On chloroform and other anæsthetics: their action and administrationSnow, John
History
On chloroform and other anæsthetics: their action and administration
Snow, John
Anesthetics; Chloroform; Snow, John, 1813-1858
Inquisitive folk often overburthened Snow, after these events, with a
multitude of questions of an unmeaning kind. He answered them all with
goodnatured reserve. “Her Majesty is a model patient,” was his usual
reply: a reply which, he once told me, seemed to answer every purpose,
and was very true. One lady of an inquiring mind, to whom he was
administering chloroform, got very loquacious during the period of
excitement, and declared she would inhale no more of the vapour unless
she were told what the Queen said, word for word, when she was taking
it. Her Majesty, replied the dry doctor, asked no questions until she
had breathed very much longer than you have; and if you will only go on
in loyal imitation, I will tell you everything. The patient could not
but follow the example held out to her. In a few seconds she forget all
about Queen, Lords, and Commons; and when the time came for a renewal of
hostilities, found that her clever witness had gone home to his dinner,
leaving her with the thirst for knowledge still on her tongue.
From the literary and general history of Dr. Snow, let us turn for a few
pages to his history personal. I will take the mean of the last eight
years of his life,—the period in which I knew him,—as the period from
which to draw particulars. He was of middle size, and, some years since,
slender; but of late he had become of slightly fuller build. His long
life in comparative student loneliness had made him reserved in manner
to strangers; but with private friends he was always open, and of sweet
companionship. With his increased popularity he became less reserved to
strangers; and within the last few years he so far threw off restraint
as to visit the opera occasionally. But he moderated every enjoyment,
and let nothing personal stand in the way of his scientific pursuits. He
was the impersonation of order. He had his time and place for
everything; he kept a diary, in which he recorded the particulars of
every case in which he administered chloroform or other anæsthetic, with
comments on the results of the administration, and hints as to dangers
avoided or chanced. He kept a record of all his experiments, and short
notes of observations made by his friends. He rose early, and retired
early to rest,—at eleven o’clock. He seemed, whenever he was waited on,
as though he had nothing in hand, and were always open to an engagement.
Anything and everything of scientific interest arrested his attention,
and his kindliness of heart was at all times in the foreground. When I
was living at Mortlake, he would run down, on request, after his day’s
duties were over, to a _post-mortem_, to see a poor patient, or to take
part in an experiment, returning as cheerily as though he had been to
receive the heaviest fee. I name this as but one example of his kindly
nature; there are many who could corroborate the example in like
personal manner.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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