The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1886-08-28
THE PHANTOM HAND.
a Medical Student Haunted by
Peculiar Hallucination.

| A Promising Young Man who Was Driver
Crazy by an Unpleasant Adventure
! with Corpse--H Recovery
from the Shock.
IN. Y. Cor. St. Paul Pioneer-Pressl
The causes and cure of the insanity O
Charles Richards, lately a patient in the
insane asylum at Blackwells Island, pre-
sents one of the strange freaks which
nature so peculiarly deals out once in
awhile, with no apparent reason OF deter
mination. 1t was in the winter of 1885,
| just after the beginning Of the seasons
course of lectures at the College of Ply
sicians and Surgeons, that Richards was
| admitted as second-year student from,
| the Medical University. he had just
| passed his twenty-hrst birthday, and was
in many respects remarkable student.
He had an intuitive knowledge OF the
symptoms of disease that is rarely net
with. He was first-class anatonist. In
| his general and special requirements be
bade fair to reach q position Of prominence
in the profession he had chosen Last Oc-
tober. he determined to make strenuous
effort to carry off the prize for the
best dissection of the head, neck and
| right arm. He wanted body which
indicated strength and delicacy: Hs
found one at last 1t was the corpse OF a
girl who had been found frozen in lun-
ber-yard. The body had been frozen in a
sitting posture, and retained this shape.
The face Of the dead girl wore sort of i'd
lotto smile. Her left arm was cramped
over the abdomen. The right hand was
raised above her head and held drnaly
there by the cold. Richards had sold the
lower extremities of the corpse, having no
use for them. and after he got through the
days studies he went to the dissecting-
room to divide the body and deliver these
parts to the purchaser. 1t was nearly
eleven o'clock when he started through the
dinaiy-lighted dissecting-room where, up
On the twenty-four slabs, were as many
grinning, distorted bodies in every stage
of dissection. 1t was not pleasant place
for q nervous man tho night was stormy,
the wind howled through the shutters and
along the roof. Hail and snow beat upon
the glass in the windows as if departed
mutilation of their bodies. Richards
was the girl with her frozen smile,
sitting upright. TIE body was nude
and slightly thawed, but was
still too hard for the knife to run easily.
Richards waited for a few minutes and
then made up his mind to wait until the
next day, but as he was about to go away
be noticed very peculiar swelling on the
right leg OF the cadayer. His curiosity be-
ing aroused, he slipped on his long black
gown, took out a small knife and began
to cut around the swelling 10 determine it's
character. He was bending low over the
abdomen. eDgrossed in his work. Above
his head there was a change. Tho upper
part Of the corpse had thawed the most.
The muscles in the right arm, the hand Of
which was behind the head, relaxed and
the weight caused the hand to slip from
behind the head and slowly descend. Rich
ards did not know cf the change. He had
discovered a rare trrla Of tnnor and bent
lower over the body to examine it. Down
ward cane the hand, moving Il little qWicts-
CT all the while, until suddenly the body
gave little jerk and the icy hand fell full
upon the young mans neck. The shock
was something terrible. He could not stir
clutched the frozen leg to keep from fall
iug, and then he slowly drew his head
away and looked at the corpse The same
idiotic smile was there, but to his
excited imagination Che lips seemed
to move i'll silent mockcry. He felt as il
suffocating and rushed n1adly into the open
Dir and hurried home and aroused his
uncle. lie sold him the story i1 every de-
tail, aud said that he could not get the
wonaau's hand Off his ueck His uncle
laughed at tho idea, and tried to dispol the
illusion. Richards went to his rooln, but
not to sleep. Ellis mind was filled with
horror which he could not shake Off. The
hand of death was on his nect: always, and
the idiotic smile was at, his shoulder when
ever hs would turn. He grew worse FROM
day to day, and in two weeks, having
shown signs OF suicidal mania, he was sent
to the asylum. He was very reticent all
the time, and wiped his neck at frequent
intervals with his handkerchief to take
something away. The main manifesto ton
Of The denentia was the exhibition of the
most abject fear, His condition became
gradually worse. and the case was looked
upon as hopeless. He had to be carefully
watched to keep him from committing
suicide. The regular keeper had been
taken sick, and 8 new one did not exer-
else the proper watchfulness, The
patient during the night got up from his
cot tore sheet and hung himself
TO the door of his cell. He was found soon
afterward by the keeper, unconscious and
nearly dead. He was at at once cut down
and efforts made to resuscitate him. After
hours of labvt the patent became con-
scious His uncle, who had been sent Tor,
got to the asylum about the time he opened
his eyes, and took charge of the subse-
quent treatment. The effect OF tie great
shock had worn off, and the young man
recognized his uncle and talked with him
He seemed to be dazed: but spoke in nat
ural manner. There was no trace Of the
former dread which had possessed him,
and he gradually grew bright and cheerful.
In a month he seemed as we'll as ever,
talked freely of himself and his feelings,
and protested that his mind was blank
about the events of the months that he had
been confined. 1t was deemed safe to dis
charge him from the asylum, and about
week ago he was set free. A change being
advised he started for Frrona It is he