Wilmington daily gazette., 1873-04-15
A Mirneanous Escape.
lFrOm The PhiIadolphIa Pro.s. Aprii IN

II
from the Philadslphia Press. April f2l sI
The fertile imagination Of the most sensa-
u0nal novelist or playwright seldom produces
anything at all probable which has not its /
parallel in strict truth. We are now 70 tell q /
story Of three cities--Lewes (DeI.l, PhlladeI- |
phia, and New York-which would be tncredi- |
Die were It not that our facts are obtained from
wholly trustworthy sources. On the 11th Of /
last month lMaTch) Captain s. H. Mills, Of |
since turned out, merely supposed to be drown |
ed, at Lewes, Del. He fell overheard from |
his schooner. Upon the body being recovered, |
and after every attempt to restore life had
faneds 1t was placed in coffin and then again
IN the usual outer box and shipped by Adams
Express to the friends Of the unfortunate man
In New York City. It remained In Philadel-
phia from six p. NJ. to one A. N. Upon it's
arrival In New York the certificate Of tho
LeWess Del, doctor was discovered TO be
somewhat informal, and the advice Of the
Board OF Health was asked. Ii was at last
concluded to open the cases, and when this
was done the man was found to be alive. The
best medical aid was Immediately called In,
and it was ere long thought pOssibjs TO remove
tfI> Captain to the Bellevue Hospital, where
sc now is. He Is not only doing we'll, but there
Is every probability Of his speedy and perma-
nent recovery. How he existed confined with
In these airless cases passes comprehension.
He was Doxed up fOl thlrty-hve hours, length
/ of time very few persons would care to at
tempt existence merely without food or drink.
He win live to tell his strange experience.
Ihe WOuld-De novelist will fnd here q mine.
Was he unconscious the while, or was the ter
rlole tate which seemed inevitable present to
his understanding? are questions it would be
interesting to have answered. We trust that
in mercy 1t was not permitted him to know
aught until his awakening, for IL no was con-
eci0us during his journey, the mental torture
may have so worked upon him that he will
live his term with darkened mind His case
Is certainly most extraordinary one, and
should have the examination Of medical ex-
/ perts. Doubtless the officers OF the Adams
Express Office in this city will give any addi-
! tl0nal information 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
! II any are capable Of giving their personal ex
perience Of such an occurrence clearly, CAPTAIN
! Mills can do so, for he was so nearly drowned
4 that he must have known all but the final QasI
= of DEATH How narrowly he escaped beinI
a buried alive may be imagined from the fac
/ that up to the time OF opening the box Their
J. was no idea that he llyed. Even then b
. might have been seEt to his grave had not tn
peculiar hush upon his face attracted atten
ton. One may well shudder, rememberin
how difficult it sometimes Is to tell the Twin
from the dead, and that the Imagination ca
i, picture nothing more horrible than a breatl
ing man consigned to tomb. We have hear
OF other incidents where the living have bee
all but buried, and indeed buried, but we q
s. not call to mind case as wonderful as this
Of all its details As bearing upon the afEair th
q intense cold about March IL should be remen
II bered.