Report of the Commissioners on Animal Magnetism

Such is the Agent that the Commissioners were charged with examining, & whose properties are attested to by Mr. Deslon, who accepts all of Mr. Mesmer's principles. This theory forms the basis of a Memoir In this context, a "Memoir" refers to a formal written statement or report presented to a learned society. which was read at Mr. Deslon’s house on May 9, in the presence of the Lieutenant General of Police A high-ranking official in the Ancien Régime responsible for public order, health, and safety in Paris. & the Commissioners. It is established in this Memoir that there is but one nature, one disease, one remedy; & this remedy is Animal Magnetism. This Physician, in instructing the Commissioners on the doctrine & procedures of Magnetism, taught them its practice by showing them the poles Mesmer believed the human body, like a magnet, possessed poles through which the magnetic fluid flowed., by showing them the manner of touching the sick, & of directing this magnetic fluid upon them.

Propositions from Mr. Deslon. Commitment he makes to the Commissioners.

Mr. Deslon committed himself to the Commissioners, 1st to confirm the existence of Animal Magnetism; 2nd to communicate his knowledge of this discovery; 3rd to prove the utility of this discovery & of Animal Magnetism in the cure of diseases.

Description of the treatment.

After having acquired this knowledge of the theory & practice of Animal Magnetism, it was necessary to know its effects; the Commissioners transported themselves, & each of them several times, to Mr. Deslon’s treatment room. They saw in the middle of a large hall a circular chest, made of oak wood & raised a foot or a foot and a half, which is called the baquet Original: "le baquet." A central piece of equipment in Mesmerism, this "tub" contained bottles of "magnetized" water and iron rods to conduct the fluid to patients.; which makes the

(b) In the same place. Notice to the Reader, page VI. Original: "Ibid. Avis au Lecteur."