by Thomas Emmon Pisano

Created on: June 19, 2009   Last Updated: August 21, 2009

The Hot Rains of Sumatra

I

The H.M.S. Dolphin

It was a cold and foggy morning that January 23, 1869 as I stood outside the Naval Hospital and Infirmary in Liverpool, England. I was one of twenty such reporters who had come from all over England to get a story from Captain Jonathan Teague. The nip in the air had not discouraged these seasoned newsmen from waiting to get their 'scoops.' There was a muffled whisper in the air as men huddled together and discussed the possibilities which lay ahead for each of them. I kept to myself and avoided conversations with my fellow newsmen.

Sharply at nine, the line began to move up the steps and into the front door of the hospital. A sea of umbrellas began to disappear inside the tall white marble building.

As I got to the double doors, I noticed that we had come into a great waiting room that was occupied by a desk with a crisp white nurse taking names and writing on a clipboard. Eventually, we were all situated and logged in according to our place in the line that had come through the double doors. I then realized that the process was going to take a few days because the patient was too weak to see too many visitors all at once, which meant that some of us would have to come back tomorrow. I then proceeded to relax and read the local Liverpool newspaper and sip the hot tea the nurses had provided for the news people who were waiting.

At noon we were told to come back tomorrow and resume our interviewing.

With my name on the list and my hat in the ring, so to speak, I felt confident I would eventually get an audience with Captain Teague. I was a newspaper man by trade, had been now for ten years and my nose for news alerted me to a hot story.

The morning of the 24th, I stopped at the hotel restaurant for breakfast before proceeding to the naval hospital. When I arrived at ten, there were no reporters present.

I went to the nurse, "Where is everyone - where did they go?"

"Captain Teague took a bad turn in the night and could not have visitors this morning; he seems fine at the moment and has been eating his breakfast. Would you like to have a small visit with him for only a few minutes?" The very starched nurse explained. Then she rose and led me down the hall to the Captains private room.

A nurse was sitting with him in the corner. He was sitting up a tray in front of him, eating eggs

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