The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1859-11-23
A Tough Story.


the verdict Of "Coroner's Inquest" and in
other particulars bears strong resemblance
to some of the tough stories which have
been circulated in this state and generally
believed:
DR.. Tushmaker was never regularly bred
as physician or surgeon, but he possessed
naturally strong mechanical genius and
fine appetite, and finding his teeth OF great
service in gratifying the letter propensity,
he concluded that he could do more good in
the world and create more real happiness
therein by putting the teeth Of the inhabit-
ants 10 good order than in any other way,
go he became dentist.
He was the man that first invented the
method Of placing small COG wheels in the
bach teeth, for the more perfect masticaton
of food, and he claimed to be the original
discoyerer Of that method of filling cavities
with kind Of putty--which becoming hard
directly cause the tooth to ache so grievous-
Iy that it has to be pulled, thereby giving
the dentiet two Successive fees for the same
job.
Tushmaker was one day seated in his Of
fee in the city of Boston, Mass, when a
stou, old fellow named Byles presented him.
self 10 have a back tooth drawn.
The dentist seated his patient in the chair
Of torture and opening his mouth, discover.
, ed there an enormous tooth on the right hand
side, about as large, as he afterwards ex-
pressed it, Gas small PolygIot Bible" 81
shall have trouble with this tooth;;" thought
Tushmaker, but he clapped on his heaviest
forceps and pulled. 1t didn't come. Then
! he tried the turnscrew, exerting his utmost
4 strength, but the tooth wouldn't come.
! AGO away from here" said Tushmaker to
: Byles, "and return in week, and | will
/ draw that tooth out for you, or you will
:. know the reason why"
q Byles got up, clupped handkerchief to
his jaw and put forth.
|. The dentist went to work, and in three
). days, he, invented an instrument which he
+. was confident would pull any thing. 1t was
4 combination of the lever, pulley, wheel
!. and axle, incline plane, wedge and screw.
v The casting was made, and the machine put
i. up in the Office, over an iron chair, rendered
perfectly stationary by iron rods going down
into the foundations of the granite building
In week old Byes returned; he wa;
clipped into the iron chair, the forceps con
. nected with the machine attached firmly t
. the tooth, and Tushmaker stationinS hirIsel
= in the rear took hold of lever fonr fee
N long.
=, He turned it slightly-Old Byles gave
- groan and lifted his right leg. Another turn
II another groan, and higher went Old Byles
q. right leg again.
10 "What do you raise your leg for !" aske
10 the doctor.
=. 81 can't help it," said the patient
- "Well," said Tushmaker, "lhe tooth
bound 10 come now"
H turned the lever clear round, with
:. sudden jerk, and snapped Old Byles' hea
clean and clear from his shoulders, lea7in
:. q space offour inches between the sewers
70 parts
~ They had post mortem examination
~ the roots of the tooth were found extende
down the right side, through the right LEI
y, ~ and turned up in two prongs directly unde
~ the sole Of the right foot.
~ "No wonder;" said Tushmaker, "tkat h
- = raised his leg"
~ The jury thought so too, but they foun
~ ~ the roots much decayed, and five surgeon
~ swearing that n modification would have Ell
.! sued in few months, Tushmaker was clea
~ y, ed on verdict of "justifable homicide"
~ He was little shy of thut instrument a
- terwards but one day an old lady, feeb
''' and faced, came in to have Q tooth draw
~ and thinking it would come out very eas
IL" Tushmaker concluded, just by way Of v
y" ~ riety, to try the machine.
0' He did so, and at the first turn drew II
Jul old lady's skeleton completely and entire
~" from her body, leaving her mass Of quive
VI ing jelly in the chair ! -.
, Tushmaker took her home in piflo
'"o case. She lived seven years after tha
"s and they called her the "India Rubber W.
~ man." She had suffered terribly with Il
as rheuma atisui, but after this occurrence new
S '"s had any pain in her bones. The denti
-" kept them in glass case.
w Afterwards this machine was sold to Il
10" contractor of the Boston Custom House. al
''P il was found that child three years OF al
~ could by single turn of the screw, raise
20 "a stone weighing twenty-five tons.
w. ~. Smaller ones were made on the san
~" WV principle, and sold to the keepers Of hote
and restaurants. They were advantageou
of ly used for boning turkeys.
There fs no moral at ell to this story, q
it is possible that the circumstances m
-. have become Slightly exaggerated. OF cour
there can be no doubt Of the truth OF t
3. main incidents.
e,n VALUABLE AS A CoNDENsER.-A man W
= 4