The Washington times., 1937-01-14


tail, was following her broad
shouldered master with an air OF
gravity absurdly appropriate TO
the serious concern Of his tleXed
Jaw and faraway eyes.
Assured that her entire family
was safely aboard, the coupe
elided into action. Pleased with
her undamaged arrival, she be-
latedly made a great show Of pro-
fessional poise by rolling to a dis
Greet stop on the crunching gravel
between DR.. Armstrong; sand-col,
ored sedan and the 5-year-old
roadster Of DR.. Lane, who at that
moment was noisily tuning for de-
parture.
Sighting the smart car sliding
into the stall beside him, the gray
haired anaesthetiSt nodded a
greeting without enthusiasm.
where to?" queried Paige,
''We're doing that tuberculols KID
ney at nine" ,,o;nos
Lane discontentedly.
whats the trouble?"
"Oh-Endicott has been de-
tanned somehow. Just now
'phoned from Harrisburg - or
some place. Business conference
or something. Back in the
morning-or sometime. 1 W1sn ne
had given orders for you to go
ahead with it." .,,,
paige, still at the wheel, ahsently
lifted an expressive hand, ana
With a single flick Of the fingers
acknowledged the compliment and
dismissed the suggestion.
"The lady is DR.. Endicott's
patient, Lane. Came here espe'
cially to have him ana qulUe
PROPERLY. too," he added mean
ingiy. almost militantly, a1ter
frosty pause. .oo
Ferventlv to be convincing. Il salo
: wished YOU were doing this Dex-
ter excision because I dislike tnese
postponements. They're TOO M nalu
on the patients morale. Oilce
you've got a case all nerVed up
for an operation, its
The banal platitude perlshed OF
IT'S own stupidity under the un-
focused steel-blue stare. Paige
wasn't hearing a word; just sltIllig
there glowering at distant gnosC.
what was eating him? hane
euessed-and thought he knew; W;
Silently curious and more tnall
a little uerturbed, he watched tne
athletic young fellows abstracteo
movements as he locked the gears,
xtenned out of his car, chalneo
tha whimpering setter to tne
steering wheel, and mechanically
moved away without ano'iATt e.
Tord or a backward glance ~
wasn't like Newell Paige 70 o0
'ilSE: Hs chuckled a little. Dr.. Ben
,or,in MI Montgomery Booth-Spe-
.io1ist in radium, with a degree
from Edinburgh, one OF FalgT i,,sf :
most intimate friends-had 9ISS 9S
Feen CURLY disposed OF WIN 1I' Slre
Eriefest of mods as they encoun'
*ared each other in the doorway
Sannie booths open-moutneo eH.
session Of bewilderment was
e1,msine. Paige was playing no
fayorites: had sometnlns Anip0A
tant on his MIND. oT,ac.
lanes grin changed to a reItto- tto
+ive scowi. He rolled a clgaretEe'
~on - his tongue along the margin
Sty1,ck a match, inhaled deeply
ell eli The while reminiscently SPIN.
1;rg - the reel Of Paige's singular
relationship to the celeoi~'eO
It was a dramatic story. Lane
himself. knew it only from near.
~av for he had been a mere
Stripling at the tail Of muday
STobuIance in France when jim
paige died, here at Parkway, OF d
swift pneumonia cllmaxlng S CilS
malignant flu that had moWeo q
a broad swath through hosplCalS
after the manner Of medleVaI
pestilence. ,ror.+,,ro
long since a lunger in Phoenix,
hsG once recited that initial
chapter for Lane in dusty day
coach on the Santa Fe lneXpen-
siyely en- route from Chicago 10
the coast. I.S
"As an interne," Mcintyre had
recounted meditatively. Il used 10
think that Jim was the lucklest
chap of my acquaintance. Boy!
he had everything! Plenty OF
money, and mighty generous with
A. too, Handsome as a Greek
god. Brilliant student. Born
S,Iraeon-if there ever was one
Not quite so audacious as Endl-
cott who was seven years his
senior and already making a
name for himself, but in a talr
wav to be as competent when ne
had had the experience.
''Nothing in my professional ex-
uerience, he continued moodlly'
Fever stirred me more deeply
than the wan and weary little
face of their boy on the afternoon
Of Jim's death. Sally had gone
out the same way two days before
.God-how helpless we were!
S"That was the only time ever
saw Bruce Endicott stampeded.
always maintained he was the
greatest surgeon ever knew, and
i don't expect to have any occa-
sion to change my mind about
that, Never met anybody with
such complete mastery over q
Gtfuation. WE'LL drew the sheet