The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-10-31
HIS SKIN APATCHWORK
MARVELLOUS OPERATION ON A
 NEW JERSEY MAN.
By Loyalty of His Friends and Skill fulness of His Surgeon Will son s. Frederick Was
 Rescued from Death.

Chicago Chronicle.
 pia,nfeld. N. Y.-On a cot in the Muh- Ienberg Hospital lies the subject of the most marvellous skin grating opperation in the history of medicine.
 Fighting his slow way from the shadow of death, Wilson s. Frederick owes to the loyalty of friends and the skliiruiness or Q surgeon an unheardof rescue from death. When he leaves the hospital one half the skin on his frame will be rom the bodies of others. cuticle patcn"ork of over 5000 pieces given by scores or men, who, living miles apart, traveieo without pay or profit to testify unoer the knife their sense of fraternity.
 No man has ever survived the ioss oi such a large area of skin.
 No grafting case on record shows sucn an honor roll as this-106 men already cheerful martyrs to the call Of sunering' while others compete for the privilege.
 The authorities have always declared that the limit of surface over wnich man may be burned or scalded and sur vive is one-third of the body. Frederick lost fully one-half the total area of his skin. He is practically certain to sur vive. o
 The wonder worker of this feat of science is Dr. Albert Pitts of the staff of Muhlenberg hospital. Dr. Pitts had made of Frederick's case a labor of love and the wounded man was indeed fortu- nate that he fell into the care of this devoted surgeon. It was he who saved | him from the steam and flames of a | dreadful train wreck and who has now saved him from deaths second assault, | the slow, stealthy invasion of the sick room.
 On the tragic evening of Jan. 2, 1903. ho Philadelphia on the Central Railroad of New Jersey plunged Into the rear of the | 'Ea stern local'' near Graceland twenty one persons were injured. some of wbom died later.
 Roasted by the Steam. Frederick was one of the most unfortu- nate of all those who escaped immediate doom. He was pinned down In the wreck age and clowly roasting under the hissing clouds of steam.
 One of the first of the rescuing band at the wreck was Dr. Pittis. He was busily at work when Frederick saw him and cried to him as he passed Frederick was a friend of the physician and fel- low Free Mason. and when he saw his plight Dr. Pttis fought desperately to get him out before the end. Beyond that he had little hope. for 1t was evil dnet that Frederick was a terribly in- jured man.
 As soon as he was freed of the wreck age Dr. Pitts had the sufferer reomved to the hospital. He was given pri- vate room, placed on an air bed and in charge of two trained nurses and then began the long battle for life. It seem- ed hopeless fight. for the scalds were extensive the parts affected being the left side of the face, both ears and both legs from the groins to the shoe tops. The shoes saved the feet from injury. When the slough from the scalded sur faces ceased Frederick was entirely raw and denuded of skin on the arm, one side of the face and both legs.
 Under the circumstances skin grating the forlorn hope. seemed audacious. But Dr. Pitts is a militant surgeon. While the patient was carried through the first and often fatal period of shock by the administration of whiskey and cham pagne in large quantities the doctor cast l about busily for the needed cuticle He consulted first with Louis I. Van Alstyne master of Anchor Lodge of Masons of Plainfield. to which both he and Frederick l belonged Dr. Pitts told his fellow Mason | that there was no focus left for new skin | to form on Frederick's burns and that | their comrades only chance for life lay | in securing skin in large quantities from outside sources.
 Mir. Van Alstyne. who Is a prominent business man of New York and Plain field proved an instant friend. He was not dismayed by the magnitude of the need and he told Dr. Pitts he would at once call the case to the attention of the lodge. Meantime he accompanied the physician to Frederick's bedside, where he was the first man to give strips from his own skin to replace that lost by his friend.
 When Van Alstyne in his capacity as master laid the matter before Anchor lodge there was exhibited touching and altogether noble spirit of unselish fra ternity As one man the members pldRed themselves to submit to Dr. Pittis, They offered to undergo one operation or several.
 No less generous a spirit was shown bv all the members of the sister Plainfleld lodge-Jerusalem-and the rivalry for sac rifce grew daily brisker.
 The master of each lodge submitted to the doctor list and he made selections with due reference to the physical ouali- ty of the applicant But few of those se- iected were over 59 years of age and they had to be both sound and strong
 Day after day the Masons wended their way to Dr. Pitts with cheerfulness and pride. From each of those accepted the doctor took twenty or thirty pieces of skin and the grating began.
 The two Plainf1eld lodges are composed of men in the highest walks of life. There are bankers and business men and pro- fessional workers on the rolls and they were quite as eager to aid as though the sufferer were a blood relative of each
 When at last the list of lodgmen had been exhausted aid came from a new quarter, and one that promised a rich harvest of the needed skin-layers.
 MT. Frederick. whose home Is in Dun nellen. N. J., near Plainfeld, is the chief | clerk in New York of the United States Express Company. In his capacity he has under him something like 1,5o0 offices. He is widely known In the service of the com pany and popular with his fellow em- ployes One of these latter Is Daniel D.
 Bastian, the local cashier of the com
 pany at Plainfield He had worked hard
 for his stricken chief and been a great
 help to Dr. Pittis, being among the first
 to volunteer skin.
 Offers of Skin Pour Tn.
 When the list of Masons was used UT
 Mir. Bastian turned for help to the army
 of men in the employ of the company His appeal was royalty answered The | o.~nrassp,aD avarvwhera str0ye tO match