Civil War Washington

CASE.—Private John Stichler, Co. G, 184th Pennsylvania Volunteers, aged 18 years, was wounded at Deep Bottom, Virginia, August 14th, 1864, by a conoidal musket ball, which entered to the right of the last dorsal vertebra, passed inward and downward, and lodged in the right iliac fossa. He was sent to Washington and admitted to Emory Hospital on the 17th. On the 19th, ether and chloroform were administered, and the ball was removed from the right iliac fossa through an incision two inches in length. A small portion of the right transverse spinal process and a splinter from the crest of the ilium were also removed. Adhesive strips were applied to coapt the lips of the wound; tonics, stimulants, and a nutritious diet constituted the remainder of the treatment. This man was returned to duty on December 1st, 1864. The ball was presented to the Army Medical Museum, with the above account, by Acting Assistant Surgeon Jos Walsh, and is No. 4623 of the Surgical Section. Stichler was discharged the service on July 14th, 1865, and on December 12th, 1870, was pensioned. A communication from Pension Examiner G. Harris, dated March 12th, 1872, states that there is a depressed angular cicatrix about one inch square over the original seat of injury; the patient is unable to do any heavy work, but his general health is good. His disability is rated one-half and permanent.