The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1880-03-14
BRAINLESS.

BRAINLESS.
The Wonderful Physiological Experiments
Of DR.. DeranogoSo.
ISan Francisco Chronicle1
On September 5, 1878, the town Of africa, In
Peru, was startled by the commission Of q
dastardly murder. Francisco Hansa, In q fit
OF jealous anger, brutality decapitated his
sweetheart with an axe. He was tried and
sentenced to be executed by the garrote, when
Or. Manuel Pedro Deranogozo. formerly q
professor OF anatomy In the University 81
Lima, Peru, who was then, as he had been for
years, engaged ID his studies on the nerve
centres. made strange application to Presi-
dent Prado. The application was nothing
Less than that, as the murderer Hansa had
forfeited his life. instead Of being executed he
should be given up to the applicant. who In
tended to make him the subject OF certain
experiments. the result Of which might posi-
bly, prove fatal to the subject, In which case
he would only suffer the first penalty Of his
crime, while they would positively be valu-
able as o contribution to a branch OF medical
science which, from the very force OF ctrcum-
stances, could be but imperfectly entered into
unless some such exceptional opportunity as
this were awaited Of. President PradO took
the matter under consideration, and the re-.
suit was that, as the document read. 'in the
interest of science, the body Of the said Fran
cisco Hansa was delivered up to DR.. Derano-
gozo, to be by him used as he saw it," A
private execution was announced, and to the
Peruvian public Hansa suffered capital pun
iehm0nt January g. 1879.
The very morning on which Deranogozo
became the custodian OF the prisoner he COM
menced his researches. The night before
doctor, who related his story to a reporter of
the Chronicle, on the eve OF his departure for
the East, en- route for Europe II had caused
. strong opiate to be administered to Hansa,
% that when the two officers of the law laid
their burden on the table OF my dissecting-
room It Was inert and senseless. The subject
was q huge muscular man Of about twenty
i've years OF age, with what you call bad
when hat
suits might be II such q dangerous character
were brought to consciousness by my work,
and II he should struggle with me for life and
liberty. ! may as well tell you here that
had for aim to prove at once, definitely and
forever, either that man could or could not
live after the removal of his brain. The cases
III which this had been partially and brutality
done by accident or On the battlefield, ! was,
considered that these cases were In the least
satisfactory. What wanted done, and what,
for the fret time In the history Of the world,
was about to do, was to carefully, scientific
You will, OF course, at once see, too, that by
my experiments the science OF phrenOlogy
would be for the first time le9itlmately
tested"
'."Of course I was familiar with the result
Of the experiments made by FIourens, the
apostle Of vtvisection. and had followed In the
footsteps " Louget Onimus, Bouilland and
.Goltz, whilst where Vulpian had boldly gone
unheeitattngly marched after. Since 1869 /
even the removal Of the cerebral hemisphere
OF q dog did not satisfy me. ! found that the
animals thus operated upon-mutilated, II
you within some instances retained general
seneibility and power or voluntary move
ment, but lost the use Of the senses OF sight
hearing, taste and SMELL In the case 81
other animals found that the removal of
one or part OF both hemispheres was followed
by no marked effects as regarded the intelli-
incapability Of spontaneous, voluntary move
ment was the result. The brain of a man
was still an UNEMPLOYED field, for hitherto
the experiments had been made post norton,
S nsb had ens resulted re- e ~ showing the
visible. To be sure" continued tho
doctor, with growing enthusiasm, II know
that person may lose part OF his brain
and yet not exhibit any mental deficiency or
disorder. I knew, too. that there had been
cases-indeed, one has come under my own
notice--where one hemisphere may do the
work Of the whole cephalic ganglion. But all
this only pointed to, without touching, the
great point at which aimed. At last was
going 70 see whether the superstition that GER
tain parts Of the brain, bound together as they
are by commissinal fbres, or flores OF associa-
ton, have in reality separate and peculiar
properties and functions. was going to see
a ROC nf thSo tjrv>n
one or more OF the brains convolutions, leav-
ing the others intact as far as possible. was
going to carry this remarkable work to an
extent that NO one had done more than dream
OF. In word, was going to try whether the
brain was the centre Of all thought and action,
and prove, by actual lingering OF the instru-
ment. whether the whitley mass we so proudly
use as figure OF speech for all that 10 intelli-
really the sounding strings that set q world
vibrating, or only the key board, wsich is
simply an admirably constructed but purely
mechanical system Of leverage"
The Doctors manner had grown more and
more excited as he was uttering the Above
words. The eyes sparkled, the nostrils di-
lated, and he took OF his hat to rub his thick
crop Of hair that actually seemed to bristle.
&luteting down as suddenly, however, he
lighted il. Continued as follows: Loo : at
sEansa, he said, who was to tnvoluntarily
aid me In these immense researches, fam 1
eied detected light tremor In his eyelids. !
Immediately applied strong anesthetlc to
his nostrlls. and propp.ng up his head and
shoulders, commenced to work. The prs |
Oner,s hair was already cut short or cropped,
IS yOD say, and q few strokes of the razor |
cleared out q blue-black space behind the left |
ear and at the base OF the occiput. Exactly, |
you are eight; was about to make my first |
move by destroying his combativeness. A |
necessary precaution. since as YOU see am a |
small man, and ne made for himself an evil |
reputation by his ferocious conduct while |
under cOnfnemen Some, have no doubt,
would Immediately have annihilated the cere-
bellum, and SO at one stroke have DESTROYED |
the president OF voluntary movement. but I |
preferred to go. step by step. gently to work.
Close at baud on the operating table were I
my silver plates and specially constructed |
Erepan OF large size. Making q cross incision
u the scalp that overlap the protuberance