Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1901-09-13

AleIely recorded the pulse, IenpCrl-
ture and respiration and left the pub
lie to make it's own deductions. No
diagnosis was made public. From the
rise of the surgical fever on July ), the
variations Of the pulse to July were
from SO to 126, of the temperature
from 9S.9 to 1919, and Of the respira-
ton from 10 to "a. Gen. Garfield was
told that the bullet had perforated his
diaphragm and on that account he
mustn't talk. He liked to converse and
the doctors wanted to keep him very
quiet. They got him to the point
where he would even ask mutely for
water by putting his hand to his lips
Later he lost all desire to talk.
Appearance of Pus.
Not until Friday was pus-which the
physicians said showed that the wound
was healing-seen. Ten days after the
shooting the patients temperature
reached the highest point-102.S. The
doctors all this time believed that the
bullet had passed between the eleventh
and twelfth ribs. through the liver, and
to the abdominal cavity, where they
said it had lodged in the anterior wall
of the abdomen, from which they eX-
pected to be able to remove it readily.
in due time, without danger.
Appearance of Evil Symptoms.
1t was only learned by the public on
July 13 that the President had cir
cumscribed peritonitis,'' and that he
had it since the second day of his ILL
ness. This circumscribed peritonitis
was defined by tenderness in the
abdomen and it was believed by the
surgeons that this located the bullet.
They thought that the tenderness due
to the peritonitis marked where the
bullet had found lodgment, but a little
lump there which they thought was
the bullet they concluded after the au-
topsy must have been hard pus at the
end of a canal which it had bored for
itself from a point near the beginning
of the bullet wound. The pus worked
forward, while the bullet had gone side
wise across the back; but it was many
weary weeks before this was learned,
and the sufferer. from abundant health
in midsummer, had passed through all
the stages to the knife of the post-mor-
TEN examiner just before the autumna'
equinox.
The Induction Balance"
The surgeons who attended Presi-
dent Garfield had not relied solely
upon the manifestations of the pus-
workings, but had employed upon
more than one occasion the Induction
balance" There had been at least two
occasions of serious relapse in the lat
ter part of July and at length DR.. Ag-
new made an incisiOn. Explorations
were made along the pus canal, the
supposed course of the bullet, where
there was a channel several inches
deep, but the results were not satisfac
tory, so experiments to locate the bull
let were made by the induction bal
ance under the direction of Prof. Gra-
ham Bell and an assistant The re-
port of one of them on Aug. l said:
Surgeons Report.
.'Under the supervision of the at
tending surgeons, Profs. Bell and Tain
tor this morning made another appli-
cation Of the electrical apparatus
known as the induction balance, with
a view to completing the tests Of last
week, which were not entirely conclu-
sive, and ascertaining definitely and
certainly if possible the location of the
ball. IS !" They tried this i'm
proved apparatus on the Presidents
body for the first time last week, and
although it indicated family the loca-
ton Of the ball, it was afterward
found to be slightly out of adjustment,
and the experiment was not regarded
as perfectly conclusive. The results OF
this mornings tests, however, are en-
tirely satisfactory both to Profs. Bell
and Taintor and to the attending sur
geors, and it is now unanimously
agreed that the location or the ball has
been ascertained with reasonable GER
tainty, and that it lies, as heretofore
stated, in the front wall Of the abb
domen, Immediately over the groin,
ABOUT five inches below and to the
right of the navel. New York Sun.