William Russ Pugh: not just an anaesthetist
John Paull
Department of Anaesthetics, Launceston General Hospital, Launceston, Tasmania, Australia.
Whilst rightly recognised as a pioneering and innovative doctor after administering ether for two surgical operations on the 7th June 1847, in Launceston, many appear to believe that, having started as an anaesthetist, Pugh went on to make a career in anaesthesia. Nothing could be further from the truth. His anaesthetic career appears to have lasted just short of two weeks before his experiences caused him to reconsider ether's place as a safe and useful agent allowing painless surgery.1
So what were Pugh's interests, both medical and otherwise? His initial qualifications were a Diploma of apprenticeship of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh and certificates of lectures attended in Dublin and Edinburgh. In 1844 he obtained an MD by thesis (in Latin) from Giessen University in Germany on the subject "About Fractures in General."2 From his many contributions to the Australian Medical Journal, published in Sydney from August 1846 to October 1847, it appears that orthopaedic surgery was a major interest. "Gun-shot Wound and Amputation at the Shoulder-joint.", "Anchylosis of Hip Joints. Section of Os Femoris.", "Amputation of Fore-arm.", and "Compound Fracture of the Leg - Amputation. - St John's Hospital, Launceston.", which included an "advertisement" for his private hospital in the title, were papers published in that journal. Two other papers were case reports on strangulated inguinal hernia management and surgical treatment of bladder stone.
With his colleague, Dr James Grant, Pugh established his private hospital, St John's Hospital and Dispensary in Launceston on 1st September 1845. He battled to obtain funding for the hospital and eventually admitted defeat, closing the hospital in 1851.
Acting as a Coronial Pathologist, Pugh conducted many port mortems, normally in the cellar of a public house, and then appeared at each subsequent inquest as a witness.
In 1849 the Reverend Mr. Bennett of Launceston asked Pugh to repair his son's cleft palate and hare lip. Pugh, with two assistants, undertook the operation, somewhat reluctantly according to the father's report, under chloroform anaesthesia. Rev. Bennett reported that the operation, though painful, was completely successful.3
Pugh's other major interest was the natural sciences. He was a frequent contributor to "The Tasmanian Journal of Natural Science, Agriculture and Statistics, &c.", first published in 1842. The Journal subsequently became the official publication of the "Tasmanian Society" of which Pugh was initially a "Corresponding Member" and later a "Resident Member". In 1849 the Tasmanian Society became the "Royal Society of Van Diemen's Land." Pugh's contributions to the proceedings of the Societies include the presentation of samples and discussion of the nature of many minerals found in the northern part of the island. He presented data on the boiling point of water at various altitudes. He commented on an article in the London "Pharmaceutical Journal" about a weed killing horses and cattle in Western Australia, and pointed out that the same weed, where found in Tasmania, was having the same effect. He also reported on the causes of spontaneous combustion found in a cargo of copper concentrate arriving at Launceston in a vessel from New Zealand. On several occasions he carried out chemical analyses in the laboratory attached to his house to provide evidence in inquests. He was a friend of Count Strzelecki who stayed with Pugh on occasions and used his laboratory while surveying Tasmania for minerals.
His major contribution to the Royal Society was the presentation, in 1849 and 1850, of twice daily recordings of wet and dry bulb temperatures, barometric pressures, evaporation, and rainfall and wind direction at 9am and 3 pm, at his house in Launceston, over a period of three years from 1847 to 1849. From these data it is possible to deduce that the Launceston climate in Pugh's day was both wetter and milder than today4. It is clear that these societies were a source of companionship and intellectual stimulation for Pugh.
In 1842 Pugh's house was the first building in Launceston to be lit with coal gas, generated in his laboratory.
The Launceston Bank for Savings was established in 1835. In 1849 it was placed under a new Banking Act. Managers, with the role of directors, were appointed and Pugh became a manager of the bank.5
A time spent as a Justice of the Peace and as an Immigration Agent for the Port of Launceston added to his remarkable career. In May, 1847, his name, as a trustee, was recorded on a scroll placed beneath the foundation stone of the Launceston Grammar School.
On 7th November 1837 the Colonial Government passed an Act requiring all those wishing to practice Medicine to appear before a Court of Examiners, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor, to determine who could be registered as a medical practitioner. Pugh was appointed as one of the Court's seven foundation members.
Perhaps rather reluctantly, Pugh had considerable experience in legal matters. He was accused of manslaughter on the basis of hearsay evidence and defended himself successfully in the Launceston Magistrates' Court. Subsequently he and his lawyer put together a Supreme Court case seeking damages from the complainant in the previous case, and were successful.6 Though Pugh lost another case, being found guilty of defaming and libeling a banker, it was a pyrrhic victory for the banker, who had claimed £2,000 damages. The jury had no time for the banker and awarded him a farthing, a quarter of a penny.
The record shows that Pugh, though small in stature physically, was a giant in the Launceston community. He was inquisitive, knowledgeable, innovative, a highly competent surgeon, stubborn, sometimes impetuous and opinionated but was certainly not "Just an anaesthetist." He clearly fulfilled the criteria of an "Educated Victorian Gentleman."
References:
- Pugh W. Letter to the Editor, Launceston June 18, 1847, Australian Medical Journal. July 1, 1847, p. 141.
- Paull JD. Anaesth Intensive Care 2007; 35 (Supp1): 45-46.
- Dunlop N J, Correspondence, Med J Aust 1927, 1:171 - 72
- Paull John, The Surgeon whose Talents were Many. The Examiner, Launceston, Mar 3, 2007, p. 41.
- Duncan J. A Century of Thrift. A Brief History of the Launceston Bank of Savings. Launceston, 1935. p. 6.
