"It was in India that man first recognized the fact that force is indestructible and eternal. This implies ideas more or less distinct of that which we now term its correlation and conservation. The changes which we witness are in its distribution." - Professor Draper.
"For all things that be not true, be lies."
"There is a principle in music which has yet to be discovered." - Sir John Herschel.
From the Chicago Tribune.
"That was a happy inspiration which led the Quintet Club, of Philadelphia, to pay a visit to the workshop of Keely a few weeks ago. Its members had been told that the illustrious inventor had employed the power of music to develop the wonderful forces of nature, and evolve by a law of sympathetic vibrations a mighty energy through the disintegration of a few drops of water. Naturally they were anxious to go. They were familiar with the claim by Paganini that he could throw down a building if he know the chord of the mass of masonry, and wanted to know if it were possible that the dreams of the great violinist is realized at last.
"So nearly as can be made out from the mysterious language of the man of many promises, there is a harmony of the universe that is controllable by the strains of music. Each of the molecules composing a mass of matter is in a state of incessant oscillation, and these movements can be so much changed by means of musical vibration that the matter will be disintegrated, its constituent molecules fly apart, and a propulsive force be generated similar to that which is evolved by the touching of a match to a single grain of powder stored in a magazine. He holds that matter is nothing but forces held in equilibrium, and that if the equilibrium be once destroyed the most tremendous consequences will ensue.
"According to the report, he proved to the satisfaction of more than one member of the club that he has already discovered the means of calling out this force, and is able to partially control it. In their presence he caused a heavy sphere to rotate rapidly or slowly, according to the notes given by the instrument on which he played. The sphere was so isolated as to prove that it could not be acted on by electricity or in any other way than by the sound waves. He disintegrated water into what he calls "etheric vapor" by means of a tuning fork and a zither. The disintegration of only four drops of water produced a pressure of 27,000 pounds to the square inch, and three drops of the harmless liquid fired off a cannon "with a tremendous roar."
"All this is wonderful - if true. And it is strangely parallel to the most advanced lines of modern thought in a scientific direction, if not coincident with them. There is the point. Is there a "thin partition" dividing the wisdom of the schools from the insanity of Keely, or will he yet prove his right to take rank among the greatest of earth's inventors? If he can do what is at present claimed for him, doing it honestly and without any hocus-pocus to beguile the fools, he has already earned a title higher than that worn by any man of the age. If he is simply cheating those to whom he exhibits his mechanism, he is one of the biggest charlatans that ever drew breath, and ought to be scouted accordingly. And here is the difficulty. The visit alluded to is claimed to have been made on May 9th, or fully six weeks ago. Surely if such results were achieved then as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, many others would ere this have been asked and permitted to witness a repetition of the experiments, and the scientific world would now be in a blaze of excited admiration of the man and his methods. But nothing further is said about it. Keely is still plodding away in his workshop, and the world is still rolling round in happy ignorance of what he has done towards revolutionizing existing lines of thought and modes of action. Surely something is radically wrong. The scientists owe it to themselves as well as to the inventor to see to it that this condition is not allowed to continue. They should appoint a commission to investigate, and find out whether Keely is a genius worthy of the highest honours and rewards that can be bestowed, an arrant impostor, whose fittest place would be the penitentiary, or a crank that ought to be put in a lunatic asylum. It is hard to resist the conclusion that he is one or the other of these, and in either case he is not getting his deserts. Let Keely be scientifically investigated. He has been permitted to remain in obscurity too long already. He should be reported on, no matter whether the result be to raise a mortal to the skies or send an alleged angel down to the depths of infamy as a life-long deceiver of his species."
[The Tribune is informed that the report was correct in every particular, and that Professor D. G. Brinton, of the University of Pennsylvania, has prepared a paper on the subject, and will publish it when Mr. Keely is ready to have his system made known.- Ed Inquirer.]
The writer of this article in the Chicago Tribune has expressed the prevailing sentiment of our time, in regard to Keely, as far as those are concerned who are in ignorance of the fact that Keely has discovered an unknown energy, and is working out a system which he must himself first learn, by researches into the laws of nature governing it, before he can apply it to mechanics, or make it even so much as understood by other.
The unprincipled journalist before alluded to, after failing in an attempt to obtain admission to Mr. Keely's workshop, wrote a series of articles for the press, recounting Keely's researching experiments in 1889 and 1890, as then shown to Professor Joseph Leidy, Dr. James Willcox, and others. This journalist, who professed to give woodcuts of Keely's researching instruments, was entirely ignorant of the fact that the experiments which he described had never once been repeated, during the last eighteen months; Keely having taken up researches on another line, as soon as he had gained sufficient control of the force he was handling to cause the solid bronze weight weighing six and three quarters lbs., to rise in the jar, rest midway, or remain stationary at will. The "Generator," described by this journalist in the Philadelphia Press of November 1st, 1891, never had any existence beyond the journalist's brain and the woodcut. It was represented as a square structure, "big and thick walled enough to hold a donkey engine," whereas the true disintegrator (or improved generator) is round, and about the size of the wheel of a baby's perambulator. This form of generator Mr. Keely has been using for about three years; suspending it from a staple in the ceiling, or against the wall, when using it in the dissociation of the so-called elements of water. Consequently, it was impossible for the force to be "conducted from a reservoir eight or ten squares distance," as suggested by this inventing journalist, who says that he "spent sleepless night" in devising the ways in which the generator was operated by Keely: asserting that "this extraordinary force was loaded like electricity through a wire and discharged like steam through a pipe."
