The times., 1901-06-09

There = no such thing as a sane man.
once said an eminent alienist who has
devoted his life TO the study of nervous
diseases. and who for many years has
been at the head Of one Of the largest
lunatic asylums in the country. He quail
fed the statement by saying that sanity did
not exist in the fullest sense Of the word.
Fads. fancies. and foibles were all char
acterized by him as evidences Of insanity
In mild forms, and in all his experience,
he said, he had never met a perfectly
balanced man. If the worthy physician
is TO be believed there are many insane
people TO be found outside of asylum walls.
harmless, it is true, but none the less
insane
Maurier, an authority on nervous dis
eases. and of international reputation, has
said that the initial impetus Of vital ca
pacity and well-being, given at the begin
ming of life by parents, is comparable to
the initial impetus given two rolling balls
on a level plain or table. Each starts
out on its rolling journey with certain
velocity. given it at the start. This We
loeity, owing to the friction resistance
which it meets, will constantly diminish
until finally the ball win come TO a state
of rest, and as it approaches this point
is likely to diverge somewhat from the
direct line Of its course, as it meets with
various unevennesses of surface over
which it passes. Some balls will keep
on the straight line and end on that line
while others may diverge.
So il Is with the mental capacity or
brain vitality. Nature has endowed man
with certain capacities, which are, barring
other and conflicting agencies, sufficient
TO carry him through life in a state of
weIl-beIng, that is to say, sufficient TO
meet the ordinary stresses from his envi-
ronment, and maintain his mental equili-
brium. Conduct is determined and regu-
lated by the highest regions of the brain,
and every marked departure from normal
conduct is attributable to some stress
which has been sufficiently potent in its
effect upon the highest regions to provoke
a departure from the normal activity to
eccentricities of conduct, which is evi-
dence sf cerebral disturbance, hence, by
so much, a degree OF insanity.
Those parts of the human organism
which have developed gradually for a long
period of time, counted by ages, are the
most stable and most able to resist dis
turbing outside influences. This is proved
in the case of the lower regions Of the
brain, which give way much less readily
than the higher regions, which, compared
regions, are Of the most recent, and hence
the least stable and first TO yield to in
ternal or external stresses. The degree
of stability of the highest regions. or their
power TO resist, varies in individuals, but,
nevertheless, Il always more or less un-
stable. According TO Maurier, every man
and woman is liable to become insane, if
only the stress or shock is profound
enough The delirium which accom-
panies weakening diseases offers a suffi-
cient illustration OF stress having an in
ternal origin. so also the fightiness in
certain febrile conditions. A common
drunk is an example of internal stress
and is insanity, pure and simple, though,
happily, only temporary in duration.
Under the ordinary cares and worries of
everyday life, the daily routine of exist
ence. unaccompanied by any event which
would tend to increase nervous activity,
such as shocks, bad news. distressing ac-
cidents, etc, and even the excitement due
to the hearing of good news, individuals
viii show difference in their responsive
ness TO the stresses which break upon the
shores Of the higher brain regions during
all Of the waking hours. The normal
brain VIII evince no unusual conduct. Its
activity will show no noteworthy change
from the preceding day or days Nothing
Of undueness will be noted. If there be
extra activity it viii always be normal
and its exciting cause easily traceable to
some unusual event, readily understood
and its result upon the brain Ineligible.
On the other hand an individual with a
less stable brain, that is. with the highest
regions more irritable, more responsive to
exciting causes, than the type Just men
toned, viii manifest q degree Of excite
ment or responsiveness all out Of proper
tion to the effect which the exciting cause
or stress. ought reasonably TO produce. He
gets ratified, is spoken of as nervous
or -hysterical,' OF even "nutty." This IS
the popular expression Of the recognition
ef this unstable condition. IN a general
sense the evidence of insanity, In what
ever form, is the result Of the degree OF
Responsiveness to the play or stress upon
the highest brain regions; the greater the
instability the more profound the effect as
evidenced through the response. This de-
gree Of responsiveness is as varied as the
individuals themselves, and hence each In
his own way, or according as the stress
affects him, Will manifest in his conduct
the effect Of the stress-impulse.
Any departure from normal conduct is
evidence of insanity, technically at least
and Il may be said with safety that few
people pass through ne without ldlJSef
Of insanity. Il may show Itself in harm
less eccentTicities, in a mania for some
fad. and, in short, in some form Of eccen-
trfctty in which. to the trained eye OF
the alenist, some shock to the highest
brain regions has been received. causing
a temporary or q permanent bias f.. the
brain. When the insanity Is but slight
the patient may or may not be aware OF
Il. Generally, however, his friends and
acquaintances will let him know thar
they notice something out Of the ordinary
in his conduct. which may depress and
alarm him, or he may pass il by as only
a Whirn which has no Importance.
Most people who pass for sane persons
are Of this class. Each in his or her Owr
Nay has some one or more wheels
which control his or her actions aEt! con
duct 20 some extent. 1t may not b'
known to the individual, but is apt TO b'
known to some friend or acquaintance
There are hundreds of such cases every
where. One meets them among friend!
and IS amused, but never for momen
imagipes that the friend is afflicted with
a mild form OF insanity.
One of the greatest factors ia determin
ing conditions Of nervous stability o.
instability that Is, sanity or insanity, il
environment Each individual deyotes hi
efforts 10 establish an environment bes
suited 10 his needs and desires but thi
pace set IN the struggle for this object Il
commonly too great for another individ
ual, who is compelled 70 keep the paci
set, and he succumbs. because the en-
yiroument best suited for the stability
Of his nervous centres Is absent. To II
lustrate this more clearly. II is simplI
necessary to present an incident Of every
day occuTrance familiar TO all. Take. 70
example a man who Is succcssfu
manufacturer. His mental processes de
mand an active life, such is found II
the whiTl Of business. He has found tha
Il