"For four hours she appeared to me," says Dr.
Pfendler, "completely inanimate. With Messrs. Franck and Schaeffer,
I made every possible effort to rekindle the spark of life. Neither
mirror, nor burned feather, nor ammonia, nor pricking succeeded in
giving us a sign of sensibility. Galvanism was tried without the patient
showing any contractility. Mr. Franck believed her to be dead, but
nevertheless advised me to leave her on the bed. For twenty-eight hours
no change supervened, although it was thought that a little putrefaction
was observed. The death bell was sounded, the friends of the girl had
dressed her in white and had crowned her with flowers, and all was
arranged for her burial. Desiring to convince myself of the course of
the putrefaction, I visited the body again, and found that no further
advance had been made than before. What was my astonishment when I
believed that I saw a slight respiratory motion. I looked again, and saw
that I was not mistaken. I at once used friction and irritants, and in
an hour and a half the respiration increased. The patient opened her
eyes, and, struck with the funereal paraphernalia around her, returned
to consciousness, and said, 'I am too young to die.
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