Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1900-07-03
HUMAN BRAIN CELLS
THEY REFUSE TO WORK UNDER TOO
HIGH A PRESSURE.

Put On Too much steam and These
Minute Organisms Go ON Strike.
why Men Go Grassy or Become Alb
sentminded.
Keeping pace with scientific thought
and progress certain problems which
In the past have been shelved for want
Of light being thrown upon them have
been taken up again one by one to un.
dergo further examination by the aid
Of improved science.
The newest revelation In this direc'
ton tends to the science OF the mind
and includes the following problems:
Why does a man act queerly when
he Is intoxicated?
Why Is a man absentminded on oc
casions?
Why does a man sometimes become
violently insane, often a dangerous
raying lunatic?
Such questions as these have puzzled
our immediate fathers. who have hard
" ever satisfactorily explained them
away or indeed thrown much reliable
light upon them. The human brain Is
composed Of cells. and each cell Is a
simple bit Of nerve substance. from
one end Of which. like an octopus,
spring a number OF tentacles. willie
from another part arises an arm DIFF
ferent from them and OF great length
The long arm IL intended for trans.
hitting impressions from one portion
of the brain system TO another. II be-
Ing made to touch the tentacles or
short arms Of the next one To Ii. the
latter In It's turn efYecting contact with
n third cell. and so on.
Thus n message Is conveyed and the
mind gets Its news. The entire brain
Is made up Of these cells. whose mum
Der Is legion and whose full strength
Is grouped In systems. these systems
In turn being arranged In commune
ties. the communities I'm clusters and
finally the clusters In consultations
by which divisions they are known Il
psychologists.
So long as the mind Is In healthy
condition each little cell. or brain oc'
topus. attends to Its business faithful
ly and gives no trouble. but as man
generally Is an animal who usually re-
fuses to live the life spanned out by
nature and adopts instead the life laid
down by the modern artificial process
Of living. instituted forsooth by civil
lization. mental disturbances frequent
~ arise through the brain becoming
abused In various ways. from over
work and alcohol principally.
Your octopuslike brain cell Is liv'
iry little thing. and II can endure a
great deal OF abuse from you. but II
you should 90 little too far II rebels
and refuses TO work any longer by
breaking contact with its companion
cells. which II can do by withdrawing
It's long arm and getting itself ont OF
circuit. But this rebellion is conduct.
ed by whole groups OF cells acting to-
gether In full harmony.
Now. the object Of this strike" Is
simply TO avoid overwork. for each
tiny cell has stored within It's minute
space only certain amount Of energy,
but II you put on the high pressure
this Is easily consumed by the opera
ton of the brain. and the organism
breaks down from exhaustion. Now,
take the first Of the problems just
stated. When a person takes too much
TO drink. the cells In those patches OF
the brain that are responsible for the
conduct OF muscular movement be-
come affected and the man staggers.
When the dose Is very large. the
cells, which. although stupefed. have
tried to keep their master on his legs,
now cease working. and the man sleeps
like one dead. Finally. II more than
enough Of alcoholic drink be taken,
the effect on the cells Is TO paralyze
them. and the unfortunate man dies.
There Is some relation between ex-
traordinary activity Of the mind and
insanity. Geniuses are apt TO exhibit
symptoms Of mental alienation. and,
singular to relate, their children are
usually inferior to those Of average
men.
For instance. not to go out Of Eng
land for example. Cromwell was n
hypochondraic and had visions. Dean
Swift inherited insanity and was him.
self not little mad. Shelley was call
ed by his friends Mad Shelley"
Charles Lamb went crazy. Johnson
was another hypochondriac. Coleridge
was morbid maniac. Milton was Of a
morbid turn Of mind. nearly approach
ing insanity (modern Ideas Of hades
are largely formed on the description
evolved by his diseased imagination).
and Byron said he was visited by
ghosts.
This mental alienation occurring In
the foregoing cases shows that GER
tain specific groups Of brain cells have
come under the baneful influence Of
the guiding spirit called talent or
genius. which has used up all the en-
ergy stored In each cell and each group
of cells, to the detriment Of the whole,
with the result that their ceasing work
has brought about various types Of
insanity as depicted or. to phrase IL
more softly. induced disturbance Of
the mental equilibrium.
The remaining problem Is absent
mindedness. This Is produced by q
temporary distinction Of certain
groups of cells. A man becomes so
absorbed In his study Of some partic-
ular subject and lends his whole
mind to thought that the hard think
ing discrepancies the groups OF cells
employed In the process OF reflection.
their tentacles being turned all one
way. to the detriment Of mental ac-
tion generally. and 80 the man with
the tentacles of his brain cells turned
In the one direction passes along the
streets lost to all observation or mental
inception and does all manner OF queer
things because he Ii not conscious OF
what be II doing.-Pearson's Maya
Sine.