Evening star., 1923-01-17

| treated by him at the "demonstra-
tion," the term which the French eX-
pert in autosuggestion prefers to
clinic" for, as he says, he Is not a
doctor and does not cure anybody.
Following an explanation of his
| methods, in low tone, but in very
good English. considering that he
| only learned to speak it six months
| ments to show that when the imag-
| ination and the will are in conflict
| the imagination always wins.
Clasped Hands Experiment..
He tried the experiments with four
different persons, including the stam-
! mering child. She was the first one
| to, step forward from the audience
| and proved a fine subject.
NJ. Coue asked her to clasp her
hands, press them together tightly
and then to think to herself, II would
like to open them, but 1 cannot"
You cannot, you cannot open
them" he said, steadily, in the low,
imperative tone which seems to be
natural with him when conducting
this sort of experiment.
Tighter, tighter, you cannot open
them" continued NJ Coue. The girl
held her arms straight out, her hands
clasped
She could not open them. 1t was
plain to all that she could not The
harder she tried, the more she exerted
her will, while holding the thought.
L cannot, the more her hands stuck
together.
The writer, who has never been
able to perform this experiment by
himself. held out his own hands and
was astonished to. find tnat he. too,
could not loosen them. NJ. Coue has
mastered the art of suggestion. When
he says you cannot you cannot.
Now. think You can open them"
he told. the girl. Her hands re-
mained clasped for a few seconds,
then slowly dropped apart.
You see how 1t is,' triumphantly
smiled M..sCoue.
Right here l want to tell you" he
continued, never to say I cannot to
yourself. because what you think
tends to become true for you, in the
domain of the possible" 1t was
noticeable that NJ. Coue himself never
| used the term cannot" in relation to
his own use of English, but contented
himself with declaring that he did
not speak English well"
Couldn't Rrop Keys.
He put the child through other
simple experiments. He gave her his
bundle of keys" as he called them.
and she could not. Then he told
her to think that she could drop
them-and she did
Two older girls and a gray-haired
woman were made to do similar expert
ments, all of them proving perfect SUBJ
JectS. The older woman did hers
sitting down, declaring that she had
been i'll recently and preferred to sit.
can | do them Seated?" she asked.
Certainly ~ asserted NJ. Coue.
It was while the medical men in the
audience were leaning forward earnest
~, anxious as all there not to miss a
word or a motion. that NJ Coue noticed
the young girl, whose bobbed brown hair
fell over cheeks of vivid health, sitting
| forward, anXiously in her seat
with that perfecI sympathy which
has been commented upon by all who
have ever come in contact with him.
NJ. Coue motioned to the girl to stand
! up.
"NIademoiselle has something to ask"
| ne declared, stepping in front of her,
while the whole room leaned forward
The girl stood up and stepped close
to him. She seemed to be trying to
murmur something. He cooked an ear,
with the quick, eager motion that has
earned for some Of his motions the
term "birdlike."
"Ahr he exclaimed, Il see you
stammer"
The child nodded her head, miserably,
timidly, fearfully.
DO not be afraid" soothed the little
man, whose head was no higher than
tne girrs own. You must not be
afraid. Say I am glad"
Il am glad," the child said, in clear,
even tones, looking trustfully in his
eyes.
"See!" exclaimed NJ coue, sweeping
| the patient and the audience with a
smile.
Talks without stammer;.
Now say. I am glad that I do not
stanmer any more!"
She replied bravely in a louder tone
i am glad that 1 do not stammer
any more!"
Good! Good!" beamed NJ. Coue
! Now ). say. am sure that I will
| never stammer again."
The child looked NJ Coue happily in
the eyes.
Il am sure that shall never stam-
mer again." she said as well as any
body could say it.
| You may sit down. NJ. Coue said
gently. You are cured
There was a finality in his tone
that left no doubt in the mind OF the
child or in those of her fifty friends
/ there.
Tears filled the eyes OF many in
the audience as they sat and watched
the child become better and BETTER
In minutes, not days. NJ. Coue says
| that stammering is one of the easiest
themselves. He seemed to have proved
it yesterday.
Although the small, happy man in
the black suit and black string tie
answered many questions from doc
tors and others after that, the inter-
the happy young girl, who continued
to shed tears until she left at 6
o'clock, taken away by a doctor who
seemed as much delighted as she was
Not a Miracle Man."
M. Coue was introduced to the au-
dience by Oliver Smith Lyford of New
York, who later first offered himself
for the simple experiments, because
NJ. Coue said that it was always best
to start with some one with whom
| he knew the experiments worked. He
was very frank about IT, and his can
dor seemed to win his audience.
NJ. Coue explained first that people
were wrong when they spoke of him
as a miracle man." that he per-
formed no miracles, and did not cure
any one. He said that it was the
power within each person, that has
been given all, that enables people to
| cure themselves. He carefully ex-
planned that when there is a conflict
between the imagination and the will
| the former invariably wins 1t is a
rule that admits of no exception, he
| said. He instanced the person who
does not want to laugh, but cannot
| help 1t, because he thinks he cannot
help it; he told of the person who
tosses in his bed. trying to go to
sleep ana the harder he wills to
sleep the more he stays awake, be-
cause his imagination says Il cannot