The evening times., 1900-03-17
THE HUMAN OSTRICH ILL
Arthur Shut Operated on in a Bal
timOre Hospital.
A Dog Chain. Knives. Nails. Broken
Glass. Tacks, screws. and spoons
Removed From His Stomach-The
Details Of an Interesting and En-
traordinary Freak Patients Case.

BALTIMORE, Md, March 17.--Prof
William S Halsted, of the Johns Hopkins
University and Hospital, yesterday per-
formed one of the strangest operations on
record. He cut into the abdomen of a man
| and removed some of the most remarkable
objects ever taken from human stomach.
/ These included knives. forks. nails, tacks.
watch chains, dog chains, glasses, knife
handles, and similar things.
Arthur Shut, who said he was by pro
fession" a human ostrich" and man with
| cast-ron stomach" was the subject OF
the operation He was admitted to the
hospital on Tuesday. He complained of a
! gripping pain in his stomach. He told the
| physician who examined him that he never
! had any severe diseases. but had when a
/ child suffered with the common ailments,
measles, whooping cough, and malaria.
| Last year he had a two-months' attack OF
| rheumatism in his knees and hips which
/ kept him in bed. His appetite had not
/ been as good as it should be of late. He
/ said he was a fairly regular drinkor OF
| whisky, but not TO excess, and smoked
some.
When questioned further by the hospital
physician he confessed that he had been
/ in the habit OF chewing such heavy arti-
| Ces of diet as tacks nails, glass. and
similar odds and ends. but professed never
| to have swallowed them before last Sat
| urday.
Last Saturday he met a number Of stu
dents, so he said, and boasted TO them Of
his ability TO chew glass and swallow ten
| IIn wi 4
! O'Clock in the evening until o'clock in the
morning OF Sunday. He swallowed the
broken pieces of an entire beer glass and
"A quarter OF a pound of tenpenny nails,
and box OF No. II tacks before his spec
| tators. He said he did not intend 10 swal-
| low them, but merely chew them His au-
dience. however. jeered him so that he
swallowed all of them.
About o'clock Sunday morning he was
seized with = sharp pain and almost i'm
mediately vomited up a Quantity OF dark
reddish fluid. There were no signs, how
ever of the glass and nails All day sun
day he experienced great pain. sometimes |
getting worse. at times improving. He
Was then sent 10 the Johns Hopkins Hos
pitaI where according to the symptoms. |
his case was Immediately diagnosed - |
foreign bodies in the stomach
shortly before Shut was put under the !
anaesthetic ne complained OF severe |
pain which he described as something |
like a saw working its way down my IL |
gestive tract" He was then given ether I
hv two of the hospital physicians and 1
placed carefully upon the operating table /
DR. Halsted made quick incision with |
his operating knife into the skin and MUS |
cles. -s, 80
Several assistants. dressed in asePtic |
clothing. with white caps and white slip |
pers. and rubber gloves. all of which had |
been sIerilized in boiling water. handed /
Prof Halsted the seriized instruments. |
He was likewise dressed in pure white
duck suit and cap and wore rubber gloves |
After The skin and muscles were laid |
back. Dr. Halsted cut into the stomach and /
exposed its contents. The first thing Ia /
ken out was a dog chain nearly FIVE yards /
long then several knife blades. 4 pearl |
knife handle a common watch cham. /
screws tacks nails Of all sizes. spoons.
pieces Of glass buttonhooks. wire nee
dies and objects that would make goat
turn green with envy.
The stomach was then cleansed ouj with
a warm sterilzed salt solution. The two
flaps of the stomach We're brought together
and sewed mp with catgut strings. IN like
manner the muscles and skin were sewed
together.
The operation which was Of most deli
cate nature and required great skill con-
sumed two hours and a half, and in that
period the patient did not lose pint OF
blood Loss Of blood was prevented in
Dr. Halsged's operation by peculiar forceps
of all sizes which are clamped on the
blood vessels as soon as they are sepd-
rated.
After the wound was sewed up the pa
tient was lifted and bandage was passed
around his body. covering his wound. over
which LAYERS OF iodoform and silver foil
were placed This is to prevent bacteria
from getting into the wound and setting
up insammatons which might lead to a
fatal issue.
4 physician. in speaking about operations
for the removal of foreign bodies from the
stomach. said:
The kinds and number OF foreign bodies
which have been swallowed accidentally
or for exhibitional suicidal purposes is
enormous. The belly of a galley-slave was
once opened. and fftytw articles. barrel
hoop nineteen inches long. pieces Of pipe.
buckles and nuts were found in him. In
another case a pair of suspenders. mass
of straw. and three rolls of bandages were
taken out Of the stomach OF a man.
French woman with suicidal intent recent
ly swallowed a large fork with four prolgs
and il was taken out four years later. \
case which was especially remarkable was
that of a young girl in a convent, who suf-
fered from hysteria. She swallowed va
emetc. vomited up a cross four inches
long When this was taken from her
mouth an enormous rosary, ten feet long.
and having seven medals attached 10 it.
came out with IL.
Fear of robbery has often led to the !
swallowing Of money and jewelry. DR..
Vailliant. a celebrated physician. was pur-
sued by Tunis pirates in Algiers and swal-
lowed fifteen gold medals all of which he
afterward recovered.
False teeth are often swallowed. Tooth
brushes, spoons. seeds, and many other
small articles frequently get into the
stomach. but possibly the most interesting
cases are those relating to living animals
such as insects fish. and reptiles. but in
most instances these are not authentic.
Cases are recorded where beetles. young
chickens, mice leeches, eels, and snails /
are claimed TO have been swallowed and |
vomited up alive One case is on record |
of living caterpillar being swallowed"