The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1879-12-11
HALF MAN. HALF BIRD.

lust concluded the Investigation in,
The cause Of tho death of Herr Emf
3oetticher Of Noschkowitz. and tn,
result Of their labors has given tn
world one at the most remarkable q
prenatal Influences Ga children tina
the history Of mankind affords. u
tell the story clearly it must be frs
understood that the grandfather o
the monsircsity was an officer in the
Prussiau army which defeated Napo
leon at Leipsig aud that he wac re-
marksbie for his hot temper and Mt
ter lack If cautentnent The son
Of the soldier just referred to was a
passionate quiektempered and violent
mana sort Of iotDpur wilhuut Hot
spurs self~oontrol. lie was mar
ried to a singularly beautiful woman
ard the couple resided ia Nusohko-
WITT, iu the suburbs Of Nelson,
amid scenes 80 varied aud pictures
que as to remind the traveller of
Swtzarlau d.. y One evening in the
summer,of $50 Herr l}octdcher gal
loped into the court yard Of his resi-
dence. He was SO much excited
that his groom was afraid to ap
preach him. He went stamping and
cursing through the,kitcben and din
iug,hail Dinner was not ready,
He was furious. lie burst into,the
drawing room. His wife was on a
sofa playing with her lavorite falcon
He grabbed the bird by the legs, and
using it as a weapon, struck his wife
repeatedly over tho face and oeek
uniil the bird was reduced to frag
ments, and he floor, walls, sofa and
his wife was covered with blood and
feathers. The sharp, hooked, beak
of the creature had been driven deep
ly into the delicate flesh, She was
disfgured for life. Before the terri>
BILE ordeal was over she tainted. On
the wall opposite the sofa whercon
the brutal attack was perpetrated,
hung beautiful picture of john the
Baptist. The figure was nude, with
the exception OF the lions which were
encircled with tho girdle Of camel's
hair supported by single strap pass
ing over his shoulder 10 some-
what ever three monlhs tho lady
died 10 giving birth to her ouly child.
The surgeons who attended the an
fortunate lady were SLOW to detect
that the child to whom she gave birth
was a prodigy. On one side the
babe was perfec, and beautiful on
the other be resemblad Young ca,
gle. He was covered witt feathers,
but the skin was of that peculiar
oatmeal character observable in fowls
when dressed. His left arm resem,
Gled an immature wing. The toes OF
his left foot we're claws. The column
or Aesby extremity of the cartilage OF
the nose was of tender horp, like a
soft beak on ono side, and exhibited
normal, healthy appearance on the
right side. The left eye was the eye
of a hawk; the right eye was the soft
hazel eye of his deceased mother. -
Whether admonished by the father
or whether actuated by the profes
sional rectiencc peculiar to the med
lcaI profession does not appear, but
the fact is certain that tidiug Of the
abnormal birth did GOT travel beyond
the walls of the mansioo. All that
was known in the neighborhood was
that tho lady had died 10 childbirth,
and that the baby was living, but del
icate. Years passed, end nobody
seems to have sought to supplement
this knowledge. 1t was assumed on
all sides that the youth vas in deli
cate health and could not attend
school nor indulge ia open air exer-
else. The father and the faithful do
mestics encourage the duplicily -
When the bird boy was fifteen his
father died and be was left heir to
his estate. The lawyers visited
Noschkowitz, transacted the neces'
sary business, received their fees, but
said not q word about the young heir,
for whom a guardian was appointed
The old servants kept their places,
ali but the aged house>keeper she
was pensioned off and q handsome
yoang fr@ulein appointed 10 her
place. After this rumo{s began TO
reach the outside world and to take
form There we're frequent changes
of houseokeepers, aad no one could
tell whether they we're dismissed or
left voluntarily 1t was noi5ed around
that the young Herr Boetticher was
very fond OF raw meat, and as he
never attended church be was Set
Gown in pubic estimation as saw
age brute and q monumental sinner.
One day during the spring Of 1854 a
young lady appeared before Justice
Won Koensig, OF lhe court Of appeals
10 Nelson. She was accompanied
by her mother. The justice, after
hearing a portion Of her complaint
with evident astonishmeGt, took the
women into his retiring room and
heard their extraordinary statement
The consequence was that warrant
was issued for the arres; Of Herr
Emil Boetticher for ferocious crimI
nal assault. Tue officers Of the Law
who entered the mansion in The exc
cution of that order subsequently
told their experience in court, froG
/ which all reuOTterg were excluded