The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1874-01-31
CHANG AND ENG,

- markaDlc pncnolicHoh III VIZ way va "'''''
NAL distortion of the human form divine tn
.R world has any record Of Bound to each 9th
e or by a llCature that seemed to make thei
N life one, as 1t inexorably unified all thei
&c movements they were yet in mind, tempera
ment, feature and physique separate individ
10 nails Chang was robust and good natured
" Enp was often sick, and always morose ant
.5 peovish. Chang had something of an appre
. ciatiye vein of fun in his composition; Eng
o was crusty and disagreeable. Without edu
. cation, and intellectually dwarfed to little
" above low cunning they yet retained the
= native thrift of their countrymen, and man
AGED to accumulate quite a fortune.
Found, when not over eighteen years OF
, age, by some Europeans among the fisher
men on the coast Of Siam, they were taken to
Europe, and thence, in 1889, brought to this
Icountry They were exhibited i'll all our
Heading cities until 1850, when Barnum got
them, and for five years they were Feature"
Of the old Museum. Barnum paid them 800
a week, which, like the rest of their surplus
earnings, they carefully deposited in savings
banks, 50 that in 1865 they had about
$4,000 each.
About this time, tirng of show life, they
decided to settle down. In their travels they
had been in North Carolina, and the climate
pleased them. They had been fortunate in
having their business managed by trusty
agent, and through him they now bought two
plantations IN North Carolina, upon which
they moved, adopting the surname of Bunker
They were then bachelors of Al, and sighed
for wives to complete their domestic cstab-
lishment. Naturally, although the twins were
by no means cxacting, it was hard to find two
women who were both willing to enter into
such an alliance, and at the same time desira.
bic The agent, who was an Englishman,
turned his attention to his own country, and |
IN a couple Of Worcestershire lasscs 7ssisters,
one &c and one % years old-belevcd he had
found the "article" needed The counting
was done by proxy and correspondence,
though the ladies had once seen their future
husbands at a show in London. All having
been arranged, they were brought to this
country, the twins paying the expense, and
the marriage was quietly solemnized in Sails.
bury, n. G. The wives were not beautiful
but were strong, healthy English working.
girls. The domestic lives of the couple were
peculiar. Each family had its own house,
servants and domestic establishment The
plantations were owned and managed sepa-
rately, although in matters of consequence ,
Chang was usually the master. The wives ,
lived entirely at the respective homes, and
the husbands Misunderstanding one week
at Changes house and the next week at Eng's.
Each looked after his plantation and other
business during the weeks of living ut his
own place, and the visiting brother was not
supposed to interfere The wives did not
agree very well and the strangcly-ticd fami.
lies quarrcled 50 seriously that the sisters
frequently had periods Of complete estrange,
ment, lasting for weeks at time.
The fruits of this strange union were eleven
Of whom Chang had six and Eng|
five OF these four were deaf muteS, though /
healthy and not deformcd. Eight /
IF the children are still liying--the eldest d
laughter of 49, having lately been married T
o lessee of a ncighboring plantation. The {
ebcllion, by freeing their slaves, to whom :
hey had been exceptionally cruel, seriously u
impaired their wealth, which they attempted L
o rccuperatc by again exhibiting themselves. u
mt with indifferent success q
OF course, the subject of separating them
y cutting the lgature which bound them to
ether was often discussed, and the most en-.
nent surgeons Of the world differed as to the
csult Of such an operation. The great French :
urgeon Dr.. Nclaton, believed that 1t could i
c done but equally p2tcd British surgeons O
ED the opposite view, Que gY.crmcnt;9
ashcd all their hopes The lgature was y
until all circulation of blood be
yeen them was stopped, Eng soon tainted, "
nd removal of the compress was necessary n
prevent death This was accepted rs proof $
lat neither could sustain a separate circua- +
on of blood, and that TO cut the ligaturc f
ould kill both +
To science the closing scene is anything h
Ut satisfactory. For months, as the case Of e
ng became more critical, the moroscncss of Il
9th, as they calculated the probable effect of I
le death of one upon the other, grew more 1
larked. Each was haunted with Il dread of 81
eng left bound to his dead brother. Yeti b
hen Eng died, Chang was in comparative 81
God health, and if the case lad been at the Ii
me in proper hands, it is barely possible -
rat the living Chang might have been de q
vered in safety from the body Of death to a
'hich he was tied. The fact that two hours Il
Iapscd between their deaths shows that they {
'ere separate entities. II would at least have W
cen more satisfactory, had those final two e
ours been passed under the prac,iccd eye q
nj skil!lul manipulation OF q couple IF ac Il
'omplishcd surgeons. As il is, the world has c
lrUbAblX lost .pn ,G ,,,,.,,,4,,..s.. =,