The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1899-03-10
THE MYSTERY OF DREAMS.
Times. Herald.

saint and sinner, male and female?
Even dogs dream, they say, and II
dogs, why not horses and cattle and
every other kind Of animal?
And yet, common as dreams are,
and familiar to every one, the meta.
physicians and philosophers have
made but little progress in solving the
problem. There is perhaps not so
much superstition among the educat.
ed connected with dreams as former.
ly, though there are still vast numbers
Of people who have faith in the dream
book, and Look upon their dreams as
prophetic and full Of omcns. There
are still interpreters, too, who will
tell you for a consideration the mean.
ing OF your dreams, though few Of
them are as successful as Joseph when
he revealed to the butler, the baker,
and aftcrward to Pharaoh himself the
portents Of their respective dreams.
And yet dreams 'come true" as al.
most everybody has experienced. Not
all dreams, but some dreams. Hum.
bodt relates in ''COsmos" that COlum.
bus in dream long before his first
voyage, heard u voice saying: "GOd
will give you the keys OF the ocean,"
Calphurnia dreamed on the night be-
fore the assassination that great Cns-
ar fell mOrtally wounded at her feet,
and she used all her arts Of persuasion
to keep him from going to the Senate
on that day. And he would have
stayed away had not Decius Brutus,
one of the conspirat0rs sent TO bring
him. given a different Interpretation
of the dream, and then satirlcally
added:
The Senate have concluded
To give this day crown to mighty Caesar
If you shall send them word you will not come
Their minds may change Besides it were mock
| Apt to be rendered. far some one to say
Break up the Senate till another time,
When Caesars wife shall meet with better dreams.
Cesar went to his fate and the
dream came true.
Iquotc from Shakespeare, but the
story is historical,
The philosophic explanation of such
dreams is that the waking thoughts
being intently engaged upon any sub
jcct, either OF hope, as in the case Of
Columbus, or Of foreboding, us in the
case OF Calphurnia, continue in sleep,
and in that state thought takes the
form Of actuality. There are few peo-
pie who have not in greater or less de-
gree had dreams of this kind.
That the mind often works intelli-
gently and logically in dreams, solv-
ing problems or smoothing out per-
picking difficulties that have occurred
In actual life, has been proved by tes-
timony that cannot be gansaid.
Franklin gives several instances where
lines Of policy or OF argument
came tn him In his dreams that
had greatly puzzled him when
awake, and Cundorcet, the French
mathematician, relates that he solv-
ed many intricate problems in his
dreams. "Kubla Kahu," that exQnis-
ite fragment Of Colcridgc's genius,
was composed by him in sleep, and so
vividly was it impressed on his mind
that he sat down the next morning to
write it out. While thus engaged he
was interrupted by visitOr-a person
from POrlOck, a neiRhboring village
and when he resumed his pen the
poem had vanished from bis mind ard
he was never able to recall anOth.
er line. How many lovers Of poetry
have anathemized that 'pcrson from
Porlock" would be hard to say, but
their name Is legion.
"The Devils Sonata" is one Of the
finest and most remarkable compost.
tions for the violin that is known, Its
composer, Tartini, the renowned Ital.
ian viOlinist, says that he dreamed
that the devil challenged him to a
trial Of skill on the violin, and that
the Prince of Pandemonium So far ex
celled him 10 brilliancy that he gave
up in despair. On awakening and
finding that 1t was all dream he
wrote out the mites that were still
throbl,ing in his mind.
DR.. johnson tells that he had once
a dream IN which he engaged IN u
contest Of wit with some other per.
son. and he was very much mortified
by imagining that his opponent llad
the better of him. something that the
doctor seldom permitted In his wax
ing hours.
In explanation Of his dream, how
ever, he said: Zone may mark here
the effect Of sleep in weakening the
power Of reflection, for, had not my
Judgment failed me, I. should have
seen that the wit of this supposed
antagonist, by whose superiority
felt myself depressed, was as much
furnished by me as that which l hat
thought had been uttering In m!
own character"
Not only are the reflective power
weakened In dreams, as DR.. Johnsnl
thus points out, but the moral facul
ty also, and 1t is quite certain that ex
ccllcnt people, who would not wron,
q nciehbor or fellow.hcIng in any wa
In their waking hours, view With III