Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1874-01-30
Death Of the Siamese Twins.

| ing from Mount Airy, gives the following
account of an interview with DIR. William
/ HOllinosworth, relative 10 the death Of the
| twins:
| DR.. Ii i9lingswOrth explained that Chang
! had an attack Of paralysis shortly after re-
turning from Europe last year; that he
/ had been suffering from pneumonia, or Sc
we're lung cold for the past month, and that
he the doctor believed that it was expo
! sure before he had sufficiently recovered
! from this malady that caused his death.
On Friday Eng was as well as usual, and
Chang not apparently much worse. Eng
was in excellent spirits, and seemed re-
markably cheerful and sprightly. Chang,
on the other hand, from the debility caus-
ed by his paralysis and cold, together with
! a certain stupidity resulting from the use
! of too much stimuant, was frettul, sullen
and snappish when spoken to, which OF
! late was his accustomed conduct.
| All the family retired at the usual hour.
/ Eng's wife and children slept up stairs;
| the twins slept down stairs. 1t was five
O'Clock in the morning when one Of EnG's
! sons heard, as he thought, Il call from his
uncle Chang. Responding as quick as
possible, he came down stairs, and Going
/ TO the side of the bed upon which his mcie
Chang lay, found him lying apparently in
deep sleep, but was startled by the ghastly
and singular appearance ,6f the features,
which wore all expression of pain, if not
acoily--and were much darker than he had
ever seen them Oefore.
I After a closer examination the boy dis
covered bis uncle was dead, and uttering
an oft repeated cry of Uncle Chang is
! dead.'' alarmed the whole household, all of
whom speedily came pouring into the room
in their night dresses.
! The tumult caused by the death Of
| Chang, the hurry and noise in sending for
the doctor aud forChang's wife and chill
dren, must have so terribly shocked Eng
that his nervous system became completely
prostrated. and hc never uttered a word
excrp; the single expression, And | must
die. too
I've hours from the discovery Of Chang's
death. Drs William Hollin@swOrth and
Taylor arrived. only to find The twins
dead
Correspondent How long do you think
Eng had been dead when you arrived:
DIR. Hollingsworth-Not more than ten
or fifteen minutes.
Cor.-Do YOU think his death was caused
by auy vital connection or artery passing
from orc TO the other through the ligament
t'.7t united them:
Dr. Ill am confident that Eng death
was produced by no such cause.
I Cor.-Do yon not believe the existence
. of some such vital connection through the
. ligament?
DR.. III do not, because have attend
ed them when one was sick and the other
in good health, ana when there was as
much as twenty beats difference TO The
minute in their pulsatiou.
Cor What. :hcu, in your opinion, caus-
ed Eng's death:
Dr. H.-The great shock and terror in
spircd by such union with death, added
to which was The belief which prevailed
between them that when one died the other
would. These combined to destroy his
mental faculties and paralyze his physical
energies. and he succumbed to the dread
visitation.
Cor.-NCu do hot think, then, that if
the lgament had been severed his life would
have been saved:
DIR. HI do not. rather think that
any operation, unless performed immedi-
ately upon the discovery of Chang's death,
would have FASTENED his tEng'sl death.
WHAT AN OLD FRIEND SAYS.
Upon my arrival at Mount Airy /
! found the residence OF the twins was sew
cral miles from the village. and, the hour
/ being very late, vas unable to 90 there.
/ As the doctors information was not en-
entirely satisfactory, | ne Xt sought and
! obtained an interview with Mr.. Isaac Arm
/ field. an old intimate friend Of the twins,
who was present aad helped to lay them
out after their demise.
Mr.. Armfed," ! asked, lis il your
/ opinion that Eng died from the shock or
fligh, occa9ioned by his brothers DEATH:
Mr.. Armfcld.-No, sir, il is not. am
as well satisfied that blood flowed from
one g. the other through that connecting
. licamcnt as that the same blood flows in
my right aud left arm
Correspondent. Then you think it was
the death of Chang that precipitated the
death Of Eng?
Mr.. A.-Ycs. sir. After Chang's death
the blood from Eng's body flowed into his,
bui there being no responsive vitality it
could not tiow back. 50 that Eng died from
, exhaustion and loss OF blood, and not from
any shock or fright Up 10 the time Of
/ Enc's death the ligameut, which is some
eigh. inches in length, was warm as far as
where il entered Chang's body, which was
cold at The time. The very nature of the
/ ligament, which is four inches wide and as
/ thick as my wrist, passing from the abdo-
men Of one to the other, and in the centre
/ of which is the one navel of the twins, is
proof positive that the same blood that
flowed in the veins Of one flowed also in
! those of the other.
Cor-Wuy, then. does the doctor per-
sist in saying that it was from a shock or
fright that Eng died? --.-.
Mr.. Al do Got know: but | heard DR.
Bill 1follingsworth say that he would
: rather have the bodies of the dead twins
than the whole Of Surrey county.
Cor. What appearance did the twins
present after death?
Mr.. Chang was nearly black i'll the
face, and looked as if he had died in fit or
in great agony. Eng looked as if he had
been asleep.
Cur.-Do you know whether Eng made
any expression of pain before he died?
Mr.. A.-Yes. ] inquired particularly