"What does it look like to you?" "Dog piss?" "Lamp oil." "Sewage." "Trouble is, our patient here, Mr. Ludd, has probably, at one time or another, drank all those substances." "It needs to thoroughly disgust them." "Wendell, when you next look at this liquid, you will realize that it's not whiskey you've been drinking your whole life, but your mother's feces." "Sometimes this comes a bit too easily to you." "From now on, every bit of alcohol... whiskey, beer, wine... it's made of your mother's waste." "If you drink it, it will make you horribly sick." "You will be nauseated even at the sight." "I will now wake you on the count of three." "One, two... three." "I'm gonna start writing this up." "D.W. Garrison Carr." "That's two Rs in Garrison, two Rs in Carr." "I'm under the care of Dr. Algernon Edwards." "That's one R." "I don't see it here." "Mr. Carr." "Opal." "What are you doing here?" "I'm trying to check in, but it appears they don't have my name." "There must be some confusion." "Were you told that I had gotten approval to perform your surgery here?" "I'm giving you the go-ahead." "This..." "This is not the way I wanted this handled." "I know." "You wanted permission." "Now you have it." "From us." "Are you still awake?" "Yes." "What's so funny?" "Why are you... why are you wearing that?" "Well, I thought to come in fully clothed would be wrong, and then to come in fully unclothed would be too forward, so..." "How would that be too forward?" "I think that's the point." "I'm hoping you'll be forward." " May I?" " Come on." "Oh, God." " Are you nervous?" " Yes." "Yeah, a bit." "Why, do I seem nervous?" "No." "Me, too." "Good." "Good." "Do you know what you're doing?" "I don't know, really." "A little bit." "Do... do you know what you're doing?" "Not a bit." "Ahem, though... my uncle was a furrier who owned a farm and he bred minks and beavers, so I have something to go on." "Like that?" "What?" "You really know how to set the mood." "Just kiss me." "I'm trying." "Give it to me now." "It took three fittings, but it's perfect." "Perfect?" "It's exquisite." "This is French Chantilly with silk floss taffeta." "Do you know how much your Henry must have spent on this?" "I know exactly how much." "He didn't buy it." "I did." "He didn't buy it?" "No." "But he expects it." "And he's gonna get it." "This is only half of what you owe me." "Oh, I've had some unforeseen expenses." "We're all feeling the pinch." "Perhaps there'd be more money if you weren't skimming so much of it to pay for your new apartment." "My firm works with real estate men all over the city." "I have friends." "We talk." "In fact, I was thinking of visiting that building myself to see that dirty little whore and her Chinky-eyed escort you've been bringing by." "That has nothing to do with this building." "Well, if that's true, it shouldn't be a problem for you to tell your board" "I need the rest of my money and my rate is going up by $1 an hour." "Excuse me, Doctor." "My hernia doesn't seem to like this bed too much." "Would it be possible to get something for my discomfort?" "No." " What?" " Have you seen what's in the ward?" "I told you I would talk to the board." "And I appreciate that." "Bringing Carr wasn't my idea." "It was his." "I didn't know." "And you couldn't ask him to leave?" "I could have, but I didn't because... because deep down I knew the board would never allow it." "I knew that asking would just be a waste of time." "And enough time has been wasted already." "Well, congratulations on your victory." "He's the first and likely the last for a very long time." "I have no doubt that the board will make sure of it." "They're happy to treat worthless drug addicts who've tossed away their own lives, but God forbid they commit the sin of treating deserving colored folks." "You have your cause and I have mine." "If you could have been a little more patient," "I might have been able to make this happen legitimately." "Instead, you act like an impetuous child." "You want this man to stay, this is now a fight you fight alone." "I didn't expect it to be any other way." " Is this a provocation?" " No, it's the future." "You think it's here too early and I think it's here too late." "I don't know." "I don't know." "Did we make a mistake going with the hydrangea?" "'Cause the color seems to clash with the tablecloth." "Oh!" "And the salad forks aren't polished correctly." " Look." " It looks fine." "Fine is not what these guests expect." "You of all people know that." "Would you please hand me my purse?" "I have some nerve tonic inside." "Oh, I don't understand how you're so calm." "Because I know that this is going to be the best charity ball of the season." "I need to leave." "I have a final fitting for my dress." " Now?" " I'll come back straight after." "Can I help you, miss?" "You just