The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1869-11-18
A Wonderful Yarn.

Among the charming essays OF Cnarles
Lamb is one "0n the Inconvenience OF Be.
,ng Hanged Now there is possibility
that man may be hanged-not secundum
drtem, Of course, but bunglingly yet
live to tell Of 1t. But even Lamb, humor.
ously extrayagant as some Of his literary
vagaries were, would have hesitated long
time before writing a paper on the inconve
niences of being deeapited. There is an
old catch phrase which tells us that 'St.
Denis, who was once, il b, is not now,
the patron Saint of France walked and
talked five hours after his head was cut OF, y
If we break the sentence into two parts
putting full stop after talked and com.
mencing new sentcnce-the mystery re
solves itself into mere verbal trick. But
what shall we say of story which purports
TO have come from Brazil, and which, it l.
alleged, was printed recently ia the "Aa.
males de Ia Medicine et de Ia ChiJNrgie e.
rdugere." As we have not 4een the work
an question, we rely on the Courier des Flats
Unis for the fact that it really does contain
the article in question, and tor the state.
ment it embodies. Our readers are at lib.
erty to believe both if they will The case
is that Of decapiiated man who was sub
sequently restored to life. The curious cir
cumstanees attending it are thus given:
''0n the 18th of April. 1868, IN the prison
Of Villaric, and in the Province of MiuoS
Gereos, Brazil, two criminals were executed.
One Of them was named Aveiro, and the
other Carines The execution was conduct.
ed in private, within the walls Of the prison,
according to the law of Brazil,
doctor Lorenzo y Carmo, of Rio janet.
ro-vell known to the profession by his
remarkable works on electricity in its appli.
cation to physiology, by his surgical skill
and his success in autoplastic operations
entertained the idea OF proiiting by the
executions in question, to verify, expert,
mentally, the power Of electricity and to
demonstrate its analogy with some of the
phenomena of life. Up To this time the nu.
merous experiments in that way had been
made on the head and trunk separately. -
DIR. Lorenzo Carmo desired to try the
experiment with the two parts reunited. -
He obtained the necessary authority.
The heads Of the two condemned fell,
in quick succession, into the same basket
that of Carines first, then that Of Aveiro.--
immediately after the second execution one
OF the students assisting Dr.. Lorenzo firmly
compressed the arteries Of Ayeiro, to arrest
the hemorrhage, The body was then dc
posted on bed prepared for il in advance.
Another Of the assistants having seized
quickly head, DR.. Lorenzo fitted il as ex
actly as possible to the section, and caused
1t to maintain that position. Powerful cur.
rents Of electricity were then applied to the
base Of the neck and to the breast. Under
that influence, as in former experiments,
respiratory movements were presently OBJ
served. As the blood-which issued :
abundance from the surface of the section
into the trachea and bronchial tubes
threatened to prevent respiration, DIR. Lo
reuzo resorted tracheotomy. Respiration
soon became regular The head was then
fastened to the trunk by sutures and by a
special apparatus.
"The Doctor desired to ascertain how
long life could be thus arti6eialy main.
tanned. His astonishment was great when
he saw, at the end of two hours, that not
only did the respiration improve, under the
influence OF the electrict curreut, but that
the circulation had assumed certain regu.
larity. The pulse beat feebly but was per.
certible to the touch. The experiment was
continued without cessation. AT the end OF
sixty.two hours it was seen with amazement
that the work of cictrization had com.
Inenced on the edges OF the section. A little
later, signs of life manifested themselves
spontaneously in the head and in the mem.
beers, which, until then, had been motion
less. At that moment the Director Of the
prison entered, for the first time, the hall
where the experiment was in progress, and
Immediately discovered that, by a singular
error, aud owing to the necessity Of acting
with the utmost promptness after the exc.
cution took place. the head of Carines had
been taken for that Of Aseiro, and was fitted
10 the body Of the latter. Notwithstanding
fhis, the experiment was continued.
Three days later natural respiration set
an, and il was found that currents of cleo
tricity we're no longer needed.
''Dr. Lorenzo Caru and his assistants
were stapi6ed and alarmed by result SO
unexpected, and through the power of an
agent which, in their hands, had re estab
lished life in body to which the law had
denied the right Of existence.
Tho able surgeon, who. at first had only
IN vsew . simple experiment in physiology,
employed all his skill to continue the work
which science, aided against all expectation
by natsre, had 50 signally begun. He pro.
fnoted the process OF cicatrization, which
went steadily on under the most favorable
conditions, At the same time. by the use
OF stpbe, liquid foed was introduced iGto
the stomach. At the end Of three months
cicats.zstian was complete, and motion,
though still difficult, became gradually more
and more perfect. Finally, at the end of
lsevep mouths and . half. Ayeiro carines
was able 70 rise and walk, feeling nothing
more than little Stiffness in the neck, and
some ieeh'eness OF The limbs.''