Telegram-herald., 1890-06-08


made tAs usEal sxaaluasloa AAa Selas
90 The eoneluslon thAt t1s "olaa ~~s
uoI dead Her relatlvss "ou-1 not BE-
llsys it and were ready % call 10 tie
undsrtaker Weu. another physlcisn
and nyself worked fSr hours on TIE
supposed dead ~sn1.n, ana attet "orE-
iEg an might revived her she lad
been 10 oatslsptic At. II lie feAstlFss
OF this Womzu had done what many
psrsons do. eaIl ia al gndsrtsker first,
and then pat the body u al air Aght
casket OF on ice, she would have NEST
certainly died.
This hurry in the way OF getting
persons who are supposed 70 be dead
undsr the ground Is all too common
even among the best meaning or per
sons When they see q friend or rela-
tive dying, tneir frst thought Is 10 ran
OF 70 al undertaken Now that ls all
wrong, snd IL : Eny experience In cases
OF this kind that led me 20 advocate the
organization of a society 20 devise
means bv which We might insure people
against the awful calamity or being
buried alive before they are really dead.
With scientific appliances ana by the
methods that propose think We can
venture 10 assert that there IS no pos
sibls likelihood Of any such terrible
error being made, and that the fear and
dread that the ordinary man or woman
has that he may be buried alive.
What are the methods that you pro-
pose 10 have sdoptedF'
"Well. said DR.. Leo. 81 would, In the
/ first place, make il mandatory 10 have
a thorough examination made OF the
+ body OF every person supposed TO be
dead. This examination should, Of
course, be made by tie physician and
/ by means Of the best known scientific
appliances. The examination should
+ be made in accordance with positive
+ law. so that il would not be possible TO
evade IL as some persons would be apt
10 try TO do There are any number of
tests that can De applied. Some OF
them are as old as civilization and
older.
''Now the thing should he done in
this way. In every case where per
son dies or is supposed 20 have died, a
competent physician should ct once be
called in No undertaken should be
allowed TO handle the body before this
is done The body should not be placed
in an air-tight casket where life, if it
be not extinct, is smoth cred out, nor
should it be placed in an ics box where
II is frozen out Such treatment of a
body before il hos been thoroughly ex-
smined is not only bsrbareus, but alb
solutely criminal. Neither should q
body be embalmed.
"Now, SIS TO the tests. | should
say that while they are many. the best
way to determine the absence of life
would be to attach the muscles OF
the various parts of the body to an
appliance connected wish electric bat
teries, so that the very slightest move
ment of the body wou'd I cause bell "a
ring and thus occasion alarm. You
know it is very different thing to de
termine or state definitely just when
the spark of life becomes extinct. The
matter has been much discussed anC
again aud again valuable prizes have
tsen offered for some means by which
this important fact might be defnitel
determined.
This is much more import
ant matter than most persons i'm
sgine. There never was time whe,
catalepsy and similar complaints wer'
moro prevalent than now. This is es
pecislly the case among women, par
ticulsrly among young women. Youn;
L IL, -,
whore they are under a constant strain
mental and physical, who do not &c
sufficient exercise or relaxation. an,
who in some cases are but lily nour
ished, are partic ularly prone TO fits
cataleptic and otherwise, and 10 fal
into frances that to the layman appea
10 be death. Under the present system
the relatives Of these girls can bring il
an undertaken, put the body in a caske
or on the ice before calling in a ply
stefan and the result is that when tn
latter does come he eau do nothing. |
is too late ] feel very strongly abou
this matter, and fad that most othe
physicians do. The present system
should be be changed and that Is wha
our society is intended 20 do. Nothin
can be more horrible than the though
that one may be buried alive, and yet
ga professional man, I find that ther
. are few persons who are not more o
less affected by this fear. 1t is bu
natural. and II will exist until the la'
intsrferes and assisted by science see
10 IL that every man or woman who
supposed to be dead Is beyond TIA
shadow OF doubt dead before his q
her body is given over TO the under
taksr for burial
The men who are pushing this ne
movemen. sre working very qaie
~, bat they seem very muc
in earnest. Mr Morrison. wh
il doing the most Of the clerics
. work ot The proposed orEsni zstio,
now m ia formative state. IL sLrssd-
receiving letters from persons living j
various parts Of the country concernin
the society. These sre mainly request
for Information. bat the earnest mar
nsr in which the questions ars ssks
Il, indicates that the matter of prematul
/, burial is ore that interests very lars
. lass of persons En- 81 walks of iifs
A. -