The doctor had for some years been obsessed with an idea that he could make an elixir of eternal life, and at some point in the recent past he had started to neglect his patients, so that he had very few new patients, so there was not much money in the house, and times were hard.

"This volume presents a complete collection of Bertrand Russell's stories, both published and unpublished, fictional and factual. . .With the elegance and lucidity of style which won him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950, this volume gives a sparkling demonstration of Russell's humanity, his sense of fun, and his delighted perception of absurdity." /