The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1860-02-16


without thinking of the great Baptist preacher,
Andrew Fuller* The same large, heavy, men
acing, combative, sombre, honest eountenance,
the same deep inevitable eye, the same look
as of thunder asleep, but eady-neither dog
nor q man to be triAed with. ta hsa
4 Next day, my master, the surgeon, examined
Allie. There was no doubt it must kill her,
and soon. 1t could be removed-it might
never return-it would give her speedy relief
she should have il done. She curtsied, looked
at James, and said, "When ~ Tomorrow"
said the kind surgeons man of few words.
She and James and Rab and retired. ! no.
ticed that he and she spoke little, but seemed
to anticipate everything in each other. The
following day, at noon, the students came in,
hurryiug up the great stair. At the first land
ing-place, on small, ell-known black board,
was bit of paper fastered by waters, and
many remains Of old waters beside it. On the
paper were the words, An operation to- Gay.
J. B., Clerk" - sh
4 Up ran the youths, eager to secure good
places in they crowded, full of interest and talk
"Wbat's the casef" (Which side is il ~
Don't think them heartless they are neither
better nor worse than you or J. they get over
their professional horrors, and into their proper
work; and in them pity, as an emotion ending
In itself, or at best in tears and lopgdrawn
breath, lessons, while pity as motive is quick
ened, and gains power and purpose. 1t is well
for poor human nature that it is so. Yes
The operating theatre is crowded much talk
and fun, and all the cordiaity and stir of youth.
The surgeon with has staff of assistants is there.
In comes Allie; one look at her quiets and
abates the eager students. That beautiful old
woman is too much for them they sit down,
and are dumb, and gaze at her. These rough
hov fool 4 he Lo-- l..
in quickly, but without haste dressed in her
mulch, her neckerchief, her white dirnity short
gown, her black bombazine pefticoat, showing
her white worsted stockings, and her carpet
shoes. Behind her was James, with Rab.
James sat down in the distance, and took that
huge and noble head between his knees. Rab
looked perplexed and dangerous; forever cock
ing his ear and dropping It as fast.
Allie stepped up on a seat, and laid herself
on the table, as her friend, the surgeon told her
arranged herself gave rapid look at James,
shut her eyes, rested herself on me, and took
my hand. The operation was at once begun ;
it was necessarily slow; and chloroform- one
of Gods beet gifts to his suffering children
was then unknown. The surgeon did his work.
The pale face showed its pain, but was still
and silent. Rab's soul was working within
him he saw that something strange was going
Sne
suffering his ragged ear was up, and importu-
nate; he growled, and gave now and then a
sharp, impatient yelp; he would have liked to
have done something to that man. But James
had him firm, and gave him a gloscer from time
to time, and an intimation of possible kick /;
all the better for James, it kept his eye and his
mind off Allie. aieFtis $50 = 's.'"4 ~
II is over; she is dressed, steps gently and
decently down from the table, looks for James !;
then, turning to the surgeon and the students,
she curtsies, and in low, clear voice, begs
their pardon if she has behaved i'll. The stu
dents-all of us--wept like children; the sur
geon Mapped her up carefully-and resting on
James and me, Allie went to her room, Rab
following. We put her to bed. James took
off his heavy shoes, crammed with Jackets, heel
capt, and toe-capt, and put them carefully I'M
der the table, saying, Master John, I'm for
name o. yer strynge nurse bodies for Allie. Ill
be her nurse, and III gang ABBOTT on nay stock
in soles as canny as pussy" And SO be did !;
and handy and clever, and swift and tender as
any woman, was that horny handed, smell, per-
emptory little man. Everything she got he
gave her; he seldom slept; and often saw his
small, shrewd eyes out the darkness, fixed on
her. As before, they spoke little
Rab behaved WELL never moving, showing
us how meek and gentle he could be, and occa-
sionally, in his sleep, letting us know ira. he
was demolishing some adversary. he took a
walk with me every day, generally to the Can
dle-maker Row; but he was sombre and mild,
declined doing battle, though some fit cases
offered, and indeed submitted to sundry indig-
mites; and was always very ready to turn and
come faster back, and trotted up the stair with
much lightness, and went straight to that door.
Jess, the mare, had been sent with her
weather.worn cart, to Howgate and had doubt
less her own dim and placid meditations and
confusions on the absence of her master and
Rab, and her unnatural freedom from the road
and her cart.
For some DAYS, Allie did well. The wound
healed "by the first intention /" for, as James
said, (" Cor Allies skins over clean to beilr
The students came in qniet and anxious, and
surrounded her bed. She said she liked to see
their young, honest faces. The surgeon dress
ed her, and spoke to her in his own short, kind
way, plying her through his eyes, Rab and
James outside the circle-Rab being now rec
onciled, and even cordial, and having made up
his mind that as yet nobody required worrying,
but, as you may suppose, semper paratus.
So far, woll; but four days after the opera.
ton, my patient had a sudden and long shiver-
ing-a "groosin'," as she called it. l saw her
soon after; her eyes were too bsight her cheek
colored she was restless, and ashamed of being
SO; the balance was lost; mischief had begun:
On looking at the wound, blush of red told
the secret; her pulse was rapid her breathing
anxious and quick; she wasn't herself, as she
said, and was vexed at her restlessness. We
tried what we could. James did everything,
was everywhere never in the way, never out
of it. Rab subsidized under the table into a dark
place, and was motiOnless, all but his eye,
Il f,ll A Ia -
began to wander in her mind gently; was
more demonstratiye in her ways to James,
rapid in her questions, and sharp at times. He
was vexed, and said, "She was never that way
afore no, never" For time, she knew her
head was wrong, and was always asking our
pardon-the dear, gentle old woman; then de-
lirium set in strong without pause. Her brain
gave way, and then came that terrible spec
tacle-
"The inteec uaf power, throu al words and things,
wenr sounding on us dim and perlons way"
she sang bits of old songs and Psalms, stopping
suddenly, mingliDg the Psalms of David, and
the diviner words of his Son and Lord, with
homely odds and ends and scraps of ballads.
Nothing more touching, or in a sense more
strangely beautiful, did l ever witness. Her
tremulous, rapid, affectionate, eager, Scotch
voice-the swift, aimless, bewildered mind;
the bafaed utterance, the bright and perilous
eye; some wild words, some household cares,
something for James, the names of the dead,
Rab called rapidly, and in "femyt" voice,
and he starting up, surprised, and slinking of
as if he were to blame somehow, or had been
dreaming he heard. Many eager questions
and beseechings which James and could
make nothing Of, and on which she seemed to
set her al, and then sink back ununderstood.
1t was very sad, but better than many things
that are not called sad. James lowered about,
put out and miserable, but active and exact as