PHYSIOLOGIC AND FUNCTIONAL ANOMALIES. 15 page

present day in some parts of the South quinin is constantly kept on the

table as a prophylactic constituent of the diet.

Skinner noticed the occurrence of a scarlatiniform eruption in a woman

after the dose of 1/165 grain of strychnin, which, however, disappeared

with the discontinuance of the drug. There was a man in London in 1865

who died in twenty minute's after the ingestion of 1/2 grain of

strychnin. Wood speaks of a case in which the administration of 1/100

grain killed a child three and one-half months old. Gray speaks of a

man who took 22 grains and was not seen for about an hour. He had

vomited some of it immediately after taking the dose, and was

successfully treated with chloral hydrate. A curious case is mentioned

in which three mustard plasters, one on the throat, one on the back of

the neck, and another on the left shoulder of a woman, produced

symptoms similar to strychnin poisoning. They remained in position for

about thirty minutes, and about thirty hours afterward a painful

stinging sensation commenced in the back of the neck, followed by

violent twitching of the muscles of the face, arms, and legs, which

continued in regular succession through the whole of the night, but

after twelve hours yielded to hot fomentations of poppy-heads applied

to the back of the neck. It could not be ascertained whether any

medicine containing strychnin had been taken, but surely, from the

symptoms, such must have been the case.

Tobacco.--O'Neill a gives the history of a farmer's wife, aged forty,

who wounded her leg against a sewing-machine, and by lay advice applied

a handful of chopped wet tobacco to it, from which procedure, strange

to say, serious nicotin-poisoning ensued. The pupils were dilated,

there were dimness of vision, confusion of thought, and extreme

prostration. The pulse was scarcely apparent, the skin was white and

wet with clammy perspiration. Happily, strychnin was given in time to

effect recovery, and without early medical assistance she would

undoubtedly have succumbed. There are several similar cases on record.

Although not immediately related to the subject of idiosyncrasy, the

following case may be mentioned here: Ramadge speaks of a young

Frenchman, suffering from an obstinate case of gonorrhea, who was said

to have been completely cured by living in a newly painted house in

which he inhaled the odors or vapors of turpentine.

White speaks of a case of exanthematous eruption similar to that of

ivy-poison in mother and child, which was apparently caused by playing

with and burning the toy called "Pharaoh's serpent egg."

The idiosyncrasies noticed in some persons during coitus are quite

interesting. The Ephemerides mentions a person in whom coitus

habitually caused vomiting, and another in whom excessive sexual

indulgence provoked singultus. Sometimes exaggerated tremors or

convulsions, particularly at the moment of orgasm, are noticed. Females

especially are subject to this phenomenon, and it is seen sometimes in

birds.

Winn reports the case of a man who, when prompted to indulge in sexual

intercourse, was immediately prior to the act seized with a fit of

sneezing. Even the thought of sexual pleasure with a female was

sufficient to provoke this peculiar idiosyncrasy.

Sullivan mentions a bride of four weeks, who called at the doctor's

office, saying that in coitus her partner had no difficulty until the

point of culmination or orgasm, when he was seized with complete

numbness and lost all pleasurable sensation in the penis. The numbness

was followed by a sensation of pain, which was intensified on the

slightest motion, and which was at times so excruciating as to forbid

separation for upward of an hour, or until the penis had become

flaccid. The woman asked for advice for her unfortunate husband's

relief, and the case was reported as a means of obtaining suggestions

from the physicians over the country. In response, one theory was

advanced that this man had been in the habit of masturbating and had a

stricture of the membranous portion of the urethra, associated with an

ulcer of the prostate involving the ejaculatory ducts, or an

inflammatory condition of all the tissues compressed by the ejaculatory

muscles.

Hendrichsen quotes a case in which a spasmodic contraction of the

levator ani occurred during coitus, and the penis could not be

withdrawn while this condition lasted; and in support of this

circumstance Hendrichsen mentions that Marion Sims, Beigel, and Budin

describe spasmodic contractions of the levator and, constricting the

vagina; he also cites an instance under his personal observation in

which this spasm was excited by both vaginal and rectal examination,

although on the following day no such condition could be produced. In

this connection, among the older writers, Borellus gives the history of

a man who before coitus rubbed his virile member with musk, and,

similar to the connection of a dog and bitch, was held fast in his

wife's vagina; it was only after the injection of great quantities of

water to soften the parts that separation was obtained. Diemerbroeck

confirms this singular property of musk by an analogous observation, in

which the ludicrous method of throwing cold water on the persons was

practised. Schurig also relates the history of a similar instance.

