The New Student's Reference Work/Beaumont, William

Beaumont, William, an American surgeon (1785-1853). While he was in the United States army he had to care for a man who had been shot in the left side. The patient got well, but the wound in the side healed without closing up, leaving a large hole through which Dr. Beaumont was able to watch the process of digestion in the stomach. He thus found out and described the action of gastric juice in digestion, the process not being definitely known before. His observations and experiments were of great importance.