The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-10-05
A HUMAN CRAZY QUILT.
SKIN UPON WHICH THE NAMES or
FRIENDS ARE TATToOED.

showed Her Gr0tituue ny Detac- /
ing Herself For Life with COIored |
MnrlSs-An Indian Woman PricIeh |
the TnttOOs Into the Skin-Fled |
Through the House burning !
Torch, and When ENtInguished |
Was FrightfulIy Chnrred.
Copyright. 1880.
New York, Oct "a human crazy quilt |
is a freak that p. T. Barnum would have
exchanged for his whole menagerie. In
his day this would have been impossible
But medical science has given us such a
curiosity. 1t is living and is one of the
wonders Of the world
The project of skin grating is as old
as medicine, but its successful carrying
out is within the memory of surgeons.
The leeches of the last generation were
sure that skin could be taken from one
body and placed upon another with sue
cess. How to do it they could not exactly
determine. In spite of their best efforts
the edges of the fish would not unite, and
in most cases the patient became fever
ish, sickened and died after the application
of the new pieces of skin. The percent
age of success was one case out of forty.
The use of the antseptic in its present
perfected state has made skin grating a
possibility Within the last sixty years
surgery has changed and progressed so
that problems that were thought abso-
lutely unsolvable are now simple as the
day. Pyaemla, septicaemia, erysipelas
and gangrene do not follow operations of
to-day.
Surgeons of to-day know that all opera
tons that take place beneath the skin
should be done in an antiseptic way. And
they are well aware that the fever, the
swellings the discoloration, the agony and
the death of patients of half a century
ago We're due to blood poisoning. Then
blood poisoning was disease little under
stood by the surgical world. and some
thing not considered in connection with
the operating table. If a patient, after
being operated upon, became feverish and
died. with spots developing with astonish-
ing rapidity upon the body, latent hu-
NOR was blamed and the surgeon con
soled the family by saying that In time
the patient would have died anyway from
the poison that was In his system.
Modern surgery goes on from triumph
to triumph. The operation of Transport
ing skin from one person to another is
such a simple one that It is not noted by
them except in medical statistics and is
rarely commented upon by the medical
fraternity, except when something Of ex-
traordinary interest in the case recalls It.
In a recent number of a medical paper
edited by DR.. George +. Shrady brief ac-
count is given of a young woman living
in California who has been operated upon
many times for skin grating successful
ly and who now lives as a curiosity in
the medical world.
This Young woman the 9th OF last
June was seriously burned along one en-
tire side of the body. She was lighting
the gas in her fathers home at dusk,
and had reached the chandelier In the hall.
1t was too high for her, and she stood upon
a chair Taking a match from several
that were in her hand, she scratched It
upon the sole of her shoe 1t was one Of
those poor matches that cannot retain
their birthstone. and the head flew off
lighted.
The girl had on a dress Of some light
stuff, and the lighted head Of the match
flew in her lap, instantly setting her
ablaze. The girl gave frightened scream
and clutched for the wall tipping over the
chair on which she stood. Down she fell
to the floor, but sprang to her feet and
fed across the parlor, with her dress
blazing up around her head.
The family were sitting down to sup
per- and a brother, who happened to be
and succeeded in extinguishing the flames,
but not until his sister was terribly burn
ed up the entire side.
When the surgeons were sent for they
found the girl moaning in great agony,
while to the shreds Of clothing torn from
her there hung pieces Of raw flesh, char
red black with the flames. Portions upon
the arm and leg were burned to the bone.
1t was thought the girl could not live
and morphine was given, as In most cases
OF burns, TO ease her dying moments. But
to their surprise, she became conscious
between the doses of morphine and con-
versed nationally with her family. She
expressed determination to get well, de-
plored the foolishness Of her accident, and
declared that, though suffering greatly,
she knew by her innermost feelings that
she was In no danger Of immediate death
Now there Is a medical law, unwritten,
II Is true, but acknowledged In every hos
pital, that patient cannot recover II
tWo-thirds of the surface of the body be
burned The functions of the skin are de-
stroyed sufficiently 20 prevent the system
from throwing off its impurities and the
shock, the suffering and the discomfort OF
having so large a portion OF the surface
Of the body charred are sufficient to pre-
vent a rally toward recovery.
But In this case the girls pluck insplr- |
ed the physicians with hope, and, though |
three-fourths Of the body was burned, /
they decided that she had a fighting /
chance for life There was nothing they |
could do but apply the usual remedies and 1
noursh the system and keep off fever and
delirium. But this they did Tor three /
weeks, working faithfully, and during the
fourth week she was we'll along towards
convalescence.
Doctors can do nearly everything but
when the skin is completely burned on
and the intervals between the open places
are too great to permit the skin TO stretch
across then there is only one alternative,
and that is skin grating. Until this Is done
there is a raw, ugly, exposed surface,
highly sensitive and open TO Infection OF
ali kinds. 1t may suppurate constantly or
exist as a ragged, open sore. Skin cannot
be placed upon II too soon.
When II became known that pieces OF
skin were needed TO patch out the exposed
surface upon the body of this plucky girl
rocrllIta 1gere not acarca- TrlendA fraelY |