The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-11-10
NOW A LIVING SKELETON
Dr." Bohannon Charged With Grim
inal Negligence.
A LEGAL INVESTIGATION IS DEMANDED
The Patient is Grand Son of Gov. Manly. The
Story Of His Cruel Neglect by His
Physician and People With
Whom He Lived.

a most horrible story is printed IN
this weeks issue Of the Burlington
News. A story that calls for an inves-
| tigation by the courts OF the county,
and one that If true should insure the
prosecution and punishment Of those
responsible for it.
The details are too horrible and re-
voting to be set forth here, but the
facts as told by the News are these:
A young mill operative named Hen
| ~ Jordan became i'll with fever about
| eight weeks ago. lie was working in
the Aurora mill and boarding at the
home of another operative, Amos Pick
EFT. DR.. Bohannon was his physician
| until week ago, when DIR. Stafford
was called in.
| When DR.. Stafford went to see Jor-
dan he found him q living skeleton
and such flesh as he had on his lower
limbs was rotten and eaten up by mag
COTS. To use DR.. Statford's own words:
Il found him an emaciated skeleton,
| with bed-sores on both hips, and the whole
internal aspect of the thigh and groin
| in a state of gangrene, with thousands
| Of maggots working under the skin, thus
| giving a most repulsive appearance to
| the case 1t is apparent that the gan
| creme is a result of neglect
| The patient Jordan also made a
statement to the News man, in which
| he said that the sore first started on
his back-bed sores, and he asked DR..
Bohanan to look at them, but this he
| L All. l. - II hA
sores with red oak bark or wheat bran.
He continued to get worse until the
sore extended to the inside of his leg
and formed sore in which maggots
! soon began to work. He added:
Il begged him and pleaded with him to
look at the sore and give me something
| but he would not look at it. but told me
20 get some red-oak bark or wheat bran,
| and thought. was going to die,
Marion Jordan, the father of the
sick man. arrived in Burlington Friday
morning of last week. He says:
Il found my son unconscious 1t was
| one o'clock before he recognized me.
| When / raised the cover | found the whole
bed full of maggots. The next morning
saw them crawling all over the floor.
When Dr. Stafford came we dressed the
sore together. It was in such an awful
condition, words fail me to describe it.
| Mr.. Jordan lives near Siler City, in
Chatham county. He says his son is
great-grand-son Of Gov. Manly on his
mothers side, and of John Guthrie
on his fathers side.
Touching DR.. Bohanon and his Grim
nal neglect Of young Jordan, DR..
Stafford has this to say further over
his signature:
''Actuated by desire to know whether
or not there was a physician in the coun-
ty of Alamance, practicing under warrant
of law who would so neglect a patient,
went to Graham to ascertain ii DR. "
Bohannon had license to practice medi-
cine in this State and county. l learned
from Clerk of Court Kernodle that he had
been registered but that the license had
not been properly obtained, and was re-
voked on the Cd of January, 1900. Clerk
KernodIe says he knows Bohannon got
notice of this, as he had acknowledged
the receipt of it. Since January the ID
1900, therefore, DR.. Bohannon has been
practicing without a semblance of conf
pliance with the law.
W. G. STAFFORD.
To this the Burlington News adds
by way of comment on the facts set
forth:
We have never known of such a case
of neglect in all our lives, and any doctor
or family who would let a man lie day
after day and be eaten up with maggots
ought to be dealt with according to law
The case is a disgrace to civilization
and we do not believe the people of Bur-
lington will stand by and let the case
be silenced without full investigation anC
the parties guilty of such neglect go free
We blame the doctor and we blame the
people with whom he boarded. But theil
excuse is that the doctor had the case
in hand and the man of the house hac
to work all day in the mill and if the
doctor did not consider the case danger
Gus enough to investigate and order treat
ment they did not consider it SO either
and the man doubtless would have lair
there and rotted TO pieces but for Mr.
Blossoms reporting it to Mr.. Holt
In the name of decency and justice we
demand an investigation of the case by
the authorities. The man will die. DR.