The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1883-04-26

does this mean. l am not dead -
The other boys looked at pa in as
constituent and said, well, we just
bought you for dead, and the coro.
ner's jury said you were dead, and
we amt going to be fooled out of
corpse when we buy one, are we
Doc = My chum said not if he
knewed hisself and the other student
said, 'Of course be is. He thinks
be is alive, but he died day before
yesterday, fell dead on the street,
and his folks said he had been a
nuisance and they wouldn't claim the
corpse, and we bought it at the NOR
gue.' Then drew the icicie across
him again, and said, Don't know
about this doctor. find that blood
follows the scaIpel as | cut through
the cuticle. Hand me the blood
sponge, please Pa began to wig
gle around, and we looked at him
and my chum raised his eyelid and
looked solemn, and pa said, Hold
on, gentlemen, don't cut into me any
more, and can explain this matter.
was only drunk We went to a
corner and whispered, and pa kept
talking all the time. He said if we
would postpone the hog killing he
would send and get witnesses that be
was not dead, but that he was a res
pectable citizen and had family.
After we held a consultation | went
to pa and told him that what be said
about being alive might possibly be
true, though we bad our doubts
We had found such cases before in
our practice east, where men seem
to be alive, but it was only Temporary.
Before we bad got them cut up they
we're dead enough for all practical
purposes. Then | laid the icicle
across pas abdomen, and went on to
tell him that even if he was alive it
would be better to play that he was
dead, because be was such nuis~
ance to his family and they didn't
want him, and | was telling him that
lad heard in his life,time he was
very cruel to his boy, bright little
fellow who was at the head of his
class in Sunday-shool, and pet
wherever he was at all known, when
pa interrupted me, and said; Doc
tor, plecse take that carving knife
off of my stomach, for it makes me
nervous. AS for that boy of mine,
he is the worst little whelp in this
city, and he isn't no pet anywhere.
Now you let up on this dissecting
business and | will make it all right
with you We held another consul
tation and then told pa that we did
not feel that it was doing justice to
society to give up the body of a no.
torious dlunkard, after we had paid
out twenty dollars for the corpse. -
If there was any hope that he would
reform and try and lead different
life, it would be different, and | said
to the boys: Gentlemen, we must
do our duty. Doc, you dismember
that leg, and l will attend to the
stomach and the upper part of the
body. He will be dead before we
are done with him. We must re>
member that society has some claim
on us. and not let the better nature
be worked upon Dy post norton
promises of dead drunkard.'
Then l took my icicle and COM
menced fumbling around the abdo-
men portion of pas remains, and my
chum took rough piece of ice and
began to saw his leg off, while the
other boy took hold of the leg and
said be would catch it when it drop
ped off. Well, pa kicked like steer.
He said he wanted to make one more
appeal to US, and we acted sort of
impatient, but we let up to see what
be had to say. He said if we would
turn him loose that he would give US
ten dollars more than we paid for
the body, aud that be would never
drink another drop as long as he
lived. Then we whispered some
more and told him we thought favor
ably of his last proposition, but he
must swear, with his hand on the leg
of corpse we were then dissecting,
that he would never drink again, and
that be must be blind fosled and led
several blocks from the dissecting
room, before we would turn him
loose. He said that was all right,
and we blind folded him, and made
him take a bloody oath with bis
hand on piece of ice that we told
him was a piece of another corpse,
and then we took him out of the
house and walked him around the
block four times, and then left him
on the corner after he had promised
to sepd the money to an address. that
I gave him. We told him to stand
still FIVE minutes after we had left
him, then remove the blindfold and
90 home. We watched him from
behind board fence, aud he took
off the handkerchief, looked at the
name on the street lamp, and found
be was not far from home. He star
ted off, saying; That's pretty mar
row escape, old man. No more
whisky for you I did not see him
again until this morning, and when
asked him where be was last night
be sbuddered and said, None of
your business. But | never drink
any more; you remember that. -
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