Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1874-05-13
SIGNS OF ACTUAL DEATH.
Row 10 Avoid the Horror of being Buried
Alive.
For the chronicle-by Medicus, Jr.l

hSoib W AiiC llNiub SOhi NiAoh
that of being buried alive. The horror of
premature Inflammation has rendered many
an existence miserable, and cast shadow
over many a life that would otherwise have
been joyous.
This fear will, in our opinion, do more
than any other one thing towards insttu
ting, and furthering the adoption of the
process of cremating the dead, which is,
at this time, exciting so much interest in
our own country as well as abroad.
AS general rule, it is easy to say when
life is extinct. The deathly pallor, the
glazed eye, the fixed and rigid muscles, all
tell but too well that the soul has left its
tenement of clay, and that thenceforth the
body must return to the primitive elements
which enter into its composition, earth
20 earth, ashes to ashes"
But cases often occur where this
determination is by no means easy. Per-
sons, bearing all the commonly recognized
signs of death, have returned to life, and
an examination of some graves has
given unmistakable evidence, by the posi-
tion of the bodies, that their inhabitants
after interment have returned to conscious
ness.
These facts have led to numerous in
quirles Into the sign or signs of certain
death which can be put in application by
Vne common people, not possessed of
any technical or professional knowledge.
Among those interested in the settlement
of this very important question, none were
more so than the Marquis d. Ourches.
He left prize of 10000 francs in charge
of the Academy of Sciences of Paris, to be
awarded to any one who would discover
"a certain and infallible sign of death
which could be applied by the ignorant
and uneducated Villagers;n and also
anutbar t,riza of 00O fran m no Vor0pI
20 the discoverer of a scientific method of
recognizing with certainty the signs of
actual death.
The Academy has recently made report
on the subject of these prizes, and as the
matter is one of popular interest, it has
been,thought we'll to give popular account
of it.
There were sent in all 102 papers, as con-
uestants for the prize but of all this num-
Der not one was deemed worthy of the first
prize of 900 francs-showing that yet in
spite of all the study on the subject, and
modern science, the popular mode of recog-
nizing the sign of actual death remains to
be discovered.
The prize of 5000 francs, however, for a
scientific method of recognizing death,
was awarded and distributed between four
individuals, each of whom had made the
discovery of an
INFALLIBLE SIGN OF DEATH
which is capable of being recognized by
methods in science; so that now need
have no fear of premature Inflammation or
cremation las the case may be), if any one
be at hand capable of applying those
methods. Some of the methods require
the possession of no particular skill, and
can be put in application by persons of or
binary intelligence.
ONE OF THESE SIGNS,
,or the discovery of which five hun
.dred francs was awarded, is the
changes which the pulp of the fin
ger undergoes in flame. If the blisterS
which such an application produces b'
filled with water, lifo is not extinct; bu
if it contain simply vapor the body Il
dead.
Another sign is the
sToPPAGE OF CIRCULATION
in the capillary vessels. The mode o
determining this is as follows: Apply ;
cupping glass over the pit of the stomach
then make missions into the elevated por
tions of the skin; blood will flow, but
some time after, missions be made again, j
thesk in be dead, blood will not flow. Thi
plan received honorable mention by tn
Academy.
1t is known also that the muscles retail
their faculty of responding to the
ELECTRIC CURRENT
for only a few hours after death. /
therefore, upon applying electricity, tn
muscles fail to respond, the presence {
death is declared.
THE EYE
also shows important changes after deati
which can be detected within a fe'
hours after dissolution. Very 500
after death q grey, cloudy spot make
its appearance ON the outer porto
of the sclerotio or white OF the eye, whic
finally takes entire pO- session OF At. Va
liable signs are also vi-ible by means OF u
ospthalmoscope, but for their 6eterminatlo
an expert use OF that instrument 10 r
quisite.
A sign tnaS mas never Oeen absent
fifteen thousand observation - tho pre-
euce Of
VIOLET CoLoRED sPGrs
in the dependent portions Of tho bod
This is of such character a5 10 Do app
cable by all, aud the Academy aSanied
prize TO the author, OF two thonsar
francs,
u is well known that the BODY becon
cold after death; but still, that 10 MOI
infalhbls sign, unless 40 sinks below .
Fahrenheit, and as the body can never !
below the temperature OF the atnoephef
in warm weather, even this cannot be J
lied upon. A more Certain sign 10
THE GRADUAL LOWERING OF TENFE2
TURB
from the moment of death. This h
ben determined 20 o shout % Cent I
every hour until the Temperature Of &
alrn5spbere Is rpBchel For the dlscoVe
of thil law, two thousand fraGCs wa