Page 85
“…even larger than before.”
“Removal of the Superior Maxilla for a Tumour of the Antrum; Apparent Cure. Return of the Disease. Second Operation. Sequel,” J. Marion Sims, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 13, 1847, p. 314.
“He articulated in detail…”
See “…a stroke of genius,” above. The drawing of Nott’s double-inclined plane included in the printed book appears in his article.
“Description of the Modification of the Double Inclined Plane, with an exposition of its advantages over other apparatus for fractures of the lower extremity,” Josiah C. Nott, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, No. XLV, November 1838, p. 23.
“He drew up plans…”
Sims does not indicate how the device was made, but he commonly had devices fashioned by smiths of various kinds. Given the complexity of the device—soon to be described—this is wholly in keeping with Sims’s career.
“…wrote to Mosely for consent…”
Sims did not specify that he reached out to Mosely to request permission to perform major surgery—and given Sam’s condition, Mosely’s consent may have been already supplied. Nevertheless, it was Sims’s habit to seek permission from masters when performing surgery, which was the ethical standard of the time. Notably, when it came to the story of Anarcha and the others, Sims was wholly duplicitous in this, suggesting in other documents that he had sought consent from his experimental subjects, just a short time after having published a piece about an experiment whose purpose was to reveal that consent was not necessary.
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 236.
“Two Cases of Vesico-Vaginal Fistula, Cured,” New York Medical Gazette and Journal of Health, Vol. 5, No. 1, January 1854, p. 1.
“…May 15, 1845.”
“Osteo-Sarcoma of the Lower Jaw—Resection of the Body of the Bone—Cure,” J. Marion Sims, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 11, 1846, pp. 129.
“More than twenty-five men were gathered inside…”
“Osteo-Sarcoma of the Lower Jaw—Resection of the Body of the Bone—Cure,” J. Marion Sims, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 11, 1846, p. 13.
“…Sims’s assistants seized Sam’s arms and legs.”
The sketch of Sam included in the printed book appears on p. 129 of Sims’s article. I have recounted this portion of the episode almost in full. Sims does not speak directly to the process of seizing Sam, but it’s clearly between the lines. While “surcingle webbing” is now used for many things, at the time it would have been readily available from its use on horses.
“Osteo-Sarcoma of the Lower Jaw—Resection of the Body of the Bone—Cure,” J. Marion Sims, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 11, 1846, pp. 129-30.
“…sixty drops of laudanum…”
Sims notes this only in the aftermath of the operation and suggests that Sam voluntarily took the laudanum. This is unlikely, as Sam was reluctant to undergo any procedure at all, and resisted it when it began. It’s far more likely that Sims attempted to administer the drops by force.
“Osteo-Sarcoma of the Lower Jaw—Resection of the Body of the Bone—Cure,” J. Marion Sims, The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Vol. 11, 1846, p. 131.