The Florence daily tribune., 1899-02-18
STRATEGY.

He bore his unsuccess with becoming
meekness but he had discovered fac
tor in Professor" Leonard's methods
| For the next few days he studied not so
much hypnutisin as human nature, and
at the end OF the week again formed one
of the audience at the entertainment. Ire
was not 50 greatly surprised 70 find that
/ precisely the same gentlemen were chosen
as subjects from among a large number
of volunteers as were selected on the pre-
vious occasion. but he was undeterred
and responded to the Invitation for the
sloO competition with alacrity.
Hard cash, Il you please, replied the
young gentleman and set to work on the
row Of grinning yokels who were waiting
to be hypnotizcd
To the great surprise OF everybody, in
Guiding the professor, one by one they
succumbed to the mcsmeric influence
and when every individual had been put
through his faoings according to the ex-
hibited programme the youth quietly held
out his hand and said:
Perhaps you will be good enough to
count over that 21OO you referred to Just
now "
The professor" knew better than to
refuse, The house was in a state Of the
widest excitement and the popular cur
rent was distinctly in Johnson's favor
Refusal TO pay would have meant a riot at
least and long farewell TO his growing
reputation, He paid the money with a
bad grace and with many "A muttered exc
Grafton against the group OF subjects
who had sold him This was what came
Of putting faith in rustic innocence and
OF emitting the trifling forInality OF pay
ing wages when they We're due, How
ever, n chance might arise by which he
would yet get even
That chance arose.
The next night there were two mesmcr-
lists showing in TINT little town. A new
professor had sprung into existence.
II was the slim youth who had won the
RlOO The majority of Professor"
Leonnrds' subjects" had 'verted TO the
opposition. The rest had been discharged
Curiously enough, they were the only
mediums who were in the slightest
sense subject to this professors" hypnotic
influence, but neither of the scientists
cared to be bothered with them The
sham was an infinitely superior article, Sc
much more interesting from show point
of view, and so little trouble compara-
lively.
The new show caught on" amazingly,
and the Attendance increased in proper
tion to the decrease at the opposition hall
The local man was the celebrity of the
hour, and glowing notices and interviews
| appeared in the Wollabourne Slasher
Leonards tore his hair and brooded over
some scheme of vengeance
But one night, a never to be forgotten
night to all Wollabournians, occurred the
downfall of Professor johnson For
the last two nights he had been conduct
ing some marvellous experiments upon a
particularly susceptible subject whom he
had Unexpectedly discovered The record
I . II L..
condition had attracted overflowing
houses, and people fought in the street
to get in.
But upon this occasion the young pro
fessor, having put the medium through
the usual antics, to the great delight OF
the audience, failed utterly in restoring
the man to consciousness. He flipped his
fingers in the subjects face, dashed water
over him, ran needles into his flesh, but
all to no purpose AS e last resource
some one sent for a doctor, and when no
arrived people breathed freely for time
The professor" objected to the inter
ference of the medical man, but public
opinion overruled the objection, and the
doctor set to work. In less than five min
utes he had given up the task as hopeless
The man dying, he said, and unless
he We're brought round another hour
would see him a corpse.
The scene in the hall when this an
nouncenent was made battles description
Some hissed the professor, others
hinted mt lynching; all We're agreed that
the government ought to step in and stop
such entertainments. suddenly a little
man jumped upon stool and cried out:
What about the other professor -
The idea was acted upon at once, and n
small crowd hurried off to the other hall
to fetch Ieonards
When he entered the hall, the din and
the uproar We're terrific. No dead man
even of any self respect could have lain
upon that platform without rising TO en-.
ter protest against the disturbance, let
| alone an individual merely hypnotized
Yet this subject slept on through it all, as
though he had settled down steadily to
crack the record of the seven sleepers
| shall want to be remunerated for my
services, " said Leonards
Name your price and set to work at
once, returned johnson. The crowd
won't stand it any longer"
My price is e100," coolly replied
Leonar,is.
What" said the other
''One hundred pounds and cheap at
that Its the price l paid you for my
little downfall the other night, he
whispered
Curse II! lake It, then! said John
son e You We played a keener game than
mine and deserve to lose for being so
easily gullod Tell your man to stop his
informal fooling and let's get out of this. v
Professor Leonards made a few trans
verse passes over the man face, and with
dazed look in his eyes tbs man returned
to his senses.
Loud and long was tne cheer that
greeted this successful exposition of the
marvellous power of hypnotism as demon:
strated by the elder professor, and after
"a counter dcmonstration,of groans for the
unmcky Johnson the crowd departed.
The man who was hypnotized remained
/ behind for a moment or two When he
| departed, he was in high spirits, the
richer by KS note Leonards and John
1yer.. LIFT tnmnthnr Ihn innn.cent