Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-09-25
ADoctor' sLast
Remedy
By TURNLEE

-
love? l mean a real boy and girl, the
boy, say, fourteen and the girl about
thirteen.
l am a country doctor. One of my
patients was Mrs. Baxter, a widow
with one child, a boy. Wien l called
to see her this little fellow, Alan, and
a little neighbor. Ef6e Barnes, were
usually playing together either In the
house or outside.
The town in which we lived was
really a very small village: c0nse-
quently | had many opportunities to
observe the children for the next
few years, during which they were
most of the time together. Then
when Alan was seventeen he went
away to college. l wished that Efie
could go away to some educational in
stitution, too, for / knew that while
Alan and she would remain the same
persons they would ~differentiate. Alan
would be developed, polished, mentally
and In manners. while Efie would be
the same plain little country girl.
After Alan entered college ! saw no
more OF him except In vacation, but |
continued to see Efie every now and
ngain. She was the same demure lit
tie body she had always been, except
when Alan came home: then she would
brighten up. But this Frightening last
ed but or a year or two. Alan at each
return showed himself different from
what he was the time before. There
was a constant shedding of the farm
er's boy. a putting OF of the educated
gentleman. Yet he found Effie the
same except in bodily development.
Her speech was no more artificial, her
manners no more studied than when
he had first left her.
There was the same innocence in her.
the same depth of feeling. the same
love. But how could these count
against the training mentally and the
more polished manners of the girls
with whom Alan was being thrown
every day? | judged that love had
never been spoken between them. 1t
had only existed. Alan on returning
to his mothers farm always spent
some time with his former sweetheart.
but not as he had been used to doing.
There was a certain constraint be-
tween them. | noticed 1t and knew
the cause. Effie had fallen behind him.
My heart bled for her. but / couldn't
blame Alan. Indeed. | fancied that
while he did not anulyze the facts as /
did he regretted them. | think he
would have liked to see Efie lay aside
% -ouAoI, .IoIr~arc kHo.o xxoo ohAs1k
her and put on something of finer tex
ture.
All the time Alan was In college a
separation was going on between the
two lovers, not visible to their friends
generally. but very plain to me, who
had learned the secret they did not
know themselves-their child love.
Then Alan came home after being
graduated and talked to me about
studying the profession Of medicine.
He decided to do so and went away
again, not to return except once, to bid
farewell to his mother, who was dy-
ing. X.
He could get on-or. at least. he
thought he could-without Efie. but
she, could not get on without him. Aft
er he left for the medical school she
suffered a great grief. Then, during
several years after he had graduated
and was practicing his profession 10 a
distant city, she seemed to me to be
gradually wasting away. Finally her
parents thought she should have treat
ment by a doctor. / was called In to
see her-I, who could diagnose her case
on what l had observed years before.
l went through the usual formula
partly from habit, partly because | did
not consider it wise to tell the truth.
l felt her pulse, looked at her tongue;
then. taking out my prescription blank.
l wrote an order for a mild tonic.
charging her to take it regularly three
times a day. Then l left her, wonder
ing what ! might really do for her.
She gradually sank away till at last
1 made up my mind that II the cause
of her malady could not be removed
she would die. l resolved on an expe-
dent to try to remove that
l wrote DIR. Baxter that l had a pa
tent under my care whose case was
puzzling me. / was aware that as a
country doctor l was in statu quo,
while he. having recently been gradu-
ated from one of the best medical
schools in the country, was on a higher
plane in the profession than l. Would
he run down to his old home long
enough to give me the benefit of his
diagnosis?
He came Immediately. ! told him
that | would take him to see my pa
tient. but preferred that he should see
her alone. make up his mind concern
ing the cause of the trouble and the
treatment and report to me. ! took
him to the home of his old sweetheart.
He looked at me in surprise. but with
| ont a u.nrl rnnt in tn soc her drove