The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1877-05-04
DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MBN
A CHASTITY splinters Nor
alizes.
NEW YoRK, April goth 1877.

DEAR JOURNAL "A few days ago
friend of mine, a young gentleman
from Scranton, Pa, walked into my
room and said that be would like to
have me go with him to witness a
show to which only few would be
admitted. Having nothing better to
do, went. We walked down to the
east side until we reached the rivers
edge, when turning to the left, he
led me into an enclosure which con.
tanned two large buildings, which |
quickly found to be the far famed
Bellevue Hospital and Medical Col
lege.
Now am afraid of doctors, and
had made it point to avoid them,
for whenever | see one of them look
ing at me, | imagine that he il in
wardly discussing my merits as a
subject for the discecting room, and
the thought causes an unpleasant
thrill to creep down my spinal cord.
But here was, decoyed right into
their strong hold, and with no chance
of escape, unless showed the white
feather, and 80 made the best of a
bad bargain, and determined to go
ahead come what would. We first
made our way to the
DEAD HOUSE
at the rear of the College, and here
| saw sights which have caused me
many sleepless nights since. Stark
and stiffened forms, brought here by
dread disease, murder, suicide, and
nearly every other form of crime
known to man, lay on kind of wood
rack along the whole length of the
room. Some had been but recently
fished out of the water, probably car
ried there by despair of the darkest,
deepest, hue, and lay there on that
rack, with sightless eyes upturned,
awaiting Identification and burial.
Around the room, in almost countless
numbers, were piled lots of common
pine coffins, each waiting its turn for
one of the forms lying there stiff and
cold in the embrace of that dread
monster, Death. Some Of them al
ready contained its inmate, and only
awaitad the hearse to be removed and
placed in pauper's grave.
In the clerks Office we're fathers,
mothers, husbands, wives, seeking in>
formation of lost ones, who probably
Law. at that moment, at the bottom Of
the calm, cold, river. There is no
computing the amount Of misery
which hangs like cloud of Egyptian
darkness, around this Dead House.
Leaving the Dead House, we passed
through
PROF. WOOD S MUSEUM,
where | had the pleasure (Y) of see-
ing diseases of all descriptions, on ex>
hibition. was struck dumb with
astonishment at finding out the innu,
msrabe forms of disease to which man
is heir. 1t seemed to me as if all the
hideous ills of human flesh had been
gathered in this room. | saw here
the skeleton of what is said was the
famed horse which Napoleon |. rode
into so many battles.
Being DESTROYS of getting through
with these horrors as speedily as
possible, | soon lett the Museum, and
found my way to the
DIssECTING ROOM.
Upon long marble top tables lay
many bodies, awaiting the tender
mercies of those cannibals and saw
ages who throng the halls of Bellevue
When we entered the Dissecting-
room, there was but a single man, a
young Australian, engaged therein.
He was sitting over a CHASTITY body,
surrounded on all sides by corpses Of
men and women in various stages of
decay, hacking and cutting at his
horrible subject, with as much gusto
and keen enjoyment as | would ex
hibit in partaking of a good meal at
ter long fast. Some of these bod,
les we're hacked and cut into little
bits, others were blackened with de.
cay, and the sight was anything but
pleasant. Strange thoughts and fsn>
cies stole over me as | stood in that
chamber of horrors, and the dread of
death was intensified hundred fold
| cannot understand how medical
students can stand over these fearful
objects, right in the presence of grim
death, and laugh and jeer, crack
Jokes, what to them, are witty and
amusing remarks about the subject
upon which they are operating end
be as unconcerned and reckless as
they are.
Tie subjects which fill the Disect>
ing-rooms of the Medical Colleges
in New York, are usually unclaimed
bodies from the Hospitals. When
person dies in the Hospitals, his
friends are informed. II they do not
make some disposition of the body
within twenty-four hours, it is turned
over to the Coroner. If there is no
suspicion of foul play, the Coroner
turns it over to q joint committee ap
pointed by the Medical Colleges
tn. oon,m;ttaa then distrihute the