The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-10-04
"IHE ETERN IL GULLIBLE.'

cal Journal Reveals Some of the 1mpos-
 lures of the Pro fessional Subject.
 MT. Ernest Hart, editor of the London Medical Journal, who has made par ticular study of morbid pathology, has an interesting article in the October number of the Century on "The Eter- nal Gullible, with Confessions of Professional 'Hypnotist.'' MT. Hart says he does not deny the physical facts of hypnotism and it's heteronyms, but he considers the general interpreta- tion of them erroneous.
 Some little time ago, says MT. Hart, was the recipient of the confessions of a professional subject, who had come to see the error of his ways, or, as fear is more probable, finding his occupa- tion gone for your subject" loses his commercial value by over-use), was not unwilling to unfold the story of his 'professional'f for a consideration He was sent to me by the editor of London Truth, into whose sympathetic ear he had first poured the story of his career as a corpus vile of pseudo-scien- tif1c' experiment. The confessions Of this ingenious youth are amusing and instructive, though as in most confi- dences of the kind, the light is thrown strongly on the sins and shortcomings of others, while the penitent's own pec- cadillos are left in shadow. They are, unfortunately. too long to give in full, but I may say that the original docu- ments submitted to me prove that in the most noted hypnotic exhibitions given on public platforms at the Aqua rum in London, and other places of amusement the performers. both hyp- notizers and hypnotized, are, almost without exception, conscious humbugs, going through q prearranged show" and, to quote the yates sacer of the Heather Chinee, the same with intent to deceive" In the inner circles of the music-hals, the line" of the profes sional subject is, I find, as well recog- niZed as that of the contortionist, or any other variety of mountebank. He is engaged in the usual way, and his earnings are proportionate to his pro- fessional skill. that Is, to his power of gulling the groundlings. Nor, taking into account the disagreeable expert ences which he has to go through, can it be said that his line of business is particularly remunerative. His mus cles must be under extraordinary con- trol; his palate must be disciplined to tolerate, and his stomach to retain such delicacies as castor-oil, mustard, Cayenne pepper, parafin and ipecacu- anha; and he must bear pain with the impassive stoicism of an Indian brave. It is clear that professional subject must not only be born, but must be made, and to the making of him there must go an amount of trouble worthy of a better cause. His professional equipment must include some measure of histrionic ability, as. in his time. he has many parts to play. Above all, he must, like the Roman augurs, cultivate a command of countenance which shall prevent his laughing outright in the faces of his dupes. *-
 My interesting penitent has allowed me the privilege of seeing his business correspondence, from which the story of his professional life, from year to year. can be extracted. According to these documents, his first introduction to mesmerism was at St. James Hall; this important event is best described in his own words:
 "When first went to the above show was sitting among the audience when a mesmerized subject rushed up to me and said the place was on fire. He tried to pull me away from my seat but would not go, till at last Mir. -- came up and awakened him. As I was leaving the building that subject came up to me and apologized for the trouble he had occasioned me. He asked me whether I would have ticket for the following evening; he gave me a ticket and I came again the following even ing. When saw him again he asked me if believed in it; answered yes. He asked me if thought could do the same; I said no. He said he would teach me if liked."'
 My penitent has been endowed by nature with countenance which rre- sembles Pindar's verses in being sig nificant to the Initiated am there fore not surprised that he was quickly recognized by the sympathetic tntui- tion of Q kindred spirit, as one born to hypnotic greatf In his modest diff fidence as to his capacity i'm that direc- tion we may recognize the "uncop- sciousness" which, according to Car lyle. is distinguishing attribute of the