Among the peculiar effects of coitus is its deteriorating effect on the

healing process of wounds. Boerhaave, Pare, and Fabricius Hildanus all

speak of this untoward effect of venery, and in modern times Poncet has

made observations at a hospital in Lyons which prove that during the

process of healing wounds are unduly and harmfully influenced by

coitus, and cites confirmatory instances. Poncet also remarks that he

found on nine occasions, by placing a thermometer in the rectum, that

the temperature was about 1 degrees F. lower just before than after

coitus, and that during the act the temperature gradually rose above

normal.

There are many associate conditions which, under the exciting influence

of coitus, provoke harmful effects and even a fatal issue. Deguise

mentions a man who had coitus 18 times in ten hours with most

disastrous effects. Cabrolius speaks of a man who took a potion of

aphrodisiac properties, in which, among other things, he put an

enormous dose of cantharides. The anticipation of the effect of his

dose, that is, the mental influence, in addition to the actual

therapeutic effect, greatly distressed and excited him. Almost beyond

belief, it is said that he approached his wife eighty-seven times

during the night, spilling much sperm on the sleeping-bed. Cabrolius

was called to see this man in the morning, and found him in a most

exhausted condition, but still having the supposed consecutive

ejaculations. Exhaustion progressed rapidly, and death soon terminated

this erotic crisis. Lawson is accredited with saying that among the

Marquesan tribe he knew of a woman who during a single night had

intercourse with 103 men.

Among the older writers there are instances reported in which erection

and ejaculation took place without the slightest pleasurable sensation.

Claudius exemplifies this fact in his report of a Venetian merchant who

had vigorous erections and ejaculations of thick and abundant semen

without either tingling or pleasure.

Attila, King of the Huns, and one of the most celebrated leaders of the

German hosts which overran the Roman Empire in its decline, and whose

enormous army and name inspired such terror that he was called the

"Scourge of God," was supposed to have died in coitus. Apoplexy,

organic heart disorders, aneurysms, and other like disorders are in

such cases generally the direct cause of death, coitus causing the

death indirectly by the excitement and exertion accompanying the act.

Bartholinus, Benedictus, Borellus, Pliny, Morgagni, Plater, a Castro,

Forestus, Marcellus Donatus, Schurig, Sinibaldus, Schenck, the

Ephemerides, and many others mention death during coitus; the older

writers in some cases attributed the fatal issue to excessive sexual

indulgence, not considering the possibility of the associate direct

cause, which most likely would have been found in case of a necropsy.

Suspended Animation.--Various opinions have been expressed as to the

length of time compatible with life during which a person can stay

under water. Recoveries from drowning furnish interesting examples of

the suspension of animation for a protracted period, but are hardly

ever reliable, as the subject at short intervals almost invariably

rises to the surface of the water, allowing occasional respiration.

Taylor mentions a child of two who recovered after ten minutes'

submersion; in another case a man recovered after fourteen minutes'

submersion. There is a case reported in this country of a woman who was

said to have been submerged twenty minutes. Guerard quotes a case

happening in 1774, in which there was submersion for an hour with

subsequent recovery; but there hardly seems sufficient evidence of this.

Green mentions submersion for fifteen minutes; Douglass, for fourteen

minutes; Laub, for fifteen minutes; Povall gives a description of three

persons who recovered after a submersion of twenty-five minutes. There

is a case in French literature, apparently well authenticated, in which

submersion for six minutes was followed by subsequent recovery.

