Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-06-29
AN OPEN PENKNIFE.
How 1t Was Swallowed by Mischievous
Girl and Recovered.

New YORK, June 2S-Little Maggie Nc
Clue lives with her parents on Baxter
street, IN this city. She is Il years old
and the very incarnation of mischief. a
few days ago her father brought home a
watermelon. Maggie wanted to cut it
and opened her penknife. Her father told
her to wait until dinner, when he would
cut the melon. She declared that she
would swallow the penknife if she
could not cut the watermelon.
Her father said that he guessed
| she wouldn't" and before he had
| ceased speaking she put the knife into her
mouth, handle first, meaning to brighten
| him. Accidentally she swallowed it. As
1T went down her throat she shrieked with
fright and declared that her gullet had
been cut open. Her father was greatly
frightened and sent for an ambulance, on
the arrival OF which she was taken to the
| accident ward of Chambers Street hos
pital, where DR.. George B. Phelps, the at
tending surgeon, took charge of the case.
The knife was open and the blade and
handle measured about five inches. The
blade was sharp
1t was hoped by Dr. Phelps that it had
lodged in the gullet. but when she had
been put under the effects of ether it could
not be felt by the long rubber sound that
let and into the 5esophagus. IL had evil
IDENTIFY passed into the stomach. Knowing
that the jugglers swallow open knives and
eat full meal of porrldge afterward
which adheres to the blade, and enables the
knife to pass without injury. She was al
lowed to come out of the ether that this
mode of treatment might be tried, but
when the effects of the ether had
passed off it was found that the esopha-
geal passage was obstructed to such an ex-
tent that nothing but water could be made
to pass it. The sound was used again, and
the obstruction was felt just above the en-
trance of the stomach, and all efforts to
diSlodge it were in vain.
Ether was given again, for it was evil
dent that the obstruction must be re-
moved. especially as the patient vomited
blood after being examined, and it was
feared that the esophagus had been cut by
the knife
An incision was made in the middle line
OF the abdomen and the stomach opened,
SO that the surgeon could pass his whole
hand into the cavity, considerable gas
escaping from the wound as he did So
The cavity was found to contain guam
tity of blood. With a good deal of diff
Guilty the esophageal opening was found,
and its clrcumferential tissues had con-
tracted so greatly that he could scarcely
force his little finger UP into the esopha-
SuS. vi SAdnuihiiS IHe eSopHaSuS care
fnlly he felt the end of the knife handle,
which had been caught by tilleauX
fold OF mucous membrane. On diSlodging
it with pair of forceps he found that the
blade had wounded the mucous membrane
in u number of places, which were still
bleeding. To these wounds he applied
styptics and pressure for thirty minutes,
when all bleeding stopped. The cut in the
stomach was then closed with silk sutures
and the abdominal wound closed in like
manner, thus completing the operation.
The patient is doing well but will not
be aole to indulge in water melon for six
weeks at least. The knife will be pre-
served by the hospital museum as a curl
OSitV