Health and Wellness – A Challenge for Old Doc

After the work at the saloon the old doc heads back to his small office. All the way on the outskirts of the town. He’s already tired, and it isn’t even lunchtime yet. Therefore, the walk is cumbersome. He can tell by the humidity that it will get hotter than damnit today. Of course it would. It was the middle of July. Furthermore, he had to take a trip out to the Ellis ranch now. That meant all afternoon in the hot sun, on a dusty trail.

With this in mind he stops by the livery stable to have his horse and carriage readied. He would be back after he got his medical bag from his small office. This was too important to put off. The cowpoke in the saloon was very ill. However it wasn’t from ingesting any spirits. Or any of that rock gut whiskey served in the saloon. This was something entirely new and the old doc was worried.

Health and Wellness – A Challenge for Old Doc

Furthermore, he did the only thing he could do with the bloodletting procedure. Even though it sometimes didn’t help, the old doc had to do something. Additionally he asked Sam, the bartender at the saloon, to pour the cowpoke several shots of whiskey. Obviously the cowpoke was dry from all his time on the trail. It was after the third shot, when the old doc learned about the trouble at the Ellis ranch.

It seemed the cowpoke was just one of the ranch hands suffering from the mysterious ailment. Apparently many of the cowpokes returned from the cattle drive in a bad way. The old doc scowls as he trudges back up the street to his office. He’s heard tell of this kind of thing before. Back when he was just an apprentice. It wasn’t good then, and it wouldn’t be now either. In fact, it could be downright bad.

When he reaches his office he begins adding things to his medical bag. Mostly salves and ointments. He had a few pharmaceuticals. However those were rare and he only packed a few. As he finishes stocking his bag, he makes another decision. He would need to stop at the telegram office and send out a message. He had a friend who doctored in the capitol city, of this state. If anyone could recognize what might be happening here, it would be his old friend.

Sizable Challenge

The livery stable has his mount and carriage ready when he returns. By this time it was past lunchtime. The old doc packed a few things for the trip out to the ranch. Therefore he would eat on the way. The more he thought about what he suspected, the more worried he felt. The trip to the Ellis ranch would reveal more. He needed to know sooner rather than later. Many lives might hang in the balance of what he would learn at the ranch.

There were no commercials interrupting this particular story from the past. In fact, this story originates here. Yet. There are many old westerns with many old docs. They had limited knowledge in those days. There wasn’t much history to draw knowledge from. This is evidenced by the fact that bloodletting was still a widely used practice. In those days. There were other strange and perilous practices used in those times.

Similarly, any knowledge of the human body and the ailments of the day, were mysterious and incomplete. In comparison to today’s technology, and accumulated knowledge, those days were akin to the dark ages. The old doc hardly knows what he is traveling towards. He suspects but it doesn’t mean he will have any certainty. His best hope at that time is a chance to compare notes. With anyone he might find. Especially his old friend in the capitol city.

Health and Wellness

This system of the day meant his old friend might get the message by the end of the week. Then, by the end of the following week, there might be a message for old doc. He mounts the carriage and snaps the reins. They are off and moving quick. The day is humid and hot and the Ellis ranch waits in the distance.

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