ig6 ROUGH WAYS MADE SMOOTH. 



Braid's was the subject of a severe rheumatic fever, during 

 the course of which the left eye became seriously implicated, 

 so that after the inflammatory action had passed away, there 

 was an opacity over more than one half of the cornea, which 

 not only prevented distinct vision, but occasioned an annoy- 

 ing disfigurement. Having placed herself under Mr. Braid's 

 hypnotic treatment for the relief of violent pain in her arm 

 and shoulder, she found, to the surprise alike of herself and 

 Mr. Braid, that her sight began to improve very perceptibly. 

 The operation was therefore continued daily ; and in a very 

 short time the cornea became so transparent that close inspec- 

 tion was required to discover any remains of the opacity.' 

 On this, Carpenter remarks that he has known other cases in 

 which secretions that had been morbidly suspended have 

 been reinduced by this process ; and is satisfied that, if 

 applied with skill and discrimination, it would take rank as 

 one of the most potent methods of treatment which the 

 physician has at his command. He adds that ' the channel 

 of influence is obviously the system of nerves which regulates 

 the secretions nerves which, though not under direct 

 subjection to the will, are peculiarly affected by emotional 

 states.' 



I may remark, in passing, that nerves which are not 

 ordinarily under the influence of the will, but whose office 

 would be to direct muscular movements if only the will 

 could influence them, may by persistent attention become 

 obedient to the will. When I was last in New York, I met 

 a gentleman who gave me a long and most interesting 

 account of certain experiments which he had made on him- 

 self. The account was not forced on me, the reader must 

 understand, but was elicited by questions suggested by one 

 or two remarkable facts which he had casually mentioned as 

 falling within his experience. I had only his own word for 

 much that he told me, and some may perhaps consider that 

 there was very little truth in the narrative. I may pause 

 here to make some remarks by the way, on the traits of 

 truthful and untruthful persons. I believe very slight powers 



