648 SLEEP- WAKING. 



sense, the perceptive faculty of the sleeper is perfect, even remark- 

 ably acute. But when his mind is distracted, his reverie presenting 

 different objects, even loud sounds are imperceptible to him." 

 If, on the other hand, a particular sense is not torpid, but the 

 portion of the brain in immediate connection with its nerves sen- 

 sible, impressions may not be perceived, on account of the excite- 

 ment of the thoughts of attention, in another direction; just as, 

 when in study we become wrapt in thought, we cease to hear the 

 chimes of a clock in our apartment : and, though a sensation take 

 place, the mind may form a wrong judgment if imperfectly excited 

 towards it ; as when Negretti, if a blow was given him with a stick, 

 or a muff was thrown at him, fancied in each instance it was a dog, 

 mistakes similar to those which we make, if addressed or 

 touched when deep in thought. And, although a sense be nearly 

 torpid, a powerful partial excitement and concentration of thought, 

 such as happens in common dreaming when we successfully effect 

 what we had attempted in vain when awake, may cause very 

 slight impressions on that sense to be accurately perceived. 

 Probably, not merely is the intellect partially much heightened, 

 in some instances ; but a sense rendered exquisite, so that a 

 person may see with the eyes so much closed that others consi- 

 der them shut, and perceive in what others call darkness. I shall 

 mention a case of extraordinary sensibility to light at p. 653. infra. 

 The sensibility"sometimes either quickly varies or becomes very 

 peculiar in the paroxysm. For, while it was certain that my 

 little patient in herdelirium saw perfectly all round her, I darted 

 my finger rapidly towards her eyes, but the pupil did not lessen 

 nor the lids wink. The same extraordinary phenomenon oc- 

 curred in a case presently to be quoted from Dr. Abercrombie, 

 and in another from an American journal. I made the expe- 

 riment repeatedly on different days. Another singularity was 

 that, though she evidently saw well around, she declared, on 

 my holding up one finger, that there were two ; on holding up 

 two, she declared there were four ; on holding up four, she said 

 there was a large number. On presenting a watch to her, she 

 could not tell the time, though she attempted carefully : she at 

 length pronounced an hour, and persisted in it, but quite wrong. 

 Once while looking at Baron Dupotet, she said he had a great many 

 eyes., and then that his eyes turned right round in his head. In the 

 delirium I always noticed one eye to be too near the nose. The 



