Men Of Iron Nerve

Horowhenua Chronicle, 27 October 1916, Page 3

Men Of Iron Nerve

in the Scotsman). In nearly nil walks of life we meet, or ]ie:ir toll cf. the man ol iron nerve, of colossal' coolness under condition* that might well have excu.scd at least a Blight ahow of perturbation or .physical weakness. ithin the e'Jrcle of your own acquaintances you can doubtless number 0110 or two men of the 'kind. You will therefore be intdic-t ed in a few narratives, about others. Tlie case of a man who came out ol the "nerve test" with rare courage and' coolness was brought to t''" writer's nntVe a few years aj;o. Hip ■gentleman in question 0110 day w-i'k-cd into the consult ing room of a wcl 1 known physician. nnl. n* he placed a hand over the small ol h:s back, announced!: "Doctor, I've a very severe pain here; what's the trouble " "Strip to the waist andl I'll tell you in a very short time," replied the practitioned who has also a. high reputation as a surgeon. After a brief examination he adder!: 'You've an ugly tumour on vo;ur liver.' The man thought a moment; then fluid quietly: "I want it removed at once." "Tut, tut, man, don't be so hasty," cautioned the physician. But the patient, more dogged than before, answered: "I mean it doctor. I want that tumour removed before I leave this room." The diootor looked the man in the eyes, nn<l saw that they wavered not. He felt his pulse, and examined his heart, and found him normal. "All right," he said shortly. Within nfteen minutes the man was lying on a couch, and the physician ■ as making a. 10-in incision in his back Half an hour biter the tumour was removed, and an hour after he had submitted to the operation, during iwhich he had refused! ether, the patient with his liver cleansed rode to his homo in a cab, calmly undressed, wenit to bed, and then told his wife what had happened. "He never whimpered, never quivered an eyelid," declared the doctor, as he relatedi the incident, "and he would have gone home alone had I not forced myself into the cab. He showed absolutely no fear at anything, and in appearance he looks like a man who has only an ordinary amount of grit. Yet his exhibition of nerve was the most inspiring that I have ever seen." The Hospital of St CVJandier, at Toulon, was once the scene of a. most extraordinary instance of coolness and skill. Admiralty Surgeon Regault performed an operation upon 'himself for inguinal hernia on the left side. Propped up with cushions, the doctor seated himself on the operating table, and!, after administering -to himself an injection of cocaine, he commenced' to operate, closely watched, in. case of accident, by Dra Gastinel and D'orour, and' assisted by several students for the washing of instruments, the preparing of dressings, etc. The whole operation lasted an hour and a quarter, being suspended occasionally to allow photographs to be taken of the unique spectacle.

Br William M. Beok, ,\vho distinguished himself by his daring when fighting in the Philippines, not so long 'ago joined the ranks of the medical men who hare operated on themselves. He had been suffering from a growth which threatened to destroy his jawbone, and' he calmly stood before a mirror at his home one day and performed the difficult task of operating upon himself. He made an incision just below his left jaw, cut away the flesh from the point of the chin almost to the left ear, then scraped! the bone, and up the wound.

The story of the well-nigh incredible stoicism (equalling the courage of the religious martyrs of the old days) which marked the research work of the late Professor Fuchs is the store of a student hero who willingly sacrificed his life for the sake of science. He never flinched from the terrible ordeal Which the scarifice imposed upon

him. Since the of the X-rays Professor Fuchs h'nd been firm in the belief that their powerful light might be appliedi with excellent results upon canoer nnd other virulent skin diseases. Professor Fuchs began by experimenting upon the flesh -of his own hands, in order that he might learn what effect the X-rays bad upon perfectly healthy tissue. He was at the time that the experiments began in the very prime of life, enjoying exuberant good health. In 190-5, about a year after the experiments began. Professor Fuchs developed a virulent case of "X-ray cancer" on his right hand, and in the fall of the year the first joint of the thumb of that hand was amputated. The attending surgeons remonstrated with him for his so-called: foolhardiness.

Professor Fuchs replied, with the same ■expression of noble sentiment) that has inspired the martyr since time immemorial, "The life of one man is of absolutely no value, if by the sacrifice of that life some lasting benefit may accrue to humanity."

Thus Professor Fuchs continued his experiments upon himself, nor did he confine them to his mutilated hand. The left hand was also brought into service, with the result that from time to time lie was obliged to submit to amputation. By and by he had lost all of his right hand, which eventually was amputated at the wrist; then, later, the same operation had to be performed upon his left hand. Having no more hand to experiment with. Professor Fuchs then ordered the rays to be tinned on the tissues of his bivist and diaphragm, with the result tliat tl'ise also became affected with the same deadly malady, which was de tine.l lo prove fatal, and which terminatedl. in his martyr's death on April 24, 1907.

It is nmiz'ng hows supremely indifferent to pain nnd suffering our gallant Tommies are. They suffer their wounds great and small, without a murmur; thoy get their wounds dressed, take chloroform, and give consent to have the in- limbs amputated, just as if they were Koing to have their hair cut. As rti instance of unflinching grit nnd iiuc :n-ious Mr Philip Gih! s --!-vtes how a sergeant was badly wounded as he stood) thigh high in water. One of his legs was horribly smashed. Word was passed down to the field ambulance, and a surgeon came up. splashing to the neck in nurl, with his instruments held high. The operation was done in the water. red with the blood of the wounded man, who was brought down, less a leg. to the field hispital. Ho was put a little on one side, as a man about to die. "What else could one expect after that agony in the ice-cold puddle? Rut that evening he chatted ehrcrfullv joked with the priest who linip to annoint him nnd wrote a letter to his wife: —"I hope this will find you 'in the pink' as it leaves me." he began. He mentioned the "accident." which had taken away one his !e"s. "But the youngsters will like to play with my woodien leg," he said and discussed the joke of it.

As one of the R.A.M.'C. said, "The wounded soldiers we fetch in never flinch or make a murmur." Then he told of a very touching case. "A chap got hit by shrapnel in hie hack and was severely wounded. "We took him to the operating theatre, and, as they had just run out of chloroform the surgeon told hm he must hear it if lie couldi.

"They exit the flesh away, and the poor chap stuck it all without a groan, and smoked his pipe all the. while. Ho is now getting tan well I am very liappy to relate."