Rensselaer Republican, Volume 13, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 November 1880 — An Extraordinary Sleeper. [ARTICLE]

An Extraordinary Sleeper.

The following account of a laboring man, hsumnl Bsuhucl Clinton, of Timburr neftt Bath, is taken, so far as the jnbatontial Ctathe 13th Clinton, who was then twenty-four yean was made to rouse him, but in vain. At the end of that time he awoke of himself, and went about hto business as usual Nothing more extraordinary occurred until fas 9th of April, 1898, when heagain AU into a profound aleep. Mr. Gibbs, aa apothecary of was asnt for after a few days, and bled,blistered, cupped and scarified the young man, all to do purpose. Victuals werekept betas him. of which ho occasionally ate without waking. Sometimes the act of eating wto not'fully aceomplished, and he would bo found with hto month fall of meat. In this manner ho continued for seventeen weeks, till the 7th of August. He then awoke naturally, put on hto ctothesanA went into tho fields to his work. He was surprised to find it was harvest time, the period that had elapsed since ho was at work sowing onto and barley having been a blank. From this time, again, ho remained well until tho 17th of August, 1897, when he complained of a ahtvering and a coldneas in nia back, vomited once or twice, and once more fell asleep. Dr. Oliver, whose account of the matter appeared in the PhUttfMcal Trmaadiont, then went to see him, and found hto pulse regular, and hto body agreeably warm. He tested the sleeper in tho most severe manner,and tried by every artifice he could devise to surprise him into wakefalness, and was at last competed to admit that the aleep was real. About ten days after, an apothecary (Mr. Gibbs, we presume) took fourteen ounces of blood from his arm. tied it up again, and left him as he found him, without tho least movement having been made by the ineeper. About the end of September, Dr. Oliver saw him again, and a gentleman ran a pin into hto arm to the very bone, but Clinton gave no sign of being sensible of what was done to him. Once, on the 19th of November, he woke up and spoke to his mother, but almost instantly went to sleep again and continued so tiu the end of January or beginning of February. He then awoke perfectly well, and, as on former occasions, had no recollection of anything that had occurred. He resumed his business, and nothing more is on record concerning him.