The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1892-1907, 1896-02-22
FRIEND TO MANKIND.
WILLIAM G. ROBINSON, WHO IS DYING
IN WASHINGTON.

he IL Know. - the savior al nAbiss.'
Has Devised IN Appliance 10 Cool Fever
Pasisuts-rryins to secure . Patent to
Help His Family.
William g. Robinson. called the
"Savior Of Babies" because Of bis IN
vention, the incubator. il dying In wash
ington.
There is being tested in the New York
hospital one Of his inventions when
may Be of far greater service to human
ity than the incubator. 1t is contriv-
ance to lower the temperature and
thereby save fever patients. II has been
very successful in its operation. II the
dying man should by great good fortune
recover, his future wealth would be A.
sured.
When Robinson went to the New
York hospital ono day last summer to
get one Of his incubators introduced at
that institution, he noticed fever pa
tient in one Of the wards. They were
using the old time method to cool this
patients temperature. There was step
ladder at the head Of his cot, and ON the
top Of it was water pail with piece
Of ice in it. A rubber tube over the side
Of the pail. descending. entered rubber
bag that rested on the patients breast
Another tube was arranged 20 as to car
~ OF the water from the bag into a
waste pail at the bedside. Robinson was
interested.
He asked the doctors about it, and
they told him that the continuance was
often failure and left great room for
Improvement. II the patient suddenly
turned over. he was apt to bring the pail
Of water down ON himself. Then. too.
the water in the pail was likely to run
out before the nurse could be aware that
the bucket was empty. and the condition
Of the patient would be seriously jeopar-
died by the sudden stoppage Of the cold
application.
The inventor went back to his little
tinsmith shop in East Twenty sixth
street and built a eontrivance that
should furnish steady dow Of cold wa
ter. To minimize the labor and prevent
the sudden checking Of the stream be
used the same water over again.
He built frame Of brass rods about
8 feet high. Two copper cy finders capa-
BILE Of holding ten gallons each were
placed on sliding rods in vertical posi-
ton. and by an arrangement Of chains.
weights an6 pulleys the cylinders were
made to balance one another. While
one, filled with water. is at the top.
just above the patients head, the other
rests ON the floor below The top one is
filed with ice water and raised by the
turning Of a crank ut the side. Rubber
tubing passes from it down into d
worm, which is a great improvement
over the rubber bag of the doctors.
After the water has circulated through
the coils Of the worm" that lies on tn.
patients body, it passes into the Lower
cylinder. As soon as that cylinder get
full it is raised to the top and emptie
itself in turn into the other one, whicl
has been lowered.
This invention has been used for
month at the New York hospital. and i
has saved many patients and much trou
BILE to nurses.
Robinson went to Washington for tn
sole purpose Of getting patent on thi
machine. He had made nothing fror
his incubators and thought that it wa
time to try TO reap some pecuniar
benefit from his work for himself an
his family of three little children.
He filed his application at the pater
office and was arranging to return HON
when he became very ILL The doctor
said he had consumption in an advance
stage and held out small hopes Of b
recovery.
So his wife was called to his bedsid,
But the fate Of his patent and what
means to his family is his one though
New York Journal.