Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-08-17
Double People.

CONCERNING double people, twins
united in an abnormal manner at birth, the
authentic records are numerous, but few
examples must suffice. In 1701 united
twins were born at SZany, in Hungary;
they were christened by the names OF
Helen and Judith, and were exhibited for
some years in the chief cities of Europe.
They were joined together at the lower
part of the back, the faces and bodies be-
ing half sideways or diagonal, neither
back to back nor side by side. The two
girls were not equally strong, nor equally
well made; one had more resolute will
than the other, and settled all questions
as to whether to move, and whittier Being
carefully educated, they read, rocited and
sang well, conversed in Hungarian, Ger
man, French and English, and afforded
much scope for study to psychologists;
for there was sufficient difference between
them in strength, temper, health and in
tellect, to give play 10 two sets of forces,
mental as well as bodily. 1t was observed,
however, that when one was i'll, the other
became more or less affected with the same
complaint; and it was deemed probable
that their deaths would be nearly stimuli
laneous. This proved to be the case.
Judith was attacked with a complicated
| disease of brain and lungs in 1923, and
of her sisters malsdy was in good health,
soon sickened with her and the two died
almost at the same instant They were
buried ina convent graveyard at Presburg,
and the particulars of their remarkable
history found admission into the Philo-
sophical Transactions of the Royal Society.
The most extraordinary case of partial
doubleness on record, perhaps, was one
which was described by Everard Home
in letter to John Hunter, the great sur
geon; it was Hindoo double headt d boy,
born near Burdwan, in Bengal; and the
degree of sympathy manifested between
the two heads was watched with muca in
terest. The particulars are given in the
Philosophical Transactions. There was
another case of man named Lazarus, or,
rather. double man named LazArus-Jo-
hannes, very attractive to sight seers in
Germany several Years ago There was
much of a curious character in the degree
in which the feeding of Lazarus helped 10
feed Johannes withoug any distinct par
ticipation of the latter in the eat
ing process. AS the Johannes por-
tion of the duplex was less fully
developed than tine Lazarus, some dis
cussion arose among the ecclesiastics as to
whether each half had soul TO be saved
distinct from the other; it was decided in
the affirmative, and the two names Of L4z-
arus and Johann, were given in baptism.
The men were alive at the age Of twenty
eight, but We have no mention of their
age at death Many of our readers are,
no doubt familiar with the appearance of
the Siamese twins, who were exhIbiiei in
London in their youth, and again, short
time ago, in their maturer years. The
twins are more completely two human
beings than any others we have here
spoken of; for the only ply sical or organ
lied band of connection between them Is
at the two chests. When first exhibited
they were not exactly opposite to each
other, but stood side by side, or rather OBJ
| liQuely one by another; but this position,
there can be little doubt, was acquired by
the attempts which they had instinctively
made to separate from each other In walk
ing, or in lying and sitting down, and by
the extension they had thus effect d in
their band of union, which was considera-
bly, more slender than in any other yet de-
scribed 1t was quite impossible for them
to remain always face to face; therefore
their bodies acquired an obliQue direction,
| in which they also moved The conse-
quence of this was, that the right limbs OF
tine one and the left of the other indiyidu-
al were the principal organs of movement,
and that the intermed ediaLe limbs (that is to
say, the left of the one and the right OF the
other) remained nesrly passive. In organic
and animal relation OF life, they seem to
be independent of each other. Each has
his own circulation of the blood, his own
respirative and digestive functions. The
curious, yellow-skinned couple were wont
to play at battledoor and shuitlecock with
each other: one had a battledOor in his
right hand, the other had one in his left,
ard very deftly they tossed the feathered
messenger to and trc.-AH Tie Year hound
A LOUISVILLE physician, having been
presented with a live ratt esnake, con
cluded to preserve it. He proce' ded to
kill it by first administering chloroform
to it, and then, to preserve the specimen
/ intact, he plunged it into large glass jal
full of alcohol. The reptile was quits
motionless after receiving the anesthetic
ard exhibited no signs of life until it hs6
been in the spirits full fifteen minutes ii
then began to writhe in. the jar in such 6
l. II e. n.