"Did you give Maria my regards?" " Of course." "Every time." "Have you had a chance to talk to her about our agreement?" "No, not directly..." "Perhaps you do not wish to let go of her after all?" "Maria is not well; on the contrary, her condition has worsened." "Next, please." "Dr. Stenius..." "I believe vaccination to be a sin." "Vaccination is not a matter of faith." "It is something we know." "Whom God protects needs fear no danger." "If you have been vaccinated you do not get the disease." "Hello, Oscar." " Hello." "You are right to obey God." "He wants you to show respect for the life he has given." "What a big boy!" "So he wants you to protect your son from any dangers   you can deal with without his help." "Dr. Selander!" "Allow me to drive you home!" "But Governor, you are going in the opposite direction." "One can change directions." "I can, at any rate." "Look in on us tonight!" "It begins there..." "It hurts like the devil." "The nail is inflamed." "It is painful." "But at least there will be no epidemic." "Ah, Doctor..." "what would we do without you?" "You can cure everything!" "No... not everything." "Father!" "At last!" "It did sound lovely." "You are weary." "Shall we go for a walk once I have attended to my patients?" "You know I can't face that." "You haven't been out for months." " It will be too much for me." "We shall promenade as usual." "Are we on the high street now?" " Indeed we are." "And here come Mrs. Grip and Mrs. Carlander." "How they whisper and gossip!" "About me?" " No." "They are whispering about me." "Mrs. Grip is vexed with me   because she has not paid for her last treatment yet." "You forgot the curtains, Doctor." "What will the neighbours think?" "Your patients are still waiting." "There's Marianne Hedenius!" "She has just had a baby girl." "I delivered her myself." "Come and look!" "We usually have more fun than this." "Wouldn't you like a baby?" " Don't talk to me about babies." "Father..." "Father..." "Father..." "Father..." "Father, dear, don't be sad." "All will be well." "I promise." "Johann Sebastian Bach..." " No." "They're called Selander." "I do believe the pianist is blind." "A new way of playing it..." "Stenius?" "Come in !" "... Go on playing, Maria." "No, you know I only play for you." "Good evening, Maria." "It has been a long time." "I have brought you a small gift." "Eva-Stina!" "Maria's medicine!" "Quickly!" "There, there..." "It has nothing to do with you." "She won't let anyone else touch her but I." "If I could only tell her what I feel for her..." "You know I'd like nothing more than to see her happily married to you." "Then I could stop worrying about the future." "Very nice." "But expensive." "Half the money went." " It's an investment." "It will be repaid in plenty." "The tailor said your old coat was made by the court suppliers in Paris." "Chez Monsieur Arcel." "What else have you discovered?" "Among the old and poor there's the usual..." "But what about the gentry, the rich?" "Come on, tell me!" "Their names, ages, complaints!" "The notary, Brolin. 47 years old." "He has romantism..." "Rheumatism." "Precisely." "Any more women?" " There is Maria Selander. 20." "She lost her sight 10 years ago during the Russian invasion." "Her father is Dr. Selander, the governor's personal physician." "Not bad..." "Selander." "Yes... and then there's a Mrs Hofverberg, 32,   with a swelling in her belly." "Her husband is 80." "The richest man in town." "No variation in the colorum video." "Did you know that a quack has come to town?" "Meisner." "From Germany." "But he speaks Danish." "They say he can bring on the rain   and heal pigs." "We've no pigs and we've plenty of rain." "He should be had up before he puts ideas into people's heads." "You can't judge the man on gossip alone." "Surely by now you should be able to diagnose my wife's condition?" "Tell the truth, Doctor." "I am pregnant!" "No, Mrs. Hofverberg, there is no sign of pregnancy." "Just as I said!" "Of course there is no pregnancy." "There is a Mr. Meisner to see you." "My name is Stenius." "How may I be of service?" "Friedrich Meisner, doctor and magnetist,   formerly of Berlin and Paris." "A magnetist?" "How interesting!" "To what does our little town owe the honour of your visit, Dr. Kleiner?" "Meisner." "I was just passing through   and heard that the lady of the house was sick." "I came to offer my help." "How considerate!" "Mrs. Hofverberg is ill, yes; and I am her physician." "I am looking forward to working with