Chapters 16, 17 and 18 Summary

By the time Martin has practiced medicine in Wheatsylvania for a year he has a good reputation and he and Leora have settled into a comfortable domestic routine. Some of the people in town believe that Martin drinks too much but he redeems himself one day when he saves a choking baby. On his way to go fishing, Martin sees a woman running from her house and screaming that her baby is choking on a thimble. Using only a knife at the woman's home, Martin performs emergency surgery and saves the child's life.

News of Martins' success with the choking child spreads for miles around and Martin becomes a heroic figure in the area. Martin and Leora are now able to move out of Leora's parents' home into a cottage of their own. Martin joins several notable organizations in the town...