Chapter XIII: The Feats of the Davenport Brothers

In the month of September, 1865, two Americans, Ira and William Davenport, landed in France for the purpose of giving a series of marvellous performances, under the title of _Spiritualistic Manifestations_. They came direct from England, where for a period of two years they had enjoyed an extraordinary run of popularity. The press of the United Kingdom had taken a lively interest in their mysterious evolutions, and the fame of the discussions they had excited had even spread to France.

The arrival of these wonder-workers assumed the importance of a political event. The _Moniteur du Soir_, the official paper, announced their appearance in its issues of the 6th and 8th September, and all the organs of the press vied with each other which should be first to repeat the interesting intelligence.

Before they reached Paris, the brothers Davenport had made a short stay at the _Château de Gennevilliers_, whose owner, a fervent believer in spiritualism, regarded the visit of the illustrious travellers as a special privilege. It was under this hospitable roof that, by way of experiment, the first exhibition of the _Spiritualistic Manifestations_ took place. A select party of journalists and other literary men were invited, and were fully agreed as to the marvellous and inexplicable character of the phenomena they had witnessed.

The American mediums could not speak a word of French, and were therefore obliged to avail themselves of the services of an interpreter, who was at the same time their _impresario_, or, so to speak, their “Barnum.” They had been recommended to apply to M. Derosne, a literary man residing at Passy, and to whom we are indebted for excellent translations of sundry English works. This gentleman accepted the proffered position, and by way of introducing his _protégés_, he arranged that they should give, in his own drawing-room, specimen _séances_ before certain chosen spectators, whose good opinion might be expected to have a powerful influence on the future success of the performances which they intended to give in the capital. Immense posters, in the American style, were placarded about Paris, announcing in enormous characters that the first _séance_ of the Brothers Davenport would take place on the 12th September, at the _Salle Herz_. The performance, which was divided into two parts, consisted of (1) the “Cabinet” performances, and (2) the “Dark _Séance_.” The price of admission was fixed at 25 francs for the entire exhibition, or 10 francs for those who witnessed the first part only.

At such prices, what a rich harvest in prospect! Unfortunately, the bright anticipations of the two brothers as to their future success in the capital were doomed to disappointment; the friendly reception which they had met with at their preliminary _séances_ was the only substantial satisfaction which they were destined to receive from the nation which is at once the most intelligent and the most sceptical of the civilized globe. A cloud, quite unexpected by themselves, was gathering over spiritualism in general, and over their own performances in particular; and this cloud became more and more threatening as the day of the first public performance drew near. The friendly criticisms of some of the papers had been succeeded by a host of energetic protests against an exhibition which was regarded, not without reason, as dangerous to the mental health of the public, and particularly to those weaker intellects which are always ready enough to accept as gospel the tricks and artifices of the adepts of sham witchcraft.

The following passage, extracted from an article in the paper called the _Opinion Nationale_ (of the 10th of September, 1865,) will give some idea of the state of excitement of the Parisian press on the subject of the American mediums. This article appeared just two days before the first public performance of the Brothers Davenport.

“These estimable Americans reach our shores preceded by a reputation
of a kind to crush all opposition. Their gospel has appeared before
them. It consists of a volume of three hundred pages, in which Mr.
Nichols, the author of the work in question, assures us that the
Brothers Davenport have from their earliest youth possessed the
faculty of becoming lighter than air; and that on various occasions
they have been wafted to the ceiling, and floated over the heads
of those present. If I venture to cast a doubt on the testimony of
Mr. Nichols to this effect, it is not merely because the assertion
is absurd in itself, but because it is distinctly insulting to the
Brothers Davenport. What, gentlemen, do you allow it to be put forth
that you have flown without wings in a drawing-room, while it is at
the same time stated that you can do so no longer? You had then
once a power which is now exhausted, a virtue which is gone out of
you? Must we conclude that you were undeserving of your ghostly
familiars, that you have no longer over your aërial bearers the same
authority as of yore, that at the age of twenty-five or twenty-three
you are already played out; that you proceed from the greater marvel
to the less, and that in the land of _Nicolet_?[44] Do you come
and show _us_ mere stock marvels, after having in America worked
miracles which a God might envy? Do you take Paris for one of those
twopenny-half-penny country villages whither used-up, unappreciated,
and out-of-date performers come and try to scrape up some scanty
remnant of success?

“Is it not passing strange that in the year 1865,--when the whole
of the human race is pressing with rapid strides in the direction
of progress, when the spirit of positivism is abroad on all sides,
and when every branch of science, freed from the burden of the old
nonsensical beliefs, is stepping resolutely forward to the goal
of truth,--an attempt should be made to revive these supernatural
tomfooleries?

