Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1876-04-20
A NEVADA EXPERIENCE.

we learn SOME curious circumstances
connected with the amputaton of the
leg oe William Scion, an account of the
serious accident to whom on the Viz
ginia and Truckee Railroad was pub
lished in the Enterprise a few days
since. The bones of his foot and ankle
were so badly crushed that 1t was found
necessary to amputate the leg at a
point few inches below the knee. The
operation was performed by Drs S. A.
McMeans and L. 3. Harris, Of this
city. After the operation, DR.. Me-
Means took the foot, with d few inches
of the leg attached, to his office for
the purpose Of dissecting it and ascer-
tanning the exact nature of the fractures.
The Doctor dissected the foot, and was
engaged in opening the ankle, when a
boy arrived at his office and said that
he had come for the foot-that Mr..
Scion wanted it. The Doctor hastily
rolled the foot in piece Of cloth and
gave it to the boy, who carried it to
Mr., Solon's room, and, by his directions
placed it in the drawer of bureau that
stood at the foot of his bed. 1t was
not long before Mr.. Scion became very
uneasy, and finally suffered so much
pain that all the opiates the attendants
dared to give him did no good
Thinking something was wrong at the
point where the leg had been cut off;
MIR. Solon's friends sent for DR.. Harris.
When the doctor arrived he examined
the stump and found it in perfect order.
He told Scion that the legwas in good
shape as it could possibly be made, and
he could see no reason for its giving
him so much pain. Mr. Scion then
entered into a more particular account
of his sufferlngs. He said that the
feeling was as though his toes were
doubled under his feet and he was
standing with his whole weight on that
foot also, that there seemed to be a
knife sticking in his leg, the pain from
which was very severe. DR.. Harris
then asked where the foot was, though
he probably knew that Dr.. McMeans
had taken it. He was told that Mr.
Scion had taken notion to have it,
and that it had had been brought from
the Office Of DR.. McMeaps and placed
in the bureau drawer. DR.. Harris
went to the drawer, and, unrolling the
cloth, found that the toes were doubled
back under the foot, and further found
sticking in the skin of the calf of the
leg tenaeulum, which is an instrument
in the shape of a hook, with fine,
sharppoint, used in taking up arteries.
In hastily wrapping up the foot to send
it back DR.. McMeans had forgotten to
remove this hook, which he had been
using in holding back the skin while
dissecting the crushed ankle Dr. Harris
removed the instrument and placed the
foot in an easy and natural position,
when Mr.. Scion declared that he was
free from pain and felt quite easy in
deed, he fell asleep IN a few minutes
and slept well and soundly. Dr. Harris
says that he has heard of similar cases,
but this is the first of the kind that he
has ever met with in. his practice
Neither DR.. Harris nor Dr. McMeans
can offer any explanation of the
phenomenon. DR. McMeans is of the
opinion that it may be owing to the
two parts of the limb being connected
for time by some subtle fluid, some,
thing like electricity, the exact nature
of which remains to be discovered. AS
it is thing about which nothing is
now known, each reader is at liberty to
provide his own explanation.