Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-01-16
Wonderful Surgery.


The San Antonio correspondent of thu
Galveston News, tells the followinf
story of wonderful surgical operation
recently performed in the former city
DR.. F. Herff has long been q resident
of San Antonio. and is justly consid
cred one Of the best physicians and sur
geons in Texas:
San Antonio contains q wonder, the
like of which cannot be found in the
United States. It is nothing more mol
less than child, seven years old. that,
instead of masticating and swallowing
its food in the usual manner, is FED
through an aperture in the stomach
made for that purpose. The child il
gaining strength, can walk and play
and bids fair to soon be as stout and
healthy as any other child. On Satur
day last determined to 60 and see the
child for myself. The facts are as fol-
lows: About two years ago Mr.. s. T..
Lumley, at that time living in Pennsyl.
vania, had the misfortune to have his
little daughter Jessie drink solution
of I've, which a negro woman had care
lessly left on the table. A large guam
tity of the corrosive liquid was swal.
lowed. Death is the certain result in
such cases. There have been quite q
number of cases in San Antonio, where
children drank concentrated lye, and
none have survived except in this IN.
stance. The lye destroyed the mucous
membrane, and o structure of the esoph.
agus is formed, which means that the
throat, or. at least, the channel through
which the food goes into the stomach,
is drawn together or contracted to such
a degree that only liquids, and not
much of them, can pass through. II
the child does not die at once, it fingers
for year or so, and then goes into a
consumptive condition and perishes of
slow starvation. 1t is impossible for q
human being to live exclusively on
liquid nourishment; but where concen-
trated lye has been taken there are
times, particularly in cold, damp wealth
er, when the sufferer can not even swal.
low milk. All Attempts to open the
closed up esophagus are futile, hence
the sufferer slowly starves to death.
Such was the condition OF the little
girl, Jessie Lunley, when she was
brought to San Antonio for treatment.
The child was very much emaciated,
could not swallow even liquid food for
days at time. As it was the only pos.
sible chance she had for life, her pa-
rents consented that the operation of
making an opening in. the stomach
should be attempted. The operation
has been performed in England. but
this is believed to be the first time it
has been attempted in the United
States. Your correspondent can not
give the technical terms, but can make
the modus operandi Ineligible to the
general reader. An incision four inches
long was made few inches to the left
of the pit of the stomach, at the begin
ming of the short ribs, much stitching
being required. Through this incision
the stomach is reached. The next part
Of the operation requires the most del
icate handling imaginable. 1t consists
in sewing the stomach to the walls of
the abdomen, but the greatest care has
to be taken not to penetrate the stom.
ach itself. The needle and stitches only
penetrate the skin of the stomach. The
result is that the stomach. as the wound
gradually heals, grows to the walls OF
the abdomen.
The patient was put under the influ.
ence of chloroform, and the operation
successfully performed by DR.. F. Herff,
assisted by his son, DR.. John Herff,
and DIR. Amos Graves, all of this city.
Unfortunately, the child had an attack
of chills and fever, which had to be
cured, which gave set back. The
operation described took place three
weeks ago. The stomach had grown
on to the sides of the abdomen, and
eight days ago the final operation OF
making o small incision into the stom-
ach, through which the food was to
pass, was performed, and twice y day
during the past week, beefsteak, cut
up fine, has been passed with the for
cops into the stomach, and the child is
steadily gaining strength.
On Saturday last visited the child,
in company with DR.. Herff, and saw it
fed. We halted in front of q one-story
house, which we entered. A little girl,
with light hair and blue eyes, was sit
ting up in bed surrounded by play
things. Her mother, young woman
of about thirty years OF age, was busy
in the room.
Don't you want your supper, Jes.
sic ?" said the doctor.
"I want steak. I don't want any
bread, cos it hurts" said the little girl
whose thin features and pale complex.
ion, showed the result of her long fast
The mother brought in rare beef.
steak, which the doctor proceeded to
cut up in small pieces, crumbling up
some bread at the same time. The food
being prepared, the child lay back on
the bed. and the opening in the side
was exposed. 1t was only an inch in
length. and presented the appearance
of a badly-healed cut. 1t was little
infamed. I stood by and saw the doc.
tor take one piece after another and
carefully introduce it with forceps into
the stomach, until the plate was nearly
empty. The child complained little
at times, but did not appear to SUITE,
any. She finally said, my stomach
is full )" and. as there was no more
steak, the doctor desisted. Finally
some cotton was placed in the opening
bandage put on, and she sat up and
was soon fondliug her playtbings.
The following additional facts may be