Reverie, Somnambulism, Hypnotism, Sleep. 809 



ulous he is usually a little ashamed of his act, and looks silly and em- 

 barassed, or if asked why he did such a foolish thing he invents a justi- 

 fication of some kind, and these excuses are often exceedingly amusing. " 



Binet and Fere appear to conclude from their experiments, that the 

 suggestion made to the subject during his hypnotic state, operates as a 

 strong impulse in the formation of a will. They found that it might en- 

 dure for some days after the subject was aroused. The impulse no 

 doubt stands to the subject the same as a standard organ, or principle, 

 which has been deliberately thought out and constructed from foregoing 

 stimulations. The impulse of the principle remains after the stimula- 

 tions which constructed it are forgotten. So it is that the suggestion in 

 hypnotism is forgotten, while the resulting conviction remains to act as 

 an impulse. Obviously it is possible to cause the most serious crimes 

 to be committed by hypnotic subjects who remember nothing of the sug- 

 gestion under which they act, and think they are free and the act their 

 own. This was tested by M. Liegeois, who caused 'a hypnotized wo- 

 man to fire a pistol at a gentleman and kill him as she supposed. She 

 acknowledged the murder, said she did it spontaneously because she did 

 not like the man, and denied that anyone had suggested it to her. 



Among Dr. J. M. Charcot's experiments was one in which the subject 

 was presented with a blank sheet of paper which she was assured was a 

 portrait of the doctor. The positions of the features on the paper were 

 pointed out to her, and she soon came to see it was an excellent likeness. 

 This sheet was then marked inconspicuous!}' so the doctor could identify 

 it, and it was mixed with a score of others. The pack was then handed 

 to the subject to be looked over, and when she came to this sheet she 

 exclaimed : "Look, your portrait!" Then after she is told that she 

 will continue to see the portrait on that leaf after she awakes, she is 

 aroused, and sure enough, upon looking through the pack she finds the 

 right sheet and shows it with the same exclamation as before. The hal- 

 lucination of seeing the portrait is in keeping with other easily explain- 

 able examples of like nature ; but the coupling it with a particular sheet 

 and identifying it among twenty just alike, looks mysterious. But the 

 fact is, no two sheets are exactly alike. Each one has its individual 

 specs, scratches, creases, and various sorts of marks, which are visible 

 to an}' one who pays attention, and it has its peculiar smell and feel to 

 anyone of sufficient sensibility to perceive them. When the doctor as- 

 sociated the hallucination with a particular sheet, the exalted sense of 

 the subject would enable her to observe the distinguishing marks it 

 might possess, and thus to pick it out. If the sheet is turned wrong side 

 up, she detects it, and says the portrait is on the other side. . An extra- 

 ordinary exaltation of sense would be required for that, yet there have 

 been examples of such exaltation that would seem to be equal to this. 