There have been individuals who gave exhibitions of prolonged

submersion in large glass aquariums, placed in full view of the

audience. Taylor remarks that the person known some years ago in London

as "Lurline" could stay under water for three minutes. There have been

several exhibitionists of this sort. Some of the more enterprising seat

themselves on an artificial coral, and surrounded by fishes of divers

hues complacently eat a meal while thus submerged. It is said that

quite recently in Detroit there was a performer who accomplished the

feat of remaining under water four minutes and eight seconds in full

view of the audience. Miss Lurline swam about in her aquarium, which

was brilliantly illuminated, ate, reclined, and appeared to be taking a

short nap during her short immersion. In Paris, some years since, there

was exhibited a creature called "l'homme-poisson," who performed feats

similar to Lurline, including the smoking of a cigarette held entirely

in his mouth. In all these exhibitions all sorts of artificial means

are used to make the submersion appear long. Great ceremony, music, and

the counting of the seconds in a loud voice from the stage, all tend to

make the time appear much longer than it really is. However, James

Finney in London, April 7, 1886, stayed under water four minutes,

twenty-nine and one-fourth seconds, and one of his feats was to pick up

70 or 80 gold-plated half-pennies with his mouth, his hands being

securely tied behind his back, and never emerging from his tank until

his feat was fully accomplished. In company with his sister he played a

game of "nap" under water, using porcelain cards and turning them to

the view of the audience. "Professor Enochs" recently stayed under

water at Lowell, Mass., for four minutes, forty-six and one-fifth

seconds. The best previous record was four minutes, thirty-five

seconds, made by "Professor Beaumont" at Melbourne on December 16, 1893.

For the most satisfactory examples of prolonged submersion we must look

to the divers, particularly the natives who trade in coral, and the

pearl fishers. Diving is an ancient custom, and even legendary exploits

of this nature are recorded. Homer compares the fall of Hector's

chariot to the action of a diver; and specially trained men were

employed at the Siege of Syracuse, their mission being to laboriously

scuttle the enemy's vessels. Many of the old historians mention

diving, and Herodotus speaks of a diver by the name of Scyllias who was

engaged by Xerxes to recover some articles of value which had been sunk

on some Persian vessels in a tempest. Egyptian divers are mentioned by

Plutarch, who says that Anthony was deceived by Cleopatra in a fishing

contest by securing expert divers to place the fish upon the hooks.

There was a historical or rather legendary character by the name of

Didion, who was noted for his exploits in the river Meuse. He had the

ability to stay under water a considerable length of time, and even to

catch fish while submerged.

There was a famous diver in Sicily at the end of the fifteenth century

whose feats are recorded in the writings of Alexander ab Alexandro,

Pontanus, and Father Kircher, the Jesuit savant. This man's name was

Nicolas, born of poor parents at Catania. From his infancy he showed an

extraordinary power of diving and swimming, and from his compatriots

soon acquired various names indicative of his capacity. He became very

well known throughout Sicily, and for his patron had Frederick, King of

Naples. In the present day, the sponge-fishers and pearl-fishers in the

West Indies, the Mediterranean, the Indian Seas, and the Gulf of Mexico

invite the attention of those interested in the anomalies of suspended

animation. There are many marvelous tales of their ability to remain

under water for long periods. It is probable that none remain submerged

over two minutes, but, what is more remarkable, they are supposed to

dive to extraordinary depths, some as much as 150 to 200 feet.

Ordinarily they remain under water from a minute to one and a half

minutes. Remaining longer, the face becomes congested, the eyes

injected; the sputum bloody, due to rupture of some of the minute

vessels in the lung. It is said by those who have observed them

carefully that few of these divers live to an advanced age. Many of

them suffer apoplectic attacks, and some of them become blind from

congestion of the ocular vessels. The Syrian divers are supposed to

carry weights of considerable size in their hands in order to

facilitate the depth and duration of submersion. It is also said that

the divers of Oceanica use heavy stones. According to Guyot-Daubes, in

the Philippine Isles the native pearl-fishers teach their children to

dive to the depth of 25 meters. The Tahitians, who excited the

admiration of Cook, are noted for their extraordinary diving. Speaking

of the inhabitants of the island of Fakaraya, near Tahiti, de la

Quesnerie says that the pearl-fishers do not hesitate to dive to the

depth even of 100 feet after their coveted prizes. On the Ceylon coast

the mother-of-pearl fishers are under the direction of the English

Government, which limits the duration and the practice of this

occupation. These divers are generally Cingalese, who practice the

exercise from infancy. As many as 500 small boats can be seen about

the field of operation, each equipped with divers. A single diver makes

about ten voyages under the water, and then rests in the bottom of the

boat, when his comrade takes his place. Among other native divers are

the Arabs of Algeria and some of the inhabitants of the Mexican coast.

