The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1890-10-30
A MAN WITH A NEW SKIN.

Ahui"iA"s ShS A10h NhO Ndo oAluHSR
alive, returned to work ON the 18th
inst. His case is curious. AS an
illustration of the powers of modern
surgery, it will be talked about from
one end of the country to the other.
On Wednesday, July 80, Keller
fell into o steam vat at the Indian
apolis Veneer Works. He was tax
en- out as quickly as possibly, but he
had been scalded from the soles of
his feet to the middle of his chest.
One arm was all right, but the 9TH
er arm was blistered to the should
err. Huge blisters pulled up all over
the mans body and the fluid which
had exuded from the flesh to fill
them had been cooked to a Jelly.
In removing his clother great strips
Of the outside or scarf skin came off,
leaving exposed the true skin unz
derneath, cooked until it looked
like a parboiled lobster. His toes
and ankles were so bljstered and
swollen as to lose nearly all resem-
blance to human members.
As soon as his fellow workmen
git Keller out Of the vat Chey tele-
phoned for the company's surgeon,
DR.. Ralph Perry. There is. per-
haps, one chance in a thousand of
saving this man. said the surgeon
when he had looked at the burns.
He set to work, however, and
greesed Keller from top to tee with
a mixture OF linseed oil and lime wa
ter. Then he swathed the body in
cotton wadding, from which all pos
sibIe impurities and disease germs
had been removed by chemicals.
For two days and nights the case
hang without loss or gain. A tea
spoonful of brandy was given
every few hours. Then a change
came. Keller seemed to be chok-
ing. The throat became swollen,
but this swelling was checked. The
mans temperature rose little.
Fever set in. This gave great hope.
The next morning Keller asked for
something to eat, and actually ate
piece Of pie and drank some coffee.
The news of this shocked the sur
geon at first but he said:
81 guess We'll win this fight, for
man who can eat pie with no skin
on him has life enough left to grow
a new one"
When suppuration began great
care was taken to let out the pus at
every point. The first dressing took
three hours; the second still longer.
Five days were consumed in taking
of the bits of old skin, four hours
each day being spent with sthe for
ceps, scissors and scalpel removing
the skin layer by layer. Not piece
as big as a dime was forced. KEEL
lars pluck was marvellous. The raw
surfaces were dressed with an idor
form mixture and bandaged with
soft stuffs.
Meanwhile the swamps of South
Bend were being secured for two
pound frogs. A bushel basket. of
these were cleaned with a germicide
mixture and fed on pure food. The
raw surfaces of Kellar's body we're
tenderly washed with clean warm
water, then with peroxide of hydro
gen, which destroys puss. The ut
most cleanliness and wholesomeness
was insisted upon. Just before ap-
plying the frog skin the raw surface
was washed with weak solution of
corrosive sublimate. Everything
ready, the first frog was brought
out. With quick snip of the scis>
sors its spinal cord was severed at
the back OF the neck. Then the
loose, pearly white skin from over
the abdomen was quickly taken out
and thsust into a dish of water
which had been boiled, but which
was now merely warm.
In the water had been dropped a
little of the corrosive sublimate So
luton. Being cleansed, the skin
was cut up into bits abodt tenth
of an inch square and applied to
Kellar's body, inside in, outside out.
Powdered idoform was busted over
the GRAFT. which was sealed tiphtlv