Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-10-19
MAKES PEOPLE DANCE
The Astonishing Effect of Water
 Found in @ Texas Well

The Astonishing Effect of Water
 Found in @ Texas Well
 A Fluid That May Be Added to tho Number
 of Known Elements tho Sixty
 Sixth-It Makes Men Shout for
 Joy and Act Like Lunatics.
 A discovery of immense scientific inter- est has recently been made near this p,acc. says Wharton (Tex.) letter to the Psiiis- delphia Times-a discovery which IL is thought will add hitherto unknown cie- ment to the sixty-tive already familiar tc the chemist. Chudleigh Mason, pronsi- nent cotton planter living about five mics from town, while boring an artesian well on his place, struck water 8 few days ago at depth of 215 feet. A powerful stream was thrown up with Q loud report and slight trembling of the surrounding earth. Mr Mason, in order to test the quality of the water, drank glass of it, and the negro workmen also crowded about and drank freely of the water, which was found to be | very cold and good, though possessed of a | slight unfamiliar flavor, which was, how | ever, not disagreeable.
 Within quarter of an hour, or even less, l after drinking the water Mir. Mason began to feel strange twitchings in the muscles of 1 the face, and his W orkmen also commenced | to complain of the same sensation. This l twitching soon extended to the arms and legs, increasing all the while Ill violence, until at last the negroes cast themselves down, crying that they had been conjured, and rolled about on the ground shrieking | aloud and writhing with hideous contor- tions of the face and body. As the jerking and jumping of the muscles of the limbs grew moro and moro violent all hands sprang up and joined in wild, uncon- trollable dance, or rather hopping up and down like so many disturbed frogs. MT. Mason, describing hls sensation, says that he was conscious of feeling of great ex- hilaration and an increased acuteness of every sense The sight of the leaping ne- groes, who were too frightened to realize that they were suffering only from fear, and their cries and shrieks provoked him to bursts of laughter that sounded almost manlacal Mrs. Mason, secng her hus- bands extraordinary behavior, became alarmed and, running out, attempted to hold him down but, though he endeavored to assist her by clnging with all his strength to post, it was found impossible to restrain him.
 This dance was kept up until sheer ex- haustion caused the involuntary partlc:- a pants to fall prostrate to the earth, where they lay and kicked for so1iie minutes, - after which they fell into deep sleep ? This sleep was the heavy, dreamiess slum- Der that follows intoXication and lasted for f several hours, but left them wi;h c,ea, q heads and no evil consequences beyond a soreness of the back and limbs and a pain l in the face resembling neuralgia, which however, soon passed away.
 Mir. Mason sent 9 jug of the water to Hous l ton to have it analysed, but the chemists o that city profess themselves at q complete loss to account fir one of the elements ln s,,$o ,f,, a and give as thelr unanimous opinion that i may be added to the number of known elc ments as a sixty-sixth. This element i.l | parts to the water a beautiful bright bius tinge of a metallic luster, and gives [. tas': .' more like that of fresh cider than a:a , thing else. When the water is heated ti,' element passes off in a colorcss gas of ., most agreeable odor, resembling the per if fume of tuberoses, only more penetrating and pungent, and so powerful that galioi I. of water simmering oyer 8 slow fire vii
 render 8 whole house fragrant for hours Taken from the well and left to stand, how ever, the water loses it's beautiful blu, color and thickens to the consistency o
 turpentine, with faint greenish tinge, ant ], will when drank or inhaled produce violen
 nausea and vomiting, accompanied by
 swimming in the head and a failure of thu sight and heGring, which lasts for hours.
 The negroes about have christened th'
 we'll ''DeviPs Water'' and regard it witt superstitious awe, and, with one exception
 can not be prevailed upon to even approacl
 it. This exception IS an old darky familiarly known as Uncle Dence, wh
 is actually becoming confirmed drunkart on the water, on winch he indulges il
 daily spree in spite of all attempt to keep him from drinking 1t. H. I | claims that he feels younger and sprye
 after each dance. Many of the crowds tna come daily from all parts of the county
 and even from djacent ones. to visit thi
 well have tho curiosity to taste the water t 3 judge of it's singular qualities for them
 selves, and it is curious to observe the dit
 ferent ways in which it affects individuals
 for, while the twitching of the nerves an
 muscles and the uncomfortable propensit
 to dance are common to all, the effect on tn
 minds of different persons is of endles
 variety.
 : One man will shout for joy, betraying al ne the abandonment of a child; another vii
 weep with gentle melancholy; a third wi
 sing hymns, and perhaps 0 fourth et tn
 same tune will be praying aloud. You
 correspondent found himself reciting whol pages of blank verse from the differen poets that he had been unconscious of hay
 ing retained in his memory. The effect o
 the spirits is delightful in the extreme, = feeling of exhilaration and lightness pel I. vading the whole system, and the sense
 take oD an acuteness and refinement tha
 is most remarkable.
 By the advice of one of the ablest chen
 ists of Houston dramatically sealed Ja
 of this wonderful liquor has been fol
 warded to the Society of Chemists an
 Pharmacists in New York for their carefl
 analysis, which process when completed b
 is confident will confirm his opinion of th
 value and uniqueness of the discovery.