The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1907-01-25
EXTRA
ORDINARY CURES
BLOWS ON THE HEAD ARE MORE
SUCCESSFUL THAN
SURGERY.
Erom the London 2. ]. q.

Hn-NA
The strange case OF Mr. william
iGrigss. whose memory was recently.
restored after three years OF COM
plete oblivion. is the Iatest addition
to the long string Of cases in which ac.
cidents and blows have accomplished,
cures which medical skin has been
~powerless to effect
It may be recalled that ertggs had.
lost all memory OF his doings since
March, 1903, when he was second
steward on the Clyde Shipping Com.
pany's steamer Portland. and ekat he
only regained his identity and his rec
objection of lie Intervening period
after he had been brutaIlg attacked
and kicked by four men in the neigh
borhood Of the Elephant and Castle.
A very curious story OF a similar
kind was told some time ago hy Mai.
Gen. Maunderson. of Tiyerton, whose
wosds we quote: Sin, India, during the
cold season Of fs54-55 some eight or
ten officers auartered near Lahore
were ont hawking ravine deer and
obara, and during a run after one OF
the latter Col. Sam Fisher's horse
Numbered over some rough ground
and fell with him. The only injury
he received was loss OF memory. He
had fallen on his head, but q good
helmet had saved his scalp. It was
about midday, and we got a native cot
and he rested OF It for some three
hours without getting better. We
kept asking what he was doing to
have fallen, and SO on. and, though
in those days in India the Climean
war was in ~eyerybody's thoughts, he
could remember nothing about it.
AS the days are short at that season
III that part Of India and we were
some twelve miles from Lahore, and
no vehicle nor road ft to drive on to
be had, 1t wa suggested that he
should be carried home on the charpoy
by coolies. This he objected to, and
insisted on riding home. When We
got near Lahore 1t was dusk, aud his
pony fell with him over n OF the
leaps Of kunkub, collected at the side
of the road for metaling It He again
fell on his head, unhurt, but his mem.
DRY was completely restored"
More remarkable still is the expe.
rience Of William Alien, a soldier in
the Union Army. who was severely
wounded In the head at the battle of
Gettysburg on July 9. 1863. Allen re.
covered from his wound. but the ma.
chineIy of his brain seemed to have
stopped. For forty years his mind
was absolute blank, SO far as current
events were concerned, but he re.
tanned a vivid memory Of the Incl.
dents of his life up 10 the fatal day in
1863, and could describe 1ong-dead
men and trivial incidents of his young
days with marvellous fidelity. On
July 90. 1909, he was thrown from a
horse on his head, and after recover.
ing consciousness found his memory
completely restored and the long dark
period of his life revealed to him in
Its smallest details.
A few years g a woman who had
been for many years insane secured
possession OF a revolver and fred a
couple of bullets into her head. She
was taken to a London hospital, where
the bullets, one Of which had pene.'
trated the brain, were removed. and
after a few days she recovered con.
s%ciousness. To the Amusement OF her
family and friend, 1t was found that
with consciousness she had regained
complete sanity, the injury to the
brain having, in some mysterious way,
restored her to soundness Of mind.
More recently the fear Of an acct
dent was the means OF restoring
speech to a dumb man. Mr.. J. Moore,
Of Gosport, had been dumb for four
years, when, on returning home one
evening. his bicycle skidded. In his
alarm he shouted. and was SO startled
and surprised at hearing his voice that
he called out again until he was con-
vinced that his long.lost voice had
come back to him.
1t is not many years since a re-
markable case Of dumbness excited
great interest in medical circles in
Germany. Twelve months earfies u
BavarIan cattle dealer had been kick.
ed by a horse, with the result that he
completely lost the use of his voice.
A year later he was riding a doomed
horse to the hackers yard, when
the animal-who clearly had plenty
of life in him-began to kick and
plunge in a dangerous manner. "The
man." we are told, lost his head In
wild excitement, and after a few min
utes began to talk, ana completely re-