Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1873-04-19
IN A COFFIN 81 HOURS.
A Man Drowned in Delaware, Sent by
Express 10 New York, is Taken from
his Coffin in the latter City Alive

The Philadelphia Press of saturda
Published a marvellous story of a SUP
posed dead man coming to life, with
predatory paragraph stating that In
credible as the story sounds il obtained
the facts from entirely Trustworthy
sources.
The story is as follows ON the l1th
Of last month (March), Captain s. H
Mills, of New York city, was drowned
or, as IL has since turned out, merely sup
posed 10 be drowned, at Lewes, Del. He
fell overheard from his schooner. Upon
the body being recovered, and after every
attempt to res lore life had failed, IL was
placed in q coffin, and then again in th e
usual outer box, and shipped by Adams
| Express to the friends of the unfortunate e
man In New York city.
II remained in Philadelphia from 8. p.
m. To a. m. Upon Its arrival in New
York the certificate of the Lewes, Del. a.,
doctor was discovered TO be somewhat in
formal, and the advice of the Board of
Health was asked. II was at last con-
cluded 10 open the cases, and when this
was done the man was found to be alive.
The best medical aid was Immediately
called in, and IL was ere long thought
possible TO remove the captain with safety
to the Bellevue Hospital, where he now
is. He is not only doing we'll, but there
Is every probability of his speedy and
permanent recovery. How he existed,
confined within these airless cases, passes
comprehension. He was boxed up for
thirty-five hours, length Of time very
few persons would care to attempt exist
ence merely without food or drink.
He will live to tell his strange expert
ence. The would-be novelist will find
here a mine. Was he unconscious the
while, or was the terrible fate which
SEEMED inevitable, present to his under
standing, are questions 1t would be inter-
esting to have answered. We trust that
in mercy II was not permitted him TO
know aught until his awakening, for if
he was conscious during bis journey, the
mental torture may have so worked upon
him that he will live his term with
darkened mind.
His case is certainly a most extraordi-
nary one, and should have the exanina-
tion of medical experts. Doubtless the
officers Of the Adams Express office in
this city will give any additional iniorma-
tiou to those who wish to study and are
capable of studying the affair. The
beauty and pleasure Of death by drown
ing has time and again been written Of,
and if any are capable of giving their
personal experience Of such an occurrence
clearly, Captain Mills can do so, for he
was so nearly drowned that he must
have known all but the final gasp of death.
How narrowly he escaped being buried
alive may he imagined from the fact that
up to the time of opening the box there
was no idea that he lived Even then be
might have been sent to his grave had not
the peculiar flush upon his face attracted
attention. One may well shudder re-
memberiug how difficult II sometimes is
to tell the living from the dead aud that
the Imagination can picture nothing more
horrible than a breathing man consigned
to a tomb. We have heard of other Incl
dents where the living have been all but
buried, and indeed buried, but we do not
call to mind case as wonderful as this
in all its details. As bearing upon the
affair, the intense cold about March IL
should be remembered.