Evening star., 1930-06-15
SON OF SIAMESE TWIN SPENDS
HIS LAST YEARS IN POOR HOUSE
Patrick Henry Bunker Describes Life of
Strange Pair Who Married Sisters and
Divided Time on Two Farms.

travelled with Barnum's Circus. That
Is not true. They were never with any
circus or Tsideshow. They always gave
high-class exhibition in q hall or in
tent on the fair ground. They were
on exhibition in Barnum's Museum in
New York when the Prince of Wales,
afterward King Edward VII, visited it,
and later Barnum sent them on q tour
OF Europe, but they never liked Bar
mum; he was too much of . Yankee
and wanted too much for his share of
the money, and my father and uncle
were close 1gurers themselves.
"They had separate likes and dis
likes as to food, but they generally
got sleepy at the same time. Once
they both had chills and fever at the
same time. But they always had pretty
good health. Uncle Chang was the
first one to be taken seriously sick. On
a steamship returning from England,
while father was playing checkers with
Frederick A. Douglass, Uncle Chang was
stricken with paralysis and never well
again.
"They came home and one morning
father woke up and found his brother
dead beside him. Father was well at
the time, but he died half hour later.
Then the doctors found that 1t would
have killed them to have cut them
apart, for a large artery extended
through the band that united them"
How did it happen that as prosperous
farmer as you were has come to end
his days in the poor house?" asked
Patrick Henry.
After we had six children my wife
told me she wanted q divorce and the
custody of all the children" he
answered. Why I said to her.
Molly, you don't want to do that
Yes, I do she said, and she insisted
on 1t. So I said to her:
Well, no man ever made anything
lawing with his wife, so, If your mind
is set on having a divorce and the
children you will want plenty to raise
them with so I decided her the farm
in Sumner County and everything on
it-horses, mules, machinery, every
thing.
During the war she could have sold
that farm for $4,000 She did sell 1t
afterward for 5000, and she's married
again, and reckon she set my children
against me, for they don't have any
thing to do with me-"
Where are your children now?"
asked.
'The oldest boy, James Henry Bunker,
is mechanic in Kiowa. Just few
miles from here" he said. Another
Of my sons, Frederick Marshal Bunker,
is somewhere in Oklahoma; he was
farmer, but couldn't get along. My
third son, George Bunker, Is farmer
near Atchison. My daughter, Della Lee,
is married to a man named White and
lives in Blackwell Okla. don't know
where my daughter, Myrtle Cooper, is.
My other daughter, Mrs. Nancy Ann
Davis, lives in Hutchinson, Kans. Her
husband is barber there.
No More Twins In Family.
"a queer thing is that none of my
brothers or sisters and none OF my
children had twins
| Bunker told how he got into the
country home:
Il got job in Kiowa as a mechanic
| in q garage. I had a little money in
the bank, nearly 800, and it came
over me all Of q sudden that was
realized that mighty soon would be
unable to work any more. So put 1t
up to the county commissioners.
I amt got long to live nohow,'
| told them. MY father died at So, and
| I'm rs and failing fast. You take my
money in the bank and put me in the
! poor house for the rest Of my days
| We'll, sir, I saw one of them COM
| missioners wipe his eyes with his coat
sleeve and another said: why, Pat,
| you've worked hard all your life and
| raised q family; you've done your share,
and you come right up to the poor
/ house any time you like and make
| yourself at home there, and the county
doesn't want your money-keep it to
! buy tobacco with
Wasn't that fine?" and Pat got up
and began fooling with his bamboo
fishing pole, pretending that he had a
bite, thinking in that way to hide the
tears in his own eyes.
(CopyriEht, 1890, by North American News
| paper Allianeel