Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1881-03-11

: Gt tisl tS-
! Al. Lon l5bgc,. for mo0oy i'll tLos,
days wAen watched M,s. KIM tread
/ ing path ALew !Dust ent in dCith,
| without the power e. stop her. For
Ter c.lld,eu. as for Lor hnshan /, ei.
toil.d uLctasir ely. and while her hoLc
duties were So eDGros,irg, sue ECvcr
Turned from tie calls q humanity OF
charity. Many dying bed, where
poverty wore its darkest fiown, IVES
soothet ~ her gentle preset &c. Many
dainty .t!n came from her hands TO
those poorer than herself.
1t was impossible for me 20 avoid
knowing ell this, as the inralids OF
Merton had no physician but myself;
but it was in vain that l urged Mrs.
Kern to spare herself.
Zone would think | was sick" she
would say to me, when l only have
a cough that have had for years, and
sometimes neuralgia
Are you ever free from pain?"
We'll, no. not entirely. but it is
bearable."
And so come to my mysterious leg
acy. 1 had many times told Mrs. Kern
that if she would give up her scholars
and obey me implicitly for six months
she could be we'll; and at last did
what we Of the healing profession
shrink most from doing, told her that
if she did not she must break do IN
hopelcssly.
"But see," she pleaded, chow often
break down and yet get up again. l
cannot give up my work and see my
children starve."
What could 1 say? had urged up
on her the necessity of rest, placed
before her the danger in which she
stood, and l was powerless to do more.
1t was just at this time that Mrs.
Dorwyn, the owner Of half Merton, and
heiress to three fortunes-her fathers
her mothers, and her husbands-was
taken dangerously ill. She was one OF
my patients, of course, but she had but
seldom called upon my professional
services, having carried her eighty
years of life almost without pain or dis
ease.
Still, we were the best of friends.
Charitable and kipd-hearted, she often
made me the medium of distributing
her charities, where knew of pressing
need, and when my professional SER
vices were not required, she gave me
cordial welcome as O friend of til irty
years standing.
Her illness was fatal from the first,
but size had but little suffering, and her
cheerfulness was wonderful. Many q
long talk we had when I hsG finished
my professional visits, and in one of
these. she said to me:
"Tell me of some charity for Merton
to which T can leave a portion of my
wealth. My husbands money I have
left to his relatives, but have not one
living who can claim me as related to
him. stand alone, and I have dis
posed of my own property in benefits
to public institutions. But I shosd
like to do some other good here. You
know so many of our poor people. Tell
me where small sums, say Eve hundred
dollars each. can be distributed to do
some good.'
With much discussion we made out
list, and then she said:
81 have still ton Thousand dollars for
Merton"
Like an inspiration came to me the
thought of the preciou, life that money,
humanity speaking, would save. The
income of ten thousand dollars would
give Mrs. Kern support, enable her
to devote herself to her children, to be
the good angel of many a poor home,
and yet to rest from the moAotonous
labor that was wearing out her strength
and depriving her of her power of use
fulness.
It was bold thing to do, and Mrs
Dorwyn looked rather stunned at the
aadacity of my proposal; but asked
her to leave the money, in one sum, to
a total stranger who was not an object
of charity.
"But you tell me she earns COM
Portable support" she said.
cat the price OF her life"
cit is such strange thing to do, to
leave so large sum to an entire
stranger"
"Ah," said, "if it were only done Oft
ener. If the millionaires who leave i'm
mense sums to charities, to be doled
out in temporary relief, would some
times look out for few of the hard
working individuals who are struggling
beyond their strength, and give them a
sum to insure an income for life! How
many noble, true women, who would
spend their time in usefulness, must
work their strength away in thankless
toll for daily bread, dying at last in an
hospital, or dependent upon the grudg-
ing hospitality of relatives as poor as
themselvesP"
It was one of my hobbies, this suf.
fering Of what may be called genteel
poverty the class too proud to ask fol
help while brain or hand can work, and
yet untitled to meet the rough blasts OF
poverty-and used all my sloquence
Still Mrs. Dorwyn seemed to be I'M
convinced when I left her.
cit was such an odd thing to do!'
ut is All odd thing to do" ssid
"but it will restore q useful life .tc
health and strength, save q mother tc
, two children, and, firmly believe, dc
more good than the samo money will dc
split up in small charities, or distrib
nted in public institutions"
J When old Mrs. Dorwyn died, had
gone to Cincinnati to attend the fuuer
al of my sons wife, and 1 was absen!
. two weeks. brother practitioner f,un,