In a romance called "The Prince and the Pauper" these lines occur: "For, look you, and it were not true, it would be a lie. It surely would be. Think not. For all things that be not true, be lies,- thou canst make naught else out of it." Never were true words written, and equally true is it that, as another author has written. "If the boy who cannot speak the truth, lives to be a man, and becomes a journalist, he will invent lie after lie as long as he can get a Journal to print them and to pay him for them." There are very few men, who take up journalist in the spirit of a St. Beuve. Quite as few are there who are competent to write, in any way, of Keely's discoveries and all that they involve. Even among men of science, only man has been found who is able to comprehend Keely's theories, and to handle them in a way to make them intelligible to other. S. Laing, in "Modern Thought," says, "Science traces everything back to primeval atoms and germs, and there it leaves us. How came these atoms and energies there, from which this wonderful universe of worlds has been evolved by inevitable laws? What are they in their essence, and what do they mean? The only answer is, "It is unknowable. It is behind the veil. Spirit may be matter, matter may be spirit." Keely's researches have been of a nature which, grappling with these mysteries, has brought them to the light. He tells us that spirit is the soul of matter, and that no matter exists without a soul.
"The sympathetic conditions that we call mind are no more immaterial in their character than light or electricity. The substance of the brain is molecular, while the substance of the mind that permeates the brain is interetheric, and is the element by which the brain is impregnated; exciting it into action and controlling all the conditions of physical motion, as long as the sympathetic equatative is in harmony, as between the first, second, and third orders of transmission; molecular, atomic and etheric. By this soul-substance is the physical controlled. In order to trace the successive triple impulses, taking the introductory one of sympathetic negative outreach, towards the cerebral neutrals, which awakens the latent element to action, we find that mind may be considered a specific order of interatomic motion sympathetically influenced by the celestial flow and that it becomes when thus excited by this medium a part and parcel of the celestial itself. Only under these conditions of sympathetic assimilation can it assert its power over the physical organisms; the finite associated with the infinite.
The brain is not a laboratory. It is as static as the head of the positive negative attractor,* until influenced by certain orders of vibration, when it reveals the true character of the outreach so induced. The brain is the high resonating receptacle where the sympathetic celestial acts and where molecular and atomic motion exhibits itself, as according to the intensification brought to bear upon it by the celestial mind flow.
The cerebral forces, in their control of the physical organism, reveal to us the infinite power of the finer or spiritual fluid, though not immaterial, over the crude molecular. The luminous, etheric, protoplastic element, which is the highest tenuous condition of the ether, fills the regions of infinite space, and in its radiating outreach gives birth to the prime neutral centres that carry the planetary worlds through their ranges of motion.
If the minds of all the most learned sages, of all time, were concentrated into one mind, that one would be too feeble, in its mental outreach, to comprehend the conditions associated with the fourth order of sympathetic condensation. The controversies of the past in regard to the condensation of invisible matter prove this. The chemistry of the infinite and the chemistry of the finite are as wide apart, in their sympathetic ranges, as is the velocity of light from the movement of the hour-hand of a clock. Even the analysis of the visible conditions taxes our highest powers of concentration.
The question naturally arises, Why is this condition of ether always under a state of luminosity of an especial order? Its characteristics are such, from its infinite tenuity and the sympathetic activity with which it is impregnated, that it possesses an order of vibratory, oscillatory velocity, which causes it to evolve its own luminosity. This celestial, latent power, that induces luminosity in this medium, is the same that registers in all aggregated forms of matter, visible and invisible. It is held in corpuscular embrace until liberated by a compound vibratory negative medium.
What does this activity represent, by which luminosity is induced in the high etheric realm? Does not the force following permeation by the Divine Will show that even this order of ether, this luminiferous region, is bounded by a greater region still beyond?-that it is but the shore which borders the realm, from which the radiating forces of the Infinite emanate: the luminiferous being the intermediate which transfers the will force of the Almighty towards the neutral centres of all created things, animate and inanimate, visible and invisible; even down into the very depths of all molecular masses. The activity of the corpuscles, in all aggregations, represents the outflow of this celestial force, from the luminiferous track, towards all these molecular centres of neutrality, and reveals to us the connecting link between mind and matter. How plainly are we thus taught that God is everywhere, and at the same time in every place. It gives us a new sense of the omniscience and omnipresence of the Creator. In these researches I am brought so near to the celestial conditions that my pen it ready to fall from my hand while writing on this subject; so more and more sensibly do I feel my abject ignorance of its depths. . . .
