This perfect comprehension of the needs of a natural existence culminates in a wonderful attractive force between the sexes. A force as evident to the senses as the force of gravitation when properly studied, but unfortunately too little understood. This force, however, exists--is governed by natural laws and exerts its influence for good or evil between every man and woman in the universe; and the man who marries in ignorance of this force, or who violates its laws, is as foolish as he who tempts the law of gravitation by jumping from the brow of a precipice without calculating the distance to the ground beneath. This force is an emanation from the body according to temperament, it is identical with gravitation in its phenomena, and I introduce it to-night to your consideration under the name of Sexual Magnetism. I hold in my hand a bar of iron; if I let go, it falls to the ground, impelled by an unseen but very tangible force which you call gravitation. The scientist will tell you that gravitation exists because the earth is a great magnet, attracting to itself all negative bodies which come within the reach of its positive influence. But the principle of magnetic attraction implies, also, the principle of magnetic repulsion. Every child is familiar with the practical results of magnetic attraction, because he feels the force of it every time he falls down, or drops a plaything. But you are not so familiar with magnetic repulsion, yet if, by any combination of circumstances, you could be made positive to the earth instead of negative, you would be repelled from it with exactly as much force as you are now attracted to it, and shot into space to wander among the asteroids. [Illustration: P. Positive Pole. N. Negative Pole. The curved arrows show the direction of revolution.] To illustrate this principle of magnetic attraction and repulsion, I have prepared these two bar magnets, which are simple bars of steel which have been charged with magnetic properties. I mount one of them on a pivot so that it will revolve when subjected to any force. One end of the magnet is called the positive pole, the other the negative pole, because they have been found to exert two different forces. If I present the positive pole of the magnet I hold in my hand to the negative pole of the mounted magnet, they will _attract_ each other, and the mounted magnet will revolve _toward_ the one in my hand. But if I reverse the conditions, and I present the positive pole of this magnet to the positive pole of the mounted magnet, they will _repel_ each other, and the mounted magnet will revolve in the opposite direction with equal force. This beautiful experiment illustrates the repelling force of magnetism as well as its attractive power. [Illustration: Magnetic Repulsion.]