Year: 1874

letter 10 the new loih Oo" VI


day. saws :-"Mr. Frederick Haller is
by profession a lawyer. He early ac-
quired, however, quite fondness tor
the natural sciences, especially geology.
lie has, perhaps, the largest and most
complete geological cabinet in Louisl-
ana Something over month ago he
married, taking as his bride charming
young girl of sixteen. As physician to
her fathers family and an intimate
friend l was au honored guest at the
marriage ceremony l am sure / have
never saw more beautiful and happy
bride.


Next afternoon she and some three
Oh four of her most intimate friends
went into Mr.. Haller's "Rock Study"
to look over the cabinet of curiosities.
Among the curiosities which Mr.. Hal
Ter had gathered were several round
boulders brought from Arkansas.
These boulders on being broken present
in the central space crystalline forma-
ton, and are usually not much larger
than the double fist. One of these,
however was unusually large, measuring
twenty-one inches in circumference.
Frequently the internal surface, always
hollow, contains water, or rather a con-
centrated solution Of silica in water.
This fact was known TO one of the
young ladies, who mentioned it.


At once it was proposed to break the
large one, and several Intellectual at
tempts were made by them with a geo
logical hammer They called to their
aid colored man, servant on the
place, who was requested to break open
the rock. A pitcher being placed un
derneath the boulder as the man held 1t,
one sturdy blow of his stalwart arm
cracked it, and the fluid within ran out
and was collected in the pitcher, scarce
ly losing drop, there being half pint
of it.


The bride, without ever giving it a
thought, conceived the notion of drink
ing the water from the boulder She
poured most of it into a glass tumbler,
nearly dllins it, and lifting it to her
lips, she drank first to the health OF her
husband, then to that of the unmarried
friends in the room, wishing them
shortly to be happy brides like herself,
and drained the glass. But in few
minutes the youthful bride complained
of excessive pain in the stomach, and
began to realize the rashness Of her ac-
ton.


A messenger was sent in haste for
her husband and myself. Mr. Hallers
Office being near my own, we received
the message almost simultaneously, and
we rapidly drove together in my buggy
to his house. When we arrived she
was dead, period of fifteen minutes
having elapsed from the time of taking
the fatal draught to the time of extinc-
ton of life. They were just laying her
out on my arrival. To my surprise /
found she had grown in that short peri
cd so rigid as to render it difficult to
straighten her limbs. In the course OF
three-quarters of an hour her entire
body became as hard and infexible as
bone.


On more minute examination and
inquiry | found that the dissolved silica
she had taken into her stomach bad
been absorbed and transmitted by the
chylopoietic apparatus and blood yes
sells throughout the system and that her
whole body was q petrifaction. The
case being so singular and so sudden,
the husband and the brides family con-
sented to partial post-mortem exami-
ton, other medical men coming TO my
assistance


We found it impossible to cut through
any portions with our scalpels. DIR.
Furguson broke the scalpel in the first
attempt We were able only to break
through the chest with hatchet, find
ing extreme difficulty in entering the
thoracic cavity, the contents being all
solidiied. The heart was found ashrm
and as solid as stone, resembling piece
of cornelian as 10 both color and con-
sstency.