A Remarkable Operation:

At St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London-
A Large Cube of Rock
Extracted from the Left Eye

The complete story of a remarkable recovery from a serious mining accident as a result of an operation at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, which attracted some attention in the English press, and which was briefly cabled out, will be read with interest in Western Australia, where the accident occurred. The victim of the accident was Joseph Anderson, aged 26, and his photograph shows where a large piece of stone was successfully removed from above the left eye. A photograph of the stone is also given, together with a scale by which its size can easily be ascertained.

The accident happened about 6.45 a.m. on November 21, 1912: Anderson was working with, a mate on the Associated  GM Kalgoorlie at No. 10 level (1000ft) stopping. They were firing two holes, two sand blasts. His mate (John ‘Jack’ Schickling) lit one and went over to light the second, when the first exploded, Anderson being about 20ft away. One stone 1 inch by 1 3/4 inch by 1 inch thick struck Anderson right in the corner of the left eye.

Anderson’s mate got the assistance of two men, who helped the injured man down to the level. He was taken to Nurse Wrights private hospital and attended to by three Kalgoorlie medical men. The wound was cleaned and pieces of stone taken out. He stayed nine weeks in the private hospital. The doctors were trying to heal the wound, and Anderson does not think that they knew the stone was inside the orbit. The medical men advised Anderson to go to Sydney for treatment, but he determined to go to London.

The injured man left Kalgoorlie on March 31, 1913, sailing from Fremantle on April 5 by the Osterley. He reached London on May 10, and went into St. Bartholomew’s Hospital on May 26, he having been X rayed on the 22nd and the stone located. On May 28th he underwent the first operation, and the stone was extracted. Several days afterwards another operation to make a passage from the nostril to the upper edge of the orbit, to let any discharge come away, was performed, and seven days later Anderson was discharged from the hospital with the wound healed.

The following certificate regarding his case was issued by the doctor attending him at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital: –

Mr. JOSEPH ANDERSON consulted me at ST. BARTHOLOMEWS HOSPITAL, at the beginning of May 1913

I found that he had an external fistula which communicated with his left frontal sinus. and there was a quantity of purulent discharge escaping from it. No inflammation or discharge was discovered in the nose. An X-ray examination showed that a large foreign body was still present above the orbit. It was removed on May 28, 1913, and proved to be a large cube of rock which lay partly In the orbit and partly in the cranial cavity and left spherical cell. On account of its size there was considerable difficulty in extracting it through the orbit. On June 1 following a portion of the septal cartilage was removed and a free opening made from the frontoethnoidal cavity (in which the stone lay) into the nose – afterwards, healing of the cavity and the skin wound was rapid. When seen on January 12, 1914. he had no discharge or discomfort and his condition appeared in every way satisfactory.

Douglas Harmer. M.C. Cantab., F.R.C.S.,
Surgeon in charge of the Throat Department St. Bartholomews Hospital

After leaving St. Bartholomew’s Hospital Anderson continued as an outpatient, visiting the hospital twice weekly to January 14 following. The wound was healed, but the doctors thought it possible some piece of bone might be left. On January 16 he sailed for Australia by the Osterley, reaching Fremantle on February 17 and Kalgoorlie on February 20, 1914. When he went into the hospi-tal he could just see with the left eye. The sight of that eye ls not much better now, but it is improving. The doctors told him that eventually he would get full sight with that eye The sight of the right eye was in no way affected.

When Anderson returned to Kalgoorlie, after being 16 months under treatment, he could not get a j0b on the same mine on which he was injured. Mr. Macaulay (general manager) told him they were advertising for men on the Transcontinental rail line, and asked him why he did not go out there. Anderson told him that it was too far away from doctors. Macaulay replied that he had no vacancy, but that if one occurred Anderson would get the preference. The management of the Associated should not be proud of this sort of treatment of an injured employee.

Anderson speaks very highly of his treatment at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, and says that he was cared for better there than he would have been in Australia. Patients are only asked to pay what they can afford.

Joseph married in London just before returning to Australia.