These conditions of luminosity have no thermal forces associated with them; although, paradoxically, all thermal conditions emanate from that source. The tenuity of this element accounts for it. It is only when these sympathetic streams come in conflict with the crudest elementary conditions, either the molecular or atomic, that heat is evolved from its latent state, and a different order of light from the etheric luminous is originated, which has all the high conditions of thermal force associated with it: the sun being the intermediate transmitter. Thus is shown the wonderful velocity of these sympathetic streams emanating from celestial space.
The sympathetic forces transmitted by our solar planet, to which our earth is so susceptible, are continuously received from the luminiferous realm; the sympathetic volume of which, as expended, is constantly equated by the exhaustless will force of the Creator. Had the solar energy been subservient to what physicists ascribe it, the sun would have been a dead planet thousands of centuries ago, as also all planets depending upon it as an intermediate.
In fact, all planetary masses are sympathetic-transferring-mediums, or intermediates, of this prime, luminous, dominant element. In the vibratory subdivision of matter, as progressive evolution has been analyzed, it is evident that these transfers of sympathetic force extend beyond the limits of our orbital range, from system to system, throughout the realms of space: these progressive systems becoming themselves, after a certain range of sympathetic motion, sympathetic intermediates, as included in the whole of one system, exemplified so beautifully in the cerebral convolutions, with their connective sympathy for each other; transferring as a whole on the focalizing centre, from which it radiates to all parts of the physical organism, controlling in all its intricate variety the sympathetic action, of our movements.
"What is there that we really know?" asks Buckle. "We talk of the law of gravitation, and yet we know not what gravitation is; we talk of the conservation of force and distribution of forces, and we know not what forces are." "The vibratory principles now discovered in physics," says Hemstreet, "are so fine and attenuated that they become an analogy to mental or cerebral vibrations." Let us see what Keely's system of vibratory physics says of gravity, cohesion, etc.
What is Gravity? - Gravity is an eternal existing condition in etheric space, from which all visible forms are condensed. Consequently, it is inherent in all forms of matter, visible and invisible. It is not subject to time nor space. It is an established connective link between all forms of matter from their birth, or aggregation. Time is annihilated by it, as it has already traversed space when the neutral centres of the molecules were established.
Gravity, then, is nothing more than an attractive, sympathetic stream, flowing towards the neutral center of the earth, emanating from molecular centres of neutrality; concordant with the earth's centre of neutrality, and seeking its medium of affinity with a power corresponding to the character of the molecular mass.
What is cohesion? - Cohesion is sympathetic negative attraction. It is the negative, vibratory assimilation, or aggregation, of the molecules, acting according to the density or compactness of the molecular grouping on their structures. The differing character of molecular densities, or molecular range of motion, represents differing powers of attraction. The lower the range of motions on the molecular vibrations of these structures, the greater is the attractive force that holds them together; and vice versa.
What is Heat? - Heat may be classed as a vibro atomic element, not exceeding 14,000 vibrations per second at its greatest intensity, latent in all conditions of matter both visible and invisible. The velocity of the sympathetic flows which emanate from our solar world, the sun coming into contact with our atmospheric medium, liberates this element in all the different degrees of intensity that give warmth to our earth. Light is another resultant; the different intensities of which are produced according to the different angles of this sympathetic projectment.
The light that emanates from a glow-worm is the resultant of the action of the sympathetic medium of the insect itself on a centre of phosphorescent matter, which is included in its structure. The resultant of the two conditions are quite different, but they are governed by the same laws of sympathetic percussion.
Radiation in the term used to express the reaching out of the thermal element, after its liberation from its corpuscular imprisonment, to be re-absorbed or returned again to its sympathetic environment; teaching us a lesson in the equation of disturbance of sympathetic equilibrium.
