Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1889-03-08


chief, But here goesl PHI chuck them
into the water and let the sharks catch 'em
if they can. They'll be well met"
And with that Tom went to the taffrail.
and turned the bucket upside-down, where
upon all the rats, dead and alive-au save
one, fierce-looking. gray-whiskered vet
eran, wnIcn conurived to cling to the side
fell pell-mell into the sea-
Get out, you big devilr' said the boat
swain, Selling it by the tail.
But instead of getting out, the rat twist
ed round and fixed its long, sharp teeth
into its captor's thumb. Tom dropped the
bucket like hot potato, and catching the
creature by the neck, choked it off, and
sent it spinning.
"By -, it hurtsp' he exclaimed, pop
ping the wounded thumb into his mouth.
You had better go and battle it with hot
water" | said. "Rat-bites are nasty things
sometimes"
AZ don't think it's worth while. Phi put
a bit of pitch on it. It's the best plaster
know. l never thought rat could bite so
keen. That gray-whiskeredb eggar's teeth
were like pins and needles"
The incident made the poatswafn more
inveterate against the rats than ever. He
converted all the buckets in the ship into
traps, and by sunset he had caught several
dozens. He took care, however, before
throwing them overheard, to see that they
were properly drowned, and even then he
handled the bucket in such a way as to
prevent any possibility of a second bite.
But the rats, though they persisted. had
their revenge. The next morning Bolso-
yer was very i'll. The thumb was inflamed
fr1I he had all
the appearance Of sickening for yellow few
err. was seriously alarmed, for, despite
his craze about the Santa Anna" old
Tom was thorough seaman and a very
good fellow. You cannot be thrown much
with man lat any rate. / cannoD without
getting to like him-unless he is absolute
ly repulsive-and l had got to like the
boatswain. Besides, what would become
of me if l should be left alone on board a
big ship in mid-ocean, utterly ignorant of
my whereabouts, only just able to steer,
and hardly knowing one sail from anotheri
If it were possible to keep old Tom alive,
l meant to do it. although, judging by my
recent experience, the odds against his re-
covery were hundreds to one. On the 9TH
er hand, the very fact that he had remained
so long invulnerable showed that he pos
sessed great resisting power, and rendered
It probable that he would make a tougher
fight for his life than the others had done.
The first thing was to get my patient to
keep his bed, which for time he obstin-
ately refused to do. To confess that he
was i'll would not only have touched his
pride and made his boastings look rather
ridiculous, but would have gone far to
falsify his predictions. So he pretended
that his illness was a mere passing indis-
position-'a bit of headache"-made
light of his swollen thumb, and insisted on
getting up and helping to prepare break
fast.
But the strongest will cannot long bear
up under severe local pain and the all-per-
yading agonies of fever ana 1t was not long
before BOlsover confessed himself beaten,
and took to his bed.
az never thought | should be ILL.," he
murmured, ''but it won't be much. shah
be well in a day or two, | know | shall.
You were right, Mr.. Erie; shouldn't have
meddled with them rats-hang 'em!
don't care how soon we get out of this shin.
There's a curse on her; that's what 1t ia
There's curse on her."
Tom must have been very bad to own
himself In the wrong 1t was an evil sign,
and made me almost despair of his recov-
cry.
81 had lately read a second time, in some
instances third time, the medical books
in the captains cabin, and the knowledge
thus acquired, and my own observation,
had given me certain ideas as to treatment
of yellow fever, which | now proceeded to
put into practice. Medicine having pro-
duced no effect in previous cases, deter
mined to try something else.
One Of the most characteristic symptoms
OF the malady is intense heat, the patients
temperature being often as high as one
hundred and seven degrees. | presumed,
though / did not know for certain, that
this was owing to an arrest of perspiration.
The main point, therefore, was to make
my patient sweat; so | rolled him I'm wet
sheet, then put pile of blankets on the
top of him, and made him drink about a
gallon OF hot water. | kept him In the
pack for hours, and when unpacked him,
washed him all over with salt water. This
operation | repeated several times in suo-
cession, and always when the fever got
worse and his skin became hot and dry.
do not presume to say that | cured Boise
yer, for the illness ran its course; but, at
any rate, he recovered, and that is what
none of the others did. The fever may,
however, have been of q milder type than
theirs, and it is of course quite possible
that he would have got better in any case
and did actually get better, not because Of,
but in spite of, my treatment. But my
patient thought otherwise. He quite be-
lieved / had cured him, said that he owed
me his life, and, in the fullness of his heart
protested that, whether | helped him to
find the Santa Anna" or not, he should
give me half her cargo of gold and silver.
THANK you, Tom" | said, laughing
"pll take it, with all my heart; and it will
be the biggest fee ever paid toa quack doc
tor since the world began, and that is say
ing great deal"
There is nothing to laugh at" an
swered the boatswain, who could never
bear being chaffed about his craze. There
is nothing TO laugh at and Pll make man
OF you yet, Mr.. Erie; never feari You will
be the richest man in Liverpool one Of
these days"
But Tom did not get better either very
soon or very easily. He lay in his ham
mock three weeks, and rose from 1t a yell
low-skinned, lartern-jawed ghost, hardly
able to put one leg before the other.
II shall not be of much use when the
change comes" he said, as l supported
him to a Southampton chair, under an
awning We had rugged up short time be-
fore he fell i'll.
what changer"
Change of weather, TO be sure. And 4
Is bound to come soon. How long have we
been heref"
I'VE have been becalmed five weeks; but
as to how long we have been here l would
not venture to offer an opinion. am not
sure whether we are herel'
You are getting beyond me now, Nj
Erie. Not sure whether we are hera
Where else should we be,'
81 mean that we are moving. At any
rate, think so. happened this morning
to throw a cork overheard at the stern, and
now it is at the bows"
There must be a current, then"
at looks so; and if the cork, moves 20
must the ship, though not so fast"
You may soon find out whether she
moves. Make trial with the log"
"A happy thought 1t never occurred 30
me. will do it at once"
And did. The Diana was progress
sing through the water at the rate Of g
knot an hour.
at we have been going at this speed al
along for the last five weeks" l said, max
ing rapid mental calculation, 1--WE have
done eight hundred and forty miles"
II don't think we have been going at this
speed all along. When fell i'll it was as
dead a calm as it could be, and as hot as
blazes. And now it is cooler-I am sure II