Evening star., 1901-08-06
TO TEST A MAIDSTONE
CHICAGO HOSPITAL SURGEON HAS
ONE IN. POSSESSION.
He VIII Make Scientific Experiments
the Results Of Which May
BE Valuable.
Special Correspondents of The Evening star.

Special Correspondents Of The Evening Star.
CHICAGO, August 5, 1901.
The virtues of a maidstone are to be
given a thorough test by medical authori-
ties of this city. DR.. r. nj. Tafel, house
surgeon of the Elizabeth Emergency Hos
pital at Chicago Heights. has recently Sc
cured possession of the famous "Sauser
maidstone which has been celebrated for
forty years as sure cure for hydrophobia.
More than two thousand persons who haze
been bitten by dogs afflicted with the ra-
bies have made the pilgrimage to the home
of the Sauters in Chicago Heights to have
the mysterious powers of the stone applied
to the wounds. If testimony of the laity
is worth anything, the merits of the little
black pebble are well established. The Sau-
ter family has kept a record of the ap-
plications of the stone, which shows that
nearly 1000 persons have been cured of
incipient or threatened rabies since 1t
has been in their possession. Denis j.
Swenie, former chief of the Chicago fire
department. is among those who tested it
and assert it's efficacy.
Grandfather Sauter the aged head of the
family, bought the stone forty years ago
from French physician, who brought it
from France and claimed to have effected
wonderful cures with it. He paid 500 in
gold for it. The stone is oblong in shape,
half long and an inch wide DIR. Tafel
and other prominent physicians expect that
many fydrophobia victims will seek the
aid of the stone because of the advertise
ment that it has received and believe that
they will be able to arrive at a scientific
explanation of it's strange powers, If the
results claimed for 1t by non-professional
witnesses follow it's application.
There are not more than three such
stones in the United States" said Dr.
Tafel yesterday. I'VE medical men admit
that we do not knew why it adheres to The
wounds made by mad dogs. We do not
admit, nor deny, that it sucks the virus
from such wounds. We know nothing
about it for the reason that we have never
mad an opportunity to experiment with it.
But we are in a receptive state of mind
and now for the first time there is chance
to make scientific observations of the eff
hcacy of the maidstone, and l for one pro-
pose to learn what / can and tell the
world what merit it possesses. There is
no lack of inexpert, non-professioral tesii-
mony as to its great merits Thousands
nave come from every part of the United
States to try it, and in every instance the
patients have gone away cured. / hope
to be able to test 1t in several genuine
cases of rabies, and who knows hut that
the result of the investigation may be the
discovery of a new and certain cure for
this most dreadful disease"
According to ancient tradition, which is
secuted by scientific men. the genuine mad
II,
and the French physician who sold this
stone to the Sauter family is said to have
given it this origin. There is no question
about the stones adhering to wounds made
by rabid dogs In treating the bites the
stone is placed in warm water for few
minutes and then applied to the wound. If
1t fails to adhere. the dog, though giving
every evidence of suffering from hydro
phobia, was free from the disease, or failed
to transmit any of the poison to the VIC
TINS system In large number of the
cases the Sauter stone failed to adhere to
the wound, and in none of these cases Cid
symptoms of hydrophobia afterward de-
velop. Where the disease really exists,
however it takes hold of the laceration at
once and adheres sometimes for. hours,
finally falling away as if saturated with
poison. The stone is then placed in hot
water, which brings to it's surface a green
ish-white scum, which is easily remoy Ell.
The pebble can then be re-applied to the
wound. If it clings some of the virus is
supposed to remain, and If it fails to stick
the poison is all gone
Residents of Cook county near Chicago
Heights are unanimous in their faith in the
Sauter stone. DR.. Tafel says he will give
worldwide prominence to the results OF his
scientific Investigations with it,