"By what means is force exerted, and what definitely is force? Given that force can be exerted by an act of will, do we understand the mechanism by which this is done? And if there is a gap in our knowledge between the conscious idea of a motion and the liberation of muscular energy needed to accomplish it how do we know that a body may not be moved without ordinary material by an act of will?" These questions were asked by Professor Lodge in his paper on "Time;" and as Keely contends that all metallic substances after having been subjected to a certain order of vibration may be so moved, let us see how he would answer these questions. When Faraday endeavoured to elaborate some of his "unscientific notions in regard to force and matter," men of science then said that Faraday's writings were not translatable into scientific language. The same has been said of Keely's writings. Pierson says, "The very fact that there is about the product of another's genius what you and I cannot understand is a proof of genius, i.e., of a superior order of faculties." Keely, who claims to have discovered the existence of hidden energy in all aggregations of matter, imprisoned there by the infinite velocity of molecular rotation, asserts that "physicists in their mental rambles in the realm of analytical chemistry, analytical as understood by them, have failed to discover the keynote which is associated with the flow of the mental element;" that "they have antagonized or subverted all the conditions," in this unexplored territory of negative research, which he has demonstrated as existing in reference to latent energy locked in corpuscular space. These antagonisms might have been sooner removed had those physicists who witnessed some of Keely's experiments, while he was still working blindfold as it were, in past years, not belonged to that class of scientists "who only see what they want to see, and who array facts and figures adroitly on the side of preconceived opinion." Since the last meeting of the British Association, Keely, in writing of some of the addresses delivered, says: "It delights me to find that physicists are verging rapidly toward a region which, when they reach, will enable them to declare to the scientific world what they now deny; viz., that immense volumes of energy exist in all conditions of corpuscular spaces. My demonstration of this truth have been ignored by them and now they must find it out for themselves. I do not doubt that they will reach it in their own way. I accept Professor Stoney's idea that an apsidal motion might be caused by an interaction between high and low tenuous matter; but such conditions, even of the highest accelerated motion, are too far down below the etheric realm to influence it sympathetically, even in the most remote way. I mean by this that no corpuscular action, nor interaction can disturb or change the character of etheric vibrations. The conception of the molecule disturbing the ether, by electrical discharges from its parts, is not correct; as the highest conditions associated with electricity come under the fourth descending order of sympathetic condensation and consequently its corpuscular realm is too remote to take any part towards etheric disturbance.
"Hypothesis is one thing and actual experimental demonstration is another; one being as remote from the other as the electrical discharges from the recesses of the molecule are from the tenuous condition of the universal ether. The conjecture as regards the motion being a series of harmonic elliptic ones, accompanied by a slow apsidal one, I believe to be correct. . . . The combination of these motions would necessarily produce two circular motions of different amplitudes whose differing periods might correspond to two lines of the spectrum, as conjectured, and lead the experimenter, perhaps, into a position corresponding to an ocular illusion. Every line of the spectrum, I think, consists not of two close lines, but of compound triple lines: though not until an instrument has been constructed, which is as perfect in its parts as is the sympathetic field that environs matter, can any truthful conclusion be arrived at from demonstrations."
It must be remembered that Keely claims to have demonstrated the subdivision of matter in seven distinct orders: molecular, intermolecular, atomic, interatomic, etheric, interetheric, reaching the compound interetheric in the seventh order. In commenting further upon the experimental researches of men of science to show whether ether in contact with moving matter is affected by the motion of such matter, Keely writes: "The motion of any matter of less tenuity than the ether cannot affect it any more than atmospheric air could be held under pressure in a perforated chamber. The tenuous flow of a magnet cannot be waived aside by a plate of heavy glass, and yet the magnetic flow is only of an interatomic character and far more crude than the introductory etheric. The etheric element would remain perfectly static under the travel of the most furious cyclone; it would pass through the molecular interstices of any moving projectile with the same facility that atmospheric air would pass though a coarse sieve. Ether could not be affected by the motion of less tenuous matter, but if the matter were of the same tenuous condition it would sympathetically associate itself with it; consequently there would be no motion any more than motion accompanies gravity.
In the same way that the mind flow induces motion on the physical organism, sympathetic flows on molecular masses induce motion on the molecular. The motion of the molecules in all vegetable and mineral forms in nature are the results of the sympathetic force of the celestial mind flow, or the etheric luminous, over terrestrial matter. This celestial flow is the controlling medium of the universe, and one of its closest associates is gravity. . . . The molecule is a world in itself, carrying with it all the ruling sympathetic conditions which govern the greatest of the planetary masses. It oscillates within its etheric rotating envelope with an inconceivable velocity, without percussing its nearest attendant, and is always held within its sphere of action by the fixed gravital power of its neutral center, in the same sympathetic order that exists between the planetary worlds. The dissociation of aggregated molecules by intermolecular vibration does not disturb even to an atomic degree these fixed neutral points. Each molecule contributes its quota to the latent electrical force, which shows up by expression after its gathering in the storm clouds, and then it returns to the molecular embrace it originally occupied. You may call this return, absorption; but it gets there first during corpuscular aggregation, and comes from there, or shows itself, during sympathetic disturbance of equilibrium.
