The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1892-03-25
WIND SWEPT HEADS.

A Physiciap,s scheme for Dstectine the
PFersnce d Insanity. -
DIR. Peter McCahey Of Philadelphia. has
found that by placing ii stethHcope to a
person's head he can distinctly hear the
sound Of an air curreni within, and by the
character OF the sound c,li tell whethAr "A
person is sane or insane. and he positively
AYERS that in the cranir,m Of big headed
idiot this wind ciirpent can he distinctly
hearl loudly whisilin
I The doctor il convinced that the brain
{. breathes ,us we'll ~ the lungs. For many
| years he has been investigating air IA a
mechanical agent in the human body, and
about n year ago conceived the novel idea
: of a rubber tip to the ordinary stethoscope,
whereby the instrument can be fitted SO
exactly to the subjects head that the sound
Of this brain respiration cannot escape, but
may tie undeniably heard That it differs
in sane and insane persons the doctor is
convinced. and by means of the stcthoscope
he feels sure that he can distinguish, as "A
rule, between healthy Drained people and
those who are insane or idiots.
The little rubber tip. which in DIR. Nc
Cahey's discovery, Is novelty, and its
story was unfolded by DR.. McCahey him
self
MY general theory" declared DR.. Nc.
Cahey, lis that the great mechanical agent
employed by all the animate world. animal
or vegetable. to permit Of growth against
the continual resistance Of the atm sphere
is heated air. Within the interstices of the
tissue OF the body Is air, and this air be
coming heated by the processes Of life. ex.
erciscs n greater expansive force than the
M .h.ra III.
animal to grow against IT, You can squeeze
this air ont Of tomato and pepper under
water and see It come up in large bubbles
In the tissue and hollow organs Of men this
air IL used rs the direct mechanical func
ton. The eXpulsive force in splitting.
coughing and sneezing we know to be air
~ free supply Of air to the brain Is just
as necessary ~ free supply TO the lungs,
and any interference with this brain res
piration will cause serious disturbance OF
the cerebral functions. even insanity In
sanity may be caused by a tumor or by \
congestive blow, but post mortems almost
invariably disclose no resident cause of in
sanity. That people become insane and
are permanently restored and that there is
a recurrent insanity points to functional
arrangement.
This disturbed function claim 20 be
the cran:al respiration Air taken into the
lungs passes to and from the brain through
minute pores Mt the base of the skull The
normal circulation of blood through the
brain depends upon this normal air cur
rent. IL from any cause these tiny pores
become closed or stopped to an abnormal
degree, the current is impe1ed or destroyed
The air that is shut in becomes overhcated
and congests the brain"
by means of the DOCTORS rubber tipped
stethoscope wonderful things come to light
In the head of n healthy person two dis
tinct sounds can be heard, coincdent with
the inhalation and exhalatio ion of air by the
lungs. These sounds are practically of the
same tone in all healthy heads, but are III
tered or absent In all classes of insane or
idiots. The sounds Of the heart and voice
in these mentally weak and dcranged un
fortunates are also different from those IN
sane persons. As these are grades Of in
sanity no there are degrees Of sound.
Az rule tie noise of the wind current
Of an insane or idiotic brain Is more marked.
ly perceptible than that Of a sane organ,
and In big headed idiots 1t whistles loudly
The major portion Of insanity is caused by
arrangement of the cranial wind apparatus.
Where It is not due to a tumor, blow or
some kindred direct injury TO the brain or
its covering insanity il traceable to this
'ill wind" and the rubber tipped stetho-
scope may yet become the champion insane
expert In the world Newark Journal