The record-union., 1891-09-30

engaged many years IN newspaper work,
has been lawyer, and generally is rep
resented as hard mental worker, the
other day played wild prank in San
Francisco.
Coming from the country to consult his
brother relative to the care of their
mother, an invalid, he was suddenly
seized with desire to hoax his wife, who
was stopping in the city, by calling upon
her in female attire. He blackened his
face, procured a complete outfit of
woman's wearing apparel, dressed him
self in it, and went upon the street in
tending to go to his wife's rooms. On the
road he remembered an engagement he
had at the ferry landing, and proceeded
there, where he was arrested.
Thus far there was nothing novel in his
action. Men had foolishly assumed the
garb of the weaker sex before, and pa
raded the streets. But on his trial for the
offense Livernash's physician took the
stand and made this singular relation:
''He is," said the doctor, "one of the most
pronounced instances of hypnotism that ever
came under my observation. Hypnotism is
a thing generally misunderstood. 1t is a con-
dltlon OF trance which may be induced by
mesmerist or be induced by the patient him.
self, without even the intention of SO doing.
Sometimes the subject is partially conscious,
and sometimes absolutely unconscious as long
as the hypnotic trance lasts"
The doctor continued, giving history of
Livernashs case since the young man has
considered that the prisoner was morally re-
| sponsible when he dressed himself in woman's
| clothes on Saturday, the physician replied
that, in his professional opinion, Livernash
| would never have done such q thing if he had
| been in complete possession of his faculties.
He added later that he had never known a
man of such peculiar hypnotic temperament
| as Liyernash, although the latter's brother
presents case full of interest to experts.
1.-The BROTHER" said the physician, "was
taken with an epileptic fit not long ago, and it
required six men to hold him. He acted vim
dictiVely toward all six of the men, but when
| ne came out of the fit he had no recollection
of what had happened. The next time he had
an epileptic fit, however, he remembered per-
| fectly all that happened on the previous occa-
| sion, and all his former vindictiveness against
| the men who had held him was revived. He
| put pistol in his pocket and started for this
| city from Healdsburg with the intention of
| shooting one of the men who had held him
during the former attack. Fortunately he
came out of the trance before he found the
man. Yet if he had shot him while in that
| ally responsible"
This is a wholly new view of hYpnot-
ism; one that will not be generally ac-
cepted by scientists, and that needs bet
ter verifcation than that Of one physi-
clan. Yet there may be truth in his
theory, and it is possible that men may
in trance-like state, self-induced, act in
a manner not creditable to the sane. But
until there is more light cast upon the
Livernash case the young man must be
regarded as subject to fits of insanity.
He himself says that he has been the
victim of insomnia and somnambulism
for long time, and that he has freely used
chloroform to induce sleep and reduce
nervousness. He adds that his mental
labors have brought on undue excitation
of the nerve centers, and in consequence
he has suffered keenly. He is vivid
dreamer, and his rest is broken by the
character of his dreams which take him
over all the details of his days doings. He
say . lC IL 11SHuCAlI4g ullhD1O " OA6IG LIS
will power sufficiently to enable him to
recall the happenings of the day, when
evening comes on. He remembers dis
tinctly the resolution to robe in female
attire, and that he procured suit of his
wife's clothing, but contends that he has
| but confused recollection of what trans
| pired from the time he left his hotel until
he was landed in the city prison.
| If the theory of Livernash's physician is
correct, and he is the victim of self-in-
| duced hypnotic states, in which he is at
the mercy Of his whims, then such con-
dition is a state of insanity, calling for
restraint and treatment, as likewise is
! that of the brother, whose fit periods ap-
pear to be occupied IN attempts to kill.
! If the brothers malady is epilepsy,
why will not the same explanation apply
to the case of the young man who robed
| himself in petticoats and gown? The
probabilities are that board of physi-
clans would pronounce the Livernashes as
unfortunately afflicted with fits of insan-
ity, which will finally determine into
settled dementia of an order justifying
restraint.