the doctors here   and demonstrating the efficacy of my methods..." "On people?" "Or on pigs, Dr. Kleiner?" "You've been gossiping about rain and pigs again." "It has got to stop." "We have more pressing business to attend to." "Spread word that I cured a blind woman in Paris." "Roll up!" "Roll up!" "See the laterna magica!" "You've never seen the like..." "Such a pretty girl should not have her face disfigured like that." "I can remove your warts." "Would you like that?" "What?" " No medical practice in the square." "I wouldn't dream of violating the laws of the town." "I will buy your warts." "If you accept this coin I shall have bought your warts." "Every morning when you look in your mirror there will be fewer." "In a week they'll all be gone." "Stop it!" "This is not permitted!" "Dr. Selander!" "Is this man really to be allowed to practice here?" "We may surely allow this modest purchase of warts..." "Dr. Selander, may I introduce myself?" "Friedrich Meisner, magnetist, doctor." "Well, I never..." "Have you been reading all night?" " No, no, of course not." "And you call yourself a doctor!" "What about your own health?" "They've almost gone." "Yes, it would seem so." "Did you come just for the warts?" " I came for some fish." "A salmon... that one." "Here..." "There you are, Sir." "Wait!" "Wait, damn it!" "So Miss Selander went blind during the war?" "Yes... the Ruskies were only here for four days, but they did plenty." "The devils spared nobody." "Lord, no... terrible times." "And the women who lived through it..." "Who wants to work a field already ploughed by the Ruskies?" "What happened to Miss Selander?" "Dr. Selander is the only person who knows, and he's not telling." "Hello, Dr. Selander." "You sent for me?" "I did?" "No, there must be some misunderstanding." "I'm afraid I can't be of much help." " I didn't come to ask for help." "I came to offer it." "I heard that your daughter was blind." "Yes, Maria is blind." "But we have learnt to live with it." " Shall we go inside?" "Many diseases are perceived as incurable, yet they are not so." "But they must often be attacked   where conventional medicine cannot discover them." "That is where I can help." " By buying her blindness?" "In our bodies there is a fluid invisible to the naked eye..." "But not to yours?" "Let us say I can see it with my fingers   and affect it by magnetic strokes." "When our bodies are ill the fluid stagnates, binding the disease." "I have read something to that effect." "I possess the necessary magnetic force." "I can loosen the stagnated fluid." "The patients receive my power and overcome their sickness." "They say you practised at court in Paris." "Yes, the queen was most appreciative of my methods." "Then what on earth are you doing here?" "I was born and raised in Germany." "My mother was Danish." "I always wanted to see the northern countries." "Maria would never consent to treatment." "She won't let strangers touch her." " I don't need to touch her." "How did she lose her sight?" " She fell down the cellar stairs." "During the Russian invasion?" " I don't wish to talk about it." "Maria... say hello to Mr. Meisner." "Mr. Meisner is a magnetist and a doctor." "Miss Selander, I can heal you." " I am quite well." "They say he healed a blind girl in Paris." "I shall do nothing you do not wish." " I wish for nothing." "Perhaps that is the problem." "Maria, I have thought hard   and decided it is worth a try." "It does not mean surgery." "Maria, Meisner will not even touch you." "It's for your own sake, Maria." "Have you heard?" "Meisner has said he'll cure Miss Selander!" "Meisner says he'll cure Miss Selander!" "We fight superstition every day." "Yet you invite a witch doctor into your home!" "Under strictly controlled conditions." "I can undertake a scientific study of his methods at the same time." "Using Maria as a guinea pig!" "This is madness." "Maria is blind." "She can never be cured   by mumbo jumbo." "You've become a dreamer." "It would be better, even for you, if she were cured." "I love Maria as she is." "You know I'd marry her   despite her handicap." "We could live a normal life with a good nanny." "A nanny!" "Now who's dreaming?" "You saw she let nobody touch her." "Maria, what are you doing?" " How could you do this?" "Behind my back!" "I'll never be able to trust you again." "Maria, calm down." "Miss Maria..." "I know how this must sound to you." "But I assure you  that your father has not been trying to marry you off." "I am