Horace Wells (January 21, 1815 – January 24, 1848) [Britannica]
Manner of death: Used anesthetics to commit suicide
An American dentist, born in Vermont and educated in Boston, Horace Wells was one of the pioneers in the field of anesthesia. Weary of screaming patients, (it was known to upset him terribly, he often debated leaving the field of dentistry altogether), he was one of the first practitioners to see the value of nitrous oxide or laughing gas as an anesthetic.
After a failed experiment and falling out of favor with the medical community, Wells became a traveling anesthetic salesman and European expert for his former partner, Gardner Quincy Colton. His ‘investigations’ led to a chloroform addiction that would be his down-fall. In 1848, delirious and deranged after a week of self-experimentation, Wells ran into the street and assaulted two prostitutes with sulfuric acid. He was arrested and confined at New York’s infamous Tombs Prison. Recovering from the drug induced psychosis; the true horror of his actions came home to roost. Unable to live with this shame, Wells committed suicide by first inhaling a substantial dose of chloroform and then slitting his femoral artery.
I'd say this old boy definitely had some problems upstairs, if you know what I mean.
Coffee inside today due to the rain.
8 comments:
The same could be said about most addicts I think. It has rained here so much, I can't remember a day when we didn't have rain at some point.
3 bricks shy of a wheelbarrow load.
When I was kid my dentist didn't use anything to help the hurt when he drilled out a cavity. As a reward or being "good" he would send me home with a glob of mercury to play with. Hmm, that might explain some things about me :).
I think it was a lot more than self-induced experimentation that was wrong with him. I think he had a few screws loose also. Rain finally stopped here and I was able to mow the lawn which in some spots was over six inches tall.
Hey Mamahen...
I think you're probably right about that. I know what you mean about the rain, my friend.
Thanks for coming over today!
Hey Bigfoot...
That is a pretty good description, I reckon.
Thanks for stopping by today!
Hey Momlady...
Can you imagine a doctor or dentist doing that today? Wow!
Thanks for coming over this morning!
Hey Linda...
Sounds like it was more than a few, ya know?
Many thanks for the visit today!
I think like most people who become addicted started out having mental issues. Sad either way
We had at big storm Sat. and it rained most of Sunday but these past days have been really nice. See you in the kitchen my friend/s
Hey Jo...
Yes it is sad. From what I've seen, the secret to beating addiction is the desire to change.
Thanks, dear, for dropping by today!
I am addicted to your post, Mr. Hermit, and I don't want to change.
Post a Comment