but by then, the flow had been stopped. An Orderly, with. Type 0 blood, was kept in an adjoining room for four days and. nights, awaiting to give a trans‑
fusion whenever the time seemed right.
Well, Ike weathered this storm—this third major operation. And still kept his chin up and good cheer.
He was discharged from the Veterans Hospital–a marvelous institution, with the best doctors, finest nurses and while and colored attendants that we could possibly wish for — on Oct. 11th, 1946.
He came home Oct. 11th, and stayed around here until Jan 3rd; just three weeks ago, whet he returned to the University hopeful of an uninterrupted period of study—taking up Business Administration course of 4 years, with the idea of coming back to Rockingham and helping me with the Post Dispatch—and eventually running it after I play -out.
But this was not to be.
Previous to returning to Chapel Hill Jan. 3rd, he spent November and December here nd there—and took up flying, under tutelage of Lieut. Baxter Slaughter, his brother-in-law, and Foy Barwick, and soloed and secured his pilot’s license. He in December made solo flights to New Bern, Charlotte and Chapel Hill—and the week before Christmas flew to Fayetteville, and went out to this same Veterans Hospital to pay a pop call upon Dr. Huth, and the other doctors, nurses and Attendants — a n d especially Miss Rachel Austin, one of the nurses who was so kind and helpful to him in his operations
Little did he think then that n three weeks he would be back as a patient.
He had got settled in his college work, when on Jan. 9th he began, running a temperature; he thought it might be a touch of flu, ahd on Jan. 10th went to ‘the University Infirmary. The next day, Saturday, Jan. 11th, at 4:15 p. m. Doctors Morgan and Hedgepeth phoned me that Ike was in the Infirmary with a high fever and a pain in his side. I told them to rush him immediately in an ambulance to the Veterans Hospital at Fayetteville. I liked — and like, that institution; it is a great place, 100% efficient. I am even now perfectly satisfied with everything they did for him.
Well, the ambulance got him to the VA at Fayetteville early Saturday night. I drove there next day, Sunday, and was greeted by him with “what you doing here? I’m not sick.” (Always the same old boy, minimizing any of his own troubles).
By Sunday he was quite yellow, showing Jaundice. The doctors said this could be clear‑
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