"There are three kinds of electricity, the harmonic and enharmonic, which, with their leader, the dominant, form the first triple. Their sympathetic associations evolve the energy of matter. The dominant is electricity luminous, or propulsive positive. The harmonic, or the magnetic, which is the attractive, with its wonderful sympathetic outreach, is the negative current of the triune stream. The enharmonic, or right neutral, acts as the assimilative towards the reinstatement of sympathetic disturbance. In electric lighting, the velocity of the dynamos accumulates only the harmonic current - by atomic and interatomic conflict - transferring one two hundred thousandth of the light that the dominant current would give, if it were possible to construct a device whereby it could be concentrated and dispersed. But this supreme portion can never be handled by any finite mode. Each of these currents has its triple flow, representing the true lines of the sympathetic forces that are constantly assimilating with the polar terrestrial envelope. The rotation of the earth is one of the exciters that disturbs the equilibrium of these sensitive streams. The alternate light and darkness induced by this motion helps to keep up the activity of these streams, and the consequent assimilation and dissimilation. The light zone being ever followed by the dark zone, holds the sympathetic polar wave constant in its fluctuation. This fact may be looked upon as the foundation of the fable that the world rests upon a tortoise. The rotation of the earth is controlled and continued by the action of the positive and negative sympathetic celestial streams. Its pure and steady motion, so free from intermitting impulses, is governed to the most minute mathematical nicety by the mobility of the aqueous portion of its structure, i.e., its oceans and ocean's anastomosis. There is said to be a grain of truth in the wildest fable, and herein we have the elephant that the tortoise stands on. The fixed gravital centres of neutrality, the sympathetic concordants to the celestial outreach, that exist in the interatomic position, are the connective sympathetic links whereby the terrestrial is held in independent suspension. We cannot say that this corresponds to what the elephant stands upon, but we can say, "This is the power whereby the elephant is sympathetically suspended."
Question asked in Clerk Maxwell's memoirs: "Under what form, right, or light, can an atom be imagined?" Keely replies, "it eludes the grasp of the imagination, for it is the introductory step to a conception of the eternity of the duration of matter. The magnitude of the molecule, as compared to the interatom, is about on the same ratio as a billiard ball to a grain of sand; the billiard ball being the domain wherein the triple intermolecules rotate, the intermolecules again being the field wherein the atomic triplets sympathetically act, and again progressively, in the interatomic field, the first order of the etheric triplets begins to show its sympathetic inreach for the centres of neutral focalization. It is impossible for the imagination to grasp such a position.
Interatomic subdivision comes under the order of the fifth dimensional space in etheric condensation. Atoms and corpuscules can be represented by degrees of progressive tenuity, as according to progressive subdivision, but to imagine the ultimate position of the atomic alone would be like trying to take a measurement of immeasurable space. We often speak of the borders of infinite. No matter what the outreach may be, nor how minute the corpuscular subdivision, we still remain on the borders, looking over the far beyond, as one on the shore of a boundless ocean who seeks to cross it with his gaze. Therefore, philosophically speaking, as the atom belongs to the infinite and the imagination to the finite, it can never be comprehended in any form or light, nor by any right; for in the range of the imagination it is as a bridge of mist which can never be crossed by any condition that is associated with a visible molecular mass, that is, by mind as associated with crude matter.
Sympathetic outreach is not induction. They are quite foreign to each other in principle. Sympathetic outreach is the seeking for concordance to establish an equation on the sympathetic disturbance of equilibrium. When a magnet is brought into contact with a keeper, there is no induction of magnetism from the magnet into the keeper. The static force of the magnet remains unchanged, and the action between the two may be compared to a sympathetic outreach of a very limited range of motion. The sympathetic outreach of the moon towards the earth, has a power strong enough to extend nearly a quarter of a million of miles to lift the oceans out of their beds. This is not the power of induction. . .
The sympathetic envelope of our earth owes its volume and its activity entirely to celestial radiating forces. Reception and dispersion are kept up by atomic and interatomic conflict, as between the dominant and enharmonic.
Silver represents the 3rd, gold the 6th, and platina the 9th, in their links of association, one to the other, in the molecular range of their motions, when submitted to vibratory impulses.
If an introductory impulse, representing the sympathetic chord of transmission, say B flat, or any other chord, be given to a sectional transmitting wire, the molecular triple, that is carried sympathetically along the path of such transmitter by the differentiation induced, excites high sympathy with the polar terrestrial stream. The polar terrestrial, being triune in its character, requires a triune sympathizer to meet its differential requirements: silver the harmonic, gold the enharmonic, and platina the dominant. When this triple metallic condition is properly sensitized, by any chord on the dominant, combined molecular, differentiated action is induced; showing a condition approaching magnetism in its development of related sympathy, without having the conditions that are truly magnetic, as this term (magnetic) is understood by all physicists.
Magnetism is not polar negative attraction, any more than polar negative attraction is magnetism; for polar negative attraction shows positive sympathetic outreach, of a high order; which is a condition entirely foreign to magnetism.
Sympathetic negative attraction is not the resultant of electrical sympathization, but it includes the full triune flow; the dominant being the leader and associate of the celestial. The sympathetic outreach, of negative attraction, is the power that holds the planetary masses in their orbital ranges of oscillatory action. Magnetism has no outreach, but it pervades all terrestrial masses - all planetary masses. It is highly electrical in its character, in fact magnetism is born of electricity; whereas negative attraction is not, but it has a sympathetic outreach for magnetism. Magnetism is static. Sympathetic negative attraction reaches from planet to planet; but electricity does not, nor does magnetism. Sympathetic negative attraction is born of the celestial, and impregnates every mass that floats in space: seeking out all magnetic or electric conditions; and all these masses are subservient to celestial outreach. All the magnets in the world could not induce rotation, no matter how differentiated, but polar negative attraction induces rotation.
