Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-04-24
STORY Of CHILD IN
LEG Of NAV FALSE
Not Word of Truth in 1t, Says
Physician Who Performed
Operation

Reports of highly sensational ma
ture regarding an operation performed
Mi, on the leg of the Rev G. g. White Of
OF the partly developed body of q child
instead of the fatty tumor that was
expected, are denied absolutely by DR..
charge. in a letter made public to-day.
The story was published in a number
of newspapers, but received no men
ton in the Telegraph, due to the fact
that this newspapers policy is to
guard against just such errors,a as it
was suspected at the time this would
prove to be.
The Rev. Mr.. White is well known
Lutheran minister During his college
days he was captain of Gettysburg
football team, catcher on the baseball
nine and an athlete of note.
DR.. Bloodgoods letter of denial fol-
lows:
Baltimore, Nd, April IS, 1914. - Rev.
C. G, White, Millersburg, Pa.-Dear Mr..
White; | have your letter OF, April II
enclosing a, clipping from the North
American, of Philadelphia. l am send
ing you clipping from Baltimore Star
published April 16.
must have been sent either by letter
or, wire to both Baltimore and Phila-
deIphia papers.
The Evening Star published this per-
1ectly ridiculous story without giving
me any. opportunity to tell them any
thing about it The other two papers
the Baltimore News and Evening
Sun-would not publish 1T until they
IT, and as they could not get me, they
did not publish 1t at all. and when they
did give me an opportunity to explain
to them that the story was absolutely
false, they, of course, did not pay any
further attention to it.
The only news item in the story is
the statement that the body of child
was removed from a tumor of the leg,
and this the leg of a man. This, Of
course, is absolutely false, and no paper
with any high sense of it's duty to the
without consulting some member of
the profession.
Apparently other Philadelphia papers
received 1t; but ignored it, One of these
telephone the next day.
III we look the matter squarely In the
race, 1t is not you, the patient. or |, the
surgeon. who is made ridiculous but
the newspapers who swallow such a
story absolutely absurd on its face
and publish 1T. 1t was distinctly a
newspaper mistake, and the editors of
the Baltimore. Star appreciate it now.
In the article the statement that you
We're a patient of mine is correct, and
tn onar you We're operated upon is also
thigh, but in the lilac fossa and did not
contain anything which could be eve n
remotely construed as child, any
more more than the common fatty tumor
be described as a human child, or as
AWNING having any relation to a
maonstrosity The, essential part, there
fore. of the article is false. The news
item Is untrue The whole story is
ridlculous | am sorry for the papers
who have published 1t.
l believe 1t would be better plan
90 Ignore the entire thing, but il Won
Ieel that you wish a public statement
denying 1t, you have a right as a patti
ent or mine to expect it. and / am sure
nial. po ue
experiences of this kind should have
soou erect upon the newspapers and
teach them to scrutinize news of This
character, and before publishing turn
TO those who know for confirmation
we absolutely need the newspapers n,
the country to help us in the propo-
ganda OF educating the public on mat
ters OF public health and preventive
medicine. But we can not expect nl,icf,
heip from newspapers who will publish
medical stories of this sort.
-. Very sincerely yours.
'signed) JOS. c. BLOODGooD.