The Tiffin weekly tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1859-1868, 1863-04-24
A Touching scene.

was convcrsing with returned VOL
untccr not long since.
al was /, the hospital as nurse, Tor =
long time, " says he, "0nd assisted in ia.
king of limbs, aud dressing all sorts Of
wounds but the hardest thing ever
did was to take my thumb off a mans
leg "
"Ahl" snid I, "how was thotl"--
THIN he told me;
Il was u young mau, who had severe
wound in the thigh. Tho bail rasscd
completely through ard umputation was
necessary. The limb was cut of close
tn the body, the arteries taken w, and
he seemed to be doing we'll. Subse
Qucn,y one of the small arteries slough.
ed oil. An inCisiOn was made. and II
was taken up. at is well II was not the
main artery said the surgeon as he
performed the opcrationj I" he might
have blcd to death fore we could have
taken 1t up" But Charlie got on finely
aud was a favJritc with Us all.
was passing through the ward one
night, about midnight, when suddenly as
| was passing Charles bed he spoke TO
to me; oil, my leg Is bleeding
again" threw back the b'd clothes,
ard the blood spirited in the iir. TIE
main artery hal slnughcd of.
Fortunately knew Just what to do,
aud in m instant had pressed my thumb
on the place aud stopped the bleeding.
II was So close tn the body that there
was barely room Tor my thumb, but sue
eecdcd in keeping II there aud arcusng
one of the convalescents, sent him Cor the
surgeon. who came in on IN" ran. e
am 50 thankful, II, that you were up
and knew what 10 do, for he must have
bcd O. death before | could have go'
here, " said the surgeon as be saw me.
But on examination in the thc case he
looked exceedingly serious and scnt ou
for the other surgeons. An came VIII,
were within roach aud consultation wa,
held over the poor fellow, One cone u
sion was arrived at by all. There wa,
, no place to work save the spot whore my
thumb was placed; they could not worl
under my thumb and it | moved i; h,
would bleed to death before the artcr,
could be taken up. There was no way
to save his life.
, Poor Charlie He was very cain
when they told him, aud requested tia
: his brother, who was in the same hospi
. tai, might be called up. lie came an,
sat down by the bedside, aud for thre
hours | stood and by the pressure of M
thumb kept up the life of Charlie, Will
the brothers had their last conversati1
on earth. |, was n strange place fer IN
u he in, to feel that held the life of
fellow mortal in my hands, as II wcr
n aud stra lger yet, to feel that an net
mine must cpusc that life to dcpart.-
u Loving the poor fellow as | did, il was
hard thought; but these was no alternu
tive.
The last words were spoken. Charli
had arranged all his business afrlirs. an
sent tender messages TO absent ones, VII
little dreamed how near their loved on
I stood to the grave. The trars filled m
eyes more tlun once Us listened to thus
parting words. a were said and h
turned 10 me, "Now Ill cues
You had better take of your thumb. -
Oh, Charlie how can II" said.-
"But il must b., you know" he rcplic
Q chrerIully- thank you very much f.
your kindness, aud now, goud bye" "
, lie turned away his head, | raised m
thumb, once more the life current gusl
i ed lorth, aud in three minutes poor Cha
lie was dead,