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The Chronicles of Oklahoma
Volume XX
June, 1942
Number 2
L.EROY LONG, M. D.
LEROY LONG—TEACHER OF MEDICINE
By Basil A. Hayes
Chapter I
Sometimes a dream is born deep in the recesses of a boy's
mind, transfixing his life and causing all subsequent actions to be
unconsciously built around it. The roots of this dream may go
back to an ambitious ancestor whose life plans have been thwarted
and who passes his ambitions on to a bright and energetic youngster; sometimes they arise out of the hopes and aspirations of a
patient and gentle mother; sometimes they begin as a vague and
youthful admiration for a national hero; while at other times the
dream is simply the flowering of a character which has been developed upon an intense desire to serve his fellow man. Whatever
be its origin, if it is a true inspiration, it holds the boy's attention
and he watches, fascinated by its brilliance as day by day it develops in his mind until he is like a wanderer in a strange country
gazing upon a star twinkling and glowing in a beautiful sky. At
times it may be temporarily obscured by clouds or murky atmosphere but when these pass, it ever returns to charm him with its
serene and constant light. As he grows older his vision improves,
and he seems to apprehend its image clearer and clearer; and in
spite of himself, he begins to prepare to fit into the universe which
is revealed by the light which it shines about him. In this way he
becomes more and more attuned to the inspiration which is peculiarly his until inevitably there comes a day when opportunity unfolds, and he becomes a man of action instead of one of dreams.
Such a boy was Lelioy Long. In the days when this nation
was first beginning to wake up, stretch its arms, and recognize its
own strength, his grandfather was a husky young farmer living in
Maryland. This was already an old and settled community, and land
hungry pioneers were beginning to turn westward and southward
in the search for less crowded territories where virgin acres were
to be had for the asking. Indians were being pushed back into the
interior and everyone knew that there were more and better lands
to the south and the lure of the open road was ever strong. So one
day the farmer packed his belongings and began to travel away
from the coast and into the interior. He kept going until he finally
landed in a fertile valley of North Carolina, where he found a land
which pleased him because it possessed the qualities and attributes
for which he had been searching. Here he settled, halfway between
