(2 of 2)
Last year Scientists Zbarsky & Vorobev were reported to be writing a book revealing how they accomplished the preservation. It was rumored that they would make the disclosure at last month's International Physiological Congress in Moscow. Last week they said they would keep the secret a dozen or so years longer. Among U. S. physiologists, medical men and embalmers, however, there was scant belief that the secret, when finally bared, would be startling, or that anything had been done with Lenin that could not be duplicated by careful, skilful employment of well-known methods.*
Most U. S. scientists suppose that Comrades Zbarsky & Vorobev forced the blood, which decomposes easily, from Lenin by pumping into an artery carbolic acid, glycerin, alcohol, formaldehyde—or perhaps some other chemical concoction which may be their secret. These preservatives pervade all the organs and blood vessels, even the capillaries, complete the same circuit as the blood. When a corpse is to be kept for a long time for scientific purposes, additional glycerin is pumped in at intervals to prevent shrinkage. Near-natural color could have been obtained by adding an aniline dye to the embalming fluid. The American Academy of Embalming last week declared that a corpse embalmed in 1889 is still undiminished in size and intact except for loss of weight and a deep tan color.
For longtime preservation, removal of the vital organs is not necessary. Carbolic acid, however, dissolves gas in the body and the abdomen is then likely to collapse. This can be corrected by packing the abdominal cavity with cotton. Whether or not Lenin's viscera have been tampered with, his brain was removed, dissected into thousands of pieces, some of which were sent to Paris and Berlin. The Lenin brain cells, it appeared, were much larger than normal.
*The embalmed body of Enrico Caruso, who died in 1921, lies in a mausoleum near Naples in a glass-covered casket wrapped in a U. S. flag and a green billiard cloth. Friends (including Tenor Tito Schipa) change the clothing every three years. Visitors report a steady discoloration of the tenor's face.