Daily Yellowstone journal., 1885-07-25
ARTIFICIAL LIMBS.
HOW THEY ARE MADE TO ouPLI-
CATE THE ORIGINALS
Boston Globe.l

boston Globel
There is o small room in the rear Of
Court street store In which works an old,
gray haired man. Surrounding him on
all sides are legs Of many shapes and sizes.
Some are short and stout. with rather too
much calf for strictly classical beauty;
others are long and slim, with deplor.
able lack OF calf. while others vie in
shareliness with the neither limbs of a
Greek slave or Venus de Milo The old
man when visited recently was hard at
work. but consented to give the writer q
few particulars in regard TO bis business
"NOw that" he said. pointing TO
sharely leg hanging over the fire. be
longs 10 Newburyport young lady
THAT" continued the old man. lis
what's known as u knee. bearing leg |
made il for her three years ago, when she
was about 10 years old. She lost her leg
little below the knee-so short that she
couldn wear socket. bearing leg, and
so she was obliged TO have knee bearing
to walk on the knee. She had grown a
little since. and so was Obliged To
lengihen 1t out cut the leg in two at
the calf and put in piece. dovetailing il
and fastening il with glue I've hisled
a child's leg at least four inches before il
was given up when its parents were poor,
and couldn't afford new one
Now here. picking up leg In process
of construction, legs don't weigh as
much ms you think. Including all
the ironwork, that leg wouldn't
weigh more than five pounds. |
have Just made one for q full.g grown
woman that weighed. everything complete,
including the upper socket exactly three
pounds. made 1t particularly light on
account of her being sickly want to
show you now where We get the dura.
bility. The steel ankle. joints are. YOU see.
set in the wood, and slightly broader at
the ankle than further up the leg. which
makes them sorter doyeiailcd The bear.
ing down strain is borne in part by them
and partly by an endless and very power.
full COrd-some make il of silk but | al
ways use linen extending from the heel
of the foot over a bar in the calf OF the
leg. which Is hollow. The cord relieves
principally what Is called the nosing,'
where the shin plays into the foot
The ankle.loinls are. YOU see, con.
nected by steel bolt, which makes the
leg particularly strong about the ankle.
AlO1b COuutns ut AOt-
joint is located at the same place as in the
natural foot. and works with spring
that brings the toe into place after each
step The woodY use willow alto
gether, aud have never used any other
have shown you one used where the leg
has been lost below the knee
Now this, producing another leg. lis
for one lost above the knee. 1t Is the
same In every Particular as the other,
with the addition of a wooden socket to
secure the stump. 1t works at the knee
in very natural manner on a simple
bolt. with spring extending from the
thin piece 10 the lower art OF the top
socket. This spring throws the foot for.
ward, in walking, the minute the toe
leaves the floor.
~You will observe that IL the amputa.
tion is above the knee the leg must be
held in place by suspenders made on
stout welt-Iart elastic and part non.
misunderstanding over the shoulder. IL
with long stump below the knee the
leather socket, placed above the knee, is
usually sufficient
III, however, there is but short stump
below the knee strap is required. Every
weak point In leg is specially guarded.
in some way or other; aud when the steel
and woodwork are complete the leg is
covered with talfskin, similar 10 a drum
head. IL Is put on wet and dries TO the
leg, very closely. adding a great deal to
Its strength. Then that Is sand -papered
down to surface, aud the holes in the
calf opened out They are for ventila.
ton, but | doubt II they do any good
always put them In, because good many
are Of the notion they are. Then the leg
is painted. use alcoholic paint. made
Of gum and dry lead The minute Il!
strikes water II is SET and you can wash
II of with anything except alcohol /.
IN show you leg, producing par.
ticularly lifelike one, the foot Of which
bore shoe and stocking, THAT has been
painted seventeen years, and u.s. you see,
In pretty good condition.
what do you consider your most
singular caseH"
THAT of little boy that lives near the
old reservoir. He was brought TO me in
his fathers arms when he was 10 or II
months old, and had never walked step.
! didn't dare 10 touch him, he was so
young and tender, and his father took
him TO DR. Shaw. The doctor advised
him TO get a limb right off, so as to pre-.
vent hip disease on the other side. That
had never occurred to me The doctors
opinion took oil the responsibility away
/ from me- and so went TO work at once,
and made leg for the boy. lie learned
10 walk with IL. and walks and runs with
1t now so well that you'd hardly know
he'd lost leg.
How long will a leg wear"
1T Is question often asked me, and q
very hard one TO answer. have a Gus
toner that has worn leg for tweuty.one
years, and know men who would not
wear leg two years. Ii is Just as II Is
with everything else. Some take care Of
them and others slave them out very
quickly. The government, you know,
allows soldiers a new leg every five years.
That looks as IL they thought five years
was the average. but good legs will. In
my opinion average at least eight years.
lie price the government sets on EN- ID
about the lowest they can be made for,
though some manufacturers ask twice as
much as that
How long does II take to make a Leg
We'll, I'll tell you. In war times they
said II man made leg in eight days
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