Boy's Cinema (1939-40)

6 1 The boy had stavted to descend the stalis from llie hall, htit had stopiji d -hot at sifiht of his cousin. Ho liadn't any use for s'i.'l kids, as ho expressed it, and Imogene he particularly disliked. "Okay," ho rosiionded without any en- thusiasm whatever. "How are jou';" "Stephen!" A^irginia hfckonod imperi- ously. "Come over and say hallo to Imogene." Steve approached ihc chostorfield with Marked reluctance. "Hallo!" "Hallo!" Imogene put oiU ln'r longuo at liim and turned fco her parem. "Daddy, lei's go to the movies," she said. "No!" "Virginia intervened. "Why don't you children run upstairs and play in the games room?" she suggested. "I don't wanna play," rebelled Steve. • "Do as I say !" "Aw. all right. Come on, kid, I'll show you my stamp collection." Boy and girl went off together. Foster made himself comfortable in an easy-chair and lit a cigar. "Well, sis," he said in his deep, booming voice, "there's one thing about Steve, he's a hard worker. Biit he sure is a dreamer. I'll always think he was wrong turning down that offer for his explosive formula." "That's what I've been telling him right along," complained Virginia. The words were barely out of her moutli when .Jim Mayton dived excitedly into the room from tlie hall, crying: "Mrs. Garfield, we've finally hit it'." "Really?" Virginia leapt to her feet, the discontent of months chased magically from her features. "Yes," .Tim assured her. if you 11 come dcwnstairs we'll show it to you." She and George Foster hastened with him to the laboratory, but nothing wonderful was apparent there. On the contrary, Stephen was crouched over a bench and making notes upon a pad with quite a grim expression on' his face. . „ , , , " Stephen, you really have it ? she asked. "Well, there it is," he replied with extr.-i- ordinai-y calm, and he pointed with his pencil to a flask on the burette stand—a flask less than half full of a grjeenish-brown fluid. She ran round tho benrh to look at it, and her brother looked over her shoiddcr. " Congratidations I" he boomed. "Not yet, George." Stephen shook his head. "Wc still have to make tests on guinea- pigs." Virginia's smile faded. "You moan you're not sure yet? she asked bleakly. ,• , » t "Of course I am, he replied, so far as iheory is concerned. But I have to make I xhaustivc tests." She recovpred a measure of her former • .lation. "How long will it take?" "Oh, three or four days" he told her. 'Then I'll have to make arrangements with Dr. Morley, at the hospital, to try it out on :i, burned patient." He waved tho pencil. "And now, if vou'll excuse us, we've got work to do, and I'll be up ^^•itll yon m a very litile while." BBEAKINQ-POINT ONE morning, nearly a fortnight after that eventful evening, Dr. Augustus Morley, superintendent of tho Central Hospital in New York City, was.in his office off the main hall of the enormous building, conversing witli two white-clothed surgeons. I-|c himself had been a brilliant surgeon in his day, but ho was fifty-eight and ho no longer took any active part in operations. Hilt ho had interested himself in Stephen's i;xperiments, and there was a patient in tho hospital lying at death's door through toxaemia resulting from terrililo biu-ns. " Yes, yes, I know it's a radical departure," he said in response to an objection on the part of Dr. Mather, a tall, lean, and thin- faced man who looked a typical surgeon, "but Dr. Garfield is a fully qualified M.D. as well •IS a (-hemist, and he lins made every con- Kebruary 24th, 194IK out'a uiNiMViA celvable tost—except on a human being. Now, gentlemen, what do you think?",, _ Stephen, who had been notified of the case and of the possibility of his preparation being used, stepped into the supdrintendent's ante- room and greeted a girl secretary, dressed like a nurse, who was at a ilesk in it. "Dr. Morley's busy." the girl informed him, "but he's expecting j-ou. WoiTi yoii. please sit down?" "Thank you." Ho sank into .a chair and nurscil his liat upon his knees, feeling almost, as nervous as he had done in the old days when he had been a student under Morley. Behind tho closed door at which he glanced from time to time the three men wore discuss- ing tlie possibilities of tlie patient's recovery. "I'm afraid he hasn't much of a chance," said Mather. "Not much of a chance?" repeated Morley. "Then let's try this stuff of Garfield's. It might help him." Mather looked at his colleague, a younger man than himself, whoso name was Lewis, and Lewis inclined his head. Morley stroked his pointed lieard and waited, and presently blather shrugged acquiescence, A dictograph buzzed on tho secretary's desk and she spoke into the instrument. "Yes, sir, ho has," she said, and looked across at Stephen. "Will you go in now, doctor?" Stephen entered the inner room, and Dr. Morley shook hands with him and introduced him to the two surgeons. "We've deciilod to use your specific on a patient," Morley told liini. "Have \ou brought it with you?" "Yes, 1 have it right here." Stephen pro- duced a small phial of the greenish-brown fluid from a box he took from his coat pocket. " How largo an injection would you advise in a very severe case?" asked tho super- intendent, holding the phial up to tho light. "Two c.c.'s," Stephen replied, "and repeat at an interval of two hours." "Two." The superintendent moved towards the door, followed by the two sur- geons. " VVell, if you care to come back in about an hour we'll let you know what effect it has on the patient." " I'd rather wait, if yoii don't mind." " Oh, that's all right—make yourself at home," Tho three went out and crossed the main hall to a lift, in which they were conveyed to the fifth floor of the building, and on that floor they entered a ward where an elderly man was lying luiconscious in a bed, his lower limbs under a cradle. The superintendent handed the phial to a nurse. "Two c.e.'