It would, in this part of the work, be particularly gratifying to my feelings if I could develope this _English secret_ for the moral management of the insane, which has been so ardently, yet unsuccessfully sought after by Dr. Pinel. For fourteen years I have been daily in the habit of visiting a very considerable number of madmen, and of mixing indiscriminately among them, without ever having received a blow or personal insult. During this time I have always gone alone, and have never found the necessity for the assistance or protection of a keeper. The superintendant of the Bicetre, according to Dr. Pinel's account, is usually attended by his keepers, [gens de service] though he is said to possess[29] "une fermete inebranlable, un courage raisonne et soutenu par des qualites physiques les plus propres a imposer, une stature de corps bien proportionnee, des membres pleins de force et de vigeur, et dans des momens orageux le ton de voix le plus foudroyant, la contenance la plus fiere et la plus intrepide." Not being myself endowed with any of these rare qualities; carrying no thunder in my voice, nor lightning in my eye, it has been requisite for me to have recourse to other expedients. In the first place, it has been thought proper to devote some time and attention to discover the character of the patient, and to ascertain wherein, and on what points, his insanity consists: it is also important to learn the history of his disorder, from his relatives and friends, and to enquire particularly respecting any violence he may have attempted towards himself or others. In holding conferences with patients in order to discover their insanity, no advantage has ever been derived from assuming a magisterial importance, or by endeavouring to stare them out of countenance: a mildness of manner and expression, an attention to their narrative, and seeming acquiescence in its truth, succeed much better. By such conduct they acquire confidence in the practitioner; and if he will have patience, and not too frequently interrupt them, they will soon satisfy his mind as to the derangement of their intellects.