Six weeks later she repeated the latter feat over the
seat of the recently healed cicatrices. The right arm healed, but
the left showed erysipelatous inflammation, culminating in edema,
which affected the glottis to such an extent that tracheotomy was
performed to save her life. Five weeks after convalescence,
during which her conduct was exemplary, she again cut her arms in
the same place. In the following April, for the merest trifle,
she again repeated the mutilation, but this time leaving pieces
of glass in the wounds. Six months later she inflicted a wound
seven inches in length, in which she inserted 30 pieces of glass,
seven long splinters, and five shoe-nails. In June, 1877, she cut
herself for the last time. The following articles were taken from
her arms and preserved: Ninety-four pieces of glass, 34
splinters, two tacks, five shoe-nails, one pin, and one needle,
besides other things which were lost,--making altogether about
150 articles.
"Needle-girls," etc.--A peculiar type of self-mutilation is the
habit sometimes seen in hysteric persons of piercing their flesh
with numerous needles or pins. Herbolt of Copenhagen tells of a
young Jewess from whose body, in the course of eighteen months,
were extracted 217 needles.
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