The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1884-09-17
BARKING LIKE A DOG.
4 Young Girl Who Gives Forth Strange and
Uncanny Sounds.
! A.

4 Young Girl Who Gives Forth Strange and
Uncanny Sounds.
philadelphia Press
"There Is a girl living at 1911 Lambert
street who barks like dog" said po-
liceman on Montgomery avenue to a re-
porter last evening. "She is the child of a
laborer named Mcdonald, and its one of
the most curious cases ever struck. The
whole neighborhood is talking about it."
In two minutes the reporter stood within
the Mcdonald household, The father, a
brawny Scotchman, somewhat wild in the
eye, was sitting near the fireplace. In
corner OF the room was plump, rosy
checked woman, who seemed particularly
strong and healthy. uHFf
"Thaps my daughter" said Mcdonald,
pointing her out, "and although she looks
twenty and weighs ITO pounds, she is only
fourteen years old. She seems to have
had all the ills that flesh can inherit. The
last misfortune is this habit of barking,
over which she has no control. Doctors
nave treated her by the score, but without
success. Sometimes am almost inciihed
to coincide with one of them, who said 1t
would be better II Maggie were dead"
AT that moment the girl, who had been
sitting quietly and looking not unattract-
i've, underwent peculiar spasm. Her
features were for an instant drawn up
into horrible .grimace. A short, hoarse
sound, not unlike the distant baying of a
dog, came from the throat, and then her
features relaxed into their usual express
sion. The spasm and noise had only
few seconds, but the effect was horrible
and unearthly. AT intervals of few
minutes this was repeated. The bark did
not come so frequently as the spasms, but
1t was heard often enough.
"She began when she was two years old
with cerebro.splnal meningitis" con.
tinued the father, "and that almost killed
her. Then she had st. Vitus's dance, ty-
phold fever, rheumatSm and brair
trouble. She has had almost everything.
At one time she almost doubled up back
wards and everyone thought she would
die. We were living at that time in West
Philadelphia and the doctors said that all
the maladies were the result Of an epi-
denlic. They say that she has spotted
brain disease and that portion of the
brain has decayed. She suffers in the
head frequently, but it can not be said
that she has bad health. Her spirits are
good, she enjoys life, and pll swear she
eats more than l do. / tell you she is a
regular little scoundrel in spite of spasms
and everything else"
Maggie, who had been listening intently
to the preceding conversation, suddenly
broke into queer, weak.mlnded sort of a
laugh that was unlike any other mirth. 1t
seemed morbid giggle combined with hys.
terra. Whenever she was mentioned and
wheneeer she made a remark, she laughed
In the saiue manner. Her head Is very
large and q is cOverel with beautiful
block hair. 10 see her before she was un.
dergoing o spasm no one would suppose
that she had any nerve ,rouble or, in fact,
any trouble at all. The terrible contortion
Of the features, which is often accompa.
MED by q shudder, is mistaken by people
who see her for the first time as merely a
bad habit. 1t does not take long, how.
ever, for the visitor to realize that there
Is something uncanny and morbid about
q.
"The spasms do not cause her any pain,
neither does the barking" Mcdonald ex"
planned. "They say dow. at the Homo.
pathic Hospital, where she has lately been
treated, that there is Sigh, hope OF curing
her, and that they will do what they can.
fear for the worst, however. The strange
part of it is that she should have grown TO
such a size in spite Of hor nervous disor-
ders. She laughs at the spasms and
doesn't seem 10 care"
Maggie Mcdonald is the wonder OF peo-
pie who live in the southern part OF the
Twenty eighth Ward. Many OF them re.
gard her ailment with superstitious hor.
ror. The ailment itself, the father says,
has no hereditary origin. He claims that
there was never anything Of the kind Ia
eff family.