The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1882-03-24

the most ludicrous and dramatic OF these
midnight performances. Iwin give Won the
details as distinctly remember them, and
viii describe the scenes depicted by my iul-
aginatiOn, as If tLey were real
/ 81 saw the figure Of a man standing by my
/ bedside. His face and form looked so real
and So plainly defined in the mConIfcst that
. if / were an an artist, could reproduce him
on paper now. / remained mationIess for a
few moments and watched him. He said
nothing. IsprangUp and exclaimed. what
/ 90 you want here Get out Of thiS % The
figure seemed to dissolve, but 7 saw q had
ow fit across the threshold OF the door lead
ing from my room TO another room. light
Ell a match and stea.thHy followed. The
man was seen standing iu a threatening nos
ture In one corner OF the room I said
w hat does this mean % He made DO repIv.
/ grasped what seemed TO be a club and
struck at him. A noise as IL a wild steer
had entered a tiu-shop caused me to tub my
eyes and pinch myself My consciousness
bad returned. I had brought the coaI-hod
down on the sitting Groom stove with a great
thwach, and was more bewildered then than
she heard me fumblmg and mut.erIag SIZE
shouted to me two OF three times. but the
only reply 7 v0uchsafed was d dramatic
'Sh! BE still! I'll fix him. After awak-
eniug, 1 remembered everything but this
dialogue, and was not aware .Iat had Do
ken to my wife. -
"Haye you always been awakened iu the
midst Of these operations 90
'Not always. I am sometimes led 70
think that there are occasions when I walk
in my sleep and am not made aware of it.
Household articles have been found dis
placed and domestic mysteries. accountable
In no other way but by my sleep-v,a q IkfgTr.
have been discovered in the morning A
IRE, which we have been accustomed to keep
over night In our sitting room. and which
burned with great regularity, went ont one
night and damper, which-yyp positively re-
memhered adjusting rightly, was found
turned in such q way that the fire must ne
cessarily have gone out. Three OF four
times, within few weeks, the same thing
happened, and we were puzzled over "a cause.
when I was heard and discovered in the act
Of turning the damper, in my sIeep, one
night"
''WiI you describe the various sensations
which are experienced by the somnambu-
list e''
'The primary feeling is one Of pressure.
constraiut, and very disagrecable. It is
sensation which nearly every person has ex-
perieDced I'm dreams. You seem impelled
by an irresistible motive to perform certain
acts while your Impulses are simultaneously
wreslied with by mysterious powers which
weigh you down and against which YOU have
to struggle. il is a very disagreeable con
test OF two diyergng elements of the Imag-
ination. 1t has a wearvfng effect ON the
brain, iusomuch that after one OF nv som
uambulistic performances have experienced
a decided mental exhaustion. This seusa-
uon, described as well as 1 am able, contin-
ues prominent till the return of conscious
ness in most cases, while i'm others it is so
slight that one is hardly cognizant of having
experienced any unusual feeling when he
awakes How am / able TO find my way
about, open doors, turn corners, dodge stairs
and eyade various obstacles when I'm this
condition is ineEplica5Ie 60 myself, fer I am
sure that I see nothing as ] see it when
awake the only things that 1 seem to see
are the distorted and fictitious shapes formed
which my mind is fixed the chairs which ]
sawed, for instance, 1 seemed TO see in a
transparent and unreal form while other
articles, furniture, etc, have no place in my
vision, and are as if they had no existence in
the house. There are no doors, no stairs,
etc, to me. The feeling, on emerging from
this state-an instantaneous chanCe-is in
variably one of mingled relief and surprise
not infrequently mixed with chagrin. The
shock varies in intensity, but sometimes is
very prominent ] don't believe these phe-
nomena, in my case, are the result of any
physical or mental aiIment or irritation but
I think they are the result of too intense
mental application, OF persistency of Thought
in one direction, presently before retiring,
upon a peculiar temperament. never have
calleG somnam5u.ism disease, and have
never consulted a physician I'D regard to &c.
There is discomfort, of course, ard endeav-
or to avoid the s'eep-walkme. - far IS I am
able. I think I shall succeed I'm entirely y
overcoming the tendency. .''-LelrE7t7H C1s.D
Journal, AarrB I1uL