A Mysterious Hereditary Curse.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 889, 15 March 1889, Page 5

A Mysterious Hereditary Curse.

There is a certain family in Boston, which suffers from a mysterious hereditary curse, of the sort one reads about in hair-elevating stories of the supernatural. The first son born to every daughter bleeds to death. The story a 3 to the manner in which the affliction originated cannot, of oourse, be vouched for. It has to do with a wicked great.great-grandmother, who murdered a rich uncle by opening one of his veins with a poinard in order to get possession of the old gentleman’s vast wealth. The ghost of the deceased subsequently appeared to the un-

scrupulous ncice and announced in hollow tones, appropriate to the tomb, the dismal prediction that for all time thenceforth the eldest male child of every girl in her family should die by bleeding to death. So much for the explanatory tradition. The fact is that for many generations the Crockett family of Charlestown—which is a part of Boston and vicinity, has been pursued by a hemorrhagic Nemesis, The first son born to every daughter, even to remote cousins, invariably bleeds to death. All other members of the Orochett tribe are exempt from the mysterious trouble. But the method of this inherited curse is so well known that each female Croohett is prepared, on the arrival of hor initial boy, for the experience that is bound to ensue. The first little out, or even scratch, the infant experiences is the signal for a panic. Bandages are applied as quickly as possible, and the wound is treated with a preparation of iron in the form of powder. It is a narrow squeak in such cases always, but there is a good chance of recovery within eight days if the thing is taken in time. At the end of that time the patient either gets well or dies from loss of blood very suddenly. For such is the manner of the bleeder’s complaint. He is sure to be attacked in precisely the same way every time during his after life that his skin is seriously abraided. On occasions of the sort he must adopt immediate measures remedial or die. By exercising the most extraordinary precautions he may reach a comfortable age ; but soouer or later he is sure to perish by an untoward accident, causing a flow of blood which no physician’s art can stop. So far not a single one ol the destined victims has escaped the penalty. The oldest one now living is a Mr Surratt, of Melrose, who has been accustomed, when he wanted a tooth pulled, to revise his will, visit his relatives, and bid them all good-by, as though it were likely to be for ever. Life is an extrahazardous risk when you are a bleeder. Thus it happens that oldest sons of the Crockett family, direct or collateral on the maternal side, are found to be engaged in grave-digging and the other harmless avocations, which are not likely to ocoasion incidental hurts.