The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1878-07-05
Is Man Nocturnal?


| lyicft NilHt JUG IDt1 cent
of all infants are born after candle.
light and before dawn. By tar the
greater number are born between
and 2 O'clock am. 1t is calculated
that a mans chances of being born
between and 2 o'clock, rather than
at an earlier or later hour, are at
least seven to one, while the chance
of heing born in the daytime is so
small that no one need feel any
anxiety about it. The truly scien-
titic mind cannot contemplate this
state of things without an intense
desire to know the reason of it.
Socrates might have cast some
light upon the. subject, had it not
been for an untinnely interruptions.
In the XYIlIth book Of the Me.
morabilia he is represented as
having saidto Alcibiadcs: "Now,
| will ask you, o! Alcibiades, why
you were born at 1:45 am, as | am
told that yon wcrei" Without wait
ing for "A reply-tor the sage always
answered his own questions, in
order to make sure that the answers
aud questions would fit nicely to-
gether-Socrotes proceeded to say:
"The Father of the Gods has willed
that all men should come into the
world at night, so that Apollo, he
ing absent"-But just at this mo-
mentIantippe sneelingly remarked
from the top of the stairs, " What
are you giving us = What, by Xeus,
do you know about infants I" and
other language to that effect, which
put an end to the discussion. 1t is
evident, however, that the philoSo-
pher had his theory concerning the
matter, and it he had been permit.
ted to unfold it, he might have
solved the problem. ..
TO come down to later times, Mr..
Darwin confidently asserts that
infants are born at night because
their fathers are nearly always at
home at that time, and are hence
ready to be seut on the usual and
necessary errand. This is all very
well, but it ASSUMES Il skill in the
calculation of times and seasons,
and degree Of reasoning power
which it IS very improbable that
infants possess, Indeed, it is less
plausible than the theory held by
the Shakers, that infants are Il
curse, and that they arrive at I'M
scomly hours in order to infiiCt the
greatest possible amount Of suffer
ing on mankind. When we com
pare these weak and doubtful theo.
ries with the truly scientific ex-
PLANTATION of learned physician
and philosopher residing ina Nest
ern city, we shall at once perceive
their great inferiority.
The philosopher in question has
decided IN his own mind that man
isintended TO be a nocturnal animal.
He argues tina atchickens are hatched
in the daytime, and always sleep at
night, and that hence infants which !
are boru at night ought to sleep
during the day. He points out |
that men who do the most good in
the World--such as journalists and |
doctors-are always working at
night, while bank presidents and !
cashiers ply their immoral trade
and altar their books between 10
and 3 O'Clock in the day. The sun,
he claims, is intended merely as a
heater, and its light is really use
ess. The eye of man needs only
little training in order to enable
lin to see clearly in the darkest
Iight and without the aid of any
light whatever. BY training the
'ye to see in darkness, we shall be
lble to dispense entirely with gas,
kerosene, and candles, and will
hus lessen the cost Of living, FL
lally, he makes strong point con-
crning cats, which now keep us
Inpleasantly awake at night,
whereas, if we were strictly noe
urnal i'll our habits, we should
leep only during the day, when eats !
ave ceased from bowling and boot i
lcks are at rest.
Unlike many philosophers, this ,
xcellent old gentleman practices {
hat he breaches, and he no sooner .
the theory that man is ,
ieant to be nocturnal, than he be- '
an to train his eyes TO see in the a
ark. At first he used II lamp a
wing fair quantity of light, but /,
Y degrees he slowly decreased the d
ght by tursing down the wick. {
a two weeks time he WAS able to |
istinguish objects in dim twi- +
ght almost as plainly as he could a
'rmerly have distinguished them il
noon, and in the course of three I
onths he could give odds TO the o
Dlest cat in perceiving things in t,
le darkest midnight cellar. His n
leory was thus, in his estimation, a
rtually proved. He could see in Il
le dark, and his eyes were as use ID
IS as an owls in the day time. c,
e had become thoroughly noc- W
rnai, and he set to work to write b
profound treatise upon tue duty W
" "Nocturnalism.v b
Had not the learned philosopher W
assessed two daughters of much V,
'rsonal beauty and great decision
character, that book might have
zen finished, and the author might +,
still free and happy man. Of II
urse, the girls had their admirers, e,
10 came to see them in the even al
rs, and were very thoughtful and in