Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1881-03-30
VOL. 55--WH0LE NO. 2,7l5
A SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF IN
T'EREST.

and visions IS an extremely interesting
one, bearing, as it does, upon religious
faith on the one side and on the diff.
cult questions of that subtle connec-
ton Of mind and body of which even
our psychological scientists know so
little, on the other. II is 80 well.known
fact that the religious beliefs OF all the
lower races are based upon visions,
among savage tribes of Africa fasting,
solitude and sleeplessness are resorted
to at the present day for the purpose
of producing peculiarly lucid dreams,
In the early stages Of the worlds bc.
lief the extraordinary visions were in
no instance attributed to the physical
condition Of the system, the general
belief being that they sprang from the
immediate action of some divinity,
and even as we advance in the worlds
history we find that tho Kingdoms
of Egypt and Assyria were ruled by
priests who Interpreted the will OF
Heaven through visions, until finally
it became recognized religious science.
Among the Greeks dreams both real
and unreal came from the gods, and
even among the Romans the same be.
lief prevailed to very great extent
and in discussing the vision of Con
stantine, Gibbon declares that the pre-.
ternatural origin Of dreams were uni.
versally admitted by the nations Of
antiquity" In the middle ages every
possible form Of superstition, com.
pounded from those belonging to the
conquerors and conquered-Roman,
Teutonic, Celtic, Scandinavian-seems
to have been mingled together, and
belief in dreams and visions was com.
mon TO them all. Indeed as late as the
seventeenth century the belief contin.
ued undiminished in England and
Bunyan does not seem to have recog.
nized the difference between visions
and realities any more than the great.
est mystic of the earlier ages. Baxter
declared that dreams were inspired by
spirits, but whether from God or the
devil he does not pretend to enlighten
u.s. To follow out the doctrine Of the
belief and its fall in dreams, would be
TO trace the difference of the grounds
ON which in these days we rest the
whole subject of Divine intercourse
with man. Ifa man now sees an out
ward apparition ho does not regard
himself as haunted either by angels
or devils, but practically considers the
whole subject, consults his physician
and takes dose Of physic. The ex-
planation Of dream-phenomena by in.
tervention from above or below would
not be laughed at by persons of ordi.
nary education and yet il the story
is removed back q couple of hundred
years it will be found generally credit
cd even in England, Dream creations
are as we have indicated, a most in.
teresting study, and the subject has
been treated by many of the most emf
nent authors and scientists. The in
explicable mystery is that one set of
powers should be in such state Of
extreme activity, while the rest are in
a complete allegiance. The judgment,
the faculties of comparison, the com.
mon sense of the mind are dead we
do tho most extravagant things. In
stances are recorded where a person
has read page after page of poetry OF
prose, turning over (n imagination
the leaves with eagerinterest to know
what is coming next--a remarkable
evidence of double consciousness-one
half of the mind composing, for the
other half to read, with the utmost
rapidity. OF this extraordinary power
, Addison says "the invention prompts
80 readily that the mind is imposed OF
and mistakes its suggestions for the
composition of another" What the
9 value of these creations are it would
be difficult to determine. Voltaire do
clares that he wrote canto Of thC
Henriade in a dream. Some mind
while asleep possess the power of com
, position, even though they may nevel
have used it, and are able to follow ou
p train of reasoning without the ex
!. ercise of any judgment as TO the prob
d ability Of the incidents or the connec
ton OF the arguments and it nigh
be worth while for persons who's,
dreams run persstently in this or any
other line to ascertain whether Their
= is any such unused faculty within
= them. As almost everybody knows
/ time is generally lost sight ofin dreams
/, moments appear like years, years lilk
moments. There is case recorded
where a person fell asleep while read
ing aloud, dreamed q consecutive ser
les of events and awakened in time I,
! resume the reading, so that the listene
was only surprised at the slow pro
gression Of the sentences. Here th,
assonance of words leads tho mind
prodigious gallop of arbitrary associa
. tions, or an incoherent series of ad
= ventures merely depending upon thei
sound There are many cases of dis
B. coveries made by men Of genius Will
dreaming. A scientific chemist is re
ported to have solved problem
through this medium which had lon,
puzzled him. Burdock, the physiolo
gist, made a scientific discovery in
:, dream, and musicians have discovere,
connections, for which they had lonl
labored in vain, in tho same way
Cannot our modern scientists, by OK
periments, throw little more light OIL
the psychological causes that produc
+. such extraordinary resultsY