On the instant this took place
Doctor Hillhouse made an incision and cut down quickly to the tumor.
His hand was steady, and he seemed to be in perfect command of
himself. The stimulants he had taken as a last resort were still
active on brain and nerves. On reaching the tumor he found it, as he
had feared, much larger than its surface presentation indicated. It
was a hard, fibrous substance, and deeply seated among the veins,
arteries and muscles of the neck. The surgeon's hand retained its
firmness; there was a concentration of thought and purpose that gave
science and skill their best results. It took over twenty minutes to
dissect the tumor away from all the delicate organs upon which it
had laid its grasp, and nearly half as long a time to stanch the
flow of blood from the many small arteries which had been severed
during the operation. One of these, larger than the rest, eluded for
a time the efforts of Doctor Hillhouse at ligation, and he felt
uncertain about it even after he had stopped the effusion of blood.
In fact, his hand had become unsteady and his brain slightly
confused. The active stimulant taken half an hour before was losing
its effect and his nerves beginning to give way. He was no longer
master of the situation, and the last and, as it proved, the most
vital thing in the whole operation was done imperfectly.
At the end of thirty-five minutes the patient, still under the
influence of ether was carried back to her chamber and laid back
upon her bed, quiet as a sleeping infant.
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