The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1920-11-27
A GREAT GIFT TO MAN

VI n 40 n SEDA.
HIVE OF PAIN-HoRRoRs OF
SURGICAL OPERATIONS PRAc.
TicALLY ELIMINATE
THROUGH USE OF ANAEsTHE-
TIc-cREDIT FOR GREAT BOON
AscRIBED TO DR.. NORTON
HISTORY OF. DISCOVERY AND
CONTROVERSY.
written for The Catholic Bulletin by
Dr.. w. L. J. Griffin.)
lin view of the agitation going on
at present to place the name of DR.. w:
T. G. Morton in the National hall Of
fame. the following article should
prove of interest to our readers. 1t
is from the pen of DR.. Griffin of Phil
adelphia, the we'll known authority on
dental surgery. ~
Gods Great Gift to Man. !
1t is not unlikely that the curious
effects ascribed to some of the ancient
oracles were due to the inhaling of
gases arising from natural springs or
produced by other sources.
Few of the early surgical writer's,
with the exception of Guy de Chau-
lilac, mention any agent for the relief
of pain during surgical operations, al
though before his time (died about
1870 it was the custom to give some
thing to those about to undergo tor
ture, in order to deaden their sensi-
bility. 1t is very difficult to learn just
what was given, if any particular com.
position was referred to or deserves
such mention. .
I have often wondered why my good
friend, DR.. James J. Walsh, did not in
clude a chapter on this subject in his
excellent book, "The Popes and Sci
ence." On several occasions he men,
tons anaesthetics, but an article on
the subject from his pen would make
interesting reading. In my early col
lege days I became greatly interested
in the subject of painless surgical
operations, and even at that date de-
voted time to searching out early rec
ords, but found very little. For sew
eral years after graduation my time
was devoted to teaching anatomy and
my evenings were spent in the dis
| secting room, so that I had little time
for research work. Being offered the
chair of History in one of the medical
schools, a few years later, I again took
| up the work, but until DR.. Walsh gives
us an article on the subject, as it is
in his line of research, we a only
imagine or guess the method used in
| the early centuries for painless surgi
cal operations.
Larrey. during his military career
noticed the effects Of cold in dimin'
ishing constituencies. and suggested
that cold might be made useful in what
we today call local a~naesthesia.
Origin in Mesmerism.
About the year 1875 DR.. Messmel
arrived in Paris. He became the ex
ponent of so-called animal magnetism
later termed mesmerism, now known
as %hypnotism, and under the influence
Of which he produced Inconsistencies
upon people about to undergo a sur
! gical operation. This method of oper
I ating was not, however, at all reliable
It was attempted in a limited number
of cases. and in these it was rarely
successful.
In spite of the earnest attempts Of
surgeons in various parts of the worlt
no agent other than Supplying drugs
such as opium, mandrake and the like
had been discovered which had prov
en- safe and generally effective W
to the time of Velpeau, who in 1873!
wrote: ITO escape pain in surgica
operations is an odd fancy which we
are not permitted to look for in oul
day."
Use Of ChIoroform.
Chloroform was discovered in 1888
by Guthrie of Sackett Harbor, N. Y.
and about the same time by Souberia1
in France, and Liebig in Germany. AL
though before the world for sixtee1
years it was not recognized as an an
aesthetic until November 4. 1S47, whel
DR.. James Y. Simpson of Edenburg
Scotland, prompted by the announce
ment of DR.. William T. G. Morton!
use of ether. sterilized chloroform ant
found it safe and effective.
Sulphuric ether has been known
since the thirteenth century, when i
seems that Raymond Lulli made am
biguous references to it. In 1910
was called the sweet oil of vitrol.
It was not called ether until 1880 whel
Godfrey spoke of it az such. 1t wa
frequently referred to, two centurie
ago, by various writer's; and the frs
reference to it's being inhaled seem
to have been published by P%earsons il
1895. By the year 1872 it was ofte1
inhaled for experiments and its pecu
liar exhilarating and intoxicating Ell
fects became generally known.
So it is not strange that as soon a
it was definitely recommended for SUI
gical operations a number of claim
ants for tho honor Of its discover