Year: 1874

Personal Recollections of the Siamese


Twins.


In one of Mark Twain's sketch books
published by Routledge, in England, is
the following minute, entertaining and
just now especially valuable account of
the habits of the Siamese twins. 1t was
written several years ago:


l do not wish to write Of the personal
habits Of these strange creatures only,
but also of certain curious details of va
rious kinds concerning them which, be-
longing to their private life, have never
crept into print. Knowing them init
mately, feel that am peculiarly we'll
qualified for the task have taken on my
self.


The Siamese twins are naturally ten
der and affectionate in disposition, and
have clung together with singular fidelity
throughout long and eventful life. Even
as children they were inseparable COM
panions; and it is noticed that they
always seemed to prefer each others So
ciety to that of any other persons. They
nearly always played together; and so ac-
customed was their mother to this pecul-
iarity that, whenever both of them
CHANGED to be lost, she usually hunted
for one of them-satisfied that when she
found that one she would find his brother
somewhere in the immediate neighbor-
hood. And yet these creatures were igno-
rant and Observation-Disclosures them
selves, and the offspring of barbarians,
who knew not the light of philosophy
and science What withering rebuke is
this to our boastcd civilization, with its
Quarrelings, its wranglings and its sepa.
ration Of brothers.


As men the twins have not always lived
in perfect accord; but still there has
always been a bond between them which
made them unwilling to 60 away from
each other and dwell apart. They have
even occupied the same house, as gen.
eral thing, and it is believed that they
have never failed to even sleep together
on any night since they were born. How
surely do the habits Of lifetime become
second nature to us. The twins always
90 to bed at the same time, but Chang
usually gets up an hour before his brother
By an understanding between themselves,
Chang does all the indoor work and Eng
runs all the errands. This is because
Eng likes to go out; Chang's habits are
sedentary. However, Chang always goes
along Eng is Baptist, but Chang is a
Roman Catholic; still, to please his
brother, Chang consented to be baptized
at the same time that Eng was, on condi-
ton that it should not "count." During
the war they we're strong partisans, and
fought gallantly all through the great
struggle-Eng on the Union side and
Chang on the Confederate. They took
each other prisoners at Seven Oaks, but
the proofs of capture we're so evenly bal
anced in favor of each that a general
army court had to be assembled to deter
mine which one was properly the captor
and which the captive. The jury was un-
able to agree for long time, but the
agreeing to consider them both prisoners
and then exchanging them: At one time
Chang was convicted of disobedience of
guard house, but Eng, in spite of all ar
onment, Notwithstanding he himself was
entirely innocent; and so, to save the
blameless brother from suffering, they
just reward of faithfulness.


Upon one occasion the brothers fell out
about something, and Chang knocked
Eng down, and then tripped and fell on
him, whereupon both c'inched and began
to beat and gouge each other without
mercy. The bystanders interfered and
tried to separate them, but they could not
do it, and so allowed them to fight it out.
In the end both were disabled, and were
carried to the hospital on one and the
same shutter.


Their ancient habit of going always to-
gether had it's drawbacks when they
reached mans estate, and entered upon
the luxury of counting. Both fell in love
with the same girl. Each tried to steal
clandestine interviews with her, but at
the critical moment one would always
turn up. By-and-by Eng saw with dis
traction that Chang had won the girls
affections, and from that day forth he had
to bear with the agony of being a witness
to all their dainty billing and cooling.
But with magnanimity that did him in
finite credit he succumbed to his fate,
and gave countenance to state of things
that bade fair to sunder his generous heart
strings. He sat from seven every evening
until two in the morning, listening to
the fond foolishness Of the two lovers,
and to the conclusion of hundreds of
squandered kisses-for the privilege of
sharing only one Of which he would
have given his right hand. But he sat
patiently and waited, and gaped, and
yawned, and stretched and longed for two
O'Clock to come. And he took long walks
with the lovers on moonlight evenings
sometimes traversing ten miles, notwith-
standing he was usually suffering from
rheumatism. He is an inveterate smoker
but he could not smoke on these occa-
sions, because the young lady was pain
fully sensitive to the smell of tobacco.
Eng cordially wanted them married and
done with it; but although Chang often
asked the momentous question the young
lady could not gather sufficient courage
to answer it while Eng was by. How
ever, on one occasion, after having walked
some sixteen miles and sat up till nearly
daylight, Eng dropped asleep from sheer
exhaustion and the question was asked
and answered. The lovers were married.
All acquainted with the circumstances
applauded the noble brother-in-law His
unwavering faithfulness was the theme Of
every tongue. He had stayed by them
through their long and arduous courtship
| and when at last they we're married, he
lifted his hands and said with impressive
| unction, "Bless ye, my children, I will
| never desert thee!" and he kept his word
Magnanimity like this is all too rare in
this cold world.


By-and-by Eng fell in love with his sis
ter'in-law, and married her, and since thai
day they have all lived together in an ex