Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-05-22
.MlscE@kNG:
LIFE OF TORTURE.
One Of the Most Remarkable
Cases:of AnchyIosis on Record.

cases:of AnchyIosis on Record.
From the Lockport, n. " Journal.
In the year 1S4S, a boy then Is years
Of age by the name of Jonathan II.
Bass, lived with George w. Rogers,
Of this city, in house on the ground
now occupied by the Lockport Jouyn-
al Building. One evening while on
his way to q pasture field above High
street, for the cows, he was taken
with q severe pain in the bottom of
his right foot. He supposed at first
that nail was hurting HIM, but upon
examination he could find nothing.
That night and for number of days
his foot was swollen very badly and
was exceedingly painful, and then
got better, but was more or less
troublesome after that. In the Fall
of lS49 he went to Avon four months,
but got no better. That winter he
attended school at our Union School,
and in the Spring went to Buffalo for
time, meanwhile getting little
worse. For few months of the fol-
lowing Summer he was able to act as
Captain of q canal boat, which he run
between Buffalo and Rochester. He
did no work, however. After that
he went to &. w. Eastman's CONNER
cial school at Waterville, Oneida
county, and in 1853 kept books for
Hall Il Co., of Buffalo, but, continu-
ing to grow worse, had to give up his
place, and came to his home in Cam
bria. In 1876 he did little wri-
ting for parties in Lockport, and in
'56 was very bad and suffered very
much, all the joints Of the body and
limbs becoming more or less affected
by this time, In 1852 he was put on
an invalid bed, made by Moore &
Glass, of this city, from which he has
never been removed. He could man.
age, however, with good deal Of
difficulty, to feed himself for eight
years after that, since which time hi
has been fed with q spoon, which il
quite difficult task, as his jaws arr
firmly set, and nothing thicker than .
knife blade can pass them. Yet hi
eats almost everything that other PEG
pie do, and is very hearty. Fat pork
fat beef, baked beans, potatoes anG
milk are his favorites. Being yer,
much interested in the war, reading
everything that came in his reach
which he could do by having it plac
ed on rack before him, he go injured
his eyes that in 1869 he became blind
and has remained go since. He talk
without difficulty, is very intelligent
and converses freely upon any subiec
! that he has had an opportunity t,
study up. The writer Of this articl
called upon Mr.. Bass, q few day
since, and made q careful examina
ton of his physical condition, an,
found every Joint entirely anchylosed
, or grown into solid bone, with tn
exception of his fingers and toes
!, The bones Of the fingers of the RICH
hand have been nearly absorbed, an
the flesh remaining is puffy and fac
cid. In the left hand not only tn
r bones of the fingere, but the bones Q
: the whole hand, have undergone thi
same process Of absorption. The fin
ger-nails on this were grown out be
yond the ends of the fingers three an
one-half inches, giving weird an
: inhuman appearance to the hand
1 The arms are straight down by b
1 sides, and fixed in this condition, an
E in the middle Of the arm and forearI
4 measured only five inches in circun
: ference.
The limbs are straight-with q di
J. location of the right hip joint-b,
e all firm aud solid bone, the thig
: measuring only eight and one-ha
inches around.
g The bones of the toes are absorbt
9 the same as the hands, and the flacci
toes droop and hang down like firing
The spinal column is also perfect
= consolidated, thus rendering the boo
e capable of being lifted by one
r, hands under his head and heels wit
t out yielding or bending the slighte
:. whatever. The muscles are not par
= lyzed, but their action seems pc
l. fectly under his control as seen
le the action of the tendons and core
y The pulse is regular, beating sc
"a enty to the minute, strong and flu
All the vital organs are sound and
active condition, thus rendering hi
n capable of living many years longt
r On the whole, this is probably one
r the most remarkable cases on reco
r in this or any other country.