Varied Accomplishments of an Armless Man.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 206, 11 June 1887, Page 3

Varied Accomplishments of an Armless Man.

There recently died at Potsdam, St. Lawrence County, New York, Richard Donovan, who was in some respects one of the most remarkable men in northern New York. Twenty years ago, when a boy, Donovan woi'ked in a flour mill. One day he was caught in a bolt and received injuries that necessitated taking off both arms at the shoulders. This did not discourage him, and after recoveringhis health he setabout earning his living the best he could without the use of arms. Part of the time h© had lived alone, and from the necessity of helping himself ho became wonderfully adept in performing all kinds of work, using his feet and mouth principally. He owned a horse, of which he took the entire care, harnessed it, fastened and unfastened the buckles with his teeth, and drove with the reins tied around his shoulders. Being in need of a waggon, he bought wheels and axles, and built a box buggy and painted it. He went to the barn one winter day and built a cow stable, sawing the timber with his feet, and, with the hammer in one foot and holding the nail with the j other, he nailed the boards on as well as most men could do with both hands. He dug a well twelve feet deep on a farm in this town, and stoned it himself. He could mow away hay by holding the fork under his chin and letting it rest against his shoulder. He would pick up potatoes in a field as fast as a man could dig them. He would dress himself, get his meals, write his letters, and, in fact, do almost anything that a man with two arms could do.— "Boston Transcript."