The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-08 00:00:00

THE MESMERIC INFIRMARY.

The annual meeting of the friends and subscribers to
this institution, established for the cure of diseases by
the agency of mesmerism, was held yesterday, at Willis's
Rooms, King-street, St. James's.

Mr. R. Monckton Milnes, M.P., occupied the chair,
and there was a numerous attendance of ladies and gen-
tlemen.

The CHAIRMAN, on opening the business of the meet-
ing, remarked, that it was advisable and conducive to
the interests of the institution, and beneficial generally
to science, that the chair at these meetings should be
taken by unprofessional persons. This course was so
far satisfactory, because those unprofessional persons
had arrived at results with respect to the utility of the
institution, and the honesty of the manner in which it
was conducted by different processes, which were not
connected with private interests, or professional ad-
vancement. It was therefore, in his opinion, not unwise
that the chair should be taken by persons who could
have no interest in the matter, except for the pure
love of science, and a strong conviction of the advan-
tages of the institution. The Mesmeric Infirmary had
now been established some years—at first very modestly
and in an obscure part of the town ; but it was now, he
was happy to say, gradually rising into great import-
ance. (Hear, hear.) An event had occurred in its his-
tory within the present year to which he would allude.
A gentleman from the country, and unconnected with
the institution, had performed an operation within its
walls, with a success and peculiar perfection of effect,
that had created, perhaps, more interest than the event
itself deserved ; for it was almost a reproach to the ad-
vance of knowedge in our day that a highly successful
and painless operation in surgery should be considered a
rare and peculiar event. (Hear, hear.) Great import-
ance, however, attached to the operation (that of cutting
off a woman's breast when in a mesmeric state), inas-
much as it was almost the first surgical operation that
had been performed in the infirmary. The experience
of every day showed that mesmeric science was
capable of scientific proof—that it was no longer
approached with mere wonder and astonishment, but
rather with the same feelings of reverential gra-
titude with which we approached the great develop-
ments of a beneficent nature wielded by the will of a
beneficent Creator. (Hear, hear.) The patients admitted
to the infirmary were not treated as mere objects of
curiosity upon which to try experiments, but their cases
were treated purely in a medical point of view, with the
application of mesmeric agency. He might, perhaps, be
permitted to say that it would be well for the public to
interest themselves more generally in mesmeric science,
because it was more desirable for all to know that this
great and wonderful engine of good or evil might be ef-
fectually understood, recognised, directed, and governed.
If this agency were understood and used, and applied
like other agencies, the institution would be relieved of
a great difficulty, and the professors of the science of
great annoyance. It was, in consequence of not under-
standing the science, that persons had recourse to mes•
merism only in desperate cases, and when all other re-
medies had failed. If persons only applied to mesmerism
for cure, when their constitutions were exhausted by
trying all other descriptions of remedy, it was not to be
wondered at if, in some cases, it refused to perform its
work. But if, on the other hand, it were regarded as a
natural agent, a patient would no more think of apply-
ing to it as a last resource than he would think of apply-
ing to any other hyaline. agencies. Notwithstanding the
astonishing cures which it was admitted had been effect-
ed by means of mesmerism, it was impossible to deny
that that hostility against its principles was still
powerful ; that the opponents of science might yet
get the upper hand; and that the good it effected
might only be of a transient character. It had been
said with truth, although it appeared a paradox, that all
great discoveries had been known before they were in-
vented, which meant, in plainer terms, that the inventors
of great discoveries had been induced to abandon them
for want of public sympathy and confidence. Thus with
chloroform and vaccination, the use of the compasses,
and the art of printing—all had been discovered in
earlier times, although the inventors never lived to see
their discoveries fully recognised and admitted. It was
therefore of the utmost importance that this matter
should take a scientific form in the public opinion, for if
Englishmen could once be induced to look upon it in
this light it would not sink into obscurity, but would
grow up until it took its place among the great agencies
of nature. On the continent the science was progressing
most favourably, and in Paris a most marvellous cure of
a paralysed limb had been performed, the particulars of
which would shortly be published in detail. The article
which had appeared in the Qyarterly Rcvier was also a
great advance towards an admission of the truth of mes-
merism. (Hear.) He believed also that Dr. Elliotson
was now bravely and gradually living down the injustice
and obloquy which his moral courage in the cause of
scientific truth had brought upon him ; and he hoped
they would live to see the day when that distinguished
man would not only be placed in the highest position
among his medical brethren, but that he would be ac-
knowledged as the real founder of the practice of mes-
merism. (Applause.)
Dr. ELLIOTSON, on coming forward to read the annual
report of the committee of management, was loudly ap•
plauded. The report, after alluding to the difficulty ex-
perienced by the committee in getting a house, and an-
nouncing that very desirable premises had at length been
secured on lease, at 36, Weymouth-street, Portland place,
proceeded to state that they had appointed Mr. Gardiner
to the office of Secretary. His unwearied attention to
bis duties, his undeviating kindness to the patients, his
firmness in keepieg all things in order, his mildness,
conscientiousness, and disinterestedness were admirable.
The progress which the knowledge and the conviction
of the truth of mesmerism had made since the last meet-
ing was immense. They might say that its truth was
universally admitted. The few who, for consistency,
still pretended not to believe it, said but little, and their
chief opposition was in ascribing the phenomena to ima-
gination, suggestion, and dominant ideas—passing over
in silence, short-sightedly as well as dishonestly, the
innumerable facts recorded, and occurring daily, in
which there could be no imagination, no suggestion,
no dominant ideas— passing over in silence the in-
numerable splendid mesmeric cures of all kinds of

