Directly upon commencing the study of anatomy, Rich began to feel the need of something more than the plates contained in the books.
It was some distance to go, for the study of bones, to the doctor's house, and he wanted something that he could keep in his room, and have at hand to refer to; besides, the doctor had none of the bones of the trunk—only the skull and part of the limbs. He likewise wished to dissect and study muscles, tendons, the structure of skin, bone, veins, arteries, and internal organs, in their natural state, since for him to procure a human subject was at that time out of the question, as he was without means to purchase even a skeleton.
In these circumstances he conceived that much might be learned by a careful study and dissection of the bodies of animals in connection with the plates found in the books.
Mr. Clemens, the husband of Rich's landlady, owned and worked a large breadth of land, which[Pg 181] necessitated the keeping of many horses, as he did all his farm work with horses; but after his decease the greater part of the land, and all the horses except one, were sold. On the lower floor of the stable was a small room, once devoted to storing and oiling harnesses, in which was a fireplace, and at one corner, a large closet without shelves, and very broad, where the more valuable riding harnesses, not in constant use, were hung, to defend them from dust. There were also some harness-maker's tools, old straps, thorough-braces, and a large leather boot, that had survived the vehicle to which it was once attached.
Fire-wood in those days was made but small account of, especially by Mrs. Clemens, who could not consume half of the decaying and downwood on her land.
"Mrs. Clemens," said Rich, "are you willing I should clear out the old harness-room, and make a fire there occasionally?"
"What for, Mr. Richardson? If you want more room in the house you can have it. It will certainly be more comfortable than the barn; besides, I am afraid you will take cold."
"Indeed, Mrs. Clemens, I need not hesitate to tell a lady of your respect for and appreciation of the medical profession, that as I proceed in my studies, I shall want to dissect and experiment upon the bodies of animals. You know that, although the courts and the community are ever[Pg 182] ready to prosecute a physician to the extent of the law for a mistake in setting a bone, they throw every obstacle in the way of his obtaining any accurate knowledge of the machine he is expected to repair." The law in respect to this matter was more stringent then than at present.
"But, Mr. Richardson, if you should lose a mother, sister, or dear friend,—Mr. Perkins, for instance,—and had placed them in the earth, with all the respect nature dictates, could you bear to feel that they were taken from the grave, exposed upon a table, and cut to pieces by students smoking cigars, and laughing, and jesting, as though to fit and harden them for their profession by driving every spark of feeling and humanity out of their bosoms?"
"No, I could not. I don't believe, however, that there is the least necessity of this hardening process you have referred to; if I believed that, by devoting myself to the study of medicine, I should lose one particle of kindly feeling that I now possess, should harden my heart and curtail my sympathies, or change in any respect, except in obtaining self-command that I might discharge more efficiently my duty, I would relinquish study and go back to the anvil to-morrow. If a doctor is rough and unfeeling, it is to be attributed to his natural temper, and want of culture, not to his profession."
"Then I suppose you are just the one who[Pg 183] ought to be a doctor, though I think it is strange that you should choose that profession. As I was telling Mrs. Merrill the other day, I observed you was so sensitive you never could do some of those dreadful things doctors were obliged to perform. But as for the harness-room, you may do whatever you like with it; there's a padlock in the house belongs to the outside door, and a key to the lock on the closet. If there is anything there worth saving, put it in the loft, and any old rubbish you can burn up."
"But the wood, I will pay for that."
"By no means, there's wood enough."
After clearing out the place, and cleansing it thoroughly, Rich made a table, and put iron rings into it, in order that he might fasten any animal that he wished to operate upon. He then procured buckles and waxed ends, and from the boot of the old chaise made straps of different lengths for the same purpose, and put a lock on the door in lieu of the padlock. As the stern, patient smith of the wilderness, amid the melancholy moan of pine forests, and the roar of the stream, wrought out by sheer pluck and perseverance, a mechanical trade, so his earnest grandson, completely absorbed in his chosen pursuit, strove to verify, by experiment upon the bodies of such animals as he could procure, the theories he studied.
In short, under the intoxication of a dominant[Pg 184] impulse, he did things that, had they come to the knowledge of Mrs. Clemens, she would no longer have doubted of his adaptedness to the medical profession on the score of sensitiveness; so impervious to emotion in certain directions will an absorbing idea render a person otherwise most impressible.
He dissected frogs to observe the muscles of the thigh, and irritated the muscular tissue of animals, thus creating inflammation, in order to watch its progress. Though there are striking differences between the composition of man and the animal, still there is correspondence enough to admit of much being learned; and in default of a human subject, he resorted to this method, as his grandfather, unable to procure an anvil, made a stone answer the purpose. The lungs of a hog are very similar to those of a man, and he found no difficulty in procuring these. If a stray dog came along, he was most kindly welcomed by Rich; but it was observed that no stray dog, having once entered Mrs. Clemens's yard, was ever seen to come out again.
Marvelous was the industry of Rich, only equalled by his ingenuity. He soon had the large closet in the stable filled to overflowing with the skeletons of various animals he had dissected and wired together with great skill. He was much attached to Dan, who procured him animals to operate upon, while he, in turn mounted[Pg 185] birds and squirrels for Dan—a matter in which Rich was very skilful.
He had been for a long time desirous of examining the structure of the eye, but could not procure a suitable subject. Mrs. Clemens possessed a cat of beautiful color and proportions, affectionate disposition, intelligent, and perfectly trained. Between this member of the family and Dan the affections of the good lady were about equally divided. When, as occasionally happened, Gertrude was unwell, the good lady was at her wits' end, as she would have nothing from Buchan, and eschewed Burgundy pitch plasters, salts, and senna. Indeed, she had much rather Dan would be sick, than Gertrude, for she knew what to do for Dan, while Gertrude would have nothing but catnip. At every meal she sat beside Mrs. Clemens in a high chair, and never offered to take anything from the table, waiting the leisure of her mistress. Dan also loved Gertrude dearly, and had taught her a great many tricks. Rich likewise conceived a fondness for the cat, being naturally fond of pets.
Gertrude was exceedingly social in her disposition, rejoiced in a numerous circl............