WHAT IS MESMERISM? 183 



mental constitution, and likewise of every hypnotiser's 

 powers. Need one remark that neither Beaunis nor 

 Dr. Bramwell nor Mr. Lloyd Best can (or will) pre- 

 tend to such absolute knowledge ? and, in the face of 

 common-sense as well as of fact, I hold they are doing 

 their cause injury when they expose it to an assault 

 so easily made and so difficult to repel as that which 

 even one's superficial examination of their statement 

 suggests. 



But " What is this hypnotism ? " is a query the 

 public are beginning to ask, and to which an answer 

 must be afforded. I shall attempt a reply based on 

 general grounds, such as, I trust, may be " under- 

 standed of the people." A human brain is composed 

 of a series of nerve-centres, or parts regulating and 

 controlling actions of more or less well-defined nature. 

 It is not one organ, but a collection of organs, all 

 working together, in the healthy organism, for the 

 regulation of the life mental and the life physical as 

 well. This much is certain and sure. While there 

 is harmonious working, however, between the brain- 

 centres, there exists also a certain amount of inde- 

 pendence among them. 



Such independence is inseparable from the nature 

 of the multifarious duties the brain-centres discharge. 

 They may be compared to the sub-departments in a 

 great Government affair like the Post Office, for 

 example wherein each subdivision, while owning a 

 central and connecting authority, exercises, on its own 

 behalf, a fair share of responsibility for the discharge 

 of its own duties. Now, roughly, yet correctly speak- 

 ing, the brain shows a division into what we may term 

 intellectual centres and lower or automatic ones. The 

 former, located chiefly, or wholly, in the forehead lobes 

 13 



