Thomas County cat., 1889-09-12
A CONSULTATION.
The Family Doctor and the Fash
ionable Physician.

iona bic Physician.
am a family doctor, with a suffi-
GENTLY arduous, if not over-lucrative,
practice, chiefly among the lower mid
die class whose homes abound in a
southeastern suburb of modern Bah
ylon. Some years ago. when l was
more OF struggler than | happily
now am, had by good fortune OBJ
tanned a foothold as medical adviser
in the household of wealthy city
stockholder, who dwelt in spacious
and luxurious mansion some three
miles further out on the Surrey hills
than the extreme limits of my regular
round of visits; and the fees Ireceived
for occasional calls to Mount Aureo
when Mr. Midas Contango had touch
of his chronic tormenter, the gout; or
his somewhat sentimental spouse
quite grand dame, however, in her
own esteem-was suffering the pen
alties of systematic outrage on the
digestive tit-up of her portly person,
were so liberal in their extent as to
form in the aggregate no inconsidera-
bic proportion of my modest income.
After my connection at Mount Aureo
had continued, to the seeming salts
faction of all concerned. for some
two years, l began to receive more
frequent summonses thitherward. The
only daughter of the Contangos, Miss
Muriel, a fine, tall, gracefully-formed
damsel of seventeen, who might have
stood for a sculptor's model, so per-
feet was her physique. had returned
home for her Christmas vacation from
her fashionable Brighton boarding
school troubled with a slight cough.
In all respects save this trihing laryn-
geal affection, she enjoyed the excel
lent health of which both her parents
had had possession in their earlier
days, before the indulgences which
follow in wealth's wake had made
them profitable acquaintance of my
own. 1t was clear enough, too, to me
that Miss Muriel Contango's throat
trouble was purely local; nevertheless,
1t was causing serious alarm to the
master and mistress of Mount Aureo,
who idolized their charming daughter
The dream OF the Cantango existence
was to mate Miss Muriel to some scion
of the aristocracy, their reputation
for riches having obtained them entree
to society to which, by birth and
Mr.. and Mrs Midas Contango had
both begun to dread that Miss Muriel's
indisposit;on would culminate in bron-
chitis or decline. The slightest cough,
the least bronchus, raised the grim and
terrible specter of phthisis, and the
beautiful young lady was held to be in
imminent danger of an early grave.
i had examined her chest with the
most anxious and minute care. but
could discover nothing to justify any
fear or even doubt of the correctness
of my diagnosis; yet, despite balsamics
and sedatives. exposure, however little.
in treacherouS weather would cause
hoarseness and a transitory cough.
AhANNu' eiSSS oiSas CSdoiC SN III ploiuS
often manifested themselves without
any apparent cause. except as /
judged, the inordinate precautions
taken to avert them. The rooms at
Mount Aureo were always too hot;
Miss Muriel was overciothed, could
not stir out for a constitutional in the
Ga oen without a respirator. or take
drive unless hidden in an development
OF costly furs. When / ventured to
hint at this, the invariable reply OF the
Sontangos was: "Ah, doctor. If we
did not take this care of Muriel, how
lcng would she be with us?-the dear
child is SO delicate" And nothing
could say would alter their opinion.
One day in the April succeeding,
when Miss Muriel had been coddled up
at home for four months instead of
being sent to Brighton to continue her
Ssadies, Mrs. Contango was more than
usually concerned about her daugh-
ter's condition. The stockbroker and
his good lady had over night held an
anxious discussion / had made my