The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1888-10-23
AMONG TIE SICK.
THE TRI1LS And TRIDULATT0gs OF
4 NURSE.

| young girl. Inc haDpleSt time OF nay lie,
| mentally at least, was spent in hospital. had
to undergo some fearful surgical operations ON
| this bad leg of mine"-alludiDg to the Attic
ton that had made her lame for life-"and it
couldn't be done at home, SO I was sent TO a
private hospital in the south. The word
hospital sounded as uninyiting to me as to
most people, but when 1 arrived at the
! dreaded place found it paradise Of comfort.
| The day nurses met me at the door with smil-
! ing faces, and the matron was perfect angel,
| on earth. My room was bright and sunny and
| full Of the fragrance Of roses, which came
from bowl of those beautiful flowers placed
by my bed Life here was SO calm, so free
from mental care. There were no worries to
mako the head ache with pain greater than
mere physical suffering. l was a child again,
| free to laugh and cry wheu pleased, to be
taken charge OF, bathed pouticed and plas-
tered without the least eXertion on my part.
The head nurse was simply perfect. You
mover had to tell her what you wanted. She
knew intuitiyely what ty do, and she did it in
an ideal sort Of way that I'd formerly consid-
cred peculiar to the minstration OF angels.
But the dearest nurse Of all was the little night
nurse--a young woman of twenty-three. When
think of her my heart is filed with the
sadness Of her life.
Think Of itl A woman young and pretty,
sleeping all day when the world is bright and
astr, and sitting up all night with the wind
and the suffering means Of sick patients for
her only companions, save when some insist
emily cheerful patient had q fondness for mid
night conversation. ! was awake often o.
nights with my pains and this girls presence
was at such times, delightto me. She seemed,
among all this afflicted and manned mortality,
like some fair lily in garden Of diseased weeds.
She came from plain people, but the stamp
OF lady was Laid fresh and pure upon her by
the hand OF nature. Her hands aud feet were
slim and delicate her oval face, with its re-
fined mouth, perfect nose and black-fringed
gentian eyes, was full Of sympathetic tender
ness.
zone night, as she sat holding my hand,
ooAing like disguised princess in her little
calico gown, [ asked;
Joan, did you ever dance? Have you
ever been TO any dancing parties or things
like that"
"Not to many parties, but to picncs. /
used to dance at them"a
Don't you dance well? should think you
would" i said, looking admiringly at the soft
curves of her lovely figure.
~ don't know whether l danced well, but /
think must have because laways had plenty
of partners. That's a sign you dance well isn't
it?"
assured her that it was the one indisputa-
bic sign, and asked: GLOW long has it been
since you went to plcnics?"
81 was sixteen then. I've been in the wards
ever since"
WHAT you don't mean to say you've been
doing this night nursing since you were six
teen?"
eyes"
"And it hasn't killed you?"
"Do you have any doubts about my being
aliYe?" she answered, smiling.
"Did you attend a nursing school and go
through the training before you came to this
place."
mo. never thought OF being nurse until
the matron at the city hospital suggested it to
me. / used to so there every day to see a rel
alive and the matron seemed to grow fond OF
me- One day she said you are made for a
purse Can't you come and do night duty Tor
me?'
II said I'd think about il, and in a day or two
after that l told hor I'd take the
place, and so l went on duty that night. Those
were hard nights, and, for tho first weeks, it
was terrible-all so lonely and still The
labored breathing of those suffering people
filed mo with the idea that they had been
dead for years and were gaspingly coming to
life. II all sounded as / imagine the cemeta-
ries will on Judgment day. would rather
have attended some exacting patient all night
than sit ont the lonely hours with these sounds
in my ears, and | was always glad when the
stiffness was broken by the sound of a bell
Didn't any Of the iSakefu patients ever
want TO talk2"
YES but the class of women who arc sent
to the wards OF a city hospital are not very
nico kind to talk with. Most of them are
shameless, deprayed creatures. OF course
there are exceptions-a fow poor, respectable
women who can't afford to so anywhere else"
ut must have been horrible for Young girl
to be placed in the mids; Of such people"
Eyes, at first il seemed as If had entered
another world. l heard and saw so many
dreadful things I'd never dreamed OF before.
The second night went on duty 1 was told TO
pay especial attention to fever patient in a
private room. When | entered the room ana
went TO the bed on which the moor creature
was lying was almost dazzled by her beauty.
She had the face of a saint; fair, tender, blue
eyed. around which the light, curling hair
formed golden oriole. / have never had any
faith in faces since saw that woman.
"Who oSe you?" She asked lifting her child
eyes mp to mine.
'The night nurse, ! answered.
II ne llNUt NURSE j max means one ulght
creature without sin. doesn't it?'
No, think not I'm sure l can't call my
self without sin"
"You Why you little childish thiugl You
don't know what sin IS. I've known what it
was since l was your age, but never minded
knowing, until l came here two weeks ago.
It's so still here, and there S nothing 10 do but
think when one is sick. Two thought a great
deal, I'm going 20 die, gir.' she said in a
tome Of conviction.
oh. no. said, taking her soft hand to
comfort her, 'you think that now, because YOU
are i'll, but yo0'l get wei. I'm going to nurse
you and make you we'll.
81 hope you can. l don't want 10 die.
When set we'll III bo happy again. LIS
only the child worrying me now don't
know why he should. never cared when l
killed him o."
81 shrank away fyom her in horror.
"0hl you needn't look that way" She said.
smiling, and looking more radlautiy pure and
exquisite than ever 81 don't care how Won
look. l didn't want the child. What aid