off that ship?" "No, I came in here to speak to someone." "Are you expected?" "No." "The Corinthian is due tomorrow." "Expected anyways." "It's one of my father's ships." "The Robertson line." "I'm Cornelia Robertson." "Well, Showalter now." "You here on some sort of business?" "I suppose." "Then you're gonna want to be speaking with Lead Inspector Bradley." "I remember when he was just starting out." "Your old dad was hustling a few third hand buckets of bolts." "Helming most of them himself." "Look at him now." "Every time I see a ship marked Robertson Shipping," "I tell my men to treat it right." "Oh, I know he'd be grateful." "The company means everything to us." "Never known a woman to work a company business." "Especially one like you." "My father has a lot of trust in me." "Are you here on a separate matter or our usual deal?" "No, just the usual deal." "No one else was available." "Normally we take care of this at the end of the month, but I can give you what I've got so far." "They're coming in from everywhere these days." "Every month there's more." "But you won't hear anyone bellyaching around here, even if it is more work." "Are these all the passengers?" "Just the ones that would have been sent back." "Oh, and one of my inspectors, he says he got sick from one of the ones that we let through." "Threatened to go to the higher-ups if we didn't give him a bigger cut." "We took care of that." "Oh." "What kind of sick?" "Didn't say." " You didn't ask?" " No." "Any idea which of the passengers got the inspector sick?" "One of the steerage scum or third-classers that we bumped to second-class." "We keep them out of sight and get them off quick here at the docks." "Of course." "Well, anything's better than having them pass through health inspection at Ellis Island." "Yeah, it's smart, paying me to send them through instead of paying to send them back." "Big savings." "You Robertsons are clever." "We certainly are." "We've been working with spacers to create excess skin to cover the separation point." "We need to be meticulous and go slowly, so stemming blood loss is crucial." "The more experienced nurses will be assisting one surgeon each." "Nurse Pell, Dr. Edwards." "Baker, Gallinger." "Nurse Elkins, you'll be with me." "Nurse Shane, as you have the most experience with ether, you'll be assisting Dr. Chickering on keeping both girls anesthetized." "Nurse Ryan and Nurse Kenilworth will be keeping a close count on how much blood each girl has surrendered." "Since we're sure that Zoya and Nika each have their own circulatory system, we may be able to safely transfuse from one to the other depending on their individual condition." "But I say this only as a last resort." "It would be historic." "I'm not looking to make history with their transfusion." "I want to make history with their survival." "Would you want a reporter there to chronicle that history?" "Genevieve asked." "She's welcome to attend." "As the girls are white." "But I was hoping to capture this surgery with something more than just words." "Photographs?" "No, I was thinking of one of those new motion picture cameras." "Has a surgery ever been captured that way before?" "There's always a first." "I believe Henry Robertson has one." "Well, let's ask him for it." "Put the thing to some real use instead of capturing silly street scenes or whatever else he uses it for." "Hey there." "Where are you off to all gussied up?" "Church." "They can throw me out if they want, but they're gonna have to do it to my face." "I'll go with you." "I can fight my own battles." "I don't need you causing rows, picking fights." "Yeah, I'm going with you 'cause I want to punch out a nun." "Figured a good left hook would get right through that habit." "I just thought it'd be nice, you know?" "The show ain't bad." "Some of them homilies is all right." "And I know most of them songs, so I figure why the hell not?" "Because you scorn God at every chance you get." "Ah, in fairness, He scorned me first." "Now, do you want me to go or don't you?" "Okay, then." "But wear something clean and no cussing." "The only thing cleaner than my mouth will be my fucking shirt." "Now go back in your cave unless you want an eyeful." "Can't be here until sunup." "I'll only be a minute." "Relative?" "Patient." "They put that fancy headstone in a few weeks ago." "Don't usually see one that big for a kid." "Maybe it's for the woman she never got to be." "Then she would have been some woman." "That cost 50 bucks at least." "65." "Good morning, girls." "It's time for us to get you ready." "Good morning, Doctor." "Bertie, do me a favor." "Hop up there, would you?" "Sure." " Sturdy." " Good." "Last thing we need are these tables splitting like the Red Sea in the middle of the operation." "Have you been drinking?" "No, no, no." "It's turpentine." "A