The weekly intelligencer., 1896-06-06
FURNISH LEGS FOR THE WORLD.
American Makers supply Foreign Nations
with Artificial Limbs.


world are walking on American feet:
| There were five at least sent from this
city the other day"
1t was an old sailor talking to n re-
porter. Although he walked with a lit
tie stiffness, no one would have sus-
pected that he had lost Il leg in the serv-
ice of the United States.
''It is the truth" he continued, earn
cstly, that large proportion of the ar
tificial legs with which Unfortunates like
| myself are managing to get along very
comfortably are made i'll the United
States. The matter is naturally of con
siderable interest to Inc, and l have
mede quite a study of it. Grewsome
subject? Not a bit of 1t. You have
never thought there was anything grew
some about old Peter Stuyvesant when
you have seen him in pictures and stat
uary and even on souvenir spoons, his
peg leg always the most conspicuous
feature. 1t is those old peg legs from
which we of later generation have been
delivered, and, i'll great part, through
Yankee ingenuity. They have found
traces of artificial legs way back in the
B. G. period, but it is only within the last
20 years or so that we have had anything
that could be used with any degree of
comfort.
MY Uncle Nehemiah used to wear a
wooden leg. That was long before 7
ever thought it would be my fate to
wear one. / remember more about the
leg than about Uncle Nehemiah. In
fact, l think he had left this world be-
fore 1 was old enough to know much
about him, but he had left his wooden
leg behind, and it was a never-failing
source of fun to us boys. Such things
were made with strong springs then.
AS the wearer stumped around with it
the spring would work each time the
leg was raised, throwing the foot one
step forward. 1t made good play
thing We don't have such monstrosi-
ties now.
1.-THE artificial limbs in this country
have been, as 1 said, brought to such n
state of perfection that they are sent
all over the world. There is one estab-
lishment uptown where they have
nearly the whole of one side of large
room covered with frames full of en-
Ielopes of letters they have received
from customers in foreign countries
The collection is unique. The post
marks are often difficult to make ont,
but you can find envelopes from Buda-
Pesth, Yokohama, and Auckland, New
Zealand; Port Elizabeth, South Africa;
Cape of Good Hope, Chilli and Australia.
A leg was sent to japan last month to
a Col. Soto, who had lost a leg in the
Chinese-Japanese war. He sent to
America through Count o. kuma, a
japanese nobleman, and a customer of
the same firm. That company sends out
an average of five artificial legs day.
"Oh, yes, there is always u demand
There are more unfortunate persons in
the world than you think, though they
have not SO much to complain of now.
There are always more or less accidents.
According to statistics, war claims the
greatest number of victims, railroads
come next, and then there are disease,
runaways, firearms, cold weather and
any number of other things. The largest
per cent. of those to whom accidents
occur are men. Only % per cent. are
women. Those narrow-toed shoes make
difference in the manufacture OF
American feet. The artificial foot is
made for pretty shoe, and the natural
foot has to match it as best it can.
Vanity? There's any amount of it,
Did l tell you about the poor old
colored woman? Some one who was
interested in her had ordered the best
kind of an artificial leg that could be
made- The manufacturers naturally
made it of a dusky hue, and the poor
old creature didn't like it at all. She
10 f,,I ,,-I.4
mems in the window. and she wanted to
be at least part white, when she could as
well as not. She sent her leg back, and
it was made white.
"There is no attempt made to make
natural flesh tint. When an artificial
hand is used it is worn with n glove.
If the tint could be made right in the
first place exposure to the atmosphere
would soon change It. Hands are not
SO much in demand anyway. They are
often valuable to laborers, as hook
can be placed in the palm and used to
carry heavy loads. An economical man
has a hook that can be placed in the
end of the artificial wrist, and he puts
aside his hand for Sunday wear.
There are artificial fingers, too, that
a musician can use, but they are com
raratively expensive. These are of rub
Der, and can be used very we'll for play
ing. One of the improvements is in
using rubber. The feet are made of it,
and they give with an elasticity that is
more like the human foot than anything
else can be.
Il have seen the picture of a man who
could walk tight rope with wooden
leg. He lost his natural leg by falling
from Il balloon onto a church steepIe
shouldn't advise everyone to expert |
ment with tight rope walking, how
ever.
There was an eminent jurist, whose
name is not unfamiliar to people around |
here, who, when he had had drop too |
much of wine, WAS in the habit of un-
fastening his wooden leg and cudgeling
everyone within reach as heavily as he |
did his legal opponents with his wits |
in the courtroom on his sober days.
n. Y. Times,