Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1894-02-09
ODD LAPSE OF MEMORY,
CASE OF A FARMER WHO THINKS
WITH ONE BRAIN HEMISPHERE.
Operation of Trephining Performed
on the Skull Results in a Queer
State of Affairs.

n MOST remarkable medical case
has originated at Keokuk:
~ Iowa, which is giving physi'
clans something to study
about. 1t is what some surgeons cal
Jacksonian epilepsy. The patient is P.
r. Turnbull, a farmer residing ut Pack.
wood, Iowa. When he came to Keokuk
he stated that he was thirty one years
old, and that when he was only ten
years old his brother accidentally
struck him on the back of the head
with an ax, fracturing the skull above
the right ear. He says he did not
suffer much from the wound until the
fall of 1891. Then he began to notice
numbness in the little finger of the
left hand. This numbness extended to
the other fingers us time wore on, and
finally his hand would experience
spasms of contraction. He lost con-
troll of the muscles to the extent of
paralysis. Finally his entire arm, the
left side of his neck and face, and his
left leg became involved, and in Sep.
tember, 1892, began series of terrible
epileptic fits. These became so fre.
quent and depressing that lately Turn
bull shot himself in the breast, but the
ball struck n RIB, doing no serious
harm.
Turnbull had wife and four chill
dren, and on account of his infrmity
so abused his family that his wife
secured divorce He was operated
upon by surgeons at n hospital there
Thursday and has so far recovered as
to relate some very queer things. The
operation consisted in removing the
skull in the vicinity of the old wound,
which was nothing but a scar. This
was trephined and section of bone
taken out. The bone was found to be
much thickened in front of the cut
made by the AK twenty-one years ago
and was spongy at the side. The
membranes of the brain were unusually
bull came out from under the in
fuence of an@sthetics and, opening
his eyes as one who had been sound
asleep, asked of the attendant, a Sister
of Mercy, in the hospital:
'Where am ~"
When told that he was in a hospital
his amazement was something sur
prising. He wanted to know how he
got there, why he was there, and in
reply to the explanations of the at
tendant seemed more dumbfounded
than ever. Then one of the operating
physicians recalled the story that
Turnbull had told of his accident
when a child, and of all he had said
concerning his ailment just previous
to the operation. Turnbull looked at
the physician moment in blank
amazement and then exclaimed:
why, I never saw you before in
my life!"
"Do you remember all those epilep-
tic fits?" asked the surgeon.
81 never had but two" replied
Turnbull, "and they were in Septem'
Der, 1892. Have you told my wife of
this?" asked Turnbull
He did not know that his wife had
secured divorce, and realizing that
fact the surgeon made an evasive
answer.
"My God, is she dead ~ exclaimed
the poor man. When assured that his
wife was alive he exclaimed: ''But
something might have happened worse
than death ~
Turnbull has returned to his home
in Packwood, but he cannot remember
a single thing that has happened since
September, 1892. He thought Har-
rison was still President, had not heard
of Clevelands election, nor of Boies's
defeat He has learned for the first
time that times are hard, as he spoke
of money being plenty and prices for
farm products high. The Worlds
Fair and its glories are myth to him.
Physicians explain the theory of this
phenomenon on the statement that
some people use one hemisphere of the
brain to the exclusion of the other,
and if some injury occurs to it the
other hemisphere is brought into ser
vice and old impressions are effaced.
There is no doubt that Turnbull will
be restored cured to his wife and
fsmily. Chicago Times.