Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1883-06-14
BURIED ALIVE.
Remarkable Cases TINT Are Matters of His
tery--The State of Trance.

Remarkable Cases TINT Are Matters of His
tory--The State of Trance.
In 1881 Mr.. Edward Stapleton, a
London attorney, apparently died of
typhus fever, with symptoms that as
tonished the physicians. His friends
would not allow post-mortem, SO,
when he hal been buried eight feet
under ground, the doctors agreed with
some body-snatchers to rifle his grave.
Placed upon the table, an incision of
some length had been made in his ab-
domen when the undecayed appearance
of the corpse suggested the use of the
battery. Many experiments were tried,
when one suggested applying the bat
terry to one of the pectoral muscles. A
rough cash was made, a wire brought
into contact, when the patient, with a
hurried movement, rose from the table
and vaulted into the middle of the
floor. Uttering a few unintelligible
words, he swooned Immediately. 1t
was nearly daylight and the corpse
cutters were thrilled with awe and
paralyzed with fear. 1t was time for
action. The man was alive. He was
speedily brought to and eventually re-
stored to his friends. Mr.. Stapleton
declared that at no time was he totally
unconscious that he heard the doctors
pronounce him dead, and when he was
on the dissecting- table tried to shout,
1 am alive"
Cardinal Donnet related the follow
ing account before the French assem-
bly,: A young priest was suddenly
stricken down unconscious in the pull
pit of crowded cathedral, where he
was preaching. The funeral knell was
soon after tolled, and physician de-
clared him to be certainly dead, and
obtained leave for his burial next day.
The bishop of the cathedral where the
event had occurred had recited the
:" De Profundis' by the side of the
bier, the coffin being already prepared.
Night was approaching, and the young
priest, who heard all as, piepara
tions, was suffering agonles. He was
only twenty-eight years old, and in
perfect health. At last he distin-
guished the voice of friend of his
childhood. This caused him to make
a superhuman effort, and produced the
wonderful result of enabling him to
speak. The next day he was enabled
to preach again.
When, in February, 1866, the French
senate was discussing the question Of
establishing mortuary houses, in which
people supposed to be dead should re-
main certain number of hours before
burial, and a motion was made to pro-
ceed with the order of the day, the car
dinal archbishop of Bordeaux protested,
and stated that while he was cure he
had saved several lives about to be
sacrificed to the indecent haste of sur
vivors. He had seen man taken
from his coffin and restored to perfect
health. Another man of advanced
years had already been placed in the
coffin, and yet lived twelve hours after.
He had seen the body of young lady
laid out for burial, the attendants COW
ering the face as he entered, but al
lowing him to observe enough to see
that the maid was not dead, but asleep.
Thereupon he cried out that he had
come to save her. He told her to
wake up and shake off the lethargy
which oppres sell her, and return to
life. His voice reached her benumbed
sensations, and she lived to be a wife
and a mother.
In 1848 an ex-nun Of the suppressed
convent of Ursula, named Lucia Mari
ana, was taken i'll, and, to all appear
ances, died. She was subject to
peculiar fits, which required a certain
kind of treatment. The gravediggers
insisted on burying the body before
night, but surviving nun, with whom
she was staying, demonstrated, urging
that they try the use of friction aud
mustard plasters. Fearing to lose
their fee, the men of death quarreled
over the supposed corpse, seized it by
the shoulders, and were about to drag
it out of bed, when the dead lady
moaned, muttered iaarticulate sounds
and turned uneasily on her pillow.
The living nun began to pray and cry.
the men let 60 their hold of the corpse
one Of them crossed himself, and the
other cursed and swore it was only
spasms, the dead, in his opinion, being
able to make convulsive movements if
not properly Strengthened. Humanity
conquered Ignorance, and greed ior
gain was overcome by the doctor, who
restored her to life, and she llvel for
many a year to tell of her escape.
Petrach, the poet, once lay for
twenty days in state of trance at
Ferrara, and he was to be buried in
four hours, according to law, when a
sudden change in the temperature
caused him to rise up in bed. He
scolded the attendants for leaving the
door open and allowing a current Of
cold air to blow upon him. Perhaps
had the door heen kent shut he would