Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1893-09-06
CURING A NERvous CRANK.
Treatment Employed In Restoring We
Man Who Imagined He Was Iii.

Treatment Employed In Restoring "A Wen
Man Who Imagined He Was Iii.
On the east side lives physician whose
success in the treatment of nervous dis
orders has brought to him, rather against
his own wishes, considerable practice
among a class whom he describes as
nervous cranks." One of these pa
tients, man OF large means, had caused
no end of tro1ble to the doctor, who,
seeing that the case was purely one of
mental idiosyncrasy, was unwilling TO
prescribe a course of drugging or othe!.
injurious treatment. The man insisted
that his nervous system was completely
unstrung and that the physician should
take his case in hand.
There you can see how nervous !
am" said the patient one day, in the doc
tors Office, as he picked up an incandes-
cent electric light bulb from an adjoin-
ing table. Look at that. See how that
carbon coil inside of the bulb vibrates
and trembles from my nervousnessr'
VERY well, replied the physician, de
termined now to deal with the case in
another way, won are more nervous
than l supposed, but think can fetch
you out all right in five or six weeks"
An assortment of bogus pills and po-
tions was given to the patient, and he
was placed under rigid rule for sleep.
diet, baths and exercise. His physical
health, which had been excellent to be
gin with, improved steadily; but hisnerv
Ous condition, as indicated by the fluc-
tuations of the incandescent bulb, which
he found conveniently at hand every
time he visited the doctors office showed
little or no trace of mending.
One day, however, near the end of the
fourth week, the patient, upon taking
the bulb from its accustomed place and
holding it up to the light, was surprised
to find that the vibrations of the carbon
We're almost nothing. Beaming with
new hopefulness, he called the phvsi-
clans attention to the fact. The latter
was surprised and delighted. The pa
tient tested himself with the bulb in his
right hand, then changed it to his left
and then repeated the operation, always
with the same gratifying result. The
treatment had done its work He felt
like a well man. He was satisfied from
the first that those pills would fix him.
He sailed for Europe the other day"
remarked the physician, "and as he is to
remain abroad for five years | guess
there Is no danger Of his learning how l
cured him. He was so taken with the
idea of testing the condition of his nerv-
Gus system by the vibrations of the car
bon in that electric light bulb that hu-
morcd his fancy. After three or four
weeks of careful living. and when he had
put himself into first class physical con
ditiCn, | simply changed the bulbs for
him. For the ordinary bulb containing
a carbon coil | substituted one that !
had made with fine coil of oxidized
silver wire closely resembling the other
and which was so stiff that it was capa-
BE of almost 10 vibration when the bulb
was held in the patients hand. He took
ii, saw that the vibrations had ceased
and concluded that he was cured.
In some way, perhaps by accident or
when IN condition Of mental excitement,
he had noticed the trembling Of the car
bon in bulb when held il the hand.
and had instantly made up his mind that
he was suffering from nervous disorder.
He insisted upon using the same means
il! testing his progress toward recovery
that had first persuaded him that he was
i'll, and / was compelled TO ucquiesce
and treat him from that basis. lie had
evidently had little experience with these
bulbs. Ordinary tests ana observation
would have shown him that no man,
however sound. can hold an incandesccut
bulb in his unsupported hand so steadily
that the carbon inside of it will not vi
bratc. New York Herald.