The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1908-08-19
Rattlesnake'S Victim Battling
to Overcome Effect
of Venom.
'TLL WIN" SAYS ROSE,
WHILE BEARING PAIN
EmplOye of Zoo, Into Whose Hand
Reptile Sank Fangs, Suffers,
But May Recover.

Every hour that Rose lives increases
his chances Of recovery, and as Re mas
by sheer force OF vii fought of the
poisonous virus for forty-eight hours,
when the ordinary man would have
succumbed from exhaustion and pain
and given up the fight, ! have strong
hopes for his ultimate recovery" \
Or. William Carr, OF the Emergency
Hospital. who is wsEing a battle Of
science against the venom OF the dia-
mond rattIesnaiIe. which sank its fangs
into Rodney Rose, keeper at the Zoo,
Monday morning. thus expressed his
confidence that the victim of the snake
bite will yet triumph over the poison
that is coursing through his veins.
He Is one Of the most gritty patients
I ever attended " said the physician this
morning. For forty-eight hours he has
suffered intense agony with remarkable
stoicism. Every hour my hope for re-
coverv increases. and so long as he
holds his own AMI does not lose ground
I am satisfied. An Improvement, but a
very slight one. is noticeable, and the
discoIoration OF his upper arm is giving
away gradually TO its normal color
That is a very encouraging sign.
Has a Fighting Chance.
Rose has a lighting chance. But
RoEe is chock full OF nerve, and II ever
q man won on a fighting chance. he
Will. All the medicine and anutoxin IN
the world isn't very effective il a pa
tent makes up his mind that he's
.goner.' II I tod him he was not going
to recover. 1 believe he would dispute
me"
pitaI Rodney Rose, the man of nerve
is fighting for his life. He is pertecJly
aware of the slenderness OF the thread
by which his life is hanging NO one
knows better than he that his recovery
depends upon himself more than upon
anything the physicians can 90 IoI
him, and as he lies on mis- couch with
his left arm bare and Outstretched1 ne
turns his head every few minutes anu
gaZes on the GlsCOlOred unD.
IN win yet" he murmurs repeatedly,
between his closed teeth. And all the
time the shooting pains are darJng up
his arm and through his body tearing
at his nervous system. and making him
suffer as few mOrtals have 10 suIIef-
once in a while. says DR.. Carr. moan
escapes his white lips as a paroNysTn OF
pain of unusual intensity sets his nerves
quivering. But the teeth remain chnch-
ed and he is as determined as ever.
Sees Only Nurse and Doctor.
No one sees him but DIT. Carr and
the nurse, and often he talks to them
between his teeth and asks them if
they don't think the time has come
when they can give him little sedativa
without danger. But every time, the
physician and nurse tell him it might
mean death, and Rose sets his jaws
firmly and answers. oh. we'll, the pain
can't last much longer. anyhow"
Any attempt TO relieve the intense
pain might result in the patient sinking
into a state of coma from which ne
would never awake. says DIT. Carr. II
is a case where the suffering must be
endured. In fact, he says, many en-
inent authorities hold that the agony
OF pain is part Of the cure, as its in
tensity keeps the man from lapsing into
a fatal Inconsistencies
Only one injection of the powerful
snake autitOXin has been made. More
might mean death from its own poison
Gus influence. That injection was made
in the side near the heart, so that the
insldiOus poison of the reptile might be
kept from tho heart as much as pos
sible. FREQ hypOdeTmic doses of
sCryChniEe are administered, however,
In the effort TO keep him from falling
into coma. A thirtietn of a grain Is
administered every three hours.
Gets Half-Hour Maps.
Every few hours Rose is allowed to
take a short nap, never lasting more
than half an hour Then he is reused by
the nurse. who almost constantly is by
his side, and although his eyelids feel
as If they were leaden, he shakes his
head from side TO side and routs the
sleep that CTeeps over his tired brain
and seeks 10 wTaD~him in its mantle OF
death.
When ne finds himself succumbing
to its influence he makes desperate eff
forts to retain his consciousness. This
morning, when tired with the work Of
fighting or the peaCefUlness Of sleep,
which is TO him like food Just out Of
reach Of a starving man, he turned 10
the nurse and asked that she stick a
pin in him to keep him awake
Keep up the good fight" DR.. Carr
keeps saying to him
You bet I will" responds Rose, and
he CllnChes his teeth and keeps on
fighting against the grim eDaota1 "A Of