little gut irritation." "You want to be careful with how much you take of that." "You don't want to start trading your gut problem for a bladder problem caused by the medicine." "Thank you, Doctor." "Well, the girls can begin being prepped." "They already are." "I hope you got some rest 'cause this is gonna be a real test of stamina." "Some." "Did you?" "I'm guessing not." "Are you concerned about the procedure?" "It can wait a few days." "We can always postpone." "No, no, no, no." "I feel excellent, really." "I'll see you in the scrub room in 20 minutes." "Hello." "It's me." "Are you all right?" "No." "They're alive now, both of them." "Not perfect, but well enough." "And they'll be better off when you're through." "Or not." "Abby, this used to be easier." "It was never supposed to be easy." "That's why they needed you." "What do you need?" "I need you to tell me... that I can do this." "Of course you can." "If I hadn't believed in you, I wouldn't even be here." "Gentlemen." "Ladies." "They are Russian." "They are 16 years old." "They have led until this day a life of slavery, exploitation, and humiliation." "They're what we in the medical profession call Omphalopagus twins, joined by a band of cartilage and soft tissue in their midsection." "Through extensive examination," "I have concluded that the only organ they share is the liver." "It is our intention today to separate the girls, leaving each of them enough of the liver so that it can regenerate over time and continue normal function." "This is their last day as a sideshow attraction and you their last audience." "This is no magic trick." "No illusion." "No sleight of hand." "It is scientific knowledge and rigorous experimentation that will finally allow these two young ladies to live the humane life of which fate has so far robbed them." "They're ready." "Nurse Elkins, surgical knife." "In opening up the girls, we discovered a delicate prolongation of liver substance in the connecting band." "At this point, the liver is fully exposed and Dr. Gallinger is placing a clamp on the hepatoduodenal ligament, which greatly decreases the bleeding." "Once the liver was bisected, each team began the delicate task of suturing." "It's difficult to see in this motion film, but I devised a new type of suture based on my research and work with sailing knots." "This new suture, which I named the Gallinger Knot, did an excellent job of joining tissue." "Now, Nika, the girl whom Dr. Edwards and I were working on, developed a problem in her peritoneum which we had to address." "Her abdominal cavity was thoroughly washed of any escaping fluids to avoid shock." "And to help in this, we had to make an opening in the pouch of Douglas." "The entire operation took three and a half hours." "The girls are resting comfortably." "So far Nika has a slight case of postoperative pneumonia which we are monitoring." "This surgery, gentlemen, proves once again how high we can soar on the wings of science and ingenuity." "What is this material?" "Celluloid." "Amazing substance." "Thicker pieces can actually be molded into objects." "I know one fellow who makes jewelry out of it and fools people into thinking it's real ivory." "Hello, Neely." "I have something for you." "For the ball tonight." "Well, can it wait, please?" "No." " How did you..." " Put them on." "I had my man contact the jeweler to whom you sold them in San Francisco and I purchased them back." "I wanted you to have them then, and I want you to have them now." "They're too beautiful for anyone else." "Thank you." "I also had this made as a complement." "Mmm, marvelous." "I always told you I would treat you like a daughter." "And haven't I?" "You've been very kind." "Both you and Mrs. Showalter." "Then what more do you want?" "I don't want anything." "Because I've given you everything and still it's not enough for you." "We had a bargain." "I would bring you back to New York and you would stop your running around." "You swore you would give your full attention to the needs of my son and this family, your family." " And I have." " You've done no such thing." "You've barely attended any of the meetings of the ball committee." "Instead you've been sneaking around like a thief in the night, scurrying like a rat investigating your dead inspector." "You've had someone following me." "And for good reason." "You don't understand what I..." "You should be pregnant!" "Did he threaten you?" " No." " Then what happened?" "I just want to leave this house and never come back." "My father isn't a man you want to upset." "I don't care." "And neither would I." "But you know I think the world of your father and we need to make sure that he is protected." "From what?" "From you." "Excuse me?" "He owes my father an enormous amount of money." "His investment is all that's keeping