A Narrow Escape.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 8056, 3 November 1897, Page 4

A Narrow Escape.

A story of a narrow escape from premature burial is going the rounds of the press just now. It runs thus : — Edward Zipan and his brother Charles (a paralytic) occupied the same room in their mother's house in a Parisian suburb. Edward was taken suddenly ill, and died. On the evening of his death an undertaker took the measurements for his collin, and later on his mother, with the assistance of a friend, transferred the corpse to Charles's bed, and the paralytic to that which had been occupied by his brother, thinking the position a better one for the invalid. On the day of the funeral the undertaker suggested that Madame Zipan should leave the room till the body had been placed in the coffin. She complied with the suggestion, and he and his men then proceeded to remove what they supposed to be the remains of Edward. The poor paralytic comprehended his dreadful situation, but terror and his physical condition deprived him of the power of utterance or movement. He was just about to be placed in the coffin when one of the undertaker's assistants remarked : " Hallo, there are two corpses!" "No," said the head man, " that poor fellow over there is a paralytic ! " The young man looked closer at the supposed invalid, and then exclaimed : "Paralytic ! Why he's dead, and his body is decomposing ! " The undertaker saw at once that, there was a blunder somewhere, and drew aside the shroud which had been placed round the unhappy Charles. The invalid's eyes were big with fright, and his face writhing with endeavors to speak.