190 
CREATURES OF MYSTERY 
lowed theory too far afield in a vain endeavor to explain some 
of the mysterious things of this life. Almost everyone has, 
at some time or other in life, observed the effect of these 
changes within the human form if they would but connect them 
up with the above. They have surely taken note of the fact 
that anyone greatly enraged or frightened turns deathly pale; 
that their heartbeat is stepped up, and that deep breathing is 
noticeable. 
Under such circumstances men have been known to perform 
unbelievable feats of physical strength and endurance which 
baffled or defied satisfactory explanation. 
When such circumstances come into the life of any person, 
the forces of nature, which are wholly automatic in their oper¬ 
ation, act quickly to prepare such one for a fight, or to flee 
from the scene, whichever may be rendered imperative. 
When the blood circulation is restricted to the vital organs 
then the nerves which lie near the surface are put to sleep, so 
to speak—so acted upon by the absence of blood that they are 
practically paralyzed, all of which might be introduced as proof 
that Nature is both wonderful and merciful. When such con¬ 
dition prevails, savage beasts may fight to the death in the 
jungle, or men upon the battlefields receive the fatal thrust 
without consciousness of the fact that they are doomed to die. 
The case of a veteran of the first World War is called to 
mind. He carried an ugly scar above his right eye, the result 
of a bayonet thrust which missed because of his alertness. He 
felt no pain at the time, neither was there any flow of blood. 
On his return to his own trenches, when his passions had be¬ 
come somewhat normal and blood again commenced to flow 
to the very surface, he became conscious for the first time of 
an acute pain. Feeling to determine the cause of it, his face 
was becoming flooded with blood. 
Many and varied are the changes which take place in the 
human form when the passions are thoroughly aroused. Any 
person who would cultivate an intimate acquaintance with the 
rattler will not fail to observe that as he gets himself under 
more perfect control the rattler will respond correspondingly. 
There has never been any question in the mind of the writer 
