The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1901-10-18

Cuutluucu, Wule CuSlUE VlI duu AA SNS
ma of OK gall were given to move the
bowels. At midnight there was some
Improvement in the pulse, after an IN
lection Of salt solution into the subcuta.
neous tissues. On the eighth day the
condition Of the president was describ-
cd as very serious, as he did not re-
spond to stimulation. Stimulants and
injections of salt solution, coffee and
broth were given, but without much
effect. AT 5 ocSck oxygen was given
and continued for some hours. At $3.50
the president was restless: at 10 p. IN.
he lost consciousness and continued to
sink until lie died, at 2:15 II. M. on
Sept. II.
In speaking of the criticism that
KOentgen rays should have been used
to locate the bullet Dr. Mann says IN
his report: I'VE were often asked why,
after the operation. we did not use the
X ray to find the bullet. In the first
place, there We're AT no time any signs
that the bullet was doing harm. TO
have used the Y ray simply to have
satisfied our curiosity would not nave
been warrantable, as 1t would nave
greatly disturbed and annoyed the pres
itlent and would have subjected him
also to a certain risk"
Dr. Gaylord's report Of the autopsy
is lengthy and detailed. Nothing Of i'm
portance was noticed about the wound
on the chest caused by the first shot,
except that the area Of skin affected
was found to be dscolored, greenish
yellow and notified and that there was
a hcmorrhagc into the fat under the
skin beneath this area. The abdominal
wound showed no evidences Of necrosis
or sloughing. No inflammation OF the
peritOneum was found. The wound ID
the front wall of the stomach was
found held intart-by silk sutures.'
but the area of stomach wall around IL
was discolored. grhylsl green and
easily torn. The area around the Wouhd
Oh the postcrior wal! of the stomach
was also of dull gray color, but the
slltures held the wound intact. Behind
the latter wound there was spot or
discoloration, which showed that the
sloughing process had gone backward
in the track of the bullet. The gan
grenous cavity found behind tho ston-
ach involved the pancreas and the sur
rounding loose tissues. the bottom OF
the blind pocket being formed by the
upper end of the left kidney, which
was found to be laccratcd atthat point
to the extent of about two centlmeters.
The track of the bullet was then
traced through gangrenous tissue IN
tie fnt behind the kidney to the mus
cles of the back wall of the abdomen.
The direction of the bullet, however,
could not bc traced any farther. The
search for the ballet was most thor
ougll and painstaklna, hut III spite or
al) efforts it could not be found. and
the autopsy had to be discontinued be-
cause the time allotted to 1t by the
family of the iHte president had al
ready been exceeded. DIR. Gaylord
adds "As we were satisfied that moth
ing could be gained by locating the
bullet, which had set up no reaction,
searcl, for II was dis. ntinucl."
Examination of the heart muscle
showed that it was affected with well
marked fatty degeneration, and in
some places the muscle fihers showed
groups of dark brown grannles, dem
onstrating a diseased condition of the
cardiac muscle.
Dr. Gaylord believes that the repair
to the stomach wounds had been ef-
fectlve and that the gangrenc around
these wounds does not seem to have
been the result of any well defined
cause. He attributes the ganSrrnous
condition of the tissues solely to low
cred vitality in the parts. The appear
ance of the gangrenous tissues shows
that the gangr'N' took place shortly
before death.