Buried Alive

In Russia people aro of tener than elsewhere condemned - unintentionally, of course - to that most grewsome of all deaths, of which Poe had such unfeigned, horror - burial alive. But the circumstances accompanying this frightful torture are seldoin so characteristic or so horrible as in the case of the wife of a peasant in the government of Volhynia, on the borders of Austria, who, according to the local papers of Volhynia, was lately buried in a comatose state. She v as expecting soon to become a mother at the time of her supposed death. After the "corpse" had been kept the usual time, the parish priest, Konstanl ir.ofï, recited the prayers of the burial service in the churchyard, the widower cast tlnee handfuls of earth on the coiïin, and all departed except the gravediggers. In filling up the grave the latter shoveled in an unusually large Bod of hard earth, which struck the coffin with a loud noise and woke up the unfortunate woman from lier sleep. The horror of her position at once dawned upon her. She cried out in most piteous tones to the gravedigprs to rescue her from a horrible death. She solemnly promised them all her property if they would take her from the grave and coffin. The more she cried and entreated the more strenuous were their endeavors to flll in the grave; and on leaving the church yard, when their work was 'lene, they still heard her cries and moans. They at once hurried off to her husband, who was surrounded with guests, drinking to the memory of the deceased. Having related what had taken place, the matter was discussed by the guests and the neighbors, who soon came rushing in, and it was finally resolved nem. con. that an ovil spirit had taken possession of the deceased, and that in order to prevent her walking at nightand disturbing the people, it was absolutely necessary to disinter her and drive an aspen stake through her body. The mir sent a deputation to the priest asking permission to disinter the body and perform the superBtitious rite, deemed necessary in all such cases. The pope, horrified, hurried off to the clrarchyard and had the body disinterred in the hope of saving a life, but superstition had already got its victim, the woman was dead, but unmistakable signs showed she had struggled hard to escaño from the most horrible death the