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The Jacques Romano Story – Dr Berthold Eric Schwartz

Leslie S Egbert Executive Vice President of the Columbia Minerva Corporation, New York City

Back in the early 1930's I became much interested in all forms of psychic phenomena, including extrasensory perception.  The gentleman who involved me in much of my research was Francis Fast, a close friend and a well-known businessman, a person of great integrity. It was he who arranged one of the most startling experiences I was ever to undergo.

It happened at a small stag party in New York City.  I knew several of the guests but some were strangers to me. However, all were responsible citizens and I believe entirely ethical.  One of the guests consented to be hypnotized and almost immediately fell into a deep trance. The hypnotist then stated that he would like to try an experiment in astral traveling and would endeavour to send his subject's intelligence on a trip. He asked for a volunteer from the group to suggest where the subject should go-'but it must be to a place no one else in the room is familiar with.'

One of the gentlemen volunteered and a most interesting performance took place. Many years have passed and, while my memory is a bit hazy as to details, the session went somewhat as follows:

VOLUNTEER: 'Ask him to go to the railroad station in -, South Carolina.'

HYPNOTIST: (to subject) Go to the railroad station at – South Carolina and tell us what you see.

SUBJECT (unhesitatingly) Rough, red brick platform – old frame station – painted red

HYPNOTIST: Good.  Do you see any people about?

SUBJECT: No

VOLUNTEER: Tell him to go one block south and one block west (Subject was oblivious to all sounds except the voice of the hypnotist)

HYPNOTIST: Go one block south and one block west and tell us what you see

SUBJECT: Red brick house, white picket fence – a light in the window

HYPNOTIST:  Look in the window and tell us what you see

SUBJECT:  Victorian room - lady

HYPNOTIST:  Describe the lady

SUBJECT:  Small- white hair – glasses – black dress – white collar

HYPNOTIST:  What is she doing?

SUBJECT:  Reading

HYPNOTIST: Where?

SUBJECT:  Beside round table – center of room – lamp on table

HYPNOTIST: Go inside and tell us what she is reading

SUBJECT:  Book called x………x

HYPNOTIST:  What page ?

SUBJECT: (Gave number)

HYPNOTIST:  That’s fine, now I am going to bring you back

The subject awakened and apparently had difficulty in believing he had been in a trance at all.  The gentleman who had volunteered to help in the experiment was very excited and swore that all descriptions had been absolutely accurate.

This had been very interesting, but of course so far not really evidential, as no one in the room, except the volunteer, knew whether or not what we had heard was fact or fiction. Certainly no one knew what was actually taking place in South Carolina.

During the rather animated discussion that followed, the hypnotist asked if it were possible to telephone South Carolina and verify the subject's information.  This was promptly done, for the volunteer contacted his mother and asked her what she was doing. She replied that she was reading, but wanted to know what was wrong that he was calling her at that time of night (11:00 P.M.).

The gentleman assured her that everything was fine but insisted that she tell him what she was reading. She replied that the book was-(the same as stated by the subject). The hypnotist then reminded him to ask the page number. When the volunteer asked her that, she was certain he was deep in his cups and said so. However, upon his insistence she went back to the book and gave us the page number. It was several pages beyond that given us by the subject-just about the number she would have covered while the call was being put through.

The whole procedure had a sobering effect upon all of us. Until that time I had been skeptical about the authenticity of many of the things I had seen and heard, but this experience was hard to explain in any logical manner other than what it seemed to be.

I did not know either the subject or the volunteer, personally, but the fact that they were well known by my friend, Mr. Fast, and their integrity vouched for by him, rather precluded the suspicion that the whole performance had been an act. I, personally, was convinced that I had witnessed a mysterious and wonderful phenomenon. The hypnotist and I became friends. His name was Jacques Romano.