Daily new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1897-1906, 1898-10-03
"OLD MAN HAMRICK. "
And His Peculiar Collection of
Curiosities.

/
His Collection of Mnmmies Makes
Gruesome Show.-He has Everything
from Snake to Perfect Human
Body and Thinks He Can Keep them
FOreyer-A Peculiar Character who
Has Attracted Much Attention.
Several times in the past the New
DOMINION has published items refer
ring to ''Old Man Hamriekn and his
peculiar discovery of the art of en-
balming There seems to be no doubt
of his ability to preserve dead bodies.
A few days ago he visited Cumberland
and the Independent Of that city has
the following in reference to him:
| In a secluded spot in West Virginia,
about two and a-half miles from the
town of Philippi, there lives an old
| man who has dabbled in the mysteries
of the ancient Egyptians, iuggled
with death. consorted with corpses
and defied successfully the laws of
nature, as far as the modification of
the human body is concerned Skill
ed in the art of preventing decompo-
sition, and surrounded by CHASTITY
specimens of his work, he lives a con-
tented life, glorying in his discovery
and satisfied to carry his secret to the
grave with him. To him belongs the
credit of wrestling from past ages the
mysterious process of keeping intact
the body, the process that gave to the
world the mummies Of the Rameses,
Pharaohs and Thothmes, with accom-
paning history and light into the life
of centuries that came and rolled along
before the mission of the Messiah had
begun This individual is thoroughly
commonplace, practical, and not of
the Arbacian type. BY that is meant
that he is not sorcerer.
He is known as sold Man" Hamrick
and is aged about seventy-one years.
By his mysterious embalming fluid he
has preserved forever, cot only human
bodies, but those of animals, birds and
/ fish. These gruesome objects he has
sprinkled all over his house and few
on the lawn, subjected to the open air,
which seems to have no effect upon
them.
ssBut the most interesting part of
|
vous, is his den, a small stuffy room
on the second floor Of his house, said
Samuel d. Young, Of this city, this
morning. who recently paid Hamrick
visit. 81 am not easily startled,
| but / must confess that when he led
me into his preparing room, or den,
and / saw CHASTITY, grinning faces,
that once had the light of life in them,
staring me fixedly in the face, ] stepped
back pace or two to think.
| "The old gentleman noticing my
alarm gave one of those scientific cack-
les, taking my temporary disconcer-
ton as an involuntary compliment to
his work. My composure / recovered
at once and he began telling me of
his work and how it had been the
study OF his life. These dry details
did not attract me at all and | merely
politely listened while my attention
was riveted upon the various objects
he had 'mumitied' Seeing that his
conversation did not interest me he
began talking of the stray works Of
mis- art about the place.
ssNotice those two bodies in those
/ two plain boxes over there, " he said
| looked and saw two women, life
like in appearance, with flesh tinted
skin and wide open staring eyes.
| There was nothing CHASTITY about
| them. They looked as if they had
| just awakened from slumber. Con-
| tinuing the old man said: L bought
them for 81, 400 from an insane asy-
lum in this State about fourteen
years ago and they are my greatest
specimens. The bodies were merely
covered with a cloth and were as hard
and cold as marble, Every vein was
visible He next showed me the head
Of a colored man with q full beard,
which he had obtained from Cincin-
natl hospital only short time before.
1t was perfectly preserved and the
flesh was as pliable as that OF live
person. He also showed me ten
day-old baby, fowl, fish, squirrel, cats,
pigs, fruit, etc, all in excellent con-
dition, and many years old.
s'In front of the house are num-
Der of mummifled snakes, coiled in
striking attitude and calculated to
scare away any burglar who gets too
fresh around the premises.
/ Hamrick occasionally comes TO
Cumberland to purchase the material
out of which he makes his embalming
fluid and his quaint appearance al
ways attracts the attention of those
who do not know him. He was de-