“He had made his will and settled his affairs. He told us he had sent for us to give him some account of an odd sensation, he had for some time observ’d and felt in himself: which was, that composing himself he could die or expire when he pleased, and yet, by an effort or somehow, he could come to life again; which it seems he had tried before he had sent for us. We hear’d this with surprize; but as it was not to be accounted for from any common principles, we could hardly believe the fact as he related it, much less give any account of it; unless he would please to make the experiment before us, which we were unwilling he should do, lest, in his weak condition, he might carry it too far. He continued to talk very distinctly and sensibly above a quarter of an hour about this (to him) surprising sensation, and insisted so much on our seeing the tryal made, that we were at last forced to comply. We all three felt his Pulse first: it was distinct, though small and thready; and his Heart had its usual beating.
“He composed himself on his Back, and lay in a still posture for some time; while I held his Right-hand, Doctor Baynard laid his Hand on his Heart, and Mr. Skrine held a clean looking-glass to his Mouth. I found his Pulse sink gradually, ’till at last I could not feel any, by the most exact and nice touch. Doctor Baynard could not feel the least motion of his Heart, nor Mr. Skrine the least soil of breath on the bright mirror he held to his Mouth; then each of us by turns examin’d his Arm, Heart, and Breath, but could not, by the nicest scrutiny, discover the least symptom of life in him.
“We reasoned a long time about this odd appearance as well as we could, and all of us judging it inexplicable and unaccountable, and finding he still continued in that condition, we began to conclude that he had indeed carried the experiment too far, and at last were satisfied he was actually dead, and were just ready to leave him.
“This continued about half an hour, by nine o’clock in the morning in autumn. As we were going away, we observed some motion about the Body, and upon examination found his Pulse and the motion of his Heart gradually returning: he began to breathe gently and speak softly; we were all astonished to the last degree at this unexpected change, and after some further conversation with him, and among ourselves, went away fully satisfied as to all the particulars of this fact, but confounded and puzzled, and not able to form any rational scheme that might account for it. He afterwards called for his attorney, added a codicil to his will, settled legacies on his servants, received the sacrament, and calmly and composedly expired about five or six o’clock that evening. Next day he was opened (as he had ordered) his Body was the soundest and best made I had ever seen; his Lungs were fair, large, and sound; his Heart big and strong, and his Intestines sweet and clean; his Stomach was of a due proportion, the Coats sound and thick, and the villous Membrane quite entire. But when we came to examine the Kidneys, though the left was perfectly sound, and of a just size, the right was about four times as big, distended like a blown Bladder, and yielding, as if full of pap; he having often passed a wheyish liquor after his urine, during his illness.