Americus times-recorder., 1918-04-17
DO WE SLEEP TOO MUCH?

scribed for sleeping. 1t is question
thar each person must determine fo
himself according to his needs and de
sires. But, in view of the general habi
of spending one-third of life betweel
sheets one may well wonder if peopl'
sleep too much.
A writer to the New York SUI
makes this contention, and cites h'
own experience to prove that sever
or eight hours sleep is undesirable. HI
argues that men of genius are men VIII:
sleeD ret more than four or five hours
a night The Sun correspondent says
Most of us sleep too much, which
is largely due to the popular sup
erstition that it is necessary and
wholesome to sleep from eight to
ten hours. Most of the big sleep
ers | know are dull and sleepy
during their waking hours. Many
years ago | used to try good
long sleep once in a while to
make up for successive late hours.
The result in every instance was
extremely discouraging. Instead
of feeling better the next day I
would feel dull and drowsy and
often have a slight headache.
Therefore, I gave up the practice.
| am sure to feel right when l do
not sleep longer than six hours.
l generally go to bed at eleven
o'clock and wake up at five. At
ter waking don't turn over for
another snooze, but get up at once
in summer and lie in bed for an
/ hour in winter. That gives me
just about six hours, which is as
much as l need. If on occasion
I get more than four hours, don't
seem to feel any the worse. The
chief thing is to sleep soundly.
Take the case of Napoleon. THAI
man of prodigious intellect, who hat
average good health for over forty
years, not only slept little but irregu-
larly. Constant, his premier valet,
records that Napoleon's retiring time
was normally between ten and eleven
but that more often he did not lay his
head on the pillow until one, two, three
and even as late as four o'clock. Bat
he would always rise between seven
and eight, while it was a habit tC
sleep an hour or so and then take a
bath. Napoleon was even known tc
sleep beneath roaring cannon on a
Dettlefield. Yet his mind was invaria-
oily as clear as bell; he seldom had
headaches, and he accomplished a re-
narkably vast amount of work It is
'ecOrded that Caesar. another mighty
nan of history, could always sleep on
horseback with an attendant support
ng him to prevent a fall. Thomas A.
Edison is noted for sleeping little He
etires late and arises early and dur
ng his waking hours his great mind is
llways on strain. Still he enjoys
inc health and achieves marvellous re-
,ults
OF course, many have idiosyncTacies
Is to sleeping Pepys records that he
never had So much content in all his
life" as on the night of September %
1851, when, between waking and
sleeping again" he slept under q
strange roof to the accompaniment oi
people talking, and of rain. Bismarch
also stated that he really did not gel
sound sleep until the noise begin:
about four o'clock in the morning.
He said, Il can sleep a little and get
my rest for the day" Some there are
who cannot sleep in well-lighte:
rooms; others who cannot WOO Nor
pheus in darkness. Some require tn,
utmost quiet; still others drop OF
easily amidst confusion and alarms.
That sleep is natures balmy re
storer, "a healing dew" as Shelley ex
pressed it, there can be no doubt
is the greatest restorative privileged t,
man and beast-better than any tonic
air or food. For the first hour one gen