Setting the world on fire 

For centuries, particularly in the 19^th century, people believed that it was possible to burst into flames. The victims tended to be elderly single women who resembled those accused of witchcraft centuries earlier. They too were usually older solitary women who lived on the fringes of society. With the sensational headline « Temperance supporters warn all drinkers, » The News and Frontier Advocate, Montreal and St. Johns Newspaper, announced to its readers in 1867 that: 

 »Another case of spontaneous combustion is reported by Dr. Berthole. An old woman addicted to alcohol was found in her room with her insides and limbs consumed. The hair and clothing were untouched. Ignition was triggered by alcohol beyond any doubt.” 

It is hard to imagine what the ripple effect would have been among the readership of the paper which included people in Missisquoi County. Shock, most certainly, but likely some smug certainty that the poor incinerated soul, who abused alcohol, possibly deserved her fate. 

The use of spontaneous human combustion stories by 19th century temperance societies was a frightening tactic to dissuade people from consuming liquor. Similar versions of the story though, existed long before the anti-alcohol movement gained hold. The earliest recorded case dates from 15th century Italy with similar reports appearing across Europe and Britain soon after. 

Human combustion was a phenomenon that affected both rich and poor. This was demonstrated by the tales of Countess Cornelia Zangári & Bandi of Cesena, Italy, and Grace Pett, the wife of a fishmonger in Ipswich, England. The countess bathed regularly in camphorated spirits of wine. And Mrs. Pett habitually imbibed “a large quantity of spirituous liquor” and smoked pipes. The countess was reduced to an “oily ash” except for her legs which were “still standing near her bed.” Grace was found by the hearth with the appearance of “a log of wood consumed by a fire,” except for her legs. Eighteenth century Italian academic Paolo Antonio Rolli coined the phrase ‘spontaneous human combustion’ when he hypothesised that fires could start within the body.

Combustion stories became a fashionable topic in the 19th century after a number of grisly cases were reported in newspapers and scholarly journals. The 1823 issue of Medical Jurisprudence reviewed various accounts. It noted that the victims had many common traits including: alcoholism, advanced age, isolation, the finding of hands and/or legs and feet intact, greasy ashes, and nearby objects left undamaged. 

In an era when candles and open hearths were ever-present, and women wore flammable woollen skirts expanded by hoops and petticoats, deadly domestic fires were not uncommon. The press however, preferred the editorial tactic of “yellow journalism.” Similar to today’s Clickbait content that directs people to social media sites using sensationalized or misleading headlines, gruesome captions helped to sell newspapers. 

The repugnant details of the aftermath of a “human fire” appealed to the Victorian’s love of the macabre. The popularity of gothic novels and writers like Charles Dickens, who had Mr. Krook, one of his dastardlier characters burst into flames, helped to popularize the craze for more stories. There was some scientific research devoted to the subject. But even then, declarations from well-educated scientists stating that “a newly discovered chemical element called oxygen fueled the slow fires in the body,” did not help matters. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was still being reported that the human body contained “brimstone.”

The combustion story in The News and Frontier Advocate, was printed alongside news concerning developments towards Confederation. It is likely that the horrific story captivated readers attention far more than the political report. Rest assured, no human being has ever spontaneously combusted. Every case reported was either fabricated to promote a cause or garner attention, folklore that reflected society’s fears, or an accidental death from an open fire. 

Perhaps not surprisingly, in this era of misinformation, stories still persist about spontaneous human combustion. Pseudo scientists falsely claim that a subatomic particle called a “pyrotron” in a person’s body causes a “nuclear chain reaction” that results in combustion. Regardless of actual science discrediting the nonsense that humans can light themselves ablaze from within, we still love a good old fashioned horror story. 

Heather Darch