The Wichita daily eagle., 1894-01-17
CUNNING OF SICK PEOPLE.

II have to be continually on the
lookout for tricks that my women pa
tients play me. Not only do they try
to get ahead of me in all sorts of ways,
as to diet and other matters, but they
will invent every conceivable dodge.
just for the sake of entertainment
the temperature of a young lady with
a continuous fever.
''She held the thermometer in her
mouth five minutes, as usual. And, by
the way, women always object to that
performance because it prevents them
from talking. One of my patients says
that she inyaria bly, thinks of some
ching important to say the moment af-
ter the glass tube has been placed be-
tween her lips, and she inevitably for
gets whAt it was by the time the in
strument Is removed.
''But, as / was going to remark this
patient underwent the ordeal. at the
conclusion of which she withdrew the
thermometer and handed it to me. I
noticed a covert grin as she did SO. and
wondered what she was smiling at.
But declare was positively startled
when l found that the instrument reg
istered only eighty-seven degrees
Fahrenheit If that had been her
actual temperature she would have
been dead; but, on the contrary, she ex-
hibited every other symptom of rapid
convalescence.
The fact was that, just before gave
her the thermometer, she had taken
sip of water from glass and had incl
IDENTIFY secreted a chunk of ice in her
mouth. Naturally that affected the
record of the tube. The patient ex-
planned that she had become SO dis
gusted with waiting for her tempera-
ture to come down to normal that she,
had thought little arti6ce would be
both appropriate and excusable.
But that is nothing compared to an.
other recent experience of mine A
girl of about seventeen was recovering
nicely from an attack Of jaundice. In
fact. she was getting SO much better
that her sister insisted on resuming
her ordinary habit of sleeping with
her. would have preferred not, but
there was really no serious objection.
Zone night, having been detained,
got around rather late. 1t was after
ten p m. l walked upstairs to the
sick room and found the sisters both in
bed. the we'll one apparently sound
asleep The light burned rather dim
ly. l felt the pulse, which had been
quite high in the morning of the same
day. To my surprise it was full. regu-
lar and quite normal as to beats.
tried it second time with the same
result.
Now what do you suppose the trick
was in that case? You would never
guess. The two girls had so arranged
themselves in bed that the arm of the
well sister was under the sick one and
projected in such manner as to make
it appear as if it belonged to the latter.
l had been feeling the pulse of tho
wrong young lady. No wonder it was
healthy.
The matter of diet is most difficult
for the physician to control. His in
are always apt to be disre-
garded, and he must contend not only
against the reluctant patient, but also
with injudicious relatives and friends
who give her things she should not eat
on the sly. One woman whom I at
tended in serious illness got hold of
bag of pears, brought to her by = SYM
pathetic acquaintance. and secreted
them under her bed She ate them all,
and the fact that she did not die was
simply due to her remarka BILE constitu.
ton.
But will tell you Of little expe- |
rienco of that sort which met with !
quite recently. There was little girl |
in Georgetown, above twelve years of |
age, who was on the point of conva-
lescence after typhoid fever. She had |
been on a liquid diet for weeks and |
her appeals for moro satisfactory food |
were pitiful She said that the 'slops |
prescribed for her made her sick.
We'll, one morning when came to |
the house and was walking upstairs to
the sick-roon 1 happened to meet the
patients grandmother. She stood |
aside to let me pass, and / noticed that
she appeared to conceal something be-
hind her back. / stopped short.
Madam said, let me see what
you are hiding.
After brief demur she produced it.
1t was q piece of bread
You were going to give that bread
to Nellie?' / said, sternlv.
Yes she confessed. The poor
child has been crying for it
II took the bread from her without
further remark and sought an iune-
iiate interview with her son, Neilie'S
father
Mr.. y. said, you must send
sour mother home 10 Baltimore a.
,nce. The next express starts At three
D N She must take IL
: But, doctor, objected the father.
much astonished. this is severe de-
nand an your part. | cannot under
stand the reason for il. and zm very
'eluctant TO comply.
'''You must take vour choice. ! re
,lied. between your mothers presence
md your daughters life A moment
go caught her in the act OF trying
o convey a slice % bread 70 the pa
lent. IL she had succeeded IN doing
o unobserved. Nellie would probz bly,
iare been dead within forty-e.ght
iours
The old lady went hack 10 Baiti-
more that afternoon. A. for Nellie. !
iaet her IN the street to-day and noticed
b-tf roses b}nsa.n@d il sz~r caeess :