For years I have advised idle young ladies, who were longing for
something to do, to look up poor, unhappy families, and minister to
their hungry bodies and hungry hearts. I could give you a great many
interesting cases, but one is such a pleasant little love story, I
must tell it to you. With the exception of the names, the story is a
true one.
Twenty years ago I was practising my profession in a western city.
Among my patients was a Miss Dinsmore, a lady of nearly thirty
years. Her case was what she called the dumps. I thought it
indigestion and general debility. After two weeks, she began to ride
out again, and seemed to be doing well enough, when one day she
astonished me by exclaiming, "Oh! I wish I was dead!" After some
hesitation, she told me that she was perfectly disgusted with life,
etc., etc.
I advised her to go out a mile on Marble Street and look up a poor
widow woman, a patient of mine, and see if she could not do
something to make her comfortable. She couldn't think of it; she had
troubles enough of her own; but, after a little urging, she
consented to ride that way in the morning, and see if she could do
anything. Before the next noon she was at my office with a most
pitiful story about "that poor sufferer." I rode out with her at
once, and found that Mrs. Ramsey needed some beef-soup and some
flannels. Miss Dinsmore volunteered to bring them within an hour. My
poor Mrs. Ramsey had pretty good times after that.
I soon had about ten poor patients in Miss Dinsmore's hands. Her
sympathy and devotion were often more curative than my doctor-
stuffs. At length, she gave me carte blanche to send any poor, sick
ones, who needed help; and, from having been a slave to a round of
fashionable dissipations, she soon became the most devoted friend of
the sick and suffering. To those who have studied the causes of bad
health among the devotees of fashion, I need not say that Miss
Dinsmore soon became healthy and very happy.
Charles Finlay, a young man of twenty-five years, came to our city,
from Philadelphia, to establish a large manufacturing business. He
was immediately successful, and quickly won his way to the
confidence of our business men. Possessed of noble person, fine
culture, and singularly sweet manners, he was soon regarded as the
greatest "catch" in town, and innumerable caps were accordingly set
for him.
While trying an agricultural machine, one of his hands was seriously
hurt, and he sent for me. It was my first personal acquaintance with
him, though I had long known him by reputation. After amputating one
finger, I contrived to save the residue of his hand. Our daily
intercourse continued for several weeks, and we became very good
friends. Among other subjects, we discussed matrimony.