Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-03-16
THE CAUSES OF HYSTERIA.


The two following histories demon
strate the source from which many
nuzzling cases have their origin
cases of hysteria in all It's innumera-
| BILE forms of hypochondriasis.
Case IAN ex-Supreme Judge, a
gentleman of education, culture and
wealth. at the age of sixty became in
! terested in Spiritualism. starting from
curiosity. with disposition TO investl-
gate. He read extensively upon the
| subject. During the first period OF
his study he visited many Spiritual
lists. and the conclusion he arrived at
was that these people were frauds.
Having satisfied himself of this, he
pursued his studies alone. With
much practice. he was at last able to
perform mental concentration, which,
as he explained, was the condition 10
! arrive at in which one could free his
| spiritual body and commune with the
spiritual world. Al one of these times
when practicing mental concentration,
a body which had all the appearance
of being material, appeared before
him. Ii was the form of woman in
black The conversation he carried
on with her surprised him, as she was
| as well versed as he on topics to which
he had devoted much of his time. She
also told him things which no other
than himself could possibly know, yet
he acknowledged that the spirit had
told him nothing more than he al
ready knew. From this time on he
frequently conversed with the spirits
of deceased friends and relatives. He
could see them as he used to see them
in life, and their voices were Identical.
These spirits would disappear as they
came-into space. This man never
used alcohol; he has used tobacco
moderately, and would not allow any
one to guess that he was at all inter-
ested in this subject; even his friends
and family have been ignorant of the
fact. He attends TO his business as
satisfactorily as ever, and has no sem
blance to one who is insane on one
subject.
Case I'm 1892 a recent graduate in
medicine made a wager with some of
his associates that he could sleep in
a room with a corpse. He had dis
sected a great deal; even at times he
had worked alone at night in the dis
secting room had attended many au-
topsies, and had been associated con-
siderably with the dead. Every
thing had been arranged by his friends
Joking to be excluded. AT 1890 p. m.
he was taken to room in an empty
house in Brooklyn, n. y. In the room
were a small table chair "a lamp,
and in the center of the room male
corpse clad in ordinary clothing Pins
had been put through the clothing and
driven into the table to make sure it
would not be re moved. The young
man was locked in with the under
standing that he was to be called for
at 6 a. m. At that hour, when his
friends arrived, to their dismay they
found him undoubtedly insane. He
was taken home, where he did not i'm
prove, and at last he was taken to a pri-
vate asylum. Among other therapeutic
agents, hyptnotism was used. In six
months he returned home cured.
His story of that night is as follows:
On being left alone he had no fear of
the corpse whatever, and went over
to look at it, assuring himself that it
was a corpse, and no joke had been at
tempted. He strolled around the room
and finally sat down to the table 10
read. Now and then he glanced nom
chaIantly at the dead man. AS time
passed and he became tired, he noticed
that he was glancing more frequently
at the body. What had an hour pre-
viously not interested him particular
w. seemed to attract his attention con-
siderably. Every minute he found
himself looking at it, and as it became
late. and he became more tired, 1t alb
sorbed his mind to the exclusion OF
everything else. He gradually be-
came much annoyed at it, and wished
he was home. He thought upon the
subjects of life, death, the soul and
spiritualism. To hide the corpse from
view and cease thinking on these sub
iects. he determined to try sleep. he
removed some of his clothing and pull
ed the blankets over his face. lie
heard noises, but settled that In MS
mind bv reasoning that it was either
the wind or the settling OF the mouse.
He. however glanced at the dead man
from time to time, and at last got into
a position in bed so as to keep 1t IN
view. His eyes were terribly strained
and he had a frontal headache. HIS
eyes were riveted upon the figure, and
he felt drowsy, but could not close
them. The corpse at last rose IN a
sitting posture. then stood up and walk
ed toward him. Its eyes were open
and had a starry. CLASSY appearance 1t
smoke. After that he could remember
no more until he was taken from the
house: even then what occurred ne
only had a slight recollection OF, ana
even now that he is recovered ne Is
positive that what occurred that
night actually happened.-Pacihc Med
ical Journal.