The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1880-04-22
CEREBRAL DISEASES.
DR.. VIM. A, Hammond on the Alarming Growth
Of General Paralysis.

VI
Professor William A. Hammond deliv-
cred an interesting address before the
MediCo Legal Society upon General Pa.
raysis of. the Insane" in New York Oh
Wednesday, in which he described the
symptoms of general paralysis as fol-
lows:
ParalytiC insanity is the better name,
and its symptoms can be described 30
that the disease can be recognized when
it is seen. Physical symptoms first mani.
fest themselves, the mental symptoms
following later on. The former are not
always well defined. Usually there is a
tremulous motion about the lips, as if the
person were about to burst into tears.
Tremor of the upper lip is indicative of
the presence of paralysis of the muscles,
which extends to all the muscles of the
body. Impediment of speech follows
the trouble being more with the mech
anism of speech than with the idea of
speech. Presently the mental symp.
toms come on. The patient does things
showing a lack of the decenCies Of every.
day life. Frequently the mania takes
the form of inordinate money spending
0nce one Of my patients went down town
and bought several hundred shovels. an
other bought all the dogs he could find,
still another undertook the task of buy.
ing pretty nearly all the jewelry of a
large establishment, and only stopped
when the proprietors, becoming alarmed,
refused to sell him any more. This man
took the jewelry he purchased home,
and bedecking his wife until she gilt.
tered with gems from head to foot, COM
PEELED her to walk up and down bef ire
him. Then he drew check for $5 900
and gave it to his wife. When | was
sent for the patient told me that he was
going to Europe, He intended to make
the voyage over in the Great Eastern
and would charter the Scotia as a ten.
der. He would pay me $1,000 900 a
month and he would have a band on
the vessel, the members of which should
be attired in q uniform of blue velvet
with diamond buttons.
The speaker then described other
types of delusion in the early stages of
the diseases, and added "A patient once
told me he had purchased all the carpet
factories in the world another owned all
the trout streams 10 the country, and
yet another was the most lovely man in
the world. All the women were in love
with him and were struck with admira.
ton as he walked along the streets. A
man who thought himself very light ex
planned the egotism by claiming that he
was filled with angels and would soon
ascend into space. After the symptoms
which l have desCribed-tremor of the
lips and difficulty of speech-there is an
exaggerated movement about the face
as if the whole mind was in the act of
articulation one of the pupils becomes
larger than the other, sure sign of gem
eral paralysis; there is also dropping
of the upper eyeld, the eyeball turns
and the patient sometimes sees double.
Defective sensibility comes on, such as
numbness in the hands and feet, and
lack of sensibility, in Iact, in all the
muscles of the body. ShDffl ng of the
feet is noticeable, and paralysis Of the
lower limbs often follows. In some cases
the symptoms often disappear for time;
to a general observer the person is a well
man or woman. This remission some
times lasts for few months. l have had
two cases where it lasted eleven months.
But the disease returns with increased
violence Then the patient las convul
sions and enforces the truth Of his de-
lusions by physical violence. Klepto.
mania is one Of its forms. An instance
of this morbid impulse is shown in the
case of a young man who used to knock
down women and take off their slippers,
His bureau drawer was found full OF
slippers.