Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-03-14
THE sIAMEsE TWINS.

personal REcoILEcTIo>s by MARX TWAIN
In one of 'Mark Twain's," sketcl
books published by Rutledge IL
England, is the following minute.
entertaining, and Just now especial
valuable count of the habits Of the
Siamese Twins. 1t was written sew
eral years before the present mantle
of grief had involved the entire FAM
ily in the privacy of sadness, and it,
republication Just at this time is
solely in the cause of science and
not to satisfy idle curiosity or to IN
trude upon frmily already so much
cut up in afliction:-
| do not wish to write of the per-
sonal habits of these strange crea-
tures solely, but also of certain Gu
| riouS details of various kind con
cerning them, which, belonging tc
their private life, have never crept
into print. Knowing the twins in
timatelv, I feel that l am peculiarly
we'll qualified for the task have ta-
ken upon myself.
The Siamese twins are naturally
tender and affectionate in disposi-
ton, and have clung to each other
with singular fidelity throughout
long and eventful life. Even as
children they were inseparable.
companions; and tits noticed that
they always seemed to prefer each
others society TO that of any other
persons. They nearly always play
ed together: and, so accustomed
was their mother to this peculiarity,
that whenever one of them CHANGED
to be lost, she usually hunted for
one of satisfied that when she
found that one she would find his
brother somewhere in the immedi-
ate neighborhood. And yet these
creatures were ignorant and unlet-
tered-barbarians themselves, and
the offspring of barbarians, who
knew not the light of philosophy
and science. What a witherlng re-
buke is this to our boasted civiliza-
ton, with its quarrelings, its wrang
Iings, and its separation of broth
erS.
AS men, the twins have not al
ways lived in perfect accord; but
still there has always been bond
between them which made them un-
willing to go away from each other
and dwell apart. They have even
occupied the same house, as a gener-
al thing, and it is believed that they
have never failed to sleep together
on any night since they were bolne.
How surely do the habits of a life
ime become second nature to US ?
The twins always go to bed at the
same time; but Chang usually gets up
an hour before his brother. By an un-
derstanding between themselves,
Chang does all the indoor work and,
Eng runs on errangs. This is be-
cause Eng likes to go out; Changes
habits are sedentary. However,
Chang always goes along. Eng is a
Baptist, aud Chang is a Roman
Catholic; still, to please his brother,
Chang consented to be baptized at
the same time that Eng was, on
condition that it should not ''count." "
During the war they were strong
partisans, and both fought gallantly
all through the great struggle
Eng on the Union side, and Chang
on the Confederate. They took
each other prisoners at Seven Oaks,
butthe proofs of capture were so ev-
enly balanced in favor of each that
general army court had to be assem-
Oled to determine which one was
properly the eaptor and which the
captive. The jury was unable to
agree for a long time; but the vexed
question was finally decided by
agreeing to consider them both
prisoners and then exchanging them.
At one time Chang was convicted
of disobedience of orders, and SEN
fenced to ten days in the guard
house, but Eng, in spite of all argu-
ments, felt Obliged to share his I'M
prisonment, Notwithstanding he him
self was entirely innocent; and so to
save the blameless brother fir, m suf-
fering he had to discharge both from
custody-the just reward of faith
fGlness. ..-.-
Upon one occasion the brothers
fell out about something, and Chang
knocked Eng down, and then trip
ped and fell ON him, whereupOn
both clinched and began to beat and
gouge each other without any
mercy. The bye-standers interfered
and tried to separate them, but they
could not do it, and so allowed
them to fight it out. In the end
both were disabled, and were car
ried to the hoSpitable on one and the
same shutter. ~ 4aa
The ancient habit of going al
ways together and its drawbacks
when they reached mans estate, and
entered upon the luxury of courting.
Both fell in love with the same girl.
Each tried to steal claudestine in
terview with her, but at the critical
moment the other would always
turn up. Bye and bye Eng saw with
distraction, that Chang had won
the girls affections; and from that
day forth, he had to bear with the
agony of being a witness to all their
dainty billing and cooling. But
in a magnaninlity that did him IN
finite credit, he succOmbed to his
fate, and gave countenance and en-
couragement to a state of things
that bid fair to sunder his generous
heart-strings. He sat from seven
every evening until two in the morn
ing, listening to the fond foolish
ness of the two lovers, and to the
conclusion of hundreds of squander-
ed kisses-for the privilege Of shar-
ing only one of which he would have
given his right hand. But he sat
patiently and waited, and gasped,
and yawned, and stretched, and long
ed for two o'clock to come. And
he took long walks with the lovers
on moonlight evenings-sometimes
| trayersinu ten miles. notwithstand-