Now name the suit of this card?--Clubs.
Reply, the suit of this card?--Hearts.
Name the suit of this card?--Spades.
The suit of this card?--Diamonds.
It is obvious, from the preceding specimen, that a conventional
catechism involving every object can be contrived by two persons,
and adapted to every circumstance. The striking performances of
the most notorious mesmeric 'patients' in this line prove the
possibility of the achievement. The 'agent' who receives the
questions in writing or in a whisper thus communicates the answer
to the patient, who is laboriously trained in the entire
encyclopaedia of 'common things' and things generally known; but
it MAY happen that the question proposed by the spectator has
been omitted in the scheme.
On one occasion, when the famous Prudence was the 'patient,' and
was telling the taste of all manner of liquids from a glass of
water, I proposed 'Blood' to the 'agent.' He shook his head,
said he would try; but it was useless. She said she 'couldn't do
it,' and the agent frankly admitted that it was a failure.
Now, if the mesmeric consciousness were really, as pretended, the
result of mental intercommunication between the agent and
patient, it is obvious that the well-known taste of blood could
be communicated as well as any other taste. This experiment
suffices to prove that the revelations are communicated in the
matter-of-fact way which I have sufficiently described.
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