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“I did not even know that there was such a psychology.”
“My dear sir, that shelf above the gem case is filled with volumes, fromAlbertus Magnus onward, which deal with no other subject. It is ascience in itself.”
“A science of charlatans.”
“The charlatan is always the pioneer. From the astrologer came theastronomer, from the alchemist the chemist, from the mesmerist theexperimental psychologist. The quack of yesterday is the professor ofto-morrow. Even such subtle and elusive things as dreams will in time bereduced to system and order. When that time comes the researches of ourfriends in the book-shelf yonder will no longer be the amusement of themystic, but the foundations of a science.”
“Supposing that is so, what has the science of dreams to do with a largeblack brass-rimmed funnel?”
“I will tell you. You know that I have an agent who is always on thelookout for rarities and curiosities for my collection. Some days ago heheard of a dealer upon one of the Quais who had acquired some oldrubbish found in a cupboard in an ancient house at the back of the RueMathurin, in the Quartier Latin. The dining-room of this old house isdecorated with a coat of arms, chevrons, and bars rouge upon a fieldargent, which prove, upon inquiry, to be the shield of Nicholas de laReynie, a high official of King Louis XIV. There can be no doubt thatthe other articles in the cupboard date back to the early days of thatking. The inference is, therefore, that they were all the property ofthis Nicholas de la Reynie, who was, as I understand, the gentlemanspecially concerned with the maintenance and execution of the Draconiclaws of that epoch.”
“What then?”
“I would ask you now to take the funnel into your hands once more and toexamine the upper brass rim. Can you make out any lettering upon it?”
There were certainly some scratches upon it, almost obliterated by time.The general effect was of several letters, the last of which bore someresemblance to a B.
“You make it a B?”
“Yes, I do.”
“So do I. In fact, I have no doubt whatever that it is a B.”
“But the nobleman
you mentioned would have had R for his initial.”
“Exactly! That’s the beauty of it. He owned this curious object, and yethe had some one else’s initials upon it. Why did he do this?”
“I can’t imagine; can you?”
“Well, I might, perhaps, guess. Do you observe something drawn a littlefurther along the rim?”
“I should say it was a crown.”
“It is undoubtedly a crown; but if you examine it in a good light, youwill convince yourself that it is not an ordinary crown. It is aheraldic crown—a badge of rank, and it consists of an alternation offour pearls and strawberry leaves, the proper badge of a marquis. We mayinfer, therefore, that the person whose initials end in B was entitledto wear that coronet.”
“Then this common leather filler belonged to a marquis?”
Dacre gave a peculiar smile.
“Or to some member of the family of a marquis,” said he. “So much wehave clearly gathered from this engraved rim.”
“But what has all this to do with dreams?” I do not know whether it wasfrom a look upon Dacre’s face, or from some subtle suggestion in hismanner, but a feeling of repulsion, of unreasoning horror, came upon meas I looked at the gnarled old lump of leather.
“I have more than once received important information through mydreams,” said my companion, in the didactic manner which he loved toaffect. “I make it a rule now when I am in doubt upon any material pointto place the article in question beside me as I sleep, and to hope forsome enlightenment. The process does not appear to me to be veryobscure, though it has not yet received the blessing of orthodoxscience. According to my theory, any object which has been intimatelyassociated with any supreme paroxysm of human emotion, whether it be joyor pain, will retain a certain atmosphere or association which it iscapable of communicating to a sensitive mind. By a sensitive mind I donot mean an abnormal one, but such a trained and educated mind as you orI possess.”
“You mean, for example, that if I slept beside that old sword upon thewall, I might dream of some bloody incident in which that very swordtook part?”
“An excellent example, for, as a matter of fact, that sword was used inthat fashion by me, and I saw in my sleep the death of its owner, whoperished in a brisk skirmish, which I have been unable to identify, butwhich occurred at the time of the wars of the Frondists. If you think ofit, some of our popular observances show that the fact has already beenrecognized by our ancestors, although we, in our wisdom, have classed itamong superstitions.”
“For example?”
“Well, the placing of the bride’s cake beneath the pillow in order thatthe sleeper may have pleasant dreams. That is one of several instanceswhich you will find set forth in a small _brochure_ which I am myselfwriting upon the subject. But to come back to the point, I slept onenight with this funnel beside me, and I had a dream which certainlythrows a curious light upon its use and origin.”
“What did you dream?”
“I dreamed—” He paused, and an intent look of interest came over hismassive face. “By Jove, that’s well thought of,” said he. “This reallywill be an exceedingly interesting experiment. You are yourself apsychic subject—with nerves which respond readily to any impression.”