Robertson Shipping afloat." "He could call your father's note." "Even the rumor of a rift between our families would send the stock plummeting." "Wolves would eat him for breakfast on the exchange." "I..." "I never even thought..." "That's where I have to think for both of us." "If we run from my father and his fortune now, there'll be no fortune of your father's for us to run to, not for very long." "There are a dozen ways the Showalters could ruin the Robertsons and never give it a second thought." "So what do we do?" "What did my father ask of you?" "To make you happy." "Then make me happy." "How does it go up there?" "Can you lose it?" "No, you place it right in there." "Give it a little soak in olive oil first." "What if the fella has some sick on him?" "A disease?" "A rubber's your best chance." "A Goodyear, but they're hard to come by." "People been making good Johnny sheaths out of animal intestines for years." "Just got to find somebody who can make it right." "Oh, pardon me." " I didn't know you was having tea." " We're not." "I'm teaching them how to protect themselves from men." "Well, three swift boot heels to the scrotum, he'd rather be humping a beehive and never come near you again." "What do you use to not get pregnant with him?" "Nothing." "We're just sharing the place for now." "That's it." "Sure." "What's the occasion?" "Oh, there's a big to-do charity ball for the hospital tonight." "Figured there ain't a chance in hell of me and Harry getting invited, so why not have a little hooley of our own right here?" "If that's all right with you, Harry." "I suppose." "Right, I'll get started on these chops, then." "Well, so far I've seen three Phippses, two Gould heirs, Van Rensselaers," "Lina Astor." "We might be the only two working men in this whole room." "Imagine how I feel." "I don't get to wear ball gowns very often in my line of work." "Opal, you look like you were born to wear dresses like that." "I was." "But I'm really here for the entertainment." "They have Williams and Walker performing tonight." "I took Opal to see them and we haven't stopped talking about them since." "We already have tickets for their new show on Broadway." "Oh." "Hmm." "Mm-hmm." "I'm fighting Wingo tooth and nail, but he simply will not yield to reason." "Changes at every turn, slowing the workers to a crawl." "It's been frightfully expensive for all of us." " Fire him." " Agreed." "Of course I expected this might happen, so I've been holding back much of his fee." "Oh, well done, Mr. Barrow." "Shall I give him the boot now?" "You can do it in the morning." "Let Michelangelo have his last dance." " Gentlemen." " Gentlemen." "Victoria." "Hobie, Eunice, I hope you're enjoying our festivities." "It's a lovely evening." "Cornelia, you have outdone yourself." "Yes, you have, my dear." "Your talents are endless." "All of those many meetings you attended certainly have paid off." "Thank you." "Didn't I tell you that being a leading woman of New York society would be rewarding?" "And you were right as usual, Eunice." "Cornelia." "Oh, thank you for your advice, Eunice." "I hope, Father, that with so many immigrants coming in, the new Knick will still have room for the poor in its beds." "We'll still have wards, but now they'll be offset by a majority of patients of real means." "Your father is a businessman, Cornelia, but one with a vulnerable heart." "Let's hope not too vulnerable." "Yours might not be the only vulnerable heart in the family, Captain." "Your plate's got more bones than a graveyard." "Don't say it like that." "I won't have a stomach for the afters." "There's afters?" "Where you gonna put it all?" "I'll make room." "There, now I have a little pouch for some cobbler." "Hey, I was thinking about those ladies you was with today and their needing your knowledge on contraception and all." "There's not a lot out there for women to protect themselves against a horny gent, huh?" "Fellas are always looking to empty the bag in a girl." "Never thinking about what comes after." "Babies and diseases for a start." "And there it is." "Why don't we give it to them?" "Hmm?" "Do 'em a service." "Another business proposition?" "Yeah." "That last one was working fine." "Until I nearly got 20 years in prison." "Yeah, rubbers and stuff is illegal, but it's not like doing the fix." "It's more like frowned upon." "I've been frowned upon enough." "And the penalty's just as tough." "The ladies need it." "The fellas do, too." "If he's gonna put it inside there anyways, we'd be doing a lot of good helping a bloke bag it up on the way in." "And besides, we ain't going back to the fix, so why not stop the trouble before it gets that far?" " It wouldn't be that difficult." " Mm-hmm." "You'd need lamb's guts for the condoms." " Mm-hmm." " Vinegar and sponges for the ladies." "Yeah, could