The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1873-08-03
Condolences and Accidents.

Condolences and Accidents.
One of the English magazines recently
contained an article on extraordinary coin
cidences. The writer appeared to be struck
With their number, and to be rather SIR
prised at the possibility of the Occurrences
at all. To me it rather seems to be sur
prising, when we consider the perpetual
movement of the worlds Kaleidoscope, that
the same figure does not repeat itself more
frequently. Condolences strike us because
they are noticed, while the almost innu-
merabie opportunities which yield nothing
naturally attract no attention. To take a
very familiar illustration we are talking
OF person ; suddenly he appears; the
one OF the company quotes the old saying,
" Talk of the DEVIL" etc. But mo one
thinks of remarking the hundreds and
thousands of times when we speak of a
person and he does not come.
The greater number of examples, the
greater the likelihood of condolences, ac-
cording to the ordinary rules of chance.
Many of the hits of the sol disant phre-
nofogists-or, as they should properly be
called, craniologists - may be accounted
for 10 this way. The occasional vertical
ton of the Herald's political prophecies in
former days comes into the same category.
The coincidence is one of the com mon
improbabilities of the sensational romance
improbable, however, not on account of
its occurrence, but on account of its repe-
tition. Probably few persons, whose life
experience has not been of the narrowest,
are unable to recall some one remarkable
coincidence affecting themselves or coming
within their observation. The improba:
bIiity consists in representing number of
such condolences as occurring within the
limited experience of q few individuals du-
ring portion Of their lives.
1 shall now relate two accidents-oue
serious, tue other trivial-which illustrate
in marked manner the occasional i'm prob
ability of realities
One befell a connection of mine, the son
of an eminent professor, and himself a SCI
entific man of note. He was superintend-
ent of mining establishment. The masses
of ore taken from the mine were broken up
with sledge-hammers in board shantie and
log huts. One day as he was walking
among these huts, fragment of ore few
out through a knot-hole and struck him
directly in one eye, which it destroyed, and
he came near losing the other eye, but uI-
timately after long illness regained the
partial use of it. Now see how many
chances there were against every element
of this accident. First, that there should
be knot-hole at the requisite height; then
that fragment should be small enough to
pass through the whole; then that it should
pass; then that the superintendent should
be walking by just at that time finally,
that the curve described by the projectile
should direct it exactly to his eye. The
chance against any one Of these events
was great; against all of them together it
must have been very great.
The other incident happened to myself.
I have never found any one who would be-
lieve it, and therefore do not expect tho
reader to do SO; but, often as have thought
over all the circumstances of it, I have
never been able to find any reason for sus-
pecting error or self. deception. When q
youth of fifteen; and still wearing round
jackets, I was sauntering one fine summer
day in garden. l noticed a large bee
lowering over flower. Half mech nicalIy
I took out my pocket-handkerchief, tied
loose knot in one corner, and fllipped it at
the bee The insect disappeared. Sup
posing that it had fallen into the flower
bed, replaced my Handkerchief without
untying the knot, in the pocket of my
loose jacket and sauntered on. Some
twenty minutes after I had occasion to
take out the handkerchief; noticing the
knot united it, and to my no small sur
prise found tue bee inside, rather the worse
for wear, but still showing signs of life.
Now, as have. said, 1 do not expect any
one to believe this; yet the rationale of the
process is tolerably clear to me. The knot
the act of striking, so that its folds could
admit the body of the bee, if violently
thrust into them. And what happened was
just the converse of this the Handkerchief
lighted SO that the knot was thrust Violent
ly around the bee, took il up and carried it
Oft. But the ablest juggler might try for a
long while unsuccessfulIy to Initiate this
accidental aud involuntary performance.
Literary coincidences which appear to be
plaglarlsms are very common. One very
ordinary form of them-probab1y the most
-otdinary-is the pun: Some events, some
names, suggest puns by their mere men
ton. Hundreds of people may make such
puns independently of one another. But Sc
rioas popular topics also will often suggest
the same ideas simultaneously to men of
the same habits of thought and generally
concordant opinions.
| will conclude with singular instance,
showing how a coincidence in reading-or
nIisreading-may; throw light on the com
position of a work and the working of the
authors mind. At least believe it to be
coincidence /; but it is possible that have
only found huge mares nest. The read
er shall judge for himself.
Flaubert's extraordinary book "Sal-
ammbOois aclassic- historical novel, having
fdfl SEn Rnhiact fba ;E,;I -