The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1857-07-04
An Extraordinary Man.

broadway, in a little four wheeled carriage,
just large enough to accommodate his person.
lie had no use of his lower limbs, but surpri-
sed every one with the skill and rapidity with
which he contrived to get from place to place.
and the general cheerfnlness which pervaded
his countcnance under his misfortuncs.
This poor fellow has just died, of consump-
ton, at the Bellevue Hospital. r.. surgeon
of the Hospital, DIR. John G. Johnson, who
attended him in his last hours, has favored
us with an account of him, and especially of
the peculiaritics disclosed by an inspection of
his person. which will be read with melan-
choly interest.
flames Graham, forty-four years of age,
native of Scotland, nineteen years in this
country, was admitted into Bellevue Hospital
in the last stage of pulmonary consumption.
(Phthisis PulmonaliS) on the 10Th of Nav
and died on the 20th. five days after his adj
mission.
THE following peculiaritcs of Graham's
physical structure may be of popular interest: :
"On the left hand the man had the thumb
naturally developed. but only one finger. and
never had had any more. This finger was
enormously developed, and was four and a
half inches in length. On the right hand
there were two tingers-which. by the muscles
attached to them. were found to be the little
and the index finger. The patient never had
any more The index finger. which should
have been the largest. was only rudimcntarv
while the little finger was about three times
the size Of the index finger of laboriny man.
and was Of the enormous length of five inch
c>. lin prehcnsion. the thumb and this little
finger were employed. the index finger being
only an assistant to the other: it had only
two oints. instead of three. as is usually the
case; was quite short, and curved away from
the thumb. so as to fill and form circle with
the little finger and thumb, when the hand
was closed i'll grasping an object.
The legs were still more peculiar He
had never been able to walk, and had sat
cd-lcggcd as tailor does when at work:
and as a result, the bone of the right thigh
and the leg had grown together. (a,.chv!o>c;N
and there was no knee Joint and 40 motion at
the knee. The foot was club foot. and had
only three toes instead of five, and these toes
Il,
one bone in the lcg-the!c are usually two:
the small bone (fibula) was wanting: and
there was only one bone in the foot, and that
the heel bone, (os calci>) The other of the
seven bones of the foot were wanting
In the left leg there was only one bone
(ibula) being wanting. There was motion in
the knccjoint but here there were two (pa-
tcllac) kncc-panS instead of one. as there
should be. In the foot which was also club
footed, there were only three toes, which
were wcbbed. and there was only a single
bone, the heel bone, (os calsi~) to which the
toes united directly. the other of the seven
bones of the foot wanting.
The man had Il very long. narrow chest
The legs were very feeble. the muscles hardly
developed. The man had always moved
in one Of those small carriages which he could
propcl by a crank on either side He was Il
watch maker by trade, or rather the maker
of dial faces for clocks and watches. and ma
king business generally of jcwelry, and in the
business manifested considerable ingenuity.
and had always been able to secure situa-
ton as long as he had been able to work,
which was within year of his death. When
too feeble to sit at his bench. or to move his
carriage he had sustained himself by crawl
ing on his hands and knees along the streets
and begging. \ few days prior to his ad
mission to the hospital, too feeble to crawl
some to his lodging-house, he had made his
way late in the evening into BARRIERS shop
i'll the Bowcry, from whence he was taken to
a lodging house in the lower part of the city.
and thence to the Hospital
IL have omitted many of the anomalous
points noticed in the dissection. as they would
probably be of but very little interest for the
public. though they will to the profession.
:" He was of peaceable, quiet disposition.
except when he was provoked about his de-
formity, when he was quite irasciblc. He
had never been married. though there was no
physical deformity which should prevent In
mental development. as far as could be learn
ed from those who had known him, he was.
perhaps, of the average of men in his position
In this respect no opinion could be formed
from him after his admission. as he was so
feeble that not even the ordinrrv history of
patients was taken. His skull was extremely
irregularly developed, in some points being
so thin as to admit of the light being as easi-
ly seen through it as through ground glass,
and at othersit was quarter of an inch in
thickness. In one point (the Glandula Pach-
onni) small bodies about the size of pins
head, had so much increased in size as to ul-
cerate nearly through the skull"
There are great many counterfeits among