The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1906-05-01
THE GERM
or LOVE

ANA l tell you, doctor, tne lfnaSlna-
ton has nothing to do with II. The
germ produces the disease"
DO you admit that men and women
have gone mad for love?"
"No. They have gone mad while In
love. They would have eventually gone
mad anyway"
Il will produce love by means OF the
imagination"
DR.. Finch, who made this daring
proposition, sat thinking, while his
companion, Pr. Hargravc, poured out q
glass Of wine aud lighted a fresh cigar
Presently Finch said:
Your Alice Is now about fourteen,
] believe. My Dick is fifteen. For my
part, n match between them, when old
er, would he acceptable. How do you
feel about IT."
II should not object"
Very we'll. We will give the chill
uren lessons In germs and their effects,
then administer to each dose. telling
them that 1t is an Infection Of love- aft
er which they shall be Kept for time
in prominently with each other"
agreed"
A week later each one of the chill
dren was given Il dose OF some sweet
smelling liquid the principal odor was
or violet and told that IL would infect
them with love. Then they were pack
ell off together to a farm owned by
Dr. Finch, where they were put under
the care Of the farmer and his wife
Alice, who took far more interest In
the disease than Dick, had purloned
the bottle from which her father had
given her the Injecting dose and pro
posed to experiment with it OH her
own account. On the evening OF her
arrival at the farm she poured some
of il into basin and watched the
pigeons drink IT, When the next day
she was assured by the farmers wife
that the pigeons had paired, she was
much pleased Dick told her that he
had been given dose, ana she was
interested to know how the disease
would first appear. But Dick found
some farmer boys, who piloted him
to the trout grounds and the swimming
hole, and for the first two or three
lays Alice saw nothing Of him. When
be got back to the farmhouse he had |
forgotten all about the love germs.
Not so Alice She watched eagerly |
For the first symptom of the infection, |
feeling her pulse aud looking at her |
tongue n dozen times a day In her |
ctters home, Which she was told to |
mail once a week, she said that she |
didn't think the potion could have |
been strong enough. because she didn't
Eel any different from when she left
lome." Her father showed the letter
o his friend Finch in triumph, but the
Finch told him to wait. Soon
IfteP this letter came from Dick to
lis father, In which he mentioned the
act that Alice had said that he needed
more of the injecting dose. and she
vas examining IL into him. #p,
month passed, and the doctors
we're beginning to consider the expert
lent failure, when letter came
rom Alice which changed the situa-
ion.
I've got the disease" she said, "and
feel 50 funny like It, Dick $ got it
DO. l got 1t first, then Dick came
own with 1t. | wonder which will
ct wei first 1t is the incest disease
ever had. Nothing at all like that
asty old measles
Dick wrote in a different vein. alice ,
lys that I'm infected" he said, "but ,
don't know. l don't feel exactly as ,
ne does, but | suppose she's right
bout IT,"
Drs. Finch and Hargrave met Oh the :
rect soon after the arrival Of these /,
tiers, and Finch crowed over his op- !
oneht. though he consoled him on the
round that their friendship would be ,
'ntinued by the union of their chll.
zen.
The next day each received u tele.
am from the farmer to come ut once.
caring that their children had been
rown under u moving machine, they !
ct on the first train to start for the /,
rm. Hiring wagon at the station,
ey were driving down the road when =
ey met Alice walking beside n red /,
ced. freckled country gawk about !
7enty years old in WOODEN shirt, no )
'at and his hair sticking through ;
lies la his hat. J.
THE germs have worked. papa" she =
claimed. "fve given Hank a dose,
i'd he's got 1t too. He says he's got Il
yful"
Get In here" said the father an =
lily and evidently unmindful of the -
ientihc features of the case. Alice =
eyed the order, aud Hank was left n
lnding In the road. DR. Finch lean hi
back In his seat, put his handker- Ia
ief TO his face and roared with laugh a,
r. But when they reached the farm. M
use the tables were turned. There IN
Dick beside a homely young Som- ia
of eighteen in calico dress and
nbonnet.
I'm glad you've come. pop" he said
IN tired o. this business Alice says GA
e got love fever and so does Miss yo
akers, but don't believc g."
Dr.. Finch. whose lau-hter Lad died Il,
'ay. looked at DR. Hargrave US
Our next experiment win he under To-
|, care Of trained nurse" said the