Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1858-09-16

What ID the thunder have you been at,
|tyou black rascal r. said his master 81
Ned, knowing his masters excuse to bis
wife when he got on q spree, determined o
tell the truth if he died for it, and said
.s.'.Well, massa, to tell the truth i was
|kotch On the jury and couldn't getsoH. ):
lELEcTRICiTY AS AM NANEsTHETIc:
TX F. X. CLARK, - -. s
DENTAL Surgeon, Savannah, Gas3
An al. anasthetic. the virtue Of this sub
tic. fluid is little known. Since It's intro
1duetion but few monks back !, has ta4
ken rapid strides, and is now fast becoming
the harbinger of that most dreaded opera
|tiento which it seems peculiarly adapted
the ex xtraction of teeth. -
/ Whether or mott will apply equally we'll
TO other branches Of surgery, remains yet to
be known; but we can see no good reason
why it will not, for the effect produced ON
/ the nerve of q tooth must be the same as
that on any other nerve Of the body.
The principle upon which electricity acts
as an anasthetic agent, Is very simple, and
what is most surprising about it is, that it
has never been thought of, or brought to
Hight before. This, however, may be ow-
ing to the many mistified theories, in re-
gard to its action upon the nervous system
Il may be readily ascertained, By connec-
ton with battery, that the members of
the body which grasp the poles, are the on
! " parts Of the system which receive any
lperceptible shock. The fluid of course ira
verses the body, but its intensity becomes
less and its quantity more BY the number
Of nerves or conductors over which it has to
tpass. What mean may be very clearly
and easily illustrated by the simple expert
ment of connecting one hand with the posi-
tive electrode and then placing the finger of
the other hand in bowl Of water highly
charged by the negative pole. The finger
thus placed, receives the same dead be-
numbing sensation that the tooth does when
Igrasped BY the charged forceps. - 81
We know that, if we make simple cir
!cle BY connecting the two electrodes Of a
battery wire, and then pass on the current,
THAT the small wire, 50 placed, will instant
IN become ignitBd sibecauE6 Il c6nnet bar
the intensity Of the fluid. Thus Il Is with
the finger or any similar member Of the boz
|dy, a current Of electricity that would scarce
~ be felt in the system, would paralyse the
finger. Thus from simple facts we can un-
derstand how parts of the body can be be-
numbed or shocked, while in the body itself
the cause is scarcely perceptible. It is,
then, simply by making Immediate use of
the shock or paralyzing sensation produced
by the charged forceps, that we are enabled
to perform the operation Of extracting teeth
with comparatively little and in most cases
no pain. 5s5s
+ Certain animals, as the Gynsonotus Ezec-
trus Torpedo, Sslurrus Ezectrus, and seve-
raj others, capture their victims. paralyzing
their nerves by electric shocks, from pecu-
liar battery which nature has furnished them.
Thus it will be seen that these animals have
been practising by instinct for generations,
what man is just beginning to learn by art.
Thus far we have used electricity in over
| fifty cases, and although now and then we
meet with unsatisfactory results, yet, on the
whole, we consider it far. preferable, and
much more applicable to the extraction of
teeth, than anything we have tried. Be-
sides, it is certainly better to make use Of
an agent particularly in the operation Of
Extracting of teeth-that admits the free
and full action Of our senses, then to inhale
subtle fluid that robs us for the time Of all
knowledge, and the result Of which remains
vet in doubt, even with the best ofsus. s.
The mode of using or applying this agent
consistsin merely establ blshing acircfe byplac-
i ing one electrode IN the hand Of the patient,
and then connecting the other with the han
die of the Instruments TO be used. The hand
| of the operator should be protected by asilk.
glove. It is very necessary in all cases to
ascertain what amount each patient will con-
veniently bear. for what will effect one, will
scarcely be felt by another; for this reason
all batteries should be constructed SO that
the current can be easily regulated. We:
think Sherwood's comes up to the require
ments better than any that we have used -.
We get rid of the fumes Of the acid, BY l1av-
ling it placed in our laboratory, and wires
running therefrom into the operating room.
In order to convey as correct an impress
sion in reference to the use of this agent as
possible, we submit the three following cases,
1hich are very similar to all others in which
we have used it. - s.sssssz
Case IWassa young lady who wished
the second left Superior Bicuspid removed
in order to give room for the remaining;
teeth to form within the arch. We regu-
lated the current as we thought would suit
the system, and then extracted the tooth
with apparently no pain. On interroga-
tion, the patient observed chat she felt no
pain from the removal of the tooth; but
that she felt the shock rather severe. No
doubt IN this case We had on stronger