The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-03-30
A SURGICAL CURIOSITY.
The Remarkably Narrowing Expert
ence of a Young Roumanian.
"A Man Who Survived Having His Throat
Cut from Ear to Ear and Several
Hours of Hanging.

There has been in this city for a couple of days
of this week a surgical curiosity in the shape of
young man who has survived the experience
of having had his throat cut literally from ear
to ear. He is a ROumanian, Jew, and his ter
rible experience illustrates the barbarities that
have grown out OF the prejudices against his
race and which have found vent in horrible afro
cities in Russia and in the Danubian principali-
ties. His story is as follows:
In the winter of 1876 (he was then a man %
years old he was travelling with party of mer-
chants, wholesalers in the neghborhood of
Jassy. There were twelve in the party, and all
Jews. Most of them were owners of large vine
yards and wealthy men. He himself had what
would amount to $4,000 in our money upon his
person. They were selling wine and collecting
money owing them for previous sales Banking
facilities there not easy in this country,
and for that reason and the general insecurity
of the country, particularly so far as Jewish
life limb and property are concerned, they were
compelled to carry their money about with them.
HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE.
One night the wine merchants are set upon by
a party of Gypsies "a wild and lawless class, and
not as small factor in population as here, as
they number about 100000 in Roumania,) who
attacked them, killing eleven Of the party out
right and rob0lng all of them. The twelfth,
with his throat cut from ear to ear was also left
for dead
After four hours the rutfians returned to find
this young man still breathing. A rope
was then tied round his neck and he was
swung M to a tree. He thinks he hung
there two hours, with alternating mo-
ments OF consciousness and oblivion,
when he was cut down and thrown into the bed
of frozen stream below a bridge. He thinks he
lay there forty hours. A funeral process
sion crossing the bridge discovers blood upon the
snow near by, ana a slight search discloses the
bodies of the eleven dead men, and the twelfth
seemingly dead, as in addition TO the CHASTITY
cash across his neck, his cheek has been laid
open with knife, and there are three deep cuts
In his left side The dead and living are taken to
village hard by, where physician does as well
as he can with the throat of the young man, who
is soon after sent TO Dr. Schraeder, at Vienna, a
renowned specialist in throat surgery, who dis
patches to Professor Langenbeck, of Berlin,
equally eminent in the same specially. For Two
years, he says, he lay in "a hospital at Vienna
without taking any nourishment by mouth, be-
ing wholly sustained by enemata. Altogether
he has been in hospital for six years. His
got into the medical journals and received
great attention, few months ago
specialist, went to Vienna TO the case, and
brought him TO London, from which place he
came to this country, arriving at New Orleans
on the 18th ult. He is without means, and was
sent here by charity organization, on his way
to Cleveland, where he Is going to JOIN relatives.
Cleveland, and by this time he has Joined his
relatives.
An additional circumstance TO give increased
interest to the story Is the fact that the butch
cry has postponed the young mans marriage. an
event that was to have taken place six days
after the tragedy.
HOW HE EXISTS.
With an injury of this character to the outlet,
one ordinarily can neither breathe nor swallow.
Six years ago this subject operated for
tracheotomy. The opening remains, and by fire.
gently passing silver tube down through the
goJtis the patient has been able to retain his
voice, and now, with his finger on the tracheot-
Omy tube, as to force the air up
through the Cloths can speak distinctly. OF
course he must keep the windpipe open day and
night, sleeping and waking, by means of "a tube.
If he went so long as two hours without so do
lug he would experience great distress from the
contraction OF the parts and insuliciency OF air,
and if continued longer suhocation would
sue.
The part of the wound thas remains open is in
the windpipe, three-quarters of an inch in diam
eter, being an inch below the thyroid cartilage
adams APPLE. 1t is interesting to doctors and
medical students. Looking from the opening in
the windpipe upward the eye clearly and
distinctly see the vocal chords and note their ac-
tiOn as he talks or breathes. Looking down
ward, with the aid of a little illumination, the
observer can see the bifurcatiOn branching of
the windpipe in the lungs. 1t is not, even from
medical standpoint, an unmixed blessing to be
the owner of a weaZand divided this is. The
throat is more liable to disease, and there is a
strong probability that the patient may take
bronchitis and die of it, The vocal chorQB
being constantly irritated will lose their vibra-
tory element, and his voice will decline to a
vague whisper, and perhaps be lost altogether.
However, the fact that he has maintained his
power to speak for SIX years in this condition
would seem to indicate that he has become adj
justed to it, and he may reasonably be expected
to live good while yet.
He expects to be in condition. six or eight
months, hence to undergo an operation that will
close the cut in his neck. piece of skin is to
be taken from his arm and transplanted to his
throat.
This young jew is highly educated man, and
speaks eight different languages. He Is of me-
dunn height, dark hair and complexion, with
Asiatic contour of face, and of good address.
He is an accomplished smoker and when he
smokes the fragrant tobacco cloud doesn't es-
cape from his mouth, but curs gracefully out
of the silver tube in his neck in the vicinity of
his color button.