Widower Dr. Watt moves to a small town, raising son Jimmy and abandoned Letty. Despite aspirations for research, epidemic, family needs hinder his goals. Years later, he realizes his life wasn't a failure.

Dr. Eli Watt, a widower, comes to a small town, considering himself a failure in his attempt to have a meaningful career in New York. He raises his son Jimmy as well as Letty, a baby whose mother has died in childbirth and whose father blames Watt and abandons the child. Watt dreams of returning to do research studies, but something always gets in the way: an epidemic, his children's needs, or the needs of his generally ungrateful patients. Only with the passing years does he come to find that his future isn't over and his past isn't quite the failure he believed.—Jim Beaver <[email protected]>