The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-07-08
WHAT ruE Do0.ORs SAY.

OpInIouS OF Two Eminent New York
Physicians ms 20 the Prssidsnps Case.
New York POIt Of Thursday evening.
A reporter CT the Evening Post called
this morning upon Dr., ]. NJ. earn ochau,
the well known surgeon, and questioned
him concerning President GsIdsId's
chances oil recovery,
"Haw do you regard the danger SUE.
rounding the President, doctor, in his
present condition? What rules do you
go by IN frmin4 an opinion ?"
"Thers are" said DR.. UstRoChRn, "three
phases, or stages, recognized by surgeons
in such a seigs as General GAIhald is now
undergoing. The irst stage in a serious
qua shot wound is from the first to the
=ixth diy, dining which time the patient
either dies from collapse, tho system never
having reacted, n reaction and an INF lam.
malory aclion Iaks place. During this pc
rlod OF reaction more or less suppnratlon
occurs, and ih1 reaction may become 30
violent that p%eritonitis ensues, destroying
the organic functions, and death fol.
lows, Tho second stage may be placed
between tina sixth and the four.
reeulh day reaction having taken
pl3ce, tho il AAmmatoTy action (which Is
nAturs'a process OF etfsCting o cure) may
he prolonged; but elfusion may take place
iutn ii p%eTitOneal cavity OF pus or serum,
and Ia this way an ubfavorable result may
follow, Also puruIent absorption or sep
tiCemia may take place, thus poisoning
the blood to the extent OF producing
death, The third stage btginG about the
fourteenth day, when the danger Arises
from the prolonged Euppuratton and the
occurrence OF assesses due TO the pres.
ence Of Q foreign body, such as the lodge.
ment oil II ball or pieces Of clothing car.
ried into tho body by the ball. After
three or four weeks, II the s%uppurRtion Is
not oil a poisonous character, nature may
DO expected to do the rest."
"Whst," asked the reporter, "would BIZ
the result OF the permanent retention Of
q he'll in the body"
ut may remain inactive and harmless,
or 1t may be the sOurce Of cunelant sup.
puratiOn..or Of confined absCess; or, az In,
1t may travel along the tissues from ore
place to another and even reach tho sur.
face by what lie cAllsd progressive Absorp.
ton, and ibis may tSks place without sup
puration."
'Then a lead ball does not always pre-
duCe suppuration?
MOI certain met,ls may remSin EN-.
bsddeu pmuDgt the tiasuel TithouhCreating
suppura'ive inf4mm ton, while piects Of
wood or Of animal substances, such as
fragments Of clothing, silk, ligatures and
10 forth, would produce destructive cup.
curative inflammation. That: s ore rea.
son why silk has been superseded by oil.
yer or gold wire in the treatment oil large
inCiged wounds"
'WhSt do you think Of the suggestions
by some surgeons 10 open The abdominal
cavity III search Of the ball2'
'Iu such q Gaze Us that OF the President
such q proceeding would be absurd and
contrary 10 the general principles OF sur.
gerry. In the hrst place the opening OF
the abdominal cavity would be in lie effect
likely to intliCt q mortal wound. The cit.
uation Of the ball being at present, 90 far
as We are informed, entirely unknown, 10
search attor q foreign body among the
different abdominal organs would be con.
trAry to common Gense and the rules Of
experience"
"But are not large openings frequently
made In cases OF ovarian tumor?"
Certainly but the cases are entirely
different. In the operation for tumor
auCh as ovarian tumor the parts are in q
chronic or passive state, besides which the
tumor hes not 10 be sought lori the parts
encroaChed upon by the morbid masa are
relieved from q great amount Of pressure,
which while 1t lasted was more or lees de.
struClive to the organs In the
abdominal cavity, or, In other words, In.
teriered with the functions OF organic life;
whereas in Gen. Gatfeld's case any further
effort to open the abdomen will produce
new irritation OF q dangerous character.
Briefly, in operations for ovarian tumor
there Ia no intlammAt0ry action present,
Lhs whole tissues are Ia q passive state,
while 10 recent gun shot injury involving
abdominal organs the tissusB,are In q state
OF active irritation or acute inllImmatory
action, and consequently the least add.
lional irritation OF 80 extensive q wound
lie to be dreaded"
Judging from your experience and
what you know Of President Garfeld's
wounds, what result do you expect2"
"The absolute character OF the wound
has not as yet been discovered, II may
be that the liver, which Is the important
organ supposed to be Injured, may only
I've impirgsd upon or specifically injured,
or the injury may have taken place at q
part OF the liver not covered by the peri.
toneum. In such q case the ball would
bot be In the abdominal cavity at all, and
this would account for the absence Of
symptoms almost inseparRble from gun.
shot wounds in the abdomen"
DR. WILLARD PARKER's OPINION.
Dr.. Willard Parker returned to this city
this morning and was called upon by d
reporter Of the Etening Post.
hThere 10 nothing IL the latest bulletins
concerning General GsIfeld'a condition
which CauRes me 10 alter my opinion
that bis chances OF reGoYaTy are slight. OF
conrse every hour thGt passes without
p%eiitonitis declaring itaelti IL 90 much gain,
for It allows nature 10 feC1perate and pre-.
mare for tho contest which will 20 on for
tho next elk weeks. At the end Of ten
days what Ia called secondary hemorfhage
Ia 10 be feared, after which the suppufR.
ting period will begin. lie hiss nov passed
the shock Of such an accident, which alone
"a sometimes sufficient to xiii a man, and
the dreaded poritonitis has not yet set 10
except In q local form. II is the difubed
petitonitis, sHeclipg the whole psritoneum,
which would be fatal.
al sstes entirely with what Dr.. Hamil.
ton said last night In the Erening Post con.
cetning The mad Visibility Of making an
abdominal iuGcislon, and | regard Dr..
Hamilton's teasons as quite sufficient to
deter surgeons from thinking Of suCh a
courle unless a local absCetBmakts knoEn
the exact spot In which the bullet msy DO
found. l hope that they will leave the