The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-06-06
An Elephantine
Pill
By r. A. mitchell

There was never doctor In the
mining center of Luckyville till some
Of the miners went away and got mar
RED The men whilef alone didn't
think they needed a doctor. When
they shot one another they shot to
kill; when they got sick they waited
till they got well or died Up to the
time the women came no one had died
from disease. The women had been
used to having a doctor within call
and could not readily get used to hav-
ing no one on whom to shift the re-
sponsibility when they were ailing.
When children came the necessity
seemed all the greater.
They called upon O doctor TO come
and settle among them from a neigh
boring mining town where the men
had not taken to themselves wives and
the cry Of the babe had not been heard.
The men We're uncouth and needed or
at least expected radical treatment.
But the doctor at last won their con-
fidence and was permitted to give them
medicine when they needed it and to
tell them frankly when they did not
need 1t.
DIR. Truax was new thing I'm Lucky
Vile. Some Of the men-those who
had no family poohpoohed at the idea
of sawbones in place where no one
ever died. They said that his pills and
his powders might have some effect
on the children, but TO give such doses
to men was like pouring water down
hole In the ground. They sneered at
the women who relied upon the doctor
and who when told to give a baby a
teaspoonful OF few drops diluted In
a glass Of water every two hours would
watch the clock to make sure that the
dose went down on the minute.
One OF the most contemptuous of the
men in his opinion of the Doctors
methods was Mike 0'Rourke, whose
name indicated that he was son of
Erin. Mike stood six foot three and
was large in proportion. One day he
failed to feel as well as usual but
went to his work expecting to wear
him But he came home feeling no
better, and the next day 1t was the
same with him, and the next and the |
next He did not grow worse, but fail |
ed TO grow better.
why don't you 20 to the doctor,
Mixer said a friend. "Mebbe he'll |
give you somepin to get the trouble
out of you"
The docther!' sneered Mike. What /
DO want with the docther? He'd give
me a drop o. somethin' In a gallon of
water and expect 1t to make me we'll"
But after a weeks waiting for re-
turn of health Mike concluded that II
the doctor didn't do him any good at
east he would do him no harm. So be-
Yielded 10 the advice of his friends and
,alled on the physician at his office.
rruax asked him his symptoms, test
ID him for fever and other troubles,
hen gave him some little white pills,
cling him to take one every hour and
,ome again the next day. Mike de
parted and when asked about his visit
aid.
HE stuck little glass rod into me
mouth that looked like toy thermom-
ter. Then he looked at me tongue. |
cit as IL | had gone back TO me child
food, and everything was got up for
ne In thin days. When he'd got
through with his tiny fussin' he give
ne these pills. Look at EN-. Ye can
Iardly see 'em without glass"
The next morning Mike reappeared
/ the Doctors office.
"Docther" he said, 81 took the little
ills We give me. didn't string 'em
ut; took 'em all at once, and even