2i6 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



strokings and head pressure with the right hand, which Colonel 

 de Rochas considers so essential, and we had all the correct success- 

 ive stages of credulity (or credivite), of lethargy, catalepsy, again 

 lethargy, somnambulism, lethargy, and rapport, and I then tested 

 the statements of Colonel de Rochas. In the first place I found 

 that in all the phases of the stage of rapport the subject perceived 

 other objects and other persons quite as well as the individual, 

 my humble self, who was supposed to be "the magnetizer." 

 When any one pretended to be in contact with me, it had the 

 same effect upon her as if he were really in contact, and it was evi- 

 dent that she guessed at what we were doing. Visions were as 

 easily produced by pressure with the left hand as with the right, 

 and, as to the seeing of colored odic flames from the magnet, she 

 saw them " six yards long " ; but, in fact, when proper tests were 

 applied, she was found to be absolutely incapable of distinguish- 

 ing a true magnet from a false one. She never knew whether the 

 current was on or off my electro-magnet ; and her whole perform- 

 ance in this respect, although she was not made aware of it, was so 

 manifest and ludicrous an imposture that the bystanders had great 

 difficulty in retaining their gravity. I tested now the phenomena 

 to which the sham scientific terms of " externalization of sensation," 

 "communication by contact," and "transference across space," 

 are pretentiously applied. Behind a little pile of books on the 

 writing table I concealed a tumbler containing some water. In 

 duly solemn fashion I poured out from a carafe a little water into 

 a similar glass and placed it in her hands. I then quickly substi- 

 tuted, without her perceiving it, the hidden glass of water, which 

 she had neither seen nor touched. "We had then a full-dress re- 

 hearsal of all the performances which I had previously witnessed. 

 She showed the same " obvious " marks of pleasure or of pain 

 when the water was caressed or pinched as were witnessed by the 

 Times correspondent or the Pall Mall Gazette reporter. When one 

 of the spectators was placed in imaginary contact with me, she 

 became equally sensible of his actions ; she writhed, she smiled, 

 she was tickled, she was hurt, she was pleased, and she was " ex- 

 hausted " in the orthodox manner. I now introduced the " wax 

 figure." Skeptic as I was, but willing to be convinced, I had pur- 

 chased two rather pretty little sailor dolls, twin brothers of the 

 navy, at a neighboring toy shop. One of these she held until 

 it was sufficiently " charged with her sensitiveness " by contact. 

 I then rapidly substituted the twin doll from my pocket, and put 

 away the sensitivized doll for future service. To make the per- 

 formance quite regular, I cut off a minute lock of her hair and 

 pretended to affix it to the doll. To this proceeding, which I had 

 seen Colonel de Rochas gravely go through; she rather objected 

 in her profound sleep, much to our quiet amusement. " C'est trop, 



