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| Dr. Herbert L. Flint. |
Cortland Evening Standard, Thursday, September 15, 1898.
A CHAT WITH DR. FLINT.
THE GREAT HYPNOTIST WHO HAS BEEN IN CORTLAND.
He Tells of His Work, How He Became Interested in It, and Something about the Science—Had Been a Broker, a Merchant, and Has a Medical Title.
The crowds of people who have thronged the Opera House during the last two weeks to witness the really marvelous exhibitions of Flint, the hypnotist, have been thoroughly filled with amazement at the wonderful power possessed by the man. They have observed the results of the exercise of the hypnotic power possessed by Dr. Flint, and many have been content with that. But many of the more thoughtful have wondered at the "whys and wherefores" of the phenomena.
When Dr. Flint first came to Cortland there were any number of people who were ready to denounce him as a fraud and an impostor. His wonderful operations, however, have dispelled all thoughts of fraud, and no more are the doubting ones accusing him of carrying magnets up his coat sleeve or of having a band of trained boys to go through with each evening's performance. There is only one Flint, the hypnotist, and there is only one Mrs. Flint, the hypnotist. Dr. and Mrs. Flint have a daughter, who has also cultivated the hypnotic power and has traveled with them until the latter part of May, when she went to New York for a visit. She is about to become the wife of a promising young newspaper man of the metropolis named Grosvenor.
A STANDARD man yesterday had the pleasure of a chat with Dr. and Mrs. Flint in their rooms at the Cortland House. Both Dr. and Mrs. Flint are the picture of health, which fact in itself is a convincing argument against the theory advanced by some skeptical people that the business is ruinous to the health both of the operator and the subject, for Mrs. Flint herself often becomes the subject, as last week when she lay in public view in a hypnotic sleep for twenty-two and one-half hours. Dr. Flint says that he is of course somewhat tired at the close of an evening's performance but not excessively so. Mrs. Flint, who is also an operator, is of great assistance to her husband in carrying out an evening's entertainment.
Dr. Flint is a graduate from the Buffalo Medical college, and has practiced medicine to some extent. But he prefers to travel and entertain the public, and though he did not say as much, it must be inferred that there is more cash in his present business than in the practice of medicine, and besides, his present life is more independent.
He told The STANDARD man that he first became an active hypnotist when a lad of 14 years in Chicago, his boyhood home. One night he was witnessing a performance by the noted Prof. Townsend, a renowned hypnotist. Young Flint was one of the volunteers to go upon the stage as a subject. He proved a good subject. A day or two later he began doing the same thing among his young friends, and some of them told Prof. Townsend of it. The third night he went on the stage as a volunteer, Prof. Townsend surprised him near the end of the performance by turning everything over to him, and he finished up the evening's entertainment. Prof. Townsend then hired him to travel, as an assistant, and a few years later he became Prof. Townsend's manager. When Prof. Townsend retired from the work, Dr. Flint took it up and has been in the business more or less for the past twenty-one years.
At one time Dr. Flint says that he engaged in the brokerage business in Chicago, but it soon became noised about that Flint, the broker, was Flint the hypnotist. The newspapers wrote him up and ruined his business as a broker. Later he engaged in the mercantile business at Montreal, and there it was the same way; the newspapers again found out that Flint the merchant was Flint the hypnotist, and his mercantile business was destroyed because people refused to trade with him for some reason, probably fearing that he might exercise an undue influence over them in a business way. He then made up his mind that the best thing for him to do was to be and remain only Flint, the hypnotist.
The Flints have heretofore shown most exclusively in the West, but this year decided to come East. They came to Cortland from Loraine, O., and their next date is at Watertown next week.
Dr. Flint, in speaking of the science of hypnotism, said that all people are hypnotists but not all people are cognizant of the fact. All physicians are hypnotists, said he, but they do not know or realize it. He says that the keener the imagination, the brighter the intellect, the more susceptible is the person to the hypnotic influence. The mind must be subjective rather than objective. Webster defines hypnotism as "A form of sleep or somnambulism brought on by artificial means, in which there is an unusual suspension of some powers, and an unusual activity of others. It is induced by an action upon the nerves, through the medium of the senses, as in persons of very feeble organization, by gazing steadily at a very bright object held up before the eyes, or by pressure upon certain points on the surface of the body."