.s," he said briskly, "Hypo- dermic." While tho nurse was filling a hypodermic syringe with tho fluid ho and the surgeons gathered round tho unconscious sufferer, and Morley took his temperature, which was sub- normal, his pulse and respiration, and thon applied a stethoscope to his chest. "I don't like this at all," he said after a while! "His heart's very weak—pulse rapid— thready " Ho took the .stethoscope from his cars and Mather used his own stethoscope. "Can't make matters any worse," was his decision. "No." Dr. Morley received tho syringe from the nurse, tho patient's left arm was painted with iodine above tho elbow, and the fluid was injected. Downstairs, Stephen prowled restlessly about tho superintendent's office for what .seemed an eternity, then wont out into tho anteroom. "Mind if I smoke?" he said to the girl at tho desk there, "No, not at all," sho replied. Ho dropped into tho chair ho had occu- pied before and ho lit a cigarette. His nerves were on edge, and his face showed it. "It's like waiting for the stork, isn't it?" suggested tho girl sympathetically. "I think it's worse," ho growled. Up in tho ward on the fifth floor. Dr. Mather put away his stetho.scope. "There was an element of shock when it hit the heart," he said. " Very definite .shock." r^very i uesaay "You'd better slay with the patient," saftj Dr. ^Morlej-. "If there aro any serious varia^ lions in tlic heartbeat notify ino at once. I'U bo up in liiuo to give him the next injection," Howcnt out and descended to his oflice, an4 Stephen was on his feet the moment the dooi of tho antc-rooni was opened. "Well, doctor?" he asked hoarsely, "We tried it out on about the worst cardiac condition I've, encountered for some time,'* Dr, Morley told him. "When wo gave hini the injection there was an element of shocl< at first that, disturbed us, but it lasted only a second. We'll watch tho case verj- carefully, and we'll keep you advised." j "I'll bo very anxious to hear from you."- Stephen clasped the hand that was offered. "Good-bye, doctor." Soon after seven o'clock in tho evening George Foster arrived at tho house iii Athorton Avinnio with his wife and daughter, all three of them crowded into a small two- seater, Virginia had told her brother aboui the ease at tnc General Hospital, an<l jo was eager to know the effect of Stephen's formula. Little Steve and Imogene were sent off to a cinema; Stephen wandered from the drawing- room to the laboratory and back again, imablo to settle anywhere between telephone calls from the hospital. Mrs. Foster, a plump and colourless sort of woman, sat and chattered to Virginia. George Foster was a fairly successful com- pany promoter, and at nine o'clock, after Jim JMayton had goiio home and Stephen had .sunk into an easy-chair, ho broaclied tho real object of his visit,_ "Steve," he said abruptl3', "have you thought about marketing this now medicine you've developed?" "No," Steplieii replied, "I think there'.? money in it if it's handled properly," "Of course there is 1" declared Virginia emphatically. "If it's properly handled." Foster stood upon the hearthrug with his hands behind his back and his feet wide apart. "What I mean to say is this—Steve needs a man of sound business experience to back up his skill as a chemist. Let's get together and do something about it." "Maybe wo can," conceded Stephen. "Let's form a company to market tho stuff. I could take care of all the business details, and that'd leave you free to fiddle about in the lab., working out new things." "I think it's a marvellous idea!" cried Virginia. "That way," said Helen Foster, "we'd keep all the money right in the family." Stephen raised a. hand and dropped it again. "Don't yon think we're a little ahead of ourselves?" ho asked, "After all, it'll bo several days before wo know how tho tost comes out." "Aren't you being just a triflo over- pessimi.stic?" countered his brother-in-law. "Of course yon are, Stove," said Virginia, " You know Dr. Morley simply raved over tho results. Three times he's called from the hospital, and everything's going fine!" " Maybe Steve isn't interested in George's idea?" Helen Foster put in, with a glance of admiration for her massive spouse. "Of course I'm interested," said Stephen, "But I want a little time to think it over. Don't think I want to change the conversation, but I'm a little hungry. How about getting something to eat?" "That's a swell idea," boomed Foster. "We'll just about finish by the time the kids get back from tho movies. How about it, sis?" Virginia nodded and rose and Helen wont with her to tho kitchen. Foster looked down at his brooding brother-in-law. "Seriously, Steve," ho said, "I think you should give this idea of mine a little considera- tion." The telephone bell rang, and Stephen bounded to his feet. "Excuse me, George." He dived across to a bureau on which the telephone stood, "Hallo!" ho said. "Yes, this is Dr, Garfield." Dr. Augustus Morley was on the ether end