The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1894-04-11
WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF.
A Scientists Theory That the Mind
Works Backward in Sleep.


Works Backward in Sleep.
Did it ever occur to yeu that
I when we dream our minds operate
Backward said a scientific man to
/ the Pittsburg Dispatch. al mean
by this that the cause which gives
the Impression to the sleeper's mind,
I that makes him begin dreaming, is
always the climax of the vison. We
can find many examples that will
sustain this theory. Take for in
stance, a man who falls out of bed.
He dreams, perhaps, that he has
fallen from precipice. The cause
of this dream is the shock he re-
ceives by coming is contact with
the floor Between the time he re.
ceives the fall and the moment he
awakes-in this short period, al
most infinitesimal-h his mind follows
out the impression received by the
fall, reasoning to it as a climax.
Thus, when he comes to his senses
he remembers having had the WIS.,
ion, and wonders why he should
have fallen out of bed just at the
moment he should have reached the
bottom of the abyss. IEwould be
folly to think that he had been
dreaming of falling and then suited
the action to the dream by doing SO
at exactly that moment. L have
had dreams in which explosions &C.
Cured, and they were caused by the
noise of door being slammed. The
noise sound gave my mind the i'm
preston of an explosion, and 1
reasoned to it. The details have
been so perfect and the series of in
eidents leading up to the explosion
have seemed to take up such great
length of time that I have often
wondered at the rapidity of thought
while in sleep. In moment incl
dents can be reviewed which it
would take hours to act out. I
know of friend who fell asleep
while looking at clock one after
noon and began trip to New York
in dream. He remembered.sivi-
dly the ride from his house to the
depot, how he was stopped by a
friend who questioned him about
important business, how he got on
the train after having an alteration
with the baggageman in regard to
charges for overweight, all ofwhich
compelled him to run to catch the
train; how he sat in the parlor car
and enjoyed the scenery, remember
ing all the stations until he arrived
at Greensburg, when a friend asked
him to join game of poker; how
he played each hand, the pleasant
recollection of several times hold
ing four aces being plainly in his
mind; how he continued playing
without interruption except for din
ner until he arrived at Philadelphia,
when he counted over S4OO in win
nings. Then he remembered hav-
ing met friend while eating in
Broad street station, who talked up
on leading topic in politics, then
he got on the train and began
reading a magaziue which he pur-
chased at the news stand, finally ar
irving at Jersey City. He had
just got on the ferry boat when his
wife came in and woke him. He
rubbed his eyes and thinking he
had been asleep for some time he
looked up at the clock, when he
found that but three minutes had
elapsed since he fell asleep. In
these three minutes he had made a
journey to New York, seeing every
thing as wildly as if he had taken
the trip. tell this just to show
the wonderful activity of the brain
of a sleeping person and in support
of my theory that in a dream the
mind reasons to the cause rather
than from it."