Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1885-03-15
A TOOTH YANKER.
An Old Time Dental Instrument, and How
il Worked.

it Worked.
Through The courtesy of DR.. A. +. Gas
Dire, We were yesterday allowed to examine
and see the practical workings OF an old
time tooth extractor which must have
caused more pain and suffering in its day
and generation than all the tOothsches be-
tween 1892 and to-day. This instrument
of torture in disguise was presented to DR..
Gasmire BY one of the members Of the fam
ily of the late Dr. Hancher, former we'll
known citizen of Wheeling, who received /,
from DR.. Crosse, Of Pittsburg. 1t is sup
posed to be about two hundred years old
and was used by DR.. Crosses grandfather
and greatgrandisther in Europe, and cy
other dentist" before them. 1t is com
posed Of three pieces Of iron, the larger Of
which is about four and one halt inches
long, one.fourth of an inch thick and
half an inch wide at the centre, gradually
,apering until within halt an itch of the
ends, where it suddenly swells to about the
same width as at the centre. These ends
are rounded in the form Of a half-circle,
and are roughened like coarse file. At
tsched to the centre of this piece OF iron by
a stout rivit are two lighter pieces of metal,
in the form of hooks, each projecting half
an inch beyond the ends Of the main bar,
the inner surface Of the hook, next to the
end of the bar, being roughened like it.
The idea of the inventor of this piece OF
mechanism was to place one of these hooks
over the top of decayed tooth, or around
its side, if there be molar already missing
alongside OF it to allow Of it's insertion, bring
the end of the straight piece against the
sound teeth on one side or the other and
then to use the powerful leverage thus OBJ
rained until something gave way. The
possessor Of this wonderful inventive faculty
intended that the raging tooth" should be
that something, bpt, in practice, it must
have been the sound molars used as full
crum good deal oftener.
With a view of seeing just how 1t operated,
he inquisitive news gatherer borrowed an
old skull from doctor Of his acquaintance,
and with the disused knowledge box be
tween his knees, the REGISTER man went to
work. The testh in the skull we've good,
sound fellows, firmly set in their bony bed.
One of the hooks was placed over one OF
the teeth, the end of the lever firmly braced
against its outer surface, and the reporter
gave it yank. The tooth came out, and
50 did about half square inch of lower
| Jaw bone. What q horrible wound that
would have made, if that operation had
been performed on living subject! Then
one Of the hooks was placed around big
/ molar in the back Of the lower jaw. A
twist of the wrist broke off three good sound
teeth in front of the one sought to be
drawn, but that particular tooth wasn't
disconnected in the least. Then an incisor
was hooked" and good stout tug brough:
it out all right only a long silver Of Jaw
bone came VII" -, which rendered some
what shsky in their sockets half dozen
worries along the left side of the mouth.
After q few further experiments, in which
the skull was more or less damaged, the re
porter came to the conclusion that as 6
tooth-puller the invention was miserable
failure, but that it would make an excellent
tool wherewith to draw nails out old store
boxes. People who, nowadays. submit t
the manipulations Of the modern dentist
with all bis forceps, drills and buzz saws
don't, as a general thing, appreciate the ad
vantage they have over their forefathers
who ran the risk of having a Jaw bon,
pulled out by the roots every time they haC
tooth extracted.