No. 1. 



Sleeping loiih Old Persons. 



37 



cific ailment, but there was a slow and re- 

 markable decline of flesh and strength, and 

 of the energy of all the functions — what his 

 mother very aptly termed ' a gradual blight.' 

 After inquiry into tlie history of the case, it 

 came out, that he had been a very robust and 

 plethoric child up to his third year, when his 

 grandmother, a very aged person, took him to 

 sleep with her ; that he soon afterwards lost 

 his good looks ; and that he continued to de- 

 cline progressively ever since — notwithstand- 

 ing medical treatment. I directed him to 

 sleep apart from his aged parent, and pre- 

 scribed gentle tonics, change of air, &.C., and 

 the recovery was very rapid." 



Cases similar to the foregoing, are by no 

 means of rare occurrence — one of which oc- 

 curred in my own person when very young, 

 and before the cause of the mischief was sus- 

 pected. A number of such cases have since 

 fallen under my observation. The symptoms 

 may vary according to circumstances, but 

 they are always such as indicate a state of 

 general debility, and diminished energy of the 

 digestive and nutritive organs. The child 

 rises in the morning with a sick stomacli, 

 perhaps headache — his appetite is impaired — 

 he feels languid and indisposed to exercise — 

 is easily fatigued — his countenance no longer 

 wears the bloom of health — and his body is 

 slowly emaciated. To adopt the simple lan- 

 guage of nature, which the fond mother made 

 use of, he is suffering " a gradual blight." 



The reflecting reader will naturally inquire 

 the cause of this injurious effect upon the 

 health of the child ; but I am free to acknow- 

 ledge that I cannot answer the inquiry. The 

 effect is known — the cause is unknown. But, 

 whatever difficulty may exist in determining 

 the why and the wherefore, there can be 

 none in the application of the fact. It is as 

 easy and simple as it is important. The im- 

 perative duty of parents, as they value the 

 health and lives of their offspring, forbids that 

 they should allow their children to sleep in 

 the same beds with old people. 



The following brief hypothesis, though it 

 may appear bold and visionary to some, will 

 afford " food for reflection" to others. What- 

 ever may be its final destiny, it possesses 

 some advantages; — it is plausible — it is sus- 

 tained by analogy — and it has the indirect 

 support of experiment. 



The brain is supposed to constitute a sort 

 of living electrical machine, or generator of 

 electricity, which is necessary for the per- 

 formance of the vital functions. The nerves 

 which emanate from the brain, become the 

 distributors of this fluid, and thus keep up a 

 sort of electro-telegraphic communication be- 

 tween the central organ and the outposts of 

 the system. By this means, the wants of the 

 members are made known, and supplied, and 



the commands of the will transmitted to the 

 organs which are destined to execute them. 

 The due performance of the vital functions 

 depends upon the healthy supply of this elec- 

 tric fluid. The hypothesis acquires plausi- 

 bility, from the well-known effects of artifi- 

 cial electricity on the animal organism, even 

 long after apparent dissolution. But it de- 

 rives the support of a more direct analogy 

 from the known fact, that certain animals, 

 the torpedo (gymnatus electricus) for exam- 

 ple, actually possesses just such an electrical 

 machine, with power, not only to generate, 

 but even to accumulate or condense the elec- 

 tric fluid, and discharge it at pleasure, for 

 purposes either of defence or offence. 



Admit the hypothesis to be true, and it af- 

 fords a simple and beautiful explanation why 

 children suffer from sleeping in contact with 

 old people — or the healthy, from the same ex- 

 posure to the sick. In advanced life, and 

 under the debilitating influence of disease, 

 we know that the functions of the brain be- 

 come impaired — consequently, it must be in- 

 capable of furnishing a healthy supply of elec- 

 tricity. There will be a deficiency of the 

 invigorating fluid in the body — in other words, 

 it will be negatively electrified — while the 

 young and healthy will be charged positively. 

 Now we know, that when two bodies are 

 brought into contact, one of which is positive 

 and the other negative, the former will part 

 with so much of its electricity, as will supply 

 the deficiency of the latter, and establish an 

 equilibrium between them. Apply this fact 

 to the case in question. When the young, 

 or positive body, comes in contact with the 

 old, or negative one, it loses a portion of the 

 electricity which is necessary to the continu- 

 ance of its health ; and disease, or at least dis- 

 ordered functions, must be the necessary con- 

 sequence. In estimating the amount of in- 

 jury sustained by the child, we must bear in 

 mind the great disparity there is in the quan- 

 tity of matter contained in the two bodies, 

 and the superficies which circumscribe them. 

 By a known law of electricity, the quantity 

 lost by the child would be in proportion to the 

 greater extent of surface of the larger body ; 

 in other words, the electricity of the child 

 would be reduced in a much greater ratio, 

 than that of the parent would be raised. Nor 

 is this unfortunate state of things of transient 

 duration. During the whole night, the liitle 

 sufferer is unjustly robbed of its vital energy 

 — nor for one night only, but every night for 

 months and years, until it becomes enfeebled 

 and exhausted. In this way the larger nega- 

 tive body of the parent — vnmpyre-like — sucks 

 up the vitalizing fluid of the smaller positive 

 body of the child, as fast as it is generated, 

 until it produces " a gradual blight." 



New Garden, June 15, 1840. 



