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“…stayed with him.”
As evidenced by the fact that Sims made the episode—which he did not witness himself—a central part of his own autobiography. The descriptions of Sims’s motives here are surmised from the facts of his life at this time.
“…nor markedly capable with words…”
I have left this as Sims describes it, but this is characteristic duplicity on Sims’s part. Sims was, in fact, a competent, even wordy, stylist. His autobiography later goes out of its way to indicate that his abilities as a writer are a total surprise to him. This is one of the many ways in which Sims has disguised the fact that the romantic narrative of his career was erected atop a scaffold of clever literary technique. In fact, he was at least as good at telling fanciful stories—to put it kindly—as he was at medicine.
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 218.
“…Sims crafted a letter…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 179.
“A torturous month…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 179.
“They walked home together…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, pp. 179-80.
“…and said goodbye…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 180.
“…he settled on a cigar…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 180.
“…he felt sympathy…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 181.
“…Theresa was venal…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 181.
“…tall North Carolinians…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 181.
“Sims defied his fears…”
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 182.