The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1874-02-07
curiositiss Of Lunacy.

Ahere are cases where blows ON the
head have benefited the brain, and pro.
duced extraordinary changes for the better.
Mabillon was almost an idiot at the age Of
70, he fell down a stone staircase, fractured
his skull, and was trepanned. From that
moment he became genius. DR.. Pritch-
ard mentions case Of three brothers who
were all nearly idiots. One of them was
injured on the head, and from that time
he frightened up, and is now a successful
barrister. Wollenstern, too, they say, was
a mere fool, till he fell out of a window
and awoke with enlarged capabilities. A
patient in an asylum was the victim of
many delusions. He was paying off the
national debt, going into partnership with
Baron Rothschild, and forming lodge Of
Female Freemasons. One day an epilep.
tic patient, irritated at being perpetually
asked to buy imaginary shares, gave him
tremendous blow on the bridge Of the nose.
From that time he improved rapidly, and
acknowledged that the blow had had
SOLDERING effect, and had quite knocked the
nonsense out Of him.
There is no doubt that this was the
secret of that cruel old remedy for mad
ness, the circulating swing, mentioned
favorably by physicians of the last century.
This horrible swing was a small box fixed
upon pivot, and worked by windlass.
The 'inhexible" maniac or the maniac
expecting paroxysm, was firmly stripped
in sitting or recumbent posture. The box
was then whirled round at the average
velocity of hundred revolutions minute,
and its beneficial effect was supposed to be
heightened by reversing the motion every
SIX or eight minutes, and by stopping it
occasionally with sudden jerk. The
results Of this swing (Which occasionally
brought on conclusion of the brain) were
profound and protracted sleep, intense
perspiration, mental exhaustion, and not
unnatural horror of any recurrence to the
same remedy, which left moral impress
sion that acted as a permanent restraint.
That the results we're often beneficial we
have indisputable evidence.
The cases of suspended consciousness
after brain injury are well worthy of at
tention. A man who wakes out of sleep
is conscious Of lapse of time, and can
generally even guess its duration, but the
man struck on the brain is often uncon.
scious of any lapse. A man was struck in
the street, and was afterward delirious.
He was unconscious after the blow for
fourteen days, He was then dclirious and
maniacal for ten weeks. When he became
more tranquil they brought him to the
asylum in straight-coat He soon recov.
cred, but when he became conscious he
mad clean forgotten the fourteen days
trance and the ten weeks delirium and
mania. At tie battle of the Nile an Eng.
lish captain was struck on the head by
shot and became unconscious. He was
taken home with the wounded and remained
in Greenwich Hospital for fifteen months,
deprived of his sense and speech. At the
end Of that period an operation was
performed, and the brain relieved from the |
pressure. He instantly rose from his bed |
and continued the orders to the sailors
which had been so abruptly interrupted
fifteen months before. DR.. Abercrombie
gives an analogous case. A lady was
struck with appolexy while sitting at the
whist table. 1t was Thursday evening
when she fell, and she lay in a stupor all
Friday and Saturday. On Sunday she
recovered her consciousness, and
her first words were, "What are trumps?"
The clock-work had stopped at the point,
md now the pendulum again commenced
10 swing.