The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1891-12-18

not1Sln is: The induction OF a pSycnt"
cal condition in which the subjects
susceptibility to suggestion and ability
TO act upon it are enormously in
creased" Sometimes the subject is in
. sound sleep, sometimes in a half
waking state, and often in full possess
sion of the senses and the intelli.
gence Sometimes this state is self
induced, but more often it is produced
by some mysterious influence of anoth.
err on the nervous system of the sub
ject. Suggestion is familiar enough
phenomenon. The contagion of laugh
ter or tears is common example, and
the acts of everybody in their normal
condition are guided by it to an extent
not usually realized. From this con-
troll of suggestion over the acts of the
most self-posseSsed of individuals to
the domination of the idea impaired
to the subject deep in h, onotic sleep,
the progress is regular, fer the differ
ence is of degree and not of kind.
Some writers go so far as TO class all
impulse to action which comes from
without to suggestion, and assert that
all that portion of mankind who lack
that self-reliance and self-sutficiency
which is the possession OF only the few,
are all their lives led by suggestions
Men who yield easily to the tempta-
ton to drink are especially victims
of suggestion, and as rule hypnotic
subjects, and their cure consists in fix
ing in their minds the suggestion to alb
stain in the place of the suggestion to
indulge.
/ In practice the process Of cure is to
hypnotic the patient and tell him as
firmly as possible that he has lost his
desire for stimulant, and that he must
not and cannot longer indulge in it.
DR.. Bjornstrom, Swedish authority
on hypnotiSm, cites a number of cases
from hospitals in several European
cities and from the private practice of
physicians where cases of dipsomania
of long standing have been cured.
Some cases were received in delirium
tremens, others in bad stages Of alco-
holism, and others who had been vic
tins of the habit for years, but SO far
as known the cure in all cases was per-
manent DIR. Charles l.. Tuckey has
given in the Contemporary Review
another list of cases, some of them
very striking, which have all re.
suited in permanent cures of the drinh
habit. 1t is curious to note that in
some cases a single reduction of the
patient to the hypnotic state was suffi.
cient to enforce the suggestion of absti.
hence permanently, while in othera
the permanency of this impression has
only been secured after some weeks of
such treatment. In all these cases
cited by DIR. Tuckey the suggestion
was made that alcohol was poison and
that the subject loathcd it, and that
loathing has continued.
Interesting differences may be drawn
from these experiments, notably that
dipsomania is a disease subject to cure
by the will of the patient. Persuaded
| that they must not drink, these drunk
ards cease to drink and cease to want
to drink. If the will could be aroused
in any other way it is probable that
the cure would be as complete unless
it be that in some mysterious way the
the will of the hypnotizer Another
reference is that the permanence of
these suggestions is the principal guar
anty OF the permanence of the cure.
and that if the hypnotizer will il, or
stronger influence be brought TO bear
on the patient, he may relapse. But it
is to be said that relapses are possible
under any circumstances, and that SO far
these reported hypnotic cures have been
permanent. pringfeld Republican.