The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-02-14 00:00:00

FURTHER PARTICULARS ABOUT THE
SIAMESE TWINS.
The Pb ladelphie Press Rives the report of Dr. James
Holingswerth, ot North Caroline, concerning the death of
the Siamese Twine. Dr Hollingsworth. It says, ii about 50
yeses of age, and very Intelllgeot. Ile was horn In the ommity
of Seery In a village named Mount Airy, hi which he inns
resides. He studied medicine and pradosted from the J, tee.
ion COUOge, ill PiliiiidOiphiS In the ) ear 1847. After obtaining
his degree of II I) he returned tooth, and has since remained
there. The Press continues :
" Soon after arrtvieg in Philadelphia Dr. Hollings-
worth proceeded to the office of Dr. Pancoaet, at
Eleventh and Wainutstreets, and a private consult*
tion between these two gentlemen was held regarding
future movements to be made bt the matter of examina-
tion. Through the courtesy of Dr. Pennant, a reporter
of the Frees was admitted to the council, sue' the fob
lowing sketch ot the deceased wan offered :—The twins
were born in the village of Matching, on the coast of
Slam, in the year 1811, and cause to the United States
ishout the year 1829. After travelling through this
country and Europe, they, in 1846, bought a plantation
at a small town named TrareHole, in Wilkes; C 'linty
North Carolina, about 40 miles from where they died.
IF
Here they m m
married two sisters named Y vs, who were
native North Carolinians, and, oldie i uneducatod
women, were, nevertheless, possessed eery good in-
tellects. The wives were both very gang and healthy
Women. Their mother, it is said, was so large that
when she died it was found impossible to get the ho ly
out of the doorway of the dwelling before a portion of
the Hides of the doer-frame was cut away.
"Some time after taking up their abode In Mount
Airy they purchased a second plantatinn about two
miles from the first, and erected a dwelling upon it, to
which Eng removed his family, Chang'e family re-
mainieg at the old homestead. It vine their cooMni,
and the plan was never departed from, t' spend three
days at each house. Cold weather or warm, rain or
ehtue, nothing whatever woe permitted to interfere
with their idee. Upon one occ lei en a child of the brother
at whose house they were stopping died upon the I set day
of their visit to the dwelling, but the followirg day
being the appointed time for their change of base, the
two brothers left the scone of death and duce to their
usual programme.
"On the Thursday previous to the death the
brothers were at ('bang's residence, and the evening of
that day wee the appointed time for a removal to Eag's
dwelling. The day was cold, and Chang had been
complaining for a couple of mouths past of being very
ill. The road leading from the two houses was very
rouoh and fr, Brio. Early in the evening they started
upon their journey in an open waggon or carryall, an!
in a short time arrived at Etter,. Chang became
chilled by the expoeure, and coniplaiued of being very
cold, while his partner was in apparent good health,
and grumbled because be had to sit by the lire. They
retired that night, and, in answer to an inquiry from
the sick ESSIelf wife on Friday, he stated thost he was
much better. On Friday evening they retired to a
email room by themselves and went to bed, but Chang
was very restless. Sme time between midnight and
daybreak they got up and sat by the fire. Again Eng
protesteo. and said he wished to lie down, as he was
sleepy. Chang stoutly refoired, and replied that it hurt
his breast to recline. AfSer a while they retired to
their bed, and Eng fell into a deep sleep. About
four o'clock one of the sous came into the room, and,
going to the bedeide, discovered that his uncle was dead.
Eng was awakened by the noise, and in the greatest
alarm turned and looked upou the lifeless form beside
him, and was seized with violent nervous par•
oxysms. No physicians were at hand, and, it being
three miles to the town of Mount Airy, some time
necessarily elapsed before one could be summoned. A
messenger was &erode:heti to the village for Dr. Hol-
lingsworth, and he sent his brother, also a physician,
at once to the plantation, but before he arrived the
vital spark had fled, and the Sian:use twins were dead.
