“One of the men went into the house, related what I had said, and the company came out. The leader, whom they all addressed as ‘Cap,’ began to question me with regard to my skill in such complaints. He soon became satisfied, untied me, and we entered the sick man’s chamber. My hands were so numb from the tightness of the cord which bound my arms, that I walked up and down the room for some minutes, rubbing my hands, and contemplating the situation. The man lay upon a bed of straw, his arms and legs bound to the bedstead to keep him from injuring himself and others. He had, in his agony, bitten his tongue and lips, and his mouth was covered with bloody froth, while the glare of his eyes was fearful. His wife, the only woman in the house, sat near the bed with an infant upon her lap, her countenance pale and anxious, while the company of men seemed to be the most desperate set I had ever seen. “I determined from the first to try to impress them with the idea that I had derived my power to relieve pain from some supernatural source. While I was thus thinking the matter over, ‘Cap’ was limping up and down the room, breathing an oath at nearly every step, and finally said to me,--‘Come, come, old boy, take hold lively; I want to get home, for this d--d old hip of mine is raising h--l with me.’ I said to them,--‘Now, gentlemen, I’ll give this man complete relief in less than ten minutes from the time I lay my hands on him; but I must be permitted to retire to a room alone, for I confess that I have dealings with the devil, and I must consult with him.’ Nothing so charms an ignorant people as something that has about it the appearance of superstition, and I did not want these men to see the syringe, or to know of its existence. The woman at once lighted a tallow candle, handed it to ‘Cap,’ and pointed to a small room. The man led the way, set the light down, and left me alone. I now took out my case, adjusted the needle to the syringe, filled it with a solution of the acetate of morphia, put the little instrument into my vest pocket, and returned to the room.