Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-03-05
THE IMAGINATION.
The Part it Plays i'm Matters Envoiy-
ing Life and Death,

a prominent physician.
''Of course they do. There's moth
ing the matter with half of the So
called invalids. / always kept big
batch of bread pills made up for that
class of patients. Many :. one I've got
out of bed with that sham medicine,
and they thought me man of pro-
found learning and skill"
They just imagine they are sick?"
Certainly! A woman is the con-
trariest of Gods creatures. If she
makes up her mind she's sick, you
can't talk her out Of it. You must ad-
minister something. [ had one call
me years ago that lay in bed for nine
months, and she was as well as / am.
On a certain day there
was one of these circuses and
animal show combinations pass
ing. I aad an inspiration that beat
any compound my skill could pro
duce. hired the manager to let a
tame bear out of the cage and we all
set up hue and cry, the children
went for the woods, and that woman
took after them without even stopping
to make a toilet. There was nothing
under the heavens the matter with
her, and when her husband came to
settle I thought for a while he'd boot
her all over the farm"
ever have any other cases of the
imagination"
Lots of them. A big hulking fell
low about ten miles from the town l
was practicing in got the idea that he
was going to die at just IL o'clock in
the forenoon of certain day. About
8 o'clock messenger came for me.
/ hurried out. When [ got there the
crank had fifteen minutes to live
according to his calculations. He did
look like a man on the verge of
eternity. His eyes were dim
and sunken, his face had that
peculiar pallor which heralds
the near approach of death, and his
breathing was very labored. The
family were gathered around and
weeping as they took a final leave.
Something had to be done quick.
There was a smart-looking woman
there, and called her aside. Point
ing to the clock on the mantelpi
which the patient was watching, [
said: When I have his attention
turn that ahead Then I crowded
into the family group, hustled them
into the next room, sat down on the
edge of the bed, and began tell
ing that fellow one of the most
horrible murder stories you ever
heard. [ located it right in the town
where he knew everybody, named
hn Ill cd L
curdling details, and so completely
interested the man that he forgot
about his II o'clock appointment.
When I gave him a chance to look
again it was twenty minutes to
twelve, and he was actually mad
for time, claiming that he had been
tricked. He finally got to laughing,
and we all took dinner together. The
next day he whipped two men at
barn-raising for twitting him about
the programme of death that miscar-
ried."
Wasn't there anything the matter
with him?"
"Not thing except what he i'm
agined. He was sound as bullet,
but if I had not adopted that ruse he
would have gone over to the MAORI
ty at II o'clock.
Doesn't imagination sometimes
cure people who are really ILL.,"
''To be sure it does. Imagination
has a strange and unaccountable
power [ had a funny incident that
answers your inquiry. There was a
giddy young widow called at my of
foe one day. She was a hity-
tity creature. Talked all the
time she was awake, you know,
and had as much laugh as
she had talk. She wasn't very CHIP
per when she came, however. She
was on crutches and accompanied by
a solicitious companion who was
brim full of sympathy. The invalid
had knee badly swollen from rheum-
atism and wanted to know if / could
administer electricity, which always
helped her. [ soon had a battery in
shape. The sympathetic friend placed
one connection at the invalid's knee,
which appeared angrily infamed. [
held the other connection in my left
hand SO as to complete the circuit by
touching the patient with my right |
I drew my fingers across the back of
her neck and of course she INDUCED
in few little screams and some hys-
terical conversation. Doctor. that's
a strange sensation. Ouchi haven't
[ got about enough? My knee feels
a great deal better. Don't fill me up
with that electricity. There, now
you must quit, I've got a whole streak
o'lightning In me now and / knew it
was all [ needed" The pretty
widow walked out to her
carriage without limp, and
had no trouble of being the belle
Of all balls for the remainder of the
season. had noticed waggish stu
dent of miHe in the next room stuff
ing handkerchiefs in his mouth,
writhing with suppressed laughter,
winking at NE on the sly, and in
dulging in a can-can whenever visible |
to me alone.
"' What in thunder are you max /!
ing such a fool of yourself about,
inquired about when the ladies had |
Il IL noaro1 and