Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1884-04-04
DREAMS.

! At the regular lnaetiag OF the Anthropo-
logical Society, hcId Tuesday evening at
the residence OF Dr.. Purdy, i'll Madison
avenue, New York, the first business was
| the presentation oT the report OF the Com
mtteo on Psychic Inquiry. DR.. Jarvis, OF
this committee, declared that he believed
that he had demonstrated the truth OF
thought lransicrencc, and among other Curl
Gus ;nings said thav he had established
though. dialogue between himself and q
},a!ieut in a trance state calling the patient
oui ul thc trance by himself thinking the
order 0 wake up. and receiving the patient :
il!IsWcr also " mental one.
a. 10 the causes OF dreams, he first spoke
.: aic"no, nitICusoXide gas, opium and
EaSngI>n. He described the dreams born Of
tLc Use .! these @genis, reading long trans
ldtiou5 from. French medical works, especially
in relation 10 the visions oi the haShecSh
eater Then describing rGverle az a waking
dream he said "When man becomes so
given 10 rcvegie as 10 be In ii great degree
ubliyious Of practical matters he Is on the
verge oi lunacy.
The character OF dreams in dreaming
sleep lie declared, depends largely on eX
his stomach full Of corned beef and ether
solids his dreams will be very different from
what they would be If he had the same
stomach disenton from eating food Of less
gravity lie then related many historical
dreams and instances OF musical and poetic
composition in dreams, sucha "Thc Devils
sonata, '"kub!a Khan" SC.
Many animals dream, he said; especially
dogs Cats dream less than dogs, having
less intelligence. Elephants dream tre-
uuentiy, and one OF them in the London
Geological Gardens once did great damage
when suffering from nightmare. DIR. john
son dreamed he WAS Worsted in an argu-
meili, and the chngrin :lwolle him. He was
much disturbed until calmcd by the rc!lec
iion that he had himself furnished both
sides Of the argument.
The lirsl conclusion iIe drew from these
and many other instances was that dreams
are phenomena from physjca! causeS-not OF
ANY m,nHtcral essence This, he declared,
was proved ny the fac: that dogs dream,
and they have no souls. That they have
none, he said. WAS proved by the Bible,
which declares that the spirit of man goes
upward 10 God, while the spirit Of the beast
@u>s downward.
Ti, second conclusion that certain some
whats ~ don't know anything h.. intcrpolated,
"tbuui organs and !acGltics'' are awake during
dream III dream is Il condition of brain or Of the
nervous system The brain is not more active or
rapid in the dreaming than III the waking state.
In regard to somnauibui>m, he declared that
somuanhr.lis.s move ia distinct limitations
Whatever ;hcy 10 is governed strictly by familiar
association. and the sense Of touch. DR.. Bulklcy
drucd that there was any Significance in the oc-
casouai Instances in which dreams seem to he
fulfilled. The seeming luliilmcnt he explained
al, m 1rnv
had any relation to the fact. lie then told Il
dos II or more amusing stories Of what he termed
coincidence, hut only one had anything TO do
wi Ia dreams. Dr. Worrcl, he said, recognized
New Haven, Conn. on the OCCASION oi his first
vi.; there. as Il city he had seen in vivid dream
some gears before.
After some casual discussion the society ad-
inllrnd.