i86 THE rUNCTIONAL RELATIONS OF THE 



which is so instructive as to be worth quoting in 

 full. 



" In the autumn of last year there was received into the medical 

 clinic of Leipzig a youth aged 16, in whom various phenomena of 

 anaesthesia gradually developed themselves to an extent which has 

 v^ry rarely been observed The skin of the whole surface of the 

 body was completely insensible, and that in respect to every kind 

 of sensation. The most powerful electric current, or a burning taper 

 held to the skin, was not able to produce any pain, or even a sen- 

 sation of touch. Almost all the accessible parts of the mucous 

 membrane of the body exhibited the same insensibility to pain. 

 Also, all those sensations which are classed together under the 

 name of 'muscular sense' were entirely absent. The patient, 

 when his eyes were closed, could be carried about round the room, 

 his limbs could be placed in the most inconvenient positions, with- 

 out his being in any way conscious of it. Even the feeling of 

 muscular exhaustion was lost. In addition, there came on also a 

 complete loss of taste and smell, amauroses of the left eye, and deaf- 

 ness of the right ear. 



In short, here was an individual whose only connection with 

 the outer world was limited to two doors of sense — to his one 

 (right) eye and his one (left) ear. Moreover, both these remaining 

 doors could at any time be easily closed, and in this way it was 

 possible to investigate the consequences of completely isolating the 

 brain from all external stimulation through the senses. I have 

 frequently made the following experiment, and often showed it to 

 others : — If the patient's seeing eye was bandaged and his hearing 

 ear was stopped, after a few (usually from two to three) minutes 

 the expression of surprise and the uneasy movements which at first 

 showed themselves ceased, the respiration became quiet and regu- 

 lar ; in fact, the i^atient was sound asleep. Here, therefore, the 

 possibility of artiticially inducing sleep, at any time, in a person 

 simply by withholding from the brain all stimulation by means of 

 the senses was realized. 



The awakening of the patient was as interesting as the sending 

 him to sleep. He could be awakened by an auditory stimulation, 

 as, for example, by calling into his hearing ear, or by visual stimu- 

 lation, by allowing the stimulus of light to fall upon his seeing 

 eye; but he could not be wakened by any pushing or shaking. If 

 he was left to himself he did eventually wake up of his own accord 



