Mesmerism deals with the theory and practice of "Animal Magnetism." The name is derived from Dr. Anthony Mesmer, the founder of the science. Hypnotism is a modern modification of the same. The chief distinction between hypnotism and mesmerism is that in the former we mainly rely on suggestion to produce the various results, whereas the latter is a more silent method of gaining the same ends by means of the fluid called "Animal Magnetism." The mesmerist recognizes that in order to act upon a patient there must be a connecting link of sympathy between them. This connecting link is not a creation of suggestion by which the phantasies and illusions of hypnotic patients are created, but a real link by which (moral, mental and physical) sympathy is thoroughly established between the mesmerist and his subject. This sympathy or rapport is effected by concentration of the will of the operator; the honest means to relieve pain and cure disease, then finds a ready channel for communication. With mesmerism, clairvoyance and the more advanced spiritual phenomena are possible; but these are seldom seen to gain ground with hypnotism.

The mesmeric and hypnotic states are frequently confounded with each other; but it must be remembered that they are quite distinct, if allied. In the former the subject has an inward illuminated condition—a strong moral and spiritual individuality—a penetration and clear-headedness marked and distinct; the latter is a creation of circumstances.

Mesmer's Fluid-Theory—Animal Magnetism.— "This fluid exercises an immediate action on the nerves with which it embodies itself, and produces in the human body phenomena similar to those produced by the load-stone, that is, polarity and inclination. Hence the name Animal Magnetism.

"This fluid flows with the greatest quickness from body to body, acts at a distance, and is reflected by the mirror-like light, and it is strengthened and propagated by sound. There are animated bodies which exercise an action directly opposite to Animal Magnetism. Their presence alone is capable of destroying the effects of magnetism. This power is a positive power.

"By means of Animal Magnetism, we can effect an immediate cure of the nervous diseases and a mediate cure of all diseases."

How to Cultivate Animal Magnetism.—The method is just the same as was described in Part I for hypnotism. In fact, the principles explained there constitute the key to all the processes carried on under the "New thought Research."

Different Stages in Mesmerism.—In addition to the four stages that we saw under hypnotism we have here two more, viz.:

5th Stage.. The Lucid Somnambulistic Stage.— Here we have clear vision or clairvoyance (including thought-transference, intro-vision and pre-vision) manifested. In this state, the subject is able to measure his own internal mental and bodily state, and those of a third party when placed en rapport with him. In cases of diseases, he will prescribe suitable remedies and foreshadow the termination of the attack.

6th Stage. The Independent or Spiritual Stage.— In this the subject's vision is not limited by space or sympathy; he passes wholly, as in the last stage partially, heyond the sole control of the operator.

All persons can be brought under the first four stages; but there are only a limited number (about 5 in 1,000) that pass into the 5th or 6th stage. These adapted to the higher phases of clairvoyance, thought-transference, etc., would be degraded or injured (i. e., their powers obscured), should they be put to the buffooneries of the public platform; and those most suited to public entertainments seldom exhibit any aptitude for the higher phenomena. It must be remembered that these phenomena depend more upon certain nervous and psychic conditions in the sensitive than in the mesmeric powers of direction possessed by the operator. There should therefore be no forcing of results.

METHOD OF PROCEDURE.

The following method presents, in its simplest form, the procedure adopted by the best class of mesmerists. It is due to Captain James, the most successful mesmerist since the days of Dr. Elliotson, whose friend and pupil he was.

He writes: "It is recommended that the mesmerist should direct his patient either to place himself in an easy-chair or lie down on a couch, so that he may be perfectly at ease. The mesmeriser then either standing or seated opposite his patient, should place his hand with extended fingers, over the head, and make passes slowly down to the extremities, as near as possible to the face and the body without touching the patient, taking care at the end of each pass to close his hand until he returns to the head, when he should extend his fingers and proceed as before. It is also useful after making several of these passes to point the fingers close to the patient's eyes, which procedure, in many cases, has more effect than the passes. This simple process should be continued for about 20 minutes at the first seance, and may be expected to produce more or less effect according to the susceptibility of the patient. Should the operator perceive any signs of approaching sleep, he should persevere with the passes until the eyes close, and should he then observe a quivering of the eyelids he may be pretty certain that his efforts will be successful.

"Sometimes slow breathing, or placing the hand on the forehead, will deepen the sleep; but the beginner should as a rule, avoid concentrating the mesmeric force on the head or region of the heart, and confine himself as much as possible to the passes aux grands courants, as the French writers term them, i. e., the long, slow passes from the head to the feet. Should the above described signs of mesmeric coma not declare themselves at the end of 20 or 30 minutes, the mes-meriser should ask the patient whether he felt any peculiar sensation during the process, and if so, whether they were more apparent during the passes or when the fingers were pointed at the eyes. By these inquiries he will soon learn the best method of mesmerising applicable to each particular case, and he should not be disheartened if he does not succeed in producing marked effects at the first or even after successive seances. Pain may be removed and diseases cured or greatly alleviated without the production of sleep, and many patients succumb at length who have for many weeks been apparently unaffected and proof against all the resources of the mesmeriser.

"Supposing sleep at length induced, the next and very important question is how to awaken the patient. With most sensitives this is a very easy process, for merely blowing or fanning over the head and face with a few transverse passes will at once dispel sleep. Should, however, the patient experience a difficulty in opening his eyes, then with the tips of his thumbs the operator should rub firmly and briskly over the eyebrows from the root of the nose outwards towards the temples, and finish by blowing or fanning, taking special care before leaving the patient that, judging from the expression of his eyes and other signs, he has evidently returned to the normal state. As a rule, the patient should not be left until the operator is perfectly satisfied that he is wide wake.

