Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-01-27

Searching Tests Show No Trickery Tho
Phenomenon Unexplained.
An Investigation of a most extraor
binary freak Of nature, or W hat APP
pears to be such, will take place thin
evening at the Rush Medical College
Some time ago. mulatto named
Underwood arrived In the city
from Michigan, and IL soon be-
came known that he claimed "a
be able to produce flame by breathing
upon any combustible article. This
power IL was said he had always pos
scssed, and that the fact was we'll
known TO his associates. A Mr.. COON.
lev, residing at 2i2 West Van Buren,
street. became interested In the man,
and after satisfying himself that he
could to all seeming do what was
claimed, had him examined by medi-
cal men with tho object of ascertain
ing whether the flame was, az Under
wood himself insists, produced by the
breath. or by artificial and cunningly
concealed means. SO far as the tests
have gone they have failed to demon
strate that any fraud is practiced.
Although carefully watched, and
appear impossible, Underwood
produces flame at will How il is done,
or to what peculiar condition of his
organization his extraordinary power
il due, has not been explained. The
test that will take place this evening
Is designed to be more elaborate than
any that have preceded it. Under
wood will be prepared for il by the
nj icfu xult ttfIt
10 eficctualiy ncutralize the effect OF
any nrtilice before allowing him to
produce the flame.
On Friday evening last Mr.. COON
ley took Underwood to the residence
Of Mr.. Eugene Howe, at ll40 West
Taylor street, where he exhibited his
strange faculty In the presence of II
few of the friends of the last named
gentleman. This fact being made
known TO the Heratd, "A reporter called
on Mr.. Howe last evening to learn
what had transpred.
Mr.. Coomley Is my uncle,o said
Mr.. Howe to the reporter, land he
brought the man here in order that he
might exhibit his powers"
What il your opinion of the thing =?
IL there any trick?o
"No, | don { think there can be.u
"What does he do? Does he pro-
duce an actual flame, or Is IT. slow
combustion of the article he sets ON
fire ~
at is real iame--a blaze"
Mrs. Howe was present. and nj this
| stage she left the parlor, returning n
moment later with n part Of hand
kerchief, in which there were two
holes that could have been pro-
duced by nothing but fame.
The edges of these holes
were surrounded with black charred
linen, while further away the fabric
was scorched brown, as ii by the heat
Of the burning part.
"Will you explain how Underwood
did this?p
Certainly. When our friends ar.
rived he took the handkerchief unt
held 1t 20 his mouth for Il while, ant
then the lame appearedh
Was Its appearance instantaneous
or die 1t require SOME time to produc,
the effect ~
lie held the handkerchief TO hi
mouth for one minute and twent,
seconds before II caught fire.
Ibid IL seem to you that amy cflor
wan necessary =
Eyes, something OF the kind. II
was very much exhausted when Ia
got through. lie says that he neve
does II more than once or twice II
any one day because 1t exhausts hin
so muohr
Docs he say anything Of any othe
eitectph
"He complains of n pain in the ches
here quitting his hand on the lowe
part OF the chest.
He has always been able to d
thbs9n
"Tes, But nobody thought II wa
anything but u trick. AS he say,
peoplcused 10 shy, 1t was q prett
clever trick for II durkey to do He
rs anxious as any one to know whi
cnuses the phcnomenon.h
is he large, muscular man?p
No he IS not. He Is moi puny, bu
slender
Mrs. Howe explained TO the r,
porter that the handkerchief wa
folded several times, so that ther
were ssyera thicknesses burne
! through. The greater part o, il w,
torn up and distributed among pei
sons who were present at the test.
WAS also stated that Underwood
pulse WAS timed before the test an
found to he beating ut the rate ,
eighty pulsations 10 the minute. A
ter the test Il was seventy To the mil
. ute, or ten beats slower, Mr.. How
added, however, that the pulsatiol
were not counted immediately aft,
the test, Perhaps n minute elapsing b
N4.sH.s i