The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1884-05-16

and carrying, &C., and even writing
may be done. if the elbow-joint remains
by firm grasp of q pen or pencil which
the thumb and first finger afford. All
these improvements tend to draw atten-
:tion away from cripples, and thus the
apparently smaller number Of such un-
fortunates is accounted for"
us not the use of the artificial leg ex-
tremely lmited?" asked the reporter.
IA glance at these letters would prob
ably surprise you on that point. Farm
ers, builders, express messengers, oys-
termen-in fact, all kinds of persons do
ing work that is heavy or that requires
one to be much on his feet, apparently
hold their own on wooden legs. Boys
wearing them play ball, ride horseback,
skate, etc. girls dance with them, and,
in short, there seems to be hardly any
end to their practical usefulness. Did
you know that there are quite number
of persons having both legs artificial,
and that they go about freely? TOMMY"
called the manufacturer st this point,
"show us how you walk"
A young man of about 20 appeared,
and with slightly Cranky" motion
walked, without cane, rapidly up and
down the room. "That boy" resumed
the manufacturer, "had both his legs
amputated-one above the knee and
the other just below. He has walked q
half mile in nine minutes on his artifi-
cial legs"
"Will you tell me something of the
material used, Of prices, &c.?"
"Of course, the body ofthe leg is hol-
low. ALI sorts of material have been
used-leather, German silver, papier-
iron! Paper per- to 'i be light '1ss must
be very thin, Gpaper as thick as
wood is heavier, you know and this
is fatal, because stump is likely to
change from time to time, and the alter
ations in the artificial leg thus made
necessary may cause the thin paper to
he whitfield away in no time. Yellow
willow is the material preferred, as It is
both light and tough. It is nodded to
the shape of the leg, and then covered
with thin buckskin having an enamel
coating of the flesh tint. The soft finish
Of this is decidedly attractive. OF
course, stockings or socks are worn, and
the foot is properly booted The leg
can he adjusted in minute or two. The
cork leg?' I'm afraid that is Q bit of o
myth, for I have been in this business
over 25 years, and have yet to see Q
single artificial leg made ofcork. Pri-
ces are generally 800 for leg land it
should last about eight years on the
average) and from $50 to $75 for an arm.
True, that is about tho same rate as Just
after the war, but every order is separ-
ate and individual; only once in my ex-
perience have two legs been exactly
alike"
"How soon after amputation should
On artificial limb be applied?"
"Now you raise point in dispute be-
tween some surgeons and the artificial
limb makers. There are surgeons who
hold that o year should intervene.
Others confirm my own belief that the
delay should he only until the stump
has thoroughly healed; for, after that
point, the stump begins to deposit at its
extremity large amount of adipose It's
sue; its disl,se begets weakness in the
muscles-and these muscles are required
to operate the artificial leg-and the art
of locomotion ON artificial legs being
quite different from that with crutches,
is picked up with considerable difficulty
after long experience with the latter. !"