Rocky Ford enterprise., 1894-05-03
rs DEVOID OF FEELING,
A FINE PHYSICAL SPECIMEf
WHO FEELS NO PAIN.
Ho Can Drive Hugs fins Inso His Liuib'
and Rody without Paln Or E:ced nS-
An Intcres;ins I!fc FIi! OF Curiois
Experiences.

ITO Can Drive Hugs Tins Into His I.inib'
and Roiy Without Paln Or E:eed n5-
An Intcrcs;ins L.fc FIM of Curioie
Experiences.
A rather short and stockily- -Lnilt
young man lately entered the New
Orleans Times Democrat Office in
company with Captain Stephen
Nicoletti, and after introducing him
self as Winfred X. Lcotardi. said
that he wanted to show tho people
in the Office something that they had
never seen before-a man who could
not be made to bleed.
Hastily removing his coat. vest
and shirt. he stood bare above the
waist except for scanty jacket OF
Turkish pattern. which merely COW
cred his shoulders and tho upper
portion OF his back. Then opening
a valise and taking from 1T huge
clasp pin. about four inches long.
with pin very nearly an eighth of an
In ch In diameter, he seized tho flesh
OF his neck and forced the pin
The yielding flesh shrunk from the
pin point as it pierced the skin, and
when three inches OF the steel had
disappeared from sight bulged from
it US the penetrating point sought
exit on the other side OF tho neck.
Finally the point emerged from the
flesh, and coolly clasping the pin and
letting it remain like a ring in a
bulls nose, Leotardo said:
I'm not posing, gentlemen, as a
man who can stand pain. for l never
felt it in my life. ] have no sense
of pain and cannot bleed.
Now this PIN SAID he, taking
hold OF it and giving 1t a decided
tug, which drew the flesh far out
from its natural position In front Of
penetrated little but surface flesh.
Here's a woman's hat pin. which l
will shove through my biceps." and
suiting his actions to his words.
Leotardo took up long steel pin
with round, black head and forced
it slowly and steadily through the
splendidly developed biceps OF his
left arm. The muscles wore tough
and resisted. but the pin was forced
through and allowed to romain. the
long point protrudIng two inches or
more from tho outside of the arm.
With it thus Leotardo moved
his arm freely and quickly.
lie stood and talked few
minutes with the. two pins
in his throat and arm and no blood
came. Some of the bystanders had
by this time seen all they desired,
h., 1afk hn tho
bloodless man rolled up the leg OF
his trousers and barred his muscular
calf Picking up another long hat
pin, he said calmly: There's moth
ing tender here" and forced the pin
through the leg directly in front OF
the tenderest part of the shin bone.
Having done so he bent and straight
ened his knee, and smiling at his
speechless audience quietly threaded
large needle and calmly began. as
it were, to sow up wound in the
abdomen. tugging ut the thread after
each stitch. BY way OF variety he
pushed a small pin into the feshy
part OF his abdomen, and then calmly
took up third large pin, and with
out word forced it into tho center
OF his chest and out OF the left
breast after it had passed through
some four inches OF flesh.
at Is great mistake" he said,
.'for people to imagine that l have
no blood. 1t is simply that do not
bleed. Further. feel nothing. 1
have blood in my veins, the physi-
clans tell me, but it is very thick
and sluggish. and has never come to
the surface. AS quickly as knife
of any kind passes through my flesh,
it heals like some Of the patent
pneumatic tires that the cyclists use.
A cut or puncture merely leaves a
slight temporary discoloration of
the tissues, the blood coagulating
and healing any wound instantly. l
do not, OF course, understand it, nor
does anyone else that know Of, but
you see for yourself that it is true"
"How did you como to discover
this peculiar condition." asked one
OF the reporters3 The question led
to a narrative Of the mans life.
which is as interesting as it is odd.
IL was born" said he, ..twenty-
four years ago in Porte Spain. Isle OF
Trinidad. My father is a Spaniard
anu my IuObner EnPllsH. hS u pdDy
l never had collie nor cried for any
reason but anger when l was not
pleased, and as child never had
any aches or pains 1t impressed
everybody as being strange, but no
one knew my peculiar physical con-
dition until was 8 yesrs old. when
I discovered it by accident. had
been playing with number of boys
one day in a growth of AGATE, the
thorns of which are deadly poison,
like a rattlesnake bite. Four days
later my brother saw a dark spot on
my foot, and called my attention to
it. We pulled it out and foun1 that
it was an AGATE thorn nearly five
inches long. The hole closed almost
instantly, and no blood came. l felt
no pain at the time and suffered no
Inconvenience from the poisonous
thorn. Then began to experiment
with myself, and found that could
cut myself or stick pins or knives
into my flesh without injury or ap-
parent damage. There was never
any blood or pain. Indeed, never
felt any sensation whatever. So I
used to amuse myself as lad by
giving exhibitions. the admission to
which was so MANY pins or buttons :"