vere head-ache, attended with rather different circumstances to the former cases, was entirely relieved by mesmerism. mesmerised her while in London in May last, when she found great relief. I recommended her father to continue mesmerising her, until her health seemed established. He told me the other day that he succeeded in mesmerising her two or three times after I saw her, and her health had been good ever since.

"I have been fortunate enough to entirely relieve three persons of severe and long-standing neuralgic pains of the head.

"I send you a certificate of one case, signed by the person herself, which, as I could procure it, I thought would be more satisfactory.

"This is to certify, that for four years I suffered from very severe head-aches, at times so violent as to entirely incapacitate me for any exertion, and which were attended with pain in my eyes, dimness of sight, and great soreness of the head. I had consulted many medical men, amongst whom were Dr. Locock, Dr. Chambers, and Mr. Sampson, in London; and in the country, Mr. Allen of York, who called the complaint I suffered from neuralgia. I am 35 years of age: had been bled, cupped, leeched, blistered, and taken all sorts of prescriptions, and scarcely ever deriving even temporary relief from these means. I found my memory much impaired, and suffered much from lowness of spirits and general ill-health, and found I should not long be able to retain my situation. Mr. H. S. Thompson, whose service I am in, recommended mesmerism. I had a great horror of it, nor had I the least faith in its curing me. However, one day when worse than usual, I asked him to try it. In less than ten minutes I felt relieved, and then went to sleep, and was told I slept an hour when Mr. Thompson awakened me. I was refreshed and entirely free from pain. I was mesmerised four times, and was entirely restored; nor have I had a head-ache of the same nature since. This was in June last.

"Dated this 18th day of December, 1843.

Fairfield.

"SARAH PARKIN.

"P.S. My general health has been very good ever since."

From Thomas Baldock, Esq., 7 Terrace, Dock-yard, Chatham. "December 6th, 1843.

"Sir,—It is with much pleasure that I learn the intention of the reverend gentleman, that published the reply to the Rev. H. M'Neil, again to take up the powerful pen that he handles with so much tact. And that he purposes to collect data from parties of such respectability that their standing in society shall be a guarantee as to the correctness of the information contributed by each.

:

"I most willingly therefore bear my strong testimony as to the truth of mesmerism, and am happy to say that several cases have presented themselves to me in which relief has been given to the parties. It is now about thirteen months since I became a mesmeriser, and my practice has been to journalize every case at length, and to state the several persons present when the parties were mesmerised, and to read over the journal to the spectators; so that all and every of my statements can be corroborated if requisite. Palpitations of the heart I have invariably succeeded in relieving. Pains in the head have generally yielded to mesmerism and in the case of Robert Flood, now residing at Caiston in Lincolnshire. He had for several years suffered most severely from disease in one of his kidneys. He had been under the care of several medical men: had been in a London hospital, and his pains were so acute that he could not leave his bed until the day was advanced, and it was frequently necessary for him to recline several times in the day: and this he had endured for some years. He came to me three evenings in the week for a few weeks, then twice, and afterwards only once in about three months. He was perfectly restored to health. He has since that time removed to where he now resides, and occasionally writes to me to say that he is and has been in such robust health ever since that he can throw a quoit; and that he owes his recovery entirely to mesmerism. His was a singular case. He would play the violin capitally when in the mesmeric state; and without touching him I could stop his playing by making passes down his arm. I could place his wife en rapport with him, and he and she would sing together in admirable tune.

"I have had very many capital cases. But as I do not know what you wish in the shape of evidence, I have forwarded this sketch, but shall be most happy to furnish you any cases you may think proper. Perhaps when I run up to town I had better bring my journals. Will you drop me three lines to say what day and hour I should, the latter end

of this week or the early part of next, be most likely to see a little mesmerism at your house? I would recommend you to write to Mr. Weekes, surgeon, at Sandwich; he has three splendid cases. And rejoicing that you have had moral courage to stem the tide of public opinion, "I have the honor to be, Sir,

"Yours very truly,

"THOMAS BALDOCK, Store Receiver."

VII. A Collection of more instances of Surgical Operations rendered painless by means of Mesmerism. By Dr. Elliotson.

"The science of mesmerism, like the science of fortune-telling, will always carry on a precarious existence, wherever there are clever girls, philosophic Bohemians, weak women, weaker men: but it can no longer affront the common sense of the medical profession, or dare to show its face in the scientific societies after the last exposure." MR. THOMAS WÁKLEY, Lancet, Sept. 15th, 1838; p. 873.

"Mr. Wakley declared that in his opinion the effects which were said to arise from what had been denominated animal magnetism, constituted one of the completest delusions that the human mind ever entertained." MR. THOMAS WAKLEY, Lancet, Sept. 1st, 1838; p. 811.

To the Editor of The Zoist.

Sir,-A year has elapsed since the publication of my Numerous Cases of Surgical Operations without pain in the Mesmeric State; and, as many more have subsequently occurred, I send you a second collection.

Venesection.

Yours, &c.

