Wichita eagle., 1888-03-10

A Thrilling Contest Between Two Emf
nent Surgeons-Showing a scotchmar
What a Yankee Can Do-A Pretty Piece
of Surgical Work.
eyes, gentlemen, remember well the first
time saw Professor Wood, old Jimmy as
we used to call him for short, do the same
operation. 1t was during my first six months
service as inferno in this very hospital, and
the professor was at the head of our division
I was as full of book knowledge as treatise
on surgery then, but greener than grass with
the handle end of the knife"
The speaker was the professor of clinical
surgery in a leading medical college. He had
just completed, in the presence of large
class of students assembled in the amphthea-
ter Of Bellevue hospital, the difficult opera
ton Of amputating at the hip joint the leg of
one of the poor patients, who had been injured
by falling from scaffold
''Well, about that time Langenbeck. of
Berlin, described a modification Of the old
operation at the hip, and Dr. Wood was anx-
ious to perform it before his students. It SO
happened that DR.. Calender, the famous
for the purpose of taking peep into our hos
pital systems, and naturally he became the
guest of DR.. Wood, who was a crusty old
bachelor and had an office on Irving place.
"Callender was q true type of the canny
Scotchman, with q brogue that caused the
boys to smile every time he addressed them.
"For week he attended all the lectures
and clinics of the professor, and naturally, as
his assistants, we were trying to do our pref
test.
''One Friday afternoon-Saturday being
our main operating day-thc professor came
in alone, and before going the round Of the
wards, as was his custom, he asked:
"'What have you got for tomorrow
"'There is plenty of material, professor
was the reply; almost anything you like
"'Thats good. Glad to hear it. Looks
like business the professor remarked Ia
conically
"'By the bye, DOCTOR he presently re-
sumed, besides our regular work / should
like to have two operations that are exactly
alike. Can it be donen
"The surgeon informed him that in ward
eight there were two poor fellows who
awaited his skillful hand to release them Of
their legs, which had been alangled beyond
the hope Of cure.
1.-THE old gentleman's eyes frightened, and
forgetting that he was bit stiff, he jumped
up and exclaimed: How fortunate. doctor:
such excellent luck. Have them all ready
for tomorrow and I'll show him something
that viii make him think little more of the
ability OF American surgeons than he does
nowr
ut was Greek to US and nobody knew what
he meant
Half an hour before the clinic the pro-
fessor, accompanied by Dr. Calender, arrived
at the hospital. Dr. Wood wore a white waist
coat, and the ever present red rose drooped
from the lapel of his Prince Albert.
DR.. Calender and Will each do one Of
the amputasions at the thigh, just to see how
quickly it can be done he said carelessly.
Instantly we grasped the situation and
the remark of the previous day became en-
tirely clear. He was going to show the
Scotchman that he could even do an opera
ton quicker than the reports gave him credit
for if he was mind to, and the glum, dreamy
of his eye showed that he meant
to lay himself out.
when the first case was brought UP DR..
Wood rose, and grasping DR.. Calender by
the arm, led him over to the table and asked
him to proceed. We had everything pre-
pared, and was just applying the bandage
sitter having removed the other dressings.
when DR.. Calender took the knife in hand
and began the operation. Exactly twenty
three minutes after he made the first ircision
be tied the femoral and sat down, leaving US
to attend to the minor details
The professor watched his Scotch col |
league and followed every stage Of the opera
ton with great interest As soon as we GOT |
the patient down stairs had the other one |
brought up from the ward He was already |
etherized, like the first one, and it onlv ~ |
quired moment or two to empty the ar |
feries and compress the big vessels, and men. |
tally called time
DIR. Wood picked out his favorite double /
,dSed amputatinC knife. hcbbled over to the