“And if the time is inaptly chosen, the selection of the instruments
is scarcely less absurd. What! here are two favoured mortals who
have subdued the powers of the unseen world; spirits minister to
their behests; they have at their command an army of beings unknown,
indeed, but, in any case, of higher power than man; and by the aid of
these supernatural powers, they actually--do what? Play the fiddle
in a cupboard! Verily, demigods have become singularly unassuming in
these days.

“These gentlemen appear to have travelled from America to France in
order to show us _phenomena_. This is the word they themselves use,
and they take care to add that ‘these phenomena have been attested
by the most celebrated men of science in England and America.’ Their
gospel is entitled, ‘The phenomena of the Davenport Brothers.’
_Phenomena_ be it, then; the word is familiar in the language of
science, and equally so in that of the country fair. The fair of
Saverne does not begin till Sunday next, but the market-place is
crammed with ‘phenomena’ already. There are even _living_ phenomena,
every one ‘attested’ by the Emperor of China and the Sultan of
Morocco, and none the prouder even for that!

“But to return to your ‘phenomena,’ since you really possess
phenomena, and appear desirous of finding a market for them. Are
you not aware that ‘phenomena’ are nothing of themselves? It is
necessary to refer them to some _law_, known or unknown, new or old;
they have no interest for persons of sense, save in so far as they
_prove_ something. What do you profess to prove? What conclusion do
you draw from your trumpery racket in the dark? What new contribution
do you bring to science? Come, deal openly with us; new ideas have
no terrors for us. Indeed, they alarm us so little that it is quite
needless now-a-days to enforce them by miracles. A good sound
_truth_ makes its own way in the world, without any accompaniment of
luminous guitars or phosphorescent fiddles.

(_Signed_)

“EDMOND ABOUT.”

So judicious a criticism, and the stern and uncompromising logic of so celebrated a writer, of necessity dealt a heavy blow to the credit of the American mediums, and shook the faith even of the firmest believers in the occult sciences. The mediumistic powers of the two brothers, their spiritualistic “evocations” and “manifestations” stood thenceforth condemned. To any rational man, the Brothers Davenport were mere performers of juggling tricks. Nevertheless, public curiosity had for some time past been so keenly excited, that every one wished to see the men who had been so much talked about; and the miracles, true or false, which had been the subject of such lively controversy. The day of the first performance was looked for with impatience, and the public rushed in crowds to be present at it.

In consequence of my great distance from the metropolis, I could not manage to be present at this memorable performance; and I am therefore obliged to borrow my account of it from M. Henri de Pène, reserving to myself the privilege of afterwards giving an exact description of the remarkable performances in question, as I myself saw them exhibited before an orderly and favourably-disposed audience.

* * * * *

The following are the terms in which the witty chronicler of the _Gazette des Etrangers_ relates, under the title of the “Attack on the Davenport Brothers at the _Salle Herz_,” the tragi-comical incidents of the evening of the 14th of September:--

“The first performance of the two Brothers before a paying public
took place, as had been previously announced, on Tuesday evening.
The hall was lighted up, and every seat was filled. But the
performance was lost in a tumult worthy of a meeting of infuriated
shareholders. There was a great deal of noise and a good deal of
spite displayed. The dark _séance_, the more interesting of the two,
and poetically entitled, ‘an hour of darkness,’ and which was only to
be witnessed by a small number of spectators at a high price, never
took place at all.

“The first portion, alone, of the so-called ‘public’ _séance_, to be
seen at comparatively low prices, raised such a tumult, that after
about three-quarters of an hour’s row, the spectators had to be
cleared out of the hall with the police at their backs. It should be
mentioned, by the way, that the money was honestly returned at the
doors; indeed, we are informed that more money was paid out of the
treasury than had actually been paid into it.

“The poor Davenports! I saw them face to face; I spoke to them; I
examined their cabinet, their famous ropes, the tambourine, the
bells, the guitars, in a word, all the elements of that miraculous
symphony which is said to be their strong point. I was called by the
universal suffrage of the audience to the perilous honour of going
upon the platform to inspect the operations,--to tie, to untie, and
do all that might concern my office of inspector.

“Can I venture to say that there was a cabal against the Brothers
even before the commencement of the performance? It may have been
so, but I should hesitate to assert it as a fact. The worst enemies
of the Davenports, at the performance in question, were themselves.
Do not let me be misunderstood: I regard them as very clever
fellows, inasmuch as, in the presence of other credible witnesses
and myself, they, more than once, by the aid of some agency, whether
of this world or the other, did some really marvellous things.
Their reputation and their personal merits as conjurors, mediums,
or wizards, whichever you may please to call them, remain still
unaffected in my eyes. But they have not the most elementary notion
of the temper of a Parisian audience; and to judge from the style in
which the _mise en scène_ of their miracles (!) was arranged, one
would think that they had never come out of their cupboard.

