The Tiffin weekly tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1859-1868, 1867-12-26
Nerves and no Nerves,


There is no portion OF the human
body that comes in for 80 much daily
abuse as the nerves. Not only arc
the nerves made accountable FOR their
own peculiar foiblss, but to them are
attributed all the shortcomings ofth
corporal system. What is called the
fractions, vacilatiug, aimless mau, is,
in reality, the man without norve
Sush person, for instance, as DR..
Holmes, has happily sketchcd in one
of his humorous lyrics. The person
is driven to tho verge OF distraction
by those common sights aud sounds
which have 10 power 60 rullo we'll.
conducted, gcntlomanly nerves Life
becomes burden to him, because
of
"Ch1dran, With dru.na
peripalotic- with ablade " grass
Between their thumigs.'
OF course he accuses his nerves.
Every other man in the civilized
world is doing the same injustice to
those long.suderiug aud inslieuablo
friends. Matthew Brown did an act
Of philanthropy, year or two ago,
when he wrote AN Apology for the
Nerves" II should be called a de.
fence, rather than apology. The
nerves on that occasion had no hu
initiating confessions to make, but
calm, logical evidence to show, touch.
| lug their right TO deeper respect aud
more elegant place in society. II
he says there is without Nerve no
Thought (and 50 scientific men assure
us), VIC eau hardly have too much Of
the Nerves, unless Thought itself is
objected to- The writer then pro.
ceeds ia a lawyer-liko manner to
state the claims Of his clieuts. He
observes that tho nerves are the oh
jects Of systematic eumity and depre.
citation among mankind at large he
exposes the Ignorance aud wauton.
ness OF this. The fat man, he justly
complains, is tolerated, loved, or, al
tho worst, only laughed at, but
disliked aud dcridcd. Yet the Eng
/ lish nation, according to Mr.. Brown
would not trust its income with AT
obese mau. Thus it is with nervous
men VIC trust our money; they are, IL
fact, the men for our money, and il i:
FROM them we expect all that makes
money worth having.
In short, it is the nervous who
thinks, inycu,s aud builds, writes
books, fights battles, aud, by the free
exercise of his powers, creates those
comforts and blessings which arc
grumbiugly enjoyed by the mau
without nerve.
Aud yet these admirable nerves
which do everything worth doing
are held responsible for half the un
pleasantness Of life. Our ability il
considered in The light of disease
and lamented and doc,orcd literally
doctored.
That the majority Of the people
regard their nerves as things to b.
tanned aud held in control, is made
manifest by an entertaining circula
of DR.. Turner's, in which We founl
several letters from gentlemen wei
known in the medical, legal and 9th
or professions, acknowledging tha
they have successfully combated viii
their nerves, aud speaking Of Dr
Turner'S Universal Neuralgia Pi'
: with the same ardor that a militar
man would discuss newly iuvente
Q conical steel shot, or a pcouliarl
. efIicacious minnie ball. Perhaps, in
deed, these gentlemen were oyerbpr
dended with nerves, for il is possibl
to have too much Of a good thing
Too much thought, strictly speaking
too much nerve, has, before now, le
to the saddost result.
DR.. Turner's essay furnishes u
, some notable examples swift dy
D ing in moody mania !; "Sir lsaa
Newton with intellect temporari!
: shattered" !" "Johuson, oppressed b
thick coming fancies.' But the
these are exceptional cases, and thel
- is no saying what the result migl
0 have been could they have availe
/. themselves of the recent discovcri'
: in phara.acology. No reasonab
porson will look upon Mr. Brown
o "ApologY for the Nerves as eith'
y uutimely or uniudicious.