Wichita eagle., 1889-06-16
LINGERING LIVES,
Some Narrowing Instances of
Living Persons Being Buried.
MIND READER BISHOPS AUTOPSY.

Supposed-Tales Told by Some Under
takers.
The tragic death of Mind Reader Wash
ington Irving Bishop, and the sensation ere
eted by his mothers claim that he was not
dead, but in trance. when the too previous
autopsy was made sby DrS Irwin and Fergn-
SON, directs public attention TO q matter that
has often been considered not only by sci
ent.sts but by ell thoughtful men,
1t will be remembered that Bishop had q
cataleptic fit immediately after performing
marvellous and as yet unexplained feat Of
mind reading at the Lambs club-a club OF
actors, journalists and literary men with a
leaning towards Bohemianisrn Bishop had
often been stricken with these fits after his
performances, and seemed 10 consider them
a necessary and unavoidable penalty
The performance of his feats-whether of
mind reading, muscle reading or thought
transferance the present writer viii not pre-
sumo TO state-invariably threw him into a
condition Of great excitability, and his pulse
not infrequently beat 80 times to the minute
1t may be said, in passing, that this fact
would seem to be sufficiently cogent refuta-
ton Of the argument that Bishops feats were
nothing more nor less than charlataniSm.
THE AUTOPSY
The autopsy was performed, Sin the inter
est Of SCIENCE" only six hours after Bishop
was supposed to have died His supposed
death occurred nine or ten hoursafter he was
seized with the fit Efforts are said TO have
been made to resuscitate him, and strong
electric current was applied TO the supposed
dead body.
That which would seem to establish the
fact that Bishop was not dead when the doc
tors used their knives is the fact that his
mother claims that her son was subject to
frances, and would be apparently dead for
days at a time. She states that this physical
popularity was hereditary, and that she her
self often passes into trance like condition
She says, further, that her son always had
morbid fear that an autopsy would be per-
formed on him before life had passed from
his body. AT any rate, many of the most
prominent physicians Of New y ork, who have
been interviewed on the subject, state that
under no circumstances would they perform
an autopsy on a body before twelve hours
had elapsed since the time of death. 1t is
well known fact that it isa matter of extreme
difficulty to determine whether or not per-
son stricken with q cataleptic fit, and appa-
rently deprived of life, is really dead aud it
seems strange that the physicians who per-
formed the autopsy on Bishop did not have
sufficiently strong appreciation Of this fact.
Tho second autopsy, which was held on the
demand Of Bishops mother, was productive
of no important results
BURIALS ALIVE NOT UNKNOWN
IF bac baar 1.rOypi havOpd n i;~.io
that there are more burials alive than is gen
orally supposed Stories OF these cases are
numerous. Not more than month ago a
girl died and was buried. Her father, hav-
ing an instructive feeling that she had been
buried alive, had the body exhu11ed. 1t was
proved that he was right The girl bad
turned completely over in her coffin, her
hands were clutched i'll her hair and her face
showed traces of tho awful agony she had
passed through.
Il New York undertaken recently told the
story, the circumstances of which
are still remembered by old residents of tho
city:
About forty years ago lady living on
Division street, New York city, fell dead APP
parently, while in the act of dancing at a
ball. 1t was a fashionable affair. and being
able to afford it, she wore costly jewelry.
Her husband, a flour merchant, who loved
her devotedly, resolved that she should be in
tered in her ball dress, diamonds, pearls and
all; also that there should be no autopsy. As
the weather was very inclement when the
funeral reached the cemetery, the body was
placed in the receiving vazlt FOR burial next
day. The undertaken was not a poor man,
but he was avaricious, and he made up his
RI, ~.
night and took the lady's watch from tho
folds of her dress. He next began 10 draw a
diamond ring from her finger, and in doing |.
90 had to use violence enough 10 tear the skin /
Then the lady moved and groaned. and the /
thief, terrified and conscience stricken, fed /
from the cemetery, and hes never been since /
heard from that | know OF.
1.-THE lady, after the first emotions Of horror /
1T her unheard Of position had passed over,
gathered her nerves together and stepped ont 4
If the vault which the thief had lett open
How she got home / cannot tell, but this 4
lnow-she lived and had children, two at
east Of whom are alive today, and made her
husband happy, and | myself, during the alb
ence Of her husband. who, as ! have said,
Vas -four merchant, paid money into her
hands for goods received
ANOTHER CASE.
Another New York undertaken told this
narrowing story, The New York papers
hirty-fve years ago were fun Of its CHASTITY
letails:
THE daughter of a Court street baker
lied 1t was in winter, and the father know
ng that married sister OK bis dead child,
Who lived in st. LOUIS, would like % SIS her
ace before laid in the grave forever, had the
4 -, II. Il
The sister came, the vault was opened. the
id Of the coffin taken off, when, TO the IN
.tterable horror Of the friends assembled,
hey found the grave clothes torn in shresis
nd the fingers Of both hands eaten OF. The
irI had been buried alive"
Untl about forty years ago q noted family
I Virginia preserved curious custom v tich
ad been reigiously observed for more than
century. Over hundred years aEo a
aemoer If the family died. and upon icing
xhun2ed. was found 70 have been bssried
live. From that time until abo1t 1s50
very member CT the family. man, woman OF
hid, who died. was stabbed In tbs heart
nth knife In tie hands OF the bead q the
0use- The reason for Tie CESSATION az tbs
llston was that, in 1850 OF tnere.boGts, a
eautlfgl young girl having d-ed, ths knife
ras plunged into Der boso1n, when sse gave
emf 70 fearful scream and died. She had
lerely been Il trance. The iuscsdent broks
CT father hesrt, and IA a g Of rsE1oTse - ( +
iIlsd himself ro. .o1g atterwcrd
There are many families u tbs United
tates which, when aay q tbsir nzn-ber dses.
SIS that Ga artery he opeaed 70 deasrz1ins
-hether he has fed oz not
WO8Eh5S WORK.