The Sun.
London, England, 1841-10-29 00:00:00

EVENING SUN

MESMERISM.

- A Ve-have received from a tradesman of the very highest
respi actability.the following letter, for the statements in
whiaa we are able to vouch, to a great extent, from our
own lciowledge of the case, and of the persons connected
with fit. %\re withhold the name and address of our
Corr eponclent, solely that we may not subject him and
his family to the annoyance of the idly curious. But
we have no objection to satisfy any, inquirer who., will
give a reasonable cause for the curiosity :
TO 771 E EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Siu—Having seen tkeimpartial rena7k;iinNiesmer-
istn in some newspapers, on the one hand, and the fu-
rious and what I eofi§iBer malignant attack on Dr. EL
liotfon in the othet'sl:--while the names of the writers of
those paragrgAi;"ivill be buried in oblivion the name of
Elotson ,wilt.4l.le revered by after ages—gratitude to
that gentiCtian obliges me to put you in possession of
una eniable facts, which cannot be disputed.

On the 10th of November, 1838, my daughter, aged
1.-) years and 10 months, fainted away three times in
the afternoon—cause unknown. At twelve o'clock the
same night lost her senses, which" came again at inter-
vals for an hour, sometimes two hours. Mr. Whitey
su -gem), attended her, and that eminent physician, Dr.
Spurgeon was called in, and to whom I feel grateful for
their kind endeavours from the 10th November, 1833,
to the, 19th of January, 1839. She had taken upwards of
cigbLen (keen bottles of medicine (besides leeches, blis-
ters, &e.., being applied), when she positively refused to
take any more. Dr. Spurgeon then wrote a note for
me to get a keeperess from Finch's Asylum at Kensing-
ton. I preferred having two nurses, night and day, in-
stead of a keeperess. Her fits, which were of the most
violent description, increased from that time an the Ist
of February, she having gad seventy in the twenty-four
hours before I had the good fortune to see Dr. Elliot-
son, who was attending a youth under the same treat-
ment, and who was restored by the same means. O.
the 26th of December the fright occasioned by a board
falling on the floor over her head caused her to become
totally insane. On the Ist of February folluwing I ap-
plied to Dr. Elliotson, after seeing the youth before
mentioned. I stated the furious delirium my daughter
luboured under, besides her having had seventy most
terrific fits in twenty-four hours,—and I believe no pa-
tients with fits are admitted into an asylum. He at-
tended for three afternoons, with Dr. Wood, and endea-
voured to throw her into a state of mesmerism, but
could not succeed ; when he observed to Dr. Wood,
°' This poor creature has not a lucid interval ; I fear we
shall not succeed ;" but the neat afternoon, to my great
surprise, he got her into a mesmeric state. He cb-
served that thousands would not believe this. I spec at
to any parent, what must his feelings be when an affec-
tionate child had been bereft of reason for above two
months, yotpcould, by holding her hand or touchily' soy
part or her body, talk with her reasonably ? What
would the Nobles of the land give, if an only son or
daughter were snatched from the grave as my daughter
has been ? And I have no doubt that many 'young
creatures have been, and are, in private asylums, who
could be restored by this means. But then the Faculty
have set their faces against it, and to such en extent
have they carried their animosity, and such is the in-
fluence they hold over society in most instances, tiiat the
public mind is poisoned. I cannot account for this, un-
less it is owing to there being little medicine wonted,
for my daughter, in the mesmeric state, prescribed for
herself, and Dr. Elliotson implicitly ordered to be ad-
ministered' what was mentioned. There was no privacy
used. I admitted any respectable person to see the
system of restoring a lost child to her disconsolate pa-
rents. This was my only object. The Doctors never
required to be alone, but explained to all present. I
have the names of many Lades and Noblemen who
came to see their treatment, but not having their per-
mission I withhold the same, to avoid giving offence. I
have seen several individuals turn pale as death, and
walk out of the room, at the sight of one fit only.

Many people observing my house, Wand supposed some-
thing serious must be the matter, from the piercing cries
caused by the agonies of the horrible fits. As to her
predictions in her mesmeric state, mentioning the time
she should come to her senses, six weeks before it did
occur, stating the hour and minute, how many fits
would leave her each week, and the exact time, every-
thing she stated proved correct to the letter. She
would take many pieces of ,music under her arm in tke
middle of the night, the lights being all extinguished,
and come down stairs, throw them on the table, select
the piece she wanted, sit down, play on the piano'
and sing it perfectly correct, write verses, and thread a
needle in an instant, and mend her gown, in total dark-
ness ; in short, the extraordinary scenes that occurred,.
no one would believe unless they saw or heatd them per-
sonally. 1, therefore, make every allowance for the
incredulity of the public and the ribaldry with which
some of the newspapers are treating Dr. Elliotson's
great exertions to restore the unfortunate beings labour-
ing under epilepsy, and other dreadful nervous diseases.
His gratuitous and unwearied attentions by day and
night for four months—his anxiety to save my daeghter
under her unparalleled affliction, and thereby prove to
the community that many direful diseases were curable
by his system—demand my most grateful thanks. Eis
being called on by some of the public journals to give
proofs and facts of the benefit derived, is my only reason
for wishing this case to be made public. Tuanks be
to Providence, my daughter was perfectly restored to
her senses, and has not had a fit since May, 1839, and
now enjoys a good state of health, but is totally uncon-
scious of ever being delirious, or of baying had fits.
Could an institution be established on the plan of the
Ore vide-street Hospital, supported by voluntary sub-
scriptions, for the admission of persons aillicted with
fits or serious nervous diseases, I have tfo doubt it
would do more to establish the benefits.arisisig Ann
Mesmerism than all that can be said or written on
the subject.

