The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-09-01
LES Elixir VITAE.
The Herald's Latest Step in the
Interests of Science.
BROWN sEQUARD is TESTED.
Old John CrOcker Has the Precious Fluid
Rolling Through His Veins-He Says,
II Feel Twenty Years Younger"

Rolling Through His Veins-He Says,
II Feel Twenty Years Younger"
One month has elapsed since the cele-
brated French doctor, Brown-Sequard,
announced to the world that he had found
the Elixir of Life.
In that month controversy has ragged as
it never ragged before; ON the one hand
were the scientists who pooh-poohed the
claim, called it preposterous, and opposed
to all known physiological and biological
laws: on the other hand DR.. Brown-Se
guard insisted he had demonstrated his
theory, and hundreds of his followers
urged the deep respect in which the cele-
brated Frenchman's name had been held
and the immense services he had rendered
medical service in support of his claim.
Here in Salt Lake we have been enabled
to gain only faint idea of what the elixir
really was and what Sequard really claimed
for it; that scientific man could be found
in the nineteenth century of light and pro-
gress to claim that he had discovered a
compound which restored old age to youth
or even heightened out the span of mortal
life a score of years beyond its natural
limit, was sufficient to set our Ii tile world
agog with curiosity.
1t was reserved for THE HERALD, the
pioneer in every field of enterprise, whose
special service first told this part of the
world of Brown-Sequard's stupendous
claim-to make practical demonstration
and experiment here at home yesterday, in
order to see what effect the celebrated mix
ture did really have on human organiza
ton.
The matter was decided on for to-day's
SUNDAY HERALD. No time was to be lost. A
man was detailed to do the work, and to do
it thoroughly without regard to trouble or
expense On Thursday
DIR. J. NJ. BENEDICT
was visited and asked whether he would
undertake the operation. He replied with
his usual promptitude, eyes" if THE HER
AID would find the man. The reply was
given that THE HERALD would see to that
part of the contract. and the doctor was
asked whether he had in his possession
the identical mixture, recipe, or prescrip-
ton used by the celebrated French physi
clan. He replied that the thing was the
simplest matter imaginable-all that was
wanted was a good, young, healthy lamb of
the male gender If the lamb and the
man We're forthcoming, the doctor
would answer for the rest. The lamb was
secured readily by visit to the White &
Sons Company's slaughter yards. The
keen and experienced eye of Mr.. David
White was brought into requisition to
select the sturdiest, healthiest and best
developed of the youthful flock. His choice
fell on fat and juicy six weeks old male
lamb. and the innocent victim of the altar
of science was plucked from the side of his
mother and borne bleating to the rear
sheds of White & Sons on Market row.
The lamb, the doctor and the hour were at
hand. but the man was yet unbound. Doc
tor Benedict had prescribed that he should
be over ffty-fve, rather feeble if possible
and possessed of enough brains to describe
his symptoms after the operation; visit
TO the Tribune sanctum, which had been
projected, was abandoned after this last
qualification had been laid down.
THE MAN.
THE HERALD threw out It's dntcnn6 after
the manner of the crabs in the great war
syndicates and went to work. The city
Jail was visited-the prisoners there were
all well, healthy and strong and engaged in
identifying the streets; at the county jail
there was no one eligible, and at the county
poor house there was decided objection to
loaning one of their inmates for the coca
sion. THE HERALD man then had recourse
to the streets; the number OF octogenarians
who were accosted and asked whether they
would consent to undergo the experiment
in the interests of science has not been
kept track of; it was something i'm
mense; but all of them seemed content to
plod their down hill way through life;
some thought the questioner was joking,
some thought he was crazy; others aimed
blow at him with their canes for his imper
Thence, and THE HERALD man was begin
ming to feel the first opening dawn of de-
spair when chance threw in his way the
famous original and only John Croker.
Mr.. Croker is known to fame as the
Liberal voter who was puzzled whether
to vote at the city hall or the county court
house, owing to his having resided at in
+a,.,,o1o On NEARLY eOg1al AFT both places He