The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1874-07-02
THE POST.MORTEM.
A Physicians story.

Physicians Story.
1t was in November-the thirteenth
about five-and-twenty years ago, that DR..
Turner sent for me to meet him i'm con-
sultation upon a case at Bortondale. On
the following day / answered the sum-
mons. Bortondale was fourteen miles
distant from my residence; and when
reached the special address designated
found DIR. Turner already there, and with
him was DR.. Prescott, of q neighboring
town. Our patient was man of about
sixty, named Ebenezer Varney. He was
farmer by occupation, though of late
years he had turned his attention particu-
larly to stOck-breeding and money-lend-
ing. He had been fortunate i'm his specu-
latiOns, and was what, in the country, is
considered wealthy. Until within three
months Mr.. Varney had known nothing
of sickness. According to his own ac-
count, he had "never known a sick day
until this trouble come" He was large
framed man, and DR.. Turner, who had
known him for years, assured me man
more hale and hearty than he had pre-
viously been was not to be found any
where.
"And now," said l, "what is the case
as you have had it. p
"Here it is" replied DR.. Turner: "I
was called to see the patient during the
last week in August. l found him weak
and languid with no appetite; the pulse
low and sluggish, and the tissues seeming
to be gradually, but surely, wasting.
There was no fever, and he had COM
planned of but little pain. At first 1
thought it might be case of dyspepsia !;
but was very soon forced to believe that
there was something deeper than that
There was suspension of the whole ali
mentary power, as though the organs had
suddenly failed, as an old watch will that
has been run long time without lubri-
catiOn-simply worn out. He had been
a hard worker; exposed to all sorts of
weather; careless of his health; and eat
ing every thing that came i'm his way.
My treatment has been varied. / tried
the different preparations of iron at first,
with such Alternatives and tonics as |
thought he would bear. OF late, how
ever, my course has been almost entirely
experimental and l think may safely
say that / have exhausted the whole
pharmacopeia. But all to no effect. The
waste goes on, like poison eating into the
vitals, and l have no power to stop it. l
am free to confess that / am at stand
still. have told these honest people,
who are so anxions to know what allied
him, that the trouble was paralysis of the
alimentary canal. OF course l must give
them direct answer, and that came as
near to my knowledge of the case as any
thing"
"And," said /, ga very good state
ment it is. But if there is paralysis of
the canal, what caused it ?"
i found the patient as the reader might
suppose from DIR. Turner's account, to be
very weak, very pale, very respondent,
very thin, and exceedingly reduced in
every way. 1t was a case of atrophy, for
which we could find no cause. We sum-
moned the cook and the nurse, and de-
manded to know if Mr.. Varney ever ate
or drank any thing i'm the house of which
the others did not partake. No; he had
never been capriciOus or dainty about his
food. Whatever the others ate and drank
he ate and drank.
And how about his medicine? The
nurse declared that he only took what
the doctor ordered. And how had it
been with Mr.. Varney's progenitors T?
Had they been healthy?
"No sir. His father, and his grand
father, and his great-grandfather all died
with consumption. I've heard Adams
Aunt Hepsey say that they grew to be
middle aged men afore any thing like
sickness showed itself; but when they
once was took down they went awful"
turned, and beheld a woman of mid
die age-a small, keen-cyed, restless wo-
man, who proved to be the wife of the
Sick mans nephew, Adam Varney.
\And by-and-by Adam Varney himself
came in, and he corroborated his wife's
testimony. He was man not far from
fifty years>Qf age, rather slim and frail !;
and it struck we, too, that he might be
taken down befofe>a great while.
Altogether the cass. was very curious
one but we were forced to pronounce it
quick consumption; and we cUuld offer
no hopes of recovery. There is no need
of telling all that we three doctors said.
/ will only further add that the last
words l spoke OH the subject were to
Turner.
Doctor" says /, "there is one thing
that confounds me; and for an elucida-
ton of the condition you must exert
yourself to the utmost. Find out, if you
can, what causes that continual, deadly
nausea. 1t is beyond my power to con-
ceive of any cause inherent in the sys-
tenn"
Our report to the patient, and to his
friends, was, that DIR. Turner was pursu-
ing the proper course of treatment, and
that he understood as cleary as it could be
understood from the symptoms.
That was on the fourteenth of Novem-
Der. During the three or four weeks fol-
lowing was very busy (for then had a
good country business), and gave but lit
tie thought to the case at Bortondale.
About the middle of December three
young gentlemen, who were studying
medicine at Guys, came down from Lon
don, they having arranged with two stud
ents Of mine that they would club to-
gether and send to town for subject,
and that j should meet with them GER
tain number of afternoons, and act as
their demonstration. Edgar >Stearns and
Charles Gordon were my students; and
Gordon had place fixed up i'm an out
ofthe-way end Of his mothers woodshed
that answered capitally for a dissecting-
room. IL had been originally parted of
and finished fer shop; but Of fate years
il had only been used as a tool-house.
Here the young men had dug pit under
the floor, had arranged good table, and
had furthermore closed the single win
dow, and set broad skylight in the
roof.
II was during the week before Christ
N, M that ,,,v sfudanta told mo thev vara