The Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Scott Co., Iowa) 1841-185?, 1848-12-07

y
I in ltalian anecdotes, nre to be mostly ex-
| planned as The fate of persons affected as
Won were, Captain. The horror OF the un-
!ortnnnics. nwnre Of what nrc coming, mus,
hive been terrific. Conceive also the feel
. incs al q man in that stnte overhcaring the
nndsguised sentiments of those who, while
lie was alive, treated him with snch hypo
critical tenderness! How he would curse
, his inability 10 awake md confoind thcm!'
don't put much Faith in those cnscs.
observed my right hand ncighhor. people
hive been IN tho point Of being buried n
live. we know: bu, authenticated cases nrc
few
'Bnt remember said !. fhat of Ill those
who have been buried alive, none have
come back Ia tell the tnler
} yes, in some cnscs they have escaped.
In the Obsfrratoire Florcnfino. there is n
story told IL Iady who wns buried. mud
who nwoke in the vnult mud escaped. Leigh
Hunt drnmn,ized the story in his Legend
IF Florence
There's good nnccdote,' said the Cap
tain. in 'Idllcmand DIES Rcaur,' Of n man
whose wife WINS supposed TO he dcnd. hu,
who WINS brought to life again by the shock
ol the bier against n house, the bearers l,av-
ing stumbled in turning corner. Some
time afterwards, she died in earnest. A.
the fnnernl procrssion was nb"lt ~ set
firth, the di-c"ns"inic husband approached
the priest, and bet ccn his sohs snid. Re
careful in turning the corner, miH you!"
80 turn To Your own case, Captain. II
suggests unpleasant reflections. Il nbso-
lnielv throws u doubt upon that which hih.
cr,o has been acknowledged so indispn,n-
bic. viz, that the dend feel no pain. But
do they not? ] nm not nj Mi sure of it,
How are we IN prove they do not? The
mere absence ri any Of the signs which. in
n normal condition Of the hodv. Indicate
pain, is no proof; because death is abnor.
NAL In vour case. there was coDco,ni.
tnncc Of keen scnsibiity. with n complete
absence Of all outward indications thereof.
How nm ] tn know TINT the dead man
whom mn dissecing does MT feel every
incison Of the knife, though he he utterly
unable to give any indication thereof? Aud
what fearful thought is even The suspicion
of snch thing"
I'VE must alter our definition Of denth,'
said my ncighbor. I'VE must call death
TINT state Of the body wherein il is no long.
er nbe 10 obey the yolIiions.'
Then paralysis is dcnihr
"a parnl,zcd limb is dead limb. 20 long
as il rcmnins parni,zcd. When the whole
irnme is paralyzed, the man is dend.'
'i.ct us, inicrposcd the Cap,an, 'com-
pare the two opposite conditions oi' u mes
merized patient. and u patient affected Ms |
was affected. In the one case paralysis Of
the nerves of sensation -
Nay, Captain, not cxacily--only of
those nerves which minister tn the scnsa.
'i"n ofpain; the senses arc no, affected; the
pntieni hears, sees. mud SMELLS
well, then, will he NOR. precise, ard
shy TINT, in the mcsmeric state, the nerves
which minister 10 the sensation of pain are
paralyzcd, while the nerves which minister
to muscular action nre in foil play. In the
! other case. the nerves Of motion nre para-
) yzcd, and the nerves 81 sensation arc in
full play. In which case would you call
the man dead man?'
In neither casc,' exclaimed one Of the
guests.
why not in the lnttcr?'
|, Because only the motory nerves nre
J dead; and oil that 10 essentially human
livcs.'
How is that 10 be ascertnincdY
why yol just now assumed it,
i did. But innsmnch as each patient
. can only know his own case, and cnnno,
make il known to others, my assumption
calls to the ground
i don't understand you.'
] slf Your motory nerves nre paralyzed,
how am to know that yonr sensory nerves
} arc not likewise paraI wed? You give me
no clue. To spectator there 10 absolute.
! y no indication Of the sensorv nerves be.
ing in normal condition. How, then, is
il To bc KNOWN
Ihere interposcd, and called attention "a
the singular effects Of galvanism upon the
dead body.
'lf,' said ], Two accept the hypothesis oil
some modern physiologist, and regard the
brain ms n voltnic battery, and all muscu
lar movement NJ the effect Of an electrical
current along the nerves, our views Of Life
and Death will be wondrously altered
sllow so?'
why, you must al admit that sensation
and thought are not electrical phenomens
!. you cannot suppose them other thnn vital
phenomena; TINT is 10 say, = peculiar class
Of pbenotnenn qni,c apart from oil others 2
well: conclude
But It is by no means necessary to sup.
pose that muscular motion is any thing
moro than ..lvanism, or something nnalo.
gous. Indeed, VIC know the. tho effects Of