s tone became half serious and his changed manner hushed the
laughter of the others. "I have always ridiculed the idea of hypnotism
and in every experiment where I have been present I have set myself to
disprove its effects. But candidly, folks, I was hypnotized.
Unconsciously I followed that parade a whole dozen blocks myself, and
when I finally came out of the trance, or whatever it was, and started
back to the hotel, the entire atmosphere seemed filled with some kind of
uncanny dope. I never witnessed such contagious energy and earnestness,
and every step emanated spiritual sparks that blinded my eyes and took
possession of my faculties. Who is she, Jack?"

"That is what I want to know. I call her my 'Mystery.' One day while I
was in London and near Trafalgar Square I saw a demonstration of women
down toward the parliament buildings. I went that way to see what was up
and soon discovered that it was a body of English suffragettes making an
attempt to exercise their claimed right to petition parliament. As
usual, the demonstration was more or less strenuous and the police
interfered. When I got close enough to identify them, I saw my 'Mystery'
in the front ranks, exhorting the women, protesting and pleading with
the policemen, and gradually getting nearer and nearer the parliament
buildings until they had almost reached one of the entrances. It looked
very much as if they might get entirely in and vindicate their claim,
but just at that moment a fresh squad of police arrived under an officer
superior to any present, and ordered the arrest of the leaders. My
'Mystery' was the first arrested. It was then that I discovered that she
was an American girl. The speech she delivered to those police officers
on human rights and human liberties and women's rights and women's
liberties is worthy a place among the world's great orations. They took
her and the rest of them away, but I noticed that they treated her with
marked respect. I don't think any of them were jailed on that occasion,
but she defied them to jail her. The next time I saw her was at the
Grand Opera House in Paris, two months later. She was with some friends
in an adjoining stall. It was a gala performance for the benefit of the
flood sufferers and the most noted singers in the world had volunteered
their services, and single acts from a number of operas were given. It
was difficult to believe that this beautiful, stylish, richly-gowned
girl was the one I saw arr