Very well indeed, does Dr. Flint exemplify this definition given by Webster in his nightly performances. He gains the attention of his subject, suggests to him some idea, retains his attention, and in a very short time the subject puts into action the thoughts or ideas which come to him, grouping them in some manner about the suggestion given him by Dr. Flint. The doctor says that if the subject never heard of and has not the remotest idea of the subject brought to his mind by the operator, he will proceed to do something which agrees with his conception of what ought to be done to carry out the thought. It may not be correct, but it serves the purpose. These, however, are rare cases, for scarcely any matter can be brought up of which the subject does not have an idea. Dr. Flint gave as an illustration the fact that if a subject is told to sing, his mind at once turns toward singing in general, and in a short time he will begin singing some song which he has heard at some time, but the words of which he could not repeat at any other time.
Dr. Flint has demonstrated this in Cortland several times during his stay. He says that he has been exceptionally fortunate in securing subjects in Cortland. He does his hardest work on the first two nights in a place, when he endeavors to find the most apt subjects among the volunteers. Other nights he does not go to the trouble of developing new subjects for he has a sufficient number already to furnish the entertainment. He has given two weeks' entertainments with only five subjects to work upon. One night in Cortland he had twenty-one volunteers. Dr. Flint has an endless variety of features which he brings out in the course of an engagement, and he keeps the audiences laughing all the time. Of course the people go to the theater to be amused, and it is the province of Dr. Flint to amuse them, so he brings out the humorous side of things.
ONLY TWO NIGHTS MORE.
To-night and To-morrow Only Remain for the Great Flint.
Another representative audience gathered last night at the Opera House to laugh and throw dull care away with Dr. Flint. The doctor himself felt in a pretty jolly mood and the result was a continual round of laughter, in fact it might be called one long laugh. The tooth act was fine and the courting scene captured the crowd. The Salvation Army with their bass drum, snare drum, banjos, tambourines, etc., was the hit of evening as they marched through the house singing their songs. The heavy catalepsy when four men stood on the body of the doctor's test subject as he rested on the backs of two chairs, their weight aggregating 518 pounds, caused the audience to break forth in rounds of applause. The doctor promises for to-night the strange sight of his pretty little wife to be put in that state and the same four men to stand upon her body. It will be a most remarkable test and one all want to see. A very funny program is promised. Only two more nights of this funny show and it may be years before our citizens have the chance presented to them again.
CORPORAL HARRY A. ODAY
Said to Have Been Married When on a Furlough in June.
The Syracuse Standard this morning contains the following notice: Corporal Harry A. Oday and Miss Cora E. Darby were married in Cortland, the bride's home, in June when Oday was at home on a furlough. Announcement of his marriage was made on his return home. Corporal Oday is of the class of '99, Syracuse university, and Mrs. Oday a graduate of the Cortland Normal school in the class from which her husband graduated from that institution.
The other Syracuse papers contain substantially the same announcement. A STANDARD man called at the home of Mr. C. C. Darby, the father of the said-to-be bride, but the family has not yet returned from the Thousand Islands, where they have spent the summer according to their custom, and the house was closed. Miss Mary Oday, who is a relative of Mr. Oday and with whose family he always makes headquarters while in Cortland, had not heard of the marriage and did not believe it was true. Dr. E. A. Didama, the health officer with whom all records of marriage are compelled by the state law to be filed within thirty days, said to a STANDARD man that no such marriage had been recorded with him. There is no other way possible to-day to verify the report of the marriage.
Mr. Oday while in attendance upon Syracuse university enlisted last spring in the Forty-first Separate company, N. G. S. N. Y., of that city, which afterwards by re-enlistment became Co. C of the Third regiment, N.Y. Vols. He has been a corporal of the company, which returned to Syracuse Tuesday for a month's furlough and is held under waiting orders to see what will be the result of the work of the peace commission. He was in Cortland from June 21 to 23 on a furlough and then returned to Camp Alger. Corporal Oday has furnished to The STANDARD several very interesting army letters written from that camp which have been published from time to time.
Both the young people are well known here and are very popular and if the report of their marriage is true they will receive the warmest of congratulations from a host of friends.
WOOD-WELLS.
Two Cortland Young People United in the Bonds of Matrimony.
A merry gathering of friends at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Wells of 167 Railroad-st. last evening witnessed the marriage of their daughter, Miss Nellie B. Wells, and Mr. Frank S. Wood of Cortland. The ceremony was performed by Rev. W. H. Pound, pastor of the Congregational church in the presence of a few invited guests. The rooms were neatly trimmed for the occasion, and the ceremony took place under an arch of evergreens. A fine wedding supper was served, and then Mr. and Mrs. Wood left on the late train for New York, from which place they will go to New Haven, Ct., for a visit with relatives, and on their return will reside at 167 Railroad-st.
VESUVIUS IS ACTIVE.