waiting." "We are both waiting." "If you'd only allow me to convince you   of the sincerity of my feelings..." "I long to be permitted to make you happy." "You went behind my back." "You just want to get rid of me." "You are being unreasonable." "One day I shall no longer be here." "Who will look after you then?" "Has that occurred to you?" "Stenius holds you very dear." "And he is a very capable doctor." "You could not want a better husband." "I am never going to get married." "Never!" "Now I've heard everything." "Doctors don't entrust their children   to the care of doctors any more!" "Doctor, gentlemen." "It is Dr. Selander alone   who has agreed to this experiment." "But Meisner removed the warts." "Or the girl sent them away in the mail." "Gentlemen..." "He prefers Miss Selander blind." "So she can't see what an ugly devil he is!" "Hello, Miss Selander." "There, there, I am here." "I'd like to examine you with the magnet." "Any questions?" " No, none." "Now then, Maria." "Just for a moment, Maria..." "Remember, you are not to touch her." " I shall not touch her." "Only the magnetic fluid." " Did you hear...?" "Would you remove her necklace?" "It affects the magnetic force." "I am here, I am here." "That wasn't too bad." "Miss Selander, the darkness is in your mind, not your eyes." "You merely have to be patient." "To wait." "... Miss Selander, can you hear me?" "Perfectly." "If you will stay calm, I can help you." "I am calm." "How did you go blind?" "I fell down the cellar stairs." " Tell me what happened." "Don't torment her." "It was just an accident." "Get on with the treatment, Meisner." "I shall now put you into a magnetic sleep." "Now you shall sleep..." "Sleep... sleep... sleep." "Maria..." "In an hour I shall wake her." "How often must this be repeated?" "Twice?" "Ten times?" " That depends on her." "I'll get nowhere with her father watching over her." "We've enough money for a month if we are frugal." "I made a big mistake." "Get me a live pigeon." "What happened to the girl?" " They took her from me." "And she went blind again." "Be grateful   that your father is not trying to hinder your cure." "There is no danger." "Father..." " It's only a pigeon." "Leave her alone!" "You'll frighten her!" " Am I frightening you?" "No." "Will you tell me your story now?" " No." "Not now." "You'd do your daughter a favour by leaving us alone." "Under no circumstances!" "Don't worry, Maria." "I won't..." "Just for a moment." "A moment, Father." "You don't need me?" " Not right now." "I'll be just outside." "Maria." " Yes." "In the woods the animals come to me." "Because they sense that I know their secrets." "Father says people don't deserve to know all secrets." "I am not people." " No." "But can I trust you?" "Try!" "Take a chance..." "Johan, can you come?" "I've a patient who..." "Not right now." "What a fascinating method of scientific observation !" "Excuse me." "The magnetic sleep enables Maria to see into herself." "Miss Maria,   you now see something." "What do you see?" "I see a light." "Where?" "Inside my eyes." "I see my eye." "Describe it." "It has a shell." "The shell has three membranes of different thicknesses..." "In the middle, completely dark, " " I see behind the eye five filaments." "There is a flaming light   bound together by fine threads..." "How fantastic!" "It's quite anatomically correct." "The membranes, the eye muscles, the nerves..." "You whispered it to her before I came in." "We have the key to our diseases." "The magnetic force enables us to look into ourselves and find it." "This is only the beginning." "You are playing in the middle of the night?" "I dreamed that the house was on fire." "My poor little girl." "Forgive me." "I'll see that Meisner doesn't come again." "No!" " Yes, I'll send word in the morning." "I want him to come again." "He's making you unhappy." " It doesn't matter." "Do you want to go out?" "Into the garden?" "No, not the garden." "But out..." "If you promise to go with me?" "Where to, Maria?" " No, never mind." "Of course I'll go with you." "Wherever you like, my darling." "My dear little girl." "We'll do whatever you wish." "I just don't see the purpose of it." "It's barbaric." "Serves him right." "He ruined the girl's life." "Cut his cock off and nail it up beside him." "Then we'll see the culprit!" "We're going home, Maria." " Tell me what is happening!" "You promised." "I can't see from here." "Let's go home." "No." "I want to know what it looks like." "No, I'm not going to