Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1852-04-29
Darirtp.
From the Boston Weekly Museum.
The Force of Imagination.
by FALCONBRIDGE,

People Of strong nervous temPeraments
are great slaves to the whlms and caprlces
of their magIn ltions; and hence, people OF
good men'al, but of very ordinary physical
requirements are the most subject TO this
tyranny Of mind over matter. Occasionally,
very ordinary sort of person-that is, an
individual Of considerable mind, but whose
mental capacihe> are unframed, and so
partially dndevclop ed-suffers fram this Pc
culisf TACT, IN most distressing degree.
No doubt (says the besi physical duthOritV)
ane half the lls that flesh is heir to are
superlnduced by the fancy of the sutferering
one, Hundreds hava died by mere sYmp.
toms Of cholera, yellow fever. and plague,
induced by sheer dread and fear Of those
terrible naladies,
A case " recorded wherein a felon, con-
demned to Death by phelebo'omy, had his
arm laid bartto the shoulder, and thrust
through hole in partition, while he was
fast bound to the opposite side the hidden
execuUoner, upon the other side, applied
the lancet to the arm with click the poor
culprit heard the muddy stream outpDuring,
and soon growing weaker and fainter, he
fell Tito Il sWoon, and died when the fact
was, not drop of bloC had been shed, a
surgeon having merely snapped his lancet
upon the arm, and continued To pour small
stream Of water over the limb and into a
basiu!
Another case in " pint was that of
Philadelphia amateur butcher, VIII" in pla-
cling his meat uJnu a b mk, slipped, anh
hung himself, instead # his beet, upon the
b,rbed point. His agony WAS inIe.ne-he
was quickly taken town aud carried to a
physicians "tfi ;e, aud ~ great was his
pam (in imagmHlon) that he cried piieous-
ly upon every nlullon ma lie 10y the doc
tor, IN cuttinG The coat and SHIRT sleeve
from about the wounded arm When at
last the arm was barred, uof scratch was
there The hook point had merely grazed
along the skin, and torn lhe-shirt.seaye
viii not multiply the rrinus facts extsnt
i'll proof of the force eGercl' ed by IL msdl-
recled Imagination ; b!t will mention one
case so Iudlcruu5'y imposing as to cause a
pretty broad smile" lfnA prove otherwise
interesting.
ing, Btrks County, Pennsylvania, there
lived easy old farmer, nawed Swelghotfer
--uf German descent, aud accent, too. as
his speeri will indicate Old man Sweigh-
offer had once served as ii member or the
Legislature, and was therefore =" no fool ="
aud as lie had also long commanded vol.
unteer corps ofrnStic militia, he could hard
ha
sou Peter was his only son, strapping lad
Of seventeen; AID upon old Peter aud young
Peter dero!vel the principal cares and
tolls of the old genlleman's farm, now and
then assisted Ivy the old lady and her TWO
bouncing daughiers--for it is very common
in that State To see the women aud girls at
work in the fields and upon extra occa.
sious by some hled hands.
Well, one warm day, in hayng time, old
Peter and young Peter were " hard at it."
in the meadow, when the old man dropped
his scythe and bawLed out
con- mine GOtt, Peler!"
What's dc matter, fader {? " answers
the son. Strengthening up and looking to.
wards his sire.
"Oh! mine Gott, Peter F." again cries
the old man.
Donder echoes young Peter, hurry
ing up to the old man. "FAder, what is
de matter
"Oh, mine GOtt! Peter, der shake
bite nine leg "
lfanyhing in particular, was capable of
frightening young Peter, it was akes; for
he had once nearly crippled himself for lie
ny irampng upon crooked stick, which
clamped his aucIe and so Mortified the
yonngster that he liked to have fallen
through himself
AT the word snake, young Peter fell back,
nlnbly as wlte-dancer, aud bawled in
turn
Where is de shnake?"
Aup mine trowsis, Peter-Oh, mine
GMt!' ~
"Oh, mine Gott!" echoed Peter, Junior
kill him, lader-kilI him !"
No-a, no.a; he kill me, Peter come
come qnIck--gt of mine lrowsis !"
hut Peter the youuger's cuwardlce over
came his tillal love, while his tear lent
strength to his legs, aud he started, like
SCARED locomotive. To call the old, burly
ecu,chnai' who was III distant part OF the
1e'1' 10 give the father NJ with the snake.
U'u JAKE the farmers assistant came bun.
ding along, as soon as he heard the mems