Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-01-05
IDIOsYNCRASIES OF THE SICK.
Annoying Things That Nurses Have
to Put Up with in Following
Their Calling.


and remuneratlve to the average we'll
educated young woman than that of
the trained nurse. 1t was, ther, with
some surprise that a Sun reporter
heard one exclaim impatiently: "Win
this nurse fad never stop?'' as she
tossed a newspaper aside.
What is the matter?" the reporter
asked.
Nov" said the trained nurse, Il
Lave nothing to say against the beau
ties of my profession is as each
one views it. Handsome is that hand
some does. as good old DR.. Primrose
said. It's the rewards I want to talk
about. Every girl who did not know
what else to do with herself previous
to the haicyon marriage epoch used
to slide into school-teaching We all
know the result-poor teachers and
poorer teaching. But nowadays she
tackles the trained nurse profession
as offering higher salary and an en-
viable chance at masculine compan-
icnship while learning it. Result,
about the same as with the uninspired
school m&'ams. [ wish some of those
contemplating entering my profession
knew the truth in the matter; then
perhaps they would not be so eager to
enter it. Just let them listen to me.
MY first experience on returning
home after graduating from college
was to find my father dying and his af-
fairs in a very bad condition. It be-
came evident that / would have to look
out for myself very soon, and my
thoughts were turned into the chan
nels of professional nursing by the
young woman who was attending my
father. She was splendid type of the
professional nurse, as she should be,
and I could not but think that pro-
fession followed by so rare a type Of
womanhood was good enough for the
sister of a bishop and the niece of an
archbishop. My father died, and en-
tered as probationer at St. Joseph's
hospital, in st. Paul, Mimi. 1 loved my
work, and found my ten dollars a
month a fair enough recompense for
MY time and the somewhat qualified
pleasure of my duties. But after my
three years hard work, when ] was
fitted to do for myself, [ foun4 that
$25 a month was all l could expect as
regular trained nurse in any hos
pital, board and lodging being, OF
course, thrown IN. AS a superln-
tendent [ might get $500 to 81 800 a
year, but there was no blessed mean.
L thought the west might prove an
exception, and, having friends in New
York, came east, where [ took charge
of the operating-room in a hospital.
What did [ get there? Twenty-Five
dollars a month, as before. Then you
must remember the arduous duties,
long hours. lack of society, rigid dis
| cipline and rotation to night nursing
81 decided to leave hospital nursing
and [ have worked on private assign
ments ever since-when [ could get
them. You get $25 to $35 week, the
| latter if the case be contagious, are
| treated as a lady, and have every con
sideration, if you don't mind idiosyn,
crasies. There is the idiosyncrasy
which forgets to pay you and the
doctor until the person gets sick again
Then there is the idiosyncrasy pos
| sessed by the lady who months ago
| showed me her fine gown and hat
which cost hundreds, and soothinglJ
assured me that her husband would
pay me some day. She had paid me fol
q week when [ left, keeping back ter
| dollars of the sum her husband hao
1 7 L n
two dollars from me to pay for the
| luncheon she invited me to. They are
| in Philadelphia now, and have hearC
nothing more of the bill or the loan
| Oh, that's not so unusual, either"
and, yes" broke in her chum, chen
there is the idiosyncrasy of the old
family physician, who refuses to rec
| ognize you
'And gives all his orders to the
mother of the patient while you are
responsible for their fulfllment," pur.
sued the bishops sister, hotly. "And
| the idiosyncrasy of the patients wife
who won't let you read, and you must
groan hours with your hands in your
lap doing nothing"
And the ldlosyncraSy OF the house
hold that drives away all the servants
| just as you arrive on the scene,
chimed in the chum, "and you have the
house to run and the patient to cook
for"
"Oh, I never had that" said the bish-
ops sister. my doctors have only
aristocratic cases. But the worst
| lido"
"Syncrasy is that of fate, which only
| gives you work half the time," in a
mournful chorus.
(which makes $3.50 a week." said
the newspaper woman, as she put a
| period to the story.-N. Y. Sun.
| Figuring for Two of Them.
He-I wonder if could steal kis:
from you?
She-I have no kisses to s-eal. Yor
would have to give me one frst.-In
dianapolis Journal.