The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1862-03-01
A LIVING BURIAL.
By DR Q. @. SMITH.

was Strewing the Texan coast with the
wrecks OF vessels engaged in Transporting
troops and supplies to our army, it hap.
pened to be my regular turn for guard
mounting; and in spite of the thick Mack.
lnaw blanket | had thrown around my
person, the cold wind pierced to the mar.
row Of my bones and on returning to my
tent, after guard relief, on the following
morning, | carried with me an ague that
threatened every moment to shake the
very teeth out of my head.
Scarcely had | thrown myself, faint and
exhausted, upon my wet blankets, when
l was attacked by the prevailing camp
epidemic, which, after few hours, assu-
med the more terrible and alarming type
OF cholera While writhing. with the
fierce Spasms that racked every fibre of
my body, | was conveyed by my compan.
ions, on blanket, to the crowded hospital
tent, and consigned to the care of the in,
experienced young surgeon and his vol,
unteer assistants.
But, in spite Of number six" and the
rough manipulatiOns of the hospital at.
tendants, my terrible spaslns continued,
causing me most excruciating agony. Had
been broken on the wheel, my suferings
could not have been more intense. At
length, after several hours. of the most
acute torture, the cold, cadaverous per.
spIration of the collapse stage of cholera,
began TO eXude from my eXcoratcd sur
@sF'e Rs9zs@' 's''' ehEe;'0l ,lrnshY.j,,p ip.
creased, in the same ratio, my nervous
excitement subsided, till all pain was
gone, and I lay, motionIcss and scarcely
breathing, upon my pallet.
The attendants, under the directions of
the young doctor, had toiled most man
fully at the Skinning process, till they had
become as exhausted as myself, and fan.
cied that heard expressions of satisiac-
ton from them, as they desistcd from
their labors, when informed by the medi-
cal man that it was useless to continue
them, as | was then past recovery.
Poor fellow!" said the kind hearted
surgeon, hes goner; he's past all hu,
man skill; and the Dead March will be
playing for him before night! Have a
blanket ready, boys to sew him up in !"
Saying this, he turned from ne and
walked out into the open air.
Although speechless and motionless,
and, believe, breathless, still retained
consciousness and, with extraordinary
acuteneSs of perception, was observant Of
all about ME. could hear every groan
uttered by my sick companions, and took
in every word whispered about myself -
Some turned their faces towards my pal
let, and spoke kindly of me others jested
unfeelingly, saying had been mustered
out of the service before payday came
round; while another replied, in what he
considered a witticism, that the pay mas.
ter general would settle my arrearages
say, boys" said another, "suppoSe
we swap blankets with him. His is a
new one; he drew it from the suffers
only last week, and this here old un is
good enough to bury fellow in!"
So saying, the speaker, who was lame
from an accidental rifle shot, tossed his
worn-out and tattered blanket towards
me, and reaching for corner of my new
Mackinaw, appropriated it to his own use
This cool robbery of the dead, as they
then supposed. was looked upon as a good
joke, and applauded accordingly; and it
was owing to this trading Of blank cts, in
which was not consulted, doubtless, that
| am now permitted to pen this article
Shortly after this transaction, the doc
tor returned, followed by my captain
The latter looked around the tent, as if
searching for some one he could not dis.
cover, when the doctor, pointing to me,
said:
That's the man, Captain Bennett"
That's not one of my men, " replied
the Captain.
Yes, sir! That's Benson, or rather
what was, half an hour ago!'' ''''''"
"Is it possible Is that Benson, my
company clerk My God! what change
this terrible disease has wrought in the
poor fellow! How long, Doctor, did you
say it has been since he breathed his
last?"
about half an hour or so," was the
reply.
~ could have better spared better
mani" sighed the good captain, as he
raised one hand to the corners of his eyes
and walked out Of the tent But, as he
reached the entrance, he turned and in-
quired:
AT what time shall send around a
burial party, Doctor :"
In half AN hour, if you please" was
the answer " for it will take about that
time for the boys to sew the body up in a
blanket"
"Great Father of Mercies!" | mentally
exclaimed, a. they are about to consign me
to the cold, dark grave, while am yet in
the possession Of all the faculties Of life,
save only those of motion! - Never until
my really dying hour can forget the
thriif'of iferrer shat shoe through my soul
at that fearful thought. 1t seemed as if
the crushing weight of a mountain had
been hurled down upon me, and yet
lived. Dante'S Inferno, with all its ter
rifle horrors, never appeared to the over.
excited imagination Of the poet as did the
awful visions that reared themselves to
my mental eye. was frozen with the
extremity of terror! Living to myself
with consciousness never before more ac-
tive and perfect, yet dead to all those
about me. They were in hurry, even,
to remove what they considered was al
ready u fostering corpse, from their midst,
Already my shallow grave had been dug
in the chaparal, and my comrades were pre-
pairing for the solemn procession. In vain
| tried to cast from me that frightlul in
cubuS that weighed me down. Paralysis
held me as in an iron vice-the paralysis
of portion of that cerebral apparatus
termed the moter tract; while the nerves
of sensation remained intact, or rather,
more exquiSitely sensitive than ever be-
fore, when in perfect health.
Again the doctor approached me, and
placing his hand, glowing with animal
heat, upon my cold and clammy face, at
tempted to close my eyes-but the swol-
len and corrugated lids refused to be
pressed down, but gazed with fixed stare
upon his own, and essayed in vain to
throw something Of my agonized sensa-
tons into the mOtionless orbs. For an
instant. nv heart almost beat again. at