THE WILL-O'-THE-WISP. 279 



exhilaration increases till in many cases it becomes uncontrollable mental excite- 

 ment. But after a time if the dose has been sufficiently large, when all the out- 

 posts have been taken, the enemy enters the very citadel of the mind and lays 

 its paralyzing touch on the brain itself. This high state of mental excitement is 

 quickly changed to one of stupidity and sottishness. Thus the very symptoms 

 relied on to prove that alcohol is a stimulant, when correctly interpreted, only 

 prove it to be a deadly narcotic. The delusions in regard to the true character 

 of alcohol and its effects upon the system, that has prevailed not only among the 

 common people but also among physicians and physiologists has led to errors in 

 practice that have been fraught with unmeasured woe to our race, and has been 

 a sad commentary on the declaration of the wise man that "Wine is a Mocker." 

 But with the increase of light on this subject may we not hope the evils resulting 

 from the misuse of this powerful narcotic poison will speedily cease to afflict 

 mankind. 



Hutchison, Kansas. 



THE WILL-O'-THE-WISP. 



Not often has " dry " Physical Science to do deal with the phenomena which 

 figure in folk-lore. Such an exceptional case is afforded by the nocturnal occur- 

 rence known to the learned as Ingis fafuus, and to the unlearned in different coun- 

 tries as Jack-o'-Lantern, Will-o'-the-Wisp, Wild- (or rather World-?) fire, Friar's- 

 Lantern, Feu Follet, Heerwisch, &c. The exception deserves the more notice as 

 modern chemistry and physics have by no means succeeded in finding a satisfac- 

 tory explanation of the facts. Facts they undoubtedly are. The ignis fatuus, 

 though by no means common, has still from time to time been observed by com- 

 petent witnesses, and occasionally by several persons in company. Nor is such 

 evidence disputed: let any man of sober habits and ordinary truthfulness state 

 that he saw a Will o'-the- Wisp at such and such a time and place, and the most 

 skeptical of our orthodox sa7jants will listen with calm interest, and, though he 

 may question the narrator closely as to the circumstances of the case, he will by 

 no means proclaim it a priori impossible, or throw out any insinuations concern- 

 ing ' ' dominant ideas. " 



If we examine and compare the most recent and trustworthy records of this 

 phenomenon, we find it described as a light which appears in calm, mild nigh ts, 

 chiefly in summer or autumn. It is most commonly observed in swampy or 

 marshy places, or where much organic matter is undergoing decomposition. Dr. 

 Phipson^ describes it as most common in England, "in the peaty districts around 

 Port Carlisle, in Cumberland," on the Continent "in the damp valleys between 

 the pretty little university town of Marburg and that of Cassell, and more certain- 

 ly still in the graveyards outside the town of Gibraltar." The light in question 

 is generally single, though sometimes two wisps are said to have been seen to- 



1 Familiar Letters on the Mysteries of Nature. Loadoa : Sampson Low & Co. 



