Хэммонд Иннес - Nothing to Lose [= Campbell’s Kingdom]

As you’ve probably guessed already, the miracle did happen. Doctor Graham was right. The X-ray pictures showed no trace of what had threatened me. How it happened nobody seems to know. I can only quote the letter I received from Doctor Maclean-Hervey.

Dear Mr. Wetheral : Doctor Graham has sent me full details of your case, together with the X-ray photographs he has had taken. I can only say that I entirely agree with his view that you are completely cured and have no need to worry for the future.

You must be wondering now whether I was correct in my original diagnosis. For your benefit, I am sending Doctor Graham copies of the X rays taken at the London Hospital, together with a copy of the case notes I made at the time. You might like to frame one of the pictures side by side with Graham’s X ray as a reminder that you have confounded the experts! I need hardly add that I am delighted that you have.

Doctor Graham will doubtless have told you that occasionally canes of spontaneous cure do occur. The causes are not known and the instances are few. In your case I am inclined to the view that it may be largely psychological. You underwent a sudden and complete change of environment, coupled with the acquisition of an intense interest — or, since I understand you have recently got married, I should perhaps say interests. This, together with the fact that you become involved in a struggle outside yourself, may well have given you an overwhelming interest in living which you had not before. All this is not strictly within orthodox medicine, but in a case of this sort it is necessary to look beyond the laboratory and the operating theater. It is perhaps nearer to the miracle than to medicine.

Finally, may I say how happy I am to be able to record in this instance a complete reversal of my expectations, ft is cases like yours that place our medical achievements to date in their proper perspective and give to the profession that desire to go on searching diligently for the cure of this unknown disease, I wish you every success and if ever you come to England I hope you will come and see me.

Yours sincerely,

On the wall behind me is a big frame, a sort of montage of pictures and documents. There are the X-ray photographs, before and after, Maclean-Hervey’s letter, a picture of Campbell No. 2 before it blew in, a photograph of the dam, the original of my grandfather’s will and the document signed by Roger Fergus returning to me the mineral rights of Campbell’s Kingdom. There in that frame is the whole story of the last six months. Now I have put it down on paper. What the future has in store, I do not know. What does it matter? The great thing is to have a future. We will begin drilling operations up in the Kingdom as soon as the snows melt. Maybe I’ll end up a millionaire. But all the money in the world cannot buy what I have now.