Frictional Electricity / From "The Saturday Evening Post."

Name: Frictional Electricity / From "The Saturday Evening Post."
Author: Charles Heber Clark

By Charles Heber Clark

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Humour

About This Book

A hospital visitor listens to a battered patient recount a comic mishap: after hearing popular lectures about frictional electricity, the patient tries to cure a companion's headache by rubbing his eyebrows. The treatment unexpectedly induces a hypnotic trance, causing the companion to recite a multiplication table and later prayers, and producing escalating embarrassment and consequences. The anecdote satirizes lay enthusiasm for scientific remedies and the social awkwardness that follows misapplied curiosity.

About the Author

Charles Heber Clark

Charles Heber Clark, often writing under the pseudonym Max Adeler, was an American author known for his humorous and satirical works in the late 19th century. He contributed to literature with a distinctive style that blended wit and social commentary. His notable works include "Elbow-Room: A Novel Without a Plot," which showcases his unique narrative approach, and "Out of the Hurly-Burly; Or, Life in an Odd Corner," reflecting his keen observations of everyday life. Clark's stories often explore the quirks of human nature and society, making him a significant figure in the realm of American humor.