ANOMALOUS NERVOUS AND MENTAL DISEASES. 5 page

memory--has evidently been snapped at some point of time prior to March

3d and after January 19th, the last date at which he wrote to his

parents, and as if in a dream, he is now living another life. The

hospital staff generally believe that the man is not "shamming," as

many circumstances seem to preclude that theory. His memory is perfect

as to everything back to March 3d. The theory of hypnotism was advanced

in explanation of this case.

The morbid sympathy of twin brothers, illustrated in Dumas's "Corsican

Brothers," has been discussed by Sedgwick, Elliotson, Trousseau,

Laycock, Cagentre, and others. Marshall Hall relates what would seem to

verify the Corsican myth, the history of twin brothers nine months of

age, who always became simultaneously affected with restlessness,

whooping and crowing in breathing three weeks previous to simultaneous

convulsions, etc. Rush describes a case of twin brothers dwelling in

entirely different places, who had the same impulse at the same time,

and who eventually committed suicide synchronously. Baunir describes a

similar development of suicidal tendency in twin brothers. A peculiar

case of this kind was that of the twin brothers Laustand who were

nurses in a hospital at Bordeaux; they invariably became ill at the

same time, and suffered cataract of the lens together.

Automatism has been noticed as a sequel to cranial injuries, and Huxley

quotes a remarkable case reported by Mesnet. The patient was a young

man whose parietal bone was partially destroyed by a ball. He exhibited

signs of hemiplegia on the right side, but these soon disappeared and

he became subject to periodic attacks lasting from twenty-four to

forty-eight hours, during which he was a mere automaton. In these

attacks he walked continually, incessantly moving his jaw, but not

uttering a word. He was insensible to pain, electric shock, or

pin-prick. If a pen was placed in his hand he would write a good

letter, speaking sensibly about current topics. When a cigarette-paper

was placed in his hand he sought his tobacco box, and adroitly rolled a

cigarette and lighted it. If the light went out he procured another,

but would not allow another to substitute a match. He allowed his

mustache to be burned without resistance, but would not allow a light

to be presented to him. If chopped charpie was put in his pocket

instead of tobacco he knew no difference. While in his periods of

automatism he was in the habit of stealing everything within his grasp.

He had been a concert singer, and a peculiar fact was that if given

white gloves he would carefully put them on and commence a pantomime of

the actions of a singer, looking over his music, bowing, assuming his

position, and then singing.

It is particularly in hypnotic subjects that manifestations of

automatism are most marked. At the suggestion of battle an imaginary

struggle at once begins, or if some person present is suggested as an

enemy the fight is continued, the hypnotic taking care not to strike

the person in question. Moll conceded that this looked like simulation,

but repetition of such experiments forced him to conclude that these

were real, typical hypnoses, in which, in spite of the sense-delusions,

there was a dim, dreamy consciousness existing, which influenced the

actions of the subject, and which prevented him from striking at a

human being, although hitting at an imaginary object. Many may regard

this behavior of hypnotics as pure automatism; and Moll adds that, as

when walking in the street while reading we automatically avoid

knocking passers-by, so the hypnotic avoids hitting another person,

although he is dimly or not at all aware of his existence.

Gibbs reports a curious case of lack of integrity of the will in a man

of fifty-five. When he had once started on a certain labor he seemed to

have no power to stop the muscular exercise that the task called forth.

If he went to the barn to throw down a forkful of hay, he would never

stop until the hay was exhausted or someone came to his rescue. If sent

to the wood-pile for a handful of wood, he would continue to bring in

wood until the pile was exhausted or the room was full. On all

occasions his automatic movements could only be stopped by force.

At a meeting in Breslau Meschede rendered an account of a man who

suffered from simple misdirection of movement without any mental

derangement. If from his own desire, or by direction of others, he

wanted to attempt any muscular movement, his muscles performed the

exact opposite to his inclinations. If he desired to look to the right,

his eyes involuntarily moved to the left. In this case the movement was

not involuntary, as the muscles were quiet except when called to action

by the will, and then they moved to the opposite.

Presentiment, or divination of approaching death, appearing to be a

hypothetic allegation, has been established as a strong factor in the

production of a fatal issue in many cases in which there was every hope

for a recovery. In fact several physicians have mentioned with dread

the peculiar obstinacy of such presentiment. Hippocrates, Romanus,

Moller, Richter, Jordani, and other older writers speak of it.

Montgomery reports a remarkable case of a woman suffering from

carcinoma of the uterus. He saw her on October 6, 1847, when she told

him she had a strong presentiment of death on October 28th. She stated

that she had been born on that day, her first husband had died on

October 28th, and she had married her second husband on that day. On

October 27th her pulse began to fail, she fell into a state of extreme

prostration, and at noon on the 28th she died. In substantiation of the

possibility of the influence of presentiment Montgomery cites another

case in which he was called at an early hour to visit a lady, the

mother of several children. He found her apparently much agitated and

distressed, and in great nervous excitement over a dream she had had,

in which she saw a handsome monument erected by some children to their

mother. She had awakened and became dreadfully apprehensive, she could

not tell as to what. The uneasiness and depression continued, her

pulse continued to grow weak, and she died at twelve that night without

a struggle. Andrews has made several observations on this subject, and

concludes that presentiment of death is a dangerous symptom, and one

which should never be overlooked. One of his cases was in a man with a

fractured leg in the Mercy Hospital at Pittsburg. The patient was in

good health, but one day he became possessed of a cool, quiet, and

perfectly clear impression that he was about to die. Struck with his

conviction, Andrews examined his pulse and general condition minutely,

and assured the patient there was not the slightest ground for

apprehension. But he persisted, and was attacked by pneumonia three

days later which brought him to the verge of the grave, although he

ultimately recovered. In another instance a young man of ruddy

complexion and apparent good health, after an operation for varicocele,

had a very clear impression that he would die. Careful examination

showed no reason for apprehension. After five or six days of

encouragement and assurance, he appeared to be convinced that his

reasoning was foolish, and he gave up the idea of death. About the

ninth day the wound presented a healthy, rosy appearance, and as the

patient was cheerful he was allowed to leave his bed. After a few hours

the nurse heard the noise of labored breathing, and on investigation

found the patient apparently in a dying condition. He was given

stimulants and regained consciousness, but again relapsed, and died in

a few moments. At the necropsy the heart was found healthy, but there

were two or three spots of extravasated blood in the brain, and

evidences of cerebral congestion. Vos remarks that he remembers a case

he had when dressing for Mr. Holden at St. Bartholomew's Hospital: "A

man who had been intemperate was rolling a sod of grass, and got some

grit into his left palm. It inflamed; he put on hot cow-dung poultices

by the advice of some country friends. He was admitted with a

dreadfully swollen hand. It was opened, but the phlegmonous process

spread up to the shoulder, and it was opened in many places, and at

last, under chloroform, the limb was amputated below the joint. The

stump sloughed, and pus pointing at the back of the neck, an opening

was again made. He became in such a weak state that chloroform could

not be administered, and one morning he had such a dread of more

incisions that, saying to us all standing round his bed, 'I can bear it

no more, I must now die,' he actually did die in a few minutes in our

presence. His was the last arm that Mr. Holden ever amputated at St.

Bartholomew's."

CHAPTER XVIII.

Date: 2014-12-29; view: 664