Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1897-01-31
A Premature Burial Scare
Baltimore Americana


Premature burial Is the latest excite
ment i'm Paris. a distinguished French
physician having brought q fornIl1aDie
indictment against what he CONSIDERS
the practice OF lnterrlng bodies before
IL has been certainly ascsrtalhed thas
they are dead. 1t IS limited py some "
the New York papers that Gothah -
likely to catch the infection with " cor
! responding sensation. The subject Il
probably as old as life itself, Out II ap-
pears to take on new energy az int,
walls, and as it Is a matter IN Which an
human beings are interested IL Is hot
astonishing that 1t creates more OF less
OF excitement. Many years ago
British scientific association offered
very large reward for the best means OF
determining II life had fled from the
human body 1t was currently sld'eu
that the reward was bestowed on man
who suggested that string De lieu
tightly around one Of the fingers OF the
sIpposed corpse If the body was awe
discoloration would ensue. but, II not
the finger would retain the same palilu
hue. In nlncty-nine cases out OF Il nun
dred, this would be sufficient, were any
doubts entertained Indeed, 1t Is ques-
tionable If any more reliable test can De
suggested. except, perhaps, the puncture
of some vital part which might destroy
life. IL any existed A few years ago
parts Of Germany were greatly excited
ON the subject, and il was propoSed 10
supply the graves in some OF the cerne-
tefics with electric appliances, by means
of which the bodies. II revived after
burial. could promptly communicbte
with a central point, and be released
from entombment. There Is not much
TO be said for such an Arrangement
because Il may be assumed that nine
tenths of those who are buried alive
die from the confinement and lack OF
air before they can recover conscious
ness or strength enough to resort to an
electric alarm. or before they can make
any movement that would set the alarm
I'm motion. But there IS really very Httle
reason for excited discussion or the SUD
iect. Whatever may have happened IN
the past few people are buried awe To-
dav. except under conditions which only
the progress OF science and cOmmon-sehse
viii remove.
Il IS possible that after a battle OF
during the prevalence Of epidemlcS per
sons are sometimes buried alive. me
rough and hasty way in when the siam
are DISPOSED Of after a great battle en-
courages carelessness. and this Will not
cease altogether until courts have been
substituted for armies. The CHASTITY ac-
counts Of the plaques which visited ku-
rope in the fourteenth and seventeenth
centuries convey the impression that
numbers Of persons were then buried
alive. and this may have occurred 70
far more limited extent during some OF
the epidemics Of yellow-fever which have
prevailed in this country. But the means
Of prevention discovered, and modern
methods and precautions make II falrly
| certain that such things Will not occur
again. at least, TO an extent to snock
/ and terrify the public. With regard 20
premature burials under common, every
| day conditions, 1t may be confidently as
sumed that they are for the most part
mythical. Even in the apparently glarlng
instance. where, upon examination, the
coffin IS found in disorder and the corpse
in a different position from that in wnlcn
il was buried, the change has probably
been wrought by an explosion OF gases
generated In the body, and, coming IN
contact with other gases in confined
space. II is not an exaggeration 10 say
that nine tenths OF the premature ourials
reported from time TO time are the purest
dctions. Poe's wonderful story, which ne
himself said was purely imaginary, mas
been made TO do duty innumeraple times
as historical fact. and its career IS not
| vet at an end.