The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1858-09-01
9elttt mlistellanp.
From the American Journal of Insanity.
SANE AND INSANE.
A True Story of the Loss of
Reason.

GThe last presidential election occur
red on the first Monday of Novem Der
1856. The duties and political position
of the gentleman whose case is here de
tailed, involved him deeply in the tur.
moi, Dor and excitement incident to
that heated and fierce contest. He la
bored every day and many night, and
was completely absorbed in the progress
of the canvass and the final result. 1t
| may be remarked, without fear of dis
closing his politics, as there we're three
parties in the field, and two of them
were defeated, that to him, and all who
acted with him, that result was disas
trous to their hopes and expectations
/ The election being over, his labors were
at once reduced. The disappointment
was almost overwhelming. He INDUCED
in the use of tobacco to excess, and this
in tho general reaction that eDsued,
sent him from his office to his bed. The
circumstances Of this instructive case
were so clearly recalled, that tkey are
presented as detailed after recovery had
taken place.
On Friday, November 9TH, awoke
and found myself quite i'll. Ia addition
to headache and pains in all ny bo-.s
there were febrile svT pto~ rol,it.t;on
2: '-e heaft .uu great nervous prostra-
1,C .Uu. 1 took no medicine that day, none
the next, and grew no worse; but Sat
urday night supervened restlessness,
broken sleep and occasional fits of de-
lirium in its mildest form, and such as
is wont to "dance attendance" about the
beds of fever patients.
On Sunday, n physician was called In,
and he prescribed powerful anodynes
and other remedies. That day, the
strange optical illusions that afterwards,
through my illness, 80 strongly marked
my case, commenced. A few rails of
tue New York Central railroad are to
be seen in front of my residence, though
probably two hundred rods distance
In the course of the afternoon, remem-
bere6 calling the attention of my wife
to an interminable train of freight cars
that was passing, and expressed my sur
prise, not onlv at the length of the train,
but also that it should be running on
the Sabbath. Every car, and every
wheel of each of them, were perfectly
distinct in my vision, and l could not be
persuaded that it was not reality in
deed, became angry at the pertinacity
with which the fact was urged upon me
that there was not car in motion upon
the track Soon after this, pointed
out number of men upon the pnblic
building, in view from my house, and
wondered why they were paradiug there
on Sunday, -isua1 rssfa--
These phantoms constituted the van
guard of the innumerablc army of spec
tres that afterward filed the scope of
my vision. That Sunday night was one
of sleeplessness and indescribable tor
ments. I swallowed medicines and OPT
ates, and became excessively sleepy, but
I could obtain no sleep. The instant
my eyes closed, as they did frequently,
and almost involuntarilly, vast apart
ments would open before me-balls, COR
ridors. and gorgeous suits of rooms-at
fist all empty, but in q moment they
would be filed with multitudes of peo
Pile, of all ages, sexes, costumes, ma
tions and tongues. l could hear them
thropgjng on the stairway before they
appeared, aud see them take their places
in vast masses aud serried columns
Not only did they talk incessantly, but
every one of the countless multitude
gaked fixedly on nae. Many pointed at
me with their fingers and canes, and
ogled me through their opera glasses. -
This ordeal would becothe ihtolerabiei
and on opening my eyes and turning
over in the bed, the vision would vanish.