The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-09-13
SvengaIfs Hypnotic Stunts Fail to ~as,
Work on a Miner With Big Poker Hand

toothache. he could feel that he had
followed out Act /. of the Trilby-Sven-
gall hypnotism drama.
so Bill took Dan Evans down to his
cabin. There he told him to look
straight into his eyes. At the same
time Bill made a lot of passes with his
hands and concentrated his will power
After minute he drew a long breath
and said:
There. you are cured all right;
your tooth has stopped aching. The
pain has all gone, although it may be a
few moments before you think it has.
But that will be just mental delusion
of yours 1sn7
Toothache Cured While You Curse.
Then Dan Evans was certainly an
angry man. He cursed Bill Stebbins
with all the curses known to Deep
Gulch Camp, the city slum in which
Dan had been brought up, and the Mis-
sissippi steamer he had once worked
upon before taking advantage Of
mans misfortune to play such a game
on him. 1t was a mighty comprehen-
sive cursing and anything left unsaid
wasn't worth noticing. But Bill was
calm. as summer sky, and kept insist
ing that Dams toothache had vanished.
1t may have been the result of
Dams rage, or it may have been owing
to the numerous drinks of red-eye he
lmblbed In; but, whatever the cause,
Dams toothache did disappear. That
settled the hypnotism question as far
as Bill Stebbins was concerned Blush
ing modestly as to his own worth and
capabilities wasn't Bills most promi-
nent characteristic. He ascribed the
stopping of the toothache entirely to
his own powers, and Immediately rank
ed himself as the real old original
when it came to hypnotism. If old
Svengai himself had appeared on the
scene Bill would have felt himself
qualified to give him lessons at the
hypnotizing game.
Those dagoes on the other side Of
the pond may be all right in their own
small way remarked Bill to Dick KEEL
sey, swelling out his chest; but when
1t comes right down to delivering the
real hypnotic goods your Uncle Bill
Stebbins is the real ace-high hand.
Anybody could make a young girl like
Ir1lby do little song sing act. But
to cure the teothache of a profane, big
| listed miner like Dan Evans-well, If
L don't get a special place in the Hall
of Fame it will be due to envy and
Jealousy on the part of the judges.
Dick was willing to admit that
there might be something in hypno-
t1sm, but he advised Bill to go a bit
slow at the game. But, no; that didn't
suit Bill at all. He had made Dan
Evans forget his toothache, and now
Dan could be considered regular sub
Ject OF his as ,Trilby had been of Sven
after he had hynotized her few times.
The next step would be to get Dan un-
der the influence in a big poker game,
SO that he would think Bill had the
| winning hand, no matter what the
| cards were.
So that evening Bill drifted down
/ to Jim Haley's place, where there was
big game in progress. Dan Evans
| was the best poker player in the camp.
and when Bill entered the room had a
big pile of chips and money in front of
| him. Bill didn't waste any time, but
bought a couple of stacks of chips and
J sat in the game. OF course, he was
mighty careful to take seat directly
opposite Dan Evans, where he could
look straight into his eyes.
Dan Was an lntractable Subject.
Dan acted sort Of sullen toward RiII
from the first, for he hadn't gotten
| over his hard feeling at the game he
supposed Bill had played on him when
ne had the toothache. 1t didn't i'm
prove Dams temper, either. when Rill
I made such a tpoint Of taking a seat di-
rectly opposite him. Of course. a man
has right to sit where he pleases in
the national game, and Dan didn't
make any open protest. But it was
plain that Dams temper was getting
worse every second, and it wasn't a
| temper that was over sweet at the
! best.
But Bill Stebbins, his head filed with
4 ideas as to his own greatness as a hvn-
notizers never noticed this. Instead of
minding his own business, and not TAX
! ing any notice of Dan, he made a point