1884.] on the Physiological Aspect of Mesmerism. 33 



difficult to conceive of the animal in this state being very much 

 frightened. 



It will be remembered that reflex action from all parts of the 

 body is diminished in the mesmerised frog. After a time, then, there 

 is a marked inhibition of activity of the whole nervous system. 

 Now in the brainless frog placed on its back there is no such diminu- 

 tion of reflex action ; hence in the intact hypnotised frog the spinal 

 cord must be inhibited by impulses coming from the brain; from 

 which we may conclude that centres inhibited in their own proper 

 actioD, nevertheless send out inhibitory impulses to other centres. 

 There appears then to be an irradiation of inhibitory impulses, just 

 as we have seen that there is an irradiation of exciting impulses. 



There are two other features in the hypnotised frog which I 

 must mention, although time will not allow me to discuss them. 

 It sometimes happens that soon after a frog has been hypnotised, 

 reflex actions, instead of being more difficult to obtain than normally, 

 are obtained more easily. Preceding the condition of reflex decrease 

 there is a condition of reflex increase. Further, it sometimes happens 

 that the hypnotised frog, instead of lying with its muscles flaccid, 

 passes into a cataleptic state, so that its limbs tend to remain in any 

 condition in which they are placed. Both the condition of reflex 

 increase and that of catalepsy are more marked in man. 



Before passing to mesmerism in man I will show you two 

 other instances of hypnotism in the lower animals. The alligator 

 which you see here behaves very much like the frog. It has, how- 

 ever, less tendency to become cataleptic. After a brief struggle, it 

 becomes quiescent and its limbs slowly relax ; its mouth may then 

 be opened, and a cork placed between its teeth, without giving rise to 

 any voluntary movement on its part. It may be kept for a consider- 

 able time in this limp condition by gently stroking the skin close to 

 its eyes. 



So far as I have observed, the hypnotic condition in birds and in 

 lower mammals is not capable of any great development. It may 

 last ten minutes, but rarely longer. In these animals, too, the 

 emotional condition is probably the chief factor in producing the 

 inhibition. Of impulses from peripheral sense organs, tactile im- 

 pulses seem to be most effective in the lower mammals, as in the 

 rabbit and guinea-pig, and visual impulses in the bird. The pigeon 

 which I have here, remains longest quiescent when, after it has been 

 held for a minute or two, I bring my hand slowly up and down over 

 its head. 



In man the phenomena of mesmerism are of a very much more 

 striking character than they are in the lower animals. Speaking 

 generally, this seems to be due to a greater interdependence of the 

 various parts of the nervous system in the lower animals. In these, 

 when any one centre is stirred up by exciting impulses, an irradiation 

 of exciting impulses is apt to take place to all other centres, and the 

 mesmeric state is in consequence apt to be broken. And on the other 

 (Vol. XI. No. 78.) d 