It might be well to mention here the divers who work by means of

apparatus. The ancients had knowledge of contrivances whereby they

could stay under water some time. Aristotle speaks of an instrument by

which divers could rest under water in communication with the air, and

compares it with the trunk of an elephant wading a stream deeper than

his height. In the presence of Charles V diving bells were used by the

Greeks in 1540. In 1660 some of the cannon of the sunken ships of the

Spanish Armada were raised by divers in diving bells. Since then

various improvements in submarine armor have been made, gradually

evolving into the present perfected diving apparatus of to-day, by

which men work in the holds of vessels sunk in from 120 to 200 feet of

water. The enormous pressure of the water at these great depths makes

it necessary to have suits strong enough to resist it. Lambert, a

celebrated English diver, recovered L90,000 in specie from the steamer

Alphonso XII, a Spanish mail boat belonging to the Lopez line, which

sank off Point Gando, Grand Canary, in 26 1/2 fathoms of water. For

nearly six months the salvage party, despatched by the underwriters in

May, 1885, persevered in the operations; two divers lost their lives,

the golden bait being in the treasure-room beneath the three decks, but

Lambert finished the task successfully.

Deep-sea divers only acquire proficiency after long training. It is

said that as a rule divers are indisposed to taking apprentices, as

they are afraid of their vocation being crowded and their present ample

remuneration diminished. At present there are several schools. At

Chatham, England, there is a school of submarine mining, in which men

are trained to lay torpedoes and complete harbor defense. Most of these

divers can work six hours at a time in from 35 to 50 feet of water.

Divers for the Royal Navy are trained at Sheerness. When sufficiently

trained to work at the depth of 150 feet seamen-divers are fully

qualified, and are drafted to the various ships. They are connected

with an air-pump in charge of trustworthy men; they signal for their

tools and material, as well as air, by means of a special line for this

purpose. At some distance below the water the extraordinary weight of

the suits cannot be felt, and the divers work as well in armor as in

ordinary laboring clothes. One famous diver says that the only

unpleasant experience he ever had in his career as a diver, not

excepting the occasion of his first dive, was a drumming in the ears,

as a consequence of which, after remaining under water at a certain

work for nine hours, he completely lost the use of one ear for three

months, during which time he suffered agony with the earache. These men

exhibit absolute indifference to the dangers attached to their calling,

and some have been known to sleep many fathoms beneath the surface.

Both by means of their signal lines and by writing on a slate they keep

their associates informed of the progress of their work.

Suspension of the Pulse.--In some cases the pulse is not apparent for

many days before actual death, and there have been instances in which,

although the pulse ceased for an extended period, the patient made an

ultimate recovery. In reviewing the older literature we find that

Ballonius mentions an instance in which the pulse was not apparent for

fourteen days before complete asphyxia. Ramazzini describes a case of

cessation of the pulse four days before death. Schenck details the

history of a case in which the pulse ceased for three days and asphyxia

was almost total, but the patient eventually recovered. There is a

noteworthy observation, in which there was cessation of the pulse for

nine days without a fatal issue.

Some persons seem to have a preternatural control over their

circulatory system, apparently enabling them to produce suspension of

cardiac movement at will. Cheyne speaks of a Colonel Townshend who

appeared to possess the power of dying, as it were, at will,--that is,

so suspending the heart's action that no pulsation could be detected.

After lying in this state of lifelessness for a short period, life

would become slowly established without any consciousness or volition

on the man's part. The longest period in which he remained in this

death-like condition was about thirty minutes. A postmortem examination

of this person was awaited with great interest; but after his death

nothing was found to explain the power he possessed over his heart.

Saint Augustin knew of a priest named Rutilut who had the power of

voluntarily simulating death. Both the pulsation and respiration was

apparently abolished when he was in his lifeless condition. Burning and

pricking left visible effects on the skin after his recovery, but had

no apparent effect on his lethargy. Chaille reports an instance of

voluntary suspension of the pulse.

Relative to hibernation, it is well-known that mice, snakes, and some

reptiles, as well as bees, sometimes seem to entirely suspend animation

for an extended period, and especially in the cold weather. In Russia

fish are transported frozen stiff, but return to life after being

plunged into cold water. A curious tale is told by Harley, from Sir

John Lubbock, of a snail brought from Egypt and thought to be dead. It

was placed on a card and put in position on a shelf in the British

Museum in March, 1845. In March, 1850 after having been gummed to a

label for five years, it was noticed to have an apparent growth on its

mouth and was taken out and placed in water, when it soon showed signs

of life and ate cabbage leaves offered to it. It has been said, we

think with credible evidence, that cereal seeds found in the tombs with

mummies have grown when planted, and Harley quotes an instance of a

gentleman who took some berries, possibly the remnants of Pharaoh's

daughter's last meal, coming as they did from her mummified stomach

after lying dormant in an Egyptian tomb many centuries, and planted

them in his garden, where they soon grew, and he shortly had a bush as

flourishing as any of those emanating from fresh seeds.

