Dr. Swarthmore

June M. Blurton is a retired speech/language pathologist.

The three main characters in this novel represent religion, commerce,
and science, respectively. In the last months of the 19th century, Dr.
Swarthmore, the minister of a small country church in Indiana, has a
vision of the Second Coming. He describes his vision and its
accompanying warning in a pamphlet, which he sells to his fearful
parishioners for the price of 10 cents. One of those parishioners,
Blount, convinces Swarthmore that there are commercial possibilities for
a wider audience, and the pair of double-crossing hypocrites come up
with a get-rich-quick scheme. All goes well until the arrival of Dr.
Beecham, who debunks religion and argues that science is the way of the
future. By the year 2000, Beecham declares, wars, disease, hunger, and
natural disasters will be overcome: the only remaining challenge will be
the conquest of death. This entertaining novel boasts well-rounded
characters, fascinating dialogue, and clever turns of phrase like
“felt a smirk worry its way out of his beard.”