"The horizon of matter, which has been thought to rest over attenuated hydrogen, may extend to infinite reaches beyond, including stuffs or substances which have never been revealed to the senses. Beings fashioned of this attenuated substance might walk by our side unseen, nor cast a shadow in the noon-day sun." - Hudson Tuttle.
This supposition of itself admits that hydrogen is a compound. If it were indivisible it would assimilate with the high luminous, from which all substances are formed or aggregated. If hydrogen were a simple it could not be confined. No molecular structure known to man can hold the inter-luminous; not even the low order of it that is chemically liberated. The word "attenuated" admits that hydrogen is a compound. I contend that hydrogen is composed of three elements, with a metallic base, and comes under the order of the second atomic, both in vibration and sympathetic outreach.
Hydrogen exists only where planetary conditions exist: there it is always present, but never in uninterfered space. There is much celestial material that has never been revealed to the senses. My researches lead me to think that hydrogen carries heat in a latent condition, but I do not believe it will ever be possible to originate a device that will vibrate hydrogen with a velocity to induce heat.
The word imponderable as applied to a molecule is incorrect. All gases as well as atmospheric air are molecular in their structures. If atmospheric air is subdivided, by atomic vibration, it merely dissociates the hydrogen from the oxygen; neither of which, though disunited, passes from the intermolecular state; and not until hydrogen is sympathetically subdivided in its intermolecular structure by interatomic vibrations can it assimilate with the introductory etheric element. There is a wonderful variation of gravital sympathy between the gaseous elements of compounds, all of which comes under the head of molecular. . . .
Under date of October 1st, 1891, Mr. Keely writes: I see no possibility of failure, as I have demonstrated that my theories are correct in every particular, as far as I have gone; and if I am not handicapped in any way during the next eight months, and my depolarizer is perfect, I will then be prepared to demonstrate the truth of all that I assert in reference to disintegration, cerebral diagnosis, aerial suspension and dissociation, and to prove the celestial gravital link of sympathy as existing between the polar terrestrial and equation of mental disturbance of equilibrium. It is a broad assertion for one man, and 'an ignorant man' at that, to make; but the proof will then be so overwhelming in its truthful simplicity that the most simple-minded can understand it. Then I will be prepared to give to science and to commerce a system that will elevate both to a position far above that which they now occupy.
Again, November 4th, Mr. Keely says: The proper system for the treatment of cerebral differentiation is not yet known to the physician of to-day. The dissimilarities of opinion existing, with regard to any case, are confounding. When the true system is recognized, the vast number of physical experimentalists, now torturing humanity, will die a natural death. Until this climax is reached, physical suffering must go on multiplying at the same ratio that experimentalists increase. Molecular differentiation is the fiend that wrecks the physical world using the seat of the cerebral forces as its intermediate transmitter. It is the devastating dragon of the universe, and will continue to devastate until a St. George arises to destroy it. The system of equating molecular differentiation is the St. George that will conquer.
When my system is completed for commerce, it will be ready for science and art. I have become an extensive night worker, giving not less than eighteen hours a day, in times of intensification. I have timed my race for life and I am bound to make it. . . .
New York Truth, 15th May, 1890, in commenting upon Keely's claims to have "annihilated gravity and turned the mysterious polar current to a mill-race," continues: "I sincerely hope that Mr. Keely may prove, AS FROM LATE DEVELOPMENTS HE IS LIKE TO DO, that the hidden spirit of the Cosmos, which men call Deity, First Cause, Nature, and other sonorous but indefinite names, has manifested itself to him; that the music of the spheres a truth, not an imagination, and that vibration, which is sight, hearing, taste and smell, is in serious verity, all else. The fable of Orpheus and Arion may have a foundation in actual physics, the harmonies that move our souls to grief or joy as music, may be the same as those that govern and impel the stars in their courses, cause molecules to crystallize into symmetry, and from symmetry into life. Who shall say? IF THE ACCOUNTS OF KEELY'S LATE ACHIEVEMENTS BE TRUE, AND THEY ARE HONESTLY VOUCHED FOR BY MEN OF WORTH AND NOTE, THEN THE SECRET IS LAID BARE, THE CORE OF BEING IS OPENED OUT. In this age of dawning reason the candle cannot always be hidden under a bushel; some enterprising hand will lift the obstruction and let the light shine before men."