Three Streams of Lava Plowing Down the Mountain.
NAPLES, Sept. 15.—Mount Vesuvius is now presenting the grandest spectacle since 1872 due to a violent outburst of activity. The central crater and a number of new mouths are vomiting lava and ashes. Three imposing streams are flowing down the mountain side, burning the chestnut woods at the base of Mont Somma, nearly reaching the observatory, destroying part of the Funicular railroad leading thereto and threatening the barracks of the Carabineros.
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| Bartolome Maso. |
GOVERNMENT OF CUBA.
So-Called Provisional One Still In Existence.
A MANIFESTO PROMULGATED.
The Assembly Called to Meet and Determine Upon a Future Course of Action—A Free and Independent Government Their Only Solution to the Problem.
SANTIAGO, Cuba, Sept. 15.—The council of the so-called provisional government of the republic of Cuba, represented by Senor Bartolome Maso, president; Senor Mender Capote, vice president, and Senor Font, Senor Aleman and Senor Moreno de la Torre, secretaries, met at Santa Cruz on Sept. 1 and formulated a manifesto to the Cuban people, with an order to the military commander of the Cuban army, both of which have been promulgated.
The manifesto, which is an elaborate document, touches on the history of the movement for Cuban independence and the principles upon which the Cuban people have fought for their liberty. It proceeds, in part, as follows:
"The peace preliminaries have been signed and the government of the United States has imposed upon Spain an obligation to renounce all her rights of sovereignty over the island of Cuba and to evacuate the territory immediately. The cessation of hostilities has been agreed upon.
"Though the principal object of our revolution has been obtained, that is, the destruction of the Spanish domination, the work of this council is not yet at an end, for the Cuban republic—the ideal for which we have fought—has not yet been constituted. Now that hostilities have ceased and Spain has renounced her sovereignty, it is the duty of this council to set before the Cuban people the feelings and purposes of the men who made the revolution.
"We always felt confident that through our perseverance we would in the long run destroy Spanish domination, but we must acknowledge that an indefinite prolongation of the struggle would have annihilated the little that was left of our wealth and population. The entrance upon the field of a powerful and decisive factor, upon which we have always relied and toward which the hearts of all Cubans have always turned has put an end to the horrors of war, to the benefit of all concerned.
"This prompt solution we must acknowledge we could never have obtained. It is proper to acknowledge the evident truth. That is the best title the United States has to our gratitude. We were abandoned by the world, some nations ignoring us through selfishness, others ignorant of our real condition, considering us an obstinate and ungovernable people because we did not accept the cajoleries and flatteries with which Spain tried to sooth our just anger.
"This was our situation when the people of the United States, their government and congress came to our rescue and took upon their shoulders the task of delivering us at once from an unbearable yoke, as our sufferings could not be endured or permitted longer. They have accomplished their program brilliantly. What is more, they have liberated in one way or another from the rule of Spain all peoples oppressed by her. The liberation is definite and irrevocable. Spain has been expelled from this hemisphere.
"We are grateful. In nations as well as in individuals, gratitude is ennobling. As we begin now our national life we, more than any other people, must be jealous of our national honor. It is therefore the duty of this council to explain to the people of Cuba what, in its opinion are our duties toward the United States and toward ourselves and what are the rules that ought to direct our conduct.
"When, after a long struggle, the United States congress recognized the right of the people of Cuba to be free and independent and ordered the Spanish forces to withdraw from the island no Cuban government was recognized, but the one we had constituted though not recognized, was not opposed. No steps have been taken to dislodge it from the place where it exercised its function, nor has it been considered an illegitimate authority which events have dissolved or destroyed for the good of the people of Cuba. It could not be otherwise. The United States could not interfere in our struggle for the sake of what our enemies might consider a political faction. The American government could intervene for the benefit of the whole people of Cuba, a part of whom, being under Spanish rule, was not free to express a purpose or a preference. The intention of the United States was that as soon as the obstacle of Spanish rule had been removed the whole Cuban people should choose a government that would shape the destinies of the island.
"The people of the United States have all along appreciated the fact that the majority of the people of Cuba is in agreement with our principles, for the motto of the United States government has been the same as our own—absolute independence for Cuba. Under these conditions the Americans could not take a hostile attitude toward us or consider our authority illegitimate and harmful to the welfare of the Cuban people.
"These considerations have convinced us that we should not dissolve and that the powers we have received from an assembly elected by the people under arms should not vanish. On the contrary we feel that we should remain as a nucleus and guide for those who have vested such power in us.
"We have, therefore, decided to call together another assembly which will determine our future course."
