Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-06-03
FREEZING THE DEAD.

O6aT tl1uS w Wdfu1uSS AS difkSt d OOsll
mon stom---Pressing Protest
from a Prominent Physician--Th'
Fatal Effects in Many Instance
ola Too Early Application of Ice
"Freezing the dead" says DIR
A. Trego Shertzer,of Baltimore
''has for some time occupied my
attention, and the fact that two
cases have lately come under
my personal observation forces
me publicly and privately to
protest against the modern GUS
tom introduced by undertakers
and others of freezing the dead.
GA few weeks ago l was has
tily summoned to see a little
girl who had been taken sudden
ly i'll, and, after carefully exam
lining the case, I pronounced her
dying. / called in a prominent
brother physician, who Glanced
to be close by, but scarcely had
he entered the room when to all
appearances life had taken its
fight. We sat beside the
corpse fully half an hour trying
to solve the sudden and unac-
countable cause of death, and
then, after examining the body,
pronounced the child dead. And
so it seemed for two hours, When
to the surprise of every one, the
child sat up and asked its moth
er if supper was ready, as it was
hungry. In this case I had
made out its death certificate,
and, had the undertaken been as
prompt as l was, the child
would have been frozen stiff be-
fore it could get a chance to ask
for something to eat.
GA few days ago l was sum-
moned to see a body, just be-
fore burial, which had been de-
layed until a physician could be
called to see whether the per-
son was dead or alive; and when
II learned that it had been in an
ice casket for two days and two
nights /, of course, told the fam
lily at once that life had forever
departed. One Of the brothers
exclaimed, 'Then our brother
has been frozen to DEATH In
this case the body had been
sent home in all ice casket.
"Is it not simply shocking to
civilized humanity that such
gross indecencies as freezing our
dear dead ones is often practic-
ed before ample time has been
given to know whether they be
dead or if it is only a case of
suspended animation?
'In the November number,
1879, of the Medical Invcstiga-
tor, the following case is re-
ported from Freelandsvillc, Ind:
"'What is considered Il re-
markable case of trance has hap
pened here lately. The victim
is Miss Feihlam, the daughter
of q wcll-to-do farmer residing
near this place. The facts,
briefly as possibly, are these:
Miss Feihlam, whose family are
Catholic, returned from the
school of Notre Dame, Ind,
last December. Since her re-
turn she has been very i'll in
health, seeming to be generally
affected, moaning and tossing
in fever at night. Immediately
after the late cold spell she was
attacked with pneumonia, now
so fatally prevalent in this re-
gion. Notwithstanding she had
the best medical attendance to
be procured in this vicinity, she
died on Monday, March 81,
1879, or at least apparently died,
for so the physicians pronounc-
ed her.
"sWere it not for the fact of
Miss Feihlam being an only
child, it is probable she would
have been buried Immediately,
but, as it was, it was decided to
hold the corpse until relatives
from Ohio, who had been sent
for, could arrive, This delayed
the burial until March 9th. The
funeral was to take place at 2
| p. M.
A MOTHERS GLAD DISCOVERY.
"sAt that time, as the friends
and relatives were taking the
last look, the corpse not yet hav-
ing been taken from the house,
the mother, being the last to
review the remains bent over
the body, and, nttering a cry,
declared that she saw the eye
lids move as if in life. The
father, with the friends, COM
menced Immediately to try by
gentle movements to withdraw
her from the room. They had
nearly accomplished this when
the corpse, to the surprise of all,
suddenly arose and assumed 9
sitting posture in the coffin.
"sMiss Feihlam is SAID, by
those who witnessed the scene
to have gazed around with va