Liberty advocate. [volume] (Liberty, Miss.) 1835-1866, 1839-02-07
NECESSARY QUANTITY OF sLEEp.

wins regard TO the necessary quantity of
sleep, SO much depends upon age, constitution
and employment, that il is impossible TO law
down any fixed rule whchvll apply 10 all cases.
Jeremy Taylor states thatthree hours only out
Of the twenty-lour should be spent in seep.
Baxter extends the period 10 four hours. Yves
ley to six, Lord Coke and Sir William Jones TO
seven, and Sir John Sinclair TO eight. With
me latter am disposed TO coincide. Taking
The average of mankind, we will como as near
as possible to the truth when we say, tina,
about one-thlrd part Of life should pc spent in
sleep; In some cases even more may be neces
sary, and IN few can much smaller portion be
safely dispensed with When person is young
strong, and healthy, an hour or two less may
be sutticent; but childhood and extreme old age
require still greater portion. No person who
passes only eight hours in bed can be said &c
was te his time. If however, he exceeds this
ndis, az the same time, in possession of vigor
and youth, he lays himself open to the charge
otpasslng in slumber those hours which should
be devoted to some other purpose. Too little
sleep shortens life as much as an excess of sleep.
Barry in his work on Digestion, has made an
ingenious, but somewhat whimsical calculation
on this subject. He asserts, that the duration
ofhumon life may be ascertaned by the num-
Der Of pulsations which the Individual is able 10
perform. Thus, ifa mans life extends to sew
enty years, and his heart throbs sixty times
each minute, the whole pumber Of It's pulsaons
will amount to 2,205 500 900; but it, by inlem.
perance, or any other cause, he raises the pulse
to seventy-fye in minute, the same number
Of pulsations would be completed in ffy-sx
years. Arguing from these facts, he alleges
that sleep has tendency TO proong life, as,
during lis continuance the pulSations are less,
numerous than in the waking state There Is
sort oltheoretical truth in this statement, but
it is liable TO be modified by so many circum-
stances, that its application can never become
general. If this was not the case, it would be
natural TO infer, that the length ofa mans life
would equal that Of his sumbers, whereas it is
well known that too much sleep debilitates thel
frame, and lays the foundation ofyarous dis
eases, which tends 10 shorten instead ofeXtend-I
ing its duration. The persons who sleep most
are those who require the least of this indul-
gence. These are the wealthy and the luxu.
rous, who pass nearly the half Of their exiS.
ience in slumber, while the hard working peas
ant and mechanic, who would seem at first sight
10 require more than any other class of society,
are contented with seven or eight hours of re-
pose--a period briefin proportion to that expend
ed by them in toll, yet sufficiently long for the
wants of nature, as is proved by the strength
and health which they almost uniformly enjoy.
More sleepfs requisite, for the reasons already (
stated, IN winter than in summer. Were there
even no constitutional causes forthis difference
we would be disposed to sleep longer in the one |
than In the other, as many Of the causes which
induce US 10 sit up late and rise early in sum. 5
mer are wanting during winter, aud we conse- +
quently ieelEdlsposed to lie in bed for a longer
period Of time during the latter season of the 5
year. b