Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 December 1874 — Mind-Reading. [ARTICLE]

Mind-Reading.

At a social gathering in Springfield, Thanksgiving night, where there were about forty persons present, the topic of mind-reading was introduced and practical tests were made, which, to say the least, -were singular in their results. Most of those present scouted the idea that any influence by the will could be exerted to control the actions of another. But those whp A |ubmitted to the test were forced to admit that either will or “ involuntary muscular action” did exert a powerful influence in guiding them. The subject being blindfolded, the others would seleetsome familiar object and place it in a distant part of the room, sometimes in sight, but at other times out of sight of the operators. Then three, four, ,px five would place their hands on the back, shoulder's and breast of the subject, fixing their minds on the thing to be found. In a few minutes the person blindfolded would begin to move, sometimes sideways, sometimes backward, and sometimes forward, but always in the direction of the hidden article and always where it was placed. The test was tried on a dozen different persons, with different operators on each, taken indiscriminately from the company, and, with the exception of one instance, with the same result. Each subject described the feeling as simply a desire to move off in the direction taken, impelled by a sense or feeling that some influence was crowding them that way, while all the operators declared they were unconscious of exerting any muscular force whatever. As the subject would often move oft in a direction that would necessitate two of the operators to walk backward, while only one would be on the opposite side, there would seem to be something besides “Involuntary muscular action” to be accounted for. Most of the company, however, were unconvinced of any other power. At all events, they got two or three hours of very enjoyable and interesting experiments. — Springfield {Mom.) Union.