The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-07-12
A GUINEA A BOX.
How Mr.. .Bellerophon Sartin Hypnotized a
Comfortable Fortune.
London Society.

London Society.
Bellerophon Sartin felt he had an inspira-
ton. Do not be afraid; he was not going
to mount the Pegasus of the MUSES. and
concoct verses. No, the Pegasus which he
proposed to mount was the winged horse
upon which Holloway, Cookie, and Beecham
have in turn successfully ridden against
the dread chim@ra, poverty.
Now, Bellerophon, notwithstanding the
fact that he had received classical educa-
tion Qndeed, that unreliable Jersey-French-
man, LempriGre, was his favorite reading),
did not think it beneath him to bring his
mighty brain to bear upon the invention
and manufacture of perfectly harmless
pill. This accomplished, he cast about him
how best to launch this bolus upon q con-
sumptive public; in other words, how best
to give the world an opportunity of evinc-
ing its gratitude by casting it's gold into
his lap.
To arrive at decision on this knotty point
was harder than he had expected. Advertise
ment in the papers and on boardings was, of
course, open to him, but then his whole capi-
tai was but $4,000, and he found out that that
would go precious little way. What was he
to do? He was fairly at his Wits end, when
one night, after reading himself to sleep with
the "Classical Dictionary he dreamed thai
he was Sisyphus condemed continually to
roll huge pill to the top OF Primrose Hill,
from which it fell back as soon as it reached
the summit, and SO rendered his punishment
eternal: whilst written across the lurid sky in
flames of fire, the words 'sWorth a guinea a
box" burnt themselves into his brain. He
started from his sleep, dismaying the wife of
his bosom by shouting ga guinea a box"
From that moment fe felt that the inspira-
tfOQ that was WANTING mako his forum xuac
upon him. BY the morning he had definitely
made up his mind-not that his pills were
worth a guinea box (this would not have
been Originally, but that the world would take
him at his own estimate. He further argued
that the sale of a comparatively small number
OF his boxes Of this price-say ten or twenty
thousand-wc'uld admirably recoup him. He
also realized that the ordinary public, which
buys its medicines with postage stamps, and
which is appealed to by posters and newspaper
advertisements, would not he the public from
which he could hope to obtain SO exorbitant a
price. He therefore realized that a new
method of distributing pills must be discov-
cred.
very small way, Bellerophon being dispens-
ing chemist by trade, in an obscure country
town. Three hundred year at the outside
was the extent of the profits derived from this
business. This modest couple were blest with
but one child, daughter, Matilda by name,
tenderness of which they were capable. In
deed, they stinted themselves to provide this
very pretty girl of theirs with first-rate edu-
cation, which cost them the best part of hun
dred pounds year.
AS good fortune would have it, just at the
time OF Bellerophon Sartin's inspiration above
mentioned, Matilda had returned home
FINISHED" from school, fine, handsome,
though somewhat eccentric and simple, girl
OF Is, and as little like an obscure chemist's
daughter as 1t Is possible to imagine Nor
had her grander surroundings at school in
any degree weakened her natural affection
for her parents But still it could not be de-
MED that the stuffy little parlor at the back
of the shop, and the stuffy little society In
which she found herself obliged to move.
were anything but congenial to her. She was
just In that state of mind in which any oppor-
tunity OF escape-even temporary-Would be
eagerly grasped at
And 1t was then that another brilliant idea
struck Bellerophon, which may be called
second inspiration.
have said that Matilda's father had besides
his business, small capital of some two thou
sand pounds. Now he made up his mind, after
comforting with his daughter, TO invest a good
proportion of this In scheme of quite remark
able audacity, by which he hoped within a
year or two, TO make comfortable fortune
Certain hypnotic displays had of late been
given in the town, and, as is usual at such per-
formances, the effect of suggestion upon the
mesmerlzeu suDJecCs nad Deen particularly
dwelt upon and exemplifed. One night, in
deed, Bellerophon and his wife had been wit
nesses of very remarkable exhibition, which
had left lasting impression upon them. A
boy, of extremely robust and vigorous APP
pearance, with rosy cheeks and broad chest
after being hypnotized, had been instructed
to assume the appearance of person in the
last stage OF galloping consumption. lmme-
diately his cheeks seemed to fall away, his
eyes assumed an unnatural brightness, his
color disappeared, save for hectic spot over
each cheek bone, his breath grew short, and
cough that seemed to tear him to pieces de-
veloped itself. The mesmerist then suggested
to him that he should resume his natural APP
pearance, and-like magic--all the symptoms
disappeared, and the boy, like Nora in Ibsen's
"DolPs House," found himself again.
Bellerophon, and, after discussing the matter,
he and Matilda determined to put themselves