“It was at once obvious that they had to deal with a mistrustful
and keenly watchful audience, who should have been attacked with
energy, with a light steady hand, as when a skilful rider ‘lifts’
a horse which hesitates at a leap. If the rider hesitates as well
as the horse, he is lost. The performance was opened by a speech
from an interpreter, whose intention was excellent, and whose wish
to conciliate was evident, but who was also excessively nervous.
What he said was, in effect, as follows: ‘Gentlemen, the Brothers
Davenport, who have for ten years past enjoyed an extraordinary
reputation in America and in England, have not the advantage of being
able to speak your language. I am commissioned, therefore, on their
behalf to assure you that they do not desire, in any way, to induce
the public to believe that they have dealings with spirits. They
introduce themselves to you neither as wizards nor as conjurors; they
propose simply to enable you to witness phenomena, of the causes of
which they themselves are ignorant, leaving you alone to judge of the
effects which will be produced.’

“Such a platform seemed fair enough, and was well received.
Unfortunately, the interpreter, presuming too far on the friendly
encouragement which was vouchsafed to him, continued to speak, and
drifted into long and tedious explanations, which at last exhausted
the patience of the audience. The Davenports were loudly called for.
They came forward, and the tumult ceased.

“At last, then, the performance is about to commence. Not so fast!
The performers are actually on the stage, the three doors of the
cabinet stand wide open to receive them, but their ignorance of the
French language, their desire--real or assumed--for substantial
tests, the eagerness with which they unresistingly accept the
most minute examination, the obstinacy with which they compel the
representative of the general incredulity (alas! _I_ was that unhappy
person) to poke his nose everywhere,--all these produce delays, and
more delays. It would be almost better to be cheated, if only one was
cheated a little quicker. The spectators begin to groan, to sing, to
hiss, to laugh aloud, to yell, and finally to lose their temper.

“During this critical period we discharge the duties with which we
have been entrusted. We verify, we measure, we handle everything; and
finally, after examining the ropes which are provided for our use, we
tie, as best we may, the two Brothers to the seats of their cabinet.
The audience, in answer to an inquiry from the interpreter, reply
by acclamation that they are satisfied with our exertions. But a
gentleman with fair hair, whom I have since heard to be an engineer,
rises, and says, ‘The gentlemen are honestly tied up, but the method
of tying is weak; I will tie them myself in such a manner that they
cannot possibly get loose.’ He ties them accordingly, and returns
to his seat with a triumphant air. The doors of the cabinet close
upon the two Brothers, who, after a few minutes’ interval, appear,
released from their bonds. The audience applaud. The Davenports had
therefore succeeded in what I will call, provisionally, their ‘rope
trick,’ when the fair-haired gentleman, burning to avenge his defeat,
leaps impetuously on the platform, and shouts, ‘They are making fools
of us; it is a shameful hoax: the planks on which these gentlemen
are seated are hinged, and so enable them to get loose.’ So saying
he deals a vigorous blow on the plank in question, which breaks with
a loud noise, and, as happens when anyone pulls away the chair on
which one is seated, one of the Brothers Davenport naturally comes to
the ground. Everyone is on his feet in a moment, the storm spreads
throughout the assembly; everyone leaves his seat and goes to examine
for himself. Everybody is on the platform at once. People talk to
total strangers, just as happens in a political disturbance. M. Herz
begins to tremble for the safety of his hall.

“At this point the constables make a sharp and energetic entry,
and the performance comes to an end by the peremptory order of the
commissary of police.

“Even at the late hour at which I write these lines (Tuesday,
midnight) the Boulevards are still in a high state of excitement, and
nothing is spoken of but the Davenports. They will be quoted as ‘gone
down’ on the Stock Exchange to-morrow. The opinion which appears to
me to be most general is that they have been condemned with a sort of
coarse ferocity and without a fair trial. In truth, the very worst
of all hateful things, to my own mind, is _violence_. It disgraces
the fairest cause, and would prejudice us even against law and order
themselves, were we to find it enrolled under the same flag. I am
ready to suppose that the Davenports are clumsy impostors; but it
is none the less true that, in their Waterloo at _Salle Herz_, the
public has treated them with brutality, and therefore, in my eyes,
the public has placed itself in the wrong, even though it may be
right in the opinion it has formed.”

