Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1883-02-27
A HORRIBLE TALE OF BURY1NG ALIVE

\ Swiss. settled in Russia sends 10 tho
B"nda strange story taken from the Jie-
domosti. paper published at Samara. of u
man being buried alive, for the accuracy OF
which the writer says tLath he can personally
vouch The story, besides the horror of it.
shows how helpless the Russian system of
government renders the people for whose
benefit ii is designed and how utterly bu-
reaucracy has crushed in them all spirit of
initiative and independence. The other
day, so runs the account, Il man was buried
alive i'll Samara. His name was Tichonotr.
and he had been employed as Il writer in a
machine depot. On the fetc day Tchonoff'
drank heavily and had an epileptic fit. For
Il long time thereafter he lay quite still and
showed no sign of life, which led his wife
and kinslolk to conclude that he was dead
This happened on ST. Silvesters Day, and
to avoid keeping the supposed corpse in the
house three days iior on Saturday preced-
ing q festival 10 body can be buried, it was
decided to lay him in the ground that very
night after vespers. and arrangements were
made accordingly. The body was removed
to the cemetery church, where the pope
lprlcst) read the service for the dead.
While this was going on the (the coffin be-
ing uncoVercdl some Of the bystanders no.
tlced what seemed TO be drops of sweat on
the dead mans face but this appear
ance being attributed to few snow
flakes which had fallen during the pas
sage from Tichonotrs house to the cemc-
terry. he WAS laid in the grave without more ado
| and the hour being late very little earth was
thrswn over him. When tho grave digger went
carly next morning To the cemetery to complete
his work. he heard sound us of groaning and
struggling III Tich0no!ts grave. Instead of forth
with releasing the poor wretch, the man ran to
the priest 10 ask leave To disinter him. This re-
quest the priest refused. on the ground that he
dare not touch Il body once buried without the
permission of the police. On this the sexton in
formed ilchonoIES wife OF what mad come to pass
ANA they went together to the chief of the local
police Tins gentleman said it WIS quite out of
his power to give the required authorizations and
referred them To the archimandritc and the archi
mandritc pr"tcsScd to hc equally powcrless re-
tcrring them to the procuratOr. In the end the
ag"nlzcd wife procured the authorization without
winch nobody would act, and returned tn the
| cemetery. But it WAS too late: five hours had
elapsed since the grave digger first heard the
sroars. and TichOnon WAS now dead beyond the
possibility Of doubt. The poor fellow succumbed
Only after Il mortal struggle. He had turned
around i'll his coffin. and in his despair bitten his
fingers, torn his flesh and rc2t his clothing This
fatality says tho liciomoSii SIS due to no other
cause than the scnsclcss iormaliics which prevail
III every branch of lsuSsiau administration" Nine
lIchon0i! is suing the priest who refused to let
the grave digger disintcr her husband for damages.
on th" ground that he caused the lattcr's death
by too Slavishy obcying the letter Of his nstruc-
tions--Gen'w correspondence LoHdon Times.