The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1896-10-23
GhfDrmorrat- STA,
UP FROM THE GRAVE
MOST REMARKABLE ExPERIpNc,
RECORD. '"

va dhy MIN liz.
ing during the past three weeks
the Boston Post.
For three days, from Monday IN,
Thursday. he was buried in a craya
five feet under ground. On Thu,s.
day last he was dug up, came tor
and is now about as lively as any otbo,
man down in little ''Rhody.n But h.
says he never wants to repeat The e,.
.pcrience. The next time he wants n
stay planted, for this "com,np ,on
business is altogether too painful.
The se~venty-two hours that John
Atlas passed underground near tho
city Of Providence make one OF IN.
most remarkable cases of suspended
animation on record.
IL must not be supposed, however
that this was M of the harrpwjno
cases of supposed death, intermeut'
fearful apprehension of friends VIM
have had a warning vision and then
frantically dug up the victim to find
him kicking inside the coffin.
They knew this man was not dead
1t was a scientific test of inducing
hypnotic deatl-like sleep In order to
see how long a mar could remain in
that condition and then come back ia
life.
The operator in this remarkable
case was Arthur Watson, a profess
sional hypnotist. 1t appears that SO
was offered to the subject, Atlas, il he
would allow the experiment to be
made OF burying him alive. This he
evidently considered a sufficient in.
ducement to pass through the ordeal.
He was put under ground Monday
afternoon at 3 O'Clock, and the grave
filled in with dirt. An opening was
left in the head Of the caskct and con.
nected with IA wooden box-iike tube to
supply air to the buried man, and
through which people could LOOK
down to watch his symptoms from
day to day.
Among the physicians present at
the burying and disintermcnt were
DR.. Charles e. Chagnon. of Arctic,
r.. l., and DR.. Edgar G. Gates, Of
Providence, who expressed the idea
that this case was a bona ilde test Of
the hypnotic sleep and power of ply.
steal endurance in returning to nor.
nal condition.
The tent that covered the spot
where the man was buried was crowd.
| ed with interested people. In the
crowd were many physicians and sev.
eral Of the professors at Brown Uni
yersity, the watch that had been kept
being sufficiently reliable to assure
them Of the gcnuinencss OF the test.
At 3 o'clock the men began tore
move tie soil from the grave, but BE-
fore they had completed the work Al
las began to kick upon the top and
sides of the pine box. Atlas lorgOt@
q. first where he was and kicked so VC'
lently that when the box was opened
it Vas found that he had dISl0cated
his right knee.
DR.. Edgar c. Gates, Of Providence
Immediately replaced the JOINT, ou'
he was afterwards assisted BY d.
Charles Il. Chignon, Of Arctic UN
buried mans family physician; Or. L.
j. Herman and DR.. j. Frederick Hal
Ter.
When Atlas was brought to the sur
face he was in a very weak plysIcai
condition. His pulse was beating ou'
tI
fifteen beats to the minute Inv
dead air IN the crowded tent was ""
heavy for him and he lapsed lh'oa
condition that so closely resenoe"
rigor norris thai for a few minutes
the committee feared that he wOu'u
not survive. They gave him h!w'
dermic injections Of whisky, anoa'Icr.
ward. as a last resort, an lnJecto"u'
l.lOOth Of Il grain of nitro-gIycer'E'
Under This treatment he rcco't'cu
sufficiently to permit OF his fefnO'"'
to the platform, where the ar v"
purcr. At this time his pulse "~
nuctuating between fifty and seVe'0'
two beats. an.
An egg was given to him ana y,
gradually grew stronger, ana '0v .%
twenty minutes after MS 'eu',' ',
from the box his temperature s'OV'
95.6 degrees. ,oo.
When Atlas fully recovered cur
seriousness his first quesl'o" IT,,
about his mother and sister fs
mother was in the tent, AVi"'' ~
and unable to stand, was grected "
his mother. who came upon the s'aS'
to see him. .n,ss.
She exclaimed in p'teous .,%s,
"John, my son, John; God mas . .a.,s
care Of you" and then burst la'o snslt
Atlas also wcpt and his molne. . .s
beside him and engaged lnS''enS h.
or. The large gathering Of pe OPP "a,
came hushed and many y"
dimmcd. IA IN the
grand stand building, where y .,,abd
and supplied with clean clothing !, ia
tWas then given a light supper . o. n
and toast and at 8 o'clock the ~ p ,sso,.
ians stated that he had n01'
cred. ,,r;od aire
Atlas says he has been our ! s.augb
Efor the last time, as he has ''"'
OF such experiments.
.NJ --~ ronortS