New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1877-05-12
THE CASE OF TaE row TWINS.

MY notions about souls influence on
SOUL" said DR.. Richards, of Saturday
Cove, to me one day last September, ARE
little peculiar. 1 don't make practice
of giving EN- away to the folks around
here. The Cove people hold that when
a doctor gets beyond jalap and rhu-
barb he's trespassing on the parsons prop
erty. Now, it's long road from jalap to
soul, but don't see why one man might
not travel as well as another. viii you
oblige me with a clam?"
I obliged him with a clam. We were
sitting together on the rocks fishing for
tomcod. Saturday Cove is & small water
ing place few miles below Belfast, on
the west shore of Penobscot bay. 1t ap-
parently derives its name from belief
generally entertained by the Covers that
this spot was the final and crowning
achievement of the Creator before resting
on the seventh day. The Cove village
consists of hotel, two churches, several
stores, and graveyard containing former
generations OF Saturdarians. ltis a favor
lite gibe among outsiders, who envy the
placid quiet Of the place, that if the popu-
lation of the graveyard should be dug up
and distributed through the village, and
the present inhabitants laid away beneath
h4C 5Ob5 lAClO WOUlA Oo no pGIC6DLiDlG
diminution in the hveliness of the settle
ment. The cove proper abounds with
tomcod, which may be caught with clans.
eyes" continued DR.. Richards, as he
forced the barb of his jig hook into the
tender organism of the clam, 'smy theory
is that a strong soul may crowd a weak
soul out of the body which belongs to the
weak soul, and operate through that
body, even though miles away and invol-
unfairly. believe, moreover, that man
may have two souls, one his own by right
and the other an intruder. In fact, I
know that this is so, and it being so, what
becomes of your moral responsibility?
What, l ask, becomes of your moral re-
sponsibility?"
replied that I could not image.
'Your doctrine of moral responsible
ity, said the doctor sternly, as if it were
my doctrine and I were responsible for
moral responsibility, isn't worth this
tomcod," and he took a small fish off his
hook and CONTEMPORARY tossed it back
into the cove. 'tDid you ever hear of the
case Of the Dow twins?"
had never heard Of the case of the
Dow twins.
''Well," resumed the doctor, s'they were
born into the family of Hiram Dow thirty
years or more ago, in the red farmhouse
Just over the hill back of Us. My prede-
cessor, old DR.. Gookin, superintendent
their birth, and has often told me the cir.
cumstances. The Dow twins came into
the world bound back to back by a feshy
ligature which extended half the length of
the spiral processes. They would probably
have travelled through life in intimate
uxtaposition had the matter depended on
our great city physicians-your surgeons
who were afraid to disconnect Chang and
Eng, and who discussed the operation till
the poor fellows died without parting
company. Old DR.. Gookins, however,
who hadn't attempted anything for years
in the surgical line, more than pull tooth
or to cut out an occasional wen, calmly
went to work and sharpened up his rusty
old operating knife aud slashed and
gashed the twins apart before they had
been three hours breathing. This prompti-
tude of Gookin's saved the Dow twins
good deal of Inconvenience"
Il should think SOL"
''And yet, added the doctor reflective
ly, perhaps it might have been better
for EN- both if they hadn't been separ-
ated. Better for Jehiel, especially, since
he wuoldn't have been put in false posi-
ton. Then, on the other hand, my theo-
~ would have lacked the confirmation of
story?"
''By all means.
"Well, Jacob and Jehiel grew up
healthy, Swapping boys, like as two peas
physically, but otherwise very unlike.
Jehiel was all Dow-slow, slow-witted.
melancholy inclined and disposed to re-
spect the ten commandments. Jake. he
had his mothers git-up-and-git-she was
Fox Of Fox standard was into mis-
chief from the time he was tall enough to
poke burdock burrs down his grandmoth-
ers back. DR.. Gookin watched the de-
velopment Of the twins with great inter-
est He used 70 say there was an inyisi-
bic nerve telegraph between Jake and |
JehieL At any rate Jehiel was aeens- |
toned to act very queerly whenever Jacob |
was up to any Of his pranks. One NIGHT.
for instance, when Jake was off robbing 4 |
hen roost, Jehiel sat up in his bed in his |
sleep and crowed like frightened cock |
until the whole family was aroused.
Il came here and opened nv Office /
about ten years ago. At that time Jehiel
had grown into steady, tolerably indus
trious young man, prominent in the Con-
gregationai Church and so sober and /
decorous that the village people had |
trusted him with tho driving Of the town |
hearse. When I first knew him he was /
eourting young woman By the name Of /
Giles, who lived about seven miles back 1
IN the country. Jehiel was a tin knocker
ny trade, and O more pious, respectable.
reliable tin knocker you never saw.
Jake Ind turned out very differently.
By he limo Cf Sumteg be had made sat
uAaay Cove too hot 10 hold hiu. and
everybody including his twin, Jehial, was
glad when be enlisted Ia q Maine reQ;-
ment. never saw Jake in my life. for /
came here after he had departed. but I
nave q pretty good notion Of what 4 reck-
less, loud-mouthed. harun -scarurn repro
paie he must have been. Alter the war
Ae drfAed into the western eoanlrv and
We hsa1d Of him oscasionaIlY, nrst aa +
Steamboat runner II ST Louis, then is
i et jefferson for sWindlinq 4 bind
.}nieAnan. then as gambler and rough
n Cheyenne. and dnaIIy IS 1 aeaabsaf
~ Frisco. You could tell pretty wefi
9aka We ~ dsvillry by watching
.aa afloue q Itai1l. At each tines J@
~ t1n|' Anost1a tin with "a ns
81. VISA & iIttIfasl viii {