charge a fortune." "This city is full of customers." " Lord knows that's true." " Mmm." "And the split, 50-50 this time or nothing." "Fair play." "Okay." "I can't tell you what seeing you in that dress does to me." "You can tell me." "But you're gonna have to wait to see if you can do anything about it." "If I could, I'd leave here now and take you straight back..." "But you can't." "I'm here to dance and be doted upon." "So I certainly hope you can keep me happy." "Without a doubt." "You can start with a drink." "What would mademoiselle desire?" "You're the expert." "Uh, two Whiskey Flips, please." " Ah." " She's a real beauty." "If you only knew." "Jesus." "Oh, how was Ohio?" "Did you solve your oil problem?" "I might have." "See, we've always refined crude into kerosene and thrown away the waste that we strip down." "It was flammable, so we piped it into rivers and lakes just to be safe." "Well, that's only responsible." "But we needed a new idea and I just thought we could find a use for that waste, too, so I hired some chemists and engineers." "They've converted all the machines at the refinery to run on the stuff." "Not steam?" "Or electricity." "It's miraculous." "We call it gasoline." "You look absolutely stunning." "That dress." "Henry's complimented me 100 times." "It's worth every penny." "Well, my brother can never say no to a pretty girl and you're the prettiest in the room." "Thank you, Cornelia." "Lucy, I want you to have a good time tonight." "I plan to." "I know you're new to all this and you shouldn't be." "You belong here and maybe you even belong with my brother." "But I don't want you to be crushed when this is all over." "And you think there will be an end?" "You know how fond I am of you." "I'm saying this for your own sake." "You're an innocent girl and I don't want you to be taken in by him, for you to surrender anything because you believe there's a future." "Why wouldn't there be?" "For an endless number of reasons." "And I can see you're getting your hopes up." "I think it's Henry whose hopes are quite high right now." "My father has expectations for his children of whom I was to marry and likewise Henry." "I'm sure he does." "Excuse me." "I better like it." "If you don't, I'll get you something different." "Look." "Oh, thank you." "They're all looking at me." "Why wouldn't they?" "You're beautiful." "I'm an oddity." "But I don't care." "I love being on your arm again." "Well, get used to it because there's no place I won't be taking you." "Good evening." "Lovely to see you." " You as well." " My wife Opal." " Pleasure to meet you." " Pleasure to meet you." "Whoop!" " Cheers." " To a lovely evening." "Good evening, everyone." "On behalf of the Knickerbocker Hospital and the ladies' ball committee, we want to thank you all for being here and for giving so generously." "I asked my husband Herman what would make tonight special for all of our guests and he said rye whiskey." "I said that." "Instead, we thought we would start with some entertainment." "And they're famous all over the nation and some of you have seen them at Koster and Bial's Music Hall and they're soon to appear on Broadway in "In Dahomey."" "The original Cakewalkers, the Two Real Coons, Williams and Walker." "That's right, we Two Real Coons." "Ain't be no ivory under here." "This is all dripping chocolate." " Don't you got childrens?" " Sure, I got 'em." "Named all my children after flowers." "There's Lily, Rose, and my son Artificial." " Don't you gots a job?" " Gots a bad one." "But they say the ugliest kinds of trades has their moments of pleasure." "And I believes it." "'Cause if I was a hangman or a gravedigger," "I could get some sure enough enjoyment working for certain folks I know." "Oh..." "Thank you." "Beautiful night." "Lovely." "Are you warm enough, my dear?" "Oh, I believe that last sherry is keeping me quite toasty." "Algie." "What an evening indeed." "It was spectacular." "I am so glad to have you here with us sharing the Knick and these times together." "You know you've always been family to me, Captain." "And I am expecting some little ones from you two very soon." "Now, you've never disappointed me in any other area." "Don't let me down now." "So, Captain, where does Algie stand in regard to the new hospital?" "I just told you how I feel about the boy." "I've championed him every step of the way." "But will he have a prominent position?" "Opal, not the time." "You deserve an answer, Algernon." "Oh, I think our carriage is here." "I'm sure he'll wait for you." "Captain?" "My God." "I am fighting for you, Algie." "Believe me." "Henry and I both are." "So..." "So I may have no position at all at the new hospital?" "What about Negro patients?" "Our people can entertain you and you shower them with platitudes, but in the end you are no different from