Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1899-05-04
MYSTERIES OF SLEEP
SOME QUEER WORKINGS or "NA-
TuRE,s SOFT NURSE

Instances OF sIumber Under Extrarrs
binary Conditions why We tan
Awaken ut n Set TImc-Row sleep
Is Ruled by Habit.
One Of the most remarkable facts t.
be found il the history Of sleep consists
in the utter inability to resist its onset
in cases of extreme fatigue Several re-
markable instances are given in which
persons have continued to walk onward
while sleep has overcome them. the au
tomato eenters of the brain evidently
controlling and stimulating the muscles
when consciousness itself had been
completely abrogated 1t is recorded
that at the battle of the Nile amid the
roar of cannon and the fall Of wreckage
some of the overfatigued boys serving
the guns with powder fell asleep on the
deck DIR Carpenter gives another in
stance of allied kind In the course Of
the Burmese war the captain of frig
ate actively engaged in combat fell
asleep from sheer exhaustion and slept
soundly for two hours within yard of
one of the biggest guns. which was be
ing actively worked during his SLIM
bers.
1t is matter of common medical
knowledge that extreme exhaustion in
face of the severest pain will induce
sleep Here the imperative demand Of
the body-a demand implanted. as we
have seen. in the constitution of chr
frames-asserts its influence. and even
pain. the ordinary conqueror of repose
has in its turn to succumb One of the
most extraordinary cases in which the
overriding power of sleep was ever ex
emplified was that of Damiens. con
demned for treason in Paris in 1901
He was barbarously tortured. but re-
marked that the deprivation Of sleep
had been the greatest torture of all It
was reported that he slept soundly even
in the short intervals which elapsed be
tween his periods Of torture.
Among the Chinese form Ct punish.
ment for crimes consists in keeping the
prisoner continually awake or in arous
ing him necessarily after short inter
walls of repose After the eighth day Of
such sleeplessness one criminal besought
his captors to put him to death by any
means they could choose or invent 50
great was his pain and torment due to
the absence of natures soft nurse.
Persons engaged in mechanical labor
such as attending a machine in fac.
tory have often fallen asleep despite
the plain record Of pains and penalties
attending such dereliction Of duty. "a
say nothing of the sense of personal
danger which was plainly kept before
their eyes
One of the most interesting phases
connected with sleep is that in which Il
determination, formed overnight. that
we should wake at certain hour acts
true to the appointed time In certain
instances with which | am acquainted
the idea acts perfectly in others it acts
occasionally. and in other cases. again,
it fails completely The explanation Of
this habit depends on what one may
term 'sdominant idea. or an idef
fixe. as the French term it There is
something akin in this waking notion
to the dominant idea with which q
hypnotist may impress his facile sub
| ject If we substitute for the hypnotist
the individual himself or mayhap the
idea of the friend who has been i'm
pressing upon him the necessity fol-
sounding the reveille at a given houl
in the morning. we can discern the ra-
tionale Of the action with fair degree
of clearness.
The dominant idea in the shape OF
the necessity for awaking at certain
time is impressed on the brain and is
probably transmitted to those automatic
or lower centers which rule our me-
chanical acts which are responsible for
the visions of the night and which are
capable of carrying out, either in the
entire absence of consciousness or in the
exercise of a subconscious condition.
many complex actions Through the
hours of sleep the dominant idea re-
mains impressed on these lower centers.
The head of the business sleeps on while
the night Waterman is awake and so,
prompt to the time or shortly before OF
after it. the desired result is attained
and the slumbering brain is awakened
to the full measure Of its activity
That sleep is ruled by the habits Of
the Individual is extremely evident An
instance is given in which person who
had taken passage on board a warshiI
was rudely awakened by the morning
gun. which startled him exceedingly.
On succeeding mornings the gun woke
him at first sharply and then much
more quietly. until at length he slept
on without being disturbed at all in his
slumbers by the report 1t is also nota-
BILE that when a special habit of life has
become part and parcel of the daily
routine sleep is liable to be disturbed
by even the slightest appeal which or
dinarily wakes the individual in the
/ exercise of his profession. while noises
of much more grievous character fail
to effect that result The doctor wakes
on the slightest agitation of his night
bell. while the click of the needle awakes
the tired telegraphist when loud noise
might fail
Sir Edward Codrington was serving
in the early days of his naval expert
ences as signal lieutenant to Lord Hood
at the battle Of Toulon His duty was
that of watching for and interpreting
the signals made by the lookout frig-
sites. and in this capacity he remained
! on deck for 1S or 10 hours out of the
"a Exhausted with the strain of watch
ing. he went below to obtain sleep. and
reposed soundly, undisturbed by any
ordinary noise. Yet whenever a com
rade lightly whispered in his ear the
word ''signal" be at ence awoke. ready
for duty. The cause of sleep is as yet a
matter of scientific debate. In the pres
ent state of our knowledge there can be
no absolute certainty in the matter. =
THE Ape of Death By DR. Andrew
Wilson. f r S E in Harper S Maya
zine