Evening star., 1905-10-22

weII-known physician of Philadel-
- phia lived on skeleton for six
months when he was a young physi-
clan and. what's more, managed to keep
body and soul together by means of ii un-
III the tickle fortune that all young physi-
clans must WOO IL they are to win out
finally beamed upon him.
Much sooner after beginning his profess
sioral career than he had anticipated In
even his gloomiest moments. this particular
physician found himself looking into the
cavernous depths of an empty pocketbook
Also. he was fronted by a boarding obliga-
ton that was pressing for settlement. He
tried in vain to think of some one from
whom he had not already borrowed and OF
whom he could be reasonably certain OF
securing a loan He turned this way and
that. and at last brought up against the
disagreeable thought that the only thing
left to him was to effect a temporary loan
with that pawnbroker who would give MIN
the best terms.
But what to pawn? He looked at his bag
of shining instruments. No. not them al
though he had not used them once SINCE
getting them. he might be called upon 10
use them any time. He cast his eyes on
his books-he needed them too much' they
were his only solace. And II would not DO
TO pawn any of the furniture. Ihere was
none too much of 1t. anyway. and with one
piece gone the office would look poverty
stricken and shabby to the first person
soliciting his services
/ All the skeleton!
That was always kept in a closet. He
could get along very well without 1t for a
! time in his reading-it was just the thing to
/ pawn though ii was the pride of his Mt
| tings. and had been selected with the great
! est care.
So he took It off It's hook in the closet,
slipped it into a big black bag. and. In the
dusk of the evening, with the burden over
his back, wended his way to pawnshop;
Fifteen minutes later he had ticket and
SO in his pocket.
:, That was the first of dozen odd trips
that the skeleton. riding upon the doctor
back. made to the pawnshop. Whenever
things looked up with its owner the skele-
ton would be redeemed. Whenever patients
failed to turn up in time to replenish his
: pocketbook. to the pawnshop the skeleton
would go once more. ProVldentlally Tor the
doctor. a patient would always turn up be-
/ fore the money secured by piedglng the
skeleton had been exhausted.
The last trip that the wire-strung bones
made to "mine uncle" occurred three days
before the doctor was called in TO minister
to a wealthy man of the neighborhood, the
family doctor being out of town on snort
vacation. He made a decided hit with the
old man, who, at the end or 1ortnlgnt,
handed him Cneck OUT Oi dII SiHe Win NIiS
services rendered, and, more, sent patents
the young mans way.
The doctor Is prosperous now, ana the
credit for his prosperity he gives to his
skeleton. For he always says, In hnlsh-
Ing the story, 'if 1t hadn't been for It
would not have been able to hang on TIL
the grateful rich patient came my way.
-
The old adage that great oaks from little
acorns grow" was never better exemplfed
than in the case OF one Of Rochester's lead
ing general practitioners.
Twenty years ago he went to that city
from the town of Penn Yam to study medi-
cine Two or three months after entering
medical school he one day met in the hall
his landlady as she was fastening to her
room to treat as best she could a finger that
she had injured while working about the
house The student noticed her distress
and politely volunteered to dress the wound,
explaining that he was a medical student.
The proffered services were gratefully re-
ceIved the wound healed nicely, and so full
of the young mans kindness was the good
woman that she told all her boarders about
him and his cure, and even went so far as
TO speak of him to her friends in the nelgh-
borhOod.
The result was that the other boarders
and some persons from outside Were soon
seeking the student in similar cases OF
emergency, such cuts and burns, and
whenever he was called on he cheerfully
did what he could, always explaining, how
ever that he only a student, and in
no wise fitted to give any but home treat
ment."
Thus his services were IN constant demand
all the years that he was studying, and his
circle OF friends and acquaintances gradu-
ally came to embrace nearly everybody in