Frictional Electricity

FRICTIONAL ELECTRICITY
By Max Adeler
Reprinted by permission of the author, Charles Heber Clark
From The Saturday Evening Post.
I happened to visit the accident ward of St. Paracelsus' Hospital because a friend of mine who is interested in the Flower Mission asked me to stop there during my afternoon walk and give a few flowers to the sufferers.
When I had arranged the last half-dozen of the roses in a vase upon the little stand by the bedside of one bruised and battered patient, he looked at me gratefully, and said:
Oh, thank you, sir! And would you mind, sir, stopping for a bit of talk? I'm so lonely and miserable.
I sat upon the chair by the bed and with my hand smoothed the counterpane, while the patient asked me:
Do I really look like a burglar, sir, do you think?
I hesitated to reply as I examined his face. It was really covered with bandages, but his nose seemed swollen and there were bruises about both eyes.
I don't wonder you don't like to speak your mind when you see me here a broken wreck, smashed all up and not looking a bit like myself, sir. But if you would see me well and strong and all fixed up for going to church you'd say right off that I don't favor no burglar in looks.
I asked the unfortunate man his name.