Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-01-29
Sne:ch of the kiamese Twins.

The Siamese Twins, Eng and Chang
lately residing in North Carolina, were
afflicted with illness in the year 1871
They were born at a small village on
the coast of Silm, in the year 1911,
Their parents got their living by fish
ing, and uatil 1929, when Eng and
Chang were brought 10 the U. States,
they made their living By selling she'll
| fish. Their mother b0ra IL children.
AT one time she gave birth to three,
and never less than two. But none OF
! these children were deformed. The
twins were united at the anterior part
of the chest by proiongation CT a
fieshy kind of band the size OF the
hand. This band of flesh is about two
| inches broad and four inches thick.
The whole mass is tough and capable
of being considerably extended. One
could whisper in the ear of one of them
without the other hearing, while voia-
tile salts applied to the nCstrilS OF one
had no effect on the other; and while
Epinchiug the arm of one excited no
sensation in the other, still if you but
stuck pin in the exact vertical centre
of this connecting link both would
finch from the hurt. The twins were
seldom observed to converse With each
other. They played good game Of
draughts, made pretty much the same
moves, and at the same time, and fre-
quently played against each other.
After attracting Il vast amount OF at
tention among scientists and Physlolo-
gists in the old world, they married
two sisters, and settled down near Sal
isbury, n. c.. on well stocked planta-
ton. In addition they had at one pc
rod ample funds Invested through
their agent in New York. During the
war they continued to reside on their
plantation. and lived in the same quiet
and harmony aS eyer, until some few
years afterwards. OF course, no one
thought of drsfting them, and their ne
groes prOspered, except when out OF
temper from any cause, it was apt 10
work itself off in striking the first one
that came to hand, from which the best
escape was to keep out Ofthe way. The
brothers probably never would have
had any difficulty, but that their wives,
though sisters, turned away their
hearts, and children were the cause OF
this enlargement. Up to the period
that each had five children all prosper
ed we'll enough, but one of them had
sixth, and this awOke envy and Jeai-
Ousy to such degree that the twin SIS
terS, not being bound together like the
twin brothers, would 10 longer live un-
der the same roof. The brothers were,
it seems, about 81 years of age, but one,
we believe the smaller and feebler of
the two, looked, it is said, ten years
older than the other. They could turn
either back to back or face 10 face, but
that is as far as the remarkable bond
that united them permitted. 1t Is al
most certain that should either die the
other could not survive even more than
a few minutes, as there is an artery as
large as the femoral artery that con-
meets them. Il few years since they
correspunded with some Ofthe leading
surgical operators in London, as to the
possibility OF the umbilicus being cut,
So that in the case of the death of one,
the life of the other might be saved.
At the request of the London surgeons
they visited that city, and many eXpe-
riments were, tried to determine the
safety of such au operation. Among
other things ligature was tied firmly
for few minutes around the connec-
tion between them, so as to prevent the
of the blood through the ar
terry. But it seemed ds if each would
expire if this were persisted in. The
smaller of the two tainted away and
lost all consciousness, and there were !
symptoms that the same effect would |
follow to the other, but the process |
could not be continued long enough |
WITHOUT endangering the life OF him
WHO yas first to faint. Since the break
ing out of the rebellion the twins both
dressed in the Confederate gray, and |
were both members Of the same church,
having united with a sInail Baptist
church in their neighborhood, ef Yhlch
they were considered very worthy
though BORN Sian'ese. - Il