Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1902-11-27
In The Dissecting Rooms.

In The Dissecting Rooms.
AS it becomes the privilege of compar-
atively a few to spend a few hours in the
diSseCting rooms of great medical insti-
tuition during the process of systematic
ally carving a human body into fra gments
we shall endeavor entertainingly to relate
our experience of one night with the dis
sectors For the sake. of clearness and
force we shall, in imagination. repeat the
experience and write in the present We
will not wear our best clothes into the dis
SeCting rooms the reasons for which will |
appear by and by.
II is one one of those pleasant; inspiring
autumn evenings in the breath of which
sweetly into meditation. The city
spires are glinting in the light OF bright |
half moon. and mellow wind is playing
with the dead leaves upon the lawn. We
are standing on suburban street corner |
waiting for the trolley car that will bear
us nearly to our destination. Notwith- |
standing the sedative character of the
evening, the prospects of coming into the
presence of the dead has stimulated our
and now we are gliding along brilliantly
illuminated avenue. Now we are in the
heart a and din lin, OF the city but we pass on
dimly lighted side street in a remote part.
We come at last to large, unattractiye,
| three-story building lighted only on the
| second floor. We step cautiously into the
dark corridor below, and as we do so, a
| wandering gust of wind from the second
/
| trils. We soon find ourselves climbing a
| stairway iirtly lighted by g gas jet from
to fro Wheh come light and
| the buzz of human voices. The scene
| that confronts us as we come to this door
strgggle Mag % Briefly With feeling s5f Of horror @
the expression of which would place us in
| a ridiculous position before the score of
medical students and two doctors that
are so absorbed in their CHASTITY, but legit-
innate work that they fail to notice us for
very courteously invited by one of the
| doctors to step in and make ourselves
easy. a strange nauseous smell and the
proximity of headless, disemboweled
| human body causes us to accept the in
vi.ation with reluctance. We edge our
the dead and find ourselves striving in
wardly to maintain proper composure in
the presence of all the horrors of a dissect-
lies the corpse of a large strong. man.
Stray locks of his long, wavy, black hair
are strewn promiscuously oyer his broad,
high forehead upon which the blue veins
stand still and cold. A mouth strongly
indicative of decision and will is partially
hidden by. a long, black mustache. The
are deeply impressed upon the beholder in
spite of the. fact that four heartless
the skin from the brawny breast and
strong limbs in order to examine the
ho% II Is 10 sB ae he
summit of physical beauty and health
and there meet grinning Death
We now turn our attention to another
table and meet sight too hideous for
description. It is the dead body of man
completely tlayed and the anterior walls
of the abdomen and chest removed so as
to expose to view the entrails, lungs and
heart Some students are bent over him
diii.,hgentiya it.,ag searching t9r that noto nous
so much trouble in the human organism
and so many surgical operations. Here
too we become interested and press up
close around the students to get view
of this famous little nuisance of the
human body. In our eagerness we brush
and shyly inspect our clothes as we step
back, but at this juncture our tiInidity is
difference of one of the students who cooiy
leans forward, strikes a match upon the
dry, pink skull of the dead and camly
lights a, cigarette, flirts fragment of
human flesh that has clung to the back of
his hand into the sawdust with which the
floor is I strewn, props his book up against
the head OF the corpse, and again sinks
into deep study over the anatomy of his
dead human brother.
On the next table is the COZ pse of very
large man lying face downward. The
students are removing the skin from the
back and cutting out the muscles of that
region. One of the doctors is standing by
conducting MISUNDERSTANDING in turn
each student in regard to the names of
the different muscles ETC.: occasionally
stepping back to illustrate by diagram on
a blackboard.
Few there are who have not looked on
tne lace ot Tic deau, ay, rev tncIe are WHO
have not witnessed the blighting touch
of the dread monster upon the bright face
of friend or relative and felt that awful
glow of life departed and left them alone
with the deserted earthly habitation of a
loved one. We close the lids tenderly that
we may not see the awful vacancy within,
and then imagine the beloved one sleep
ing.-But we must dismiss these tender
thoughts and sympathies or we may not
be able to watch the scene before us, for
: we have turned and are gazing down upon
the skinless, headless, di Sc NJ b o W eled
body previously mentioned. A lone stu
> dent Is intensely occupied in dissecting
the muscles of the thigh His arms are
barred and smeared with blood and grease.
AS we watch him hideous maggot is
seen wriggling about in the path of the
dissecting knife. The student laughingly
picks it UP and sportively cooks it in the
gas flame, then proceeds again with his
work. Stand aside please, let me get to
the open window, for my stomach Is a
trifle quamish. Ah that breeze Is SO
, sweet albeit. it has been among the
2 slums." Well the students are blanket.
{ ing the stitfs" and preparing to leave the
rooms and don't you fool we are not going
to linger behind. We have been we'll paid
for our visit, but exceedingly glad to get
out in the fresh air once again.
: What is death? Only the parting.
a OF that, from clay we'll organized,
No matter how old, we're always surprised
When 1T comes, and stand aghast, start
ing.