The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-10-24
A HUMAN MoSsrBosITY.
Canada's Wonderful Twins, horn with
One Body, Two Heads, and Pour

Canada's Wonderful Twins, Horn with
One Body, Two Heads, and Pour
Arms.
Philadelphia Times ...i ...,.'.
Prof. William Fl. Pancoast, Surgeon and
Professor in Jefferson College, has brought
to Philadelphia the wonderful twins from
St. Bcnoit, Canada. They arrived late on
Saturday, and at once were taken by their
parents, escorted by DR.. J. v. Shoemaker,
Of this city, to the surgical class at the
Philadelphia Hospital. Here Prof PAN
coast was operating in the presence Of
some Eve hundred students and crowd
OF doctors, who had gotten wind OF the in
tended examination Of the twins.
Prof. Pancoast put the twin baby on the
table. 1t appeared to be two babies join
ed together at the base of the trunk, with
however, but two legs, two heads, two
separate intelligences and fourarms. The
Professor madea few Introductory remarks
on teratology, and referred briefly to the
formation Of the Siamese and the Carolina
twins. The parents are French Canadians,
speaking no English, and the mother APP
pcared quite frightened by the large audi.
ence. Prof. Pancoast, however, calmed
her anxiety, and then he went on. He
called attention 10 the fact that, though
the children were called monstrosity,
they were really two pretty female infants,
united at the hips, and that there was
nothing repellant in their appearance.
He took the ground that they were
entities, two separate brains or intellig-
ences. Theone on the left Of the observer,
Rose, was hearty and strong, while that
on the right, Marie, was not quite SO
robust. She was fretful from teething,
while Rose was. bright, smiling and hap
Rose and Marie are tho names OF this
wonderfully close jointed pair Of sisters
that can never know separation. Rose
Mary would be the name for them taken
as one. A toy was handed Mary, she
SMILED, took Il, and played with 1t. Rose
reached out her baby hand, got the toy,
and also smiled and chuckled. Professor
Pancoast then proceeded TO show that the
children arc separate down TO the edge
OF the ribs, with separate heads, separate
arms, two TO each, and separate hearts.
At the breast bono the bodies are fairly
united, but tho rest OF the organs are
common TO both. There is but one naval.
and the buttocks are united, terminating
on each side with well.forined log, one
for each OF the iointed twins. Roses leg
is very little iatter than the one belong.
ing TO Marie, but both are Of equal
length and perfectly formed. The pro-
fessor continued to explain to the highly
interested class that while the head,
arms and thorax, with Its contents, were
separate, 1t was probable that the intes-
final canal was Joined together, as there
was but one anus, and that in all proba-
biIityIthe bladder and womb are more
or less united, as they had hut ono COM
mon genitalla. In the science OF diplo.
theratology tho st. Benoit twins would
como under tho first order Of terata cali
didyma, which means subject with more
or less separation OF the brain and spinal
cord. The genus Is that in which they
arc united al tho abdomen and pelVis,
technically, Ischiopagus Symenetus, and
The species the three.footed, or Trlpus,
and as the body had union apparently
OF the ends OF the sternum 1t should also
" Having i fully explained the peculiar
formation, the lecturer said that he pos.
sessed the skeleton Of o similar specimen,
which no now has in tho anatomical mu.
scum OF Jefferson Medical College. It Is
very complete and perfect. Another
specimen reported by Prot Horner, Is in
he museum Of the Pennsylvania Uni.
yersity, but he said that the pair then be.
fore him were tho only sncs that ever
came into the world alive, and that their
chances OF liyingare quite as good as those
J Of children Of the same age.