The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1873-05-05

An event occurred in this city on Friday
last (Good Friday which has created intense
excitement in the narrow circle where the
circumstances are known. The human
mind is prone to belief in the supernatural
and no matter how much reason and COM
mon sense stand in the way to perfect faith in
such agencies, yet there is a disposition to ac-
cept many events out of the ordinary way as
having been produced by a mysterious and
omnipotent power. This is not the age of
miracles, we are told, and yet, now and then
events occur, so unaccountable, mysterious,
inexpicable, that our faith in the axiom is
greatly shaken. The case we are about to
narrate is a parelel almost to that wonderful
manifestation which took place in Virginia
City a few months ago, and, and which is
yet unexplained to the satisfaction of unbe-
leyers in spiritualism or other theorias not
strictly in accordance with established laws.
A young lady named Collins, residing at 11O6
Pine street, is the person directly interested.
Miss Collins is an English girl, TWENTY-FIVE
wears of age, an orphan, and has some proper
ty in her own right. Some years ago She was
converted from her mother-faith to that of
Catholicism, and like most converts she has
been an ardent devotee, and is more than de-
vout in her religions observance of the re-
quirements OF her new religion. Miss Collins
resides with a lady companion nearly her
own age, the two keeping house, which is
presided over by an elderly English lady, in
the position of housekeeper. Both young
ladies are highly respectable, being regular
attendants at all services in the church of
which they are members, and being under the
archbishop and other clergy of st. Mary's ca
thedral. Miss Collins is what may be called
volunteer sister of charity. She goes around
visiting the sick, aiding the destitute, and do
ing other work Of the sisters whenever she
J,cfs <ka Nv,rSp fv1v,itx IN, 10,
last, after a hard days tramp in going among
some poor people in remote part of the city,
she was taken very i'll. She felt severe
headache and was seized with q semi-uncon-
sciousness which'alarmcd her companion, and
induced the latter to send for aid.
A messenger was dispatched to the Rev.
DR.. Prendergast, anu also to several of the
lady's Catholic friends, and they were soon
in attendance at her bedside. That night
her condition grew worse, and the friends be-
came seriously alarmed. The next day
(Good Friday Miss Collins suddenly went
into a trance, and then it was that the start
ling manifestation of which we write took
place. .tSuddenly the persons watching by her
bedside observed red spots come in the mid
die of her hands. The spots grew redder and
redder, and in few moments blood flowed
from them. The spots had the appearance
of wounds made by piercing with a nail.
They went clear through the nands, showing
as plainly in the palm as on the back, and
they discharged blood from both sides. The
persons in attendance at the bedside when
these remarkable phenomena took place
were Father Pendergast, d. j. Oliver and
wife, Mrs. Richardson Tobin, Mrs. c. d
O'Sulivan, the housekeeper and Miss Col
Inns companion. The appearance of the
wounds led to ali examination, and two
wounds of precisely similar character were
found on the feet. Like the hands, they ex-
hibitcd two deep red spots, from which the
blood nowed quite freely. Another large
spot ron from Whieh the blood likewise oozed,
breast. During all this time the Young lady
lay In comatose state and never breathed
even. She lay in that state all of Good FRI
day, but in the evening she showed signs OF
recovery. The blood ceased to flow, from
the supernatualy inflicted wounds, though