AN INHUMAN DOCTOR.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 779, 15 October 1873, Page 2 (Supplement)

AN INHUMAN DOCTOR.

In the village of Wakefield (Velson PreviDce) there resides a doctor whose name i* j Oldham. Recently an inquest wa» held in the district on the body of a woman who died somewhat suddenly. At the coroner's inquiry, the husband of the deceased woman told his sad story in a few words. It was perfectly simple and entirely devoid of all flowery language. Indeed it wanted none to give it force. He was bringing his sick wife to the hospital from many miles up country. At the Forest Inn she was taken suddenly worse, »nd he despatched a messenger for Dr Oldham. The messenger discharged his errand, but the doctor refused to return with him. He pleaded his cause earnestly ;he told the doctor "they think the woman is dying," but the doctor persisted in his refusal, and shut the window in his face. The husband then tried what he could do te persuade him. The sole reply was that if his wife, who was then almost in the arms of death, could be brought down to within a, half a mile of this noble-hearted doctor's residence, he would not mind turning out to try to save her life, but to ride a couple or three miles to see her was altogether out of the question. Driven to his wits' end, the husband of the dying woman begged for medicine to relieve her sufferings, at the same time remarking that be thought medical men usually preferred to see their patients before prescribing for them. The doctor admitted that this was customary, but still refused to "go up there." Making sure of his ten and sixpence, and guessing at the remedy, he sent the poor fellow back with a bottle of medicine and some powders, and then, we may suppose, returned to bed again "To sleep, perchance to dream." Even the mo3t callous and bard-hearted are sometimes such sufferers themselves as to be objects of pity to those whose sympathies with their fellow men are not entirely dead. Let us therefore hope for the doctor's sake that in bis dreams he did not see a weman writhing in convulsions from which, as Dr Boor who examined the body stated, "she might have rallied, had she been seen by a medical man." Let us hope that as he lay his head on his pillow there did not ring in his ears the bitter anathemas of a husband who in the absence of professional assistance was compelled to watch the death agonies of her he loved, utterlv powerless to relieve her sufferings. Let us' hope that by his bedside there stood no vision of a grief-stricken widower, exclaiming in language similar to that used by the woman of old, of whom we have all read, to one who did not look upon his own personal comfort as of the first importance, " If thou hadst been here Bhe had not died." Let us, for Dr Oldham's sake, trust that none of these fancies troubled his rest, that he was unconscious of having been guilty of an inhuman action until he learned that the twelve men who were called upon to investigate the circumstances attending the death of Jane Pahl bad placed on record the following expression of their opinion : The jury cannot separate without expressing their opinion of the heartless conduct of Dr Oldham in not attending to Mrs Pahl when so earnestly called on.

The Doctor should cause this to be transscribed in crimson letters, and set up over his threshold ; he should add it as a footnote to his diploma ; he should have it impressed upon that portion of his body where the heart is to be found in ordinary human beings, and with the opinion of his fellowmen thus continually before him, he might, perchance, in the event of a similar emergency again arising, be more disposed to assist in saving life, even though it should cost him a three-mile ride; he might be iadueed to be charitable—to be human.— Evening Mail.