
it.

"If some of the fathers, as St. Thomas, believe that the demons
sometimes produce sensible effects, they always add, that it can be
only by the particular permission of God, for his glory and the
salvation of mankind.

"In regard to all those prodigies and those common spells, which the
people ascribe to sorcery or commerce with the demon, it is proved
that they can be performed only by natural magic, which is the
knowledge of secret effects of natural causes, and several by the
subtlety of art. It is the opinion of the greater number of the
fathers of the church who have spoken of it; and without seeking
testimony of it in Pagan authors, such as Xenophon, Athenaeus, and
Pliny, whose works are full of an infinity of wonders which are all
natural, we see in our own time the surprising effects of nature, as
those of the magnet, of steel, and mercury, which we should attribute
to sorcery as did the ancients, had we not seen sensible
demonstrations of their powers. We also see jugglers do such
extraordinary things, which seem so contrary to nature, that we should
look upon these charlatans as magicians, if we did not know by
experience, that their address alone, joined to constant practice,
makes them able to perform so many things which seem marvelous to us.

"All the share that the demons have in the criminal practices of those
who are commonly called sorcerers, is suggestion; by which means they
invite them to the abominable research of every natural cause which
can do injury to others.

"I am now, sir, at the most delicate point of your question, which is,
to know if our souls can return to earth after they are separated from
our bodies.

"As the ancient philosophers erred so strongly on the nature of the
soul--some believing that it was but a fire which animated us, and
others a subtile air, and others affirming that