National Republican., 1883-09-24
HOW THE GLASSES BURST.
Curious Phenomena that Puzzled Social
Party in Ohio Recently.


Tuesday evening, in Middletown, Ohio,
says writer in the Cincinnati ERqnirey a
party Of ladies and gentlemen had gathered
in the parlor of the residence of one of the
number for social chat. They were six in
all, and after chatting awhile the hostess
brought in q deCanter of wine and glasses,
and upon filing the glasses passed them to
her guests. After drinking his wine one of
the gentlemen arose and set his glass on the
center table and again resumed his seat when,
with loud report, tho glass broke into
exactly six pieces. Strange to say, the point
of one of each Of the six pieces pointed di-
rectly to one of each of the six persons in the
room. That is to say, each person was
represented in this mysterious manner by
portion of the burst wine glass, and each frag-
ment of tho glass lay in such position as to
directly point to the person which it repre-
sented, although the party was seated pro-
miscuously about the room. OF course this
created an excitement and led the converse.
tiOn to the subject Of superstitiOns and finally
to predestinaton. After considerable chat
in this strain one of the party who had been
pronounced of II decidedly superstitious ma
ture suggested another glass of wine, prob
ably to brace his nerves. This glass was
placed on the table before being filed and as
he stepped toward the table he made remark
about intending to take another glass of
wine before he died. when, even before the
hostess filed the glass, il burst into two
pieces, cracking sufficiently TO prevent il
being filled, but not to cause it to fall apart.
Although the wonder and excitement Of the
breaking of the first glass was great, this
second mysterious brcakage increased it
two fold and then the believers in supeTsti-
tion became the larger part Of the assembly.
Ono Of them, howcvcr--thc gentleman whose
glass was the first TO brcak--Glamed to be
proof against their arguments in favor Of
predestination, spirirualislu, or superstition,
and maintained his position with vigor. AZ
ter brisk debate the glasses were again
filled, and the party arose to drink their wine
to a toast, when, rs this same gentleman
lifted his glass to his lips, ii burst into SOW
cral pieces, the fragments of the shivercd
glass flying in all directions, the wine being
dissipatcd almost entirely. This settled his
views on the subject Of the conversation, and
completely transformed him. Ills check
banchcd, his eyes rolled in their sockets,
hands and lips quivcred, and his knees smOtG
together, while he feebly made his way
10 seat. Confusion and excitement
rcigncd supreme in that room for n
considerable time, when ono more bold
than the rest proposed another glass of vino
aud another toast When the glasses We're
filled the toast " Break yc glasses, break to
fame Break in the presence of our hostess
again" WAS drank, and the gentleman who
proposed the toast placed his glass on the
table and had just seated himself when the
glass burst with the same loud report us those
which had met with the same fate. This
gentleman was almost ms badly affected as tho
one before him, and the whole party were
like ghosts in color. So intensified wus thoir
superstition that the hostess sprang upstairs
to see if her child WAS safe, while another
pccrcd under tho table for an explanation Of
the sprtualStic performance, and another
looked from behind the curtain into the street
expecting to SEQ an army Of phantoms ready
to spirit the whole party away. Not one,
however, was brave enough to suggest wine
again