But today there was new evidence. A villager had filched an Earth
_Medical Journal_ from the tractor driven by Chris Ryan and forwarded it
to him. He found the black specks mentioned in a single paragraph, under
skin diseases. Investigation of the diet was being made, since all cases
were among people eating synthetics.
There was another article on aberrant cases--a few strange little
misbehaviors in classical syndromes. He studied that, wondering. It had
to be the same thing. Diet didn't account for the fact that the specks
appeared only when the patient was near death.
Nor did it account for the hard lump at the base of the neck which he
found in every case he could check. That might be coincidence, but he
doubted it.
Whatever it was, it aggravated any other disease the patient had and
made seemingly simple diseases turn out to be completely and rapidly
fatal. Once syphilis had been called "The Great Imitator". This gave
promise of being worse.
He shook his head, cursing his lack of equipment. Each month more people
were dying with these specks--and he was helpless.
The concealed door broke open suddenly and a boy thrust his head in.
"Doc, there's a man here from Einstein. Says his wife's dying."
The man was already coming into the room.
"She's powerful sick, Doc. Had a bellyache, fever, began throwing up.
Pains under her belly, like she's had before.
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