CONTENTS. 



PAGE 



I. INTRODUCTION 1 



II. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DEATH FEINT 1 



1. Death-feigning posture compared with naturallydead specimens. 1 



2. How to elicit the death feint 2 



3. Death-feigning postures 3 



4. The condition of the muscular system while in the death feint. 4 



5. Termination of the death feint 6 



6. Apparent insensibility to pain while in the death feint 7 



III. DURATION OF SUCCESSIVE DEATH FEINTS 9 



7. Duration of the first five successive death feints 9 



8. How long can successive death feints be continued? 10 



IV. THE EFFECT OF DRYNESS AND MOISTURE ON THE DURA- 



TION OF THE DEATH FEINT 14 



9. The effect of dryness on the death feint 14 



10. The effect of moisture on the death feint 15 



11. The effect of placing the death-feigning animal in water 16 



V. THE EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE ON THE DURATION OF THE 



DEATH FEINT 18 



12. The effect of a high temperature on the duration of the death 



feint 18 



13. The effect of a low temperature on the duration of the death 



feint 19 



14. The effect of a sudden change in temperature on the duration of 



the death feint 21 



VI. THE EFFECT OF LIGHT ON THE DURATION OF THE DEATH 



FEINT. . 22 



15. The effect of sunlight on the death feint 22 



16. The effect of an artificial light upon the duration of the death 



feint 22 



17. Reactions to light previous to and after coming out of the death 



feint 25 



VII. THE EFFECT OF MUTILATION ON THE DEATH FEINT 27 



18. The effect of decapitation on the death feint 27 



19. General features of the nervous system of Belostoma fiumineum 



and Nepa apiculata 28 



20. Shock effect of decapitation 28 



21. Reflex acts 29 



22. Reactions of Belostoma and Nepa with the body severed be- 



tween the prothorax and mesothorax 32 



23. Reactions of Nepa with the body cut across the metathorax 



behind the last ganglion 34 



24. The effect of light on the severed parts of the body 34 



VIII. THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE DEATH FEINT. . 36 



IX. THE PSYCHIC ASPECT OF THE DEATH FEINT 38 



X. SUMMARY 39 



iii 



