When the thought occurred to the author during the winter of 1898-99 to test the availability of hypnotic suggestion as a means of removing criminal impulses and substituting conscience – sensitiveness for moral anaesthesia among young criminals and castaways, he was convinced that the results of his invesigations would possess deep interest for the men and women of his profession, and he purposed publishing them, together with his conclusions, in the form of a medical monograph. But he was wholly unprepared for the sensation that has been excited throughout this country and in Europe by the premature birth of his report in the columns of the daily press. The demand for full and authentic information regarding hypnotic suggestion, which has suddenly become appreciated as a great moralizing power at its true worth and with an intelligent reference to the vride range of its applications, explains the appearance of the present volume.
– from the preface.