JOHN ELLIOTSON.

I. The patient, the painless extraction of whose tooth is detailed at p. 66 of my pamphlet, and the account of whose case and phenomena will be forwarded for your Midsummer number, required bleeding for a severe headache last year, after her complete recovery from the fits.

I determined on bleeding her without her knowledge : and threw her into her mesmeric state, in which she has no sensibility to mechanical injury except at the surface of her head and face, and is perfectly rational, except that she usually fancies the place, and always the time and bystanders, and other circumstances of the moment, to be different from what they are, and declares herself to be awake and seeing, though she sees nothing, and cannot raise herself from her chair. She mistook me for her favourite sister, and laughed at the idea of my saying I would bleed her. Without her knowledge, while conversing with her, I bound up her arm and bled her. I asked, after the incision, if she did not feel me

pressing my hand along her arm to make the blood flow into the basin, but she only laughed at me again. Having an attraction to me, though mistaking me for her sister, she readily squeezed my hand at my request; and, when I had withdrawn mine, she moved her fingers about, saying, when I asked her what she was doing, that she was getting on her thimble. At length she felt very faint and sick, and was falling off her chair, and I laid her on the floor. She asked for toast and water; and, when she was recovered and her arm bound up, I replaced her in her chair, and at length she awoke free from head-ache, and greatly amused and pleased at finding I had bled her.

II. Some months afterwards, having a return of headache, Mr. Symes bled her for me, equally without her knowledge; she mistaking him for some body else, and me for her favourite sister. I stood by and she talked all the time to me, but could not be made to know she was being bled. The blood not coming freely, I got her to squeeze my hand strongly with her's, by touching over Attachment on the same side as the arm. She at last remarked with surprise that her head-ache was gone, and the arm was accordingly bound up before she felt faint; and as we were in a hurry, we left her asleep. When she woke she was greatly amused, as on the former occasion, and free from head-ache.

III. Her aunt has a cancer in her breast, and has been mesmerised some time by me, with the effect of a light simple sleep and insensibility of the surface. She was lately seized with pleurisy. I sent her off with three passes, and Mr. Symes's late pupil, Mr. Ebsworth, bled her for me to faintness without her feeling it. Before the arm was bound up, she opened her eyes; but, before she could speak, two more passes sent her back into sleep, and she did not wake again till the arm was bound up; and I then sent her to sleep a third time and left her. The advantage of mesmerism was striking and most gratifying. Any one sends her to sleep and with very little trouble: some of us with two or three passes, though she seldom sleeps much longer than half an hour. During this illness she was sent to sleep by those around her continually in the day and night, so that she had abundance of the sweetest repose without any narcotic. Except the bleeding, two blisters, and four doses of calomel, and some syrup, which was soon left off, for her cough, she took no medicine. As soon as ever she coughed upon awaking, they sent her to sleep and, dangerous as the illness was,

she says that to her utter astonishment she never recovered so quickly from any illness, and had always previously taken many dozens of bottles before she was out of the doctor's hands. She cannot cease wondering at it.

Extraction of Teeth.

IV. The patient whose remarkable case was the third detailed by me in your last number suffered lately severe pain from a decayed double tooth; which she was anxious to lose. I told her that she might as well have it extracted in the mesmeric sleep, and accordingly met her at Mr. Nicholles's in Bruton Street, who, as I have mentioned at p. 66 of my pamphlet, obligingly extracted the tooth of the patient whose two bleedings I have just detailed. I sent her with about twenty passes into her sleep-waking state, in which, though insensible to mechanical causes of pain, she talks as rationally as when awake, and is not in a dreamy state like the other patient, but cognizant of the time, place and persons. She opened her mouth at my request, and was fully aware of what was doing though she felt nothing. Her pulse quickened a few beats each time the instrument was put into her mouth, and I presume from apprehension, as she went to the house in extreme fear and could not believe she should suffer no pain. The operation was severe; and in the midst of it Mr. Nicholles desisted and looked at me, finding great care was requisite to prevent injury to the surrounding bone. She gave no expression of pain in her countenance, or in her hand which I held loosely in my own and when it was over she had no appearance of having felt pain, and went home well and lively, and played her piano; whereas she never had a tooth drawn before without, from her delicacy and nervousness, being ill all the rest of the day, and fainting within a few hours. The following is Mr. Nicholles's account in the Medical Times for the 10th of last February

"To the Editor of the Medical Times.

Sir,-As I am no party to any of the angry disputes on mesmerism, and as the shiboleth of my actions is truth, perhaps you will excuse the trouble this little communication may occasion you. My friend, Dr. Elliotson, brought me yesterday a young lady, patient of his, who had been long suffering from a "raging tooth,' (the inferior anterior molar of the sinister side); and who had expressed a.wish to have it removed while under the influence of mesmerism; she was placed in a chair, I examined the tooth, and Dr. Elliotson in a few minutes put her in the mesmeric delirium, during which state I performed the operation (and it was one which would have been more than usually painful from the great resistance of the