Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1888-02-24

humOf hlm ail | can IOoI on halhsdy )
owe him good deal, you know,
IIartly. You remember all about it2'
"Yes ] remember the story, though
had almost forgotten it.
Ramsay Habcrshol and myself were
all tudents together ia Philadelphia.
We were in the same classes in college
and jointly occupied the same suite Of
rooms. Furthermore we were all max
ing a speciality of studying the human
brain, aud the only point wherein we
materially differed from each other was
that Ramsay knew more than we two
fellows together.
True, Ramsay was, in regard to his
theories and speculations, what many
people would call a "crankn then
successful cranks are esteemed to be
gcnidses, and certainly Ramsay was, in
my Judgment, quite as near the one as
the other
We three fellows all fitted in the
same social set, and although both Ram
say and Habershon knew good and
beautiful girls by the score, the fatos
decreed that they should fall in love
with the same young lady, And yet,
strange enough, they never displayed
bad feeling toward each other, nor ever
sought to make the lady's position an
unpleasant one on account Of the rivalry
1t seemed to me, an onlooker, as though
there was a tacit understanding between
them, that no undue influence should be
brought into play, but that, knowing
how both loved and admired her, the
object Of their admiration aud estee m
should be left quietly to choose between
them
Grace Thorneycroft was most beau
tiiul and estimabIe girl and, though l
have been an old bachelor all my days,
| do not wonder that any man should
have sought her for hi, wife.
One day Grace, with her father,
mother and a brother, were down to
Atlantic City, whero they took sail
boat and went out. A sudden squall
overtaking them tho fraiI pleasure bolt
was upset and Grace was the only men,
Der Of the party who escaped with her
llle. She was picked up in a fainting
condition and tenderly cared for but
when restored, physically, it was found
that her mind was shattered she was
insane. All that wealth, combined with
skill could do was done for Grace. but
IA -se.teri .~-tninx and ths ssfxsieiana
and @tiends at last gave up the case as
hopeless. Hlbershon was himself al
most crazy with grief and could not
bear to go near the poor girl. As for
Ramsay, he shut himself up in his den
"a small, barely furnished room whore
he was in the habit of pursuing his
studies and experiments. There was a
determined expression on the fellows
face and when | looked in on him
(Which was seldom) he was always busy
with his papers and books sometimes
engaged in dissecting the brains of dogs
and other animals, and once examining
a human brain.
lie seldom spoke or even 50 much as
remarked my presence, though once he
said in an excited tone: 81 shall cure
her, Hartly-it shall be done at any
cost"
So for days and weeks he sat over
that bare pine table gazing at the skull
n front of him-eve and anon rapidly
penciling diagrams of the human brain
and of the nervous system,
Late one evening l was sitting with
Habershon when there came rap at
he door and Ramsay entered. He wa,
very quiet, but knowing him as well as
dld | could tell he had something
'eyond the ordinary on his mind.
Boys, h. sail, q think l have
ouad what have been searching for
think | can cure Grace. l say think,
because, after all, it is only theory of
nine and may utterly fail, but | think
iot Perhaps you say l should not
heoriz7 and experiment on woman
whom, as you know, love. Well. it
Won't do any harm to her and it NAV
70 her all possible good. Tomorrow
1orniag shall try to do the work"
Then turning mora particularly to
iabershon, he continued. ed. Won
nd | both love Grace Thorneycroft
low, in the presence of HartIy, here |
'ant you to promise me that, whatever
le consequences of my operation, you
NIL care for Grace as long as she lives.
nd, if necessary, care for me, too.''
think ncl.her Habershon or myself
nderstood the purport of these words
hen they were spoken, though their
ieaning was clear enough later on
-owevor, Habershon gave the request
promise and we parted for the
Ight.
The next day, in the forenoon, Ram.
y, IN the presence of the two physi- !
ans who had been in charge Of G race
egan his operations. l was an inter I
ted observer from distant part of /
le room, but Haber hon could not be
duced to be present. Ramsay told
le older doctors that if his theory
'oVsd perfectly successful in practice
would be able to give his method Of +
ire IN writing for the benefit of the n
edleal world-at present, ha said that
was utterly impossible for him to in .
urgently explain his ideas. However !
guaranteed that the attempt would /
perfectly harmless to the patient and Z
g doctors stood by ready to pre-
I