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stunned, I had to admit that Peaslee’s proposal was intriguing, but frankly I was already serving a client base that was nearing my capacity; to take on another hundred or so patients would strain both my own sensibilities and the quality of care I could maintain. Peaslee took this in stride, and suggested that with minor changes, the addition of a second but not yet established physician, as well as a full-time nurse receptionist, for example, would result in a practice that could increase its client load, while maintaining quality. I agreed that such an arrangement could work, but that I knew of no such prospective candidates. Peaslee nodded politely, and inquired if I was free the next evening. As I was, he quickly invited me back for dinner the next night.
    That next evening, after an excellently prepared ham, Nathaniel and Alice Peaslee formally introduced me to their other dinner guests, Francis Paul Wilson and his new bride Mary, Alice’s younger sister. Francis had just finished his residency at St. Mary’s Hospital where he had met Mary, a junior ward nurse. Nathaniel proposed a trial partnership. Wilson and I would work together for the next month; if we were compatible, I would give my existing part-time assistant notice and Mary would become our receptionist and assistant. During the trial period, the two would live in the Peaslees’ carriage house apartment so both would be readily available.
    I gladly agreed to the arrangement, with but one reservation. I have always had a keen memory, and as a student in Peaslee’s class I had learned that it is a rare person indeed who does something for nothing. What, I asked, was Pr. Peaslee getting out of this arrangement? Peaslee congratulated me on my astuteness and confirmed that there was a charge for his services. In return for directing patients towards our practice, Pr. Peaslee and his wife would never be charged for any services provided by either Wilson or myself. This arrangement would extend to the three children as well, but only to the age of their majority. I quickly weighed the financial factors and, finding the arrangement mutually beneficial, I agreed to Peaslee’s terms.
    Over the next two weeks it became apparent that Wilson and I were a good combination, both in work ethic and style. He was punctual and diligent, clean and careful, thorough, efficient and conscientious. Had it not been for the secret laboratory hidden in the basement beneath my offices I would have had no concerns about Dr. Wilson whatsoever. When, after ten days, it became obvious that the practice of Hartwell and Wilson was inevitable, I knew precautions had to be taken. Once again I used my carpentry skills to full advantage, making sure that the basement itself appeared completely normal, and that the entrance to the sub-basement was completely hidden.
    The practice of Doctors Hartwell and Wilson officially began in June of 1906 with a client list that consisted of the cream of the academic community, including Henry Armitage, Laban Shrewsbury, and a score of others. By the spring of 1907 it became clear that we had taken all the patients that we could handle and resigned ourselves to success. Wilson and his young wife moved out of the carriage house and into a small cottage just down the street. In time we became so busy that even Mary could no longer find the time to prepare meals and we had no choice but to take our evening meals with the Peaslees and then finally even had to have our lunches walked over as well. Suddenly, in the course of two years I went from being a man consumed by revenge and doubt, to a happy and successful physician surrounded by an improvised family. Were it not for my secret laboratory, my life would have achieved a complete state of normalcy.
    My time in the lab working with my rats had dwindled to a few hours each night, consisting primarily of their feeding and upkeep, with very little time for experimentation. My efforts were not completely