The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-11-09
HUMAN AILMENTS.
The Part Played by the Imagination
in Their Origin.


in Their Origin.
Medical doctors and persons experienced
in human ailments are well ACQUAINTED
with the important part which the imagi
nation plays in respect to the origin, spread
and cure of diseases
Cases where illness originated or became
aggravated by the patient imagining HIM
self worse off than he really was are num-
erous; those in which the imagination has
been the sole cause of death are Compare.
lively rare. Surgeon General Francis of
the British East Indian medical service
tells of drummer who was suddenly
aroused from mis- sleep by something crawl
ing over his naked legs, Being in India,
the land of deadly serpents, he imagined it
was cobra, and his friends, who hid col
lected by the outcry, thought so too. and
1t vas treated accordingly. mcantalions.
such as are Customary with the natives on
such occasions. were resorted to. The Door
fellow was fagellated with twisted cords
and cloths, while ropes we're tightly bound
around his arms and legs, in view partly to
arouse him, but principally TO drive out the
evil spirit which had taken possession of
him. With the first dawn of light the true
cause of the drummer's fright was discoy-
cred IN the shape of a harmless lizard which
was lying crushed and half killed by the
side of the patient. But it was too late:
from the moment when no believed a pois.
onous snake had bitten him he passed into
an increasing collapse. gradually growing
worse until he died, purely from an inaein-
airy snake bite, some six hours after the
harmless little quarian had dragged its lev
| body across mis- warm limbs.
During the summer of 1885 an INQUEST
was held on young English woman, who,
it was supposed, had poisoned herself The
examination showed no poison, but the
stomach contained a powder, the general
| character of which correspondent with n
certain insect powder The manufacturers
| CLAIM that this powder is non-poisonous.
| and the chemist, who analysed the contents
| of the girls stomach, concurred in the me
| opinions. 1t was tried on cats, rabbits and
sheep, neither of which were affected By il.
| In absence OF evidence Of other causes to
| account for death, the only assumption was.
| that the young woman had taken the insect
| powder. believing it to be poisonous. and
that her imagination had been wrought uu
to the point where death was the natural
result.
| Some years ago, Napoleon III. permitted
some French scientists to experiment. on a
convict, who was TO suffer the death pen
atty. The condemned man was given to
the physicians, who had him strapped to a
table and blindfolded, ostensibly for the
purpose of being bled to death. Near
the dropping head was placed a YES
sci OF water, which by means of a syphon
arrangement, trickled audibly into a basr
below. After an argument as to how it
had best be done, one of the NJ. Ds sharp
ened a knife and then walked up to the
man and made a scratch across the back Of
his neck with pin. Perfect silence with
the exception of the dripping water, which
the convict took to be his own blood wa,
maintained for six minutes, when tn,
straps were removed and the man found tc
| be stone dead.