The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-11-08
LIVING WITHOUT SLEEP.
Thu Strange story OF u Wiiicr who rti"d II.
What aumtnin OF rho iiraia Is Like.

10 -. ... -
Tho Strange s,oty OF u wlitYr who rri"d II.
What Aunfnsn OF tho i,raia Is Like.
Ne,r York 7irth. ~ ~
Experiences ont Of the common happen
in the lives OF most scfihblers on The daily
press. 1t may be remarked that the
curious mental mud physical experiences
here set down arc told Just MS they hap
poned. Tha, IL cnouEl, TO say.
Daring The period pf silent ivetting the
writer began 4 serial story for q Sunday
pai,ur. Ii was intensely Interesting to its
author, Il to nobody clsr, | .iolt lulcom.
monty vel, TOO. There was in elasticity
AN iincuuaio,Snuss OF bone, brain and
musCle-tlat was lnaccountahlr. | had
been tired for twenty years, quite that.
But now this wearintss departed. There
was Il sudden gathering up OF physical
forces. They seemed strong enough to
roll the cloud oflePrcssi9n away.
AsuDDEN THOUGHT.
Friday morning began 10 write tho
serial. Sunday. morning the iifSt t@o
s. chapters were in tic paper. oLher WI:
ting required part Of my time also, and
was constantly occupied. So matters
moved Oh lOT lHEtt NttNs. IN pIS"AAai
feeling OF cXaltatiun continued.
Suddenly, without y moments warming,
in perfect health, IS it seemed, could not
sleep. That was ;dl. Tho nights were
spent in tossing from side TO side, back
and iorlh, like a pendulum. ! womb lose
consciousness for tlyc minutes perlinps,
and then awake US ii | had hcell shot out
OF a gun. Present." it vas impossible TO
write more Than a little Willie. became
very weak and nervous. II there is any
thing that has always been detestabIe to
me it is what woDirn call having good
cry." Aside from the loss OF beloved
friends, there is very little in this world
wortl, shedding Il tear about, But now
the slrangest thing happened. | would
start in on my story i,t morning, write
for half all hour, then / would put my
head down upon The table and cry like i
school girl. It wouid he utterly impossi-
bic for me to writcn line more. Plainly
the mnchinn was out OF ''wiiark." ,rAll
the while, like a devouring monster, the
Sunday paper waited lur the next chapter
OF tho story.
So matters vert on. There came to be
n frigitiu!, boring pain in the left side at
the top OF the head. Sometimes | did not
sleep m hour out Of the twcnty-l"ur.
Again there were weeks Mt Il time when |
did not get MI hours sleep ut once. Then
one who had the right said:
"iou must consult 4 physician. fou
can have whom you choose, but somebody
it must be-"
| think J selected my medical adviser
mainly because he was Il man who had
written Il gnoi novel. At the same time
he was M eminent authority i'll nervous
diseases. He said:
"Iou have anicmia OF the brain. 1t may
result i'll soitening.'
"Do you mean that you are going to
have me out here ina padded cell and Z
a STRAIGHT JACKET"
"itcil you plainly there is danger OF it.
No remedies will do you any good at pres
ent. You must stop all work instantly"
"l8nt ! can't Stop work. I'm wiring II
serial novel, two chapters published every
Sunday. Heaven save us!'
well, wherever in the world you think
YOU would rather 90 Just nov, it will be Il
good plan to go there.
Old Point Comfort, Virginia! Its balny
airs, its iiy trees and crepe myriles that
live out doors tile year round, It's glorious
stretch u blue, ellstening waters, Its lazy,
Jolly negroes, lis infinitely s~el!.complaccnt
martial dudes from Fortress Monroe
that was my place. Kindly friends said |
was suffering from oycrwork. But it was
0 that. Work, severe and solid is good
for soul and body. 1t is worrying that
kills. The blood vessels in my BRAN had
been engorged so long that they had lost
their elasticity, and the veins and arteries
up there would no longer do their work.
That was the medical explanation OF it, |
think. The result was aHpmia or blood
lessness OF the brain. My eyes began to
pain me intensely. At times ! was half
blind. My eyes arc blue. But at this time
they faded out almost white, and took on
astranse, c~olorltss look, impossible TO de-
scribe. An ocullst examined them. SIT
Isl very interesting case, lie said. "Tflc
retina Of your eyes is nearly bioodless." :
AnNEAD OF orIuM.
I was an interesting case, and I was
packed oil to Old Point Comfort to the
llygeia Hotel. And there, on the shores
OF The blue Chesapeake, began IL series Of
s%tuprndoUs mental experiences. As |
look back at them from this safe distance
they remind me OF DE Quinccy's opium
dreams, and 0i that only. al
Except that mine were not induced by
opium. There | drew the line. l had
done anything or everything TO make me
sleep except to take laudunim or NOR.
phinc, or any form oil that drug. ! had a
.deathly horror OF beginning it lest l should
become an opium victim.
''lll wear it OUT" | said. They gave
me nj airy little room in Quiet wing,
No. "a it was, overlooking the beautiful
water two ways. There | triedt to wear it
out. !. agt r y EtErN
Listlcss, weary days were followed BY
nights OF agony. Sometimes the feeling
was exactly like what deliri,lm trcmens IS
described to be, except was in full pos
session Of my senses. Spiders, skeletons
and shapes OF grizzly horror, with claws
and ginning imangs, flashed before nv
eyes ~ | lay and tried to sleep. Again.
there were visions OF the stupcndous, the
terrible. Giant trees, Il thousand feet HIGH,
with waving, wing-like branches, shot up
and disappeared.
AwFuL COLUMNS or DARKNESS.
Blacker heights in the midst of dim
darkness wavcrcd before my sight and
;" were gone. When | closed inv ewes
strange circles aud spots and spaces OF
light Heated before them. Circles OF duskyJ
gold suddenly appeared upon n field Of
holy, shining, violet light. 1t was like the
violet tint tlat sometimes elints ior q mo.
ment across The electric light, but it; was
infinitely more beautiful. One circle OF
dusky gold, narrowed TO n spot OF white
light Upon the harrow field and disap.
pcared, to be followed by another floating
in It's place. Sometimes the circles were
II vivid, exquisite green.
There were stranger things than this.
Into the violet tield and The circles OF
dusky gold there weresometimes projected
dusky faces and figures. They came in
flashing tablcanX and disappeared in less
time than could be measured, yet they
were perfect, | saw their dress, the color
Of their eNNs. and could lnvn ilnnlihnl