The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-14

/ double individuality, one aud the same per-
son showing two distinct characters accord
ing as one or the other half of the brain
rules the actions q must remark thst
am here giving the explanation which has
been suggested bv Wigan, Brown-Se-
! guard, and other holders of the double
brain theory but must admit that so far
as can Judge no other explanation seems
possibleD
! Consider the circumstances of the follow
( ing case:
| DR. Dupax states in the Rerie,C Scientifque
that his confrere, DR.. Sirault of Ouzin, used
10 induce the somnambulisti or hypnotic
state, in a young servant girl of good char
acter, who soon after was imprisoned at
Blois on charge of theft. DR.. Dupax,
knowing that the girl was honest, made
inquiries and learned that though the girl
had undoubtedly stolen the mistress prop
erty, she protested her Innocence and indeed
her ignorance Of the whole matter. The
manner of her denial led him to suspect that
the case might resemble that of a former
patient of his own, who during somnambul-
istic attacks would hide articles of value,
claiming no recollection Cf their where
abouts when restored to normal conscious
ness. He learned from an attendant that in
prison the young girl rose every night,
dressed herself, and walked around the
dormitory, though she herself was uncon-
oClOuS VI buHSt dClibuSs ne iiltl6 lpl q ~ leu
the experiment OF sending her TO sleep, as he
had seen it done by NJ. Sirault. He then
learned from her that she had never thought
of robbing her mistress, but considered
some articles Of value would he safer If
placed in another cabinet. She intended to
tell her mistress Of their removal but she
forgot all about it in her waking condition.
and never saw the lady when in the SOM
nambulic state. The doctor told the Judge d.
In Sf,, ,ofi no fants cr,1ilad In
lousy. but permitted the girl to be taken
to the lady'S housa, when she immedi-
ately found the missing articles. The
girl was released and the lady did what she
could TO repair the effects of her hasty con-
duct
A case such as this aptly introduces US
to other cases in which the abnormal con-
dition vas not attained under external in
tiuence
Dr. Brown-Sequard tells of a boy, living
at Noting Hill, London, who had two men,
tai lives. One of them, as it included the
greater part of the time, may be described
as his normal life. Yet there was nothing
in the other or short-lasting condition. TO
suggest that the boy was not then himself
either in the conventional or literal sense
of the word He passed from one life to the
other through a very brief period of partial
insensibiity. His head suddenly dropped,
but if standing he remained erect; if talk
ing be stopped breathing for awhile He
appeared like one who goes to sleep sud
denly, for his eyes closed. But in minute
or two be seemed to awaken, he raised his
head, bis ewes opened, and in fact be had
come fully to life; but 1t was his other life.
He remembered nothing in this condition Of
his normal life On the first occasion when
DR.. Brown-Sequard was present at one of
these changes, the lad who knew him per-
fectly well and had been conversing with
him but a few minutes before, asked his
mother auxiouslv, "Who is this gentle
mans Why don't you introduce mep But
on the next occasion when the doctor was
present during an attack of the sort, the lad
recogr lied him perfectly and talked of what
had happened at the previous interview but
he remembered nothing of his acquaint-
ance with DIR. Sequard before the previous
attack. The boy had in fact two perfectly
distinct lives, in each of which he retnem-
bered perfectly all that had happened while
that life was awake, $50 to speak, while in
neither life did he remember anything of
what had occurred in the other. The abnor-
NAL life seldom lasted more than two or
three hours at a time.
81 have seen," said DR.. Sequard, three
other cases of that kind, and as so many
have fallen under the eyes of single medi-
cal practitioner, they cannot be extremely
rare"
The case Of Felida X recorded by NJ
Azam flor whom 10y the way, DIR. Dufax
wrote the account of the servant girls case
above cited) in some respects resembles the
last, only that whereas the lad was uncon
scious in each state of all that happened in
the other, Zelda X. was only unconscious
during her normal state Of what happened
during her abnormal life; during the latter
she remembered perfectly all that had hap
pened in both lives. There was also an
other difference between her case and
that of the lad at Notting-Hill; her char
acter and disposition was entirely different
during the normal and abnormal parts of
her life. In her ordinary state, Zelda x
was intelligent, industrious and resolute.
but melancholy, morose and silent. Sine
was also very anxious about her health
Nearly every day, as she sat at her work,
Il violent pam shot through her temples, her
head dropped on her breast, her arms fell
by her sides, and she passed into a state of
sleep or stupor from which nothing would
rouse her, She only remained i'll this state
for two OF three minutes. She woke up an
other woman altogether, smiling gaily,
speaking briskly, and singing at her work,
which she resumed where she had left it,
She complained no more of her health. but
busted herself about the house, made calls,
and behaved altogether like a healthy and
cheerful young girl. After few hours,
however, her gayety passed away, another
attack of torpor came on, and i'll two or
three minutes she opened her eyes on her
ordinary life, remembering nothing of what
had happened during the abnormal condi
ton, and not less gloomy and silent then she
had been before.
A remarkable circumstance in this case
was that not only, as we nave seen, the
girls disposition, but her moral character,
altered during the abnormal life. Rigid in
morality in her ordinary condition she was
not quite so during her gayer and brighter
state A brutal neighbor telling her, in
h9r normal condition, of an offense she had
committed when in the abnormal state, she
was so shocked that she fell into violent
which required medical attend
ance during two or three hours. Yet NJ.
a Fam was obliged to admit that she was al |
together responsible for actions during her |
abnormal as well as during her normal con-
dition, her sense of right and wrong being |
perfectly sound though her conduct was |
not altogether irreproachable.
Some rather curious questions are sug- |
gested by cases of double individuality as |
this and Others which might be cited. Sup |
pose Zelda X. during her abnormal state, |
when even her friends admitted that she |
was responsible for her actions, had COM
mtted some ofPense punishable by law. |
How could punishment De inflicted 1t |
would be impossible to punish the abnor
NAL Zelda without Furnishing the normal
Zelda, and the normal Zelda was per-
fectly unconscious of the other Felida's