SLEEP. 529 



SLEEP. 



It is absolutely necessary that the wasted forces of the body 

 should be restored by refreshing sleep. The amount of sleep 

 should be proportioned to the fatigue undergone ; therefore, after 

 a hard day's hunt, retire as soon as possible, and do not sit dozing 

 and nodding before the fire. Rest, so natural to all animal life, 

 will soon restore the wearied functions to their normal state of 

 existence, and impart fresh vigor and strength to the exhausted 

 frame of the ardent sportsman, and thus make him ready for the 

 pleasures or business of the succeeding day. Sleep acts as a balm 

 to his excited system, and restores that just equilibrium of the 

 vital functions so much deranged by long-continued efforts in 

 search of game. Without a fair quantum of healthful repose, it 

 is impossible for any one to pursue the sports of the field with that 

 zest and ardor that every lover of the gun and dog should possess. 



Sleep, however, to be beneficial, should be moderate and not 

 indulged in to excess, but, as before observed, should be regulated 

 by the amount of labour undergone. Excess of sleep relaxes the 

 system, and even enervates the whole physical as well as mental 

 apparatus. Less sleep is required in warm weather than in cold; 

 and Nature herself seems to have regulated this fact by giving us 

 the long nights of winter for sleep, and the short nights of summer 

 for siestas only. 



Some individuals require much more sleep than others. We are 

 satisfied with six or seven hours under ordinary circumstances, and 

 are led to believe that most persons can get along with a similar 

 quantity. It is astonishing with what little sleep some persons of 

 active disposition accustom themselves to, either from necessity or 

 habit ; while, on the other hand, many slothful drones, whose whole 

 time is spent in strutting about like turkey-cocks up and down our 

 principal streets, are not satisfied with double and treble nay, even 

 quadruple the repose that many of our most active citizens 

 require. 



It is well known that many of the most distinguished com- 



34 



