The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-10-04

the right twelfth rib also was fra a'
tured at a point an inch and a o 1nae
ter to the right of the transverse oas-
cess of the twelfth dorsal yertSbbtt(O'
This injury had not been recngn;as;;
duriug life. On saving throu9ib1- 4 tS
vertebr9, little to the right oftIe
medina line, it was found thai t TUE
spinal column was not involved 1t
the bullet track. The spinal cord aU3
Other contents of this portion ~
the spinal canal presented no ahnOn
nal appearances. The rest of H.
spinal cord was not examined. Po tV
yOnd the first lumbar Yertebra H.
bullet continued to 90 to the lsf le
passing behind the pancreas to fbo
point where it was found. There i
was envelOped in firm cyst of con
Meeting tissue, which contained bo
sides the ball a minute quantity Of
inspisSated, somewhat cheesv ms
which formed a thin laver over
portion of the surface of the lead
There was also a black shred adbar.
ing to part of the cyst wall, which
proved on microscopic exaInination
to be the remains of a blood cIot
For about an inch from this cyst the
track of the ball behind the pancreaS
was completely obliterated by the
healing process. Thence, as far
backward, as the body of the first
lumbar vertebT4 the track was filled
with coagulated blood, which ey.
tended on the left into regular space
rent in the adjoining adipose TISSUE
behiud the peritoneum and abOya
the pancreas. Blood had worked itS
way to the left, burroWing fnaIy
through the peritOneum behind The
spleen into the abdominal CAVITY.
The rending Of the tissues by the
extraVasatiOn of this blood was I'M
doubtedly the cause of the parox-
ysns Of pain which occurred a short
time before death. This mass of
coagulated blood was Of irregular
JOrm, and nearly as large as a mans
fist. 1t could be distinctly seen
from in front, through the perito-
neum, after its site behind the
greater curvature of the stomach
had been exposed by the dissection
Of the greater Omentum from the
stomach, and especially after some
Of the delicate adheSiOns between
the stomach and part of the peri
toneum covering, the blood mass
had been broken down by the fin
gers. From the relations Of the
mass, as thus seen, it was believed
that the hemOrrhage had proceeded
from one of the meSenteric arteries
but as it was clear that minute dis
section would be required to deter
mine the particular branch involved,
it was agreed that the infltered It's
sue and adjoining soft parts should
be preserved for subsequent study.
On OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES made
in accordance with this agreement,
it was found that the fatal LemOr-
rhage proceeded from a rent four
tenths of an inch long, in the main
trunk of the spIenic artery, two
inches and half to the left Of the
coliiac axis. The rent must have
occurred at least several days
before death, since the aVerted
edges in the slit in the vessel were
united by firm adheSions to the
surrounding connective tissues,
thus forming an almost continuous
wall, bounding the adjoining Dor
ton of blood eliot. Moreover, the
peripheral portion of the clOt in this
vicinity was disposed in pretty firm
cOncentric layers. 1t was further
found that the cyst below the lower
margin of the pancreas, in which
the bullet was found, was situated
three inches and a half to the left OF
the coiliac axis. Besides the mass
of coagulated blood just described,
another about the size Of q walnut
was found in the greater OEientum
near the splenic extremity Of the
stomach. The communication, i
any, between this and the largE
hemOrrhage mass could not be mat'
out. The examination Of the thor
acic Yiscera resulted as follows:
The heart weighed eleven ounces;
all the cavities were entirely empty
except the right ventricle, IN which
a few shreds of soft, reddish cOagu-
lated blood adhered to the internd
surface. On the surface Of the
mitral valve there we're several
spots of fatty degeneration. With
this exception the cardiac valves
were normal. The muscular tissue
of the heart was soft and tore
easily. 4 few spots of fatty de-
generation existed in the lining
membranes Of the 8rta just abOTe
the semi-lunar valves, and a slender
clOt Of fibren was found in the 3r2'
where it was divided about
two inches from these WARES
for the removal of the heart.
The simultaneous adipOse tissue dl-
vided by the missions was llIue
more than One-ei9hth OF an lncn
thick over the thorax, but was
thicker over the abdomen, beng
about a quarter of an inch thlcA
along the line alba, and as much as
half an inch thick towards the 0uIel
extremity of the transverse inclslon'
On inspection Of the abdominal vs.
cera the transverse colon was on,
served to lie a little above the ~
of the umbilicus. 1t was firmly %t
hered to the interior edge OF InG
IiTer The greater Ouentum covered
+ho intesfines pretty thoroughly
from the transverse colon almost "
the pelvis. 1t was sun quite LdU