New-York tribune., 1890-05-04
4 SORROWFCL LIFE.
THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT MAN.
From The London Speaker.

From The London Speaker.
We can remember no invented tale acspeaks so to
the heart at OF the cruelty OF life, ana the DeuY
human compasson a. the true story @ closeu & Jiis
week by sentence In the new spapcrs. annouhCns oa
tLnt Jos,ph Merrck the Elephant Man, was dead
Imagine a human soul clothed In body so nm
.pcaAauy rgtiul that seeing IT, men turned sSh WIN
convcycd from place Ia place in secret who hardly
dared 10 venture abroad even by night, who ilndhs
he terror he created ,huddered In dark corners
Ike a hunted beast. Imagine nun driven ~ ataI' I d
the most brutal OF audiences. That commonly enough
shrickcd and run pell mel from the tent rs soon aS
Early in 77G, NJ fTGderck rreyes one & Of the IS sur
geon, q the London llo,ptA found MerrlGA N .t
crouchlng behind an old curtain and trying to warm
himself over brick that was heated by gas,iet Mr:
Trryes went up TO him not only without fear or
@ nf - twenty four wears Merrick heard kind
word aud spoken to Ike L man The eiect was
curious, II made him afraid at first. lie shlank as
Then a he began realize the truth, he broke into
sob, 90 gratitude DAYS and even weeks passed. now
ever before hc recovered from the shock OF hearing
The police prohibited his show on the ground Of
public dcccncy 80 he went 70 Belgium. where agalil
iie police intcrfercd. and whore an agent detaniped
with hi, money Merrick was left destitute and
Ignorant mob thought him a hend.
lie came back TO London-how. no one quite knows.
AZ every station and landlngpace crowds dosSed nm.
steamers refused to have him on board But he came
bach 10 London. because IN London lived the only
man who had ever given him kind word lie made
m, way to the London Hospital found Mr. TrevcS,
vho had him lodged for time In an attic IN the
hospital. and determined to mad permanent shelter
for HIM .
But now found that no institution wouId re
cel,r him The ROYAL Hospital for lucurabcs and the
British Home fr lncuablcs alike declined 70 take him
I'm unless sufficient funds were forthcoming 10 pay for
might be placed In a Blind Hospital. 1t is hard 10
match the patbos Of this plea.
Then In November 1856. Mr.. Carr Comm, the chair.
man II the London Hosplta wrote Ia " The Times y
spondcd \ room built for Merrick on the ground
dour I'm n remote wing Of the hospital and there. sur.
rounded with books. flowers and hundred tokens Of
the kindness, that is really quick In the public heart he
ha, lived until this last week.
lie had found many friends-the Prince and Princess
~ vale. MIR clad stone Mrs. Kendall and others To
Mrs Kendall due the happy suggestion hai Merrick
should be taken to see the Christmas Pantomimc Al
Drury Lane she engaged the Royal box she had him
hrough 10 the theatre and took every precauon that
no ,tran eye should see him. Hidden from the house
hohrd the curtains ~ the box. the Elephant Man '
tostod an hour two Of intoxicating happiness IL
was all real 10 hmhc fairies. the spendor and the
jewels 49,, .u,a
eJuc~ence, I'm his way gentle sentlmentaSt tld
rushcd plth at times, under the happy conditions oi ms
In, at the hospital. In modelled the HYMNS a"
pr Watts. I'm which he gave nttcrance TO feelings of
II VA, tender heart that beating beneath mask
more hleous than that Of OrsOn. Above all. IL was
heart that filed with love for the man VINO was
literally his saviour who first spoke kindly to him. VINO
te,r and the erd both his doctor and his friend
recently il was only Mr.. Trrvcs who could Thoroughly
ruAcr>tand the poor creatures maimed utcances ana
t Mr. Trcvcs he cung To the last with the wstfnl trust
and affection of a dumb animal ,,.
n I, difficult To speak of this mans case Witilou,
emotion ut luckily II Is harder still to hear ot " anu
believe that the struggle for lferS" have gIaSpcd to
true secret Of life, or even half Of it.