"The regularly recurring incidence of natural sleep forms one of the most important subjects for physiological investigation. Were it an event of rare occurrence, it would excite a degree of astonishment and alarm equal to the agitation now experienced by the spectator of an ordinary attack of syncope or of epileptic convulsion. But, so completely does the recurrence of sleep harmonize with all the other facts of life that we are as indifferent to its nature--that is, until one is faced with insomnia. In this text, insomnia, and other disorders of sleep, are examined in an attempt to uncover the various ways in which such disorders can be treated/prevented. The following topics are highlighted: the nature and cause of sleep; insomnia, or wakefulness; remedies for insomnia; treatment of insomnia in particular diseases; dreams; somnambulism; and artificial somnambulism or hypnotism." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved).