Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1883-11-01
Can a Man Hibernate.
Philadelphia Times.

Philadelphia Times
is it possible for man to hibernatem
inquired the reporter.
L think SO, was the reply. eve
often hear of persons falling into a
coma, and thefaculties being suspend
ED and the patient looking perfectly
healthy after days and weeks without
food. There is no reason why the
highest of mammals should not be
open to similar possibilities as the
lower. In fact, there is a case on re-
cord of undoubted Information. 1t
occurred some years ago in India. A
native Fakir boosted that he had this
faculty that only certain lower ami
mails possessed, and offered for a con-
siderable sum tOmake the experiment.
A number of officers and scientific
men undertook to take charge of the
experiment. The man prepared him
self by placing something in his
throat, and was actually buried alive
and kept there under q guard for
several months. At the end of the
time the eXperimenters dug up the
body, expecting to find him dead, but
found it perfectly fresh, and when the
OUJCSG "ctS IchCl1 1IOD1 LIS jlIOdG Tie
native recovered, and, in a few hours,
was as well as ever. He merely
claimed that he was enabled by force
of Will to cause an almost total sus-
penson of all the faculties, so much
so, at least, that there was no
waste, no drawing upon the system,
and, consequently, no need of fuel
food. What is the secret? Well that's
hard to answer. 1t is like a great
many problems-we know it, and
there our knowledge ends The state
of Information is, by no means, tho
direct result of heat and cold, as you
would naturally suppose, but rather
the result Of a departure from the
Optimum. Neither is the natural
awakening from this state in the
spring the result ofincreased warmth.
In experiments made upon weasels
one awakened in a room where there
was absolutely no change from what
1t had been surrounded by Q00 o. all
winter. During the awakening the
recovery of the body heat is surpris-
ing. The temperature at the first
sign of arousing, though there is no
motion on the part of The animal,
rises very rapidly. In one watched,
in the first hour and fifty-five minutes
the body temperature rose to Go G..
in the next fifty minutes it rose to IL
c.; and during all this rapid increase
there was not even an increase in the
rapidity of the breathing. So you see
there is some as yet unknown ply
Biological explanation. Extreme heat
or cold at first awakens alternating
animals and then kills tit is not
that they can stand any excess. The
lowest temperature attained in any
Warm-blOOded animal is in the case of
the zizel, where it almost becomes a
cOld-blooded animal, It's temperature
being reduced to % c., about the
same as the surrounding air.
GA large number of animals under
go, when forced or otherwise, a par
tial Information or something akin to
it; SO we find rabbits in snow holes
that have lived there months, evident
ly, without food And so with sheep.
They have been known to live for
weeks IN the same condition, but
it is hardly safe experiment to try"
MOzart's Superstition.
Mozart, the wonderful, who pro-
duced SO much in so short time was
taken with a queer presentiment in the
last months of his young life. Astran-
ger called on him, requesting him to
write a grand requiem, not wishing it
for month. He paid Mozart one
hundred gueldens and left. Mozart
began his work, and shortly afterward
the horror seized him that this man
had bribed him to write his own re-
QUEEN. He did not quite finish it be-
fore the stranger called, thinking in
this way to set his delusion at rest,
and that the stranger would counter
mand the order. The stranger called
according to appointment. Mozart
told him that his requiem was unhn
ished, and that it would take more
time. very we'll, " said the stranger
IF it requires more work you should
have more money" and paid another
100 gueldens. Mozart sent his servant
to follow the stranger to find out who
he was, but the servant soon lost him
in the crowd. Mozart was now sure
his delusion was correct, and went
feverishly and furiously to work to
finish the requiem. He finished it a
few days before the second month was
out, but when the stranger called poor
Mozart was dead.
ST M @-A7S