Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1873-12-18
A Healthy Man Spends Twenty Years
in Bed.

At the last meeting of the Pioneer Soci-
ETY. Mr.. j. s. Tibbits read the following
sketch, giving the incidents in the life OF
Michigan man who, although in perfect
health, kept his bed for nearly twenty
years.
Mr.. Samuel Dunn emigrated from the
State of New York to Michigan in 1889,
and settled in tne township Of Plymouth,
Wayne county, three miles west from the
village of Plymouth, where he resided
until his death, which occurred in the
month Of May, 1873. He was born in the
year 1892, and was therefore eighty-one
years of age at the time of his death. He
served in the war of 1912, was honorably
discharged, and pension was granted
him by the general government about a
year before his death, not cent of which,
however, did he or any of his family ever
receive.
Nothing unusual in his life occurred
during the first twenty years of his resi-
dence here. He was man of intemper-
ate habits, and nearly every week would
go to the village and have spree. At
such times he was very noisy, but not
quarrelsome. The writer of this sketch
has frequently heard him call out at the
dead Of night for some one TO "come and
block the wheel" while he was ascending
steep hill on his way home. On going
out Mr.. Dunn would be found standing
midway up the hill, stamping and tread.
ing like baulky horse, calling out loud
ly for some one to "come and block the
wheel" After making two or three at.
tempts TO ascend the hill he would look
down to the foot of it and take another
start. After two or three efforts of this
kind he would finally reach the top, when
he would want to bet "two-and-six that he
could yell louder and jump higher than
any other man in the community"
He had in his woods a very large hol-
low tree, and here he was in the habit of
going when he had his sprees, and hold
ing what he called his scamp meetings."
AT such times, the woods would resound
with his devotions, which were charac-
terized more for zeal than for piety.
After an unusual awakening" In his
hollow tree one day, he went to the house,
took down the bottle from the shelf, took
"horn," and then made solemn VOW that
he would never touch another drop Of
ardent spirits while he lived, nor utter
another oath. And he religiously kept
his VOW, for he Immediately went to bed
and lay there for nineteen years and nine
months.
During all this time he was never
known to have his clothes on or to walk
a step. At first, for a number of years, he
was very taciturn, and would not converse
with any one, and whenever person APP
preached his bed he would turn his head
away from them. During the latter
period of his life he would converse with
members of his family sufficiently to
make his wants known, which were few
and easily supplied.
He seemingly enjoyed the besrof health
during all this time, never took any medi-
cine but once, and then only some simple
remedy. His appetite was good and he
ate two hearty meals a day, breakfast and
dinner, but no supper. He preferred
hearty food, and relished pork, potatoes
and greens, baked beans and meat. He
drank tea and coffee regularly, but moth
ing stronger. He slept soundly from ten
to twelve hours out of the twenty four
Detroit Free Press
Ryan was to get $20, 1000 in gold If ne