watch." "Mummy!" "The Russians break down the door." "They come into the cellar, where I am hiding." "There are three soldiers." "They hold me." "They smell bad, like goats." "There is blood on my clothes." "Was that when everything went dark?" "No..." "That was later." "What happened next?" " I can't see that." "What do you see?" " I go up the stairs." "And then?" " All the way up." "No!" "No!" "Maria... now you must wake up." "Mr. Meisner..." "may I ask you something?" "Yes?" "May I feel your face?" "Here comes Mrs. Lundequist with her mongrel." "Hello, Mrs. Lundequist." "What a fine day!" "All the way round the square!" "How about that?" "Dr. Selander, let me go!" "Meisner is a genius!" "As if you'd never seen a patient on the mend before!" "But not this one." "Not Maria." "Dr. Selander, could you come out?" "I must speak to you urgently." "Now?" " Yes, at once." "Listen to what the doctor from Kongsvinger writes!" ""This summer a Danish magnetist answering your description   was practising here." "He talked about fluid and magnetism." "Many good folk sought his help." "But then he violated a young woman,   claiming to be treating her." "He fled with his Norwegian servant." "And?" "It all fits." "Fluid, magnetism Right down to the Norwegian servant." "Excuse me, Dr. Selander..." " I'm coming." "At least postpone her treatment!" " Never!" "This is the first time Maria has ever improved." "And I monitor every session." " So I have seen." "Meisner is at your house even now!" " I'll go home once I'm done here." "Have you lost your senses?" "Entrusting your child to a quack is bad enough." "But laying her open to rape!" "For the second time!" "I choose not to hear that last remark." "How long has he been here?" " An hour." "Would you like your hot-toddy?" "What?" "No..." "This is the convulsive crisis." "The magnetic force is at its peak." "The fluids will flow freely soon ;" "the goal of my treatment." "Maria will see." "See?" " See the truth." "The stairs." "The stairs." "I see somebody." " Whom?" "Whom do you see?" "Mother." "Mummy!" "She must comfort me." "She leaves." "She wants nothing to do with me." "She leaves me." "She leaves me." "No!" "Leaves me, leaves me..." "Miss Maria, now you will wake up." "And you will remember." "Maria?" "Meisner!" "Father!" "Are you here?" " Yes, Maria, I am here." "Why did she want nothing to do with me?" "Maria, she... could not bear it." "But what had I done wrong?" "Why did mother hate me?" "She didn't hate you." "She was just shocked." "Shocked, Maria." "You were not there." "I should have been there." "Father..." " Forgive me..." "Father, dear, it was good that you were not there." "They would have killed you and I'd have had nobody at all." "Tomorrow I'll be ready for the last treatment." "Tomorrow Maria will see." "Cover the lamps to protect her eyes." "Arrange for witnesses." "I haven't discovered his exact plan." "But whatever it is, be prepared." "Good evening." " Welcome." "I'm sorry I lost my temper yesterday." " Don't worry about it." "Well, I don't believe in them   but I am hoping for a miracle." "So is Meisner, I am sure." "This is the final treatment." "Her eyes are now cured." "I'll remove the last membrane that obscures her sight." "When she wakes from her magnetic sleep she will see..." "When I wake you, point at your father; that will be the sign." "Gentlemen, in one hour I shall wake her, and she will be cured." "The time is up." "He'll be here in a moment." "Father..." "You going grey." "Meisner..." "Punch !" "She can see." "Maria can see." "She can see!" "Meisner has performed a miracle!" "Miss Selander can see!" "Here's to Meisner!" "Three cheers!" "My dear Meisner!" "Though I never wanted anything more in my life " " I never dared to believe it." "How ever can I thank you?" "By becoming my scientific assistant." "But I have so much... my practice, the governor, the vaccinations..." "Vaccinations are purely mechanical, leave them to others." "Magnetism has enormous potential, but is totally unexplored." "Scientists with open minds are needed to document its forces." "I accept, but let's keep it mum till I've told the governor and Stenius." "Excuse me." "Maria?" "Maria..." "Yes?" " Look who is here!" "Yes?" " Maria?" "You don't recognise me." "I recognise you by your voice, Dr. Stenius." "I am truly happy that you have recovered your sight." "Thank you." "Must you go?" "Maria would have recovered anyhow." "No, Stenius, you saw for yourself..." "People usually do get well, without