Last week California glared out again in the news as the favorite stamping ground of obscure young scientists who bemuse the nation by bringing "dead" animals back to life. Of all places in the world, Hollywood seemed the ideal spot for the spectacular experiments conducted for the past fortnight by young Dr. Ralph Stanley Willard.
Two weeks ago, Dr. Willard said, he took an ill-tempered, 20-lb. rhesus monkey named Jekal, asphyxiated it with ether, injected sodium citrate into its veins to prevent its blood from coagulating. When the animal's breathing and circulation had stopped, a chiropractor pronounced it "dead." Then Dr. Willard popped Jekal into an icebox where the temperature was kept at — 30° C. ( — 22° F.). Five days later he removed the small, rigid, grey clump of fur & flesh from the refrigerator, invited newshawks to watch the proceedings, began to thaw it slowly in a chamber equipped with heating coils and a fan. When the body was warm and pliant, Dr. Willard gave the monkey a blood transfusion, then injected adrenalin chloride solution into the belly.
Jekal opened his mouth, gagged.
Dr. Willard injected an ounce of anterior pituitary fluid.
Jekal grimaced, twitched spasmodically.
"Alive!" exulted Dr. Willard. He filled his hypodermic with posterior pituitary fluid, administered that.
Jekal coughed, tried to sit up.
The final injection was vaguely identified by Dr. Willard as a sex hormone from sheep. In an hour, Jekal sat up, fingered the adhesive tape on his belly, stared about vacantly. In a day or two the creature was back in its cage, apparently none the worse for wear. In a corner of the laboratory lay the body of another monkey named Matilda, its belly turning blue. Matilda had been "frozen too fast." was dead beyond repair. In the icebox was a third stiff monkey named Gaston, which Dr. Willard did not intend to revive until after a ten-day congealment.
The experimenter's declared purpose was to learn whether tuberculosis, cancer and syphilis might not be cured by prolonged freezing. Before entering the icebox Jekal was tuberculous. After his resuscitation Dr. Willard examined the blood for tubercle bacilli, found none. It was his theory that cold inactivated the germs, prevented them from propagating.