Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1899-11-10
BAD BUSINESS HABITS
Many Men Of This Age fastening
Mental Decay.
Insanity Inereasing because of Over.
Bu5dsned Drains Notable
Instances Of Mental
Collapse.

Business men are to-day being driver
to the madhouse as they were neve
driven before. And why? Chiefly be
cause they cannot or will not ALLOW
themselves time in which to refresl
their jaded brains. Nature has equipped
us with no more exquisitely compile,
piece of mechanism than the brain. i
is capable OF withstanding tremendous
| strains, but because it does not always
cry out, like our limbs, when it is tired
we are apt TO forget there is limit t.
its endurance. Like the pirate omnibus
horse, it is logged up hill and down dale
until, after mute protests, it finally col
| lapses. How, then, can we make toler
ably sure of keeping sane? This ques.
ton can be best answered perhaps by
citing few examples of men who have
not succeeded in keeping sane.
There has lately died in the north OF
England n well-known accountant, who
for seven years never took holiday.
In splendid practice, he was anxious to
amass fortune and retire early. After
being five years in perpetual harness
his brain began to show signals of dis
tress He was not SO quick at figures
as he used to be, nor SO accurate. 1t
was plain that his mind required rest.
He refused to obey the mandate of ex-
hausted nature, however, and stuck to
his books. Two years later his brain
gave way to such an extent that he was
unable to repeat the multiplication ia
BILE. Subsequently his mind became a
total blank; and, though perfectly con-
scious, he died without even recogniz-
ing his wife.
Even doctors do not invariably keep
sane. A popular member of the profess
sion succumbed to insanity last year.
His brain warned him of what was in
store for him, but he had jumped into
big practice which brought him big
fees. The first indication of mental dis
turbance was his inability to remember
names OF patients. Impaired memory
is certain sign of brain exhaustion
and want Of repose, but the doctor dis
regarded it. The result was that he de-
veloped into a hopeless idiot.
most success in life and live to enjoy the
fruits OF their labors are those who. con-
filming their commercial operations
strictly to Office hours, devote their
evenings to their families or to the pur-
suit OF some hobby. The best brain
tonic is change of occupation. Yet
some OF the richest men, while main
tanning their brains at concert pitch
throughout the day, spend their after
dinner hours in devising plans for &C.
curing wealth. The disastrous conse-
quences of their folly they discover
when it is too late.
One day about five years ago city
who had boosted that he had
never wasted an hour, ordered some
soupat restaurant. Strangely enough,
Just as he took the first mouthful his
brain seemed to snap. From that mo-
ment his gold might have been SO many
bricks for all the use it was to him. for
he starved himself to death. Nature had
repeatedly held out the red flag to this
persistent money grabber. For some
time he had been unable to fix his at
tention on any subject; when writing
his flow of words was deficient and his
spelling inaccurate; but he preferred to
thrash his brain to destruction rather
than lose few sovereigns. Mind wan
iering is one of the first precursors of
mental decay; but the fault can be
'emedied by relaxation-by forgetting
The cares of business of an evening and
,racing the mind with fresh interests.
Iradesmen are chronic sinners in this
respect. Engrossed with the one idea
II getting ahead of their rivals, as they
an scarcely help being in these siren
lous days, they unnecessarily employ
heir evenings in connecting new enter
'rises, overlooking the fact that the
'rain is capable of much better things
Ifter its fair share of rest than when it
continually on the move. A pros
'erous tradesman was placed in an
sylum a few months ago after threat
ming to stab one of his most intimate
riends. 1t was learned that he had
ong suffered from headaches, and that
or whole year his mind had been oc-
upied, to the exclusion of everything
lse, in plotting how he could crush an
opposition shop. In one of his sane mo-
nents he confessed that the pressure
n his brain was such that he felt it
ould only be relieved by the shedding
+ blood.
No more extraordinary illustration
4 the danger of overworking the brain
or, rather, concentrating it on one
pot, SO to speak, for the brain is never
yerworked if it is engaged on variety
I subjects-could be found than the
ase OF gifted lady artist who, after
laying at picture for months and
7orrying about its ultimate fate at an
Important exhibition, fell into a deep
leep which lasted 10 hours. When she
woke her knowledge of art had COM
letely vanished.--Casselrs Journal.