The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-04-07
Snakes in the stomach.


find a brief report of Il lecture delivered by
DR.. A. E. Macdonald, OF the Wards Island In
sane Asylum and Professor in the Medical
Department of the University of New lorK'
in which he ridlcules the popular notion that
people can have living snakes, frogs or olher
animals il ,ncIr stomachs. He said:
WI. ule!ancholiacs decisions of the body
are very common. A patient on Waras Is
land believes he has been killed three times,
another insists that his head has turned 10 chi.
IA, anc IS careful not to run the risk OF break.
inc il: a third believes he has been changed
into wax, and will not sit in the sun for fear
of melting. Some believe they have rats ar
woodcocEs in their stomachs. Others believe
that they are animals, and their fancles taxi
ing form they go about on all tours The
lecturer told of one of his patients who be-
lieves himself to be horse, and wants to eat
grass: he has made himselfa TAIL and turns
out IN the morning with the other horses,
harnesses himself to cart. and works like q
ouadruped The Professor also knew of fc-
male patient who believed herself bird, and
nearly broke her neck in attempting TO fly.
"The belief in entrance of ANIMALS into the
BODY continued Dr. Macdonald, us another
form of melancholia. Such is, no doubt, the
CdSC VI COlOIcu Sili III Nv 40 IL
ported to have a toad in her stomach. This
belief Is probably form of hysteria-all the
more probable because the person is u color
ed GIRL and first experienced this idea after
a religious meeting. She says she must have
swallowed the animal at Sundays chool PIC
nc. The physician who has been advertls-
ing himself in this case seems to forget that
q toad needs air to live on as well as other
animals He says that this cannot be case
of hysteria because ii has lasted three years
vet we all know that such cases often last that
time. A somewhat similar case is recorded
as having happened some tine ago. a lady
believed she had toad In her stomach and
grew very i'll IN consequence. Her physician,
after vanity cndeavoring to coax her out OF
the idea, gave her an emetic, and while she
was vomiting, dextrously slipped toad into
the basin and called her attention TO 1t. For
n time she was cured, but few weeks later
she had the same symptoms as before and in
sisted that the toad must have given birth to
some young ones, which were still in her
stomach. The doctor, however, persuaded
her that this could not be the case, since the
animal she had thrown up was-a male Ihls
effected a permanent cure"
DR.. Macdonald then called upon the stage,
one by one, eight patients he had brought
with him from the insane asylum and, by
skillful questions elected from them accounts
of theiI supposed disorders. One said: 81
have been on the Island ten years. Goo AL
mighty sent me up. | don't know why, OK
cept that acted improperly and had bad
thoughts and temptation to wrong.doing.
will not take bath because | am afraid of
wasting away" An oil Irishman said: 81
was seat up because my mind was not right.
thought was coming to the city to be
killed" The doctor explained that this sub
iect claims 10 have belonged to the Grand
Order OF Accepted Bakers and to have be-
trayed the password, wherefore lie is in mo.
meuary dread of being killed A timid.look
ing little man SAID 81 have got a doctor in
my stomach he has been there twenty years.
can feel him; here he is quitting his hand
on the pit of his stomach; | have got my
hand on his shoulder" Another patient said
he was "filed up with witchcraft and con-
SUMPTION IN the head" Another believed he
had been robbed of his heart and lungs. An
other, suffering from hallucinaton of fear,
believed he was followed by band of assas-
sins, who were, even while he was speaking,
under the floor of The lecture room. The last
said he was not insane, but they were trying
to make him so, and ne had been bitten by
alllgators and snakes. In conclusion DR..
Macdonald called the attention of the students
to the fact that hallucinations such as that of
the Harlem girl are very common, and are
usually the result of some painful internal
disease In the cases of some sufferers post
mortcm examinations have revealed the ex-
istence of cancer in the parts supposed to be
inhabited by animals.
An observing individual in very healthy