Miscellaneous

 MHD Collection

 

Oh! The Folly of It!

Willard Warner of Ouaquaga Gets Drunk

and Loses Both Hands

 

One of the most pitiful cases of suffering, destitution and life-long prospect of misery, all resulting from alcoholic intoxication, happening in this locality in many a year is that of Willard Warner, a young man living with his wife and two children at Ouaquaga [Broome Co., NY].  We are told that Warner is a son of William Warner of Cascade Valley [Broome Co., NY], and now that misfortune even through his own fault has set its heavy stamp upon the son, the father will not cast him off, but will take him home and care for him.  The now afflicted young man moved to Ouaquaga last fall, occupying a part of Dan Judd's house.  Warner did a little work, at odd spells gathering muskrat and skunk skins.  Winter caught him and his wife and two little children in reduced circumstance, often without necessaries of food and clothing.  Warner had an old gray horse, given him by Charles Manwarren of this town, and on Monday of last week he drove to Greene for the purpose of selling the skins he had accumulated.  He was accompanied by a fellow name Bunt.  The pair drove homeward some time during Tuesday.  A part, or all, of the proceeds of the sale of skins had gone for the purchase of liquid warmth, the day being very cold.  At about 11 o'clock that night they appeared at the home of Myron Phelps, this side of Ouaquaga, evidently being too drunk to notice when they passed Warner's home.  They were afoot and later their horse was found lodged in a fence half a mile up the road.  Frank Phelps let them in the house and asked the trouble.  Warner had lost his cap and gloves and said he was freezing to death. Even then he was too drunk for lucid utterance.  Mr. Phelps looked at his hands and saw that all the fingers were frozen stiff and while.  He gave the man application of kerosene oil, and after working over the man for half an hour bundled him up and started back home with him and Bunt, who seemed in better condition than his partner.  On the road they met Floid Wright and Earl Springsteen, who took Warner in charge and got him to his home.  The next thing was a call for a doctor, but the fingers were so badly frozen that from the first it was hopeless to save them.  They were amputated by Drs. Butler of Harpursville and Armstrong of this place after gangrenous affection had become very pronounced.  In the meantime something had to be done for the sufferer's family, who were entirely unprovided for when he went away.  their immediate wants were looked after by kind neighbors, and later some money was contributed for their relief.  The outlook for these blameless ones is anything but pleasant, for the maiming of the husband and father makes them virtually helpless.  The moral from this dreadful occurrence is plain to any person who can see a brick wall ten feet from his own nose.  One can hardly entertain charity for the hare-brained being who, with a needy family dependent upon him, would touch a drop of liquor.  And we have even less kindly feeling toward the greedy, lawless and vile gin-slinger who would sell or give to such an irresponsible character a drop of liquor--Windsor Standard.  [1906]

Drs. Armstrong and Stillson, of this place, with Dr. Butler, of Harpursville recently operation upon Willard Warner of Ouaquaga, who froze both hands a  short time ago.  They amputated the four fingers of the left hand and two fingers on the right hand.  [Published in Broome Republican, Apr. 7, 1906]