Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-22
Hearing on the Bill to Regulate
ViViseetion.
VALUE OF TEE PRACTICE TO HUMANITY
Physicians and Others Who An
tagonized the Measure.
LEFFINGWELL'S ADVOCACY

Tor the prevention OF cruelty 10 animals IN
the District of Columbia. popularity known
as the anti-vivisectfon bill continued
before the subcommittee of the committee
on the District of Columbia yesterday af-
ternoon until O'Clock. Senator Gallinger
presided. and during portions of the testi-
mony Senators Kenney, Mcmillan, Proctor
and Stewart were present
After The Stars report of the proceedings
was closed DIR. VIM. W. Kean, president
of the American Medical Society, was heard.
DIR. Kean said the vivisectionsts were will
ing to rest their the results that
had been achieved for the benefit of medi-
cal science. While he was a surgeon, he
said he ": not vivisectionist. No day
passed without the results of vivisection
allowing him to alay human suffering.
Speaking of brain surgery. he produced a
large jar containing what he said was a
tumor removed ten years ago from the
brain of q patient, who a few days ago was
in his office. There had been no indication
of that tuTnor or the outside of the head,
and IL located because of knowledge
secured through viVsection- He showed a
picture of liver with turnor as large as
Chili's head and said he did that because
4 had been shown that dog had lived
with large part of its liver removed. He
had removed a kidney and prolonged the
life of a patient because ii had been shown
that an animal could live with one kidney.
He said that there had been thousands of
operations that would never have been per-
formed had it not been for the results DEM
onstrated through viviscction.
Senator Gallinger asked the speaker If he
Sad found anything in the pending bill that
prevented such scientific experiments.
DR.. kean said he would come to that
later. and continued to give examples of
surgery that could not have been performed
except for the experiments made through
viviSection
Or. Kean said that the mortality in sur
gicaI cases was formerly 80 per cent and
now II Is 10 cent.
Senator Gallinger-"To what 90 you at
tribute that Improvement
DIR. kean-''I attroibute il almost entirely
TO the antiseptiC methods. which never
could have been formed without laboratory
experiments both with and without ami
mails
Due to vivisection.
''Vivisection," he declared. has done
more to advance both surgery and medi-
cine than any other one agency within my
knowledge"
There are, he said, some experiments
that cannot be performed with the use of
anaesthetics. though they are few The
only way that new drugs can he tested is
on animals or men. He preferred to try
them animals Either the science of
medicine would have to stand still or there
would be experiments. He pr>terled having
the experiments made on animals He did
not think human vivisection was justified
at all and for that reason he advocated
VlNiSection on animals.
Bishop Lawrence of u ASA chuSctts said
he was disposed to trust physicians with
vivisection of animals as he trusted them
in Illness 1t often takes many experiments
TO demonstrate fact. AMI while many en-
periEnents may result In some waste. the
results justified the waste and all. He had
Investigated some of the statements in
pamphlets sent out by anti vsvisectionists
and had come to the conclusion that they
DO not always weigh Their evidence care
fully, as their facts did not conform to the
statements.
DIR. II. III. Hare.
DIR. II. II. Hare. professor of therapeu-
ties of the Jefferson Medical College of
Philadelphia. defended antitoxine methods
in the treatment of diphtheria. In reply TO
question. he said there nothing in the |
bill preventing the use of anti-toxine. He
claimed that the mortality in infectious dis
eases had been greatly decreased in late
years from the use of anti-tOxine methods.
DIR. HI. p. Bowditch.
DIR. Henry P. BOwditch professor of
physiology of Harvard University objected
to restriction Of vivisectton. He said that
the object of the people who were working
for restriction Of vivisecton was really
to do away with all vivsection. If the bill
before Congress should be passed they
would be back to Congress in a short time
with another bill to totally abolish 1t. He
SAID there was a false idea about vivisoc-
tlon- The fact was, great quantities of
ether were freely used In the authorized
labora tories in the country there Her, no
abuses TO be corrected. and no students
unauthorized to carry on experiments are
allowed to do so.
DIR. Mary =. Jacobi.
DIR. Mary Putnam jacob of New York
spoke against the bill She said 1t favored
ignorance and was against knowledge, and
gave many instances which had satisfied
people we fiprhr wi
section did not know what they were doing
Surgeon General Sternbers.
Cen Sternberg, surgeon general of the
tinted States army, also spoke against the
passage of the bill. He said he did not con-
slider it was cruelty to in1iict pain unless 1t
- was unnecessary pain He said the present
law. which was general in its application
was sufficient TO control vivisectjon in tho
District of Columbia A statement had
D-en made that vfvisection had been nrac
Iiced on dog at the medical museum and
theh the dog had been allowed in a mutt
lated condition. to live until the next day
When the operation was continued DR.
Sternberg requested an Investigation of thiS
charge which he said he regarded as incnr,
rect. go -'~''
DIR. VIM. OsIer.
DIR. VIM Osler. professor of practice Of
johns Hopkins University. Baltimore was
also against the bill. He said the disgrace
fus acts of some Ytvisectionists should nor
be referred to to bring disrepute on others
He showed considerable feeling over the
charges OF wanton cruelty on the part of
physicians and defended the profession
from such accusations He spoke Of his if
as being N the midst of illness and suffer-
ing which II was his daily task to alleviate
DR.. Howard A. Kelly
DIT Howard A Kelly. professor of dis
eases OF women OF Johns Hopkins UNIVERSE
~ Baltimore, favored vivisection as now
pr@eueea- lie said that if experiments are
not made on animals they will be made ~,
men. Experiments on animals he 70
Sarded as necessary for students in rnadI
cine, especially in abdominal Operations %
tnat they might have practice before oper
Atlng on person.
DR.. D. E. Salmon.
Dr. D. l. Salmon. chief of the bureau OF
animal industry, Department of Agricul-
ture' said that his bureau was greatly in
tereSted IN the pending bill. and he gave
numerous Instances in which the efforts of
the bureau q cons. with diSaaso.