Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-06-15
DRAWING A TOOTH
TuShmaker's Pulling Machine Was
a Wonderful Invention.
KILLED HIS FIRST PATIENT.
But That Simply Couldn't BE Helped.
and tho Autopsy Showed Why the
Victim Lifted His Right Leg Each
Time tho Lever Was Turned.

Victim Lifted His Right Leg Each
Time tho Lever Was Turned.
Mr.. Tushmaker was never regularly
bred as physician or surgeon. but he
possessed naturally strong mechan-
ical genius and Il fine appetite, and,
finding his teeth of great service in
gratifying the latter propensity, he
concluded that he could do more good
IN the world and create more real hap
pineSs therein by putting the teeth
OF its inhabitants in good order than
in any other way, so Tushmaker be-
came a dentist.
He was the man who first invented
the method of placing small cog
wheels in the back teeth for the more
perfect mastication of food, and he
claimed to be the original dscoverer
of that method of filling cavities with
kind of putty which, becoming hard
directly, causes the tooth to ache SO
gricvously that it has to be pulled,
thereby giving the dentist two sue
cessive fees for the same job.
Tushmaker was one day seated in
his office in the city of Boston when n
stout old fellow named Byles pre-
scented himself to have a back tooth
drawn. The dentist seated his patient
in the chair Of torture and, opening
his mouth. discovered there an enor-
nous tooth on the right hand side
about as large. as he afterward eX-
pressed 1T, las a small polyglot BIZ
BILE" 81 shall have trouble with this
TOOTH thought Tushmaker, but he
clapped on his heaviest forceps and
pulled. 1t didn't come. Then he tried
the turnscrew. exerting his utmost
strength, but the tooth wouldn't stir.
Go away from here" said Tush.
maker to Byles, land return in a week
and I'll draw that tooth for you or
know the reason why" Byles got up
clapped handkerchief to his jaw and
put forth.
Then the dentist went to work. and
in three days he invented an instru
mont which he was confident would
pull anything. 1t was combination
of the lever. pulley. wheel and axle
inclined plane. wedge and screw. The
castings We're made and the machine
put up in the office over an iron chair
rendered perfectly stationary by iron
rods going down into the foundations
of the granite building.
In q week old Byles returned. He
was clamped into the iron chair. the
forceps connected with the machine
attached firmly to the tooth. and Tush
maker stationing himself in the rear
took hold of Il lever four feet IN
length. lie turned it slightly Old
Byles gave groan and lifted his
right leg. Another turn. another
groan. and up went the leg again.
what do you raise your leg for?'
asked the doctor.
Il can't help It," said the patient.
"Wel," rejoined Tushmaker. that
tooth is bound to come out now"
He turned the lever clear round with
sudden jerk and snapped old Byles
head clean and clear from his shout
ders. leaving space Of four inches
between the severed parts. They hac
postmortem examination. The roots
of the tooth were found extending
down the right side. through the RICH
leg and turning up in two prongs un
der the sole of the right foot.
mo wonder" said Tushmaker, she
raised his right leg.'
The jury thought so, too, but they
found the roots much decayed. and
five surgeons swearing that mortifica
ton would have ensued in few
months, Tushmaker was cleared on {
verdict of "iustifiable homicide"
He was q little shy of that instru
ment for some time afterward, blu
one day an old lady, feeble and faccid
came in to have tooth drawn, and
thinking that 1t would come out yer,
easy, Tushmaker concluded. just b.
way of variety, to try the machine
He did so and at the first turn drew
the old lady's skeleton completely ant
entirely from her body, leaving her
mass of quivering jelly in her chair
Tushmaker took her home in pillow
case. She lived seven years after that
and they called her the India rubbe
woman" she had suffered terribl,
with the rheumatism, but after thi
occurrence never had a pain in he
bones The dentist kept them in
glass care.
After this the machine was sold I
the contractor of the Boston custom
house, and it was found that chill
of three years of age could. by sin
gle turn of the screw, raise a ston
weighing twenty-three tons Smalle
ones were made on the same principl
and sold 10 the keepers Of hotels an
restaurants. They were used for Dor
ing turkeys. There is no moral to thi
story whatever, and It is possible tina
the circumstances may have becom
slightly exaggerated. OF course ther
can be no doubt of the truth of tn
main incidents.--John Phoenix.
He Told Her.
Mr. Economie-Did you write TO til