The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-05
A BRAIN LIKE Putty
Tony Lefevrs's remarkable History as
g Travelling Subject for Eypnotists.


q Travelling Subject for, Eypnotists.
Ffop, the Ner York World
A listless-lookng follow shuffied into the
Hoffman house cafe recently and seating
himself at one of the tables, gazed around
with vacant, haf-frightened stare. No
body paid any attention to him, and after
awhile he got up, walked irresolutely towards
the Twenty fourth street entrance and
wandered out as aimlessly as he came in.
There were three physicians in the cafe at
the time, but not one of them recognized in
the stranger one of the most interesting
psychological studies of the age-a man
whose brain must be like putty. SO easily is
IL nodded and controlled by another men,
tahty.
The man was Antoine Lefevre, better
known as Tony a professional subject
for nnesrnerists and hypnotists. He belongs
to q family of singularly impressionablen ma
lures, bis father before him having sub
mitted himself for years to experiments in
mesmerisln in Paris and London, and his eld-
er brother following the same line as him
self in many engagements with travelling
professors of the at who gave public exhi-
bitions TONY" has appeared before hun
,lreds of audiences with Prof Carpenter or
the Kennedy Brothers, as his exhibitors, and
has given such indisputable evidence of his
not the slightest doubt of the genuineness of
the demonstration thereof. His brother for
many years was engaged by the late Sig
BItZ, and amused thousands by the antics
that many believed to be simply a part of
the business and by a few as proof that
n human mind could be controlled and made
completely subservient to the will of an
other.
Ebony" is now about So years of age. He
began his career as subject" before he
was Is years of age. and in less than three
wears his personality had become so thor
oughly destroyed that he could be controlled
as readily by one person as another. That
was demonstrated i'll San Francisco in 1876
A mesmeric exhibition was given by a ''pro-
fessor" named Foster. Tony was seated in
the audience as usual to help out in case no
person of sufficient susceptibility was found
to create amusement. He responded when
the call came for people to go upon the
stage together with four Others The usual
performances We're gone through, and when
the curtain rang down and Tony went TO
his hotel he was approached by Charley
Flynn, a man-about-town and gambler,
who was a thorough sceptic on the subject
of mesmerism, and questioned. Tony main
tanned that he had no control over his own
actions when he was directed by the man
who employed him. and in his zeal to prove
that he was telling the truth he asked Flynn
to attempt to exert the power himself He
did so, and to his utter surprise found that
he could mentally direct Tony to perform
certain things and have the order obeyed
unerringly.
Altogether unacquainted with either the
theory or philosophy of hypnotism, but be-
lieving that he had discovered a gold mine,
Flynn simply stole Tony and carried him
off. The engagement with Foster was
broken, Just because Flynn said it should be
had Epa LODI xubo fax1
of the character Of his new employer, made
no contract, and without knowing whether
he was to be compensated for his services or
not, or what those services were to be, he
accompanied the San Francisco gambler to
Chicago and was there exhibited by him to
the fraternity, just about as a six-legged
calf or double-headed woman would be
exhibited He was treated in most shame
full manner, and was compelled to peform
actions that no sane man in control of his
own faculties would dream of. An effort
was made to make money out of him, but
Flynn, having no knowledge of show bust
ness, and being at heart trickster, failed
when ne came TO dealing in novelty-hon--
esty. In a few weeks poor Tony was turned
adrift, and he wandered back west again
and struck Denver, where he met another
professor and secured an engagement.
Coming East in 1888 he went with the Ken
nedy Brothers, and In the fall Of that year
appeared at the New Central theatre in Phil
adelphia. One night. about the middle Of
the engagememert, one of the Kennedys
took Tony and several other subjects to the
Journalists club to give a private exhibi-
hon. Among those who saw it was DR.. j.
William White, one Of Pbiladelphia's most
eminent practitioners. He gave Tony very
thorough test. 1t was found that the subject
could, without the slightest finching, per-
init his eyeball to be touched with the fin-
.anAl fA ha Gp1or
rails, his tongue to be 'cae ed to his cheek
with needle and thread and a penknife to
be thrust into his body suddenly and with
out warning. He was made TO believe that
be was q pugilist, an orator and an actor,
and he gave the characteristics Of each.
After Dr.. White had left the club house
Tony was subjected to further experiment
Prof. Kennedy caused him. by some mys-
terious mental process, to lower his pulse
from IS beats d minute to 46, performance
fraught with so much danger that the look
ers-on begged Kennedy to desist. II these
different demonstrations were merely as
sumed by Tony he was able to bear more
physical pain without wincing than 10000
ordinary men.
D. $50 you are still a subject, Tonyp said
the reporter, who had followed him into the
street.
''Oh, yes.n was the reply 81 suppose l
always shall be. There is no other way I
can make living. II people only knew
how easily I was controlled, somebody
might"-in a frightened whlsper-"take
me of again the same as Charley Flynn
did"
That's true,' said the reporter, shut,
Tony, you ought to wrap Yourself up well.
Why, man, it's freezing out here, freezing.
freezing"
Poor Tony buttoned up his coat closely,
and with chattering teeth and wildly swing
ing arms ran like a deer down Twenty
fourth street and disappeared.