The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-06-18

of Paris, has Il very interesting article
on the effects of hypnotism. In intro
ducton he expresses the general regret
of hypnologists at their inability to Sc
cure personal and exact observations,
owing to the fact that the subjects are
usually sick people, more or less ner-
vous, who see nothing i'll the expert
ments but preteXt to be theatrical, and
whose testimony consequently must be
taken with caution. Accordingly, DIR.
Jore enlisted number of his pupils as
subjects. and kept them in a state of
semi-hupsosis. during which their minds
were active and their memories neither
abolished nor weakened. The first sub
ject was carefully blindfolded, and af-
ter being partially hypnotized, the doctor
gave suggestions as to movements of the
arms which were obeyed automatically
by the young man.
The subject gave an account of his
sensations. When the passes were made
he felt a sort of general numbness or
dizziness, then the left arm obeyed the
influence of strange impetus and was
pulled forward and upward by force.
The force then ceased to be felt and
the movement of the arm was arrested.
arm, and after a few seconds it was felt
in both arms in an inverse sense. which
determined the lowering and returning
of the arms to their normal position.
The second experiment was made on
Mr.. B.. medical student. The same
preparations were made as in the first
case. The subject was placed i'll the
middle of the room well in the light The
doctor then stood three yards i'll front
Of him, leaning with his hands on the
back of IL chair behind him, and sug-
gested that he should raise the right leg,
the doctor himself accompanying the
suggestion by the movement. In from
fifteen to twenty second the subject rest
ed all the weight of his body on the left
leg, bent the right knee till only the toe
touched and finally lifted it entirely.
The bandage was taken off and the doc
tor breathed on his eyes and he then
related his sensations. He did not en-
phasize the numbness, which, however.
he declares he felt before an unexpected
and involuntary contraction of the mus
cles in the thigh which caused the rails
ing and bending of the knee.
CONVINCING A SKEPTIC.
AT the second seance NJ. X. Il medical
student, who had been present at the
first. said he was not convinced OF the
reality of the impulse which the sub
iects claimed to feel, He did not doubt
their good faith, but thought there must
be auto-suggestion and that the Spon-
taneous movement only chanced to be
the one desired, etc Dr. Joire proposed
to repeat the experiments on him. He
being skeptical and prejudiced against
auto-suggestion a successful experiment
would have all the more value. vi. y.
was blindfolded Che declared that he
was convinced that to try an experiment
on him was useless) and passes made on
the head and body, he, at the same
time. being told not to initiate from
memory and not to resist any distinct
impulse. The operator then stood about
two yards from him and began mental
suggestion to move the left arm out,
but parallel with the body, and then to
bend the forearm up on to the arm. In
Il very few moments the automatic
movements began, slowly but without
hesitation.
When asked why he made the move
ments, NJ, X confessed, with some sur
prise. that he had felt force drawing
his arm in the direction followed, that
he at first resisted, but the impulse con-
tinued to act and became very strong,
when he no longer resisted.
One of the subjects who had served
before was then led from the room, while
those remaining made Il chalk line With
numerous curves on the floor. When all
was ready the blindfolded subject was
led into the room and placed at one
extremity of the line. The operator,
without touching the subject. fixed his
attention on the line which he was to
follow. This line began at the door,
described a circle to the left, turned to
the right, and again a large circle to the
left. The subject followed the line, step
by step, very exactly, stopping and
seeming to hesitate at the curves.
The same experiments were repeated
several times with different subjects,
which permitted the operator to gather
the impressions of each under exactly
the same conditions. Each of the sub
iects experienced the same sensations
and analyzed them in the same way.
SENSATIONS OF SUBJECTS.
1t is of great interest. then, to find in
what condition the subjects are at the
time of receiving the suggestion. In APP
pearance they are awake, and, III fact,
if questioned after the experiment, would
unanimously reply that they had not
slept. In reality they were not IN
sound sleep, but neither were they i'll "A
normal waking condition. The proof is
found in the fact that when the passes
were made they all experienced change,
as they said something seemed to isolate
them, and there was a vague numbness
and tingling all over the body,
The subjects were in a state which has
been described as mechanic or passive
the attention to whatever came from the
person suggesting was exalted to a point
which it could not attain i'll Il normal
condition. 1t is probably this modifica-
ton of the subject which admits of the
establishment of communication between
himself and the operator by which he
can be impressed by an influence purely
psychic This psychic correspondence
between several individuals does not ap-
pear to be abnormal or even peculiar
to the hypnotic state, hut in the me
dianic' state there is an orientation pc
culiar to this nervous influx, and at the
same time a concentration of force to-