The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1881-12-07
TIE PHENOMENA or DEATH.


The PHENOMENA or DEATH,
II is our purpose TO discuss, as briefly
as possible. some of the most important
aspects Of dissolution. Addison said
that there was nothing in history moro
imposing than, nothing SO pleasing and
affecting rs, the accounts Of the behavior
of eminent persons in their dying hours;
and Montague remarks, while spccuat,
ing on DEATH that, Of all the passages
in the annals Of mankind, those which
attracted and delighted him most were
the words and gestures OF dying men.
If | were Il maker Of books,' he con-
tinues, al would compile a register with
comments Of various deaths, for he who
should teach men 10 die would teach
them to live" There are three clements
presented in this fear Of death. First
the extinction Of lifr's pleasures, inter
ests and hopes, to which the mind looks
forward with degree OF apprehension
prOpOrlionatc TO the amount Of lnppi-
ness they are capable Of ailording
With the young and vigorous the loss OF
these animal cnjoyments is contemplate
ed with extreme misery hence tho Gus
tom among the carly Greeks Of bearing
the lifelcss body Of youth to the
funeral pyre at the break OF morn,
"lcst the sun shoul1 behold so sad u
sight us tho young dead" Second, the
dread Of the unknown future, also de-
pending upon tho nervous temperament.
And lastly comes II fear more powerful
than either which is the dread Of pain,
inherent III nature. From t!me immc-
morinl the actual moment OF dissolution
has been supposed to be accompanied
by u throo Of anguish, known as the
"denth agony" This is believed TO
occur at that moment when the spiritual
and physical forces that have been SO III
timately blended for many years nro torn
asunder-the one to mOldcr and decay,
the other TO take upon itself that new
lifo beyond the ken Of man.
This last element properly belongs to
the Psychologist, and as such we propose
to consider it. Sir Francis Bacon, in
one of his essays, published for the first
time III the year 1877, gave TO the world
the following profound thought: ct is
~ natural to die AZ to he born and to
the little infant, perhaps, the one is as
painful rs the other" In proiundity of
thought and depth Of research Bacon
stepped in advance OF his cCntempora-
ries, and lived in the future. Thus wo
find that, contrary to tho generally re.
ccivod opinion Of even this latter day,
noGure evidently designed that the end
Of man should BIO as painless as his be-
ginning.
At birth the bahc undcrgoCs an or
deal that, were he conscious, would be
more trying than most painful death.
Yet he feels it not. Born in an uncon-
scious state, the brain incapable OF re-
cciving conscious Impressions his en-
trance into this hitherto unknown world
is accomplished during II state Of oh.
Ivion, known as natures anBsthGsia
Painters We come whence wo know not
Painless we 30, whittier wo know mott
From the earliest period Of human
history death has been considered as
necessarily accompanied by pain so
general is THIS Do,ici that the terms
"dcathagony," -" last struggle, ""pnngs
OF DEATH" etc., have been in almost
universal use IN every age ind under all
conditions OF society.
Nothing could be- mora erroneous
the truth is, pain and death seldom go
together--we mean the last moments Of
life. OF course. death may be preceded
by weeks and even months OF extreme
suffering, as occurs during certain in
}urable diseases
So exaggerated has been this notion
that it has been considered an act Of
humanity to anticipate the "dcath
struggle by violence; for ages it was
customary among the lower Glasses of
Europe to hasten death by suddenly
Jerking the pillow from beneath the head
Of the dying, thus throwing the head
backward, straining the pharyngenl and
,horacic muscles, rendering tho respira-
ton, already difficult, shortly impossi-
bic. A Venetian Ambassador, III the
Juno of Queen Mary. asserted that it
was common custom among the conn
try people to smother the dying by
means OF II pillow placed over the face,
upon which leaned or sat the nearest
relative. This was founled upon the
pious belief that the short road was the
best one. This custom was handed
down from generation to generation,
parents performing it Tor their children !
and vice versa. But perhaps the sad .
dest privilege ever allowed the friends Of
q dying man occurred occasionally dur
ing the reign Of Queen Elizabeth, when
through executive clemency--execution
by hanging-they were permitted to
grasp the feet of the suspended criminal
and, by clenching to the extremlties,
precipitate their additional weight on
The body, thereby fastening strangula-
ton. II is needless to say that these
theories are false in both conception
and practice. Death is a physiological
process, and, like all other animal func-
tons, should be painless.
When the fiat Of death went forth, ma
ure kindly provided an an@sthetic for
he body. As theend OF life draws nenr,
he respiration becomes slow aud shall
ow. interrupted now and then by o
leep, signing inspiration, as though the
lungs were vainly endeavoring to throw
If the palsy slowly creeping over them.
Is the intervals between the insplra-
,~,. .x~1rp .1poar tha i.tana Ia,av,n.