Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-01-04
HYSTERIA MAJOR.
RESULTS OF THE
EXPERIMENTS OF PROF. cHARcOT.

He Makes the Nerves of His Subjects Hi
Piaythings-A Girl Who Smiled ON One
Side of Her Face-Amusing Instrue
lions.
Professor Chercot, the removed specialist
Of diseases of the nervous system, performed
some striking experiments on hysterical sub
| jects in the course of a lecture delivered al
the Salpetriere asylum. About 200 students
were present.
The attendants introduced into the amphi-
theatre two women stretched on cots and
| perfectly unconscious. One was pale faced
| girl, with abundant black hair and hand.
some face. As she lay helpless against the
white pillow, her long lashes curving over
| fast closed eyes, she suggested the sleeping
beauty. Her companion was large woman,
about fifty years Of age, with coarse ford
features The contrast between them was
complete.
The distinguished specialist began by ex-
| planning that the two subjects before him
were in different stages of hysteria major
| The elder woman was afflicted with paralysis
of tie legs, which had kept her In bed for
| years. She was at present in a profound
| hysterical sleep, which had already lasted
| eighteen days, and from which human sci
ence knew no means OF rolsing her. She
| might remain in this condition for weeks or
months, during which time she would only
receive in the way Of food certain nutritive
liquids, which she swallowed automatically
Professor Charcot here directed an attend
ant to administer some milk to the patient.
This she did, and holding the glass with one
nd VIII cI,a ~
the other, she waited until the entire con-
tents Of the goblet had been slowly swallowed.
Several times during the seauce the patent
bent slowly and heavily forward with
swaying motion, for no apparent reason, as
If to salute the audience, and always accom-
panying the movement with hoarse, inar-
ticulate sound, somewhat like the snarl of a
dog. There was something ghastly in this to
one not hardened to dissecting room horrors
Various tests were made to demonstrate the
impossibility Of waking the woman. A large
brass gong was sounded with almost deafen-
ing din directly over her head Her nostrils
We're tickled with feather, and she was
made to inhale ammonia Nothing had the
slightest effect Her eyes remained closed,
and she gave no sign Of sensibiiity.
Then the professor called attention to the
remarkable condition Of her muscular system
Her arms would remain rigid in any position
in which they were placed, nor would they
leave it until sheer physical fatigue over
came the automatic resistance. The joints
of her fingers, wrists, elbows and shoulders
were moved in variety of ways, and in
every case the poor woman was powerless to
change their position. She was like well
made, wooden jointed doll.
Next came the turn of the lethargic girl,
who is one of Professor Charcot's pet sub
Jccts. She remains constantly in the hospital,
and on special occasions the savant demon
strates the wonderful power he has over her.
So sensitive is her temperament that he can
az his will throw her into the profound
lethargy in which she lay on this occasion.
He first stated that this young woman was
in stage of hysteria radically different from
that of her companion. She was like an in
ert mass; her muscles were all relaxed and it
was impossible for any member of her body
to retain fixed position without support
There was also marked difference in the
condition of the nervous systems Of the two
women. The one was keenly sensitive, the
other apparently dead In each case the pro-
feSSor pressed pencil upon the facial nerve,
which lies directly in front of the ear This
had not the slightest effect upon the woman
In the hysterical sleep, whereas the face of the
young girl Instantly lighted up in a smile.
Curiously enough, she only smiled on the
side where the pressure was applied.
1t was the same with other nerves The
lethargic girl would raise her hand when the
operator pressed upol1 the radial nerve above
the elbow joint When the mesial nerve,
near the former, was touched, her arm would
spring up in a pugilistic attitude, with the
fist tightly clenched, and on applying the
pencil to what is vulgarly known as the
funny bone" she would lift her arm as if
pronouncing a benediction, the first and
second fingers of the hand being raised
heavenward Nothing of this sort had any
effect upon the other subject
An experiment with the gong, which had
been vainly beaten above the first patient,
produced q startling effect in this case The
Chef de Clinique had struck but single
blow on the sounding brass when the young
girl started up as by an electric shock. She
sat straight up, with her eyes wide open, and
but for their fixed, stony gaze one might
have fancied her awake. She had passed in
an instant from the state of lethargy into
that of catalepsy. She neither moved nor
spoke.
Professor Charcot proceeded to show that
pressure upon the nerves no longer produced
muscular contraction. We were in the pres
ence of a new set of phenomena. The pro-
fessor lifted the girls right hand to her lips.
as if she were throwing kiss. Instantly the
unconscious association of ideas caused the
right side of the face to smile It was the
same when the left hand was raised, and
both ,le II
face radiated the minds happy thought.
The young gentlemen present enjoyed this
greatly.
A frown was produced with equal facility.
Cienching one of the fists caused scowl to
pass over the corresponding side of the face,
and the professor succeeded by combining
the two processes in making her smile on one
side aud frown on the other No one who saw
this extraordinary contortion could for
moment question the genuineness of the DEM
onstration.
Still more extraordinary was the facility
with which Professor Charcot made his pa
tient pass back from catalepsy to lethargy.
This he accomplished by simply closing the
lids and pressing gently on one or both OF her
eyes. By touching the right eye he changed
the girls right side into the lethargic con-
dition Wills leaving the left side under the in
fiuence of catalepsy.
he demonstrated to the satisfaction of all
that such was really the case The right eye
was closed while the left remained staring
open. The nerves on the right side responded
to pressure, while those on the LETT remained
dead One side of the body was rigid while the
other was inert Through all this the patient
never uttered a sound Having sufficiently
established tho axls<a-ra of -hiS tho