The record-union., 1891-08-22
THE EXPERIMENTS AT SALPE-
YRTERE,

~
that deserve and receive attention from
the scientific world.
The problem that is being worked out
at Salpetriere is, "Can human suffering
be mitigated or cured by suggestion ?"
1t looks very much, at present. as if an
affirmative response will constitute the
, final official verdict of solution. It may
be safely taken as demonstrated that to a
certain extent suggestion is curative; also
that the mental condition inseparable
from it causes tissue changes, much as
do iodine and some other drugs. But the
doctors do not know as yet why this is
so, nor are they clear as to the induce
ment of the hypnotic condition They
do know that such q condition can be
brought on and that it results in a certain
way. To the entire clearing up of the
problem the wise men of the schools of
Charcot and Nancy are now devoting
themselves at Salpetriere.
Because these scientists are unsettled as
to causes and reasons in this matter, they
decline to render any verdict and are as
close-mouthed as mutes. But the direct
ory of Salpetriere permit the facts to be
given, stipulating only that the reporters
shall not indulge in hasty and unadvised
conclusions.
What is now being done at the hospital
is thorough experimenting, under the
light of greater knowledge, in form of
what was once called animal magnetism,
and to the "science' of which Mesmer
gave his name and INDUCED, as did his
followers, in a good deal Of clap-trap and
humbug concerning it, The central
principle Of the "science" is the claim that
some persons can by will power act upon
the minds of certain others and induce
physical action and mental submission
when the latter are in a certain peculiar
physical condition. The two French
schools already named agree that Mes
mer was right in the main and that his
claim as originally made had virtue.
The value of the research of the Nancy
and Charcot schools is found in the
spirit with which they pursue it. They
are Investigators as scientists, and have
nothing to do with the mystical with
which some creduIous people seek to en-
velop the physical and mental state OF
the controller. As far back as 1870 the
Paris Academy Of Medicine looked into
the question of animal magnetism, and
after half decade it concluded that there
was something in it real, but that the
academy did not truly comprehend it.
The condemnation by the church doubt
less had something to do with this unsat-
lish inquiry resulted in the discovery
that the phenomena are subjective, and
thus distinguished them from mesmer-
ism. Even then hypnotism was intro
duced into surgery and with some de-
gree of success. Not long after electro
biology gained attention in our own
country and was found to be identical
with hypnotism.
The Partisan correspondent Of the New
York Times, who gives us much interest
ing information upon the subject, now re-
views the most recent work of the Nancy
and Charcot schools. The firstwas founded
in 1866 by Liebault, the other in 1878 by
Charcot. In results the schools do not
differ much; in theories as TO causes, and
in the methods employed and in incident
ais they widely differ. In Germany the
Universities treat the subject soberly in
lectures, and in England Psychical Re-
search Societies diligently explore the
phenomena without espousing any par
ticular school. 1t may be said, therefore,
that hypuotism, with all the charlatanism
that has attended it, has really reached 2
sound basis; is recognized as something
no longer to be laughed at or despised,
and is, as in Austria, commanding the
attention Of the law. Among the expert
ments reported at Salpetriere as success
fully produced, is the one common in this
country of subjecung the viii and induc-
AiAB VIZ ~ EAiONiS NSANAAtiOiA ~ tlit
subject gaze intenny at small object
Another is to produce like results by gaz,
ing into the eyes. Still another is to in.
duce the result by passes Of the hand
The method of the Nancy school is tc
produce the effect by calling up in the
mind an image of sleep. The patient
yielding is apparently deprived of his
will, or the power TO make movement,
undirected by the operator. His percep
tions are controlled, and his senses be
come the sport Of the operators when t.
all others he is Needless.
Again, patients are thrown into tn,
state and their teeth are extracted and ole
tooth roots dug from their jaws withou
immediate or succeeding complaint o
pain. Tumors are removed and abscesset
scraped and cleaned with the patient un
der no other control than the eoinmant
not to suffer The two last experiment.
were repeated at Leeds, England, III tn
presence of thirty physicians, we ar
told
It sounds too mystical to implicitly be
heve. as we are assured is true, that th