The Portland daily press., 1897-05-19

NASNPtNA' lCClH are NOW made nc
such perfection that, while deceiving the
eye to admiration, they are almost as
good as real ones for chewing. But the
most wonderful thing accomplished by
the dental surgeon is the transplantation
of teeth. He can actually take a good
fresh drawn tooth from the month of
one person and plant it in the Jaw Of
another, so that it will grow and be to
all intentS and purposes as good as if it
had sprouted originally in its new situa-
ton A satisfactory connection with the
old nerve is established. the fortunate
fact being that nothing in the body unites
more readily than nerve tissue.
The transportation of bones is another
triumph of the new surgery. Where a
human bone has become diseased or other
wise damaged beyond repair, it can be
replaced under reasonably favorable con-
ditions by bone taken from an animal.
Only the other day the leg bone of a
child in New York city was made good
in this way by a bone from the leg of a
dog. Rough on the dog, one may say,
but that point is not considered seriously
in questions of human life and health.
The nose is an organ liable to damage, land
various diseases attack it and impair its
beauty. Where the bridge of that organ
has fallen in, or has been destroyed, it
has been found practicable to put in an
artificial bridge of chicken bone. Some
times gold or platinum is preferred as
fI,n al ha 4,
methods being followed, the flesh heals
over the new bridges without irritation
and thus life is made worth living once
more.
The eye being one of the most import
ant organs of the body it is lucky that
medical science knows so much about it.
In fact, knowledge of the eye comes ex-
tremely near to being an exact science
The conditions of civilized life do not
seem to suit the eye, and the conse-
quence is that comparatively few people
go through life without some trouble
with their sight. Nearsightedness be-
comes more prevalent with every genera
ton
Every now and then one reads in the
newspapers about the transportation of
an eye from rabbit or some other ami
NAL to the empty eye socket of a human
being. Invariably the result is stated to
have been great surgical triumph. AS
a matter of fact however, the person thus
treated gets no sight; it is all fake and
nonsense. The thing has been tried over
and over again, but always without sue
cess, because no animals eye is just like
mans in size, shape and structure. If
human being could be persuaded to give
up a healthy eye for the benefit of another
individual, there might be a success and
a renewal of vision, through uniting of
the old optic nerve with the new one
But it would be extremely problematical
at the best. There is no future ahead in
that direction. The development of
modern knowledge respecting the eye is
due primarily to the ophthalmoscope-
simple disc shaped mirror with hole
through the centre, by means of which
the physician is enabled to look into the
organ and examine it's interior. He can
even get glimpse of the gray matter of
the brain by gazing through the little
canal through which the optic nerve en-
tiers the brain from the eye
Deformities nowadays are almost I'M
necessary, so many of them are durable
with the aid of modern surgery There
is reason why anybody should be cross
eyed; a simple operation cures that
When person is very cross eyed, it
means that he has the sight of only one
eye; but the vision of the blind eye can
be restored perfectly under ordinary cir
cumstances, by the operation aforesaid
No excuse exists wherefore anyone should
have club foot in these times, Or hand
disabled. 1t is nearly always
practicable to remedy such defect in
childhood by surgical treatment, an d
there are plenty of charitai lie institu-
tions to which even the poorest may apply
for assistance of the kind Doctors are
apt to be glad enough to have the oppor-
tunity of practice. The humpback today
is almost an anachronism, inasmuch as
this dreadful affection, due to inherited
disease, is removable by suitable means.
The sufferer from this trouble, or from
lateral curvature of the spine, is wrapped
in folds of crinoline saturated with moist
plaster paris, hanging by the hands
from bar meanwhile, and the jacket
thus formed and renewed at interva Is
makes the backbone straight.
1t is unfortunate that the ear is not
open to inspection like the eye, its inter
nal arrangements being unapproachable
usually 1t is impossible even to investi-
gate the organ satisfactorily after death,
for the reason that the parts collapse at
once when the vital spark leaves the
body. The drum in living person bars
the way to observation, and, even though
it be pierced, the winding passages be-
yond cannot be seen through. On the
further side of the drum are three little
bones, the ''mallet, ''anvil' and ''stir-
rup, )" which act on each other as levers.
The vibrations of air which strike the
drum are conveyed by these bones to a