Secretary Cortelyou insisted that the truth should be made public by the doctors and the bulletins themselves were telling their unfortunate story all too plainly. There was still hope that the worn and weary patient would be better in the morning, and at midnight Secretary Cortelyou said it was not probable that another bulletin would be issued until morning.
Hope came once more to the breasts of those who had waited for hours in anxiety. The physicians parted for the night and every sign was a cheering one. There had been disquieting pulse action for several hours, but practically all of the unfavorable symptoms had been linked with the stomach trouble, and it was thought they would probably disappear with the removal of the cause which was supposed to have created them.
The unofficial reports at one o’clock and 1:30 o’clock were both of a satisfactory nature and the watchers gathered about the house prepared for an uninterrupted night.
Another thunderstorm came out of the north and a few minutes’ play of the lightning brought rain in a heavy downpour. A bluster wind blew up from the west to complete the cheerlessness of the night.
Shortly after two o’clock the physicians and nurses detected a weakening of the heart action. The pulse fluttered and weakened and the President sank toward collapse. The end appeared to be at hand.
Restoratives were speedily applied and the physicians fought the battle with all the reserve forces of science. Action was immediate and decisive. Digitalis and strychnia were administered, and as a last resort saline solution was injected into the veins.
A general alarm went speeding to the consulting physicians and trained nurses as fast as messengers, the telegraph and telephone could carry it.
The restoratives did not at once prove effective and it was realized that the President was in an extremely critical condition.
That realization, with the shadow of death behind it, led to another call, and that a summons to the Cabinet, relatives and close personal friends of the President.
The messengers who returned with the doctors and nurses were hurried off after those within reach, and to those who were absent from the city telegrams conveying the painful tidings were quickly transmitted.