Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1883-07-20
LITTLE THINGS IN LIFE.

'IWorc Detter tnNn 10 DC 700 W1Sc,
And see no more with fresh young eyes.
Josephine Pollard IN N. Y. Ledger.
LITTLE THINGS In LIFE.
some of tho Slight Causes that Have Pro-
duced Important Results-AccIdents and
Incidents Bringing Death to Some and
Fortunes to Othcrs-what Fate Had In
Store.
How slight thing causes death, and
yet through what beatings and failings,
explosions and shootings, wars and bat
ties, shipwrecks and perils on land and
sea, some persons pass and still survive
to good old age. A short time ago
child in this city choked to death on q
grain of coffee. Mrs Marks, a lady
of sixty-two, undertook to remove a
wart ON her forefinger by an application
of concentrated lye (exhibitinga n degree
of wisdom similar to that of the man
who fired his. barn in order to burn out
wasp-nest in the eaves), and her sys-
tenn was thus poisoned. A Mr.. Nc
Cabe, of st. Louis, had a slight
pimple on his cheek. "Cut it off,
he osaid to the barber. He did,
and in. ten days time n cancer devel-
oped, and Mr.. McCabe paid the forfeit
with his life. ~
Foar causes many accidents, showing
how powerful some peoples Imagination
is to hatch out the eggs of disaster into
full-hedged chickens Of death and sick
ness. General w. S. Harney, the In
dian-fghter, used to tell a story of
young Lieutenant who went with him to
an indian banquet. Among other deli
cacies they had some rattlesnake,
stewed, fried and boiled. The meat
was white, tender and Juicy. The Lieu
tenant ate heartily of it, and pronounced
1t finer than any spring chicken he had
evereaten. At last the General said to
him: ''Do you know that was rattle
snake you liked so much3" The Lieuten-
ant turned deadly pale, was seized with
violent retchings, and died before morn
ing with spasms of the stomach, brought
on entirely by imaginary fear.
Surgeon-General Francis, of the In
dian Medical Service, tells of drum
mer who was suddenly aroused from
his sleep by something crawling over
his naked legs. He imagined it was
cobra, and his friends collected by the
outcry thought SO, too, and he was
treatedRccordingly. Incantations such
as. are customary with the natives on
these occasions, were resorted to, and
thes poor fellow was tlagellated with
twisted cloths on the arms and legs in
view partly to arouse him, but princi-
pally to drive out the evil influence
(spiriD that for the time being had taken
possession of him. With the first dawn
Offght the cause of the fright was dis
covered in the shape of harmless
lizard, which was lying crushed and
half killed by the side of the poor drum
mers-but it was too late. From the
moment when he believed that a poison
Gus snake had bitten him he passed into
embarrassing collapse until he died.
The drummer was not strong lad, and
tho shock was too much for him.
The most remarkable death froxa the
accident of fright was that of the Dutch
painter, Penteman, in the seventeenth
century. He was at work on u picture
in which were represented several death
heads, grinning skeletons, and other
Objects calculated to inspire the beholder
with a contempt for the vanities and
foltes of the day. In order to do his
work the better he went to an anatom-
ica1 room and used it for studio. One
sultry day, as he was drawing these
melancholy relics of mortality by which
he was surrounded, he fell off into q
quiet sleep, from which he was suddenly
aroused. Imagine his horror at behold
ingthe, skulls and bones dancing around
him like mad, and the skeletons which
hung from the ceiling dashing them
selves together. Panic-stricken, he
rushed from the room and throw him
self .headlong from window onto the
pavement below. He sufficiently recoy-
cred to learn that the cause of his fear
was a slight earthquake, but his nervous
system had received so severe shock
that he died in a few days.
frederick ]. of Prussia, was killed by
an accident of fear. He was one day
sleeping in an armchair, when his wife,
Louisa. Of Mecklenberg, who had for
some time been hopelessly insane, es-
capped from her keepers and made her
way TO the Kings private apartments.
Breaking through n glass door, she
dabbled herself in blood, and in rag
ing fit.of delirium cast herself upon the
King, The latter, who was not aware
of the hopelessness of her lunacy, was
so mortified at the appearance of a
woman clad only in linen and covered
with blood that he imagined. with q
superstition characteristic of the age,
that it WAS the White Lady, whose
ghdst, according to-time-h -honored tradi-
tion, Invariably appeared when death
was around the house of Brandenburg,
He was seized with fever and died in
six weeks.
More ridiculous was the death of the
French Marshal, De Montrevel, "whost
wholeisoub" says st. Simon. "was but
ambition and lucre, without ever hay.
ingIbeen able TO distinguish his right
hand from his left. but concealing his
universal ignorance with an audacity
which favor, fashion and birth protect
ed z He was a very superstitious man
and one day salt-cellar was upset at
public dinner in his lap, and SO fright
ened was he that he arose and announced
that he was dead man. He reached
home and died in few days, in 1716
literally scared to death by the absurt
casualty of salt-cellar's turning over
Slight accidents, trivial in themselves
often produce most ill-timed and fata
results. Anacreon, the Greek poet O
love, choked TO death with grape
stone. Eschylus was killed by an eagl,
dropping tortoise on his head, sup
posing IL was rock. William the Con
queror was killed by being thrown on t.
the pummel of his saddle, and Chrysop
pus, the philosopher, laughed himself h
death rat /, seeing an ass eating figs
Moliere. the great French comedian ant
dramatist, accidentally killed himsel
while playing one of his pieces, 9Th
Man Who Pretends To BE Dead.''
"Oldeuriy Death. offended at his play,
Would not be Joked with In so free a way;
He, when b? mimioked him, his voice ~
And PEas % Fin 80, ia sarnsss whsn b