the help of doctors or witchdoctors." "Tonight is Meisner's night." "But soon it will be you who benefits from her recovery." "Meisner!" " Meisner!" "Come on out!" "Meisner!" "We want to see Meisner!" "Miss Selander's eyes are cured." "Precisely as I said." "Medical science has reached a limit." "It cannot cross the boundary between body and mind." "But I can do so." "Magnetism can." "I shall soon open a practice in your town." "Dr. Selander is going to be my scientific assistant." "Well, if it isn't the happy father!" "Congratulations, Dr. Selander." " Thank you." "Yes, I am happy, very happy." "Is this Meisner's new residence?" " Yes." "I have taken it upon me to document the magnetic method." "Dr. Stenius does not think there is such a method." "I shall make a proper scientific report." "We'll see, we'll see." "I trust you to have everything under control." "My scientific supervisor." "The baquet spreads the magnetic force to 12 people at once." "Iron filings, glass splinters,   the chains that conduct the magnetic force... you hold on here." "How can a barrel of magnets and broken glass replace your powers?" "The magnetic power in the baquet and I work together." "And over there?" " A platform for the orchestra." "Will there be dancing, too?" "Music makes the patients more receptive." "The patients must be open in order to receive the force." "Will and faith must work together." "Croyez et veuillez Dr. Selander." "Croyez et veuillez!" " Croyez et veuillez!" "Ugh !" "Get rid of that ugly red doll!" "That colour is green." " Green?" "What a spring clean !" "Father, how could you let me remain so childish?" "Well, you were childish." "No!" "Are you throwing these away?" "Surely they're not so bad?" ""We want our Maria!"" "The power enables the mind to overcome the body's limitations." "Come..." "let the power fill you." "The convulsive crisis!" "Take her to the crisis room." "Let the power fill you, and walk!" "You are walking." "You see, you can walk." "Help me..." "I am dying." "You alone can help me." "Please have mercy!" "Just believe in me." "Excuse me, but..." " Water." "Water, yes." "At once." "But first..." "That old man." "Krüger." "He is still lying in there." "Damn !" "This simply mustn't happen." "In hospital people may die with ten doctors around them." "But if it happens to us, all hell will break loose." "Oh Lord!" "This time they'll hang us for sure!" "Just a moment." "The candle blew out." "It's been a truly fascinating evening." "Very, very, interesting." "I've just a few questions for my journal." "Tomorrow..." "But I'd like to see the list of patients." "Yes, of course." "Yes." "You must be exhausted." "Here you are." "Thank you." "We'll talk about it tomorrow." "Goodnight." "I promised Maria I'd ask you to dine with us tomorrow." "She'll be so disappointed if you decline." "Well, tell her I'll make an exception and accept." "Seven o'clock?" " Yes." "Give me your schnapps and bring the sleigh around." "I will have unique material." "I feel like a young researcher again." "Although you think I've aged." "No..." "Will Meisner come to dinner?" " Yes, he'll come." "He is wonderful." "Damn it..." "Good evening..." "I think Mr. Krüger has had one too many." "We'll help him to his bed." " Dear God!" "He's no head for it." "No, I believe it has made him rather ill." "Eh, Krüger?" "Yes..." " Good night, Mr. Krüger." "Yes, perhaps she is taken with Meisner; that's why you must come." "I can't force her to love me." " No, but you could make an effort." "If she matters to you." " You know she does." "The house next door is going to be vacant; we could buy it." "We'd share a garden for the children." "Don't cut off your nose to spite your face... come to dinner!" "Well, well, well!" "Is this my Maria?" "I didn't recognise you !" " Well?" "You are a beautiful young woman." "Nonsense!" "How splendid you have made it all." "But you'll need to lay another place..." "I've invited Stenius." "Delicious." "No, thank you, I don't eat meat." " Mr Meisner..." "Tell us about yourself." "How did you come to our country?" "To our town?" "Maria, do let Meisner eat his timbale." "But he isn't eating a thing." "I came across the mountains, from Norway." "Norway?" "How interesting!" "You have a visitor, Dr. Selander." " Another house-call!" "Excuse me." "Maria?" " What?" "I have a small present I've been wanting to give you for ages." "How kind!" "A watch !" "Thank you so much !" "Whenever she looks at the time she'll think of Dr. Stenius." "Or