Love or trusting sympathy from any human being, however humble, is the most charming thing in life, and it ought to be the main object of existence.  Yet there are thousands all round us, yes, many among our friends or acquaintances, who live and die without ever having known it, because in their egotism and folly they conceive of close relations as founded on personal power, interest or the weakness of others.  The only fascination which such people can ever exercise is that of the low and devilish kind, the influence of the cat on the mouse, the eye of the snake on the bird, which in the end degrades them into deeper evil.  That there are such people, and that they really make captive and oppress weaker minds, by suggestion, is true; the marvel being that so few find it out.

But in proportion as this kind of fascination is vile and mean, that which may be called altruistic or sympathetic attraction, or Enchantment, is noble and pure, because it acquires strength in proportion to the purity and beauty of the soul or will which inspires it.  It is as real and has as much power, and can be exercised by any honest person whatever with wonderful effect, even to the performing what are popularly called “miracles,” which only means wonderful works beyond our power of explanation.  But this kind of fascination is little understood as yet, simply because it is based on purity, morality and light, and hitherto the seekers for occult mysteries have been chiefly occupied with the gloomy and mock-diabolical rubbish of old tradition, instead of scientific investigation of our minds and brains.

There is also in truth a Fascination by means of the Voice, which has in it a much deeper and stronger power or action than that of merely sweet sound as of an instrument.  The Jesuit, GASPAR SCHOTT, in his Magio Medica treats of Fascination as twofold:  De Fascinatione per Visunt et Vocem.  I have found among Italian witches as with Red Indian wizards, every magical operation depended on an incantation, and every incantation on the feeling, intonation, or manner in which it is sung.  Thus near Rome any peasant overhearing a scongiurasione would recognize it from the sound alone.

Anyone, male or female, can have a deep, rich voice by simply subduing and training it, and very rarely raising it to a high pitch. Nota bene that the less this is affected the more effective it will be.  There are many, especially women, who speak, as it were, all time in italics, when they do not set their speech in small caps or displayed large capitals.  The result of this, as regards sound, is the so-called nasal voice, which is very much like caterwauling, and I need not say that there is no fascination in it—­on the contrary its tendency is to destroy any other kind of attraction.  It is generally far more due to an ill-trained, unregulated, excitable, nervous temperament than to any other cause.