]\femoirs of Erasmus Darwin, M.D. 

 rioils discourse?, or outrageous actions. The studium inane, 

 or reverie, resembles epilepsy, in which there is no sensi- 

 bility to the stimuli of external objects. Vigilia, or watch- 

 fulness, may be compared to the general writhing of the 

 body; which is just a sufficient exertion to relieve the pain 

 which occasions it. Erotomania may be compared to tris- 

 rims, or other muscular fixed spasm, without much subse- 

 quent pain ; and mceror to cramp of the muscles of the leg, 

 or other fixed spasm with subsequent pain. All tbese coin- 

 cidences contribute to show, that our ideas are motions o* 

 the immediate organs of sense obeying the same laws as our 

 muscular motions. 



The violence of action accompanying insanity depends 

 much on the education of the person *, those who have been 

 proudly educated with unrestrained passions, are liable to 

 greater fury ; 'and those whose education has been humble, 

 to greater despondency. Where the delirious idea, above 

 described, produces pleasurable sensations, as in personal 

 vanity or religious enthusiasm, it is almost a pity to snatch 

 ♦ hem from their fool's paradise, and reduce them again to 

 the common lot of humanity ; lest they should complain of 

 their cure, like the patient described in Horace, 



Pol! me occidistis, amici, 



Non scrvastis, ait, cui sic extorta voluptas, 

 Et demptus per vim mentis gratissimus error ! 



The disposition to insanity, as well as to convulsion, is 

 believed to be hereditary ; and in consequence to be induced 

 in those families from slighter causes than in others. Con- 

 vulsions have been shown to have been most frequently in- 

 duced by pains owing to defect of stimulus, as the shud- 

 dering from cold, and not from pains from excess of stimu- 

 lus, which are generally succeeded by inflammation. But 

 insanities arc on the contrary generally induced by pains 

 from excess or stimulus, as from the too violent actions of 

 our ideas, is in common anger, which is an insanity of 

 short duration ; for insanities generally, though not always, 

 arise from pains of the organs of sense; but convulsions ge- 

 h not always, from pains of the membranes or 

 glands. And it has been previously explained, that though the 

 membranes and glands, as the stomach and skin, receive great 



pain 



