Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-11-15
TREPHINING A LION.
AN INTERESTING OPERATION THAT
PROMISES TO BE SUCCESSFUL.

tie Was Bitten In the Head by an Enraged
Lioness-Part of His Skull Pressed on
His Brain - How the Operation Was
Performed.
The young lion Of the Hagenbeck show
that was so desperately wounded by lion
ess Il few days since at Atlanta has been
successfully operated upon and the dcpres-
sion Of the skull lifted from the brain of
the animal. The operation was one that
required not only skill in the use of the
knife, but nerve on the part of the sur
geOns who worked so dangerously near the
jaws of the lion
In Il room Of the livery stable of Mr..
Vandyke the lion was placed, and while
several strong men held the tortured beast
Drs. ii. &. and W. +. Carnes performed
the operation. The lion has been in a
comatose condition for several days and
suffered many commissions during the tire
the skull was pressing against the brain.
At times he was wild and would tear his
flesh with his claws, and then again he
would be as docilo us a child and could not
be aroused from the restless sleep into
which he had fallen. His keepers daily
expected the lion to die, as the skull had
been tlattencd out until more than "a
square inch of bone pressed hard against
the brain.
One day recently the lion was savagely
attacked by Il lioness that occupied an adj
joining cage. She lion was eating his
,,ct ,.c -
lioness reared against the wooden partition
separating tLo cages. The lioness threw
her whole weight againstShe light parti-
ton, and with crash the Infatuated beast
ana partition fell into the cage occupied
by the yCung lion. Tho lioncss bounced
upon the lion with all the fury that is pc
culiar to that class of animals. The lion
WAS taken completely by surprise and was
ut n great disadvantage. As ne turned
with grOwl to see what had caused the
partition to fall he was caught in the wide
open mouth Of the lioncss and fearfully
bitten. The lioness leapcd up into the air
and fell upon her prey. She caught his
head in her mouth and closed down upon
it. The fangs penctrattS the thick hide,
and the skull sank beneath the pressure.
The lion was hardly able to stand and
could but stagger about the cage in II
daZed way. IN Il few minutes after tho
attack he was seized with commissions.
His manner was pitiable and he would
writhe in agony, then, lGaping up, would
fall from weakness. His feet would be
drawn close up to his body, and his tail
dashed fearfully against the bars. As he
writhed upon tho floor he would claw at
everything that came in reach. Catching
the iron bars, he would almost wrench
them from their places. His claws were
completely torn from the flesh on one foot,
and he frothed ut the mouth
Dr. CarncS, the veterinary surgeon, was
called in and requested to make an exami-
nation of the lion and see if there was any
possibility Of his life being saved. DR..
Carnes thoroughly examined the wounds
and found that his skull had been badly
indentGd, and that it was resting upon the
brain. There was but one way in which
death could be prevented, and that was by
trephining his skull and lifting the de-
pressed bone and relieving the pressure.
AS last resort this operation was decided
upon.
The lion was placed on the table arrang-
ed for him. The animal was suffering in
tensely and was in dangerously bad HUI
NOR. Occasionally he would growl say
agely and open his jaws and snap at those
who were nearest him. A number of
gllstening instruments were taken from
leather case and placed on a chair. A pan
OF warm water was secured, and sponges
were at hand. A bottle of ether and
chloroform was poured into a wad of cot
ton, and the cotton was placed under the
nose Of the lion. His feet were securely
tied with ropes, and he was held firmly
upon the table by several strong men.
When the first fumes of the ether were in
hailed, the lion made strenuous efforts TO
tear himself away. He roared and snorted
and kicked with all his might, but he was
held down upon the table. For nearly 30
minutes the ether was held under his
nose. He resisted the sleep giving COM
pound, but gradually fell into an easy and
peaceful sleep. His pain was allayed, and.
like cat, he purred and snored, while
the surgeons made ready.
As soon as the lion was thoroughly nm
der the influences of the chloroform, which
was administered by DR.. H. g. Carnes, the
operation was begun. 1t was necessary,
however, that great care be exercised in
giving the an@sthetic, as the lion was in
danger of dying from the effects of an
overdose.
DIR. w. e. Carnes first made V Incl
sion. The hide and skin of the lion were
very tough, and it was difficult to make
the incision. Gradually the flesh gave way
under the pressure from the knife and IT,
skull was laid bare. The fracture had oc-
cured on the right side of the head, and it |
was Just to the left of the fracture that the |
lnclsion was made. After the incision was |
completed the trephjne was inserted, and |
small opening was bored into the skull. |
Ihls was the most dangerous part of the J