whenever she looks at Stenius she'll wonder what the time is." "Isn't it time you told us why you were forced to leave Paris?" "Who says I was forced?" "So perhaps you were not forced to flee Norway, either?" "Dr. Stenius, you still doubt me." "I hear Mrs Hofverberg remains very ill." "But I'm treating her." " Precisely." "She isn't getting better, is she?" " And?" "I can cure her." " Stenius, we have to go." "A death." "Excuse us, Maria." "We'll hurry back." "Maria..." "Don't leave them alone." "A little Cognac?" "No, thank you." "You drank almost nothing at dinner." "In your company I do not need drink to intoxicate me." "Meisner?" "Do you have a wife waiting for you somewhere?" "No." "Perhaps you have never been married?" "No." "I must be going." "When will you come again?" "Miss Maria, you have recovered." "Observe the world." "Go out into it." "It belongs to you." "It was a lovely dinner party." " It was a fiasco." "I'm off to bed." "Meisner will have to answer for this." "His treatment killed the man !" "Don't be ridiculous." "I was there myself." "What if Krüger was dead when he was brought home?" "Dead?" "No, dead drunk, he was." "He had no head for spirits." "Excuse me..." "Mrs. Bolin." "I am a widow." "I was here yesterday." "I just had to see you again..." "No further treatments today." "I haven't slept for many nights." "You are falling into a deep magnetic sleep." "A deep, deep sleep." "The power is spreading through your veins." "The evil will disappear." "Just a moment." "I'm in the middle of a treatment." "Your money, Mr. Meisner!" "There!" "Maria?" "What are you doing here?" "So that is why you were in such a hurry?" "Not at all." "Mrs. Bolin turned up without an appointment." "I thought you were alone." "In my treatments there is so much that may be misunderstood." "It may look like one thing, but it is something else, d'you see?" "Let's not talk about it any more." "Not to anyone." " No." "I understand." "I had better go." "Friedrich !" "It always goes wrong." "I always have to move on." "What goes wrong?" "If only you knew... how I've tried to get them to understand!" "And every time I get so close." "So close." "Paris." "Berlin." "Copenhagen." "Vienna." "This is the fifth time, Maria." "It is the fifth winter." "I cannot go on any longer." "Can you make it stop?" "You have done so much for me." "You have given me a new life." "So I feel I belong to you." "That is what I came to say." "Nothing else." "Do you see?" "Perhaps you are an angel sent to save me." "If only you would!" "That is what I want." "Selander!" "Come out!" "Come and see Meisner's seance with Maria!" "Stenius!" "What is the matter?" " A seance." "An extra seance." "Magnetism in practice!" "Maria!" "Where have you been?" "Father, I am engaged." "You've never given Stenius a fair chance." "I know what I'm doing." " You are blinder than ever." "Meisner is a man of extremes." "How could he settle here?" "Friedrich is longing to settle down." "That man cannot settle down." "I'll never give you my consent." " Then I shall do without it." "Father, you're jealous!" " Perhaps I am." "But that doesn't mean I am wrong." "I am your father." "I have taken care of you." "I've looked after you ever since..." "..." "Mother began to hate me." "She refused to have anything to do with you." "I could never forgive her,   so I refused to have anything to do with her." "When she died I wrote "heart failure" on her death certificate." "But it wasn't true." "She took poison." "Father..." " I have never told anybody else." "When the frost entwines" "The trunks of the pines" "And my dawn glows red as fire" "I give you the winter" "And my heart grows so tender" "I will always know That I love you" "Till my night turns into a dawn" "I understand your doubts." "I myself hadn't imagined   that I would settle here, or get married, for that matter." "The next house is going to be vacant." "Look, the animals come to me, too." "Yes... but you are cheating." "A bit of cheating is allowed." "A bit." "Whom shall we invite to the wedding?" "We have china for thirty." " I am not the person to ask." "Perhaps Friedrich would prefer a simpler affair?" "Surely he can speak for himself?" "What would you prefer, Friedrich?" "I'd prefer you to decide." "What is it, Father?" " Stenius." "He has called a meeting at the club." "To discuss "Meisner's continued activities in this town"." "This has to stop." "I cannot tolerate another of his smear campaigns." "I will prove myself once and for