"There are certain cases, however, where the sensitives should be allowed to sleep for 2 or 3 hours or even more, and particularly when lengthened sleep has been prescribed by the patients themselves. Care must be taken to ascertain that they can be left alone with impunity. The majority may be, but there are cases where the operator should not be absent during the sleep. With a little observation, the mesmeriser should be able to distinguish between such cases, and learn to adapt his treatment according to the peculiar temperament or constitution of each patient.

"The power of acting on or impressing the patient's mind may be carried into and continued in the normal or waking stage, and might be used with good effect in the treatment of dipsomania and other morbid habits, so that the patient would in many cases, in consequence of the impressions made during his sleep, be led to entertain an actual disgust at the mere smell of alcoholic liquor.

"The patient during his sleep can frequently give valuable directions to his mesmeriser, both as to the best methods of mesmerising him and the most effective means of terminating the sleep. In some rare cases the sleep is so prolonged in spite of all the operator's efforts to dispel it, that he is alarmed, and the patient becomes affected in his fears. Above all things, the mesmeriser should preserve his presence of mind, and may be assured that the longest sleep will end spontaneously.

"It may as well be observed in this place that the patient should not be touched by anyone but his mesmeriser, unless he wishes, it, or at least gives his consent. He can, perhaps, bear the touch of certain individuals and may express a repugnance to be touched by others, and this quite irrespective of attachment or repulsion with regard to those individuals in his normal state. With most sensitives it is quite immaterial who or how many people touch them; but there are occasionally cases when, by so touching them, a very distressing state, called 'Cross Mesmerism' is produced, and the more particularly in the cases of persons who are naturally highly nervous, and, perhaps, hysterical. It is in these cases of cross-mesmerism that we most often find a difficulty in determining the sleep."

CLAIRVOYANCE.

Clairvoyance means "clear-seeing" or "soul sight," whereby the subject is enabled to see much that is hidden with sudden and startling clearness; clairvoyant subjects can be made to travel, visit places of interest and describe the places and people and report to you what they do and say. He will further be able to relate with wonderful accuracy the history of absent people (living or dead) by means of the influence still left on some old relic, such as a ring or gem. He can discover hidden things. There are authenticated instances of valuable mines having been discovered by clairvoyance. It is a well known historical fact that Mr. Wm. Denton discovered gold mines in Australia and also copper mines in Canada, through his wife. She was also of immense help to him in his scientific investigations.

Clairvoyance, as already pointed out elsewhere, is a normal possession. You cannot create it; but you can progressively develop and intensify powers of clairvoyance where they already exist. There should be no forcing of results or any hot-house planting about it.

There must be no hurry.

Woman, for many reasons, makes a better clairvoyant subject than man. The best sensitives have been women from about 15 to 25, whose organisations were healthy, refined and pure, and who believed in the reality of the soul and things spiritual. Male sensitives are best for scientific and business purposes; females for literary, inspirational and previsional experiments. The very best sensitives are very difficult to get under control at first.

How to Cultivate Clairvoyance.—Place your subject in the mesmeric sleep sufficiently deep to be entirely lost to all external consciousness. Carefully subdue the physical and outward senses in the sensitive. He will in this state be a clear-headed, far-seeing and self-possessed being—having a distinct and exalted individuality —from whom you may learn a good deal about yourself, about the powers of the human soul and the best modes of procedure applicable to perfect his condition.

Commence by putting him some questions gently and judiciously—not hastily or suggestively—to know how and how long he wishes to sleep, what he feels and experiences in this state, and what he desires to be done in order to improve it, whether he perceives any light in his brain, and the location and the character of the same, whether in the forehead, crown of the head or at the sides; whether he can look into his own organisation or that of yours or any others placed in sympathy with him; what the nature of his power of vision is; if he is in a position to travel and visit distant places for you and describe the people and their actions there. In this way you will go on from day to day ascertaining what powers he possesses. See how far he perceives your intentions, thoughts or wishes—unexpressed by you. Always be kind and firm.

For this class of experiments the sittings should be arranged at a regular hour daily. In most cases an hour's duration will be long enough for each sitting.

Experiment as follows: Give him a playing card and see how far he is able to read and describe it as by telling its colour, what suit it belongs to, etc. Your sensitive's descriptions, however faulty at first, will become correct in the main, then singularly accurate, then marvellously so. Next you may gradually increase the distance between him and the card; you can then intensify the conditions by merely presenting him the back of the card only.

The following experiment is interesting: Give your subject a pocket-knife, kerchief or other much used article belonging to a third party whom you do not know, but whose appearance, disposition, character, etc., may be vouched for subsequently by trusted parties, and ask your sensitive what are his feelings and sensations experienced by him through the articles placed in his possession; if the questions are carefully and judiciously put, it is more than likely he will give out a vague and broken idea of the person whose articles he has. At subsequent sittings the power to diagnose surroundings, history, etc., will be enhanced, and his spiritual perceptions will be increased to such an extent (by proper directions) that he will be able to describe the character and life of the person concerned (from the very childhood upwards) with startling accuracy and in detail.

As this India manual is addressed to the student, rather than the novelty hunter, with this parting word— "Persevere with New Thought Science"—these pages shall be brought to a conclusion.

The End of Book Two.