Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 227, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 September 1914 — WOODED WOODEN ARNS PERFORN WONDERD [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WOODED WOODEN ARNS PERFORN WONDERD

7 k INCE the day that gave to the world the starched shirt and stiff collar it has saSSHg generally been accepted tbat tbe man whose collar QfIBPWI button, In a spirit of contrariness, leaps nimbly from his grasp and provokingly rolls under the bed or the dresser, has a license to express his disgust in more or less forcible language, and usually he does. Getting down on one's knees and groping about in the dark corners underneath the furniture for the refractory thing is not the most pleasant Job in the world, even if one has two perfectly good arms and hands with which to conduct the search. Imagine, then, the difficulties of the man who is forced to make such a search with no arms at all, or rather with two artificial limbs. Impossible, you say? Not a bit of it There is a living witness to the fact in a young New Yorker, T. C. Gates by name, who has not only accomplished this amazing feat but Sany other remarkable things with ro artificial arms which for a mudber of wears he has worn in 'place of those first given him by nature. Mr. Gates, in fact, goes through the paces of everyday life without the slightest fuss or effort and yet he has wood for flesh, steel for joints, and rawhide cords for mtuscles in place of the real thing. And mind you, he has no fingers, wrists or elbows, even as you and I, though his two arms move as naturally as those of bone and sinew. Three years ago young Gates, who is an electrician, came in contact with two live wires and 2,400 volts, more than is used to kill a man in the electric chair, were discharged through him, burning his hands so badly that a little later It was found necessary to amputate both his arms near the elbow. Like all people similarly afflicted, he looked over the

by ROBERTHMOULTON

field of substitutes and finally purchased an artificial arm, the invention of William T. Carnes of Warren, Pa. After wearing this for several months be was able to use It 'With such success that be invested in another. In the presence of the astonished surgeons at the International Surgical congress in New York the other day the young man dressed himself. First he buttoned his shoes and put on hiß garters. Then he drew his shirt over his head and buttoned it down the front, closing the top with the ordinary collar button of wrath-producing fame. Then he picked up his collar and buttoned it back and front, han-, dling it as deftly as the average man manages his with ten fingers. \ When this was done, he tied his four-in-hand scarf, drew it tight and fastened it snug with his scarf pin. Now he drew on his coat, picked up his hat and put it on. Next he rolled a cigarette, struck a match, lighted the “smoke’ and started puffing it with plain enjoyment Walking over to

the water cooler, he drew himself a drink and. tossed it off ylthout spilling a drop. He pulled U“ nickel from his pocket, dropped it and picked it up again. But when he sat down, took up a pen, dipped it in the ink and dashed off his name in excellent handwriting, first with the right hand and then-wlth the left, it seemed almost uncanny. There are a lot of folks who' can’t write legibly 5 with the left hand even if it has four perfectly good, red-blooded fingers. The arm that enables Mr. Gates to perform such astonishing ■ feats is made of willow fiber. Steel gears take the place of Joints, and rawhide cords act as muscles. Each rawhide cord ends on a pair of suspenders - fastened across the back and chest, which gives the necessary tension. A mere shrug of the shoulder controls the arm and the 240 distinct parts' of which it is composed. The rawhide “muscles” move the steel "joints,” and both in unison make the “arm” appear almost human. The elbow is bent with a simple forward movement of the stump. This, by means of the cord attached from the forearm to the shoulder suspender, raises the hand as far as the owner wishes—high enough to take off his hat or brush his hair. A downward movement of the shoulder conversely, causes a slight tension on another rawhide corgi controlling the fingers. This bends the hand backward from the joint and opens the fingers. Another shrug of the shoulder closes the Angel's and locks them so that they can hold on tight to whatever object is being handled, from a tooth-pick to a valise. Repeat the downward movement of the , shoulder and the fingers are unlocked.

The wrist is provided with a hinge joint and a button, and can be locked securely in three positions. The button can be pushed back and the wrist flexed automatically by means of the cord opening and closing the fingers. All the work is done by the shoulders. Raising the elbow moves the wrist one-third of a turn.