The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1894-05-09
ChIOrOfOrm's Advent.

While the discovery of anpsthetics
in surgery was made by an American
it is claimed by three different men
yet the first use Of chlOrofOrm for
the purpose was made by DR.. after
ward Sir James, Simpson. In his res
olution TO discover some new and
unobjectionable agent to produce in
sensibility under the surgeons knife
he was bold almost to rashness. He
tried every new compound first upon
himself, and then with a few devot-
ed medical friends made further
tests of all such as seemed to promise
success.
In the year 1S47 especially he had
been working hard, holding, with
Professor Miller, Dr. Duncan and DR..
Keith, a sort of an9sthetic seance
every night after supper. So many
strange, unpleasant and more or less
dangerous mixtures were tried by
these gentlemen that one of them,
Professor Miller, made it his custom
to make a brief call at breakfast
time every morning in order, as he
would say cheerfully, to hear if any
of the experimenters of the evening
before were dead yet.
1t was one evening in November,
after having tried several other sub
stances with little effect, that DR..
Simpson bethought himself of a
small bottle of chloroform which he
had meant to try and which must be
somewhere about fireplace. A search
was instituted, and it was found I'M
der heap of waste paper.
1t was tried at once. Immediately
a delightful excitement seized upon
the doctors. Their talk became bril-
liant, mirthful and then positively
hilarious. Professor Miller, Mrs.
Simpson and one or two members of
the family who were present became
much interested in listening to the
doctors as they eXpatiated upon the
charms, qualities and agreeable eff
fects of the new fluid. Professor
Miller relates what ensued:
Suddenly there was a talk of
sounds being heard like those of
cotton mill louder and louder-a mo-
ment more, then all was quiet, and
then a crash.
ION awaking DR.. Simpsons first
perception was mental. This is far
stronger and better than ether, he
said to himself. His second was to
note that he was PROSTATE on the
floor, and that among the friends
about him there were both confusion
and alarm.
Hearing a noise, he turned about
and saw DR.. Duncan beneath a chair.
His jaw had dropped; his eyes were
staring; his head was bent half I'M
der him. He was quite unconscious
and was snoring in most deter
mined and alarming manner. More
noise still and much motion.
Then his eyes overlook DR..
Keith's feet and legs making valor-
GUS efforts to overturn the supper ia
BILE, OF more probably to annihilate
everything that was on it. l say
more probably, for frequent repeti-
tons of inhalation have confirmed,
in the case of my esteemed friend, a
character for maniacal and unre-
strained destructiveness under chic
reform in the transition stage"
1t is little wonder that Mrs. Simp-
son was alarmed. But the daring
doctors were eXtricated from among
the legs of chairs and tables and
soon recovered themselves and were
filed with triumph at the success of
their new anesthetic. When DR..
Simpson became Sir James Simpson,
he took for his motto "Victo Delore'
pain conquere0, which certainly
meant more and was more honor
ably earned than the notices of
most noblemen and noble houses.
Century.