AN ENEMY TO SLANDIR.
9, Bedford-street.

INTERESTING CASE.

In our publication of the 6th ult. it was simply
stated, "Among the numerous interesting facts recorded
in the census returns for Scotland, public attention is
respectfully directed to the following note, under the
head Kirkpatrick of Irongray :—' Slept in a barn, a
soldier's widow of a Highland regiment, whose husband
and ten sons fell in battle.' " This note was entered
in the official return, upon the testimony of others, by
Mr. J. Carnochan, the schoolmaster of the parish, who
,had not teen seen the old woman. But he obtained a
personal interview on the Gth current ; and in the pre-
sence of two respectable witnesses (Mr. James Mont-
gomeric and his son, farmers, Peartree), compiled from
her own lips a little narrative, which we would fain hope
the Member for the Stewartry will kindly bring under
the notice of the War.offree, or some other department
of Government :—" Ann Fairlie, daughter of Richard
Fairlie, blacksmith, Newcastle, was married, at the ago
of 15, to Alexander M'Donald, pipe-major of the 42d
Regiment. Immeiiately after her marriage she went
with her husband to the West Indies, where silo had
six sons. Was with Sir R. Abercrombie in Egypt,
where her husband fell on the battle-field :at this time
she had eight sans and one daughter. Returned home
with the regiment, and was married again at Edinburgh
to John Cunningham, paymaster-serreant of the same
regiment. Was at Dunkirk with the, Duke of Yore,
where one of her sons fell ; was in Spain with Sir .T.
Moore, where three of her sons fell at Corunna ; was
t
ortf, Dukeoehsuoennrd
ssd,odied
sudotffe
dl
niFdanroad
fn Wellington,cthyeepr;
h ut husband
hsa en
f,ielae:
wasbal gVaanal
itnv.e,roil nuo
recoveredon Waterloo, whereepcaii;n
aownftoithttvihiolge
r
after the regiment returned to England, Had one son
and five daughters by her second husband. Another
son fell in America (she thinks South America); her
last son (pipe-major of the 42d) died near MaLebester
about 22 years ago. • Since this last calamity betel b,"
she has wandered about begging, chiefly in Dumfries-
shire and Galloway. Her daughters all died in foreign
countries and at sea. She is now 85 years of age. ,
may add that she has travelled occasionally in ibis Par's"
for more than 12 years, lodging
always at the same
houses, where she is not an unwelcome guest, and um;
formly gives the same account of her' trAvers.thaisc,t°sryo'f
to"
Further, it appears that she is subject ; a
nervous excitement, which is nothing uw
e f
kindled
while narrating her adventures to me eraseyshe
4xpa.
into heroism, or softened into melaneho Y'
tiated on the triumphs of the tartans, o;
battle. •
herselfh is
fall of her husband and sons on tbdo bewailed the
keeps very
a remarkably bale old woman,
that she bad accompanied
clean and tidy. It appears e until the death of
the 12d Regiment from herbraller gfirst husband). but,
her last son (the yousgesti
-es where her husband and
she talks chiefly of the P acbut an imperfect recollec.
sons fell, ands eems to.avl
achievements of the Black
twrioantcho.f,
Duonotbeers
hCourier.

1 numerous meeting of the donors and
yesterday CHARITABLE INSTITUTION.....:
Freemasons Tavern, for the purpose of
,`, ,
eet,lolßd us teohfc rs'
the Charitable Society.
The
Institutionh e .0 h Chair
i.r Wwasss
reeand
men two women as additional pen-
sioners on
taken at two o c
t ' ' lock, when the ballot commenced, which
names of the
closed at four, when the . . successful candi-
dates were announced. The Institution vas founded in
18:28, for affording relief to decayed and distressed mem-
bersheldß uatrCtilheEßls'
of the trade, their widows, and children. • The
electing three
amount of pension payable to the men is 211., and to the
women 151. 15s. per annum. Thanks being voted to the
Chairman, the meeting adjourned.
Her Grace the Duchess of Somerset has sub-
scribed the handsome sum of 50/., for the relief 'of the
Paisley operatives.
Lon' M'Kenzie and the Hon. Mr. WlCenzie
and family left the Adelaide Hotel, London-bridge,-
yesterday, for the Isle of Wight.
HANOVER, OCT. 21.--Persons generally well-
informed say that the Assembly. of the Estates will not
bit convoked before the German Diet has promulgatt-d
its resolution respecting the Contingents and the Mili-
tary establishments of the several States of the Confe-
deration. On the ground of a decision of the Diet, it is
thought that the Second Chamber might belled for a
considerable increase of the military establisMient.