The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-05-10

with a startling nicety of dress always in the latest fashion, has made this physician the pet of the world of fash ion, who are willing to pay eXhorbitant fees for indulging in a social fad They all like him because he is so different,
 "The doctor is a great sticlller on the ethics of medical practice, and consid- CTS his methods the only proper ones for a physician to follow. He refrains when visiting a patient from saying anything to any person in the house, aside from asking information concern ig the case in hand, but a most polite 'gCod-doy' when arriving and leaving He believes that the doctor should be apart from the man, so, in well-detin- ed manner, he conducts dual life-Dr. Blank as the physician, and pr. Blank as the social man.
 You can imagine how his cool pro- 1 fessional manner seems in the homes of his friends, yet no matter how close | ly he may be connected when called in l professionally he always maintains | this attitude. I know of one case in which he was called in by a college chum to attend his wife. The two had been the warmest sort of friends in col- lege, having roomed together ana grad uated in the same class. But as such things go in the world, they had not seen mulch Of each other in late years, their business keep them apart and kind fortune having favored the mans home with health, so there was no need of physician. But he called his friend in when he needed him. At the dop,, h mat ,tri t1, an1s1Ha1 groati11o and a hearty handshake, only to have a cold good morning and an indiffer- ent grasp of the hand In return.
 "The man, thinking the doctor must have some cause for his apparently cool, indifferent manner said no more, but conducted him to his wifes room, where he Answered. all the questions put to him by the physician. As he was going down stairs he stopped in the library, and, taking up a decanter, said: Allow me to give you a glass of sherry, doctor This the doctor re- fused, and proceeded on his way down stairs, and with a. 'good-day went out of the door.
 "The gentleman was nonplussed by his strange actions. The friend of his college days, so changed! His medita- tions were interrupted by the ringing of the bell, and upon going to the head of the stairs he found it was the doc tor returned. But it was not the doc tor, 1t was the man. The returned doctor did not wait for his friend to come down stairs and greet him, but rushed up the stairs, and taking his hand, was most cordial This puzzled ATa, n,,I \, began to think his friend had really gone insane. But his college chum dragged him into the library where, without waiting for an invitation from his host. he took up the decanter and poured out two glasses of wine, Then selecting an easy chair, he sat down, with the remark; Well, John, this Is like the good old days gone by
 '"Then the doctor piled all sorts of questions to the astonished man, who was so amazed that everything seemed jumbled to him. Finally he recovered himself to ask him the meaning of his actions upon his first visit. The doc tor explained how rigiday he adhered to line of ethics in medical practice, and how he never presumed that profes- sional call was intended to be a social |
  visit
 Now he went on, I finished my professional call, went outside and wait ed awhile, then I made my social call, for was anxious to see you and talk l with you, John. I never allow any of | my patients to say I oversteppel the l line of professionalism even one iota, | My life as a doctor and my life as a man are two different things altogeth- | CT, and I keep them apart from each l other, so that they are perfect strang- | CTS. It may seem strange, but it is an idea have
 And he told the truth. The man | socially Is most brilliant, and goes in | the most fashionable circles of that | staid, aristocratic town, but as a doc tor, aside from being an excellent prac- he is absolutely dull and unin- teresting. This is one example of an | abnormal development of professional | etiquette, but 1t pays this man at least, and that is why, perhaps, he cultivates if