The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-08-11
ONES SENSATIONS NEAR DEATH.
Mrs. OrmIstOn Chant Describes Her
Approach to Death.

From the London Chronicle.
Mrs. Ormiston Chant writes: During
the passing from consciousness, whether
as the result of anesthetics, or fainting,
or the nearness of death from drowning,
exhaustion from hemorrhage, or severe
fever, in my case the Ginning of Chepstow
church bells, and the murmur of the Wye
as l heard them from our garden in the
earliest days of childhood, have always
been the last sounds heard before becom-
ing unconscious. 1 have been twice very
nearly drowned, once while bathing at
Ramsgate. and once at Slaithwaite when
i'm diving | struck my ankle against a loose
piece of zinc piping, and I suppose tainted
with the pain and sank 20 the bottom. In
the very brief interval between the first
failure of consciousness above water, and
the complete loss of it, many home scenes
flashed wildly up from memory. and fad
ed out with the ringing of the chimes and
the murnur of the river. I'm dying was
my thought as l recognized the familiar
sound.
but it was a very severe Illness in 1892
that enables me to stale most accurately
what | felt in that strange weird time of
seemingly certain and approaching death.
The functional and sensorial life of the
recollect how restfuy free / felt In spirit.
During the first realization Of how danger
ously i'll | was, / felt a most passionate
sorrow at the thought of the loss 70 hus-
band and children of one whom they had
loved, and who had so loved them; a long
ing to see friends just once more, and
fierce regret for not having made more of
life, and for having no worthy monument
of all ones dreams and aspirations to
leave behind. This condition gave way
imperceptibly to an idea that / was look
ing a a soft gray mass of mist which /
knew was a gate beginning 10 open, and
beyond which was the place to which |
was going. At last this was the only
thing / knew or cared about. Even my
husbands face was dim and his voice
sounded very far off, when he, or another
doctor, or a nurse disturbed me.
81 felt no eagerness about this gate,
only a steady concentration on it. and
fixed idea that / was talking to God him
self, and that his voice answered me
about my holiday IN that place beyond the
opening of the gray mass. / had now no
sense of sorrow, or regret, or fear, nor
any other feeling except languid wish
that that would open wider, and let me
through so as to get nearer and hear what
the voices were saying in the distance.
Now and then l had glimpses Of patches
of flowers like canoes OF color amid the
gray mass, the edges of which merged
swiftly into the light and color Of the
cameo. Some times a sound like the wash
OF a slow tide on a long, sandy shore
came over me, melting into the faint
Ginning OF ChepstOw Oells, and the muir
muir of the Wye, or at least / identified
the sound as such. Always II became a
strain of music more or less indistinct
but giving me a feeling Of STILL deep rap
ture Even now ] sometimes hear a little
Of IL for a moment and have tried 10 re-
produce IL on the piano. but without sue
cess. Then the gray slowly became black
and / neither heard nor saw. The next
thing / remember was the effort TO swal-
low something. and that Nurse C.'s beau
tiful face was quite clear and distinct
fell asleep with her hand resting on
mine. and said within myself, This is
the hrst time she has done this
After this began 10 be aware thatlthe
gray mass was no longer near ! only
heard confused sounds now and then, and
one night when / tried 20 listen for the
chimes and the river ] could not hear
them. In a very weak voice / said out
loud i am coming back again and my
husband answered, You feel better don't
you Since then, in 1892. have gone
through many strange and varied expert
ences but I know that have peeped into
the beyond and heard some Of It's voices,
and that there IS peace"
"a" writes. some sixteen years ago !
bad "a bad boil on the right temple. About
o'clock one morning, before dressing !
tried 10 remove the p0uitlce but Il stuck.
] pulled IL Off This caused intense pain.
and ! suddenly remembered the case OF
man who some time previously had died
from a similar cause The whole Of my
past life flashed before me Ia an Instant
remembered also the amount % my lie
Insurance. and was greatly comf0rted
thereby. ] also thought that az no one
else WAS up in he house, II would cause
less alarm n ! were found dead IN bed
rather than on the n3or, and turned
roundt hoping 60 set 20 bed. Tho next
thing remember Nas my " fo pulling me
hy the arm. ! had tainted in turning
round. ! said. quite mechanically. why.
I'm dead. ! remember dying. The sur-
Econ who shortly HfierWard attended 40
the boil told me Dee aas surprised frat tho
consequence were not more serious. as I
had injured o. second boil which bad
formcl-l mink be- sald--under che first"
John Holmes writes. "On July % 1898.
J iourneyed with the Workshop cfiekot
team tO play Dob match at kirton Lind-
fay. We hud Rof the other side out. and
. wa lH inD scoring ttnL a storm Nas
Gathering. ana some sheep grazing iu tho
lDld showed great signs ~ fear. ] was
Hlfainlug ny eyer 10 see tne laat ball lu