If they formed their opinion on the reception they had just met with, the Brothers Davenport must have had a queer impression of French hospitality. Many persons, in their place, would have been completely disheartened at such a reception, and would have then and there abandoned their enterprise. But they were determined to have a return match with their impulsive antagonist, whom they regarded, with some reason, as the principal cause of their unfortunate misadventure. The very next day, they invited several of the leaders of the press to come and examine their cabinet, which was then in course of repair. They showed readily enough that the mechanical arrangements referred to by their antagonist only existed in his own imagination, and that the hinges and movable portions of the piece of furniture in question had no other object save that of folding-up for convenience of packing.

The triumph of the fiery engineer was therefore of short duration. He might have read in several papers (the _Epoque_, the _Temps_, and the _Patrie_) of the very same day, a special article as follows:--

“M. D----, who was persuaded that he had discovered the trick, and
who had induced us, up to last evening, to share his conviction, was
clearly mistaken.

“The movable wooden cross-piece is not, in any sense, the _deus ex
machinâ_ of the apparatus. In fact, this cross-piece is now attached
to the upright portion of the cabinet by very substantial screws. The
whole affair is made of very slight boards, in whose thickness it
would be absolutely impossible to insert any mechanism, even of the
smallest dimensions. Neither above, below, or on either side, have
we discovered anything in the slightest degree suspicious. In vain
have we examined everything, sounded walls, taken up carpets, turned
chairs upside down; we are constrained to admit that if there is any
mechanism employed, it is utterly and absolutely invisible.”

Emboldened by this declaration, the Davenports inserted in all the newspapers a letter in which, after protesting against the violence to which they had been subjected, they announced their intention to continue their performances. The following is an extract therefrom:--

“M. D----, the engineer who, after having taken the platform by
assault, cried out, ‘We are the dupes of a shameful hoax,’--in order
to justify his exclamation, forcibly tore away an innocent stretcher,
which supported the seat on which one of us was seated in bonds. The
stretcher in question is of solid oak, contains no spring or other
mechanical device; and was only moved from its place by being broken
to pieces. We challenge M. D---- to come forward and himself verify
the truth of our statement, and like an honourable man, to admit that
he was mistaken.

“Our cabinet may be examined by any one who pleases; it contains
no appliance of any kind which can facilitate the phenomena which
take place in it. Further, if any one chooses to supply us with a
cabinet of the same form and dimensions as our own, constructed
wholly without our intervention, he can prove for himself that the
_séance_ of September 12 was but a series of premeditatedly hostile
demonstrations. We should at once have bowed to a judgment delivered
in a calm and equitable spirit; but we protest, with all our strength
and with just indignation, against the abuse and the brutality of
which, for some time past, we have been the victims; and we appeal
in all honesty from the judgment of an excited and partial mob to
the deliberate and fair examination of disinterested persons; nay,
even persons who start with a prejudice against us. With this view,
we shall continue to give our _séances_ in the _Salle Herz_, not
entertaining for a moment any doubt as to the ultimate result of our
appearance in public.”

The Davenport Brothers gave, in fact, a series of _séances_, which they had the good sense to exhibit in a room of smaller dimensions than the concert hall, and consequently better adapted for an exhibition of this kind. These performances passed off with comparative quietness. Every now and then there was a slight skirmish, or a passage of words, but they never degenerated into downright disorder. More frequently they assumed a comic character, leaving the laughers sometimes on the one side, sometimes on the other.

I myself was present on more than one occasion at these performances, and I derived therefrom the same amusement as I should have done in witnessing well-executed conjuring tricks; for I knew exactly how much to believe as to the nature of the “spiritualistic” manifestations of the two Brothers, and I often enjoyed a laugh at the calm assurance with which they played the part of passive instruments of the spirits of another world. To put it plainly, the Davenports were simply clever conjurors, who, in order to give greater prestige to their performances, thought fit to ascribe the effects of mere sleight-of-hand to the supernatural intervention of spirits. From a purely business point of view they were unquestionably wise, inasmuch as, up to the time of their misadventure at the _Salle Herz_, their receipts had been enormous. It was not, in truth, either rope tricks or dancing guitars that the public went to see: they attended “spiritualistic manifestations” in order to witness supernatural and inexplicable phenomena, and this alone induced them to pay so high an amount as twenty-five francs for admission. All said and done, the performances of the American Brothers were extremely interesting; and the _mise en scène_ was calculated to make a great impression. In order to give the reader some idea of the performance, I will describe it in detail; noting, at the same time, the impression which, to my own knowledge, it produced on the spectators. After having duly described these very surprising effects, I propose, in the next place, to give full explanations of the manner in which they were produced.

THE PERFORMANCE OF THE BROTHERS DAVENPORT.