Two years have nearly passed away since this was written, during which time Mr. Keely has been engaged in perfecting his system for aerial navigation. He has, one by one, overcome all obstacles, and so far gained control, of the mysterious polar current, that he has been able to exhibit on the thirds, or molecular graduation of the propeller of his air-ship, 120 revolutions in a minute; and on the sixths, or atomic graduation, 360 revolutions in a minute. He still has the etheric field to conquer; but those who know how many years he has been making his mistakes, stepping-stones in his upward progress, surmounting obstacle after obstacle which would have dismayed a less courageous soul, feel little doubt that he will "make the race," which he has timed for life, and reach the goal a conqueror, notwithstanding he is still so often "handicapped." See 12.07 - Keelys Thirds Sixths and Ninths
All those who had the privilege of witnessing Keely's researching experiments, in the spring of 1890, when he first succeeded in raising the metal weight, and who were sufficiently acquainted with the laws of physics to understand the condition under which the weight was raised, pronounced the force by which it was affected to be an unknown force. Had the weight been but a nail or a feather, lifted under such conditions, physicists know that, after he has gained as perfect control of it as we now have of steam, air-ships weighing thousands of tons can be raised to any height in our atmosphere, and the seemingly untraversable highways of the air opened to commerce.
This force is not, like steam or electricity, fraught with danger in certain states to those who use it; for, after the molecular mass of the vessel has been fitted to the conditions required, its control becomes of such a nature that seemingly a star might as soon go astray, and be lost to the universe, as for the aerial ship to meet with an accident, unless its speed was pushed to that point where gravity resumes its control. In fact, Keely asserts that there is no known force so safe to use as the polar terrestrial force, for when the celestial and terrestrial conditions are once set up, they remain for ever; perpetual molecular action the result.
In using the word celestial, Keely refers to the air, in the same sense that terrestrial refers to the earth.
Wide through the waste of ether, sun and star
All linked by harmony, which is the chain
That binds to earth the orbs that wheel afar
Through the blue fields of Nature's wide domain. Percival.
From the New York Home Journal.
THE SONG OF THE CARBONS.*
A weird, sweet melody, faint and far,
A humming murmur, a rhythmic ring,
Floats down from the tower where the lenses are:-
Can you hear the song which the carbons sing?
Millions of æons have rolled away
In the grand chorale which the stars rehearse,
Since the note, so sweet in our song to-day,
Was struck in the chord of the universe.
The vast vibration went floating on
Through the diapason of space and time,
Till the impulse swelled to a deeper tone,
And mellowed and thrilled with a finer rhyme.
Backward and forward the atoms go
In the surging tide of that soundless sea,
Whose billows from nowhere to nowhere flow,
As they break on the sands of eternity.
Yet, through all the coasts of the endless All,
In the ages to come, as in ages gone,
We feel but the throb of that mystic thrall
Which binds responsive the whole in one.
We feel but the pulse of that viewless hand
Which ever has been and still shall be,
In the stellar orb and the grain of sand,
Through nature's endless paternity.
The smile which pays in the maiden's glance,
Or stirs in the beat of an insect's wing.
Is of kin with the north light's spectral dance,
Or the dazzling zone of the planet's ring.
From our lonely tower aloft in air,
With the breezes around us, tranquil and free,
When the storm rack pales in the lightning's glare,
Or the starlight sleeps in the sleeping sea,
We send our greeting through breathless space,
To our distant cousins, the nebulae,
And catch in the comet's misty trace,
But a drifting leaf from the tribal tree.
The song we hum is but one faint sound
In the hymn which echoes from pole to pole,
Which fills the domes of creation's round,
And catches its key from the over-soul.
And when it ceases all life shall fail,
Time's metronome shall arrested stand;
All voice be voiceless, the stars turn pale,
And the great conductor shall drop his wand.
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Analysis, Assimilation, and Scholarly Discussion of Keely and His Discoveries, Chapter XVII (1891): More of Keely's Theories and His Traducers Exposed
Introduction
Chapter XVII presents an in-depth exploration of John Keely’s theories and demonstrations, defending his work against critics while contextualizing his discoveries within broader scientific and philosophical paradigms. It reinforces Keely’s assertions about vibratory physics, etheric energy, and the interplay between matter, force, and consciousness. Notably, the chapter weaves connections to prominent scientific and literary figures, enhancing Keely’s credibility and situating his work within an evolving intellectual framework.
Keely's Theories: Core Concepts
Sympathetic Vibrations:
Keely postulated that all matter is composed of oscillating molecules, held in equilibrium by sympathetic forces. Disrupting this equilibrium through vibratory resonance could unlock vast energies, including disintegration of matter into "etheric vapor."
Demonstration: Keely reportedly caused heavy spheres to rotate or water to disintegrate using musical instruments, such as a zither and a tuning fork, generating extraordinary pressures from minute quantities of water.
Matter as Energy in Equilibrium:
Keely argued that matter is essentially energy condensed into stable forms. By disturbing this stability, energy could be released for practical applications.
Etheric and Celestial Forces:
The ether, a ubiquitous, tenuous medium, is the source of latent energy within all matter. Keely believed that harnessing etheric forces could revolutionize technology, including aerial navigation and energy systems.
