Show adventurers CLUB HEADLINES FROM THE LIVES IF F PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF 1 in a name by FLOYD GIBBONS famous headline hunter Y VOU OU know boys and girls cheb old bill shakespeare 1 I asked in a name he seem to think that names made very much difference but I 1 guess bill could find plenty of people to give him an argument on that subject one of them is john T smith of ozone park N Y john smith such an unusual name when you come to think of it nor was john such an unusual sort of fellow at the time this story opens around april 1 1935 he was working as a plumbers helper for a large concern one day while threading a piece of pipe john cut his finger that an unusual occurrence either cither but add those things all up together and give you the strangest doggone predicament that ever a man got into john paid no attention to his cut finger but two or three days later al lad begun to swell up a bit his foreman took a look at it and told i hed better report it to the company doctor the doctor was pretty busy he looked at johns finger asked him his name and told him to get the necessary papers from his boss and report at the hospital ill notify the hospital youre coming he told john be there at eleven sent to hospital for small operation john got the necessary papers from his boss and showed up at the hospital on the dot of eleven he had had an infected finger before and knew pretty well what was done about it they froze the finger slit it open with a lance bandaged it and sent you on home but it seemed ijohn that this hospital took a lot more trouble over a sore finger A nurse took johns name and said oh yes were expecting you she told him to take a seat in the waiting room and there john waited for an hour then the nurse came back and took him upstairs opened U A all ive got is an infected finger a door and led him into a room A few minutes later another nurse came in with a bed jacket take your clothes off and get into bed she told him well sir it began to look to john as if someone had made a mistake do you know the matter with me he asked the nurse of course we do the nurse replied well then all this fuss about john wanted to know oh we do things right in this hospital she said and with that she left the room john was ready to agree with the nurse here was a big luxurious private room a swell looking nurse and all kinds of service over nothing but a sore finger do things right in that hospital youre doggone bootin they did john undressed and got into bed by that time it was three and the boss would be wondering where he was when the nurse came in again he be asked her how long hed be kept there why said the nurse YOURE GOING TO STAY HERE OVER NIGHT they listen to john 1 I thought she was kidding me says john but I 1 found out different in a few minutes in came a doctor with a third nurse the nurse jabbed a needle into one of johns fingers but it the sore finger john tried to tell her she had the wrong one but she snapped 1 I know what im doing and john shut up after a while he said say do you know the matter with me the doctor said yes the nurse paid no attention at all she thrust another needle into his arm and shot in some sort of drug the drug made john feel tired he wanted to go to sleep but by that time he was pretty sure something was wrong he was beginning to get scared the drug dulled johns brain but he fought off the drowsiness that was coming over him two more nurses came in with an orderly who was pushing a table on wheels they put john on the table and wheeled him off to an operating room john roused himself from the stupor the drug had put him and once more he be asked are you sure you know the matter with me but my voice was weak john says and they paid no at attention lention to me I 1 began to feel sick as well as weak I 1 could see all sorts of instruments laid out on the tables around me the orderly wheeled my table under a big flood light the nurses began getting ready a lot of bandages then I 1 knew something was wrong they were going to perform some sort of a BIG OPERATION and did the doctor laugh then 1 I looked tor for the doctors there were three of them talking together in a corner that was where I 1 made my last desperate effort I 1 was yas almost passing out from the effect of the drugs I 1 had been given but I 1 managed to raise one arm and mot ionone of the doctors over that doctor was the only one who would listen to me and thank god he did for another nurse was coming over with the ether and in another minute I 1 would have been unconscious I 1 said doctor are you sure you know the matter with me are you sure youve got the right man all this russ fuss about anyway all ive got is an infected finger well sir the doctor lifted the sheet that thrown over john and took a good look at him then he started to laugh but it any laughing matter to john he had almost gone through an operation he needa john never did find out what they were going to do to him maybe they were only going to take an arm or a leg off then on the other hand they might have been going to do something really serious but what he does know is that his name got him into that jam there are just too doggone many john smiths in the world and our john smith had almost got himself cut open on account of another john smiths ailment when the doctors got through laughing they told one of the nurses to dress johns finger then they put him back to bed they told him hed have to stay there all night because of the drug shot into his arm but as soon as the nurse was out of the room john put on his clothes and beat it out of the hospital there were too many john smiths in the world to take any chances any minute they might bring another one in and then they were liable to I have john down in the operating room again sharpening up the knives 1 and breaking out toe the ether D service |