Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1889-08-30
THREE DAYS IN A COFFIN.
The Grrwsome Experience Of Lawyer II
a Cataleptic Trance.

The Grewsome Experience Of Lawyer In
- Cataieptic Trance.
"It was horrible, horrible, sir-l lay In
that coffin alive. and just conscious Of
what was going on around me as am at this
moment | have always been Of a hysterica.
temperament, and on one grievous occasion
had lain in cataleptic state for twenty-four
hours This last time | lay for three days
perfectly conscious, as ! said before, but TO
all appearances as dead a. Cesar"
The speaker was well known attorney OF
St Paul. who related the story OF his thrilling
experience with catalepsy conditionally that
his name be withheld from publication.
1T has been said" continued the hero Of
this blood curdling adventure, that there
are infallble signs which denote death, and
are unmistakable to the practiced eye Of the
medico deny that such is the case, and no
one has had better opportunity Of judging
than have When 1 died, or rather when
three of the best known medical men in Bos-
ton asserted that was dead, had been for
three days previous to my supposed demise
in IA condition of violent hysteria, bordering
almost on insanity, owing to the death OF 3
sister whom loved to distraction. At the
expiration OF that time | subsidized into the
condition | have previously described My
death was attributed by the learned disciples
of 4Esculapus to disease Of the heart. The
three old fogies he'd consultation over me-
and heard them discuss the advsability of
q post-mortem examination, there being a
slight difference OF opinion among them a.
to what was the actual cause.
AT this time was lying on board, per-
fectly rigid, and fully realized the fact that
should be buried alive il couldn't brace
nd lutr, FOR th.4u fav
hours Immediately blessed my mother
and brother for their refusal to allow those
old butchers TO go for me with their knives
That's all that saved me, / tell you. This
seems wild story, but just the same it's a
true one. Why. | can even remember laugh
ing quietly to myself to think that the win
lows had been opened all around the room.
II was deviish cold weather, too but could
not feel the cold much. knew however,
that those windows had been opened to pre-
vent the decomposition OF my i'll used frame
How did get out of the hxi Well, it was
just by the skin Of my teeth. When the I'M
dertaker and his fool assistant brought the
coffin and was lifted into it knew at once
that the coffin was too short and just ached
to say 50, but couldn't speak word to save
my life | was tongue tied hadn't control Of
muscle. The merest accident in the world
prevented ms being buried alive. had been
lying in the awful condition | have described
for over three days when the beast of an I'M
dertaker came around again to screw up the
coffin.
A tack had been left sticking out from the
drapery grazing the interior of the sarcoph-
agus, and the fellow in the coffin business
commenced a series of vicious jabs at it with
sharp edged screw driver. On one OF these
the instrument struck nail head and, flying
OH at tangent. took me on the jaw with
considerable force. The blood spouted forth,
and instantly regaiued the use OF my limbs.
| wanted to knock seven kinds of blue fire
out of the coffin man, and was out Of it in no
time. The undertaken skipped, but put it
all over his assistant, ana ashamed to say.
for the man was too Mortified at my resur-
rection To defend himself In the least. Now
you can jus; bet | am healthy man as
the most Of them nowadays, and I've issued
strict orders that in the event of my death
am not to be buried until an artery has been
opened and my decease absolutely proved
st. Paul Globe