Year: 1874

A PHYSICIANS STORY.


twas in November thirteenth-abou
fve.and.twenty years ago, that DIR. Turner
sent for me to meet him in consultation upon
a case at Bartondale On the following day
I answered the summons. Bartondale was
fourteen miles distant from my residence ; and
when reached the special address designated
found DIR. Turner already there, and with
him was DIR. Prescott, of neighboring town
Our patient was a man Of about sixty, named
Ebenezer Varney. He was a farmer by oc
cupation, though of late years he had turned
his attention particularly to stock breeding
and money-lending He had been fortunate
in his speculations, and was what, IN the coun
try, is considered wealthy. Until within three
months Mr.. Varney had known nothing oi
sickness. According to his own account, che
had never known sick day until this trouble
came" He was large-framed man, and DR.
Turner, who had known him for years, as
sured me man more hale and hearty than
he had previously been, was not to be found
anywhere


"And now," said I, "what is the case as you
have had it?'


"Here it u.s." replied DR.. Turner. "1 was
called to see the patient during the last week
in August. I found him weak and languid ;
with no appetite; the pulse low and sluggish
and the tissues seeming to be gradually, but
surely, wasting. There was no fever, and he
had complained of but little pain. At first
thought it might be case of dyspepsia but
I was very soon forced to believe that there
was something deeper than that There was
a suspension Of the whole alimentary power,
as though the organs had suddenly failed, as
an old watch will that has run long time
without fabrication simply worn out. tie
had been hard worker exposed to all sorts
of weather; careless of his health ; and eating
everything that came in his way. My treat
ment has been rather varied. l tried the
different preparations Of iron at first, with
such alternatives and tonics as l thought he
would bear Of late, however, my course
has been almost entirely experimental and
think 1 may safely say that have exhausted
the whole pharmacopeia. But all to no et'
feet. The waste goes on, like poison eating
out the vitals, and I have no power to stop 1t.
l am free to confess that I am at stand still.
I have told these honest people, who are so
anxious to know what allied him, that the
trouble was paralysis of the alimentary canal.
Of course I must give them a direct answer,
and that came as near to my knowledge OF
the case as anything"


"And," said I, ga very good statement it
is. But if there is paralysis of the canal,
what caused it,?


found the patient, as the reader might





weak, very pale, very despondent, very thin,
and exceedingly reduced in every way: 1t
was case of atrophy, for which we could find
no cause. We summoned the cook and the
nurse, and demanded to know if Mr. Varney
ever ate or drank any thing in the house of
which the others did not partake. No; he
had never been capricious or dainty about his
food Whatever the Others ate and drank he
ate and drank.


And how about his medicine? The nurse
declared that he only took what the doctor
ordered And how had it been with Mr.
Varney's progenitors? Had they been
healthy?


"No, sir. His father and his grandfather
and I've heard tell how that his great-grand.
father did, too, all died with consumption
I've heard Adams Aunt Hepsey say that
they grew to be middleaged men afore any
thing like sickness ever showed itself; but
when they once was took down they went
awful"


turned, and beheld woman of middle
age-a small, keen-eyed, restless woman, who
proved to be the wife of the sick mans ne
phew, Adam Varney.


And by-and-by Adam Varney himself came
in, and he corroborated his wife's testimony
He was man not far from fifty years of age
rather slim and frail and it struck nae, too
that he might be taken down before grea
while.


Altogether the case was very curious one
but we were forced to pronounce 1t quick con
sumption and we could offer no hopes of re
covery. There is no need of telling all thai
we three doctors said. I will only further ado
that the last words spoke on the subjec
were to Turner.


Doctor" says I, "there is one thing thai
confounds me; and for an elucidation Of tina
condition you must exert yourself to the ut
most. Find out, ifyou can, what causes tina
continual, deadly nausea. 1t is beyond my
power to conceive of any cause inherent il
the system"


Our report to the patient, and to his friends
was, that DR.. Turner was pursuing the proper
course of treatment, and that he understood
the case as clearly as it could be understood
from the symptoms.


That was on the fourteenth of November
During the three or four weeks following
was very busy (for then had good countr!
business, and gave but little thought to tn
case at Bartondale.


About the middle of December three youn|
gentlemen, who we're studying medicine a
Guys, came down from 7 ondon, they having
arranged with two students of mine that the.
would club together and send to town for
subject, and that l should meet with them
certain number of afternoons, and act as thel
demonstration. Edgar Stearns and Charlie
Gordon were my students and Gordon ha'
a place fixed up in an out-of-the-way end o
his mothers woodshed that answered capital