A DISCLAIMER.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."]
Sin,—Last November you were kind enough to publish an appreciative review of my novel, "Dr. Mirabel's Theory," the plot of which turns upon the therapeutic appliances of hypnotism. Since my return to this country, I have been informed—to my sincere regret—that the impression pro- duced upon the minds of a certain portion of the reading public has been such as to prejudice hypnotism very seriously in their estimation, as a means of rendering a patient the passive material of the operator, who may use it as an instru- ment for the subjugation, instead of the enhancement, of vitality,—an impression confirmed by the extract I give from a work entitled "Streich on Hypnotism," together with a synopsis of the contents of a particular chapter in Streich devoted to that especial point. I should therefore be very grateful to you if you would permit me to state that Herr Streich and his work on "Hypnotism" are as purely imaginary as the characters in my novel; and that the extract I give from the book I simply made up myself.—I am, Sir, &c.,
Grosvenor Club, Bond St., W. Ross GEORGE DERING.
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