The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-04-05
THE SUFFERERS BALM
DR.. Guthrie the Real Discov-
erer of ChlorOform.
HIS GRANDSON IN THIS CITY.
A Lethal Drug That Has Proven
Blessing to science in All Parts
Of the World.
HIS GRANDSON IN THIS CITY

{ Ossian Guthrie, of Chicago, one OF the
projectors Of the great Chicago drainage
canal and a grandson or the oiseoseIeF
OF chioroform. Was in the city yesterday
and left In the afternoon Tor Tacoma
where he lecfured on the canal before
the Chamber of Commerce and the COM
mercial club. In speaking OF the as
coyery OF chioroform by his grandfather.
Dr. SamGei Guthrie, of Sackets Harpor'
jefferson county. ~. Y, he said:
1.-The discovery was made early In the
year 1871 while my grandfather was az
work trying to find a cheap ana simple
way of making what was known as
Dutch liquid.
..Dr. Guthrie's attention had been called
to this liquid by Prof. Siliman. of Yale
university. and IL was TO the professor
that the doctor first sent MS cnloric
ether as he called it, to be tested. Prof.
Silliman sent walls 10 various OF ms med
icai friends. asking them TO use 1t ana
TO report to him.
"one of these friends, DIR. Ell Ives by
name. experimental for some time, ana
In the fall of 1881 administered 1t by In
halation 10 a consumptive patient with
what is now known to be the inevitable
fatal result. After this experience ply
sicians seemed to have given up testing
the drug. at any rate not much was
heard of ii until Is47. when j. Y Simp-
tention to it's anesthetic properties and
soon there was hot discussion as
to who was the discoverer. The honor
was claimed by Soubeiran, In France.
and also by the great German chemist
Liebig. Simpson, who had been so prom
inent in bringing it into notice. did not
put forward claim.
my attention being called to the con-
troversy, / well remembered seeing the
stuff about my grandfather's laboratory.
I had often dipped my finger into II and
tasted 1t, and remembered that among
the Sacket Harhor folk Ii was known as
sweet whisky and that the old gentle
man had sent some TO Yale TO be tested.
So I wrote TO the college and received
therefrom pamphlet containing the first
French mention of the drug, with an
other containing the first German men-
ton, together with copy of the Amer
lean Journal of Science and Art, widely
known as 'Silliman's Journal, published
in New Haven In 1851, and in which Prof.
Silliman described DR.. Guthrie's chloric
ether made from alcohol distilled from
chloride of lime, and which was identical
with the drug used by DR.. Simpson In
Scotland.
These facts were recognized by the
Jefferson County Historical society, for
which | was at work on a memorial OF my
grandfather. and on their seal is a design
representing DR.. Guthries stili together
with the figure of a man firing cannon
with the aid OF a hammer and punch
applied TO the touch-hole of the piece.
for you must know that the doctor, my
grandfather, was also the discoverer of
percussion powder as well as of chioro-
form"
The claims made by Mr. Guthrie on
behalf OF the honor due his venerated
progenitor have bean recognized by the
..Apothaker Zeitung OF Berlin. the home
of Liebig. by the London Chemist and
Druggist" and by the Chicago Medical
society.
Mr.. Guthrie was in Portland last week
and there saw a surgical operation per-
formed upon a patient who was under
the influence OF the anesthetic. the effects
of which he of all men now living. was
the first to experience.