Case CIV

A highly respectable man, who had long been in command of a large merchant ship, related the following to Sir Walter Scott, which occurred whilst he was in the Tagus. One of his crew was assassinated by a Portuguese, and it was rumored that the ghost of the deceased haunted the ship. Sailors are proverbially superstitious; and, in this instance, they exhibited much repugnance to staying on board. In fact, it seemed probable that they would desert rather than return to England with a ghost as passenger. It became, therefore, necessary for Captain S. to sift the matter; he discovered that, although they all pretended to have seen lights, and to have heard noises, the whole story was founded on the statement of one of his lieutenants, an Irishman and a Catholic; but a cool, honest, and sensible man, and whom the captain had no reason to suspect of wilfully deceiving him.

* J. Charpignon, Physiologic Medecine et Metaphysique da Magnetieme. 1 vol. in 8, Paris 1848. † Richard, Theorie des Songes, 1 vol. in 12, p. 104, Paris, 1754.

The lieutenant solemnly told Captain S. that the spectre of the deceased appeared to him almost nightly, obliged him to abandon whatever he was engaged in, and, as he expressed himself, burnt him by a slow fire.

He related this with every demonstration of horror, proving the reality of his distress and his fear. The captain, without pursuing the subject, resolved to watch, during the night, the actions of this man.

When the bells sounded midnight, the sleeper suddenly rose, with a wild and distressed look, lighted a candle, and walked to the kitchen; he there sat down, and, with eyes wide open, appeared to be staring at some terrible object, from which, however, he could not remove his gaze. At the end of some seconds he rose, took a pot, which he filled with water, and, talking to himself in a low tone, mixed salt in it, and sprinkled it over the kitchen. He then heaved a deep sigh, like a man relieved of a heavy oppression, and, returning to his hammock, slept peacefully. On the following morning he related to the captain the exact history of the apparition, adding that the ghost had taken him to the kitchen; but that, having fortunately procured, he did not know how, some holy water, he had succeeded in ridding himself of his visitor.

The captain told him all that had actually passed in the night, adding details that proved him to have been the dupe of his imagination. He acknowledged the justness of the captain's reasonings, and, as often happens in cases where the illusion has been pointed out, the dream returned no more.*

In ordinary cases, the affection occurs during the night; but it is not very uncommon to observe, through the day, a state which bears some analogy to somnambulism, and in which is particularly remarked an indifference to external objects. Under some circumstances, these attacks have occurred suddenly; and, under others, they have been preceded by a noise or confusion in the head. The individuals then become more or less absent; they have no longer any connection with exterior objects, or have but a confused idea of them. They may frequently converse in a continued and intelligible manner, but the actual impress of the mind is reflected in their discourse. In some cases they recite long poems, often with more correctness than they would do in their waking hours. They sometimes hold discourse with imaginary beings, relate circumstances or conversations that happened long back, and which they might be supposed to have forgotten; some have been heard to sing much better than in their natural state, and authentic examples are cited of persons in that state who have spoken correctly in a language which they knew but imperfectly.

* Walter Scott, op. cit. p. 216.