奧裏·馬登/Orison Mardon
William K.Vanderbilt,when he last visited Constantinople,one day i nvited Coquelin the elder,so celebrated for his powers as a mimic,who happened to be in the city at the time,to give a private recital on boa rd his yacht,lying in the Bosphorus.Coquelin spoke three of his monolo gues.A few days afterwards Coquelin received the following memorandum f rom the millionaire:
"You have brought tears to our eyes and laughter to our hearts.Sinc e all philosophers are agreed that laughing is preferable to weeping,you r account with me stands thus:
"For tears,six times:$600
For laughter,twelve times:$2,400
$3,000
Kindly acknowledge receipt of enclosed check."
"I find nonsense singularly refreshing," said Talleyrand.There is g ood philosophy in the saying,"Laugh and grow fat." If everybody knew th e power of laughter as a health tonic and life prolonger,the tinge of s adness which now clouds our face would largely disappear,and many physi cians would find their occupation gone.
The power of laughter was given us to serve a wise purpose in our ec onomy.It is Nature's device for exercising the internal organs and givi ng us pleasure at the same time.
Laughter begins in the lungs and diaphragm,setting the liver,stoma ch,and other internal organs into a quick,jelly-like vibration,which gives a pleasant sensation and exercise,almost aqual to that of horseba ck riding.
During digestion,the movements of the stomach are similar to churni ng.Every time you take a full breath,or when you cachinnate well,the diaphragm descends and gives the stomach an extra squeeze and shakes it.
Frequent laughing sets the stomach to dancing,hurrying up the diges tive process.The heart beats faster,and sends the blood bounding throug h the body."There is not," says Dr.Green,"one remotest corner or litt le inlet of the minute blood-vessels of the human body that does not fee l some wavelet from the convulsions occasioned by a good hearty laugh." In medical terms,it stimulates the vasomotor centers,and the spasmodic contraction of the blood-vessels causes the blood to flow quickly.Laugh ter accelerates the respiration,and gives warmth and glow to the whole system.It brightens the eye,increases the perspiration,expands the ch est,forces the poisoned air from the least-used lung cells,and tends t o restore that exquisite poise or balance which we call health,which re sults from the harmonious action of all the functions of the body.This delicate poise,which may be destroyed by a sleepless night,a piece of bad news,by grief or anxiety,is often wholly restored by a good hearty laugh.