St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1878-01-25
A Sudden Cure of a Paralytic.

In letter received few days ago
from a person in New Hampshire Oc-
ours this sentence: ''Old Simon Love
stopped here yesterday on his way
home. He is almost 90 and is hale and
hearty
And that brought to mind an incident
which occurred five and twenty years
agO-yes twenty-nine years agO-it was
Love, then sixty-three years of age and
living with sOn-in-law on the Great
Interval road under Mote mountain,
had been laid up for more than a year
with what the doctors called Il species
of lumbagO. He could not arise from
his chair without assistance, nor could
he move from chair to bed without the
help of strong man for he was himself
very heavy. There seemed to be a
sort of paralysis of all the muscles of
the lumbar regions, and when the pain
came it came furiously. | don't know
how many kinds of liniment and patent
unguents had been rubbed upon the
outside, or how many barrels of swash
he had poured down his throat. He
seemed to grow worse instead of better
and with the prospect of another hard,
long winter before him, he didn't think
he should survive it.
Well, one day in early October, while
the pigeons were very plenty, Mr..
Hammond, Loves son-in-law, was fix
ing his double barrel gun for shot at
them. He had just cut Il piece of India
wheat, not far away, and there pigeons
would be sure to gather, and he meant
to be ready for them. He had loaded
both barrels heavily, and put on the
percussion caps ; but AS the caps were
slightly small for the tubes he had to
press them on, which he was wont to
do by easing the hammer down upon
them.
Old Simon sat by the fire place, boil
stored up in his great easy chair, with
padding of pillows and blanket for his
back, and cushions for his feet.
Look out, Nathan = he cried, as he
SAW the double muzzle pointed uncom-
fortably near him.
pooh Their amt no danger, dad,
returned Nathan, pressing the hammer
down upon the cap.
But the cap was very sensitive one,
and depressed little too hard, and
Mercy what Il crash and what
howl The right barrel of The gun was
discharged with Il report that shook the
house from Ridge pole to foundation,
and few of the shot grazed Simon
Loves leg. He, poor man, believed
that he was shot dead. He sent forth
Il howl, loud and long, and leaped to
his feet
Murder! Murder! Murder! I'm dead!
-killed-shOt all to pieces. o! o! o.
Murderr
And away he leaped out of doors
out into the yard-where he danced up
and down, yelling like mad all the
while, until Nathan, his wife, and Il
hired man, came to his assistance. They
got him into the house, and got him
down into his chair, and after critical
examination they found two or three
livid lines upon the calf of his right leg,
where stray shot had just grazed the
skin.
Amt | shot p
No. Get up and see.'
He was up in moment. standing
first upon one leg and then upon the
other, and presently the thought occur
red to him that he had really risen
alone. He started off upon brisk
walk, without pain and without hin
drance. He could hardly credit the
evidence of his own senses. He leaped
and danced; he ran to the well and
back again.
GLORY, hallelujah! Nathan Pm a
we'll man =
And he spoke truly. The terrific
shock, cOnVulsinS every nerve and
straining every muscle, had healed him,
and from that time he had not an other
touch of the old trouble.