Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1899-10-13
SILK SAVED BABY'S LIFE
Screw Removed From Its Stom-
ach With the Raw Product.
CAUGHT IN THE FINE STRANDS.

DIR. barney of brooklyn Had the
Child swallow the Thread with "a
Mixture OF bread aud MIX Kept
Hold of One End-ChIId Now Fully
Recovered.
What + said TO be case without n
precedent IN the history OF medicine II
the saving Of a Brooklyn chlld's life
10y removing a metal screw from its
stomach by means of raw silk, which
food, says the New York Times. The
operation occurred a few weeks ago.
but IL became generally known only
the other day.
The child in question Is the only
daughter of parents who live in re-
duCed circumstances In Second street
near Fifth avenue. The father belongs
10 one Of the best known families In
Brooklyn. He had a falling out with
his relatives and has had TO make a
living as best he could since. Among
other things he has done little car
One day while the father was out
and the mother was engaged in house
work their baby daughter, playing
about the rooms, dragged to the floor
her fathers working coat, which hung
on the back of a chair, and brought
forth from one Of its pockets some
screws and nails. One of the screws,
an inch and half long the baby put
into its mouth. The mother looked at
the child just At that time She be-
came greatly alarmed and ran TO tho
bahy'S side to get tho screw away. The
little one became frightened and swal-
lowed 1t. The mother put her finger
down the child's throat in an effort to
get hold of the screw. She could not
reach it. Then she held the child
downward by the feet and slapped it
on the back. The screw would not he
dislodged.
Then the mother ran TO the Office OF
DR.. George ID. Barney, II block and
half away. She was wildly excited
and wanted to take the child at once
to n hospital and have an operation
performed.
DR.. Barney realized that 1t was nee
essary to think and act promptly. A
surgical operation on the child he knew
would greatly endangcr its life. He
looked around his office. and his eyes
rested upon some raw silk In his bag,
used in tying arteries. This silk is
very fine, yet very strong.
ut dawned upon me like a fash"
said Or. Barney the other night. that
/ might save the little ones life with
that raw silk. which is as fine as n
cobweb. believed the screw had not
yet reached the illioseQuel valve and
that could get the silk into the chld's
stomach before the screw had chance
to leave 1t.
II caught up the bag and hurried
with the mother around to her rooms.
Then took number of the fine
strands and mixed lot of the stuff
with some bread and milk. The bread
was crumbled fine, and Just enough
milk was used to make n paste. The
other ends Of the silk I kept In my
hands. Then we set to work TO get the
baby to swallow the mixture. We had
some trouble to get her to do so, but
at last she consented. She did not
relish the stuff, but managed TO swal-
low it by great effort.
Il counted that when those fine fibers
Of silk got into the Child's stomach
the revolving or paristolic action would
weave whatever matter was there and
that the screw would become tangled
with the silk. / allowed the silk to
remain down eight minutes. Then
began to pull slowly. 1t was hard
pull. The silk came up for a short
distance, and then there was n stop.
l began to pull again. The child made
an effort to vomit, and this aided mo
in withdrawing the silk. Then to my
great satisfaction l found the screw
In the center of the bolles or mass Of
food and imbedded in the fbers of the
silk l had drawn from the child's
stomach"