all." " Don't let him provoke you." "Mrs. Hofverberg." "I'll cure her." " Your standing in town is solid." "That will shut him up." "I've heard so much about you." "They say you perform miracles." " Only with my patients' help." "Dr. Stenius has been treating Mrs. Hofverberg,   but she hasn't improved." "On the contrary." "So she must be treated by me." "Then we can compare our methods." "First of all, I must discontinue Dr. Stenius' unsuccessful treatment." "His chemicals weaken the patient and obscure the picture." "You'll regret this." "No, Mr. Meisner, you'll not get rid of me that easily..." "I shall stay." "I will now put you into the magnetic sleep." "The magnetic sleep enables the patient to look into herself." "She can then help us to make a diagnosis." "Do you hear me?" "Do you see anything?" "I hear everything." "I can see   clearly into my body." "Can you describe the tumour?" "It is not a tumour." "It is a baby." "It is inconceivable for her to be pregnant." "But a year ago you said there was a baby inside you." "It must be big." " No." "It is little, though it's over a year old." "It is lying outside my womb." "It died last month." "Mr. Meisner, will you attest to Mrs. Hofverberg's diagnosis?" "Meisner!" "May I..." " Will you attest to its correctness?" "It is not physically possible." "She would have died long ago." "Well, Meisner?" " She's never lain with her husband." "Are you going to attest to the diagnosis?" "To sign would be suicidal." "Dr. Selander, how do you explain this?" "I can't explain it." "My task is to study Meisner's methods, and that's what I shall do." "Come..." "There is no baby." "That is clear to everybody." "If Meisner disappeared in a puff of smoke tonight   you'd be deemed to be an accomplice to fraud." "Mon vieux, be sensible!" "Maria's cure also took people by surprise." "We distrusted Meisner, but he proved right." "Dr. Selander, I must ask you   to step down as my personal physician." "Dr. Stenius..." "You will replace Dr. Selander as my physician." "You will look so lovely in church." "Well?" " That will do, I suppose." "Don't exaggerate!" "Out you go..." "What is the matter?" "It'll be a small wedding, most likely." "The governor has dismissed me." " He can't have!" "Why?" "Everything Mrs. Hofverberg says is quite implausible." "It goes against all reason." "She would have died." "It's as simple as that." "The governor no longer believes in Meisner, and I  don't know what to believe." "Father, I am sure there is a reasonable explanation." "Everything will be all right." "Ouch !" "The evidence, gentlemen." "The remains of the foetus." "A few bones, some tissue." "Incredible..." "Mrs Hofverberg... your baby." "My baby." "My beloved little baby." "I knew it was true." "I'd like to examine the foetus." " Of course." "But please tend to Mrs Hofverberg first; there may be afterbirth." "Just for a moment." "The dead baby has been expelled." "Here is the proof." "Mrs. Hofverberg is saved." "In a few days she will have fully recovered." "But this very evening she will testify to her cure." "Did you see Selander?" "I'm sure he followed you." "I must speak to Dr. Selander." " He is on a house call." "Miss Maria is upstairs, though." " I'll just wait here." "Come..." "Come..." "Maria..." "You might get pregnant." " In a month we'll be married." "Maria?" "So the child has been born now." "I knew it." " That bone is not from a foetus." "Sometimes I think Friedrich is really an artist." "An unappreciated artist." " Maria, listen !" "That bone came from a chicken." "You're lying." " No." "You're only saying so to separate me from Friedrich." "It's humbug." " There's a natural explanation." "If you want to find it." "Fraud cannot be explained away." "I must disclose it." "Would you really do that to me?" "This has nothing to do with you." " Nothing to do with me!" "My own father is going to have my beloved convicted of fraud   and it has nothing to do with me?" "If you ever mention this to anyone I'll never speak to you again." "Ever." "Maria?" " She rushed off without a hat." "Meisner drove out the foetus that lay dead in my intestines." "He helped me when I needed it most." "He saved me." "He saved my life." "A word." "Now?" " Yes, now." "Naturally." "I know everything." "You have abused my trust." " What are you talking about?" "There was no foetus." " So?" "And what about the people out there?" "Consider them, their sorrows, their longing for . faith." "It takes faith, boundless faith   for our treatment