The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1906-04-19

possibilities of ether, in 1s46. Craw-
ford Long, of Georgia, on March 80,
1912, was the first to use it. His
patient was James NJ. Venables and
Long administered the ether for the
removal Of a@cystic tumor-of the jaw.
The ether was given On folded tow
ell; the operation was painless, and
the patient was delighted. Long, like
most of our southern people, did not
have the Yankee push, or it is posi-
BILE that at the time, he jid not realize
the fnportance Of his discovery, and
it remained for Morton four years
later to demonstrate it.. / am con-
vinced, that no one discovery has been
OF so much value to suffering humani-
ty The south was not long in profit
ing by Morton's demonstration, for we
find that medical giant, Warren Stone,
using ether in the Charity Hospital in
New Orleans shortly after 1916.
To Oliver Wendell Holmes is to be
given the credit for pioneer work in
certain class of fevers.
We some now to the present day,
and / frankly confess that / find my
self in considerable difficulty, when
commenting upon the merits of so
many eminent physicians.
Our country has progressed to such
an extent, that we now number our
world famous physicians by the hun
dreds, and it would be impossible to
mention them ALL Howard Kelly is
too we'll known in his speciality to call
for further mention. Matas, and Par
~.
shoulders above any surgeons in this
section of the country. William o.
Ter needs nothing but the mention Of
his name. Richardson, of Washing
ton, Eagleson of Seattle, the Mayo
brothers, Hyde of Chicago, Johnson
of Virginia, Jewett, of Brooklyn, Otis, |
Weir Mithell, HiFst and Oschner, Mall
lory and Wright, the two Archinards
of New Orleans, with Andrade, of !
Jacksonville, are but a few of the
great contemporary scientists whom
might mention.
Carlos Finlay, late in the nineteenth /
suggested that yellow fever
might be transmitted by mosquitoes, !
but the late lamented surgeon, Wal;
ter Reed, ably assisted by Doctors
OallO4AS 1ctECuA anu <1Ec4AAAOAbCs Al
Cuba, established the fact beyond the
shadow of doubt that a certain
specie of mosquito, the stegOmyia
fasciata was the inoculating agent
In these experiments, Dr.. LaZear lost
his life. The works of Major Gorgas
in Cuba, Surgeon White of the Ma
rine Hospital Service in New Orleans
and Of our own Joseph Y. Porter, the
first to demonstrate in the United
States, at Tampa in 1905, that yellow
fever could be controlled and exter
without the spread of so
much as single case, only add to the
already glorious list of achievements
performed by American physicians,
and as / said, a few moments ago,
partially answers the question, What
has America done to further the cause
Of medicine?"
But the sum total of all this, is,
where are we drifting? Has the
science of medicine progressed to
such an extent that there is nothing
further for us as physicians to do?i
The reign of guess work has come to
an end. The research laboratory was
perfected, we might say, about the
middle of the nineteenth century. I'll
8 the necessary foundation of scien-
Liic medicine. Wonderful strides have
been made in chemistry. It has given
rs, among other things, cocaine. and
he active principles of drugs of def
lite strength, instead of crude drugs
If varying strength; and based upon
his more thorough laboratory techni.
las changed. With the discovery OF
he action Of bacteria, our treatment