Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1888-11-21
HYPNOTISM AND CRIME.
Remarkable Experiments Made
by a French Scientist.
An Important Problem In Medical Juris-
prudence-Tests Applied to French
Lady and a Soldier-Result OF
the Experiments.

According to the London St. james Gdzette
NJ. Jules Lisgsois, Professor of the Faculty
Of Law at Nancy, has lately made some re-
narkable experiments connected with
hypnotism. 1t is already well known that a
subject who has bean thrown into hypnot-
ic trance will, upon awakening, Immediate
ly execute any suggestion" !" however GRIM
inal, that has been made during sleep by
person who possesses the dangerous power
of absolutely directing the will of another.
The object of Mr.. Liegeois' experiments
was to ascertain if it would be possible,
when crime had been committed by
hypnotic subject to discover the author Of
the criminal suggestion, who in such case
would obviously be the really guilty party.
This important problem in medical juris-
prudence has for some time attracted
great deal of interest in France, and a num-
Der of lawyers and medical men were pres
ent during the experiments.
Here Is one of the experiments out of
many: A lady who was well known to be
hypnotic subject was thrown into an arti-
fetal sleep, and M. Liegeois then suggested
to her that upon awakening she should
shoot with revolver certain Monsieur
o., who was supposed to have insulted
her. She was enjoined to say, If she
was questioned, that M. Legeois had held
ject, and that she had not been under the
influence of any one, but had acted entirely
of her own volition. A revolver loaded
with blank charge having been placed up
on table close at hand, the lady was awalx-
encd. The instant she perceived Monsieur
O., who was in the room, she seized the re-
volver and fired at him. She was then
again put to sleep, this time by DIR. Lie
bault, who played the part of medico-legal
expert and proceeded to interrogate her. The
lady at once admitted the supposed crime,
and, in obedience to the injunction she had
received, stoutly denied all suggestion. So
far it seemed that there was a certain
means of escape for the real criminal who
had suggested the supposed murder; but an
ingenious test was then resorted to which
proved that the suggester was never very
safe after all. M. Liebault made these three
suggestions: "Q) When you see the insti-
gator of your crime enter the room you
must go to sleep for the space of two min
utes; (2) when you awaken you must look
fixedly at him and not take your eyes from
his until l say That will do, (9 you must
then stand in front of him and endeavor, by
extending your skirts, to conceal HIM from
view" The lady was awakened and in a
short time NJ. Legeois, who had suggested
the shooting, came into the room, in
which about dozen persons were assem-
bed. Almost at once she went to sleep.
In about two minutes she awoke, fixed her
gaze steadfastly upon M. Liegeois, and fol-
lowed him, step by step, round the ROOM
M. Liegeois went into another apartment
the lady following him. He sat down, and
she at once extended her dress In front of
him, as though to conceal him. When she
regained her normal condition, she remem-
bered nothing of what had happened.
M. Liegeois' experiments do not stand
alone. Prof, Bernhelm applied almost iden-
tical tests to soldier who had returned
from Tonquin. He compelled him, by sug-
gestion, to steal five-franc piece, and en-
joined him not to admit that he had been
hypnotized. When interrogated as to why
he had committed the theft, he replied that
he did it because the idea occurred to him.
and took an oath that the act had not been
suggested to him. Thereupon the soldier
was again operated upon, and while he was
In the hypnotic sleep he was told: When
you see the person who suggested to YOU to
steal, you must go up to him and say, = l am
very glad to see you. Please sing me the
Marseiilaise.'" The subject obeyed
these injunctions to the letter. He
was then again put to sleep and
asked to reveal TIE name of the in
stigator of the theft; but he once more
denied that there had been any sugges-
tion. Nevertheless Prof. Bernheim said to
him: when you see the instigator of the
robbery, you must say: i remember YOU
perfectly; 1t was you who told me to steal"
The moment he was awakened he went up
to the professor and repeated the suggested
phrase. II would thus seem TO be toler-
ably clear that although a hypnotized per-
son will not reveal in direct way the name
of a person under whose influence he has
been, he will reveal it in an indirect way.
He will do nothing that he has been cate
gorically forbidden to do; and that is all.
This being so, ii is clear that in certain cir
eumstances the author of criminal sug-
gestion would assuredly be discovered. But
these experiments take no account of a very
important contingency-the possible, and
indeed probable, absence from the scene of
the suggester of CRIME. The whole sub
ject of hypnotism is very curious and i'm
portant from the point of view of medical
Jurisprudence; since it is obvious that un-
der cover of suggestions" the most afro
clous crimes could be committed. Happily
there is good reason to believe that the
number OF persons capable of being hypno-
tlzed is comparatively small; and it is
doubtful whether, after all, hypnotic sug-
gestion would be OF much use 10 the boldest
and most adroit villain-except, of course,
IN "shillng shocker"