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Star (Christchurch), Issue 7661, 17 January 1901, Page 2

BACK FROM THE GRAVE.

ONLY TO RETURN

A CASE OF SUSPENDED ANIMA-

TION,

The experience of James Murdoch, who on Jans. 7 was the subject of ai report to tihe Melbourne coroner, is certainly remarkable. ;

He is an engineer, about sixty years of age, and! until 1 recently lived at Brunswick with, Ms wife and family. They removed' to a house in Smith Street^; .Ooilinigwbod, on Jan. 7, and Murdoch, who has been' suffering from anaemia-, andi hati been attended by a medical man, was care- ; fully brought atewn to bis new residence and placed- -in. a chair while the work o.f re-;,i moval was proceedted with. .-.-.'.■ ■:! A member of the family, happened! to enter the room a few minutes toter, >■ was staxtted at the deatihjy pattor whiiob ' had* come over the sick many His breathing -had stopped, and .hie -was,, to aJI appearance,.: a dead-man. The gji'E, in. alarm, went for the police, and Mr Godfrey Howitt, M. 8 . , who ' was passimg j near the spot, was brought in. He '■was'.igodingi to s attend anotiher patiemb, but stopped! for & few minutes to moke am examiinationv Mrs Murdtaeh, assuming that her husbamd^ was dead, I'oudJy lamemtedi his lose. Meanwhile Mr 'Hewitt appMed J the stethoscope, but could not detect the slightest sign of life. He ordered the body to be placed on the floor, and made one or two ot>her tests, which gav£ the sauue result. The eyeballs were uptunued, showing only the, whites; the cixculatiomi appealed to have ceased, while the lips and finger-tips gave every appearance of •d'eatb. As'Mr Howitt was.about to leave, Ooor stabfle M'Gowaii «md! another omistpiblie arrived, andf received the assurance thai the man was dead. Withi business-Mse punctuality they ramorod t^ suppc^i 1 corpge to a corner or^t^e. room., and pnribeededfto lndjie out tfce H report of-^death whdohi the poßce ai© ' instructed' ■* to forward" to -" the coroneir. *

Wihile this was flieiaig.-doae, M'Goiwan, who i happened to-;glancefjai the direction • K of',tho.i : bjo<iy,^a3iOti l oed' a slight tuyitohSjiig of the , muscles of the face, followed 1 ' by a deep sigih. "'By jingo," !he- exoMmied, "the mian'e ailive!"

The supposed -widow ceased'Shei* lamentations, and! for fifteen minutes [perfect; silence,reign«d in the room, as the oooupanits . waited, for the patient's next breath. Pre--sentfliy there waa »nc*heE deep srigihi, arnnj the patient's breathing returned- in regular ] gasps. There was mow- a feeble 1 -fluttering %f the pulse, and the patient slowly came back to life. He was removed I , to- St>/Vin-