the rest of them." "Mrs. Edwards, I believe we've heard enough out of you." "My husband is as generous as they come." "Towards some people." "I... am not funding the hospital by myself." "And if you must know," "I don't have the money to fund my own part anymore." "I am reliant on other donors and that's what they want." "I could have done 100 other things with that money, but I wanted to help people." "As far as I can tell, you're not helping anyone at all." "So perhaps you'll understand if I don't want to remain here to endure your disdain any longer." "I am very sorry... that I've disappointed you, son." "I will do everything I can to assure your position." "Victoria." "You ruined my night." "I'm going to do what I can, Jesse." "I expect you will." "The only lion I is a-taming is the dandelion." "You have another profession if you ever get tired of medicine." "We should get tickets for the play." "Would you like that?" "I would." "Very much." "Here we are." "Together again." "Are you surprised?" "Not a bit." "Well, that's because nothing surprises you." "Because I've never loved anyone but you." "There is something about Abigail Healey that has completely enchanted me from the very first moment I saw you." "Well, I certainly hope it wasn't my nose." "Is there anything more you could do to it?" "Like what?" "Well, straighten it." "Or fix the ragged edge right here." "Still bothers you that much?" "I'd like to think I was bigger than that, but being at the ball and seeing all those beautiful women..." "Even with all your compliments, I still just... don't feel right." "I know I shouldn't complain." " It's so much better than it was." " No, no, no, I understand." "I'll look into it." "I'm sure I can do something." "But I have to say," "I like this one just fine." "Wait." "Wait, wait, wait." "What's wrong?" "Am I hurting you?" "You want me to be more gentle?" "Now we can really fuck." "Lie back and I'll show you what I like." "Isn't that better?" "Thank you, Mr. Fester." "Mr. Wingo, this will serve as your letter of termination, but it will also serve as insurance." "For what?" "I know how your type thinks." "You want to look for opportunity for petty revenge." "An anonymous letter, a word to the hospital board about the way I've conducted my business dealings." "I think you now have a good idea of the price you'll pay for any and all indiscretions." "Today you're only swallowing a few teeth, tomorrow it could be much worse." "Fuck you." "You want to try that again?" "I understand." "Very good." "What makes this procedure different from all others?" "This is the last place I expected to see you today." "Seems I missed one minstrel show at the ball." "Couldn't pass up the opportunity to see another." "Now that I've made the transverse elliptical incision around the hernia and the umbilicus," "I will now deepen it to the base of the hernia intrusion." "Nurse Ryan, suction wand." "I now need to clear the muscles attached to the aponeurotic membrane by a half an inch in all directions from the hernial sac." "These muscles tend to be quite rigid, so to alleviate that, I'll inject them with a solution of 2% curare as a relaxant." "Syringe." "I will now divide the fibrous and peritoneal membranes using a circular manner at the neck." "This will expose his contents and allow me to see if there's any intestinal viscera present." "Dr. Edwards, his breathing is rapid and shallow." "Check his airway." "Is it anaphylaxis?" "No, it's clear." "No redness or swelling anywhere that I can see." "No palpitations." "It's not a reaction to an allergen." "He stopped breathing." "Let me think this through." "It's his heart." "Has he had a problem with it before?" " No, nothing." " There's a weak pulse." "No breathing." "Don't do a thing." "Look at his muscles." "They've gone limp." "He's urinated himself, unable to hold his bladder." "He's paralyzed." "The curare?" "It's a paralytic." "No, I only gave him a small dose." "The same amount I always give." "Well, most obviously not." "You must have mistakenly given the wrong dose, rendering nearly every muscle in his body completely useless." "More specifically, his diaphragm." "No, it couldn't be." "It's the only thing that would account for the symptoms." "If his heart can keep up this weak beat, he should be fine once the curare wears off." "Just have to breathe for him until then." "The good knight Gallinger rides to the rescue." "You should continue on with your hernia work." "I'll keep him alive while you do." "How the hell could it go so wrong... so fast?" "Gallinger of all people." "The white knight to the rescue." "The reporters loved it." "Ah!" "It's a disaster." "We set out trying to prove one point and we wound up proving the opposite." "It's all right, my darling." "We're going to have better days." "A lot of better days."