Myrtle Corbin is an amazing woman who had a double elongated pelvis and four legs. The inner small legs had a pair located on the outside. Corbin explained that she was able to control her small limbs, but did not use them because of their weakness.
Four-legged baby
Josephine Myrtle Corbin was born on May 12, 1868. Her place of birth is Tennessee, USA, Lincoln County. When the girl was born, her mother Nancy Korben reached the age of 34 years. And father William was 9 years younger than his wife.
A born child was unusual. He had an elongated pelvis, as well as four limbs, legs. The newborn girl had two vaginas. The baby has become a real medical sensation. The press constantly told the public about her state of health.
According to surviving records of obstetricians and doctors who examined and observed the baby, it follows that the parents were very much alike. As a result, doctors have suggested that the spouses are blood relatives.
However, they, besides Myrtle, had perfectly normal other five children.
According to the mother of the child, her pregnancy took place normally. And the doctors who watched the child after birth, stated that he was strong and healthy. The girl fed normally and grew at ordinary speed. Corbin grew up in a natural environment with other children. A month after birth, she gained 4.5 kg in weight, which was reflected in the magazine for 1868.
Reason for anomaly
Later studies of the newborn showed that she was born with an abnormality, which was the result of splitting the longitudinal axis of the body during development. As a result of this, she was born having two basins arranged in a row. Each basin had a set of legs. One is normal size, the other is small. Small legs were in the center, surrounded on the sides by normal limbs.
Myrtle Corbin Anatomy as a Source of Income
Father Corbin, from the moment his daughter reached the age of four, began to use her as earnings, drove her to show at markets, fairs and booths.
When the girl reached the age of 13, she began to systematically speak to the public, demonstrating her anomaly. At the same time, she was called the "four-legged girl from Texas."
The father produced and distributed handouts, placed ads in newspapers in order to popularize his daughter, which he achieved in a short time. Together with him, she began to travel to small cities of the state, earning decent money at that time.
Work in the circus
At age 14, Myrtle entered into a contract with the Barnum and Bailey Circus. At that time he was considered an advanced and very popular show. His performances were attended by circus artists, trained animals, as well as people who had developmental abnormalities (twin dwarfs, giant people, a person with a dog’s face, a woman with an elephant’s legs, seven Sutherland sisters).
The circus advertisement portrayed Myrtle Corbin in dancing poses. However, this was not true. Smaller legs could not fully function. She, of course, controlled their movements, however, the inverted foot of the extreme leg was very difficult when walking on large limbs.
However, the girl’s popularity was overwhelming. Her earnings amounted to $ 450 per week. In terms of modern times, this is about $ 10, 000. All this led to the fact that various fraudsters from the show business began to clone four-legged people who were attached with fake limbs. And this practice continued for quite some time, even after Myrtle Corbin herself finished her appearances when she reached the age of 18.
Marriage, first pregnancy
At the age of 19, Myrtle married Medical Student James Clinton Bicknell. It is worth noting that her husband really had natural feelings for Corbin. He did not marry for convenience. Proof of this - immediately after the marriage, Myrtle finished her speeches, bringing substantial income.
A year later, in the spring of 1887, she became pregnant for the first time. Initially, a woman went to the doctor with symptoms of fever, headache, pain in the left side. The doctor who discovered the pregnancy described Myrtle's condition in detail in the Atlanta Medical and Surgical Journal, which led to a new surge of interest in the four-legged woman.
Describing his patient, Dr. Whaley found that her external genitals are completely duplicated by internal ones. In this case, the fetus developed in the left uterus of Corbin. However, the woman doubted this. She was sure that if she was to become pregnant, it would be on the right side, since only this part of the body participated in sexual intercourse.
Pregnancy has led to serious ailments of Myrtle Corbin. Medical consultation, examining a woman, came to the conclusion about the feasibility of abortion. Pregnancy was interrupted after 8 weeks from the date of its discovery. According to doctors, the fetus at that time was already at the age of 4 months.
These events, associated with Myrtle Corbin, again attracted the attention of physicians and ordinary people. She again began to flicker often in various magazines. Moreover, they were mentioned in them as a very smart, sophisticated woman who has a good musical taste. Correspondents found that Myrtle Corbin, “the only girl with 4 legs, ” independently does all the housework. Has an attractive face, as well as completely natural and normal physical development. In support of this information, the photos of Myrtle Corbin were placed in the press, as a rule, in prominent places.