diseases, and the alleviation of distress and agony, as
well as the prevention of pain from the knife, the cor.
rodiug caustics, and hot irons of the surgeon. As the
folly of denying the truth of mesmerism might now be con-
sidered to have passed away, so would the absurd expla-
nations of its genuine effects ; and the wickedness—the
wickedness of ignoring it in the medical journals and
other medical writings, and in the lectures delivered in
the medical schools, must soon be given up in very
despair and shame. Since the last annual meeting we
have had 27 donations and 25 new annual subscribers.
Many of the new donors and subscribers are, like many
of former years, inhabitants of distant parts of the coun-
try ; some inhabitants of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales ;
and even a native physician at Milan had become a sub.
scriber. They have treated 237 patients during the last
twelvemonth. There were 39 on hand at the beginning
of it, 43 were on hand at present, and there had been
193 fresh patients ; 42 cases had been cured ; 9 were all
but cured ; 64 improved to a greater or less extent ; 43
were still under treatment. Nearly all the rest of the
patients attended but a short time, far too short for im-
provement to have been possible ; some attended only
two or three times ; some even only once. Mesmerism
was conceived of by a large number of people as a magi-
cal remedy, curing at once if it does cure, and not worth
being continued beyond a day or two, nor capable of doing
good, unless sleep or some peculiar effect was produced ;
whereas it often required long perseverance, and often
simply cures without any other effect. It is to be remem-
bered that the greater number of patients came after other
treatment had failed, and when other is not likely to
succeed. A large number had been under several medi-
cal men, been in more medical institutions than one, and
gone through long and not unfrequently severe treat-
ment in the way of strong and disgusting drugs and
severe external applications, to which some of the medi-
cal profession had rather that their patients should be
subjected, even with little or no chance of benefit, than
be treated by a mild and easy, nay, agreeable method,
with great probability of cure or alleviation. Besides
cures striking for their rapidity or for their accomplish-
ment after ordinary measures long carried on, and per-
haps disagreeable or painful, had failed, the committee
had witnessed in the infirmary a surgical operation which
in ordinary circumstances was agonising, performed
without the slightest pain, and recovered from as if no-
thing had been gone through. Mr. Tubbs, a surgeon in
Cambridgeshire, one of our earliest and very liberal sub-
scribers, who for many years has practised mesmerism
even to his own serious injury, and honestly published in
the Zoist astonishing cures, wrote up to say that he was
about to remove a female breast in the mesmeric state of
insensibility to pain, and would perform the operation in
the infirmary. The committee agreed to it—as so pub-
lic a proof of the power and utility of mesmerism in the
metropolis, when no hospital surgeon had ever ope-
rated under mesmerism or employed it, seemed likely
to produce a decided conviction in the minds of so-
ciety at large, and through this conviction to improve
the conduct of the medical profession. They availed
themselves of Mr. Tubbs' courageous offer, and the ope-
ration was performed in the presence of those members
of the committee who attend regularly to their duties,
and of two medical gentlemen and an unprofessional
gentleman, who were not on the committee. Never
was success more complete. After alluding to many
other cases in which extraordinary cures had been
effected, the committee concluded by expressing a hope
that the friends of mesmeric science would come forward
in support of an institution which bad alleviated so large
an amount of human suffering.
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Although this was his first appearance at a public
meeting connected with this society, he was by no means
aneeriad cornevpeertatteodtlyhe
sueseenfailnnsetgasnaznedsewffiheearceytohfemperasmeteirciesmoi
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the science had been attended with wonderful results,
and notwithstanding the opposition it had met with in
prejudiced quarters, he was satisfied the time would
come when its usefulness would be universally admitted.
Two objection; bad been raised to it, First, it was said