"This letter will be in the nature of a confession. Last spring, discovering by accident that I could mesmerize, I took up mesmerism as a diversion for the amusement of myself and friends. I had long believed in it entirely and carefully watched its processes, but I wished to study its philosophy and find out, if I could, the cause and the limits of its mysterious phenomena.
"I first found that I could, by placing my hand on the forehead of a young acquaintance and accompanying the slight pressure with an imperative command, close his eyes and keep them firmly closed against all efforts of his will. I could compel him to dance or keep him from moving from his tracks; could prevent his rising from his chair; prevent his striking his hands together, and, at last, could prevent him from speaking. In fact, I absolutely controlled his voluntary muscles in every respect, and could compel him to do anything that he was physically capable of doing.
"Extending the experiments, I obtained the same control over others, both men and women, till I had quite a class of sensitives so responsive that I could control them with ease. Up to this time they were all perfectly conscious and without any hallucinations; they knew who they were, where they were and what they were doing, and they laughed as heartily at the absurd results obtained as any spectator. Up to this time, too, I had no means of ascertaining whether the apparent results were genuine. I might be the dupe of cunning people who were conspiring to fool me, for, in these early stages, there seems to be no way of scientifically proving it.
"It was some time before I was able to carry the experiments further and get control of the consciousness and senses of my class. At last success came. I made them see and hear mosquitoes and fight the tormentors with great energy. At this point they became dazed, and it was easy to command their senses in other respects. At a suggestion they heard music, the noises of a riot, a thunderstorm, the roaring of lions, a speech by Col. Ingersoll, and they gradually came to see vividly anything to which I directed their attention. In this world of hallucination they lost consciousness--or, rather, they abandoned their real existence and assumed an abnormal existence, as one does in a dream.