Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-02-12
anistellamu.
Sleep.

Whether have men of letters or men of
science done most to traduce the character
Of >eep?' On the one side, it might be
strongly urged that, from Homer down.
wards, literary men have been in the habit
o. slanderously associating in every possible
way the gentle form of Sleep with the
gaunt image of Death. Between the " dull
god and the king Of terrors," they have
attempted to make out near relationship.
Ia the literary treatment OF the grim
monarch, it was quite natural and Justih-
able to try to show, that at all events, he
was very respectfully connected. But 1T
was inexcusabIe in writers on the other
side to admit the alleged kinship, to recur
to it frequently, or to shrink from indig-
nantly repudiating it. The sleep that
knows no waking" may be permissible as
a euphemism but deaths twin-brother,
Sleep" is simply libellous. TO Montaigne,
the resemblance was so striking, that he
thought one of the uses of sleep is to ac
custom men to the thought of death, SO
that they might be able to go out of life
without fear. But the quaint old Gaul
had some peculiar notions about sleep. He
was not sure, for instance, whether 1t was
Indispensable to life, founding his doubt on
some very questionable stories of alleged
prolonged sleeplessn ess. Sir Thomas More
was 50 struck by the analogies between
sleep and death, that he would never trust
himself to the tender mercies of " Natures
soft nurse till he had prayed to Heaven
for protection. 1t is to be hoped that the
other petitions OF the good knight were in
spired by ideas less fanciful than an i'm
aginary close resemblance between sleep
aud death. The likeness is indeed the
slightest possible. The breathing immobil-
ity of sleep is not at all suggestive of the
fixed repose of death. 1t may be said, in
deed, that except the one common point of
insensibility, the two conditions in all their
aspects, aesthetic as well as scientific,
present a well marked contrast. But as
set-off against this besetting sin of many
literary men, it might be pleaded, though
irreleyantly, that not few of them have
given worthy expression to the character
istic qualities of sleep. Our great drama
tist especially has showered on it per-
feet bouquet of such endearing epithets as
gentle sleep the innocent sleep
Sleep that knits up the raveled sleave of
care" - balm Of hurt minds" Young 5
musical line. Tired natures sweet restor-
er, balmy sleep ;" and Keatss " comfort
able bird that broodest DER the troubled
sea of the mind, till it is hushed and
smooth" are as well known poetical
descriptions Of sleep as honest Sancho
Panza's fervent benson on the man who
first invented it.
The immediate antecedent of sleep is a
diminution Of the stream Of blood flowing
to the brain, which condition lasts during
the continuance Of sleep. Great loss of
bloo2, predlsposes to slumber In such
circumstances, the brain is brought &C
cidentaIy into a state analogous to its con-
dition in ordinary sleep. Heat is conducive
to seepiness because it draws the blood to
the uriace of the body and the extremi-
ties, thus diminishing the supply to the
brain Moderate cold has ultimately a
similar somnjferous influence, and for pre-
cisely the same reason Intense cold, on
the other hand, has an opposite effect upon
the circulation. 1t drives the blood from
the surface to the internal organs, includ-
ilg the brain, in which it accumuIates.
The consequence Is the induction of state
not of sleep, but Of coma. in which the un-
fortunate victim soon sinks. The inclina
ton to sleep after a hearty dinner is due
to the fact that, at such time the stomach
in obedience to law to which we shall
presently advert, requires an increased
supply Of blood to enable it to discharge
It's function. For this it is obliged to draw
Oh the other parts Of the system, including
the brain. Monotonous sounds conduce tt
slumber, by tiring out the brain, thu
diminishing its activity, and consequent.
rendering necessary a smaller flow Of tht
vital fluid towards that organ. On th'
other hand, everything productive o
mental excitement of any kind, including
even the anxiety to invite the approach o
sIumter, is directly hostile to it, becaus,
activity Of the brain requires, as prim'
necessity, flow of blood towards tha
organ, Inconsistent with the physical con
ditlons of sleep.
Dreaming is a state of imperfect sleep, il
which some Of the mental faculties, notabl,
the memory and the magma, on, are il
active operation, while the other menta
powers, and the power Of sensatlc2, are il
abeyance. la somuambu.ism, also, certain
senses and faculties are completely suspend
ed while others are in active exercise
The simplest case of that condition is tha
OF sleep talking, in which the power 0
articulate speech has escaped the spell lai
on the other faculties. In the more re
markabe cases, the locomotive apparatu
is also emancipated In regard to hi
mental condition, the somnambulist ma
be described as alive to objects of attention
and wholly indifferent to objects not within
the range Of his train Of thought. o
awakening, he usually has no recollectio
of his previous condition; sbut on agai
relapsiDg into sornambulism, hescontinue
the line of thought and action develope
from the associations which his mind re
ceived on the former occasion.
4 curious contribution has been mad
to the literature of sleep, by Mr.. Georg
Catlin, we'll known as a writer on the Mort
American Indians. This gentleman is G
opinion that large number of the ills
which civilized flesh is subject arise fror
the fact that people, when they cease
be savages, toolishly persist in the bale
full practice of sleeping with their mouth
open! That Mr. Catlin is in dead earnes
and not poking fun at US, is evident fror
the whole tone of his book. Divcsted {
its rhetorical wrappings, Mr.. Catlin's mai
argument may be stated as follow
Amongst his friends the Indians, be ha
proved that such things as permatur
deaths from disease, as well as mental an
physical deformities, are almost unknown
Among civilized peoples, on the other hanc
these things are only too well known. Tt
only difference in the habits of savages an
civIIIzad ppcD[a r.. ma hle of aocountip, 6,