No Humbug Here —Celebrating Ether Day in the Spirit of J. C. Warren

For the fiftieth anniversary of Ether Day, J. Collins Warren addressed the American Surgical Association in 1897 about the “Influence of Anaesthesia on the Surgery of the Nineteenth Century.” At first glance, it may appear that the attending surgeon from October 16, 1846, John Collins Warren, M.D. (bottom right), was posthumously presenting a spirited speech four decades after his death. Upon closer inspection, the reader learns that J. Collins Warren, M.D. (bottom left), the grandson of the elder Dr. Warren, is reflecting on his family legacy and reminding fellow surgeons that surgical advancement should “excite our industry rather than our vanity.” Though it is debatable whether the senior Dr. Warren truly uttered the famous phrase “Gentlemen! This is no Humbug,” the Warren family’s dedication to painless surgery is not in question. The elder Warren did advocate ether administration durin g surgery and wrote several papers and books to encourage etherization. (Copyright © the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology.www.woodlibrarymuseum.org)
Source: Anesthesiology - Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: research