Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1876-10-06

The Wonderful Iowa Mad Stone.

Ceuar RAPIDS RepuDllcan
Yesterday Mr.. Turner Evans, of
Paris, was in the city and we asked
him for the history of this remark
able stone in his possession. Where
the stone was discovered is not
known. The first that is known of
it and its wonderful properties, is
that $50 years ago 1t was in the
hands of an Cd Vlrginian by the
name of Evans, distant relative of
its present owner. At that early
day its fame was known throughout
the surrounding country, and cures
innumerable of bites by rabid
animals and poisonous snakes were
successfully treated with it. Adam
Evans, father of the present proprie-
tor, came into possession of it
through his father in the year 1912,
while living near Boon Station, in
Kentucky. For 3s years it was an
infallable remedy in his hands, and
upon his disease it fell to Turner Ev-
ans, the present owner, who was
then resident Of Paris in this conn-
ty. He has operated with it fog 26
years and says he never knew st to
fail in curing the most hopeless
cases of hydrophobia. For some
time his friends and neighbors sco1f.
ed at the idea of Its virtues, bat after
seeing him treat numerous desperate
cases among horses and cattle credu-
lence in its remedial powers was
founded on unconvertible fact. Since
then none who have seen it operate,
can doubt its efficiency. He has had
$50 cases, men and animals together,
some of them after spasms had set
in, and in so single case has the little
treasure failed to give instant relief
and ultimate and lasting cure. The
stone is very small, being no larger
than the end of 3 mans thumb, and
weighs no less than quarter of an
ounce.
In appearance it looks not unlike a
bit OF dark sponge, except that the
grain is close and the pores not so
large, though they seem to extend
nearly from side to side. Examined
through glass it looks like flint and
about the mouths of the pores are
distinctly seen dark colored rings of
matter resembling sand stone. In
shape it is triangular, having but one
flat surface, which is called the work
ing face. Before operating, it is
heated in a solution of milk and wa
ter, part of the former and 3 of the
latter, to blood heat. The patient is
made to exercise until the blood cir
culates freely, then the skin of a
portion of the body near the bite is
scratched with sharp pointed in
strument until the blood shows, the
stone is applied until it is filled with
the virus, and then taken off and
soaked in warm milk and water.
Applications are continued until the
stone ceases to stick, when the cure
is completed. Once applied to an in
fected person it cannot be removed
without considerable difficulty, so
great Is its power of suction. 1t has
been known to stick to a single per-
son from so to 100 times. Upon the
flesh Of person not inoculatcd with
this saliva of 4 rabld creature it has
no more effect than an ordinary peb-
BILE, unless the individual be diseased
with salt rheum or scrofula, in which
case its action is similar to that in
case of hydrophobia. 1t is thought
that these latter diseases could be
cured with it but Mr.. Evans has new
er undertaken to do so.
The medical fraternity have long
since given up finding sure remedy
for this terrible disease, but Mr.. Ev-
ans has had numbers of cases where
the patients had had violent spasms
and appeared to be about at the door
of the most horrible death known,
and has never lost a case. Among
the more recent cases he has had,
was that of Mr.. Bunce, of Mechan-
icsville, who upon arrival at his
house was already gwen to nervous,
painful jerkings of the limbs and
back. The case of Mr.. Field, of
Chicago, whose cure we noticed in
REPUBLICAN was similar.
Mr.. Field told us that "a hours be-
fore the stone was applied he was
subject to the most torturing invol-
untary jerkings and twichings of the
and that he suffered untold
agony in both mind and body. He
pronounced his cure radical, and
said that he would have rather given
all he was woLth than not have
been treated by it, as he verify be-
lieved that he should have gone mad
without. Any one that hears INN
talk cannot but have full faith in its
powers.
Is Peter Cooper, who thinks he is
running for President, the cat's-paw
of Tilden's New York ring? 1t GER
tainly looks so. His son, Edward
COonar ia ono Of the sachams Of