American fiction -- 20th century; Short stories, American
But I was not admitted. I was not acquainted with him, and had no
plausible excuse for wishing to see him. So I went to Sullivan, my old
shipmate, and explained the case, at the same time telling him of my
wonderful cure, and my wish to secure to him the services of the kindly
man who had served me.
"Won't let you in?" he cried. "I'll see about that. Just come along wi'
me up to Tammany Hall, an' I'll see if a fri'nd o' Jack Sullivan is to
be barred out of any public institution in this burg."
We started, and as our way led past the apartment of the professor, I
suggested that we stop and endeavor to take him along, as, if all went
well, the thing could be done in a few moments.
Luckily we found him at home, packing up for the road. His engagement
was ended, and he would leave town that evening; but, when I had
explained about the poor fellow at Bellevue, whose case was worse than
my own, his kindly brown eyes lit up with a fellow sympathy, and he
came with us.
We took a cab, and Jack and I occupied the forward seat, while the
professor sat opposite. As we rode along, I noticed that he furtively
glanced into Jack's seamy face, and occasionally, and as furtively,
into mine, while a doubtful, thoughtful expression stole over his own.
But he uttered no word during that ride, and indeed there was hardly a
chance, for Jack kept the atmosphere sulphurous with his comments on
the insolence of the doctors at Bellevue.
At Tammany Hall Jack went in, and what he said or did in there I do
not know; but he soon came out, waving a pass to the hospital, and
still swearing.
We soon reached Bellevue, and were readily admitted and led to the ward
containing the hopelessly insane. And here we were at a loss as to
which of the fifty or more patients was our man. The one nurse there
did not know the pathology of a single case in the ward; but he went to
inquire, and brought back the visiting physician whom I had met in the
car. He recognized me, heard my story, was introduced to Jack and the
professor, and said to the latter:
"If you have restored this man's memory, sir, you may succeed with our
man. I am perfectly willing you should try. We have always failed. I
suppose you want a quiet room. Come with me, and I will send for the
man."
He led us into a small, vacant bedroom, containing, beside the bed, a
washstand and one chair. The doctor called for more chairs, and then
said:
"It is best perhaps that you should know something about him before he
arrives, as he is intelligent and sensitive in his present personality.
Besides his utter loss of memory, he carries the strangest antipathy to
cats and dogs--"
And here, as though in confirmation of the description, a huge cat
bounded into the room, followed by a frenzied-eyed man, who uttered
incoherent snarls and growls, as he endeavored to catch the cat.
"That's the man," said the doctor. "Look out."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account