Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-28

cause of science, for which did not hesitate to
attempt startling experiment, and in which
was
ALMOST COMPLETELY SUCCESSFUL
may ever profit by my experience. unless you
see fit to make this public at sonc time when
its authorship can no longer be connected with
my sudden death. But the circumstances by
which was led TO attempt what had hitherto
been regarded as an impossible feat of surgery,
and the strange consequences of my audacity.
may, whep discreetly divulged by you, serve as
warning at least to some of my fellow inyesti-
gators. ss-
You remember my pet chimpanzee, and how
shed tears, TO your intense amusement, when
poor Bob was buried. You thought | threw
him out to be bauled away by the otfal con-
tractors like SO much street refuse. But his
skeleton. neatly articulated by his masters
hands, Is in sight as write these last words to
you. L couldn't bear to part with him, so
headed him up in barrel of quicklime in the
closet back of the college dissecting room and
then boiled his bones until they were as clean
as the paper 1 write on For Bob and owned
between us a secret, a terrible secret, OF which
you are henceforth the only other whiting. II
you come here. as 1 should like for you to do
and get Bob's skeleton. you will hnd missing q
section of the parietal bone.
CUT INTO HIS BRAIN.
His skull was mutilated by design, not acci-
dent and it is that thought which even now
chums ever since 1 bought him from Congo
trader down on a South street wharf. He was
a little begger then, but quite like little
man" we used to say. When got to drinking
laudanum L got to giving it to Bob. for fun.
and when cut into the poor beasts brain, as L
fondly imagined in the interests of science, he
was on my table clean stupefied from dose l
had wantonly persuaded him to take.
We had been talking brain-Crafting at the
clinic, W-n, SIS and 1. and were just
about TO put away our working clothes and go
home when there came knock at tine door and
without waiting to be asked, in walked Mary,
the match girl. You know she has been
familiar figure about the college for years, and
was considereda \ sort of privileged character.
Do you know why she has disappeared? will
tell yon. W--n and SIS had already taken
of their aprons and were discussing how we
should get Bob home, when Mary, who had ad-
vanced toward us with her basket on her arm,
table and sprang backward with an exclama-
tion of fright
DEATH OF THE MATCH GIRL.
1t was her frst-and last view Of Bob. AS
she jumped back her feet struck against the
table leg and she fall sprawling toward the
stationary iron washstand. As she lay motion
less, we ran TO help her, and picked her up.
But she seemed quite limp, and when we light
ed the gas, we found blood on our hands. Her
head had come ID contact with the edge of the
stand and a'compound fracture of the parietal
bones of the skull was the result. the force of
the blow having been SO severe as to depress
the fractured bone to an alarming extent.
We laid her on the table and set to work at
once 10 raise and cut away the depressed
bone. A button of the brain substance fol-
lowed the trephne, protruding from the open
ing and showing such congestion that we hast
lily cut away a larger area of the bone and
found that the brain itself had been injured
severely and one or two Of the upper parietal
our hands now than we had ever dreamed. but
we couldn't stop; there was no time to call for
assistance. Jagged piece of bone had almost
severed considerable portion of that con-
formation which controls the motor nerves of
the right side. / proposed that we cut the IN
jured portion. of The brain away and nobody
dared opposeShe audacious suggestion.
AN OPPORTUNITY AT LAST.
Like fash as we bent over the girls uncon-
scious form it came to my mind that now had
at hand the long-coyeted opportunity to try
brain graft. Where was the other subject
Why-Bob, stretched there himself uncon-
scious ready for the sacrifice. Ileft the two
others bending over Mary, cleansing the wound
and preparing the sutures and almost as quick
as had come the, thought followed the deed.
opened Bob's skull and laying bare that por-
tion of his brain corresponding. removed by
few deft strokes enough to replace what had
been cut away from the brain OF the match
girl.
My brain was on fire with the craze to try
great surgical experiment. Hot from the skull
of the chfmpanzee the severed brain matter
was skillfully placed in position in the skull of
the girl. and when, in half an hour plate had
been superimposed and the scalp replaced and
sewed over the drainage tube the girl positive
ly seemed to be at ease. 1t wasn't any trouble
TO have her moved across the street
TO THE HOSPITAL,
and when we said she had fallen and hurt her
head, and that we had dressed the wound,
there was nobody to ask any awkward ques-
tions. SIS and W-n took turn about
visiting her ward for awhile, but there
never seemed to be any obstacle to
her speedy recovery. She was out on the street
well enough to talk noticed as 1 stood with
W--n by her cot that she raised her right
arm toward her mouth and rolled her eyes
slightly, as if in mockery of gesture of
WIS, you know he has slight attack of
St. Vitus' dance at times. He didn't notice it;
butsI did, and was thrilled with an awful inter-
est as remembered-Bob!
After that watched with morbid eagerness
for a temperance of this symptom. It never
failed to show itself When no one else was
present 1 permitted her, she, poor. thing. all
the time unconscious. to initiate my gestures as
she chose. The nurse whispered to me that she
thought 'Door Mary would never be herself
again." she thought she was crazy.
ALWAYS READY TO INITIATE.
But when Mary did begin to talk. at last she
conversed nationally. 1t was only when her
eyes rested on me that she seemed smitten by an
uncomfortable impulse TO initiate the move
ments of my right hand and at last my Intona-
tion even. was horrifed and conscience
stricken, and l left town. When returned
she had been discharged from the hospital and
no one knew what had become of her
/ saw her this afternoon in an Avenue
street car. The conductor had his hand ex-
tended for her fare and she was in the act of
taking it from her purse when her eyes en-
countered mine. A change instantly came
over her demeanor. With horrible exact
reproduction of the mans voice and gait she
rose from her seat, and with her eyes liked on
mine-they seemed to burn into my brain-she
walked toward me, ringing all the time on an
imaginary bellpunch and leaning over me
asked, all the while with the conductors hard
voice: Fare, please-and who will pay for
poor BobT'
like madman and that am now about to do
a madman's deed? J.P.B