The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1877-08-31
A Magnetic Cure.
From the New York Times.

luIEOuuCeu iuLO tue bIOmdcl Dy way OF the /
esophagus-or, in short, when swallowed. |
Girls have been known to swallow dozens |
Of needles in small successive doses with
out experiencing any unpleasant effects, |
Needles, when thus introduced into the
stomach, quietly meander through the in
terror avenues and lanes of the swallower,
aud ultimately emerge in the most unex-
pected localities without having given rise
to any perceptible symptoms. Why girls
ever swallow needles is mystery-as, in
deed, is everything that every girl ever
does Still. they do swallow them, and
are none the worse for il; fact that is
the despair of inquisitive scientific persons.
On the other hand, a needle, when in
serted into a girl through her surface,
creates more disturbance than is created
by twice the number of needles thrust
into double the quantity 0! young men. If
a young man unwarily pricEs himself with
a needle, he merely explains to the sur
rounding universe the Calvinistic theory
of the future state of the unregenerate,
and then says no more about the matter;
whereas the girl who finds herself pierced
by an unexpected needle, devotes the re-
mainder of the day to nerves, doctors, and
patent pain killers; and cherish lively
antic patton of lock-jaw for several con-
secutive weeks. We may not understand
the reason of these things, but We know
that they are SO. Hence, when a girl
swallows needles, We simply look at her
with wonder love. amazement; but when
a needle breaks into her system by some
other and irregular way, we hasten for
doctors and pincers.
| The experience OF young lady OF AIDE
laide, South Australia, In the matter OF IN
serted needles, deserves to be brought to
the attention of the American public, both
because of its scientific value aud of the
beautiful lessons of fortitude which it con-
veys. In an unwary moment this young
lady was pierced by an accidental needle
to an alarming depth. 10 fact, the needle
entered the flesh so deeply as to vanish
completely from sight without leaving
even the slightest apparent wound to snow
Its precise locality. Of course, the young
lady knew in formal way where the
needle was The pain caused by 1t eX-
tended over a large area of her person, but
she could indicate pretty clearly its posi-
ton, Still, AS in the case of the traditional
skipper, who, passing the palm of his
hand over the lower half OF the chart OF
the North Atlantic, remarked to his adj
miring mate, Now, we're somewhereE
!, hereabOuts, there was an undesirable
vagueness in the young woman's descrlp-
ton OF the location of the needle. In these
circumstances the attending surgeon an
nouuced that he would be compelled &c
prospect for the needle by sinking series
of shafts and driving galleries and trenches
10 different directions. He assured the
. patient that in time he would certainly
, strike the needle and exhume it, but thai
mere aimless digging here and there would
8 be grossly unscientific, and would probably
fail to find the desired object.
!, just here it may be well to say that
there is no real ground for suspecting the
young lady's small brother of any share il
, the disaster. OF course, every one knows
: that the small boy is addicted to strewinl
the chairs of school teachers and large
cergymen with pins bent 10 such manner
=, as to present the point upward; but a
Il needles cannot be bent without breaking
- they are never put to "a similar use. More
- over, the Adelaide press is unanimous il
II asserting that ''settee, and not chair
" was involved in the affair 10 question
! Now, no small boy, however good an
intelligent be may be, eyer places shar
;, instruments of torture on "settee"-
=, term believed to be Synonymous with sofa
:, The element of uncertainty would ente
- altogether too largely into such a plar
:, The small boy could not possibly tell upo
y what precise part of the sofa his intende
y victim would seat himself, and he woul
y never prepare for himself the bitter di,
"A appointment of seeing fat clergyman S
- down upon one end Of sofa unconscioU
= of the pin placed for him at the Othe
~ While these arguments 90 very far to sho
" the improbability that the young lady
= brother was the fnal cause of her disaste
u the fact that she had no brother whatevt
- definitely settles the question. PrObab
H. she herself dropped the needle on tt
- settee and forgot all about it until circuu
~, ~ stances brought il sharply to her notice.
- No sooner had the surgeon made h
nC diagnosis than he produced his excavatiI
- tools and his bottles of chloroform, hort
~ liniment, and other pallatlves, and took G
u his coat with a view to immediate actio
~ But to his astOnshment the young lac
peremptoriy declined his services 81
- was ready, so she said, to have the need
~ properly extracted, but she declined to b
- viewed in the light Of mining placer, al
:; 10 have her surface rendered rough az
- Whereupon the discounted surgeC
al packed up his implements and departt
A., with much dignity, assuring her that Il
~ needle would soon find its way to son
~ ~ vital organ and cause her to perish mise
70 ably,
VI For three long weeks that unfortuna
~ ~ young lady kept her bed, lying in co
a strained and painful position, but new
h, once showing any evidence Of the sufferir
~ which she endured, except by bowling al
:, ,t' tearing the sheets and pillow-cases. Eve
~ one said her patience and sweetness we
400 more than human, and that she W
ho more OF an angel than quite lumber
~ distinctlvey unangelic persons. At Il
&c end OF the three weeks a happy thougI
,o occurred to the young lady's father.
~ suggested that the exhibition of a lar
Is magnet would possibly bring the needle
- the surface Accordingly a magnet
IA enormous size was procured and placed
"a contact with the young lady's surface,
- the supposed neighbOIhoOd of the need
- Three days later the needle yielded to L
he attraction, gently forced its way out, al
30 chung TO the magnet as though Overjoy
as its release from imprisonment Il
.r young lady rose up from herI bed aud c
81 joyed, with zest which she had new
- before experienced, the luxury of sitti
~. 80 10 rGcking.chair, and her father imm
- diately furnished his favorite newspap
,;s with full account of her remarkable cur
40 This story teaches the value of magne
70 aud the beauty Of patience and fortitud
~ Let us hope that other young ladies vi
read il will feel strengthened to 90 and