, 1881-10-02
For an Inch Back Of the Ball All
Was Healed-Then There
Was Blood.
All Artery Going TO The Spleen Had
Burst Three Days Before
Death.
The Rending Of Some Tissues by the En-
larging Blood 0!ot Caused the
Fatal Parozysms.
OFFICIAL.

|
PHILADELPHIA, P:l., Oct. 1.-Tf.e October
issue Of the american journal ot Medical
Sciences contains the following official re-
port OF the autopsy Of President Garfield,
prepared BY the surgeons in charge:
! OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE PosT-MoETEM Ex-
| AM1SAT1DS Of the body Of President j. \. Car
field, lnade Sept. ~. 1881. commencing at 4:;0
| p. nl., eighteen hours ntter death. at Franck-
lyn CottaEc, E!beron r. j.. present and assist
! Ing, Dr. o. ". bliss. Surgtun-t:cneral J. X.
Barnes. q: S: A., Surgeon J, }. NootiWnrd, L.
| $. A., Dr. Robert Kcyburn. DR.. Frank II. Hum
| iiton. DR.. ID. Hayes .Agncw, Dr. Andrew IL.
Smith, Of ElberoD AMI New York. and acting
Assistant Surgeon =: $. Lamb, Of the Army
| Medical Museum Of Washington. D. C.:
Before commencing the examination con-
suitntion held By these physicians III II rooul
adjoining that In which the body lay, and it WAS
unanimously agreed that the dissection should
be made py- DR.. Lamb, 1nd that Surgeon Wood
ward should record the observations nlAde. It WIS
further unanimously agreed that tho craniIm
should not be opened. Surgeon Woodward tlen
proposed that tho examination Should be con-
Quoted as follows:
That tho body should be viewed externally.
and any morbid appearances existing recorded.
That tho cathetcr should then be passed into
the wound, as was done during life, to wash it
out for the purpose OF assisting to find tho
position at the bullet
That Il long iucsinu should next bo made
from the superior extremity OF the stcrnutn to
the pubs. and this crosse; by transverse one
tnst below the umbtcus. :
/ That the abdominal flaps thus mudc should
then he turned back and the abdominal viscer;t
examined.
That, after the abdominal cavity Was opened.
the position Of the bullet should be nsccrtnined,
it possible, before making any further iucison
and thnt, finally, the thorocic viscera should be
examined
This order Of procedure was unanimously
agreed to.
The examination was then proceeded with,
and the following external appearances we're
observed:
The hody was considerably c1naciate1, but the
fuce WAS much less wasted than the limbs.
4 pceseryative fluid had been injected BY
the embaImera few hours before into the left
fcmoral artery. The pipes used for this purpose
were still in position.
The interior surface Of the body presented
no abnormal appearances. and there was no &C.
chymosis, or other discplorauon Of any part OF
the abdomen.
Just below tho right car, and little behind 1t,
there was au oval liberated opening. about half
I'LL inch 10 diameter, from which some sanious
pus whs escaping, but no tumefac ton could he
observed in the parotid region.
considerable number of purpura- like spots
were scattered thickly over the left scap,a. and
thence forward as far us the A1illa. They
ranged from onc-eighth toone-fourth of an inch
Ia diameter, were slightly elevated and purpu-
raceous on the surface. and unny Of them were
conluent in groups of two to tour or more. 4
smilar but much less abundant eruption was
observed spArseIy scattered over the correspond
ing region on the right side
An oval, cxcavntcd ulcer, about m inch long.
the result. Of n small carbunce, was seated over
the spnous process Of the tenth dorsal yertebra
Over the sAcrum there were four small bed
sores, the largest about hMT an iuch in diameter.
Il few acne pust.l1cs and u number of irregu-
lar spots Of post-mortem hyrostntic congestion
were scattered uycr tho shoulders, back, and
buttocks-
The interior part of the scrotum was much
discoiorod by hypostatlc congestion.
X group OF hemorrho{dal tumors, rather larger
than a walnut, protrulcd from the anus.
The depressed cicatrix Of the wound matte by
tho pisto-bullet was recognized over the tenth
utcrcostal space, three and half inches to
right OF the vertebrnl sptnes.
\ deep linear Inctslon {rnade in purt BY the
operation OF July y. and extended By that of
Aug. 81 occupied position closely correspond
Ing to the upper border of the right twelfth rib
1t commenced postcr1or about two inches from
the vertcbra1 spine and extended forward little
more than three inches.
At tho interior extremity Of this incfsIon there
was deep, nearly squire, apraded surface,
about an inch across.
4 well oiled, flexible catheter fourteen inches
long, wns then pnssed into this wound, as had
been done to wash 1t out during life. More re-
sstance was at first encountered than had usua-
II been the case, but after several trials the
catheter entered without any violence to the
full length. 1t Was then left in tion, and tho
body disposed supinely for the examination ol
the viscern.
The Uranium WIS not opened. 4 long inclsion
was made from the superior extremity Of the |
sternuFn to tha pubs, followed by a transverse
inelsion crossing tho abdomen just below the
nmbillicus. The four flaps thus formed were
turned back and the abdominal visccra ex-
posed. The subcutaneous adipose tissue dlyid-
cd BY tho fnctsious was little more than one
eighth of an inch thick over the thorax, bnt was
thicker over the abdomen, being about II uunr- t
ter of an inch thick along the llnea alba and,
as much as half an inch thick towurd the outer
OF tho transverse inoision. |
On inspection of the abdominal viscera situa,
the transverse colon was observed to tie little
above the line Of the umbi!lcus- 1t was firmly |
ndherent to the anterior edge Of the liver.
The greater omentum covered the intesti1es |
pretty thoroughly, from the transverse colon |
almost to the pelvs. It was still quite fat, and i