The Progress., 1894-08-11
hAPSES OF IDENTITY.
come PEOPLE WHO STRANGELY
DISAPPEAR.
a Medical Nlan's Relation Of Remarkable
Instances Whore Men Have Had Blanks
in Their Lives Changed Mentally and
Physically.

III 1helr Lives thanSeu Men!aliy and
Physically.
A paper entitled "Pcop'" Who
Drop Out OF Sight, by Dr.. \. +.
Osborne, superintendent OF home
for children at Glen Ellen, CAL, was
read a few nights ago AZ the meeting
of the Medico-Lcgal society at the
Academy Of Medicine, Ncwlo rk says
the sun. Aiter speaking OF mystcri-
Gus disAppcaranccs in general and
the usual inability to account for
them the paper gave several in
stances and under circumstances
we'll known to him The first case
was that OF u man Of middle
age ''in rugged health and
free from any inherited ncuro-
pathlc faint" He was plumber
by trade. and lived in town near
Philadel phia, He was prosperous.
and was neither overworkcd nor the
victim Of business troubles; his
family life was harmonious, and he
had no bad habits. The Sunday on
which he disappeared he had been
in the house all day reading and
placing with his children. About
o'clock he got up from the lounge on
which he lay, changed his house
Jacket for an ordinary business coat
and told his wife he was going out
for short walk. He stepped into
tho street and suddenly disappeared.
as if he had vanished into air. Al
though conspicuous figure in the
town, and although the streets were
crowded, he was seen by nobody, His
absence continuing the next day, an
exhaustive search was made for him.
But nothing could be learned. There
was absolutely no trace of him,
either in the town or in the sur
rounding country. In due course
the business was disposed of and the
family moved to Chicago, giving up
all hope of finding a c(ew to the
mans disappearance.
Ono day two years later a mum Der
OF men were working at their trade
In a tin shop in one OF the far south
ern states. Suddenly one of them
dropped his work and clasped his
hands to his head.
my Cod" he cried. looking about
dazedly. "where am |? How did l
get here? This isn't my shop
where am I? What does it mean9'
His companions were at first dis
posed to laugh. but when they saw
the mans changed expression, the
beads of sweat on his brow and his
nervous twitchings they knew he
was not drunk, but under the in
huence of some great emotion.
They spoke to him but he insisted
that the name they called him by
was not his.
Under fictitious name.' DR..
Osborne says in his paper, 1.-The man
had been known to his companions
and had been paid He remem bered
nothing of the past during his period
Of employment; but at last a dim
, recollection had come over him Of
, that Hateful Sunday-his rising tc
20 out. his promise to soon RETURN
and then all was blank. He had nc
money, although he had worked
steadily in this shop and had re-
ceived good wages. At the last &C
counts had of him he was living
his normal life. Somewhat mysti
fed over his realization of the
strange freak in which he figured
although feeling we'll and apparently
in mental balance, he realizes tina
he has been the central figure il
some overstrange mental phenomen;
quite mysterious enough to make
him, at times, doubt his sanity.
"a similar case occurred to res
ident of another town near Phila
delphia This man, whom we shall
designate as X, was a lawyer,
prominent politlcian-a former mem
Der of congress, l believe-a man o
t fine cratorical powers and of bril-
liant attachments. One day he 60
up from his desk, leaving his LAY
books open at the pages he had bee,
, consulting, and stepped outside TO
, few moments. tie disappeared
In due course vigorous search wa
I instituted, reservoirs and stream
were dragged for his body on tn
f presumption that he had COMMITTEE
t suicide, and, in Short: all the near
that money and influence would pu
into operation were employed, bu
7 in vain--not the slightest clue wa
obtained. His domestic affairs wer
we'll known to be most happy. H
{ was abstemious in his habits, an
Y more devoted to his profession tina
r to society. The hue and cry of pre-
y meditated flight was dispelled by tn
disordered state of his unlocked desl
! over which were scattered pape.
,, and a mass of unfinished worl
, His accounts were all right. an
. among the papers were foun
T. uncashed checks amounting to Sc,
eral thousand dollars. After Sc,
;. eral months had passed, word cam
through official channels that X. WI
), in Australia, and had applied to