A PRISONER HYPNOTISED.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3970, 23 November 1891, Page 3

A PRISONER HYPNOTISED.

We read frequently of judges falling asleep during the hearing of a case (says the Paris correspondent of the London Daily Telegraph); but for a prisoner to be slumbering peacefully during the whole of his trial is probably an unprecedented occurrenc. This curious spectacle was witnessed recently in the Tenth Police Court, where a man named Emile David was charged with illegally personating a barrister, and common swindling. After giving his nameln answer to the Magistrate, ihe defendant refused to reply to the questions put to him, and his counsel explained to the Court that David wasfast asleep although his eyes were wide open The magistrate was, of course, rathe suspicious of such an explanatior and in order to prove that his clien was not shamming Maitre Raynau placed his hands before the prisoner' eyes, and drawing them slowly back caused him to get up and leap ove the barrier which separates the doc from the court. He was led back t his sest, bu* it was found quite im possible to awaken him. The trL however, was proceeded with an Maitre Reynaud in David's defenc explained that he was a highly hysier: cal hypnotic subject, and that a times he would remain for lon periods in what is known as the 'autc matic ambulatory' stage of the diseai This means that (he patient, a though in a state of complete somnolence, acts like an ordinary individual, and can travel, carry on a conversation, or play cards without anyone suspecting that he is asleep. On awakening, however, he is entirely unconscious of what he has done while in that condition. This David on one occasion travelled from Paris to Troyes without being conscious of doing so, and, on recovering his senses, discovered that he had lost his overcoat with » sum of money in one of the pockets. He had no recollection as to where he had left the garment, but some months later, on telling his story to a surgeon at the Hotel Dieu, the latter artificially threw David into a state of hypnotic sleep, during which he explained the position and number of the room in an hotel at Troyes where he had left the coat. The landlord was communicated with and the story found to be perfectly correct. The hearing of the case was terminated some time before David could be awakened, and the passing of the sentence was delayed for two hours, as the Court did not wish to condemn a sleeping man. finally, when he recovered his senses, the prisoner :was informed that, on account of his extraordinary temperament, his offence would be visited Only with a penalty of one month's imprisonment.