Report of the Commissioners on Animal Magnetism

spit, feel some slight pain, a local heat or a universal heat, and experience sweating; others are agitated and tormented by convulsions. These convulsions are extraordinary in their frequency, their duration, and their intensity. As soon as one convulsion begins, several others manifest. The Commissioners The royal commission appointed by Louis XVI in 1784, including Benjamin Franklin and Antoine Lavoisier, to investigate the claims of animal magnetism. have seen some last for more than three hours; they are accompanied by the expectoration Coughing up or spitting out phlegm or fluid. of a cloudy and viscous water, forced out by the violence of the efforts. Sometimes, streaks of blood have been seen there; and there is, among others, a sick young man who often produces it in abundance. These convulsions are characterized by rapid, involuntary movements of all the limbs and the entire body, by a tightening of the throat, by jolts of the hypochondria The upper regions of the abdomen, located on either side of the stomach beneath the lower ribs. and the epigastrium The area of the abdomen located directly below the breastbone., by the agitation and wandering of the eyes, by piercing cries, tears, hiccups, and immoderate laughter. They are preceded or followed by a state of languor and daydreaming, a kind of exhaustion and even drowsiness. The slightest unexpected noise causes startling; and it was noted that the change of tone and tempo in the melodies played on the Piano-forte influenced the patients, such that a livelier movement agitated them more and renewed the intensity of their convulsions.

There is a padded room originally intended for patients tormented by these convulsions, a room called the Crisis Room original: "des Crises." In Mesmerism, the "crisis" was the violent physical reaction believed to be the moment the body's magnetic fluid was unblocked, leading to a cure.; but Mr. Deslon does not see fit to make use of it, and all the patients, whatever their