The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1885-10-10

The fact that narcotics were freely
used throughout the illness of General
Grant to secure sleep, ease and freedom
from pain, and were asked for by the
patient and promised to him openly by
his physicians, in the event of their being
needed, TO procure quiet and painless
death, seems to have been accepted quite
as matter of course by people in gen.
eral. Only very few years ago, how
ever, the idea of moderating the fear or
assuaging the pains of death by the use
of narcotics or stimulants would have
been horrifying to the great majority of
Christian people. This rapid and very
marked change of opinion, whatever
its cause may be and however moderate
the degree of attention bestowed upon 1t
by the public, has been very closely OBJ
served by physicians, and in the belief
of some of them, as stated to the re-
porter, will bring about an increased use
of sedative drugs for distressed and
dying patients.
In discussing the matter physicians
are necessarily drawn to its logical
consequences, and these may be
summed up in the question. Have
we right under certain circumstances
to cut short our lives?" In one of the
recent articles on the subject by DIR.
Amick in the Cincinnati Medical Jour-
nal an abstract is given of the question
as formulated by Il prominent member OF
the Birmingham Speculative Club. The
statement is interesting, from the fact
that it is accepted by many medical men
as being a fair exposition of the argu-
ment. The term euthanasia, or ''an
easy death, is described as intended to
convey the following meaning;
"That in all cases of hopeless and painful
illness it should be the recognized duty of
the medical attendant, whenever so desired
by the patient, to administer chloroform or
other anRsthetlc so as to destroy conscious
ness at once and put the suffer 10 quick
and easy death, all needful precautions be.
ing adopted TO prevent any possible abuse OF
such duty, and means being taken TO estaD-
fish beyond the possibility of doubt that
the remedy was applied at the express wish
of the patient"
In defending the act the writer says;
Ceases of this class abound on every hand,
and those who have had to witness suffering
of this kind, and to stand helplessly by,
longing to administer to the beloved one YET
unable to bring any real respite or relief
may well be impatient with the easy going
spirit that sees in all this misery nothing but
the appointed lot of man." and that opposes
aS almost impious every att empt to deal with
it enectually. Why should all this suffering
be endured? The patient desires To die; his
life can no longer be of use to others, and
has become an ntoerable burden to himself
tanV,s l,aVNN fg at hDH
all the resources of his knowledge, and coulc
firing immediate and permanent relief. why
should his not doing so be recognized as {
sovereign dutyT'
To the objection that this would VIC
late the sacredness of life, the writer
says:
Mature knows nothing of any such sacred
ness, for there is nothing OF which she Is 81
prodigai. And man has shown little sense
the value of human life when his passions o.
lustS or interests have been thwarted by MI
brother man, or seem likely to be Forwarded
by his destruction. sense of the Vaiue o
his own individual life man has indeed, sci
dom been deficient in; and by a kind OF re
fleX action. this sense has slowly given brit
to and always underiies the sense, such as |
is of the value of other mems lives. But Il
Europe to-day the sacredness of mans LII
is thrown to the winds the moment natlona
or political passion grows hot Indeed, 1t 1
hard to understand the meaningof the wore
sacred when applied to life, except In so IA
as it may signify the duty laid on each maj
of using his life nobly while he has IL Thu
man who is ever ready to face death TO
others sake, 90 save others from grinding
pain. has always boon reckoned a hero; an
what Is he Roic if done for another is surel
permissible if done for ones self. The ma
who could voluntarily give up his life TO saw
another from months of slow torture woul
win cverybody's good word. Why should h
be debarred from taking a like step when tn
Dorson 10 ne rescued is himself? IL is further
NOR urged that the sacredness of lie is vic
lated by existing medical practice, when i
cases of extreme and hopeless suiferin
physicians administer drugs which Civ
present relief at the expense of shortenin
the patients life. If it is objected that sui
mission to the wtll of Providence forbids tn
shortening Of pain by taking life, by tn