Litchfield enquirer., 1881-01-20
AIDDLBVILLE, Mieh.. Fe6. 15tA,
MEsMERIC EXPERIMENTS.


 4 few physicians, among .hern Dr. D. B. St. John ROOsa, of the State Medical Society; Dr. MiiteudOrf, the well hnown microscopic ex- pert Dr. c. L. Dana, Dr. Josiah Roberts, Dr. BirdsaIl. Dr. Carpenter, of the County Medi- cal Society and others distinguished for scien- tidc research in various departments. assem- bled yesterday afternoon in the office of Dr. George M. Beard, at No.~13 West Twenty ninth-street- The invitation proposed a pri- vate Seance, recalling the wonderful stories of Anton Mesmer and his disciples, of the Count Cagliostro, and the strange narratives as to the apparent death practiced by the Hindu fakirs collected by Dr Esdaile, Surgeon General of India during the first quarter of the present century, whose book vas published Hn 1928, and of which only one copy, and that mutilat- cd, is known to exist. The programme pro- vided for experiments in arti6cially- induced trance, hypnOtism, and somnambulism, with illustrations of the pheuomenas of caralepsy. esctasy, Figidity and apparent death, partial and hemi anestbesa, aphasia, suspension and exaltation of muscular force and of the special senses, and examples of trance speaking. The experiments were conducted upon four young men whom Dr. Beard has had under training for the last few weeks-Charles l.. Marsh, aged 16 of nervous and muscular tempera I1eut, rather narrow at the shoulders, tall for his age. in average health, but not robust z Daniel Wright, aged 21, of nervous and glan- dular temp .rament. rather imperfect muscular development, with light hair, blue eyes, and noticeable deficiency of heart and lungs; H. Scott Gray, 21 years of age, nervous and glandular temperament, light eOmpiexon and eyes, head rather small, hair. sparse asdsof' silken fineness of texture, heart and lung pow CT rather below the average; John Wilson, of vital and muscular temperament, short and thickaet. head large shoulders large and pow erful, of more than average heart power and pulmonary capacity. It would have been noticeable to the eye of an expert observer that there was trace of what play sicians style, the neuroiic .predispostion in each of these subjecfs either hereditary or acquired but, unfortunately, Dr. Beard did not volunteer any noes on this important point, and the distinguished medical men present were leftto their own conjectules. The importancesOf this point will be appreciated when it is recol lected that, in the course of an inquiry respect ing ''EIioiOgy of Certain Phenomena called Spiritual" prosecuted some time ago by sci enIi6c man in this City, and issued as mon ograph by one of the leading publishers, the singular fac; was developed, by careful lnqui- ". that the susceptibility to phenomena of thn class. embracing self-induced and mes- merle trance. clairvoyance, &c., is invariably associated with predisposition to nervous dis. turbance of the epileptic or hysterical type, aad usually with 6 transmitted pre-dlsposit- ion.
 Dr. Boards method of inducing trance with his subjects is simpler and less imposing than thai which was employed by Mesmer and his disciples The four subjects under expert ment yesterday afternoon had been so thor. oughly trsined-forthe susceptibility to trance increases with repetition. and with persons Tn the habit of using either as 6 stimulant single whid of the drug often sufices-that a pass or two downward upon the eyelids. or even 6 mere contact of the fnger-tps, was sufficient 70 put them in the condition reQuir-, cd. while single reverse pass dissolved the spell, and the subject recovered consciousness instantly. but not fully. On the contrary. the awakening from slumber was accompanied in nearly every instance with dazed and bewild. cred novementa lasting from four to ten sec, ondS. and young Marsh complained of pains in the region of the right temple after the seance was finished
 The nrst series of experiments embraced supe0slol Of the special senses --sight, smell. aezring, taste, and touch. While the subject Mrght was in the trance condition the cornea of the eye. usually 80 sensitive to contact. could be handled with perfect impunity. and without the least movement to indicate that he was aware that any such manipulation was guang on Wnghts eyes are naturally rather wc4ks and the retina IS extremely sensitive to hght-painfnlly so, in fact This point was nrst shown by throwing powerful beam from the 0QhthalmOscOpe mirror inte the eve when the papii could be seen to contract, and the utmost self-centrOl was required on the parl ot the subject 10 prevent involuntary closure of the lids. The right and left orbs were equally sensitive in this particular Dr, Beard n0w advanced to the patient. executed a pass or two, and requested him to look at some angels coming through the ceiling at an angle of about 45 degrees. There was no alteration m the pulse or respiration of the subject as the trance supervened it was preceded by no pAilor and DO perceptible muscular tremor. Both eyes were still open, and Wright was gazing with wild intensity at the angels, when, with a weiLadiusted light, a powerful beam Lrosn Use ophthalnoscopic mirror was project cd directly upon the retina. The pencil, con. centraied by mirror three inches in diameter was sO intense that its blaze was visible as luminous spot within the eye, notwithstanding the fsct thai the apartment was darkened for tne experiment, and was consequently flooded with full daylight. The beam might as well have been directed upon the unclosed eve of a csdaver in iis confn. as far as any sensibi,itv was concerned. Winking was suspended, and, although the beam fell suddenly upon a relinz abnOrmalIy sensitive under ordinary condltiOns. not the slightest instinctive tremor or the eyeln or contraction of the pupil sbts. tFayet its presence. When the left eye had been tested in the same manner, with the same re- snlI, Dr. AIttend.,rf handed the instrument 10 one of the medical experts standing by, who. eLaer repeating the test. expressed himself satisfied as to it's decisiveness as the contrac. q sh of the pdpil under sudden access of hsht is an involuntary set. and one that can noi be restrained by effort of the will In similar manner the subjects were rendered color-blind
 The tests as to the senses of smell and taste were very simple in their description, and cosisiszed in the use of such powerful agents es anmonla and red pepper. which were en- dured without the least sign of perception of taeIr presence. An interesting experiment with Gray. to illustrate The possibility of sharply circumscribed anRsthesia. will serve as an example of the class of tests which were employed iD reference to tlres sensesof fduchs In the trance condition sensibity was sns pended m the thumb of the right hand. aver a sharply defined ares, embracing the ball and the internal surface The latter was tested with needles and pins, by compression with . the foreeps &c-, without producing trace nt reiirx action, while the instant the point of the needle was applied hairs breadth beyond tIse area marked out for insensibility young Gr.E. whnse susceptibility to pain is naturally of l.e ...os exalted ord,r was unable to con-, srol tne involuntary reflex movemen. of tn hand The tests for suspension of heari wese m their nature rather less satisfact, ' tnan those for suspension of the other fo, r. consisting of loud CT shriIl sounds sudd :. ly applied The abolition Of the sense was. how. ever. conceded by the experts present after every inse aiols method nf deterrnination that c'lld be sagsestef iy trained experimental fits had been exhausted
 In the meantime numi'er of sthe party with Gray and WiIs,n, had adjiurnsd to the main o'iics where s singular series 0fftss was m progress B fll are young men of no liter ary culture. and. in their normal ! condition incapable of pftrae cd erat0r cal effort. Gray was directed to address the audience with an impromptn encpmium of Gen. Garfield. and Wilson. with on analogous enogium of Ham, cock IL was amusing to see the two orators.