590 



NOETH CAROLINA. 



NOTES, WILLIAM CURTIS. 



a profit by the blockade running. Her soldiers 

 were thereby abundantly supplied with neces- 

 saries, and many indispensable articles were 

 furnished to the citizens at cost and expenses. 



"When the Legislature assembled near the 

 close of the year, the Governor recommended 

 that the State should assume the support of the 

 families of the soldiers, instead of the counties, 

 and asked for an appropriation of two millions 

 in currency, and a tax of one-tenth in kind. He 

 recommended the extension of the military age 

 to fifty-five years, and opposed the arming of 

 slaves as a policy entirely inadmissible. Ho 

 urged that the common schools should be kept 

 in operation at any cost. The crops of the year 

 were fair, and in some places excellent. 



At the loss of Plymouth, and its subsequent 

 recapture, were the most important military 

 operations during the year within the State. 

 Several raids, however, were made from the 

 posts held by the Federal troops. On June 19th 

 a force left Newbern under command of Col. 

 Jordan, which was out five days skirmishing 

 with the enemy. On the 21st another force, 

 under Col. Classon, advanced towards Kinston, 

 meeting and driving back a small body of the 

 enemy. A number of prisoners were taken on 

 each expedition, with some horses and small 

 arms. On June 30th a small force from Ten- 

 nessee, under Capt. Booth, came into Western 

 North Carolina, and captured Camp Vance at 

 Morgantown, taking about three hundred junior 

 reserves of the enemy prisoners. A raid was 

 also made by Gen. Wild with his colored troops 

 into Camden County, which resulted in bringing 

 off about 2,501 slaves, 350 ox, horse, and mule 

 teams, and 60 horses. Ten dwelling-houses 

 and thousands of bushels of corn were burned, ' 

 two distilleries and four camps, with a loss to 

 the brigade of twelve killed and wounded, and 

 one taken prisoner. 



The Siamese twins, well known some years 

 ago as two young men, natives of Siam, who 

 were connected together by a short ligament 

 from each breast, settled on a plantation in 

 North Carolina. A physician who came within 

 the Federal lines, being a resident in their neigh- 

 borhood, stated as follows : 



Since the war began they have continued to reside 

 on their plantation, and lived in the same quiet and 

 harmony as ever until within two years. No one 

 ever thought of drafting them, and their negroes 

 prospered, except that when out of temper from any 

 2ause, it was apt to work itself off in striking the first 

 one that came to hand, from which the best escape 

 was to keep out of the way. The brothers probably 

 never would have had any difficulty, but that their 

 wives, though sisters, turned away their hearts, and 

 children were the cause of this estrangement. 



Up to the period that each had five children all 

 prospered, but one of them had a sixth, and this 

 awoke envy and jealousy to such a degree, that the 

 two sisters, not being bound together like the twin 

 brothers, would no longer live under the same roof, 

 though still in different houses on the same planta- 

 tion. The brothers are now about fifty years of age, 

 but one, the smaller and feebler of the two, looks 

 now fully ten years older than the other. They can 

 turn back to back or face to face, but that is as far as 



the remarkable bond that unites them permits. A 

 few years since they corresponded with some of 

 the leading surgical operators in London, as to tho 

 possibility of the umbilicus which unites them being 

 cut, so that in case of the death of one, the life of the 

 other might be saved. At the request of the London 

 Surgeon they visited that city, and many experi 

 ments were tried to determine the safety of sucn an 

 operation. Among other things, a ligature was tied 

 firmly for a few minutes round the connexion between 

 them, so as to prevent the circulation of blood through 

 the artery. But it seemed as if each would expfro 

 if this were longer persisted in. 



The smaller of the two fainted away and lost all 

 consciousness, and there were symptoms that the 

 same effect would follow to the other, but that the 

 process could not be continued long enough withoul 

 endangering the life of him who was first to faint. 

 Should the smaller and feebler die, it might be worth 

 while making the experiment of operating, but tha 

 prospects of prolonging the life of the other would 

 be very small. Should, however, the larger and more 

 healthy of the twin brothers die, there would seem 

 absolutely no hope of saving the feebler of the two. 



NOTES, WILLIAM CURTIS, an American jur- 

 ist, born at Sohodack, Rensselaer County, N. 

 T., August 19, 1805, died in New Tork City, 

 December 25, 1864. He early turned his at 

 tention to the study of law, and although de- 

 prived of a collegiate education, was a laborious 

 student, and in 1827 was admitted to the Bar. 

 After practicing his profession in Oneida County, 

 and establishing for himself a reputation as a 

 sound lawyer and discreet advocate, he removed 

 in the year 1838 to New Tork City, where he 

 at once took a position in the front ranks of the 

 profession. Nor was this the result of good 

 fortune; it was the natural growth of steady 

 labor, undeviating rectitude, and elevated am- 

 bition. His experience was varied and exten- 

 sive, his knowledge of the law and its history 

 exact and comprehensive, and his apprehension 

 of legal distinctions clear and precise. He had 

 compared the codes of different States and na- 

 tions more extensively, perhaps, than any Amer- 

 ican lawyer who has survived him. His politi- 

 cal affiliations were with the Whig party, and 

 upon its dissolution in 1856 he sought, and 

 found a reunion with many of his old political 

 friends in the Republican party. In 1861 Mr. 

 Noyes was one of the delegates from New Tork 

 to the Peace Convention. For many years ho 

 had been connected with the New England 

 Society, in which he took a deep and active 

 interest as one of the almoners of the Charity 

 Committee, amid all the labors of his profession 

 faithfully attending all the business meetings of 

 the society with unflagging zeal. He had been 

 repeatedly requested to accept the Presidency 

 of the Society, but had as often declined, with 

 the feeling that none but a native of New Eng- 

 land should hold that post. He had finally 

 given his consent, and upon the last anniversary 

 was elected President. The next day he suffer- 

 ed an attack of paralysis, which he survived but 

 a few hours. Mr. Noyes had for several years, 

 in connection with other distinguished lawyer.-, 

 been engaged in preparing a codification of the 

 Laws of the State of New Tork, which volume 

 is now in process of publication. 



