The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1870-10-21

GENERAL FITZPATRICK UNDER
'' ETHER.
An Unprecedented Surgical Opera
tion in the Astor House-Ths G. n
erals Struggle with two Muscular
Men.

tion in the Astor House-Ths e n
erals Struggle with two Muscular
Men.
From the Evening Mail.
Gen. Fitzpatrick, our late Minister
to Chill, was obliged to resign his
position and return home on account
of declining health. The disease
seemed to be a swelling on the left
side Of the lower part of the neck.
1t made its first appearance about
two years ago and was undoubtedly
aggravated by much speaking in the
Presidential campaign then pending.
1t was induced by over-excitement
in the army. Without receiving any
permanent aid the General returned
to Chill. The formation in the
throat increased. The most skilful
medical men in that country were
bafled in their efforts to master
the difficulty. They drugged the
General nearly to death. They could
not decide what it was.
The General returned to the United
States about ten days ago, and stop
ped at the Astor House with his fam
lily. His first business was to ply
sicians. DR.. L. F. Sass and his as
lsociate, DR.. R. P. Lincoln, were called
| in. The latter made a careful ex-
animation of the General, and deci-
ded that the formation was an erectile
tumor. Without making known the
result of his discovery, he requested
DR.. Hammond, ex-Surgeon General
of the United States Army, to make
an examination also, and he did so
with the same result as to the nature
ofthe disease.
The physians held a consultation
and decided that DR.. Lincoln should
perform an electric operation, to
which General Fitzpatrick readily as
sented. Friday last was the day
fixed upon for the experiment At
that time the tumOr protruded out
wardly as large as a hens egg. In
wardly it was much larger, crowding
the windpipe half an inch over to
the left, making the effort to talk and
eat very difficult and painful.
Gen. Fitzpatrick was placed under
the influence of ether. Four large
sized darning- needles were then in
serted in the tumor. Some idea can
be formed Of the tumor by the fact
that it required all the strength
strong man possessed to force the
needles into it. The fact that it was
near the jugular vein increased the
difficulty. An unusually powerful
electric battery was then applied to
the needles, the ful force Of the bat
terry being given.
Notwithstanding the influence of
the ether, the electricity had such
an effect upon the patient that two
powerful men had as much as they
could do to keep him on the bed.
The needles were removed. The
patient lay quiet under the influence
of the ether, In thirty minutes the
outward swelling began to go down,
and soon disappeared altogether.
The General lay unconscious for two
hours.
AS he gradually came to his senses
he began to complain of excruciating
pains and a torturing burning in the
throat and neck but these distress
ing sensations were quickly mingled
with surprise and delight, His wind
pipe had Strengthened and resumed
its natural position, and the "great
lump" which he had complained of
so much for ten months past had dis
OF course the General
was left a terribly weak condition,
but to-day, although instructed to
keep his room and bed, is looking
exceeding well.
DR.. Lincoln says that the amount
of electricity thrown into Gen. Kill
patrick's system by the operation, i'll
concentrated, would transform a
piece of the hardest kind Of coal the |
size of marble into a coal Of fire.