Daily evening bulletin., 1884-09-18
WONDERFUL RECOVERY.
Progress of Loui-a HuItzmann Back
from Deaths Door.


New YORK, Sept 1S-The recovery OF
louisa HUFFMAN, who was discharged yes
terday from the Ninety ninth Street Hospital.
is one of those marvellous cases in which ma
ture, unassisted by the surgeons art, saves
the life of the patient after all hope had fled.
1t will be remembered that she was
turned out of her home by her
father on the evening Of August
last and wandered about the streets of Harlem
all night. At daybreak she staggered upon
the verandah in front of John w. Funk's
house, and he seeing the shadow Of her head
upon the window-pane, mistook her for
burglar and fired two shots from thirty-two'
calibre revolver both Of which took effect in
her head. She was picked up by an officer,
who found her lying in the street quite dis
tance from Mr.. Funk's house, and conveyed
her to the Ninety-ninth Street Hospital.
An examination revealed two CHASTITY
wounds. One ball had struck her just behind
the left ear shattering the skull and took a
slanting course upward through the brain
substance and finally lodged, it is presumed,
against the inner plate of the skull at the top
of the back part Of the head. The other ball
struch her forehead about two inches above
the outer extremity of the left eye took q
slanting course downward and lodged in the
base of the brain. The diagonal course fol.
lowed by each Of the balls n,ust have caused
them to intersect near the internal
brain centre, and owing to the large
calibre and the force with which the balls
struck the skull at short range large portion
of the brain must have been terribly lacera-
ted, and the wonder is that instanteous
death was not caused by tho shock 1t was
the Judgment of the hospital staff that
n.,fh aS,lrlI ha fn ha nd
opiates were given TO ease her sufferings until
death, which was momentarily expected, gave
her final relief. She fingered in a comatose
state for two days Several times her breath
and heart beats stopped for So long period
that she was thought to be dead and then
they would go on again regularly but family.
On the third day, to the surprise of her at
tendants she opened her eyes and gleam Of
intelligence was noticed. After this unac-
countable return to consciousness, a further
examination was made. Her right side was
found to be entirely paralyzed, and her right
cheek hung SO low that it rested on her neck.
The muscles OF the neck were so completely
relaxed that sac could not swallow and had
lost the power of speech. She con-
tinued to improve. Liquid nourish-
ment was injected into her stomach,
but she retained little food. At the
end Of ten days her condition rapidly inn
proved. Her paralysis disappeared about
September 1. Her power Of speech began to
return in about fifteen days after her injury,
until at present there is only a slight impe6i-
ment in her speech. The external wounds
have entirely healed There has been, since
her convalesence, no disturbance of mental
functions, as is usual In cases where recovery
has followed brain injury. If anything is
noticeable it is that her intellect is brighter
and disposition better now than it was before
she was injured.