Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1891-01-09
HYPNoTIsM.
Remarkable Experiments Made Over
Forty Years Ago by Distinguished
individuals.

and somewhat wonderful force, Or-l
we may be permitted to coin a phrase
for the OCCASION" what-is-it-ism," in
which public interest has been recently
revived.
On Friday, the 3rd inst, Mile. Jen
ny Lind, accompanied by Mr.. and Mrs
Schwabe and few 81 their friends, at
tended a seance at Mr.. Baird's for the
purpose of witnessing some Of the ex-
traorlinary phenomena of hypnotism.
After showing his mode of inducing
the sleep, and many of the ordinary
phenomena of mesmerism, Mr.. Baird
illustrated hts views oi the nature and
cause of the manifestations called phre-
no-mesmerism. He neither touched
the head, nor gave any vocal enuncia-
ton of the ideas he meant to excite in
the minds OF the patients, but excited
into action those muscles in the face,
or other parts of the frame, which in
the waking state, give physical mani
festations of such passions or emotions,
and instantly the corresponding ideas
were excited in the minds of the pa
tients.
But now came the most extraordi-
nary part of the exhibition. There
were two girls who work in 4 ware
house, and who had just come in their
working attire. Having thrown them
into the sleep, Mr.. Baird sat down to
the piano, and the moment he began
playing both somnambulists arose and
approached the instrument, and they
joined him in singing trio. Having
awoke one of the girls, Mr.. Baird made
what appeared most startling an
nOuncement regarding the one who
was still in the sleep. He said al
though she was ignorant of the gram
mar of her own language when awake,
that when in the sleep she would prove
herself competent to accompany any
one in the room in singing songs in
any language. giving both notes and
words correctly-a feat which she was
quite incompetent to perform in the
waking condition. OF course all were
most incredulous On this point, but
the result proved that Mr.. Baird had
not exaggerated the powers Of his sub
ject. He requested any one in the
room to put her to the test; when Mr..
Schwabe sat down to the instrument
and played and sang German song,
in which she accompanied him cor
rectly, giving both notes and words 81
multaneously with Mr.. Schwabe. An
other gentleman then tried her one in
Swedish, in which she also succeeded.
Next the queen of song, the far
famed Jenny Lind, sat down to the in
strument, and played and sang most
beautifully slow air, with Swedish
words, in which the somnambulist ac-
companied her, in the most perfect
manner, both as regarded words and
music. Jenny now seemed resolved
to test the power Of the somnambulist
to the utmost by continued strain of
the most difficult roulades and GARDEN
zas for which she is SO famous, includ-
ing some of her sostenuto notes, with
all their infections from pianissimo to
forte cressendo, and again diminishing
to threadlike pianissimo; but in all
these fantastic tricks and displays Of
genius by the Swedish Nightingale,
even to the shake, she was SO closely
and accurately tracked by the SOM
nambulist, that several in the room
occasionally could not have told mere
ly by hearing, that there were two in
dividuals singing-so instantaneously
did she catch the notes, and so perfect
ly did their voices blend and accord.
Next, Jenny. having been told by Mr..
Baird that she might lie tested in some
other language, this charming song
stress commenced "Casta Diva" in
which the fidelity of the somnambulis-
tic performance, both in words and
music, was most perfect and fully JUS
titled all Mr.. Baird had alleged regard
ing her powers. Indeed, he said, he
had never known this patient to fail
in such feats. The girl has naturally
a good voice, and has had little musi-
cal instruction in some of the Music
of the Million" classes, but is quite in
capable of doing any such feat in her
waking condition, either as regards
singing the notes or speaking the
words with the accuracy she did when
in the somnambulistic state. She was
also tested by Mdlle. Lind in merely
initiating language, when she gave
most exact limitations; and Mr..
Schwabe also tried her by some most
difficult combinations of sound, which
he said he knew no one was capable of
initiating correctly without much
practice; but the somnambulist imitat-
ed them correctly at once, and that
whether spoken slowly or quickly.
When the girl was aroused, she had
no recollection of anything which had
been done by her, or that she had af.
forded such high qualification to all
present by proving the wonderful
powers OF imitation which are acquired
by some patients during state of ar.
tificial somnambulism; she said she
merely felt somewhat out of breath
as if she had been running.
THE Grand Army of the Republic
encampment will be held at Puyallur
next April.
CARS will be running on the Tacom.