Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-07-08
lEEP-WAlkINC.
Some Stories Of Curious Things Done BY
Those Addicted TO the Habit.


/. Those who talk while sleeping, but
do not walk or otherwise act.
2. Those who walk or otherwise act
while sleeping, but do not talk.
3. Those who both act and talk while
sleeping.
4. Those who act and talk and have
tho senses of touch. sight. and hearing
and It Is alleged in some instances. ths
senses OF taste and smell.
The fourth kind Is never found except
when induced by mesmeric or hypnotic
influences.
1t IS OF the third kind that there are
most queer developments, independent or
voluntary external influences. Often the
somnambullst will riss in the night ana
walk through the various rooms or the
house. go out on porticos and, In some
cases. on steep roofs where he would nor
dare go when awake; frequently ne VIII
leave the house and walk through street
or field and will return and go TO bed
without knowledge of anything having
transplred The celebrated French phy-
stefan. Bernheim, tells, In his work on
Suggestive Therapeutics" or photo-
Grapher OF his acquaintance, VINO rose IN
the night and finished the work on which
day, and was astonIshed on finding II
finished when he went to work on the Toll
lowing morning. Painters have been known
to do superior work while asleep, anu
essays have been written and poems COM
posed in the same way.
FISHING IN HIS SLEEP.
A young countryman related an incident
occurring In his own family. His brother
was a sleepgalker, and also fond OF fish
ing. For a number OF nights In success
sion he would get up and go down
through q long meadow to a creek ana
| seize the root Of walnut-tree growing
| on the bank and pull and tug with all
his might, and at the same time calling
Tor the hired man TO help him land Dig
! fish. II had heard" said his brother,
that II would break a sleepwalker OF
the habit to wake him suddenly when he
was out rambling about. and l decided to
| try its efficacy on my brother. One night
| / followed him when he left the house.
| AS / passed Ivy the woodward picked up
| the axe ana when We got to the creek
and he began tTzging at his imaginary
! fish. l cut the root and let him fall back
wards into about two feet of not very
warm water. lie came out a badly dis
| organized and somewhat frightened boy.
l have never heard OF him going fishing
or otherwise walking IA his sleep since
| his ducking."
| Sometimes sleepwalkers go over places
where they would not dare go when
| awake. and the fact that such things are
| frequently done with safety has led many
| 10 believe that they never hurt them
selves. Ordinarily that may be true.
but there is at least one authentic record
of one death resulting in that way. The
sleepwalker walked OF high portico
| and died from the fall.
a SINGULAR CASE.
One Of the most singular and, at the
| same tilno sad cases Of slCepwalk.ng
occurred near Bakersville. y. c.. a few
| years ago. A young man by tine name
! OF Garland had been a sleepwalker from
| childhood His ramblings had always
| ended without harm to himself or others.
| and for that reason his wife usually paid
| little attention To ms nocturnal eccen-
tricitles. But new phase presented IT.
self when lie began TO stay away longer
| at q. time, and always return "wrinsing
wet" az tho washerwomen say. His
| wife determined TO follow him and eX-
! plore the mystery. When he LETT ms
! house lie followed the road TO Tow river
and then took a rough narrow pig trail
| leading up the river. lie picked his way
through the tangled hemlocS and laurel,
| and over stones and fallen trees, and
| along the SUBMITS OF precipltous cliffs.
lis wife kept IN sight by means Of the
| moonlight wayerins through the trees.
| For more than a mile the sleeper trudbed
! on until lie came 10 a large poplar tree,
| which had fallen with It's topmost limbs
J far out IN the river. He wicked the log
:. TN he came to large limb extending
: from IL over the water. then he got down
and began crawling out on the limb. The
| now thoroughly frightened wife screamed
! ana called 10 him to wake up and come
| back. lie was awakened by the cries,
and. doubtless startled and confused by
the situation, fell into the river and was
| dr9wned lie had been getting up in his
! sleep going up the river, crawling out
on that limb. jumping from there into the
| river swimming to the bank and return
! ing home unconscious OF anything tnat
passed.
These facts are we'll known to num-
Der Of people now in Washington
| sOMNAMBULIsM OF ANOTHER SORT.
! 4 different phase OF somnambulism is
| told Of u son OF Il Baptist preacher re-
siding IN a southern State. The preacher
rises to his highest flights OF eloquence
when inveighing against the SIN OF
dancing: he likewise indOrsss the proYerb'
spare the rod and spoil the child jus'
as much as II IL were Ia fact an utterancs
of Solomon instead OF the New England
almanac. The son was after the tradition
OF preachers sons, the worst boy in the
country. lie would swear, ana iBht' ana
fish on Sunday, and so 70 hoe-down
dances when the elite or the neishDor-
hood by no means predominated' Inc
preacher relglously whipped him from
seven TO fourteen times Il week for va
1 Of aUlnOTlIN.
For his last attendance at Il hoe-dowIl
he had been given a dose OF the buggy
whin. with the advice that II would DC
| doubled in case ne repeated the ofehce
4 big candy-pulling and dance was SCI
| for n night IN the near future. IL
swore he would go, but JUST now 70
escape the whip was problem OF Arcnl-
medean proportions. he had ne s' "a
irresponsibility OF sleep-walkerS discussed,
and he hit on the bright scheme oil
working that racket in the event OF dis
! coyery. on the night Of the candy-pulllhs
and hoe-down he retired early and listened
| iii he heard his father snoring. feelhS
that all was quiet along the potomac
| he crawled out on the top or the poruco
and slid down post and hurried 10 tHs
| hoe-down, whore he did valiant service
10 make up for the lateness OF ms d.
| rival. When the dance was over De
hied himself homeward, and was soon
shining up the post OF the portico, eA-
ulting in the hope Of having worked ths
rabbit foo: on the old man and avoided
the bugey-whip. His heart sunk WITHIN
him when he heard the stern come
here, Louis" but he climbed on as
though he did not hear. a second stef,
command fell from parental lips unheeded
He was ruthlessly yanked doWn' ano
savagely shaken, and asked II ne wa
deaf. lie seemed 10 come 10 hiihseIi
shake himself together, as 1t were. ano
asked, in mild surprise, Where am l.
Why, l must have come out mere III NY
sl-ep." .,.,u.
You think you've been sleep walking,
do your" asked his father as ne graspsu
the buggy whip little more nrmly
"Why, yes, | reckon SO; don't kho"
how else j got here 100, .,,.
You've not been over TO biii Aiieh
candy pulling to-night?" asked his father
mot as 1 know Of" was the reply
with a fair stimulation o. surprise.
This was too much Tor the preacher,
who had heard him leave his room ana
crawl out, and who had followed him 70
the dance, had heard him making merry
with the jewellers. and on his way back
had heard him relating to some OF NE
IA