w. He made change for his patrons. He indulged in
side remarks, such as "This is hot work." He rolled up his sleeves and
took off his collar and necktie, all of the time expatiating upon the
merits of the freaks inside of his tent.

CHAPTER III.

THE STAGES OF HYPNOTISM.

Lethargy--Catalepsy--The Somnambulistic Stage--Fascination.

We have just given some of the amusing experiments that may be performed
with subjects in one of the minor stages of hypnotism. But there are
other stages which give entirely different manifestations. For a
scientific classification of these we are indebted to Professor Charcot,
of the Salpetriere hospital in Paris, to whom, next to Mesmer and Braid,
we are indebted for the present science of hypnotism. He recognized
three distinct stages--lethargy, catalepsy and somnambulism. There is
also a condition of extreme lethargy, a sort of trance state, that lasts
for days and even weeks, and, indeed, has been known to last for years.
There is also a lighter phase than somnambulism, that is called
fascination. Some doctors, however, place it between catalepsy and
somnambulism. Each of these stages is marked by quite distinct
phenomena. We give them as described by a pupil of Dr. Charcot.

LETHARGY.

This is a state of absolute inert sleep. If the method of Braid is used,
and a bright object is held quite near the eyes, and the eyes are fixed
upon it, the subject squints, the eyes become moist and bright, the look
fixed, and the pupils dilated. This is the cataleptic stage. If the
object is left before the eyes, lethargy is produced. There are also
many other ways of producing lethargy, as we have seen in the chapter
"How to Hypnotize."

One of the marked characteristics of this stage of hypnotism is the
tendency of the muscles to contract, under the influence of the
slightest touch, friction, pressure or massage, or even that of a magnet
placed at a distance. The contraction disappears only by the repetition
of that identical means that called it into action. Dr. Courmelles gives
the following illustration:

"If the forearm is rubbed a little above the palm of the hand, this
latter yields and bends at an acute angle. The subject may be suspended
by the hand, and the body will be held up without relaxation, that is,
without returning to the normal condition. To return to the normal
state, it suffices to rub the antagonistic muscles, or, in ordinary
terms, the part diametrically opposed