The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-02-24
A MEDICAL CLINIC.

The horrors of hospital practice and
clinical surgery have been often comment
ed on, and as often shuddered at, but il
is left to John P. Irish, in his description
of medical clinic at the state university
at Iowa City, to portray the true human
ity that lies back of surgeons work; and
the good that he does mankind. Below is
the account.
| If one have stout nerves and can see
| past the suffering to the utility that lies
| beyond in restored health and revived
hopes, there is no place of greater interest
to visit than one of Dean Peck's surgical
clinics at Mercy Hospital in this city.
These clinics are collateral to the medical
| Department Of the State University, and
| if that Department had no other reason to
| justify It's establishment in the good of
clinics aloreit would be indicated The
students are gathered on seats that rise
from the floor to midway up the walls,
with the revolving operating table as the
focus OF the amphitheatre. A sky
light above the table illumi-
mates it. Here through all
the wide range of major and minor surgery
are performed operations that would digni
fly any school in the world.
The accomplished Dean. in long black
gown, presides, and the hospital LOBBY 10
crowded with waiting patients. Some are
distorted with anchylotic joints, others
are distended by tumors, disfgured by
greedy cancers. DISCONTINUED by bullying
ruptures, made miserable by varicose ulcers,
tormented by sciatiea and tottering on
bones wasted by necrosis. Others show
natures incomplete work in hare lips,
webbed fingers, dubbed feet. Babies
squall and sputter in their mammas' arms
and wan children pant upon pillows, all
waiting for the knife. Here comes a rough
bearded man, ready for painful operation.
He tells his story, is a miner, was soldier,
fought at Gettysburg. He is stripped,
etherized and the keen weapon begins its
work The anaesthetic makes him dream
aloud. He raves and curses. Now he is
in battle. Gettysburg is before him. He
sees Longstreet's advance. In a mighty
voice and mouthful of battle blasphemy
he shouts, Take that gun' Come ON boys!
therei steady Brain himi Knock out his
brains! therei Turn the battery on the
whelpsp and so on for the space Of five
minutes when he reverts to expe-
rience in some camp meeting and
as his curses, prays for the power
w
The surgeon Is done. The ready assistant
has finished the dressing. The sound of
battle and prayer dies away. He is in the
stupor of intoxicatinn from which he rOuses
to thank the doctor and get into his clothes.
Next comes stout man kicked into sciati-
ca by an unruly horse. The great nerve, |
has become adherent and shorten
ened, SO that its constant tension makes
life an agony. In the oblivion of ether |
he is turned upon his face. The nerve
must be reached by cutting through the
muscles that anywhere cushion
the skeleton Down through the mates
goes the blade Sponges take up the
food of gore. Tho surgeons finger fellows
the knife, the nerve is found, the adhesions
are broken. The foot is raised to slacken
the nerve. The finger lies between it and
the bone. The foot is let fall and the great
nerve that has been grand canal of mis-
cry is stretched. The gaping wound is /
closed by stitches and the patient goes to
to his hospital bed
Here comes q child, pallid and prone |
upon pillow on little wagon. Do you
think this surgeon who is now hecked to
the the forehead with blood and has been
cutting steadily for an hour without |
4uaver IN tone or the tremor Of muscle, /
has no hearth This child has hip joint