Kansas City daily journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1892-1897, 1896-03-12
WHO DISCOVERED 1T.
CLAIM THAT DB. CRAWFORD W. LoSG
FIRST ustD ANEsTnEriCs.
\ Monument TO Iorsce weis. Dent st Of
Hartford. says lie was the Discov,rcr--
Interesting Pact. Regarding Dr.
Long and tits Claims.

! From the Atlanta Constitution.
some children az play attracted the at
| tenuon Of Dutch spectacle maker and ht
gave to the world th, telescope.
caught the eye OF Q young Italian and tc
! that We owe The pendulum clock.
The cagctness OF an English boy 10 ioir
his companions at play sharp ned his wits
ana Win piece 81 string he revolution zed
the steam engine
And the discovery which has done more
Than all else IN the world TO relieve sufIet-
ing humanity was due 20 q young Georgia
ihysicans propensity FOR fun.
The recent discovery OF an old letter
and the statements Of a. living witness
furnish fresh and convincing cviGence on a
many years.
In tn state capitol hanPine In recess
between tn" scnat. chamber and the hell
q tbe house. Is q portrait of pr Crawford
W. Long. An inscription on q plate at
taehed 70 the frame SAYS that lbr Long
va ne cisCoNcrer cf ether anesthc ia
and that he first used IL In an operation
on james Nenable IN March. 1872
ed to the memory Of HoraSs Wells a dsnt-
ist and an inscription states that he was
the discoverer of uncsthcsia. Wells US. 4
hltrous oxide in the extraction Of teeth,
but did not employ II uutil December. iSH,
two years and a half after pr Long had
tried u successfully.
w r. 9 Morton and charles T Jack
son, OF Boston. also claimed credit Of
hst applying an anesthctic In surgery
Jackson correspOndcd with br Long.
ana finally came tc Gaortia TO confer with
him. After the Interview. jackson stated
that he was convinced that Dr Long was
ia" irst TO use ether in surgery. The dis
Cussion over the original discovery lasted
tor years. ana even to-day credit is some
20 others. but the evidence l. incontestibie
That lr. Long was the original discoverer.
Much Of the doubt which long enshrouded
II Longs claim was cleared NJ by Dr.
Marion 7. Sims, Of New York and nr.
Luther H. GfHndy. OF Atlanta. br. Graudy
has refutud some mistakes which Dr. Sims
n hoe HFfl ma. a
the claim Of Dr. white. OF south caro-
INA, 70 having suggested to pr. Long the
ldta OF applying sulphuric ether be fore Will
bite knew him. White was student in
Or Longs. office at Jefferson in the latter
In Boston there is a monument erected
TO the discoverer OF anesthesia.' but there
Us no name on u, because when the shaft
was erected the honor was in dispute
At one time there was n bin in congress
providing for the appropriation OF slcpuno
.H we Ilsc3Neier This hi was never
lhg IN hghtng the claim Of Morton, who
WAS after the appropriation.
torlc discussion. but rather with the cir
Gums tancts which preceded the discovery.
was made for IA letter when pr Long
remembered 10 have written in February
NJ ordering the very ether which he used
the way. was the uncle of Mcssrs. W H.
and sam Ncnabla of Atlanta. The letter
young clerk in Athens. but Tor for many v
years a merchant here in Atlanta and now
IrliItI from business MI Goodman re-
hr had saved It but could not nnd 1t among
ms papers. After conducting "a successful
he removed 10 oregon on thc Pacific coast.
IN the course 0i few years he returned
oyerhaulinr of hi papers. some STS' Old i letters @
came to the TOP and one day his daughter
the letter from Or. Long, now nearly half
century old.
story OF the manner Ia which IN. discov-
cry OF anesthcsia came 20 hc made bur
10 get 10 the story % b. best 20 go away
has X las the drivyr OF Holy Moses would
Crawford Long was born In Daniclsylle,
Madison county, ia, November 7, lNli.
family. probably William N. crawford
lie graduated at the University OF Georgia,
he " MT to Philadelphia 10 attend lectures
aui study medicine AZ the jefferson Alcdi-
lSsa Ths students tfert used sibnr tor ~
tNhllarating effects and they probably used
IN lazlnE new students. a an events:
fun some would laugh ana dance ana
sing, Others would be depressed and some
enccts On dnercnt persons. Tho young
men had great sport in administering u o.
each other. After graduating al tha JEFF
forson Medical college. Long remained "A
Jatal and plifsuing lis stuiitsS In III H.
son, now the county seat of Jackson
county. about thirty miles from Athens ana
Jefferson was very small village al that
ilmr ana the country was sUdT=fly popU-
igihE ume, Amons the young men ~ the
place "a that tim" We're r. H. Goodman.
james 7. McLesler, Henry T Peoples,
Peoples ana James Neuahle. These youue
men We're personal friends ana were thrown
ws age, " soarse and and the younE a laSe Ps5
p.r hat 20 teprni upon their own origiu-
young doctor with his diploma his city
" tys and his superior education was quite
an event e the community When he in-
iro iucei the ether experiments h- created
z sensation. The young men of the village
took the drug and thought il rare sport
q before The girls. The girls enjoyed see
!nr %" antics OF the victims no less than
plain ana ihe whole thins was Vas a ~ great a
my stsry, but he gradually let others INTO
r. ,.ersI ana one 81 NJ hrst was his IN
IN January, lNi. Goodman moved to
A Attgus, and became clerk IN the store of
The clerk introduced the ether amous tho
Young folks Of Athens, ana would aGmiuis-
Ter II o. The boys OF the town and the stu-
tents ot Franklin college. Tho drug crsat-
'i sensation IN Athens, as il had done in
SAYS Thar he had "a great deal OF fun' mn 1
here was one subject 10 whom he admins
ereG The ether whom he viii never forget.
That was Bon Perley Moore, aftCrward "A /
amous journalist and reporter Of the
Fitted States senate. just as the drug was
akiuE eject on ioGTe. he shot 0at his
light hand yigiously ANA landed on Good I
mans nose. PDore showed other ~ ideuces
n "a desire 10 fight. and hr had to he over
powered. fuoTe was then editor Of m.
athens Nhig. tie had come South through I
he Hiuencc of an uncle. who was living ,
"a Athens Fuorr remained TWO or three
.eiTs and went hack North.
About month after he had arrived In
Athens. Mr.. GOODMAN received a letter I
rom his friend, Long, asEius him 10 send .