Chapter Two: All Was Not Right Summary and Analysis

Monday, August 19. Two doctors were called on to try to save thirty-three-year-old Catherine LeMaigre, who was very ill and fading rapidly. The woman's condition continued to worsen. She spewed black vomit and her skin turned a pale yellow. The doctors called in Dr. Benjamin Rush, who had studied with America's foremost doctor, John Redman. The three doctors discussed the patient's condition, Rush noting that there had recently been an unusual number of patients with the same symptoms—chills, headaches and muscle pains, followed by a high fever and constipation. The fever would subside for a short period then shoot back up again. As the fever destroyed red blood sells, the skin would turn yellow. As intestines began to fail, the patients would vomit blood that had turned black. Depression and...