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490 TESTIMONY OF CONTEMPORARIES. [Doc. 257.
which I have been informed by old Sch * (K’s son
in-law). His brother-in-law P. d. Sch- , whose first wife
was a sister of Sch’s wife, married a second time a
certain Miss G— . During the wedding celebration the con
versation turned upon spiritual apparitions. All the three
clergyman B , E , and S were present, and took
opposite grounds to Sch , who maintained their possibility.
At last Swedenborg’s name was mentioned, and he was at
once condemned by the preachers as a fanatic and heretic,
and his relations were stigmatized as falsehoods and re
veries. " Gentlemen," said the bride’s brother who resided
in Amsterdam, "are you willing to believe me, if I tell you
something concerning Swedenborg which I have seen and
heard." Everybody knew Mr. G― to be a man who feared
God and loved the truth, and therefore all acknowledged that
they would feel compelled to believe his testimony. He con
tinued, " In the year 1762, on the very day when the Emperor
Peter III of Russia216 died, Swedenborg was present with me
at a party in Amsterdam. In the middle of the conversation,
his physiognomy became changed, and it was evident that his
soul was no longer present in him, and that something was
taking place with him. As soon as he recovered, he was
asked what had happened? At first he would not speak out,
but after being repeatedly urged, he said, ’
Now, at this very
hour the Emperor Peter III has died in prison, explaining
the nature of his death. Gentlemen, will you please to make
a note of this day, in order that you may compare it with
the announcement of his death, which will appear in the news
papers.’ The papers soon after announced the death of the
Emperor, which had taken place on the very same day."
"Such is the account of my friend. If any one doubts this
statement, it is a proof that he has no sense of what is called
historical faith and its grounds ; and that he believes only what
he himself sees and hears."
Concerning Jung-Stilling’s explanation of Swedenborg’s
mental state, see Note 215.
* Jung-Stilling adds here, "I am personally acquainted with all the
persons whose names occur in this narrative ; and the bride who is men
tioned here has since been a patient of mine."
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