Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1900-02-08
TRIUMPH IN SURGERY.
Charles G. Baker Has a Chisel Cut
From His Head.

his home in Waynesboro, Pa. after
having undergone the experience of
having a chisel driven like an arrow
into his head by an accident and then
having it removed after nearly three
months by skillful surgical opera
ton.
Mr.. Baker, as has been related in
The Sun, was employed in the shops
of the Geiser Manufacturing company,
at Waynesboro. He was operating a
machine in which We're two steel CHS
els, each So inches long, l inch wide
and Il inch thick, which were rapidly
revolved by steam power. One day
about four months ago the workman
was found unconscious near the ma
chine, from which both chisels had
been thrown with terrific force while
the machine was in operation. One
chisel was found on the floor Of the
shop: the other one was missing. Mr..
Baker had two wounds in his face, one
over the bridge Of his nose and the
other under his chin. Each had severed
a blood vessel and the man was nearly
exhausted from loss of blood. For
three days he was unconscious and
then he came to his senses. Said Mr..
Baker to a reporter Of The Sun:
AT first did not feel any unusual
sensation, except that l was very weak
from the loss of blood and my head
was very sore. For three weeks was
attended by physicians, until the
wounds healed, and then / had pc
culiar sensation in my head. The
muscles of my neck became stiff, so
that I could scarcely nod my head for
ward and backward or turn it from
side to side. Then l had difficulty in
swallowing. 1t seemed as If my throat
was closing up and I could scarcely
swallow any food at all. My voice
too, became affected and while l never
entirely lost the power of speech, at
times the members Of my family could
not understand what l said to them.
| had heard of the reputation OF
Baltimore hospitals and made UP my
mind to give one of them trial, as
was losing flesh from inability to take
sufficient food. I noticed at this time
that my head felt heavy, which l know
now to have been caused by the weight
of the steel chisel which I was carry
ing around without knowing it. One
day after | arrived at the hospital one
of the doctors, with his finger in my
throat, found a hard substance, evil
IDENTIFY did not belong there. Then
the doctors decided to have an X-ray
picture taken of my head"
The result of this experiment has
previously been told in The Sun. Prof.
VIM. c.. A. Hammel of the state nor
nal school took the X-ray picture,
which showed plainly the chisel i'm
bedded in the bones of Mr.. Bakers
head One end of it was near the
base of the nose and the sharp end
was nearly touching the backbone.
Immediately an operation was de-
cided upon, and was successfully per-
formed at the hospital on October 20
by Drs L. McLane Tiffany and Cary
B. Gamble, Jr., assisted by the hospi-
| tai staff.
Mr. Baker was first put under the
| influence of an anaesthetic, and then
cut made in his face from the right
| eye brow to the corner of his mouth,
running down where his nose joins
| hisc heck. The flesh was laid back, the
bones exposed, and there was the
chisel. 1t did not require as much
force as had been anticipated to pull
out the chisel with pair of forceps,
after some of the bone had been re-
moved 1t was found that the chisel
| had narrowly missed cutting blood
vessels in Mr.. Bakers throat which
would have quickly caused his death.
Mr. Baker said his awakening from
the operation was much like his re-
turn to consciousness just after the
accident. He was aware of only one
thing connected with the operation,
and that was the presence of n doc
tors, he says, who had considerable
difficulty in seeing all that they
wanted to see. At another time, he
says, % doctors were present when
an examination was made of the
wound
AT first" said Mr.. Baker, Il felt
very sore and then, as that feeling
wore off, I was aware of peculiar
lightness in my head from the relief of
carrying so much iron around. Very
soon | was able to swallow with little
difficulty, and now | have scarcely any
trouble in that line. | was soon able
to talk with less difficulty and some
times my voice seems to give way on
the right side. l feel very thankful
that I have been able to pass through
such an experience without losing my
life"
Mr.. Baker shows few effects of his
unique experience, aside from loss OF
flesh, which has deepened the holloWs
IN his cheeks. Down the right side OF
his face is faint scar showing the
line of the cut made by the surgeons.
His right cheek, at the side of his nose,
is slightly swollen and the bridge of
his nose looks as if it was less high
than formerly. Another scar under
his chin shows one Of the original
wounds, and a third scar is that
caused by the putting in of silver
tube into his windpipe through which |
he could breathe before and during |
the operation to remove the chisel.
Besides the defect in his voice, |
which sounds ---a that of person |
with very bad cold in the head, Mr..
Baker has lost almost entirely the
sight in his right eye. Sometimes, as
yesterday, he is able to count fingers
when they are held between his eye
and the light. He wears a pair of
blue goggles to protect his eyes, and
as yet is very sensitive to drafts Of