184 ROUGH WAYS MADE SMOOTH. 



at cats ever hit them ?) I threw at the thief a small piece of 

 wood which I had in my hand at the moment. It struck 

 the wall above her just as she was going to leap to the top 

 of the wall, and it fell, without touching her, between her 

 and the wall. To my surprise, she stood perfectly still, 

 looking at the piece of wood ; her mouth, from which 

 the fish had fallen, remaining open, and her whole attitude 

 expressing stupid wonder. I make no doubt I could have 

 taken her prisoner, or struck her heavily, if I had wished, 

 for she made no effort to escape, until, with a parlour broom 

 which stood by, I pushed her along the top of the bin 

 towards the wall, when she seemed suddenly to arouse 

 herself, and leaping to the top of the wall she made off. 

 My wife witnessed the last scene of this curious little 

 comedy. In fact, it was chiefly, perhaps, because she 

 pleaded for mercy on 'the poor thing' that the soft end 

 of the broom alone came into operation ; for, though not 

 altogether agreeing with the Count of Rousillon that any- 

 thing can be endured before a cat, I did not at the moment 

 regard that particular cat with special favour. 



The extension of the neck and depression of the head, 

 in the experiment with the hen, have no special significance, 

 for Czermak has been able to produce the same phenomena 

 of hypnotism without them, and has failed to produce the 

 hypnotic effect on pigeons when attending to this point, and 

 in other respects proceeding as nearly as possible in the 

 same way as with hens. ' With the hens,' he says, ' I often 

 hung a piece of twine, or a small piece of wood, directly 

 over their crests, so that the end fell before their eyes. 

 The hens not only remained perfectly motionless, but closed 

 their eyes, and slept with their heads sinking until they 

 came in contact with the table. Before falling asleep, the 

 hens' heads can be either pressed down or raised up, and 

 they will remain in this position as if they were pieces of 

 wax. That is, however, a symptom of a cataleptic condition, 

 such as is seen in human beings, under certain pathological 

 conditions of the nervous system.' 



