The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1880-11-05
A REALLY GOOD CASE.

A REALLY GOOD CASE.
EVERY one knows that St. Michaers.
as we shall take the liberty of calling it,
is the largest and most celebrated of
the London hospitals. 1t is situated
quite in the heart of the city, and is
about equidistant from London Bridge,
Westminster, Cover Street, Smithfeld
and White Chapel. I was student there,
and there the happiest days of my life
were passed. And now to my story.
A large number of the stdents had
gone down for the short Christmas va
cation, and / should have gone also,
but was just then ''dresser" to Carver
Smith, and could not leave town; more
over, it was my week of residence. I
must beg you to remember, what is
perhaps but little understood by the
general public, that large part of the
watching and care, and q certain pro-
portion also of the treatment of hospital
patients devolve upon assistants select
ed from the senior students. Some of
the less important appointments, such
as the dresserships," are held by
every student in turn; but the more re-
sponsible Offices, some of which require
twelve months residence in the hospi-
tai. can only be gained by a few men
each year; and for these appointments,
which are esteemed positions of great
trust and honor, and which are exceed
ingly valuable as stepping-stones to
professional success, there is very keen
competition. On the surgical side of
the hospital, each of the four visiting
surgeons had a resident house-surgeon;
and to be Sir Carver Smiths III. S."
was one of the highest ambitions of
est. Nike" for Sir Carver was at that
time one of the leading English sur
geons.
A man named George Adams
held the post at this time; and
as he is the hero of my story
SO far as ] have hero, will just say
a word about him. He was one of those
men that we occasionally meet with,
who seem to stand head and shoulders
above their fellows-very quiet and re-
served, and, when he chose, quite in
scrutable. No one knew where he
came from. But his very great ability,
his calmness in all emergencies-Ine
saw him discomposed except once-his
mature judgment and his great kind
ness won him the respect alike of the
students, the nursing staff and the sur
geons. Under him were four dressers,
junior men, who assisted in the hospi-
tai under his direction. I was one of
them. Each week one of us resided in
the hospital; and, as I said, Christmas
week fell to my turn, and that is how /
came to spend Christmas at St.
Michaers. l ought to add that there
were four assistant-surgeons to the hos
pital; but their care was over the out
patient department.. and it was only
in the absence of the visiting sur
geors that they had any duty in the
wards.
Well, it was Christmas night, and
our work for the day was done, except
some late visits to the wards by-and-by;
and of course any casualties that might |
turn up. But Christmas day is usually |
pretty slack in that respect. It is med
ical rather than surgical casualties that |
Christmas day produces. We had got |
up in honor of the day little enter
tainment in an empty ward, for any of
The hospital inmates who cared to at
tend and were able to do 50.
We had q famous little programme.
One or two of our residents could play
and sing we'll; another had a curious
facility in whistling to the piano; an
other was an amateur ventrioquist and
and fancy there were
also some recitations and tableaux to
come off. Also, there was one of the
patients, an old sailor, who could sing
IN grand rich stentorian baritone and
bring down tho house. Our Chairman
Adams, of course-had just begun,
md was delivering himself in semi
serious way of some very eloquent re-
marks, amid great applause moth
ng pleases the lower classes better
nan a few oratorical flourishes-when,
tinkle, tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,' went q
mall high-pitched imperious bell. 1t
vas the accident bell!
Oh, We lay mortals, ye little know
low the social and domestic joys of a
medical man are at the mercy of the
Yell! We invite our friends to tea, we
them, and anticipate q pleas
mt evening. and-there goes the bell!
We turn into bed on a cold night, and
ust get warm and snug when-there
,oes the bell! My bell-experiences be-
IAN that night at St. Michaers, and l
hall not soon forget it.
1t was Sir Carver's taking-in week.
nd his assistants had to attend to the
'ccidents. Adams nodded to me; and
IF L went to investigate, knowing that
might be anything from cut finger
o a railway smash. found a scene of
o1sid cradle excitement in the accident
Dom. Two policemen. aided by al