The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1867-08-23
THE DIsSECTING ROOM.

TIE student anatomy l. introduced
into long dissccting hall--well vcntilat-
ed and lighted from the roof. An array
oftableS numbering perhaps, two dozen,
stretches around the hnll-cach with
~lanting surface covered with zine.
subjects are provided by parties reg
ularly employed for that purposc-wlo,
Notwithstanding the safety oftheir trade,
still prefer to make it the business of
the night. These subjects are brought
from the island which New York USES
as the Pottcr's Field, ,andarc the remains
Of paupcrs, criminals, and those unfOr-
tunatc women who from so large Il class
in city life. They are conveyed into
the reception room, and each one inject
ed With an antiscptic, containing zine
mercury, or arsenic. mixed with plaster
of Paris, and the whole mixture cOlored
to tint of red. The aorta is opened,
and the arteries filled in similar man
ner by means of Il large and powerful
| syringe. After this preparation the
! body will resist decomposition from two
! to six weeks. As soon as laid on the
table, II class Of five students attack the
/ subject, one assuming the head, and
each of the others working at one of the
| limbs. In order to assist in the tracing
of arteries, the latter are sometimes in
jectcd with melted wax tinted with diff
/ fcrcnt colors, thus bringing out their
exquisite ramiiications. We are aware
that some may consider this arcpulsiVe
employment, and yet there is great
pleasure in pursuing anatomical invea-
/ LEGATIONS, and all sense of the horrible
is lost in the value and Importance Of
| the study.
| With respect to the appearance of the
subjects, it may he promised that they
are not striking illustrations of human
/ beauty. On the other hand they are
generally the vilcst, lowest and most
unlavorablc specimens ofthencc. They
are the victims of famine or cXhausting
disciisc, or are those who pined away
! in weary scnility. Occasionally some
robust form still bears evidence ofa life
/ of crime, and the scowl of abject de-
pravity yet fingers upon the dcbased
countcnance. With these, how evor,are
/ sometimes Contrastcd yOungand delicate
shapes, which suggest the history of
early shame and Il career of misery,
suddenly changing from the :gaudy sa-
loon. of splendid vice to this charnel-
house Of science. On one occasion of
this kind the students We're seen to
cluster with looks of deep compassion
around one whose life, just entering ON
blasted woman hood, had been tcrmin
ated by sudden death. Her feet and
hands were small and white, her hair
fell in Curls about her neck, and in her
features there fingered the traces OF
, former beauty; What was her history:
What volume could have been written
, of life's battles, temptations, and mis-
! cries, if those lips could have told their
story. 1t was Il spectacle which recalled
the sympathetic lines olonc Of the bard,
: of SORROW:
Touch her not SculufuliN,
: Think Of her mouumly.
Gently and iumauly;
Nut Of the stains ui lrr.
I All that remain, of her
f. Now is pure womnnly."
Z The disSectug-room of an afternoon i
' an interesting scene. \ hundred youni
men may be seen, mostly clad in blacl
# cotton gowns, sitting ON high stool
: around the Slanting tables, and usin
: forccp- and scalpcl, rs occasion may It
: quirc, laying bare the muscle, tracin
e arteries, or investigating nerves. y fey
;. mcerschaumS relicvc.thc heavy atmU,
: phcrc by the flavor Of tobacco, and
: noisy hum fills the hall, OCCASIONAL
G breaking out into laughter n some jok
g cnlivcnS the quiet pursuit of science
n one may hr whistling in II low kcN
Il another humming a snatch of familin
g song. The opera may be criticised orc
: n dccompo,cd arm, while the topic Wit
$ another will be the party he attcndc
: last night, and the bouquet offered t
n some beauty by Il hand that now, lik
G Lear's "smcll, Of mortality"
g Every little while the various lcctur
: bells are heard, and there is Il runnin
: in and out in obedience to this inlpol
r tant summons.
"a Visit the same spot at II later houl
Z. when durknCs, and solitude invest
with their solemn mantle. All il still
4 There is no one there but yourself AM
+ the dead. \ dim gas burner throws
sufficient light to show the nature AM
+ surroundings ofthc sccnrorperhapS, tn
q moon shining through the broad win
dow, lights up the gha,tly faces tina
=. vet retain their natural covering, civ
h ing Il still more fearful aspect tot the hal
!. dcuudud skulls that lie around. Thcr
is much, then, in this di,,ccting thcatr
- much that i, sad, and fearful, and r.
+ voting but it also has a tingc Of tn
- romantic-pcrhups it might br added
q the poetic. In such place Edgar y
.r Poe might have caught a fresh inspira
!. ton, and Hawthorne found Il new ide
to work up in his weird and narrowing
/. style.
II RAILROAD SIGNAIs.-A cotemp0pr
Is ha, done the travelling public good scr
y vice in procuring the various signals b.
l. which the movement of trains are Ill
C rcctcd The signals are by the stcaT
II whistle, lanterns, flags and the motto
of the hands. They are given rs fo
lows:
:, one whistle" "DoWn breaks"
III Tp,,.., ,,.l,i-tIns hhH IrnnL.-