rdiac movement at will. Cheyne speaks of a Colonel Townshend who
appeared to possess the power of dying, as it were, at will,--that is,
so suspending the heart's action that no pulsation could be detected.
After lying in this state of lifelessness for a short period, life
would become slowly established without any consciousness or volition
on the man's part. The longest period in which he remained in this
death-like condition was about thirty minutes. A postmortem examination
of this person was awaited with great interest; but after his death
nothing was found to explain the power he possessed over his heart.

Saint Augustin knew of a priest named Rutilut who had the power of
voluntarily simulating death. Both the pulsation and respiration was
apparently abolished when he was in his lifeless condition. Burning and
pricking left visible effects on the skin after his recovery, but had
no apparent effect on his lethargy. Chaille reports an instance of
voluntary suspension of the pulse.

Relative to hibernation, it is well-known that mice, snakes, and some
reptiles, as well as bees, sometimes seem to entirely suspend animation
for an extended period, and especially in the cold weather. In Russia
fish are transported frozen stiff, but return to life after being
plunged into cold water. A curious tale is told by Harley, from Sir
John Lubbock, of a snail brought from Egypt and thought to be dead. It
was placed on a card and put in position on a shelf in the British
Museum in March, 1845. In March, 1850 after having been gummed to a
label for five years, it was noticed to have an apparent growth on its
mouth and was taken out and placed in water, when it soon showed signs
of life and ate cabbage leaves offered to it. It has been said, we
think with credible evidence, that cereal seeds found in the tombs with
mummies have grown when planted, and Harley quotes an instance of a
gentleman who took some berries, possibly the remnants of Pharaoh's
daughter's last meal, coming as they did from her mummified stomach
after lying dormant in an Egyptian tomb many centuries, and planted
them in his garden, where they soon grew, and he shortly had a bush as
flourishing as any of those emanating from fresh seeds.

Human hibernation is an extremely rare anomaly. Only the fakirs of
India seem to have developed this power, and even the gifted ones there
are seldom seen. Many theories have been advanced to explain this
ability of the fakirs