The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-07-28
MODERN SURGERY.


A Famous SPECIALIST illustrates the Power
ofSIind over the IEody-it How Young
Woman Became tho Heal Victim OF n
lisiady and How She was Cared.
One of the most interesting .llustra-
hons of the power of the mind over the
body was related by Or. spitzka, the
well known alIenlst, at one OF the meet
ings Of the American Neurological As
ISOLATION. Every one has read with
sceptfctsm OF the apparent miracles
wrought by sacred relics in curing the
halt, the sick and the blind. Disciples OF
faith cures have sometimes produced
results In their patients which have
puzzled the most intelligent. These
cures, whenever they are real, are at
tributed by scientific men to the power
OF the mind over the body.
DR.. spltskh's story and the expert
ences OF Dr. Weir Mitchell. who is per-
tlaps the best known specialist In ner-
vous diseases in the country, show how
much the learned physicians rely at
times upon the imagination OF their pa
tlents
DE- spitzka declined for professional
reasons to repeat for publication the
story which he told the Neurological
Association: but here nre the facts.
A young woman OF good personal and
family history had access TO a medical
library and became deeply Interested In
the clinical history OF disease. She be-
came like the man In Jerome's Three
Men In Boat" who, after reading q
medical work. suffered In his own por-
son every disease described, except
housemalds knee.
DR.. sptEka's young woman confined
her Imagined allment to single disease
abdominal tumot. She became thor
oughly familiar with all the symptoms
Of this dreadful Halady and promptly
Imagined herself the Victim OF II. Her
aufferlngs were intense. and her friends
became convinced that her worst fears
were justified The physicians In at
tendance, however we're decidedly Bcop-
teal. Her youth and the absence OF cer-
tain proofs convinced them that the
case was one OF hysteria.
After exhaustlng all the usual means
the doctors determined 60 consent to
the performance Of a dangerous opera
ton for the removal OF the tumOr Tho
XIII ntThtll was NuhNlhllN llFlAl GU ANl
the operation for several days The
room In her own residence in which II
was 10 be performed was stripped OF
wall paper, carpet, and prepared with
hospital.likc cleanliness and baroness,
The surgeon with his assistants and
the trained nurses came upon the scene.
The girl was carried into the operating
room IN which. contrary TO the usual
practice, all the surgeonS' knives and
parnphornnlia were spread out In full
view Of the patient Tho physiclnng
nnd trained nurses stood around the
operating table upon which tho girl
lay. She was then carefully etheriEcd
Three hours later, when she was al
lowed to recover consciousness, she was
zoo weak 10 raise her hand She found
herself carefully stitched up with clnb.
crate and cumbersome surgconn' dress.
ings, and she knew that deep inclBlon
had bean made half the length OF her
body. She fcli the irritation Of th0
wound, ana the fading day told her that
she had been three or four hours under
tic Influence al ether perfectly uncon.
solous. She was thankful TO md her
self alive, although she felt Hike the
ghost N HERSELF
III two weeks the result was MI thnt
the clever physicians had anticipated
the was completely cured.
The specialist told her again and
again how remarkable was her escape,
aud requested M a privilege that he
might describe In her presence to hcy.
efal young phyBlclnns the operation
which had been performed, showing
them, at the same time, how completely
The wound had healed
The young woman consented " 90 TO