The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-03-05
GULLS THE PUBLIC
THE CONFESSIONS Or A PROBES.
SIGNAL "HYPNoTiST."
Els Papers Turned Over TO Noted Eng
Hsh Fditor-Erness Har. Of tho London
Medical Journal Reveals Some OF tbs
Impos;ures Of 8 Eun,bus.

ImpostuTes Of Eunabus.
Mr.. Ernest Hart, editor of the London
Medical journal who has made particu.
lar study of morbid pathology, has an IT,
teresting article IN The Century on THE
Eternal Gui;ible, With Confessions of a
Professional 'Hypnotist. !" MIR. Hart
says he does not deny the physical facts
of hypnotisn and its heterDnyms, but he
considers tie general Interpretation OF
them erroneous.
Some little time ago. says Mr.. Hart,
was the recipient Of the confessions OF .
professional subjecf, who had come to see
the error of his ways OF, Us fear is more
probable, finding his occupation gone to;
your subject" loses his commercial value
by oyeruse), was not unTiliingto unfold TIE
story of his professional life for q con-
sideration. They ara unfortunately too
long TO give IL full, but 1 may say that
the original documents submitted 10 me
prove that in the most noted hypnotic ex-
hibitions given on public platforms at
the Aquarium in London and other places
of amusement tie performers, both hyp-
notizers and hypnotized, are, almost with
out exception, conscious humbCgs, going
through prearranged show" and, 10
quote the Yates sacer OF the heather Chi
nee, the same with intent to deceive. >
In the inner circles IF the music halls the
line of the professional subject is,
find, IS we'll recognized as that OF the con-
tortionist or any other variety of mounts-
bank. He is engaged in the usual way,
and his earnings are proportionate to his
professional skill-tilat is TO his power of
quilting the groundlings. Nor, taking
into account the disagreeable experiences
which he has to go through, can it be said
that his line OF business is particularly re-
munerative. His muscles must be under
extraordinary contIoi; his palate must be
disciplined TO tolerate and his stomach tC
retain such delicacios Is castor oil, mus
tard, cayenne pepper, para1lin and ipecac-
uanha, and he must bear pain with the
impressive stoicism OF an Indian brave.
1t is clear that n professional subject
mist not only be bern, but must be made,
and to the making of him thyra 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 ne has many parts 10 play.
Above all, he must, like the Roman au-
gurs, cultivate command of countenance
which shall prevent his laughing outright
in the faces Of his dupes
My interesting penitent has allowed mo
the privilege Of seeing his business CORE
spondence, from which the story of his
professional life from year to year can be
extracted. According to these documents,
his first introduction to meSmeTism was
at St. James hall. This important event
is best described in his own woods:
when / first went to the above show,
l was sitting among the audience when "a
mesmerized subject rushed up 90 NE and
said the place was on fire He tried to
pull me away from my seat, but / would
not go, till at last Mr.. came up and
awakened him. AS / was leaving the
building that subject came up to lac and