"A taste of ink—of iron—of vinegar. I feel it on my lips—it is as if I had been eating alum."
11
M. G.
E.
Alum
(E. perceived that M. G. was as not tasting bitter aloes, E. G. and M. supposed, but something different. No distinct perception on account of the persistence of the bitter taste.)
EXPT.
TASTER.
PERCIPIENT.
SUBSTANCE.
ANSWERS GIVEN.
12
E. G. & M.
E.
Nutmeg
"Peppermint—no—what you put in puddings—nutmeg."
13
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Nutmeg."
14
E. G. & M.
R.
Sugar
Nothing perceived.
15
M. G.
R.
Do.
Nothing perceived. (Sugar should be tried at an earlier stage in the series, as, after the aloes, we could scarcely taste it ourselves.)
16
E. G. & M.
E.
Cayenne pepper
"Mustard."
17
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Cayenne pepper." (After the cayenne we were unable to taste anything further that evening.)
Throughout the next series of experiments the substances were kept outside the room in which the percipients were seated.
September 5.
18
E. G. & M.
E.
Carbonate of Soda
Nothing perceived.
19
M. G.
R.
Caraway seeds
"It feels like meal—like a seed loaf—caraway seeds." (The substance of the seeds seems to be perceived before their taste.)
20
E. G. & M.
E.
Cloves
"Cloves."
21
E. G. & M.
E.
Citric acid
Nothing felt.
22
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Salt."
23
E. G. & M.
E.
Liquorice
"Cloves."
24
M. G.
R.
Cloves
"Cinnamon."
25
E. G. & M.
E.
Acid jujube
"Pear drop."
26
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Something hard, which is giving way—acid jujube."
27
E. G. & M.
E.
Candied ginger
"Something sweet and hot."
28
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Almond toffy." (M. G. took this ginger in the dark, and was some time before he realised that it was ginger.)
29
E. G. & M.
E.
Home-made Noyau.
"Salt."
30
M. G.
R.
Do.
"Port wine." (This was by far the most strongly smelling of the substances tried; the scent of kernels being hard to conceal. Yet it was named by E. as salt.)
31
E. G. & M.
E.
Bitter aloes
"Bitter."
32
M. G.
R.
Do.
Nothing felt.
(Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research, vol. ii. pp. 3, 4.)
Further experiments in this direction are much to be desired. But apart from the difficulty above referred to, experiments of the kind are liable to be tedious and inconclusive because of the inability of most persons to discriminate accurately between one taste and another, when the guidance of all other senses is lacking. To conduct such experiments to a successful issue, it would probably be necessary that the percipients should have some preliminary training to enable them to distinguish by taste alone between various salts and pharmaceutical preparations.
Transference of Pains.
Experiments in the transference of pains are not attended with the same difficulties, nor open to the same evidential objections; and some interesting trials of this kind with one of the same percipients, Miss R., met with a fair amount of success. The experiments were carried on at intervals, interspersed with experiments of other kinds, by Mr. Guthrie at Liverpool during nine months in 1884 and 1885. The percipient on each occasion was blindfolded and seated with her back towards the rest of the party, who each pinched or otherwise injured themselves in the same part of the body
