River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1885-08-27
and l must have beginning, you

! Iulll, even pTd}eTlully, LOT TOUR long
years. | have spent every dollar had,
educating myself. No one knows of
the deprivations have had to suffer for
this, and he held up his diploma as he
spoke.
i have earned it, he went on.
1T is my own by right of four years of
! hard study. OF course | know of the
opposition | will probably meet with in
the beginning. | am young; | know
more of theory than of practice, so far
But there are several reasons why |
want to locate here in my boyhood S
home | am bound to winin the end.
YOU will see that do.
wall, George. | haint thing agin
you, myself. wish you well rs fur as
I'm concerned. Yer gritty; / remem-
Der thatyou had that streak in you when
you was little youngster. But | jst
made up my mind that I'd tell you fair
an square what the chances wuz fur
an agin you, here.
Il am greatly obliged, I'm sure, >
said George, but | was prepared for
/ all you have told me. feel that shall
succeed in the end Commit thy way
unto the Lord. Trust also in Him, and
He shall bring it to pass. There is the
/ foundation of my faith and courage,
| Mr. Lampson. | have often proved the
truth of that most helpful and most
blessed promise. 1t gives me courage
and confidence now. / know it will
/ not fail me.
But there were many days, and
weeks, and months after that, when
poor Georges courage and confidence
almost failed him.
| Old Enoch had truthfully said:
doctor George will have a hard row
to dig"
He had, indeed The name of Hix-
son was in bad repute in and around
Sharon. The people were prejudiced
against the poor young fellow, al
though they could not bnt admit that
his own character was above reprOach.
They had known him from his baby
days up, and it did not ''seem natural"
to call him Doctor" Hixson. And he
was so proud of that hard-earned title.
Those who used it at all, called him
doctor George that took away half
the dignity for him, and was famil-
iarity he resented, in secret, although
he dared not do so openly. Others
called him doe" and that was simply
CALLING to the high-strung young man.
He was daily hurt by covert or open
sneers. Even the children ridiculed
him and his new title.
Could anything be more exasperating
than to have a crowd of Inbred
urchins assemble in front of his poor,
shabby little Office, while one of their
number sang out:
Doctor, doctor, kin you tell,
What will make sick man wells
Grease his heels and tar his nose,
And that will do, suppose"
The Doctors office was such a shabby
little affair, and he was quite too poor
to make it better. 1t had no carpet, no
pictures, nothing but cheap desk,
chair or two, and the few old, but val
liable books which comprised the Doc
tors library.
Appearances go a good ways toward
a physicians success or failure, no
matter how greatly we may affect to
underrate them.
He should be well dressed. A shabby
man can never assume a very dignified
appearance His office should be neat
and inviting. 1t augurs i'll for the
amount of mans practice, if his office
is as shabby as poor Doctor Georges
was.
If the young fellow could only have
had a chance. But there were the
people sending ten miles to k, a
neighboring town, for DIR. Graves, who
could ride over in his carriage, and
count their pulse-beats by magniti-
cent gold watch. His clothes were Of
the best, and tailor-made, and he had
graduated from the same college from
which Doctor Georges diploma had
come.
His father had left him a moderate
fortune, and he could begin his career
in manner becoming a physician.
And then, George had to sit in his
drearv office. in his frayed and patched
garments, waiting for the patients that
would not come, while DR.. Graves went
driving by, day after day.
Every day the disturbed and detected
young doctor heard rumors of rival
coming to Sharon, and the village
paper openly published in its columns
that
IAN experienced and competent
physician will do well to loca in Sha-
ron.
Aft / that Doctor George thought he
would really have to seek new field OF
labor, and in deepest dependency he |
feared that he had perhaps relied too
much on the promise that had so long
encouraged and consoled him.
But he read another promise solemn |
and sweet to his troubled heart:
II will not fail thee, nor forsake |
thee.
1T will all come right in the end,
he said, but the end seemed so far |
away.
He would be only "Old Joe Hixson's
son. = to these people all the days of
his life. There was no end to that
shame and sorrow. The sin of drunk
en- and depraved father was visited up
on son who was deserving of the
world honor and esteem. He had
risen above them into beauty and glory
of pure and noble manhood.
Through shame and sorrow, discour-
agement and poverty, he struggled up
to higher and a better life, and yet
the good people of Sharan daily made
him look backward to the life he had
left And no friendly hand was
Sireteneu IOftn 10 letI MN otlW dIu'
1T is really surprising to see the assur-
ance old Joe Hixson' 5 SON displays.
said Mrs. Colonel Giddings, one of the
wealthiest woman in Sharan, with his
to set himself here for our
physician.
How many of us can look back
the ages to ancestors in whom
there was no guile, and for whom we
need not blush?
During six months Doctor George
had but two patients; one of them was
a boy who had cut his finger badly,
aud the other was a child with the col
ic. He had not however, wasted his
time. He had studied, and learned
much.
He was a bright, observing young
fellow, and no one in Sharon would
ever have guessed that the bright let
ters and sketches they read in certain
Eastern papers, were written BY 'told
Joe Hixson's son. He had signed
Alexis to all he had written, and
had been able to meet his small expen-