THE OHAU TWINS.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 1021, 13 April 1883, Page 2

THE OHAU TWINS.

(New Zealand Times.') This astonishing freak of nature has not attracted anything like the attention that.its marvellousncss warrants. Having heard many vague rumors about it, we have seen for ourselves, and .are surprised that so astonishing a phenomenon should be so little known. In London it'would draw thousands upon thousands of people, yet here it passes unnoticed. We should advise every man and every woman, at ’cast every mother in town, to pay a visit to these children. This curiosity would, occupy a niche of honor in the museum of the Royal College of Burgeons, in London. ,Properly set up in a . clean, glass, cylinder, it would attract much notice. Happily, as the twins arc well, this appears a remote possibil i if. ‘ ... ... .Description, ■ The twins lie side-by-side on a couch, and show markedly the : Tint, bf the ra&m The right-baby is stronger than the left; it is also bigger. Th<? right one cries lustily, the left merely blinks xiiteasily. " .They Hein the same plane,. , If. the mother" takes one she must take the other. Though the junction is strong! she cannot take one up and lift the other hanging to her sister, because this hurts both. The twins belong to the;gentler sex ; a fortunate thing, as Oiey will not ha.ve to rough it so.much in after life. One is bottle fed ; the little one in Nature’s primitive fashion. On flic whole these little dears are well ■behaved. They look fairly wel 1. These nut-brown maidsare far more interesting than the Siamese twins, and are quite as well worth viewing as the two-headed nightingale, the two sixers shown in London a few years back. Down to the hips they are two disdnet;children, then : the arrangement b;comcs mixed. From the top of the hips they are completely fused. Nature has welded two into one. The twihs were joined by a from breast to breast ; they had nothing in Common. The Ohau twins are distinct only to the small of the back. They possess two heads',iwo necks, four arms,twojtrunks -to th| small of the back, then “the, twain become one flesh, they possess one middle and four legs. y : .. . It is this junction, which might, and certainly in olden days would, have raised the question, are they twins or are they one t : animal? The Ancient Hebrews believed that the os sacrum, was, the, seat of Hfeq.if their, theory were true this ryould; be, one life, for it is doubtful if, they i hayp-more tbgn one of these.. bones ' between (hem. We . them two children. But, each partially unde« veloped, each hayip’g limbs arid*’parts of its body peculiar to itself ; and yet as they have a consider able’ portion in common, we cannot look upon them : as two distinct; properly made little girls; -Most persons jwho know anything of them speak confidently of them as two children. Wo think, differently;; the more correct description would be two partly ■ formed little girls. If babies .were made by chrttraet, we-are quite sure 'that-no engmeer or architect would • certify that these were two wholly-formed babies. Question, of" .Separation. Can they ’be separated ? ' Will ’the' doctors sever them ? 1 We believe that the father was very anxious that this should be done, and this .is the chief reason of their visit, to townr To the question,. “ Can..they be-.divided?” there /.can be, but/ one / answer, /‘Yes.”. Granted a.surgeon deft of wrist,"and’ armed., with a : knife and saw,- the operation -would: be done in a few minutes. But to the: question; (one of, some importance to the babies themselves), “Would they survive the operation?” we can - most -confiden Uy - reply, “ Certainly., not.” For their own sakes, .This, is a great pity. There" are‘people who* worild view such an operation with pious wrath; for theybelieve an the sayiflg/Whom Bath joined let no man-put asunder.’’; ■ . ,- T :i7 Kindred C iii'iosiLie s. Monstrosities are always of interest from a legal point of view. "For" instance, how far can a monster inherit a dukedom, or am ear].--, dom, ■ Suppose the Ohau twins were_ only 1 daughters of King Tawhiao.: Hdnt woilldhKi crown. descend? .which would inherit (Bis: wealth ? In England even a' three-legged child would not be debarred frohilnheritirig;’ (Vide Coke "on monsters'.) f“ Monsters/’— according to that eminent medical jurist, Dr Taylor—“monsters may be either acephalous (headless), dicephalous (two heads, with one, body) or uisomatious (two bodies with one head),” SfcHilaarClsbiys-.lftlheyt*have two heads they must be counted double,, b u t .if ' theyhave one Bead; and two; Bodies;; only,As one child. He founded this distinction on the Christian rite of baptism, which is always district headv’rWe;_think St jHilairfi is "right. ** In the" 171h century one lialf or a monster stabbed n niaui.-was tried and convicted. but., let .off t on the ground, that the executioner-BouTd'nbt help ’killing* the, imro'cent half. It is a : ,good thing for us that double monsters are so rare, and, moreover, that this peculiarity is" not hereditary.. ..11l Paris, in 1830,- a triceplialous (Three-headc-monster waS" born, and. iived f These cm ions monsters arc very, sel dbro probably not one good one in 30,000,000, or 50,L00,000 births, and they very rarely attain" maturity.; ; About- four, centurie^agpf,'-two Kentish" lasses," joined together, lived to womanhood, and so, did a pair of wbmen some’ hundred years'ago In. -Sweden/' - A pair born ; in Sardinia; in ,i ; B29j-consisted of two heads distinct,fastened to...two.trunks,.whicnr ; were fused: into one; It had/two legs ana r two’ 'arms. 'Glnistina" and - Pitta lived'for’; nine months. ■ s :Wheh we take all things' drito: consideration,.• we-cannot:help Thinking) That it is well;nature sorrarely plays'suchqfreaks" as these,//.tt.’must He confessed"that interesting ak’ stick babies must necessarily be to their mothers, yet they create many, trials. Twd babies are. awkward”to mdrse, they“afe inconvenient to dangle,Theyare not adapted I to ordinary cfadleipafiditliey; SBlnncomfort--1 ably in am orpinary. perambulator; i \lf eith^ ■ of .these, ifurther notice. If one. takes'food the.pther, :still feels hungry, - .■: • ;' It ‘is a fiiost cbmmdn -belief ainong al! sorts add; conditions of ineh that medical mfen may ;at the birth of ; a monster quietly piit.it 6ufc*o£' i the way. People seem to forget thataithree;, ihetvdeA baby, or-» one-headed Baby with- twp : ■ trunks, or a tlrree-legged, -or :a ; headless ’ qnonster, though unpleasant to ordinary I people,- yet human, Beings. ...Any,' doctor, :so acting would be, guilty of, infanticide. Tu ’conclusion, we can assure the 'public that the Ohau twins are well worth seeing. ivllkn - t cf ■