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Show I ' HE TOOK A CHANCE H i I For Love's Sake Hunchback Un-I Un-I i dcrgoes Operation on Distorted I : . Bones of Spine. I ' ' BY C. V. CLARENDON. On (hu night bcfoin tho operation , Doctor Klein piiIitciI 111" patient's room nml sat by his bed "You lire re- ' Folrnl In tnlii' tin- chance of It?" ho H i 1 1 In Ktei I ;;..i) ejes were flxctl Ml- H winnlngl) upon those of tho cilpplo " bctu.ilh tin- sheets. Tlio cripple H ttnllnl back at him aa frankly H Tcifcctlv." ho murmured "My , chance Ib, I understand, on tho wholo fnnrnlili. You say 1 nm tho fourth H who titiH risked this?" H "'Hie llfth," answered tho great sur- H rmiii composedly H i "And two of them died?" "0, dear, no Well, yes, two dlod, H tut ono of these would have died any-H any-H ' Hy from other cailBes. In his caao H death was a merciful release. 1 am i i lirmly convinced that you will got up H as straight n I nm." H' And he went on learnedly to do- I scribe tho details of his famous opor-H opor-H i nllou which was to euro tho hunch-H hunch-H back. Tho pressures of tho vurtebrao upon tho spinal cord must bo ro-m ro-m ': moved, tho distorted hones rcBet and bold In u cast; It was perfectly fcas-H fcas-H Ible, but bccaiiBo the slightest slip of M ' tho scalpel would mean paralysis and H a lingering death no other surgeon m dnred attempt It. M "And I supposo," tho surgeon onded, (milling kindly, "that there Is, at H ubuiiI, a woman In the caso." M Tho hunchback's eyes lit up. "I'll tell you, Doctor Klein," he said, H "for you liuvu been my bost frlond H in tho world Ves there Is a woman H in tho cuso. H "I havon't burdonod you with my M early history, but I may as well say H that I nm a mini of good family and H in ray youth enjoyed tho advantages H of an excellent education. My early H life wan, tin you may Imaglno, a tor- I 'Aft! H The Surgeon Rose From the Bedside. m turo of Bolf-cousclouBtiess and suffer- H lng. Tho pity, tho nverslon, tho dls- H ; gust of all whom I mot well, you can ) nnderstnnd how theso things affect a sensitive boy. I felt cut off from tho world by tho barrier which my do- formlty h.ul ralsod up. Once, when I K ' was about twonty-ono, I foil in lovo. Ono day 1 dared to tell her 1 shall fl never forget tho astonished look In H her oea, 'Why, Mr Manning,' sho M said, 'I never dreamed that you folt M like this I thought that wo wero M , only friends. ' Then uho went on, M i with u touch of anger, 'I thought that M 1 could safely bo friends with you B 1 whore I could not with another man.' M , ' Bho stopped 'Hocnusir of my deform- B Ity,' I auHwercd bitterly She tnado H ' no niihwer but wont out of tho room. W i "Hut whon I met Esther Garvin H things wero different She made mo m forget my liulrmlty Ours was a leal M i communion of souls; I know then that H i I had met u woman who would marry H ' me in spite of nil, In Bpito of ovory- H thing, whoso lovo was to bo as etornal H ab my own And because of this I loft H ' her, three eais ago, after n mad H demonstration ol lose which left each H of us panic stricken and ashamed, I, H because I knew that t had been a cur H to tell her she, b'cnuhi sho knew H this feeling in my heart 1 left her H. and nover saw her again H "For two years I tiled to put her H out of m 'leait, hut In vain. Then I B heard of j our operation. I scraped to- m Bother i'ery penny 1 could, ami, whon H It reached eight hundred dollars I H tame to on and jou know tho lCBt. H Hut you tefused to take, n penny of it M and 60 I can oul ropay you with my H deepest gratitude And when I am H well I shall toll Esther, and sho will H Hess your name a hundredfold." H Tho Burgeon rose from tho bedside,. H Ills face wiib white, his steady hand H trembling. Without a word he pressod H' the hunchback's lingers and loft the H room Bjfl "Ask Miss Garvin to step into my M ' efflce," ho said to tho orderly, and, B five minutes afterward, tho nuaes- HBb '-etlst ontered. B "MIsb Garvin," snld Doctor Klein, "I H want you to tako a holiday tomorrow HBfl and let Miss Chapln otherlzo my pa. H H "Why?" asked Esther Oarin quieU B ly and directly. H Doctor Kloln halt rose from his H shalr and eat down dltilly, HL' "Esther," ho said, placing his hand Ik upon hor aleeve, "are yoa still qutto sure that you can nevor lovo me? Yes, I see that you are. You gave me to understand once that your heart was pledged. I want you to tell mo one thing, and I do not ask It Impertinently, Impertinent-ly, Whoro U the man you lore?" "I don't know," sho answered, "Ho has gone out of your life?" "Uut I lore him still," sho cried defiantly. de-fiantly. "I love him and always shall. O, Doctor Klein, I wo all owi to much to you. Nono of us but Is too conscious of your many kindnesses, your goodness, jour charity and self-sacrifice self-sacrifice Don't moke it harder for me. I don't love you, I can't lorn you " Suddonly she flung herself upon up-on her knees. "Do you know wky I was first attracted to you?" she cried. "The man I lovo Is a hunchback. His wholo life has been poisoned by his Infirmity. I hoped It would bo my task to bring him back to an understanding of goodness, to instill a gracious bencvolenco into his mind and nature. Out ho left me because he dared not ask me to link my life with his. Thoa I came hero, to bo a nurso, to give my llfo to othors. I met you, I learned ot your operation and hoped that some day the time would arrlro when he, too, would hear of you and would oomo to you to be made a straight man like other men. and thon " "I lorod you," Bald Doctor Klein hoarsely. "You loved mo," sho ropcated me-ohanlcally. me-ohanlcally. "And thon I darod not toll you about what lay so near my heart. But I haro told you now becauso bo-cause bo-cause " She did not know. Perhaps It was hor lovor'a presence In tho hospital that sho felt unconsciously; she looked helplessly at tho doctor. Ha raised her to her feet gently. "Miss Garvin," ho said slowly, "Ave minutes ago I contemplated tho blackest black-est crime that any doctor could Imaglno Imag-lno or draam of. You have straightened straight-ened out tho mental kink in my own brain as I shall straighten Mr. Manning's Man-ning's body tomorrow." "Mr. Manning I" sho cried, and stood staring nt him In terror. "You know, thon? Ho 1b" "My door," tho doctor answored, "ho has told mo everything. Ho loves you. And ho is undor this root tonight, to-night, Hut you must not go to him now. You shall boo him tomorrow, and you and I will euro him." And Manning saw Esther's faco smiling on him aa ho sank to sleop under tho other; and Esther's was tho first that ho Baw when ho awakonod In his room afterward. But Doctor Kloln was standing at hor Bldo. "You will bo well hooh," said Doctor Doc-tor Klein. "You will bo straight as a man should bo and I I wish you" Hut ho knew that his llfo also stretched straight boforo him, ruled nml planned nnd unchnugeablo. (Copyright, 1913, by W. a. Clinpinan.) |