Triune Currents:
Keely described three interdependent forces—harmonic (magnetic), enharmonic (neutralizing), and dominant (propulsive)—operating within all matter. These forces (369), he claimed, govern universal motion and provide the basis for vibratory physics.
Prominent Figures Mentioned
1. Professor D.G. Brinton
Role: Brinton was one of Keely’s staunchest advocates, applying his scientific acumen to interpret Keely’s ideas. His "Laws of Being" clarified Keely’s complex theories for broader comprehension.
Contribution: Brinton prepared a paper on Keely’s system, further defending its legitimacy. His rigorous approach lent academic credibility to Keely’s controversial claims.
2. Professor Joseph Leidy
Role: A prominent anatomist and paleontologist, Leidy vouched for Keely’s sincerity and his discovery of a new force.
Significance: Leidy’s endorsement strengthened Keely’s position among skeptical academics, highlighting the revolutionary potential of his work.
3. Sir John Herschel
Connection: Herschel’s statement that music harbored an undiscovered principle resonates with Keely’s use of sound to manipulate vibratory states. Herschel’s broader recognition of hidden natural laws aligns with Keely’s explorations.
4. Mark Twain (Prince and the Pauper reference)
Connection: Twain’s critique of dishonesty parallels Keely’s struggles with journalistic misrepresentation. The analogy underscores the ethical responsibility of accurately portraying scientific discoveries.
5. Professor Lodge:
Influence: Lodge’s exploration of force and its potential mental origins echoes Keely’s belief in the connection between mind, ether, and matter.
6. Hudson Tuttle:
Philosophical Alignment: Tuttle’s description of "attenuated hydrogen" and invisible beings aligns with Keely’s view of hydrogen as a compound rather than a simple element. Both envisioned matter and consciousness as intimately linked through unseen forces.
Keely’s Practical Demonstrations
Sympathetic Disintegration:
Keely demonstrated the ability to disintegrate water into etheric vapor, reportedly generating pressures of 27,000 pounds per square inch. This phenomenon exemplifies his assertion that vibratory resonance could liberate immense energy from small quantities of matter.
Aerial Navigation:
Keely applied his theories to construct a prototype airship. By achieving 120 revolutions per minute on molecular graduation and 360 revolutions per minute on atomic graduation of the ship’s propeller, he showed progress toward etheric propulsion.
Polar Current:
Keely claimed to harness terrestrial and celestial polar forces for controlled applications, including gravity defiance and molecular manipulation.
Criticism and Misrepresentation
Journalistic Distortions
The chapter condemns a journalist who fabricated descriptions of Keely’s generator, undermining his credibility. This critique emphasizes the broader issue of misrepresentation in science reporting, especially for unorthodox discoveries.
Resistance from Scientists
Skepticism among physicists is attributed to:
Preconceived Notions: Critics often dismissed Keely’s findings without thorough investigation.
Conventional Paradigms: Keely’s discoveries challenged established theories, necessitating a paradigm shift that many were unwilling to entertain.
Parallel with Historical Figures
Keely’s treatment mirrors past resistance faced by pioneers like Galileo, Harvey, and Jenner, whose revolutionary ideas initially encountered ridicule before gaining acceptance.
Philosophical Implications
Matter and Spirit:
Keely asserted that spirit animates matter, describing it as "the soul of matter." This idea integrates physical science with metaphysics, suggesting that the universe operates as a cohesive, conscious system.
Luminosity of Ether:
Keely theorized that etheric substances emit light due to their inherent vibratory activity. This concept prefigures modern understandings of energy fields and quantum luminescence.
Sympathetic Outreach vs. Induction:
Keely distinguished sympathetic outreach—a resonance-based connection—from electromagnetic induction. This nuanced understanding of force anticipates concepts in quantum entanglement and field theory.
Modern Relevance
Quantum Mechanics:
Keely’s subdivision of matter into molecular, atomic, and etheric realms parallels quantum theories of matter and energy. His descriptions of vibratory forces and latent energy anticipate concepts like zero-point energy.
Acoustic Manipulation:
The use of sound waves to influence matter finds resonance in contemporary technologies such as acoustic levitation and sonochemistry.
Sustainable Energy:
Keely’s vision of clean, inexhaustible energy aligns with modern efforts to harness renewable and non-polluting energy sources.
Conclusion
Chapter XVII encapsulates Keely’s groundbreaking theories and the challenges he faced in gaining recognition. By linking his work to the thoughts of eminent scientists and philosophers, the chapter situates Keely as a visionary whose ideas, though controversial, align with the trajectory of scientific progress. The parallels between his vibratory physics and modern quantum and field theories underscore the enduring relevance of his discoveries. Despite resistance from critics, Keely’s explorations of matter, energy, and consciousness continue to inspire curiosity and hold transformative potential.
See Also
AI Interpretations of SVP
Chronology
Keely and His Discoveries
12.07 - Keelys Thirds Sixths and Ninths