The Bemidji pioneer., 1900-05-17
(Continued.)


able to get along by myself, as | have
often done before and will often again
Al few days will pull me round all
right without troubling any one /"
''I'm afraid it may be a more serl-
Gus matter this time said the doctor
but have your own way for the pres
ent. I'll see that you have some milk,
and if I have spare rug or blanket II
send it a swell to throw over you.
Now, good-by, and see that you keep
yourself as warm and comfortable as
you can under the difficult clrcum-
stances you have chosen for yourself,
II oughtnt to have listened to him,
he went on to himself as he walked
home through the driving snow, when
had been falling thickly for some time; !;
'"but there's that old Ulundi rug Of
mine he can have tonight. 1t looks as
if he would need it badly"
The ensuing night proved keen and
frosty and Falconer's thoughts revert
ed more than once to the miserable
shelter in which he had left his patient
and the still more miserable shake
down on which the fever-stricken
wretch was lying. At comparatively
early hour the next morning he was
again at the door, waiting in some I'M
patience until it was again unclaimed
and unlocked, and revealed the solitary
Inmate shivering and moaning in
agonies Of neuralgia. $50 this is the
i result Of leaving you to your own de-
vices!" he exclaimed as he strobe in;
-"but come, there is no time to be lost
NOW. Get on your clothes, and any
thing you want to take with you, and
= j will have fly at the door in five
minutes. But sit down first and let
me give you hypodermic dose OF
smorphia to quiet your pain. Is there
any water in the house?" .
"You can get it at the tap, and here is
a cup. But tell you plainly, I'm not
going out of this house. Do anything
you can for me without removing me,
and will thank you and repay you
when I can. I do thank you hundred
times for the rug you sent me last
night. But go to infirmary or hospital
i will not; understand that clearly
"Well, well!" said the doctor, wish
ing to humor, him for the moment;
lie down there and get under the rug
then. Hold out your arm There,
/ you'll feel better In minute. A deal
better" he muttered to himself as he
drove home a full dose; s.it will be
easier to get him away SO. Now lie
still and keep yourself warm for half
an hour. I have another case to see in
the next street, and will be back here
in that time" SO saying, he walked
quickly to the. door, from which he
Withdrew the key and put 1t in his
pocket. 1t was several minutes walk
to the nearest cab stand and nearly half
an hour had elapsed before he was
again at the door with a four-wheeler.
To his chagrin he found it fastened by
the chain, but with a powerful push Of
his shoulder he burst it open and en-
tered. q NJ X |
His patient was lying on the floor Of
the front room on his face, having ap-
parently succumbed to the influence of
the morphia as he was returning from
putting the chain on the door, What
"a monomaniac!" exclaimed the doctor
as he stopped to lift him. Halo!
What have we here? those tumors
again." In a moment he had laid the
fnsensible figure on the bed and was
hastily undoing his clothing. Under
the mans shirt, and next his skin, was
fastened broad canvas belt. furnished
with six large leathern pouches widely
'distending and bulging prominently
"Ha! this explains the mystery! Va
,cuus cantabit indeed! What weight!
These are malignant tumors with a
vengeance! Come, my friend, let go"
this to the patient, who was feebly
and half unconsciously cftching at the
belt as he withdrew TT must make
thorough examination Of these tu-
mors, since have discovered them at
last" n .:
Placing the belt on the foor--for
there was no table in the room--he un-
1oosed the strap of one of the pouches
with fingers that trembled with excite
rnent. A yellow gleam caught his eye,
and for a moment his hands shook so
violently and uncontrollably that a
small avalanche Of gold coins rolled out
upon the bare boards with jingling
crash, and spread over the floor. His
head swan, flashes of fire seemed to
dance before his eyes, thunderous
reverberation filled his ears, and before
he was able to control his own move
ments he was down on his knees wildly
.clutching at the coins with both hands,
'thrusting them into his pockets as fast
as he could gather them up. Recov-
-ering himself with sense of shame
and amazement such as he had never
felt before, he was conscious Of shud-
.dering SO violently that his teeth chat
tered, and the gold dropped again and
again from his fingers. For shame,
Richard Falconern' he heard himself
saying aloud, sis this your contempt
for filthy lucre, your boasted indiffer-
eence to gold? Get up at once, put back
sthat money and see to your patient as
you ought! What is all this to your"
With great effort he pulled himself
togather and began methodically to
Ya+bor III, tno naiuc th hanlr