to succeed." "What are a couple of chicken bones compared to that?" "Everything." "You can't build on lies." " There you are mistaken." "No." "I am not mistaken." "Are you going to tell the truth, or shall I?" "Tell them the truth." "The truth?" "I'll show you my truth." "I'll tell you my secret." "The body contains a fluid..." "When it stagnates, disease   and death follow." "I can set the stagnated fluid in motion, I can create life." "Do you see?" " Yes..." "Let us set the fluid in motion again now." "Join hands." "Form a chain !" "Let the force fill you." "Let the stagnated fluid move." "Stagnation is death, motion is life." "This bone comes from Mrs. Hofverberg's alleged foetus." "I have examined it closely." "It came from a chicken." "There was no baby." "That is the truth." "I have been misled." "And so have you." "We have all been deceived." "No!" "No!" "Meisner is a villain !" "Go to the police station and ask for protection." "Go on, jump!" "Let's check the church." "There he is!" "Stop, you bastard!" "Go home." "That's enough." "Meisner could not cure Mrs. Hofverberg." "Today she is sicker than ever." "The physical evidence Meisner produced was false." "The magnetic force does not exist." "Meisner never cured anyone." "Those who believed they were cured were never ill." "Miss Selander is a good example." " Maria was blind." "I am unable to explain or prove it, but Meisner cured her, I know." "But she is blind again." "So she hasn't been cured." "Or what, Dr. Selander?" "I know you don't want to talk to me." "But you will listen, all the same." "While you play the piano, the man who helped you is facing death." "You can choose to pretend it's nothing to do with you." "You can choose to forget all he's done for you." "But if you wish to help him, now is the time." "What is going on in the court room?" " It is a farce." "They're as vindictive as they were enthusiastic." "My relapse... are they using it against Friedrich?" "Everything is being used against him." "Nobody is standing up for him." "You admit that the foetus was a fake?" "Yes." "But it is the mind that is responsible for sickness and health." "The patient must believe in me." "Faith and devotion   make it possible to transcend the boundary between body and mind." "Do you admit that the foetus was a fake or don't you?" "The fraud was necessary for Mrs. Hofverberg's sake." "For the sake of Meisner's pocket, more like!" "If it was for her sake,   why is she now in the asylum?" "If she has gone insane   it is solely due to the brutal way she was confronted by the truth." "Mr. Meisner..." "the foetus was no foetus." "Mrs Hofverberg is sicker than ever." "Maria Selander is blind again." "Everything you've done has been humbug and fraud." "I will have to sentence you to death by hanging." "Meisner... has helped many of us." "Have you forgotten?" "Have you all forgotten?" "He cured us." "See for yourselves;" "we are the proof." "Mrs. Hofverberg's tumour has gone." "And I..." "I can see." "If you really did cure the tumour, why all the deceptions?" "Without them, she would never have recovered." "I was the only person who accepted her dreams   empathised with her illness   and really saw her." "The truth is complicated." "Excuse me, but I should like to address the court." "Is Meisner a charlatan?" "But he cured my daughter." "Nobody else managed that." "Is he a healer, then?" "Perhaps;" "yet he faked the evidence." "The fraud was necessary for Mrs. Hofverberg's recovery." "I believe that." "Yet I exposed him." "I could have acted no differently." "Thank you." "Meisner is to be deported, Miss." "May I speak to him?" "Alone?" "So you came after all." "I thought you were angry with me." " No, not any longer." "I didn't want to hurt you, but protect you." "From me." "I care so much for you, Maria." "Friedrich, I am not going with you." "You will regret it, Maria." "Of course I will." "Sometimes." "Forgive me." "Maria!" "You went behind my back!" "A job and lodgings in Stockholm !" "Without my knowledge!" "As a piano teacher!" "Have you forgotten that I exist?" "Does nobody listen to me any more?" "Am I no longer your father?" "A daughter   does not rush off head over heels, abandoning everything..." "Me..." "Father?" "Father... will you answer a question, honestly?" "Why did you never remarry?" "You would never have permitted it." "I?" "And you let me decide that?" "Maria?" " Yes?" "Not to him, I hope!" " Father, I'm going to Stockholm." "Stockholm." "It is good, Maria."