Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1891-09-02
'sIhat | cannot do" said the doctor.


pathological disorder. 1 see at the
spot you have indicated nothing more
amiss than on my own hand"
You really seem to think that |
have gone out of my senses, or that /
! have como here to mock you," said the
stranger, taking from his pocket book
a bank-note for a thousand fiorins. and
laying it on the table "Now sir, Won
see That L am not playing off any child
1sh Jest, and that the service 1 seek
OF You is as urgent as it is important.
hand"
81 repeat, sir, that for all the treas
ures In the world you cannot make me
regard as unsound member that is
perfectly sound, and still less induce
me to cut 1t with my instruments.
'And why not 2"
Because such an act would cast n
doubt upon my medical knowledge and
compromise my reputation. Every
body would say that you were mad;
| that was dishonest in taking adyan-
taRe OF your condition, or ignorant in
not perceivIng it."
''Very vel 1 will only ask small
service of you, then. 1 am myself
capable of making the incision. 1
shall do it rather clumsily with my left
hand; but that does not matter. Be
good enough only to bind up the
wound after the operation.
1t was with astonishment that the
doctor saw that this strange man was
| speaking seriously. He stripped off
his coat, turned up the wristbands of
his shirt, and took q history in his left
| hand.
A second later, and the steel had
| made deep incision in the skin.
"Stayl7 cried the doctor, who feared
that his patient might, through his
awkwardness, sever some important
| organ. 'Sinco you have determined
on the operation, let me perform it -
He took the history, and placing in
his left hand the right hand of the
patient, begged him to turn away his
face, the sight of blood being insup-
| portable to many persons"
''Quite needless, On the contrary, it
is who must direct you where to
cut.
In fact he watched the operation to
| the end with the greatest GOODNESS, indi-
eating the limits of the incisions. The
| open hand did not even quiver in that
of the doctor, and when the circular
| piece was removed, he sighed pro
| foundly, like a man experiencing an
| enormous relief.
Nothing burns You now?"
"All has ceased" said the stranger,
smiling. 1.-The pain has completely
| disappeared, rs if it had been carried
away with the part excised. The little
discomfort which the flowing of blood
causes me, compared with the other
pain, is like fresh breeze after a blast
from the Internal regions. 1t does me
! real good to see my blood pouring
forth: let it flow, it does me extreme
| good.'
The stranger watched with an ex-
| preston of delight the blood pouring
from the wound, and the doctor was OBJ
liged to insist on binding up the hand.
During the bandaging the aspect of
his face completely changed. 1t no
| longer bore a dolorous expression, but
look full of good humor was turned
| upon the doctor. No more contrac-
| ton of the features, no more despair.
A taste for life had returned; the brow
| was once again calmed; the color found
! its way back to the cheeks. The en-
| tire man exhibited complete trans
| formation.
sling he warmly wrung the doctors
| hand with with the one that remained
| free, and said cordially:
"Accept my sincere thanks. You
have positively cured me. The trifiing
remuneration / offer you Is not at all
| proportional to the service you have
| rendered me: for the rest of my life |
shall search for the means of repaying
my debt to you.
The doctor would not listen to any
thing of tine kind, and refused to ac-
cept the thousand forins placed on the
table. On his side the stranger re-
| fused to take them back, and, observ-
ing that the doctor WAS losing his
| temper, begged him to make a present
| of the money to some hospital, and
took his departure.
| K remained for several days at
| his town house until the wound in his
patients hand should be cicatrized,
which it did without the least accident.
During this time the doctor was able
| to satisfy himself that he had to do
with man OF extensive knowledge, re-
| f1ective, and having very positive opin-
ions in regard to the affairs of life.
Besides being rich, he occupied an i'm
portant official position. Since the
taxing away of his invisible pain, no
trace of moral or physical malady was
| discoverable in him.
The cure completed, the man re-
turned TRANQUILITY to his residence In
| the country.
| About three weeks had passed when,
| one morning, at an hour as unduly as
| before, the servant again announced
the strange patient
The stranger, whom K hastened
to receive, entered the room with his
right hand in sling. his features con-
vulsed and hardly recognizable from
| suffering. Without waiting to be
] invited to sit down, he sank into
| chair, and, being unable to master the
torture he was enduring, groaned, and
without uttering a word, held out his
hand to the doctor.
"What has happened" asked K,
stupefied.
"We have not cut deep enough, re-
| piled the stranger, sadly, and IN a
fa1ntipg voice. ':It burns me more
cruelty than before. / am worn out by
| it: nv arm is stiffened by it. l did not
wish to trouble you a second time, and
have borne it, hoping that by degrees
| the invisible Inflammation would either
mount to my head or descend to my
heart, and put an end to my miserable
existence; but it has not done so. The
pain never goes beyond the spot, but
1t is indescribablel Look at my face,
and you will be able to imagine what 1t
must bep'
The color of the mans skin was that
of wax, and cold persplration beaded
his forehead. The doctor unbound the
bandaged hand. The point operated
on was well healed; new skin had
formed, and nothing extraordinary was
to be seen. The sufferers pulse beat
onickly. without feverishness, while