Periodical DUMBNESS

Periodical DUMBNESS. In the Ephemerides of the Curious, we have an account of a periodical dumbness, which had continued for more than 15 years, and had not gone off at the time the account was wrote. The person was son to an innkeeper at Jesing in the duchy of Wirtemberg in Germany. He was one night taken so ill after supper, that he could neither stand nor sit. He continued, for about an hour, oppressed with sickness to such a degree as to be in danger of suffocation. At the expiration of this time he grew better; but, during three months, he was much dejected, melancholy, and, at times, fearful. He was then suddenly struck

Transferring line. struck dumb, and became unable to pronounce the least word, or form the least sound, though he could speak very articulately before. The loss of speech was at first instantaneous, and continued only a few minutes: but the duration of it began to lengthen every day; so that it soon amounted to half an hour, two hours, three hours, and at last to 23 hours, yet without any order. At last the return of speech kept so constant and regular an order, that, for 14 years together, he could not speak except from noon, during the space of one entire hour, to the precise moment of one o'clock. Every time he lost his speech, he felt something rise from his stomach to his throat. Excepting this loss of speech, he was afflicted with no other disorder of any animal function. Both his internal and external senses continued found: he heard always perfectly well, and answered the questions proposed to him by gestures or writing. All suspicion of deceit was removed by his keeping exactly the same hour, though he had no access to any instruments by which time can be measured.