1895

On September 11, while en route to Concord, N. H., I stopped in Contoocook to inquire if Dr. Tarbell '95 was still living. I found that he lived two doors from the postoffice on the left of the street, as one goes toward Concord. The Doctor had two notices attached to his front door, instructing all callers to ring the bell and walk in, so I rang the bell and then tried to walk in, but found that the door was securely locked. I then went around to a side door and rapped, but there was no response. On making inquiry from a neighbor, I learned that Dr. Tarbell has a camp about a mile out of the village, and that he spends a good share of the summer months at this camp, returning to his house for office hours each day.

A few hours later on my return from Concord, I stopped again and found the Doctor was in. As I walked into his living room he looked out from his office, where he was busy with a patient, and casually said "How do you do sir." Evidently thinking I was another patient.

After he had finished with his patient, and had given a penny to each one of the three children who accompanied her, he came into the living room and as I stepped up to shake hands with him, he looked at me for a moment rather steadily and then exclaimed, "My God, Stevens, is that you! The postmaster told me that somebody was looking for me. He said a tall white haired man came in and wanted to know where I lived."

Although another patient came in immediately, the Doctor kept him waiting and insisted that I sit down for a little chat. He told me that he was supposed to be dead some years ago. He had been working very hard and up nights as many country doctors are doing, and as he was leaving his house one day, he suddenly collapsed and was unconscious for sometime. When he finally regained consciousness he managed to get into the house and called his wife, and told her to get him certain medicine, which he named. He then had a specialist come with his cardiograph and was told that he had rather a serious heart trouble, cardiac embolism; but after a period of rest he felt better and went on with his practice and sometime later he collapsed again, but recovered, and is now going along with his practice, although taking it a little easier during the summer time. He has been practicing medicine in Contoocook for about thirty years. Dr. Tarbell, like several other members of the class, has been benevolently inattentive to the secretary's epistolary appeals. He pleaded guilty at once when this charge was made and confessed chagrin that he had neglected to answer not only my letters, but "Willie" Wilson's also.

On August 8 about 4:40 P.M. Walt Lane called up my office and pleaded that he didn't feel like climbing two flights of stairs to see me and asked if I wouldn't go down on the street and see him, which I did with great pleasure. Walter was recovering from an attack of coronary thrombosis and had motored up to White River Junction from Ragged Mountain where he and Mrs. Lane are spending the summer.

Walter's Mother passed away June 28 at her Chicago home. She lived to be 95 years old.

On account of his illness, Walter was unable to carry on his practice in Milton, Mass., for months. He and Mrs. Lane went to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for a winter's stay, where he recuperated sufficiently to take the Florida State Board examinations for admission to practice medicine. There is no reciprocity law in Florida. Every doctor desiring to practice in Florida must pass a state board examination. I happen to know that Walter passed a brilliant examination and was only 3/10 of 1% from being the high man who took the examinations.

We sat down on the stone steps of the First National Bank of White River Junction and had a grand visit for 15 or 20 minutes. Later on Mrs. Stevens and I dined with Dr. and Mrs. Lane, at the Ragged Mountain Fish and Game Club, near Potter Place, N. H.

Mclndoe called at my office on September 21st. He and Mrs. Mclndoe were on their way to Hanover to call on Mac's brother at the Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital. His brother was taken seriously ill with pneumonia.

Mac says he is busier than he ever has been since he retired, doing odds and ends, travelling about etc. He says very emphatically that he is going to attend the 45th reunion next June if he is alive. He has not missed a reunion since the 15th.

The April issue of Journal of the Patent Office Society contains an article by John Hayes, entitled "Interpretation of Invention." John seems to be an authority on patent law.

In the October issue of the ALUMNI MAGAZINE reference was made in this column to future communications regarding the Eleazar Wheelock Murals. But space in the current issue is lacking for this.

Secretary, White River Junction, Vt.