The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1869-03-20


well-known citizen died few days ago. All
bis life long he had suffered from chfonic pain
in the lett side, and In the region OF the heart
while the pulsations of the heart seemed to be on
the right side, and when he was much excited he
used to say that he felt utterng there lust as IL
his heart had got into the wrong place. de was a
martyr also to bilious disease. He was obliged to
support himself with stick. and wss troubled
with great difficulty In breathing and an irrtabiity
Of temper that made il at times almost impossible
TO live with him. Notwithstanding these symp-
toms Of complicated disease he took cdnside Bile
interest in sanitary affairs, and devised scheme
for the efficient drainage of the city by means of
vast system Of subterranean streets, twelve feet
wide on both sides the main street, vtlulted and
ventilated. with stream Of water runhing in the
middle of them. and an ample sdswAik ~Hs usa
genius, In short. and besides his l0veifor the ine
arts, he had invented organ Of vast proportions
which will play unaided the whole Ilhsic of sew
eral operas. Like all who had gbne before
him, however. he had his death day, and
the. medical man who attended him watched
his last few days of sickness with a
very uncommon interest, so much SOFAS TO attract
the attention OF mis- family. IL came out after
ward that the physician had tried to persuade him
TO give up his body TO the surgeons for dissection
his complaints being so unusual and some Of his
symptoms new to science, so much so as 10 induce
the supposition of some internal organic mall
formation. The old gentleman had no objection
to offer bis body on his own account, bat thought
that the tact should be kept from the knowledge
OF his wife and family. So at last be died, and
the physician who attended him and Is at the head
Of one of our medical colleges also. made ar
rangements with a resurrectionist man to steal
the body on the night Of its interment and carry
IL TO the hcspital-all which happened without
any msadventure. The family physician was
present at the dissection of the body, and UNDER
took TO demonstrate upon It, When the sternum
was divided the amazing discovery was made thai
the heart and the liver had changed places, the
heart being the right side and the liver on the
left. This change 10 the two great vital organs
changed also the position Of the other organs and
caused an extension Of some OF the vital ducts.
Nature had created order oct Of the disorder, SO
that there need be no serious interruption to the
vital functions.
The position of the heart and its appendagss
was simply reversed. The upper border of the
heart was Just below line that would unite the
third costsi csrtiages, and the apex corresponded
10 the inter space between the cartlages OF the
fifth and sixth ribs, nearly two Inches below the
right nipple. which Is precisely its place and ad-
Jnstment 10 its natural state on che left side The
Two auricles, which have no connection with each
other nsturaliy ia adults, were in this case con-
nected. aud there was very small aperture Of
communication with the venticles, instead OF
large and ample one. In the left auricle, which,
II the heart had been on the other SIDE would
have been the right auficle, the Enstachian valye
which is relic Of the fetal heart, was large in.
stead Of being much diminished. as is usually the
case In admits; and the f0ssd9 0Udlis, which Is
usually simple depression onthe interauricular
walls, the opening In the fetal heart allowing q
mixture of the black aud red blood. was large
The heart was six inches and an eighth In length,
and three and three-quarters in breadth, and
nearly three IN the antero- -posterior diameter.
After the demonstration, which we have only
given slight glimpse Of, the heart was removed,
and. when weighed found 90 be equal TO thirteen
ouDces-the usual average weight being from ten
10 tw elve, and Rouillsnd says only eight ounces
The liver occupied the left. instead OF the right
hypcchondrfsc and epgastric regions. below the
diaphragm above the stomach duodenum arch
of the colon, gall bladder. and left kidney. The
upper surface was good deal fattened. The
ptritoneum, which divided the organ into two un-
equal parts was much decsyed. and the left lobe
was the largest. The fourth lobe in front of the
transverse hssure, the gall blasder lying between
II and the lobsdus cduddtus, was also much dis.
eased.
The entire demonstration has been carefully
recorded for the benefit OF science, and Dr. -,
the physician, has sent q minute account Of II 10
the London Lancet. Such case was never heard
of before IN human history. and II shows how
wonderfully nature arraDges her physiological
steps so as TO get the greatest happiness for man
out of them.