Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-10-21

w WASHINGTON, D. c., Oct 15,--A case
w of chornic ivy poisoning, if you can
view it without prejudice which we
nearly all feel toward diseased states of the
human flesh, is really a beautiful thing. The
affected hands swell up, and turn clear,
pale pink, deepening here and there to rich
scarlet faithly notified with yellow and
starred with little silvery drops of a liquid
discharge, that rest upon the flaming flesh
colors like dew drops upon rose petal
These reflections upon the beauty of ivy
poisoning, which will not be appreciated by
anyone who has had it, were provoked by
model of this painful affiction, made of wax
and painted in natural cOlors, by Captain J.
F. Wallis of the Army Medical Museum 1t
is no exaggeration to say that if these wax
hands were shown you projecting through
holes in curtain, for instance, you would
believe that they were living flesh. DR.. Wallis,
who is at once an artist and a DOCTOR has
attained new and startling realism in the
representation of diseases and wounds in
wax and paint.
Also, he has founded the first American
school i'll this difficult and important art
Heretofore, all of the wax models of dis
eased states have been made in Europe most
of them by famous maker named Baretta
Three or four collections of these models ex-
ISL In TINS country. The Army Medical
Museum has one of them These European
models are pale and unreal-looking compared
to those of DR.. Walls. They are a sort of
III.
Wallis captures the very tone and color OF
the living flesh. Furthermore the Baretta
models are falling to pieces. They do not
stand changes of temperature or exposure to
Sunllght. Dr. Wallis ny mixing talcum starch
ana other substances with his wax has pro-
duced models that are almost impervious to
changes OF light and temperature
The value to the United States of this
achievement of DR.. Wallis has been widely
recognized. LIE Matre, the famous French
surgeon, pronounced these the finest models
he had ever seen. Surgeon General Runert
bIue or the public health service, has in
dorsed the work of Captain Wallis and states
tnat the pubic health service needs collec-
ZION OF these models, but that the funds
necessary for making it are not available A
movement is now on foot to have congress
make an appropriation for the work. TTnlees
this is done, the work will stop aItogethnr &C
II WaIhs' prominent dermatologist cannot
aHofd TO retain much longer his nOsition of
captain IN the medical corps, now that the
war IS over. During the war, too he had
LUMBER OF pupils, including some first rate
aftlSts VINO had enlisted. Most of these have
now been discharged, and, the doctor hac h,,t
single pupil, although another of his pupils
now working at Walter Reed hospital
DIR. Wallis found that finished artists were
<eIdom able to make good models. Baker
ne famous portrait painter, who enlisted in
1o army, was assigned to DR.. WalIis' office
was accordingly transferred to the job of
painting portraits of cabinet officers. at
which he made great success.
1t should be explained that this model
making does not require a real artist. but
rather an extremely skillful artisan, working
under the direction of a physician The wax
IS not modelled. Instead a plaster of paris
cast is MADE OF the part which is to be re-
produced. The hair and beard are pIastered
uoWn WIN some yiscOuS material, if the face
Is TO De the subject, and quilts are usually
put in the patients nose. At least. that was
the European method. DR.. Wallis has found
mat II the patient will blow through his nos
Urls after the plaster has been put on he
can generally form breathing hole. This
IS much better than the use of mills az tho
quIlls tend to tickle the patients nose. cans
ing him to sneeze and blow the soft n1astar
cast to pieces p1'"'0i
When the plaster cast has hardened, an
impression is taken of it in wax, and this
wax impression is painted in the exact col
orS or the wound or disease. This REQUIRES
a very skillful and delicate use of color. An
experienced tinter of photographs is often
more successful at it than an artist trained
n the Use of oils on canvas
Thus, in order to insure an adequate sup
ply of wax models for this country the only
thing necessary is to train certain number
OF these artisans, in standardized methods
These trained operators could then be at
tached to medical museums and universities,
and could train others in the work
DR.. Wallis is now probably the only man in
the United States who could do this work