Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-11-21
ror ,1.,. SONS Sake.

The following touching story of uni
versity life in Vienna sharply marks
the contrast between the life Of stu
dent at Continental University and
that of an Oxford or Cambridge under
graduate, which is, as rule, SO bright,
happy and free from anxieties OF all
kinds, says the London Queen.
On the continent it is usual for quite
poor men to attend the universities
men so poor indeed that they have to
spend all the time that can possibly be
spared from their studies in earning
enough to keep them alive and pay for
their education as we'll. In this task
they are often obliged to accept the
help of their mothers and sisters, who
willingly give what must, be hard for
the student to take, even with the firm
determination that he will by this
means better fit himself to place them
in easier circumstances in the future.
The particular student with whom
we are concerned lived alone with his
old widowed mother, and studied medi-
cine at the university Of Vienna. They
we're extremely poor, and, although
the youth earned all that he could by
giving lessons when he was not him
self learning, it was still necessary for
his mother to devote her whole time in
sewing. When the date of the last and
all important examination drew near,
the son was obliged to give up teaching
that he might have more time Tor his
own work and his mother literally
sewed night and day in order to leave
him free to do this, managing, however,
not to let him know how continuously
she toiled..
-Four or five weeks ago, within few
days of the examination, the brave old
lady pricked her finger severely, and
the hand became 80 swollen and. pain
full that she showed it to q doctor at the
hospital. He told her that it was o
case Of blood poisoning and that she
must loose the finger. She insisted
upon having the operation, performed
then and there, thinking that SO best
she might be able to conceal the acci-
dent from her son, of whom she saw but
little during the busy and anxious time.
But she had been too late in seeking
advice. During the next twenty-four
hours the disease spread to the whole
hand and this also had to be ampu-
tated. Still she was able by some
means to keep from her son all knowl-
edge of her loss. :
The eve of his examination for doc
tors degree arrived, and one can
imagine how glad his mother must have
felt that she had left him sree from
anxiety on her behalf, and now full Of
longing for the time when the secret
need be kept no longer. It would, in
fact, be no longer possible, for she had
learned that it would become necessary
for her arm to be cut off in order to-
arrest the disease, but this she would
not consent to have done until the very
day of the examination. On thatmo
ing her much-loved son had only Just
left, after hurried word or two with
her, when the docto- S arrived to ampu-
tate the arm. In the evening he came
home, eager to tell her the joyful news
that he had passed with honors and
could now devote himself to making
her old age happy and restful one. He
was met with the news that his mother
was dead, having sunk nnder the opera.
ton, of the necessity Of which he had
not the slightest suspicion, and SO only
learned the extent of her noble endur-
ance of suffering for his sake when it
was too late to make any expression of
his grateful love.