SLEEPING FOR EIGHTEEN MONTHS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1793, 19 March 1888, Page 3

SLEEPING FOR EIGHTEEN MONTHS

AN EXTKAOKDTNARY CASE. A moat singular case h&B been lying at the Walton workhouse for a considerable time p»st, a man named Peter Winstoffsky having bean the cause of a large amount of arxiety to the medioal staff, Peter Wlnstoffeky, who U beliered to be • Russian, is forty-three years of age, and from his own account id anmarrled, and has been earning a livelihood as a sailor. At the commencement of March, 1886, he entered the workhonse and stayed until April, when he left, Oa the 6th of July m the Bam a year he again entered the hospital, but this time m an unconscious condition, having been found lying m the street. As very hot weather was being experienced at that time it was thought that Winatoffeky was suffering from Bunatroke, an* he was treated accordingly, bat with no apparent benefit. As several dtyj went by and he remained m the same condition, it was considered to be almost a hopeless caae. The mm never exchanged a word with any person, and did not make any reply to questions put to him. A very remarkable feature of the case is that be was alwuy* ready to eat his food, Unabla io take hia fo:d like an ordinary person, he had to be fed like a baby, and even then it vaa impossible to make him ulter a word or give a sign of ooDßciousneß9. He usually remained m bed wi'h his eye 3 dosed, but when they did open, generally at meal times, they betrayed scarcely any intelligence. From the 6th Joly, 1886, until the 6th of August of tho past year, exactly thirteen motitha, ho Blept away and merely took bis meale. Frequent efforts were made to restore the man to his natural condition, some of them being of • severe nature, inclnding the use of a etrocg electric battery ; but he was almost passive to everything, only. a slight twitching of the nerves being observed daring the operallono. At last, however, this modern imitator of Rip Van Winkle woke from h'.B lo.ng slumber of thirteen months. He spoke to a parßon near him m the ward, who was greatly astonished, and to some extent frightened, to hear the man's voice at last. Peter did not seem to be any tho worse and conversed quite rationally with everybody. He however, could scarcely be broaght to believe that he had slept so long — In fact, be stated that when he awoke he quite understood that it was only the night previous that he had retired to rest. In the course of the thirteen months Winatoffsky, who is a powerful man, became very much reduced m flesh, but Utterly he regained a good deal, and Is now very nearly as well as ever, though he complains of pains m hia back, which have, no doubt, been caused by lying m bed for each a lengthened period. He is still being attended to by the doctors, and it Is to be hoped that he will completely recover after suah a novel experience.