The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1875-06-03
ANISrEREsTISG LAWSUIT.
What Is Life,-A Fortune Dependent
IInnn n Breath. 80

b AN~lNTERESTlNG LAWSUIT. - &
What Is Life!-A Fortune Dependent
Upon a Breath. 81
Especial Correspondence of the Chicago Tribune.
WILMINGTON. Del, May l0.--A sin sular
and interesting lawsuit was decided in the
Courts of Kents, at Dover, last week. it
turned upon narrow and very delicate
/ physiological question, which, briefly
stated, was, .'What is lifeg' In fuller.
terms, the question was, whether a baby.
which, five minutes after deliverance, was
certainly dead, ever was so alive as to have
a legal existence, making 1t capable of be-
coming the heir TO property, and so of
| trnsmltting it. We have all read of the
curious cases in the law-books where the
question arose, which of twin children
was the first-born and heir; but this,
while am equally delicate issue, involved
also. a Biological ointupon which even
expert medical professors might and
did differ.
he history Of the case was this: Henry.
Stout, a Dover lawyer, dying some ten
years ago. left considerable estate to be
divided amongst his three Children
daughter and Two sons. The daughter
married Presbyterian minister, the Rev.
Henry II Hall. and, after married life OF
a year and half, died in confinement with
her first child, which itself was either still
born, or lived but a few minutes. Now,
Dy the character of our Delaware code,
The matter took this shape: that, If it were
proved that the baby was still-bCrn, then
Mrs. Halls share of her fathers estate
which included a handsome residence in
Dover, and valuable farm near that
town went to her two brothers. They
are minors, and were the real, though
not formal, plaintiffs in this suit, their
guardian suing Tor them But, if it were
proven that the child was alive after birth,
then its father. as its heir, would enjoy
! the ola English right of 6 tenant by the
courtesy" and have The use and income
of the property during his life-time. He
was the real, though not formal, defend
ant. 49,
The array of counsel was formidable.
On the side of the plaintiff were the Hon.
Joseph p. Conagys (who for few days
was United States Senator, and whose wife
is the niece OF John NJ. Clayton) and Uni
ted States Senator Ell Salisbury, while
on the other were marshaled eX-COngress-
man n. 3. Smithers, ev-Judge G. S. Lay
ton and Mr.. Ridgley. The trial began
Tuesday; and it was agreed that the
whole question simply was, whether the
child had such legal form of life, after
birth, as made it capable Of inheriting and
transmitting property. The first witness
es, naturally, were the physicians who at.
tended Mrs. Halls confinement. Drs.
GOodell and Page, Of New Jersey-the
Halls having there resided at the time.
DIR. GOodell was called both for the plain
Tiff and defendant, snd contributed sub
stantialiy all the testimony, except that of
two witnesses in rebuttal, on the plain
tiff7s side. He had practiced for forty
years, and was an intelligent and straight
forward witness. He said the child, to
the best ofhis knowledge. never breathed.
Twenty minutes after delivery pulsation
in the umbilical cord having ceased, that
was cut. The heart beat he felt it and
heard it; circulation was plainly observ-
able in the temporal artery the lips were
ruddy; but there was no sign of breath
ing. lie and DIR. Page tried all the usual
methods ofestablishiDg respiration dash
ing water in the face, blowing through
napkin into its mouth, laying it on its side
and giving it a rocking motion, to suck in
air; and finally they placed itin the warm
bath, when its lips gradually palcd, circu-
lation ceased, and finally. at the end of
five or six minutes, it became entirely de-
void of life.
Under the admitted fact that there was
no respiration observed, though all efforts
were made to pro duce il, and the clio est
scruti Y given to discover their success,
the plaintiff built his case. But. while
DIR. GOOdell stated that fact, he SAID, when
called for the defendant, that he consid-
cred the child alive, acknowledgement
thought otherwise; that was why he
worked so hard with it if he had thought
it dead, lac certainly should not have made
such efforts. He said certainly he con-
sidered respiration essential to life; when
circulation of the blood, in the child's
system, was manifest for several minutes.
the connection with the mother being en-
tirely severed, this, to him, appeared to
be separate, independent existence,
maintained by the child's own vital v,
aud substantially condition of ''life.'
His associate, DIR. Page, agreed with him,
though he (Dr. Z. admitted that, in MAX
| ing out his certificate of death, for burial
purposes, he had described the babe as
''still-born." He meant then, however,
as he now testified: that it lived but few
minutes.
These witnesses were all who had seen
and observed for themselves. But seven
or eight other physicians, including Profs.
Penrose and Reese, from the faculties of
Philadelphia colleges, were called as eek
perts, and gave their judgment upon the
facts S; ated by the attending physicians.
The two Professors had but one opinion
that the child had separate, distinct life
of its own, not dependent on the mother,
after the umbilicus- was cut. The
beating of the heart, said one, was the best
sign; 1t cannot beat from any other cause
than It's own inherent vitality. Breathing
is not necessary for the existence of life,
though it is for its continuance. Children
1 hoy f..l v;fk,<
From close examination of the facts
stated am of the opinion that this child
did breathe, though imperceptibly." De
scribing the operations of the lungs and
heart, he added that, when the child is de-
livered, even before the cord is cut, vital
connection with the mother virtually
ends; but, when that is severed, the sep
aration is absolute.
The only counter theory to this upon
which need dwell was that of two phy.
sicians called by Plaintiff in rebuttal. DR..
Cahall said he consid, red that the pulsa-
tons observed were simply the termina-
ton of fetal life; after the cutting of the
cord there will still be stimulus from the
original cause; as soon as respiration takes
place new circulation is established. He
had attended the delivery Of several hum
dred children, and where be could not IN
GOCS IOSpu 60Ou uS Sdl1cO IL y SILL OlrLl.
Thus do doctors differ, for the witness
on the stand Just preceding him was DR..
Isaac Jump, Republican candidate for
Governor of Delaware in 1874, who has a
very extensive practice, being called on to |
attend the presentation of q great COM
pany of young Delawareans, and who had |
just testified that he always considered |
babe ''aliye" until its heart ceased to beat. |
The doctors having had their say pretty |
fully, the lawyers for two days consulted |
1.-THE books" referring with learned con-
fidence 20 all sorts of authorities, until, on |
Friday, the jury, after a short absence,
brought in verdict for the defendant,-l
establishing that, for legal purposes, the
child was alive, indigently, for the five |
minutes during which it lay in the wash |
bowl bath, and so giving its father the en- |
rest Of his life. J.