In another instance, Cardan has shewed his propensity to ascribe his natural peculiarities to mystical causes. • When I lived and lectured at Paris,' says he,

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looking accidentally at my hands, I 'saw, in the ring-finger of the right hand, the figure of a bloody sword, ' which alarmed me. In the evening ' a messenger arrived, with letters from my son-in-law, informing me of my 'son's imprisonment, and desiring me 'to go to Milan. That mark continued 'to spread for fifty-three days, till 'reached the point of the finger, and was as red and fiery as blood, to my great consternation. At midnight my

son was beheaded; next day the mark had nearly vanished, and in two days

afterwards, it was entirely gone.'* There can be little doubt, that this appearance was occasioned by an inflamed lymphatic. The voice of lamentation which

Cap. 37.

Cardan fancied he heard, about the time of his son's execution, was the result of the agitation of his mind, distracted with grief and terror. Beaumont's perception of sounds consisted chiefly in the tolling of bells, of different sizes, with occasional addresses from the spirits. It is singular, that he never suspected himself to labour under the disease of Corybantism, as it has been termed, though he describes it, as applied to others.

The most remarkable instance of this kind, is the story of Quarre, as quoted by Morhoff; but the proof of its accuracy is defective. Philebert de la Mare, in his life of Guion, takes occasion to introduce the story.

During the French civil wars, Quarreus, or Quarrè, and other magistrates of

*Polyhistor. Literar. Lib. i. Cap. 19. 9. Tom i,

p. 217.

the royal party, were obliged to quit Dijon, and remove to Saumur. In the month of August, 1594, about two o'clock in the morning, Quarrè was awakened by a sudden shock, and heard some unknown words pronounced. He awaked his servant, who lay in the room, and ordered him to strike a light, that he might write down the words, which he continued muttering to himself, lest he should forget them. Having written them, according to the sound, they ran thus: Oug aposondes ton endon distiguion. Neither himself nor the servant could imagine what the language was, Quarre being entirely ignorant of Greek. Early in the morning, he met with Guion, on his way to the court, and asked him to interpret the words, Guion knew, them to be Greek, and that they ought to be writ

ten,

Ουκ απώσῶντες τῶν ἐνδον δυςτυχίων :

And he added the translation: Non repulsuri, quod intus infortunium.

In attempting to unriddle the meaning of this mystical warning, Guion advised Quarrè to leave the house where he lodged in Saumur, the unwholesome air of which had occasioned him several attacks of the cholic. But eight days afterwards, the prediction was fulfilled. Quarrè went, on public on public business, to Flavignac, and during his absence, the house fell down in the night, and crushed its inhabitants to death. Guion is said to have written a poem on the escape of his friend. This story rests, I believe, on the unsupported assertion of La Mare. If it be authentic, it seems to belong to the class of dreams.

On the same principles we must explain the apparitions recorded by VINCENTIUS, in the SPECULUM HISTORIE, and extracted from him by WOLFIUS, in his LECTIONES MEMORABILES ET RECONDITE, particularly the appearance of Pope Benedict to the Bishop of

Capua. "Idem lib. 25. Damianus re"fert: Episcopus, inquit, quidam Capu"anus vidit Benedictum majorem Papam sibi olim familiarem, nigro, quasi

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corporabiter, equo insidentem: (vide. quam conveniant scripturæ Apoc. 6

cum historiis) at is territus ea visionę "dicebat: Heus tu, nonne es Papa "Benedictus, quem jam defunetum no"vimus? Ego sum, inquit, infelix iste. "Quomodo, inquit, est tibi, pater? "Graviter, inquit, torqueor, sed de Dei misericordia non dispero, si mihi adjutorium præbeatur, quia juvari pos66 sum: sed perge, quæso, ad fratrem "meum Joannem, qui nunc sedem apos"tolicam occupat, eique de mea parte

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dic, ut illam summam, quæ potissimé in "tali theca reposita est, in pauperes dis"tribuat: sicque me redimendum esse quandocumque, cum hoc divina mise

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" ratio decreverit, cognoscat, nam cætera

quæ pro me indigentibus tradita sunt,

nihil, mihi penitus profuerint eo, quod