Dr. Dodge's Castle

Work Settled Patients' Bills

Men Who Owed Money to Clinton Doctor Built His Office Building

Journal Special Correspondence Clinton, Wis. - Dr. Charles H. Dodge sat down at his desk to look over the unpaid bills owed him by his patients. There was quite a sheaf of them.

That was six years ago and the doctor was getting awfully tired of paying rent. It would be nice, he thought ruefully, if he could swap them for a new office building of his own.

So he did just that. First he made a list of the men owing him money, putting the occupation of each man after his name. When he had finished he found that his list included carpenters, stone masons, electricians, truck drivers, bricklayers, common laborers-all the help he needed

No One Said No He grew more excited. This was going to be better than cordwood, or sides of beef, or embarrassed promises from his friends who wanted to pay but just didn't have the money. When he asked his patients in this little Rock county village if they would like to work out their debts-"Not one person turned me down," says Dr. Dodge. "That's blamed good."

Soon he had a crew of 15 to 20 men working on his lot on Main st. While they were still digging the basement, Dr. Dodge was putting the final touches on the cardboard model of the turreted building he planned. Carpenters came, and bricklayers, as the structure took form. Somehow or other the list provided a man for every specialized terrazzo floor in the reception room. Then an expert had to be imported.

Again it looked as though he would be stumped when it came to moving a three ton rock that was to be the front step. But there was a railroad man on the list. And the railroad had heavy jacks which could be borrowed.

Paid in Canceled Bills When each man had completed his stint, the doctor handed him a canceled bill, his own. The men may not have worked union hours, but their pay was far above the normal rate then. "Most of the debts were contracted when wages were high," says Dr. Dodge, "so the rate per hour had to be high to be fair."

And how did it turn out? "They had the building finished within four months," says Dr. Dodge. "More than that, there are hundreds of thousands of dollars in debts in small towns that could be squared if the people just had a chance. And that doesn't mean that they need dollars. Dollars get in the way. Just give them a chance to swap!"

And another thing, something unusual in the life of a doctor, small town or big town. The plan has worked so well that some of his clients are paying in advance! One man, whose wife was expecting a baby, swapped a few truckloads of tile for the doctor's future services. The trade resulted in a baby for the farmer and a new cattle shed for the doctor's farm 11 miles out of Clinton.

A purebred bull was obtained in the same way, except that the farmer was treated for an illness, did not get a baby in return. And right now there's a man working for the doctor. Just a little bit more and he'll have earned a couple of tonsillectomies for his two sons, all ready to be wrapped up and delivered when he calls for them!