I’ve got this irritating discomfort in the back of my jaw that just showed up a couple of days ago, so I’ve had to make a dental appointment. This is a problem, because deep within my mature and balanced psyche lies the pain threshold of a four-year-old girl.
But at least I’m in good company. Here’s an excerpt from a paper delivered by Dr. William Harper De Ford to the Pennsylvania State Dental Society on June 11, 1912 and published in The Dentists’ Record later that same year:
Dr. Wolf of Washington, D. C., told me that on one occasion, a tall, gawky, raw-boned, awkward specimen of humanity came to his ofiice for the extraction of a tooth. He placed him in the chair, procured a forceps, and just as he was about to operate, the patient said, “Just a moment, please,” drew from his pocket a small bottle, and took several inhalations. “Now you may proceed,” he said, and opened his mouth. The tooth was extracted painlessly. The bottle contained chloroform. The patient was Abraham Lincoln, then president of the United States.
He knew from personal experience that you’d better prepare for the worst when having your mouth worked on. Years earlier, another dentist had torn off part of Lincoln’s jawbone while extracting a tooth…and without any anesthesia. I hope I have better luck than he did.
Past in the Present 
Wow – the things I learn about Lincoln reading blogs! Hope your appointment goes well.