Rensselaer Republican, Volume 21, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1889 — A Dangerous Power. [ARTICLE]

A Dangerous Power.

A story that comes from England oi a mesmerist who has been abusing his powers by influencing tradesmen to believe that coppers were sovereigns and bits of old paper five pound notes, and to giye him change accordingly, has one serious element of improbability. It is represented that the swindler accomplished these results Dy exerting an instantaneous influence over persons whom he had never met before. Going into a shop or to a theatrical ticket office and making sopae commonplace demand for attendance, with no such peculiarity of action or demernor as to attract attention, he would nevertheless, it is said, subordinate the will of the person addressed so completely to his own as to have failed so far as known, in but one case, to succeed in his nefarious design. Hypnotism is an actually existent fact. This cannot be denied by anyone who has given the subject considerable observation. The mesmerist has a very real and very dangerous power over persons of certainlhental and nervous constitution, but, in so far as this has been publicly demonstrated, it is.‘ under any conditions, far from universal and involves an effort on the part of tho mesmerist occupying always an apyrteelgfalß- a aid con side rab ie time. Those who practice the art —if such it may bo called —for the entertainment of the public,, readily admit they can make no headway in the face of determined mental opposition, and that the readiest results are attained when there is complete surrender to their influence. Once gained the power seems to be instantaneously felt whenever the effort is renewed; but people will not be very believe th it any man has the pdfrer to thus instantaneously master the mind and paralyze the will of another. The power, as has been said, is a very dangerous one and ft is surprising that it lias not been used to compass murder, robbery and all manner of evils, outside of novels. Tho moral right of any human being to surrender himself in this blind fashion to another is more than questionable and it can scarcely be denied that the habit is a pernicious one, which no plea of sci* entific interest can defend. An instance which shows how real is the danger may well be cited. While a traveling mesmerist was giving exhibitions in Cleveland a very wealthy citizen expressed while at his club the most utter incredulity ns to the existence of any such power. He refused to attend a public exhibition, but at last said that he would give the mesmerist a sitting «t his own office, submit to all reasonable conditions and, if he were at all influenced, would make a considerable donation to charity. The sitting Was held and in ten minutes the mesmerist held in his hand tho nearly dawned check of the millionaire for a sum running well into tho thousands. The operator had represented himself to the subject's mind as a building contractor with whom he then had dealings and had forced the belief that this sum was due and payable on account —Detroit Free Press.