The news spread ltke wildfire, but, the village being
40 miles from Greensboro, the nearest railroad and
telegraph t Dice, of course did not reach the public of
the outside world until Monday. Dr. Holliegsworth
mad, an examination of the bodies, and found
the band which connected them to be an extension of
the sternum for about four inches in length and two
in breadth. The band was convex above and in
front and concave underneath. The two bodies had
but ono navel, which was in the centreot the band, and
it is supposed there were two umbilical cords branching
from thin, one extending into each body. The connect.
lug link was found to be the enisform cartilage, and
was as hard as bone, and did not yield in the least. It
may b • here mentioned that for some time previous to
their death no motions were observable in the band.
The doctor raid he did not think they would have slur-
vived a separation, not from the fact of being afraid
of separating the arteries, but Irons fear i 1 pr •• lueing
peritonitis. No Lamorrhage would have been pro-
duced, so far as could be Been, as they were no arterial
connexion of any account.
"There not being any means of embalming the
bodies, the following method was taken, after much
persuasion by the doctor", and a final consent by the
respective families, of keeping them from temporary
decay :—A box of tin was made and the bodies de.
posited therein, and the coffin was hermetically sealed.
,This was placed in a wooden box, and a third box en.
v, loped the whole. This casket was deposited In the
basement of a dwelling in the vicinity, and covered
with powdered charcoal to the depth of shout two
feet.'
"A correspondent says he had an interview with
Mr. Isaac Arturieli, an old friend of Chang and Eng,
and learnt from that gentleman some interesting par-
ticulars regarding the death of the brothers. In Mr.
Armfield's opinion, Eng died from loss of blood caused
by the non-circulation of the blood, which, after
Change death, had tl owed kit) his body from that of
Eng. The ligament, which is about eight inches long,
was warm u? to the time of Eng's drab. The formation
and nature of the ligament prove that the same blood
flowed in the veins of each of the brothers. The sp-
lit aronee of the bodies of the twins after death was
most striking. That of Chang was somewhat black,
especially in the face, denoting great agony immedi-
ately before death. Eng'e body preeente I the appear-
ance of deep sleep, there being no distortion of the
features whatever. A sure indicati in that the circa.
Mimi • f the b'ood was itepeded from some cause is
found in the fact of Eng complaining of bring cramped,
and contiims the opinion that it wan the death of
Chang that precipitated the death of Eng.
"On the day following the deaths a large crowd of
friends and acquaintances assembltd at the house of
Eng, where the bodies were lad clot A clergyman
was also there to perform the last rites of Christianity
over the bodies of the deceased. Contrary to general
expectation, however, the funeral was postponed until
the arrival of the children of both who were abrent,
and who were to be consulted in reference to the final
disposition of the bodies. To the meantime temporary
burial had been afforded them under Eng's hues. The
coffin was of peculiar shape, and was encased in a
large air-tight tin box.
It is not yet definitely known what course will be
adopted by the families of the deceased in making a
final disposition of the remaine, but it is rumoured
that they are to he embalmed, and that certain persons
of Mount Airy are negotiating with their widows and
children for their disposition, at an enormous price, to
some museum or medical college. There wean° onera-
Hon whatever performed on the ligament for the pnr-
pose of ascertaining as to whether there WS9 really any
artery poising through it or not, nor has any inquest
been held by the coroner of Mount Airy on what ap-
pears to be two mytterions deaths, so it was not con-
sidered necessary, the cause of death having been
•gsathsfactotily explained' by the doctor.
"The twins durino their lifetime rarely attended
Divine service, and did not belong to any particular
denomination. One of their wives profesietes to be a
Eaptiet, while the tither regularly attends the meetings
nf the Society of Friends. The children are all
Baptists. One of the daughters of Chang, and other
junior memheis of his family, protest against the no.
christianlike burial given their father and uncle by
the professed friends of the family and their own
mothers. It is reper:ed in Greenborough, North
Carolina, on good authority, that Dr. Hollingsworth
stated there that his mission was to dispose of the re-
mains on the highest terme he could negotiate. It is
also stated that the wives of the twins demand
10,000 dole, for the privilege of a post ?nosiest."