Rensselaer Standard, Volume 1, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 December 1879 — A Live Canine Without a Head. [ARTICLE]

A Live Canine Without a Head.

The Marine Journal states that yesterday its editor was invited by Chas. T. Dumont, the well known ioundryman, to step into his foundry and take a look at the curiosity. Here is what he saw. On the ground at our feet, sitting upon his haunches, was the little black and tan dog, the pet of Col. Dumont’s household, the head, with the exception of the lower jaw and tongue, was enti rely gone, revealing % the raw and ragged edges of the neck, out es which protruded an unusually large and illformed wind pipe, which may possibly account iu some way for the prolonged existence of the dog. Moving nearer to take a closer look at the animal, we were shocked to see him get down on his feet and instinctively rum to his master’s side, as if fearing harm. Wei shuddered at the sight of an anlma headless and sightless seeking his master for protection; it seemed incredible and we almost doubted we were awake, but we were, and the most wonderful part of the phenomenon was to be witneseed.

Colonel Damon t’s family, it seems, have made a great pet of the dog, whose name is ’Kip, teaching him a great many tricks, and it is here where the wonderful part enters. The head,as we remarked before, is cut clean off excepting the lower jaw, the rear being entirely gone, but nevertheless the w.i .er saw Trip stand and Walk on his fore feet and hind feet, jump over a box, sit upon the box on his haunches, jump through a hoop, all upon command of Colonel Dumont. Of course this is a hard story for our readers to believe, and would be to us without seeing it; yet those who doubt it can go and convince themselves of its truth. The dog, now two days since decapitation, appears as likely to live as before its head was cut off; how this was done the colonel is able to explain only by finding the head on the floor beneath the shears used at the boiler shop in cutting sheet iron, upon which the, dog must have climbed, and jarring the stand, the upper knife fell, doing its work in a very unskillful manner; but here another singular part of the phenomenon occurs. The boiler yard where the accident occurred is nearly a square from where the, dog wandered to and where he was first found, she last seen es him was at the heller

yard, where the Colonel missed him, 1 but presuming he hod! rim home, which Is only s few squares from the shop, he dismissed the dog from his mind, to find him an hour afterward in the fbnndry at the rear of the machine shop, without a bead, but as playful as ever. Yesterday morning and afternoon the steady stream of humanity that poured through the shops interfering with the workmen increased so rapidly a« the day waned that it was found necessary to dose the front doors and force the surging and curiosity excited multitude to enter by the foundry on the river front. Several medical men were among the visitors yesterday, and expressed great astonishment at the marvelous sight

This morning Due tors Carrick and Wood, two well known surgeons, made a close examination of the lacerated neck and the lifeless head, imbued with the hope that they would be able to solve the mystery by the discovery that the base of the brain had not beeu detached, and that enough of it was left; on the trunk to prolong animal life, but their examination was in vain, mystifying them even more, as they discovered that the entire head and part of the neck was entirely gone, and that the lower jaw was hanging on a simple ligament, and held in place by the tongue, which is extraordinarily tough and hard. While making the examination the dog was very restless, and endeavored to free himself from the grip of the doctors. They gave it os their opinion that the dog's life would be prolonged if it could be made to eat by forcing food into its stomach; it has been tried and failed; consequently the doctors think it will die of starvation. They are nonplussed as to how to answer for the prolongation of life in a physical form without the co-operation of brain force so necesdary to animal We are impressed with the belief that the question which so long has baffled science in determining the Aiuction of animal brain is answered. We think the fact of the dog living after the separation of the brain from the body proves that animal brain is a mere form of matter, no more capable ot impression than the tail, probably one of the organs of digestion. In man it is the motor power of thought and action. It is certainly a nut for physicians to crack. Colonel Dumont will give such ample privilege to investigate for the benefit of science.

Colonel Dumont thinks he has an elephant on his hands; he does not want to kill the dog, and yet hates to see it live in such a disfigured condition. Speculators desire to exhibit it, to which he objects. George Forepaugh, the showman, yesterday offered SI,OOO for the dog, or S3OO a day, which Colonel Dumont refused. It is certainly a very lively specimen of canine, even if it has no head.