In conclusion the manifesto gives a number of reasons why the proposed assembly should be convened and some government chosen, "not with the character of a government as yet, but as an official representation of those Cubans who fought against Spain."
PAGE TWO—EDITORIALS.
◘ The session of the senate in Madrid on Tuesday was characterized by a liveliness which vividly suggests the famous meeting of the Society of the Stanislaus when "a chunk of old red sandstone" struck one of the members in the abdomen with the result that—
Count Almenas may be said to have been the ruling spirit of the occasion, the chief inspiration of the festivities. He casually remarked that Weyler, Blanco and Prince de Rivera and Admiral Cervera ought to have had their sashes tied around their necks instead of around their waists. This was of course a picturesque way of saying that the personages referred to would have rendered Spain better service if Spain early in their respective careers had choked the life out of them. Naturally this testimonial from Count Almenas failed to exhilarate its recipients. In fact they didn't like it a little bit and said so explicitly and with all the heat they could compress into language. The consequence was, as we learn from a dispatch from Madrid, that "a great tumult ensued, the senators standing, shouting and threatening one another. The president vainly strove to restore order and broke his bell in attempting to do so." It is clear from this that the Spanish senate when the exercises were well under way must have looked like a typical Tammany convention, when the report of the committee on contested seats is being presented.
◘ The Sixth Virginia regiment, composed entirely of colored men with the exception of the colonel and surgeon, left Richmond Monday for Knoxville, Tenn. During the entire time it was in camp eight miles from Richmond, there were only three cases of sickness and no deaths. The reason for its immunity from disease appears by the observation of Major Price of the regular army, that the regiment's camp was the cleanest he ever saw.
THE CHORAL SOCIETY.
Prospects are Good For a First-Class Organization of Singers.
About forty singers assembled at the recital hall at the Conservatory of Music last evening in response to the announcement, that a choral society would be organized. The plans for the coming season were outlined to them and thirty-five names are now on the list of membership. These include some of the leading singers of the town [Cortlandville], and it is anticipated that many more will send in their names during the coming week. It is not the wish of the conductor to organize a large club, simply for the sake of having a large body of people, but on the contrary only those who can sing will be admitted, for much better results can be obtained from a smaller number of singers who are interested and willing to work. Two concerts will be given during the season, and at the first one the principal work to be given will be Gounod's "Gallia" for chorus and soprano solo. This is one of the most beautiful of the shorter oratorios. "Lovely Appear," from "The Redemption," for soprano solo and chorus will be one of the numbers upon the same program. Rehearsals will commence Wednesday evening, Sept. 21, when all of the music to be used at the first concert will be in readiness to begin active work. Mr. Bowen was very much pleased with the voices present last evening, and the parts were very well balanced, the male part of the chorus being exceptionally good. All those who desire to join the chorus should send or hand their names to Mr. Bowen or leave them at the conservatory as soon as possible, that sufficient music may be had for the first rehearsal next Wednesday evening.
BREVITIES.
—New display advertisements to-day Stowell, Your Only Chance, page 4.
—The Oswego Times reports about 100 new students at the Oswego Normal yesterday.
—The board of village trustees held a meeting last night with Trustees O'Leary and Sprague absent, but transacted no business and adjourned until this evening.
—The thirty-third annual reunion of the One Hundred Fifty-seventh regiment, New York Vols., will be held at Canastota next Monday, Sept. 19. Many Cortland county veterans expect to attend.
—Cornell is to have the finest students' commons in the world. A new building will be erected in the near future at a cost of $150,000 and will contain elegant rooms for the use of students and alumni,
—The Ithaca Journal says District Passenger Agent P. S. Millspaugh is authority for the statement that the Lehigh Valley R. R. will run another cheap excursion to Niagara Falls this fall, so successful was the one last week.
—Mr. G. J. Mager has rented to Fred I. Graham the handsome house at 10 Lincoln-ave. which was purchased by him last spring, and which has been thoroughly remodeled and refitted. Mr. and Mrs. Graham are now engaged in settling in their new home.
—The office of Justice D. A. Millen was the scene of a most felicitous occurrence on Friday of last week, when the Judge with dignity and precision, performed the delicate operation of matrimony upon Mr. Freddie Smith of Willet, and Miss Rosamond Warner of Cortland.—Newark Valley Herald.
—A party of ladies, who have become very much interested in the work of Prof. Flint, called upon him this afternoon at the Cortland House to see if he could exercise his hypnotic powers upon them. The professor received them cordially and all spent a very pleasant hour together. The ladies were quite satisfied as to the results.
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