The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1911-09-14
GAVE NAN A NEW FACE.
1t Took Twenty-Five Operations, But
the Patient Was Game.

known as the man with nerve. When
he was IA years of age terrible mis-
fortune befell him. A slight ebraslon
of the skin of his cheek developed
into an afliction which destroyed the
lower right eyelid, his nose, part OF
his cheek and distorted his face, gen
orally. To correct this condition
total of 25 operations has been per-
formed upon Katica. Some were sue
cessful, others not; but now his face
is fairkly we'll repaired. Katica's own
story is interesting as showing how
much a man can stand if he is de-
termined to live.
I need not go into details about
the condition which made me SUBJ
iect for the surgeon. 1t is enough
to say that I could not go out OF
doors unless I wore a kind OF mask
and then only at night. People
stunned me. I used to hide behind
barrels to be near enough to neigh
bors who were talking to hear their
voices and still not be seen. The
muscles of my face having twisted
my mouth, it was impossible for me
to speak distinctly, SO avoided con-
versation.
One night, as I stood in the shad-
ows, it was my good fortune to hear
doctor telling another man that he
had just attended an operation where
the case had appeared to be hopeless,
but surgery had been the victor. This
gave me renewed hope. Next morn
ing went to a dispensary. The doc
tor examined me and shook his head.
was run over by a truck and my
right leg was badly injured. 1 was
taken to the Metropolitan Hospital,
where the surgeon removed the in
iured member. My right arm had
now become infected, and I was an
object of curiosity to the medical
visitors. I chanced to overhear one
of them say that he had an idea how
I should be treated. He was a sur
geon at the POSTGRADUATE Hospital.
He made an appointment.
I should say here that the sur
geons, nurses and orderlies encour-
aged me splendidly; they told me
was getting cured. One day I look
ed in the mirror and saw that my
face was improving, but it had left
me frightfully disfgured.
The surgeons now decided to graft
skin on my face. Surgeon Peck, OF
the Post Graduate Hospital, operated
on my eyelid three times. Another
surgeon removed piece of skin four
by six inches from my left arm and
fastened that to make cheek. Still
another surgeon took piece from
nv thigh and another took a piece
from my breast, but these gratis were
not successful. I nearly gave up,
and felt that I must 60 through life
wearing mask.
Then I was told that they might
be able to give me a substitute for a
nose, and I agreed to let them try
again. This time DR.. Lloyd operated.
He fastened the middle finger of my
left. hand to the place where the nose
begins. He sewed it on but left the
finger still attached to my hand.
The operation took place on De-
cember 10, 1903, and my hand was
strapped to my face until January
80. when the surgeon found that my
finger had grown to the skin OF the
face. Then I was once more put
under ether and my finger amputat-
ed.
The finger grew to my face, all
right, but it did not fill out; so I had
to have another operation performed
in the near future to remedy that.
Up to few days ago piece of my
Ginger nail" kept growing on my
new nose, and I had to keep 1t trim
med. In this late operation the sur
geon cut it out.
At the Presbyterian Hospital I was
operated on by DR.. Hawkes., who
tried to graft skin on my face. I
believe he had a fair degree of sue
cess. DR.. Walter J. Crump, at the
Volunteer Hospital, succeeded In
giving me the rest of cheek and has
also built up, by grating, a full lower
eyelid, which I can open and close
like my other lid. He is going to
fix my nose by cutting out the finger
bone and inserting in it's place a
piece of cartilage from my rib. He
has also fixed my upper jaw so that
can wear a set of false teeth.
have undergone rs full opera
tions, each time under ether or chic
roform and sometimes both, so the