“Spirit”, said the hypnotist “as the names are mentioned one rap means pass, two mean plucked”; then he addressed the others sitting around “see that I am not kicking at the leg of the teapoy.”

Half a dozen of the boys sat down on the floor to watch.

As each name was mentioned there came one rap or two raps as the case might be till the whole list was exhausted.

“We can’t ascertain the truth of this until 3 months are over” said I.

“How many rupees have I in my pocket” asked one of the lookers-on.

There came three distinct raps and on examining the purse of the person we found that he had exactly 3 rupees and nothing more.

Then we asked a few more questions and the answers came promptly in. “Yes” and “No” by means of raps.

Then according to the hypnotist’s suggestion one student wrote a line from Shakespeare and the ghost was asked what that line was.

“As the plays are named rap once at the name of the play from which the passage has been taken” said the hypnotist, solemnly addressing the Spirit.

“Hamlet”

No reply

“King Lear”

No reply

“Merchant of Venice”

No reply

“Macbeth”

One loud rap.

“Macbeth” said the hypnotist “now which Act.”

“Act I”

No reply

“Act II”

No reply

“Act III”

No reply

“Act IV”

No reply

“Act V”

One loud rap.

“Scene I”

No reply.

“Scene II”

No reply.

“Scene III”

One loud rap.

“Now what about the lines” said the hypnotist.

“Line one—­Two—­Three ...  Thirty nine”

No reply.

“Forty”

One loud rap

“Forty one”

One loud rap

“Forty two”

One loud rap

“Forty three”

One loud rap

“Forty four”

One loud rap

“Forty five”

One loud rap

“Forty six”

No reply

A copy of Shakespeare’s Macbeth was at once procured and opened at Act
V, Sec.  III, line 40.

     “Can’st thou not minister to a mind diseased,
     Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow,
     Raze out the written troubles of the brain,
     And with some sweet oblivious antidote,
     Cleanse the stuff’d bosom of that perilous stuff,
     Which weighs upon the heart?”

This was what we read.

The student was then asked to produce his paper and on it was the identical quotation.

Then the hypnotist asked us to remove our hands from the top of the teapoy.  The hypnotist did the same thing and said “The Spirit has gone.”

We all stared at each other in mute surprise.

Afterwards we organized a big show for the benefit of the hypnotist, and that was a grand success.