WAS KILLED BY THE HOGS

From THE PORTLAND OBSERVER, October 9,1901

One of the most horrible accidents which has been our duty to chronicle occurred at Sebewa last Wednesday and the most distressing feature about it is that the accident resulted fatally. About noon Mrs. Ansel Green [akn (Hannah Elizabeth "Boyer" Green)], living 1 1/2 miles west of Sebewa Corners,

desiring eggs enough to fill out a crate to take to town, went to a straw stack in the barnyard to see if she could find the necessary number. In the yard was a sow and pigs and some shoats, Weighing perhaps 125,# or 140#, the sow being a large hog, probably weighing 250#.

Mrs. Green had scarcely got into the yard -when she was attacked by the whole bunch and thrown to the ground. The clothing about the lower portion of her body was torn from her and her legs horribly mutilated. Her left arm and hand were laterally chewed to a pulp and the under part of her right arm between the elbow and the shoulder was torn into shreds. The right side of her face and neck were also horribly mangled and her breasts showed where the hogs had put their teeth upon her when they were tearing her to pieces.

How the hogs came to attack her will never be known for she did not regain consciousness sufficiently to tell the story. Neither will it be known how she managed to escape from the beasts for the same reason but she had strength and presence of mind enough to get to the fence and drag herself over it before her son attracted by the unusual noise of the herd, found her and conveyed her to the house in an unconscious condition.

Dr. Morse of Sebewa was first summoned and he, with the assistance of neighbors., bound up the torn and lacerated body as best he could and Dr. Peacock of Sunfield was sent for. As soon as he arrived, the wounds were properly dressed and the sufferer made as comfortable as possible but the flesh and muscles were so torn and mangled and the bones so crunched and broken that nothing like satisfactory surgery could be performed. She lay in a semi-unconscious condition until Saturday morning about 9 o'clock when she was relieved from her awful suffering by death and it must have been a welcome visitor to herself and family as Dr. Morse said that , had she lived, she must have suffered amputation of the left arm and she would have been crippled for life in arms and legs and her face would have been disfigured horribly. Just before she died, she recovered consciousness sufficiently to converse a little with those about her. When asked how she managed to get away from the hog she said she first gave up and thought she surely must be eaten up alive and then she prayed to God to give her strength to get away from them and she seemed to have it, to be lifted up from the ground and carried to and over the fence. Mrs. Green was 53 years of age and a sister of Mrs. W. H. Darken [akn (Margaret Eliza "Boyer" Darken)] of this village. Her maiden name was Boyer and she formerly resided near Hoytville. Besides a husband, she leaves four children three sons and a daughter, the latter a student in the Portland schools.

She was a most estimable lady, well loved by all her neighbors and acquaintances. Funeral services over here remains were conducted Monday afternoon. While on the way to the bedside of Mrs. Green, her sister, Mrs. Benjamin Probasco [akn (Mary Jane "Boyer" Probasco)], was thrown from the Buggy by the horse going into the ditch and she was quite severely injured, she having had one rib broken and being otherwise quite badly injured.

shoat also shote (shot) noun A young pig just after weaning.

Sue Thompson & Robin Lee Boyer found this article in Letha Marie Phelps files while doing research in Lansing at Dave & Audrey Cooper home, niece of Letha Marie Phelps.