Evening star., 1924-02-04


his burden across the hall into a bed
chamber. and. finding himself un-
equal to the task of lifting the Presi-
dent into bed alone, called Mrs. Will
son, and together they succeeded.
During all this ordeal the Presidents
wife was cool and offered sugges-
tions to the physician.
Once in bed the President seemed
to regain his senses and murmured
that he felt sleepy. DR.. GraySon
made a hurried examination of pulse
and heart and found them very low.
The tell-tale drooling of saliva from
the Presidents mouth and the twitch-
ing of the face were there again.
They wrote their own diagnosis.
Woodrow Wilson had been paralyzed
on his left side and lay in the shadow
Of death. With the first movement
of his lips he extracted promise
from doctor and wife that his con-
dttion if serious must not become
DIR. Grayson summoned from Phila-
delphia DIR. Francis y. Dercum. a
foremost specialist and one of the
only two Americans ever received
into the Societe de Neuroloic of
confined to less than fifty of the
world'e foremost scientists. He also
called in Rear Admiral f. r. Stitt of
the Navy Medical Corps, Il distin-
guished diagnostician, and DIR. Ster-
ling Ruffin of this: city. Mrs. Wilson's
family physician.
Diagnosis of Malady.
A two-hour consultation developed
the agreement that Mr.. Wilson had
suffered what is medically known
as cerebral thrombosis-a blood
clot in one of the blood vessels in the
right side of his brain. Its effect
was to impair the motor nerves of
the left side as well as the sensitory
nerves. The physicians concluded
there had been no lesion. but that
there was a danger of one. If the
clot were hard one and should be
swept along in the blood circulation
to the heart and jam valve the re-
suit probably would be death. If it
were a soft clot there was hope of
absorging it. On that slender hope
the battle of life began. An official
bulletin informed the country of a
serious turn in the Presidents con-
dition but did not disclose the cause.
For the next week Mr. Wilson hov-
cred between life and death. Every
thing that it was possible to do was
done. The country finding for the
frs! time that the President was in
danger of death fell into a gloom. 1t
was reported that Mr.. Wilson lay un-
conscious .1OT Week. WAS
that he; never was unconscious at any
time during that illness. 1t was re-
ported that he had become a maniac.
Truth was that his mind always was
active and he constantly gave direc-
tions to those about him.
Asked for Music.
In few days there was some re-
sponse: to treatment. Mr. Wilson's
spirits rose. Always a lover Of mu-
til Tlr
Grayson ordered in a talking machine
which was supplied with the latest
records of lively tunes. Mr.. Wilson
wanted to read and couldn't do it in
bed with nose glasses so his acculist
was orde red down from Philadelphia
and fitted him with spectacles.
Mr. Wilson had suffered the re-
tinal herhorrhage in his right eye
years ago and DR.. Grayson wanted
the occulist. DR.. George De Schwein-
it's to examine 1t.
'T want to look at your pupils"
You'll have a long job" shot back
the sick President. I've had many
thousands of them"
Chafed at Confinement.
He was thinking of college days. but
the remark was an example of how he
jol<ed his doctors even when he
was desperately ill. But sick as he
was. ne cna1eU aI W oeu
and wanted - get up.
Your temperature is exactly normal
this morning." said DR.. Grayson on one
occasion soon thereafter.
"My temper won't be normal if you
keep me in this bed much longer" re-
But anxious as he was to "try his
legs" his physician, knowing the true
condition. dissuaded him from risk
ing it.
Up to this time. Mr.. Wilson, insist
ing that his condition be kept secret.
had excluded from his room all but
members of the family. the doctors
and two trusted nurses from the naval
The valet who shaved him
was barred, and Woodrow Wilson grew
a beard and muStache. He hadn't worn
whiskers for thirty years, not since he
was student at Johns Hopkins, when
he wore "Burnsides.' He accounted it
a rather good joke, and used to care
fully brush the adornment every day.
Close Secrecy Kept.
Meanwhile the secrecy which sur
rounded the details of the Presidents
illness gave rise to some complications.
Congress wanted to know whether he
had suffered constitutional disability
to perform the functions of his office,
Mr.. Wilson and his wife were deter
mined that Congress shouldn't find out
Members of the cabinet found it fruit
less to ask for an audience in the sick
room. They sent inquiries in writing
and documents for signature, and Mrs.
Wilson made the decision as to whether
the President should see them. Some
members of the Wilson family suS-
pected that some of the inquiries trans
mitted were designed to test whether
the Presidents mind was working on
public affairs, and sometimes these
were gone over in family council with
the object of defeating such a purpose
IF II EQrn-in rptJ1rniner er
the answer.
There were long days when even
Mr.. Tumulty, the Presidents secre-
tary, was excluded from the sick
his real condition. Political
opponents In Congress, who wanted
10 develop whether the President was
In mental condition to consider a
state document arranged to have sent
UP to the White House some resolu-
tions, which actually required a sig
nature. Mr.. Wilson signed them, with
great effort, but the pen strokes
were the wavering, wandering lines
Of palsied hand, quite unlike the
positive bold strokes with which he
wrote Woodrow WILSON," 1t
was reported on seemingly good au-
thority that some of these opponents
examined these signatures with the
aid of a microscope, compared them
with signatures on other papers sign
ed in Mr.. Wilson's health and were
whether they had been
signed by Mr.. Wilson or Mr.. Tu-
multy. a- ..a..
Cabinet Restive.
Meantime there had been no meet
ings of the cabinet. Some of the
members who were not in accord
with the policy of secrecy determined
to force things a little Secretary
then at the head of the
State Department, called a meeting
of the cabinet and quizzed DR.. Gray
son and Secretary Tumulty about the
Presidents condition. Mr. Lansing,
however, was not supported by some
other cabinet members as he probably
had reason to expect he would be and