Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-05-15
AN ELECTRICAL MAN.
singular Case of Harry Liebfried of En-.
poria, Kansas.

\ GlObe- Democrat correspondent is re
sponsble for this account of the case of
Harry Liebfried of Empora, Kan. : He
has been examined during the last ten
days by Drs. Moore, Longnecker, Jacobs,
Burke and Shepherd, all of whom agree
that he is in a most extraordinary and i'll
eXplcable condition, and that he is not
using any deception. If he can see or
hear, he is not conscious of the fact, is the
most skeptcal medical theory advanced
by the physicians who have seen him. He
has become a human electrical instru-
ment. \ series Of thunder storms, which
have occurred here every few days since
the first report of Lebfried's case, have
thrown him each time into such cOnVul-
sive agony that several men have had to
hold him, and one severe storm last week
left him so Frustrated that the sense of re
ceiving communications by writing III
the palm of his right hand left him, and
for two days the only spot on his body
through which he could be communicated
with was upon his right side. He could
| hardly write on his slate, and his suffer
ing at each flash of lightning is as great
as if he was connected with powerful
electrical battery and was receiving terri
| bic shocks, yet he can evince his suffer
ngs only by his contortions. His physi-
clan, Dr. Parr, proposes, at the next
! storm, to run wire from Llebfried' :
body to the earth to see if his system can
! not in that way discharge the electricity
which seems to strike it from the atmos
phere. Insulation on feather pillows ano
glass does little good These electrical
sho cks have so Frustrated him and IN
creased his paralysis that the sense o.
touch in his finger ends is greatly dulled
but improves rs his strength reviVeS be
tween each storm. If the present pro
longed series OF storms will cease betOr,
Liebfried dies or becomes entirely par
alyZed from the electrical effects upol
him, the question of his power to rea,
print by the touch of his finger tips, viii
be thoroughly tested Liebfried is a Ger
man by birth, about 80 years of age goo,
character A.; lives with his wife and falnil.
in his residence, corner OF Cottonwood
street and Seventh avenue. lie has repu
tation as Il dog fancier and breeder, an'
took some first premiums last year at tn
st. Louis bench show. lie was stricken
completely unconscious by paralysis MarcI
30 began to revive April u has sine
been blind, deaf and dumb, but mental
clear and vigorous able until almos
killed by each successive thunderstorm 1
receive communications through the pail
of his right hand, and write on hls Stat
as readily as in full health, and is believe
by his physician, family and dozens of hi
friends who have seen him, to have no Us
of ms ear, eyes or speech, yet to he adj
by the tips of his right hand fingers to rec
$ ognize any of his hundreds of acquain'
ances, and read print plea SIZE, 10y touc
alone. Every doctor who has seen M
says there is no conscious deception,
there is any deception AT all. No objec
3 for fraud is apparent. His dumb agon
in thunder storms is painful to witness
) and he is certainly the physiological an
electrical marvel of the day.