Human hibernation is an extremely rare anomaly. Only the fakirs of

India seem to have developed this power, and even the gifted ones there

are seldom seen. Many theories have been advanced to explain this

ability of the fakirs, and many persons have discredited all the

stories relative to their powers; on the other hand, all who have

witnessed their exhibitions are convinced of their genuineness.

Furthermore, these persons are extremely scarce and are indifferent to

money; none has been enticed out of his own country to give

exhibitions. When one dies in a community, his place is never

filled--proving that he had no accomplices who knew any fraudulent

secret practices, otherwise the accomplice would soon step out to take

his place. These men have undoubtedly some extraordinary mode of

sending themselves into a long trance, during which the functions of

life are almost entirely suspended. We can readily believe in their

ability to fast during their periods of burial, as we have already

related authentic instances of fasting for a great length of time,

during which the individual exercised his normal functions.

To the fakir, who neither visibly breathes nor shows circulatory

movements, and who never moves from his place of confinement, fasting

should be comparatively easy, when we consider the number of men whose

minds were actively at work during their fasts, and who also exercised

much physical power.

Harley says that the fakirs begin their performances by taking a large

dose of the powerfully stupefying "bang," thus becoming narcotized. In

this state they are lowered into a cool, quiet tomb, which still

further favors the prolongation of the artificially induced vital

lethargy; in this condition they rest for from six to eight weeks. When

resurrected they are only by degrees restored to life, and present a

wan, haggard, debilitated, and wasted appearance. Braid is credited, on

the authority of Sir Claude Wade, with stating that a fakir was buried

in an unconscious state at Lahore in 1837, and when dug up, six weeks

later, he presented all the appearances of a dead person. The legs and

arms were shrunken and stiff, and the head reclined on the shoulder in

a manner frequently seen in a corpse. There was no pulsation of the

heart or arteries of the arm or temple--in fact, no really visible

signs of life. By degrees this person was restored to life. Every

precaution had been taken in this case to prevent the possibility of

fraud, and during the period of interment the grave was guarded night

and day by soldiers of the regiment stationed at Lahore.

Honigberger, a German physician in the employ of Runjeet Singh, has an

account of a fakir of Punjaub who allowed himself to be buried in a

well-secured vault for such a long time that grain sown in the soil

above the vault sprouted into leaf before he was exhumed. Honigberger

affirms that the time of burial was over 40 days, and that on being

submitted to certain processes the man recovered and lived many years

after. Sir Henry Lawrence verified the foregoing statements. The chest

in which the fakir was buried was sealed with the Runjeet stamp on it,

and when the man was brought up he was cold and apparently lifeless.

Honigberger also states that this man, whose name was Haridas, was four

months in a grave in the mountains; to prove the absolute suspension of

animation, the chin was shaved before burial, and at exhumation this

part was as smooth as on the day of interment. This latter statement

naturally calls forth comment when we consider the instances that are

on record of the growth of beard and hair after death.

There is another account of a person of the same class who had the

power of suspending animation, and who would not allow his coffin to

touch the earth for fear of worms and insects, from which he is said to

have suffered at a previous burial.

It has been stated that the fakirs are either eunuchs or

hermaphrodites, social outcasts, having nothing in common with the

women or men of their neighborhood; but Honigberger mentions one who

disproved this ridiculous theory by eloping to the mountains with his

neighbor's wife.

Instances of recovery after asphyxia from hanging are to be found,

particularly among the older references of a time when hanging was more

common than it is to-day. Bartholinus, Blegny, Camerarius, Morgagni,

Pechlin, Schenck, Stoll, and Wepfer all mention recovery after hanging.

Forestus describes a case in which a man was rescued by provoking

vomiting with vinegar, pepper, and mustard seed. There is a case on

record in which a person was saved after hanging nineteen minutes.

There was a case of a man brought into the Hopital Saint-Louis

asphyxiated by strangulation, having been hung for some time. His

rectal temperature was only 93.3 degrees F., but six hours after it

rose to 101.6 degrees F., and he subsequently recovered. Taylor cites

the instance of a stout woman of forty-four who recovered from hanging.

When the woman was found by her husband she was hanging from the top of

a door, having been driven to suicide on account of his abuse and

intemperance. When first seen by Taylor she was comatose, her mouth was

surrounded by white froth, and the swollen tongue protruded from it.

Her face was bloated, her lips of a darkened hue, and her neck of a

Date: 2014-12-29; view: 652