The Orangeburg democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1879-1881, 1879-10-24
The Country Doctor.
Wavelly Magazine.

hard sense, over-tried patience, ne
cessitated economy, blue pills and an
ability to diagnose case within q
day or so, commend us to that disci-
pie Of Esculapius who worms his
way through thick and thin under a
high.crowned hat and the euphonious
appellation of a ''country doctor"
Far be it from my purpose to ridicule
him; he, of all others, needs my ten
derest sympathies and my biggest
fees. But he has passed before me,
and the temptation to photograph
him is too strong, and here he is, in
all his lights, just as he is seen every
day in the village.
Naturc--that freakish old dame
never thought enough Of this spcci-
men of the yenus homo to smile upon
him. She always managed to put an
ugly face on an ugly form, and dub
that unfortunate creature "country
DOCTOR" 1t may have been that
Dame Nature gave him his hglincss
for qualification Of his calling. If
80, mothers have taken advantage Of
it, and many a poor child has been
cured--scemingly cured--by the
threatened visit of the ugly doctor.
Little Tabitha Brown, the freckle-
faced daughter Of old Brown, who
counts his wealth by thousands, takes
measles. Of course they wait until
way in the night, when honest folk
arc in bed, before they conclude 10
send for the doctor. And the night
happens to be a bad onc-dark,
rainy or otherwise bad-and the doc
tor, tired out by riding all over the
country on riclklty old horse, has
to leave his warm place in the bed,
put on his clothes and that awful
looking ncck-tic, hunt up his stick,
and plod on his way several miles to
see little Tabitha. He is put out,
any how, and Old Lady Brown de-
clares lc is the 'slowcst, pokicsL"
thing she eyer saw. The pulse is
felt, a dozen questions asked, and
then the saddlc-bags, in whose capa-
cious pockets Walls Of calomel, qui-
,,ine, and opodeldoc have nestled
tor ages, are opened. A dose is
measured, directions given, and the
stiff-boned doctor plows his way
through mud or snow to home. TO be
aroused again by Tonmy's father.
Now Tommy had swallowed a fish
bone, and was cutting up all sorts Of
ANTICS about it.
Again our worn-out friend tramps
it for few more miles, TO relieve
Tommy's trachea and the parents
distress. And SO it is: one continu-
al round of tramps and physic from
day in to night out.
1t generally takes our friend Of the
pill and "piZen" month or so to
make up his mind to present his bills
to old Brown and the numerous 9th
ers whose children and selves had re-
quircd the doctors skill ard trouble.
I say he has to present these bills,
lorold Brown and the others would
as soon think of dying as TO pay the
doctor before.
1t always happens that some poor,
misguided youth, whose ambition has
pushed him into the doctors office,
there to search for medical lore, finds
it TO be his du;y--arduous thohgh it
is-to carry these formidable bundles
of itcmized accounts but The ambi-
tious youth never collects anything.
lie can sit down after one of his
bootless tramps and relate to the
doctor the excuses Of his patients for
an hour at time. And the doctor
wonders why on earth old Brown and
q score of others can't pay him his
triAing bills as we'll as they can buy
ribbons and furbelows and other fix
in's for their trifling daughters. 1t
is an inexplicable mystcry-an un-
solvable problem--why7
And why is it? Echo answers,
"Wby1"
Thus he lives. He is sort of frog,
supposed 10 live on nothing and "lind
himself" He is thought nothing Of
socially Or financially, and is paid
nothing for that which years of
trouble and expense have taught him.
Half the old women profess to know
l. =