The next three weeks the girls in Merton did study, as did most of the other girls. All the classes were having reviews and the whole college had settled down to good hard work. Social life had practically stopped, except for an occasional spread or tea, and society meetings on Monday nights were about the only diversions. When she felt she could afford the time Jean had gone to basket-ball practice, for she secretly longed to make the freshman team, but openly she said nothing about it. She knew everything depended upon the midyear marks, and although there had been a decided improvement in her work since Thanksgiving, still she knew it looked a little doubtful in French and German. However, she was confident that by June she would be doing at least passing work.
About a week before the examinations began, Jean went over to Wellington one evening to study psychology with Lois Underwood, who was in her division. As it happened, several of the Wellington girls were in the same division and Lois called them in to the "quiz," as she called their evening's work. The girls really worked hard until about nine o'clock and had covered considerable ground when they began talking about hypnotism, a favorite subject of Miss Washburn, the psychology instructor.
"I think Miss Washburn's positively daffy on the subject," said Jean; "I don't believe there's anything in it at all. She'll be sure, though, to ask us something about it in the exam. I suppose if we want to pass the course we'll have to agree with her whether we believe in it or not."
"But I do believe in it," said Lois Underwood. "Bess and I have been reading up a lot on the subject and we have been experimenting on each other and find we can do lots of the things the books tell about. It's easy enough if you just make up your mind to it."
[208]
The other girls laughed and scoffed at this, and declared Bess and Lois were getting daffy over the subject, too.
"Well, all right, girls," said Lois, "if you don't believe it, I'll let Bess hypnotize me. You've all got to keep perfectly quiet and not laugh if she doesn't succeed at first, for we can't always tell what will be the result."
"As I said before," Jean replied, "I don't believe there's anything in it, but I'm perfectly willing to be convinced."
The girls shut their books and awaited the exhibition. Bess Johnson arose from her chair and looked steadily into Lois Underwood's eyes as she sat upright on her couch. "Put your mind upon sleep, Lois; sweet, gentle sleep. You're going to sleep for a little while." She stepped up close to her and began rubbing her forehead and temples, saying all the time, "You're beginning to feel sleepy, you know you will sleep, you can't help it. Now you're asleep, asleep, asleep." And at these words Lois fell over on the couch in a deep sleep.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen, our fair victim is peacefully sleeping, and those of you[209] who doubt the fact are at liberty to examine the sleeping beauty as carefully as you please. As a first test I will prick her arm with this needle and if she does not move or cry out you may draw your own conclusions."
She pricked her arm with the needle, but not a movement was made or a sound heard and the girls looked at each other in astonishment. They spoke to her and shook her and pinched her and pulled her hair, but it was in vain, there was no evidence of life. "It is wonderful," said Jean; "I am forced to admit that there's something in it after all. Does every one else believe?" The rest of the girls declared they did, and then Jean suggested that Bess awaken her.
"Very well, girls; it's perfectly simple," and she went up to the couch and began rubbing Lois's forehead and temples, saying firmly, "You are about to awaken, fair one; open thine eyes. Now you are awaking, you know you cannot help it. You are coming to life again, awaken." But Lois did not seem to open her eyes and did not move. She lay as rigid as when she first went into the[210] sleep. Bess worked over her as hard as she knew how, but could not awaken her. Again and again she shook her until it seemed as though she must open her eyes if there was any life in her.
"Oh, girls, what shall I do? I can't get her to wake up. It's never been like this before. Suppose she never comes out of it. I'll be a murderer. Oh, I promise you if she ever does wake up that I'll never try to hypnotize any one again!"
"Hadn't we better call in the doctor or some of the older girls?" said Jean.
"No, not yet; I'm afraid to. What would they say to me? And if I put her to sleep, I'm the only one that can awaken her. Don't you know that other people have no influence over them?" and she began again to work over her. It was no use, and now the other girls began to get as frightened as Bess, but there seemed nothing to do but to wait.
At last the 9.45 warning bell rang and the girls knew they must leave, especially those who lived in other houses. With tears in her eyes Bess said good-night to the girls and[211] begged them to say nothing about the matter, assuring them that she knew in time she could awaken Lois. After the door closed on the last girl, Bess returned to the sleeping girl on the couch. She was breathing deeply and so Bess did not despair of her life. She sat beside her and called and called to her to awaken. The moments flew by and the terrified girl felt that she must control herself before she could hope to control another. She must make a supreme effort to undo the harm she had done. She left the couch and walked slowly up and down the room, saying to herself, "Be calm; it must come out all right; she will awaken."
After perhaps half an hour she sat down again on the couch and looked Lois hard in the face. Then she rubbed her forehead and temples exactly as she had done when she sent her into the stupor, and almost screamed, "You must awaken; you must awaken, Lois, or I shall go mad." There was not a sign of awakening, and heartsick and discouraged Bess sank upon her knees almost exhausted. She prayed softly to her Father in Heaven[212] for help in this awful moment, and then for the last time whispered, "Oh, Lois, Lois, awaken!" and she saw her eyelids begin to move very slightly and then gradually open. "Oh, Lois, you're really awake again; you're awake again. I'm so thankful!"
"'Thankful,' Bess, why, what do you mean? What are you doing on your knees by my couch?"
"Nothing, Lois, except praying that you'd wake up. Don't you remember anything about to-night?"
"No; all I know is that I'm very, very tired and I feel as though I could sleep a week. What happened?"
"Why, to-night to prove to the girls that there was such a thing as hypnotism, I put you to sleep and I couldn't make you wake up. I've been frightened almost to death ever since and I'll never, never try to hypnotize anybody again as long as I live. I wish I'd never heard anything about the subject. But you're all right now, and that's all I care about. I've had the most awful experience of my life. Look and see if my hair has turned white.[213] We'd better go to bed now, but I must let the other girls know the first thing in the morning, for they were all as frightened as I."
When the psychology class met next morning it was a pretty sober little group that had studied together the night before, and two of them, at least, were a trifle pale. Miss Washburn could not understand what had fallen over the class, for it was generally very lively and at times troublesome. As luck would have it, after she had finished her lecture she called on Bess Johnson to talk on the subject of hypnotism. To the astonishment of the class (excepting, of course, her companions of the night before), who were accustomed to Bess' brilliant recitations, they heard her say, "I know nothing about it," and she turned as pale as though she had seen her father's ghost, and the question was passed on to Gertrude Jackson, next on the list, who discussed it at some length, until the bell rang and the class was dismissed.
From psychology Jean went into her English class and took her usual seat in the extreme left-hand corner near the open door. It[214] was theme day, and Miss Whiting was to read some examples of what she considered good and bad themes. Jean listened in vain for one of hers among the good ones, for she had tried hard and was beginning to enjoy her English work. But among the themes Miss Whiting considered poor because of their faulty construction and poor English she recognized two of her recent attempts. She was hurt, and the tears sprang to her eyes to think of Miss Whiting's reading two of her themes before the entire class, as though one wouldn't have been enough! Of course everybody would know they were hers, although she overlooked the fact that no names were mentioned with the criticisms. She felt her face turning scarlet and tears rolling down her cheeks. She couldn't stay there to hear more of her awful themes read and she didn't dare ask Miss Whiting to be excused. She gave one glance at the open door and her mind was made up. Knowing Miss Whiting was very near-sighted, she stole very quietly out of th............