have become extinct. This cure was so thorough that she has since been appointed a nurse in the hospital, and has given complete satisfaction, showing herself quite conscientious.

Many other experiments were made quite satisfactorily, and similar results were produced in his city practice. In one case, by hypnotic suggestion treatment Dr. Voisin transformed the character of a quarrelsome woman, making her a mild affectionate wife to her husband. Voisin’s experiments related principally to adults, but Dr. Liebeault of Nancy made experiments with children, of which he has mentioned two cases. Once a child was brought to his clinic with great suffering from a nervous affection, but would not submit to a hypnotic treatment till her little brother present offered himself, not being afraid. When he was put to sleep his mother told the physician that the boy in school was always in the lower grades, without making any progress. While in the sleep he was strongly impressed for diligence and zeal, and the subsequent result was perfect; within six weeks he became an example of diligence and perseverance, and soon got promoted. The second case was that of a young idiot. He was incapable of intellectual culture, and could not be taught reading or arithmetic. Dr. Liebeault submitted him to many hypnotic sittings, making a very great effort to rouse his attention, though he seemed to have no capacity for being instructed. Finally he succeeded so well that after two months he could read, and could cipher in the four rules of arithmetic. A great number of similar cases were treated by Dr. Dumont at Nancy with decided success.

In one of his clinics Prof. Bernheim maintained that all children are receptive of hypnotic suggestion or transference of thought, and even more so when they enter the age of reasoning. Not only in sleep, but also in the waking condition, they may be affected; and the school of Nancy deserves great credit for presenting this important matter to the world in its true light.

One of the signs of the hypnotic sleep or state is the automatic condition of the individual. In consequence of having for the time an enfeebled will, the individual will yield to all impressions upon it; and this weakness of will may take place in a wakeful state, when, if there is no opposition, the individual will accept all assurances in good faith. In case there is no exertion of influence by others, the subject will act by his or her own imagination. Such auto-suggestion is the result of a tendency to imitation which seems to be developed in children particularly, and develops in the waking state in undisciplined minds or in a fatigued and passive state.

These important principles and facts render it the duty of every educator to study the efficacy of suggestion and imitation in children. The experiments made thus far, authorize us to establish the following rules for practice:

If we have to deal with children of lazy, unintelligent, and indifferent character, we should confine ourselves to practicing verbal suggestion in their waking state, and to be effective it would be best to follow the experiments at Nancy, especially of Dr. Liebeault, and make great effort to gain the implicit confidence of the child. Seat it by itself on a chair, place your hand on its forehead, and enforce the suggestions by a mild voice and patient manner, but with firm determination.

When, however, our treatment is to ameliorate the future destiny of the children,—when their faculty of observation is deficient, when they have no diligence whatever, and are full of vicious, headstrong, evil inclinations, it is our opinion that by all means we should apply hypnotism fully to these degenerate creatures. The suggestions in the hypnotic sleep are of greater efficacy, more durable and profound, and probably in many cases it will be necessary to repeat these procedures frequently, until the imperfect intellectual faculties are developed, and the evil inclinations suppressed. Thus may we guide these young souls to a better and purer future.

In conclusion, I do not hesitate to assert the importance of hypnotism, in spite of all objections in its application to the mental and physical faculties of healthy persons. Its application as an educational method will be of vast importance to sick and depraved subjects.

The train of thought in the above essay, which Dr. Berillon has published in the September number of his Revue de l’Hypnotisme, inspired the contents of a lecture presented at the Scientific Congress at Nancy (August, 1886), out of which arose a discussion in which Dr. Liebault observed that the facts mentioned by Dr. Berillon are entirely true. “My long practice,” said he, “has permitted me to gather a great number of other cases, which will sustain the doctrines of the speaker. I have never seen a child continue entirely unreceptive of suggestion treatment. In the persons, children, and adults, with whom I have experimented, counting by thousands, I have never observed the least injurious consequences whatever.”

The report of the discussion given us above in Sphinx shows that these important suggestions met with only one unfriendly criticism, and that of little force. M. Desjardins, Esq., suggested that it was highly important that other honorable gentlemen, like Dr. Liebault, Dr. Voisin, and Dr. Dumont, should be officially appointed to carry on such experiments. He expressed his desire that the Congress should recommend that hypnotic suggestion for the purpose of moral improvement should be tried upon the worst class of pupils in the public schools. The suggestion was seconded with energy by Dr. Leclerc, who expressed his surprise that any one should object. It may be said to have met with the general approbation of the Congress.

The Public Ledger of Philadelphia published last year the following sketch of the progress of the marvellous in France:

Marvels of Mind and Body.

For several years past a number of French physicians have been experimenting on hypnotised or mesmeric subjects and on hysterical patients, with results of the most extraordinary character. It is our purpose to very briefly describe some of these remarkable experiments, from which, we may say, the standing of the doctors engaged in them, and the critical care with which they were conducted, seem to remove all questions of fraud or inaccuracy.

In these hypnotic experiments as practised by Dr. Charcot, of the Salpetriere; by Dr. Bernheim, Professors Beaunis and Liegeois and other persons of high professional standing, the most striking feature is that the influence exerted upon the patient does not vanish with the conclusion of the experiment, but may produce its effects days, weeks or even months afterwards, when the patient is seemingly in a normal state and controlled solely by his own thoughts. For instance, a sensitive person may be hypnotised, or mesmerized, to use the better known word, and it be suggested to him by the experimenter to go at a certain hour of the next or some succeeding day and shoot some person and then deliver himself up to justice. On being brought back to the normal state no recollection of this suggestion is present in his mind. And yet, if the experiment work as truly as it often seemingly has worked, he will endeavor at the time fixed to perform the action indicated, with the full belief that the impulse to do so is his own. We may quote some instances in corroboration of this seemingly improbable statement.

Cases of Hypnotic Suggestion.—Among minor instances of this result, Frederick Myers relates that he suggested to a hypnotised subject, who was engaged in coloring a sketch, that it would be a good idea to paint the bricks blue. He repeated his suggestion several times, and then brought the