People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1894-09-28

and extended her hand. / was no
doctor, but ! could tell the difference
between a febrile and composed
pulse and on pressing her wrist |
found her heart beating a little
swiftly, but with regularity. 1t was
impossible to know whether she had
slept; or, if she had obtained rest.
to guess whether it had benefited
her or not. Her eyes shown bright
with the sparkle OF madness and the
swift manifold changes in the ex-
preston of her face conveyed her
condition with startling emphasis.
l sent the captains servant for
some warm water, and fetched from
nv own cabin such toilet con-
veniences as she might require. /
then bathed her feet, which clothed
in a pair of slippers of my own, and
gave her a comb and brush, believ-
ing she would adjust her own hair,
but she merely looked at them with
out attempting to apply them. On
this / got her on to a little locker
near the door and brushed her
hair and coiled the glowing
heap of it away under the
comb as best could. 1t was very
lovely silken HAIR soft as swans
down to the touch. In other ways |
sought to iniuse a sense OF comfort
and refreshment in her. and | no.
ticed that | never moved away from
her but what she followed me
eagerly with her burning eyes. and
that our gaze never met but that a
smile of sweetness and beauty, with
a sort of dim intelligence in it too.
lighted up her pallid, hollow face
She would occasionally speak to me.
Her remarks were without meaning
or relevancy. | answered them,
nevertheless, to humOr her, and
when | had made an end of her
toilet, such as 1t was, begged her
TO lie down, motioning to the bunk,
and saying that she would be better
presently, that she had come through
frightful time Of privation and
mental anguish, that she must 90 on
resting and being nursed until her
strength returned to her, and the
like; but she understood nothing OF
all this saving my gestures, which
she obeyed with a tender and pa
thetic aIacrity, laying herself down
and regarding me with a singular
kind of usefulness as though she
would ask for my approval
| fetched some breakfast with my
own hands from the cabin table. She
drank feverishly of the tea, but
had some trouble to persuade her to
eat | then babe her lie still and
take thorough rest, and asked if she
understood me. She closed her eyes,
as a child might do, as though il
was the best possible sign she could
give me, and then | shut the door
upon her and Joined the captain at
the breakfast table, impressed and
rendered hopeful for the poor girl
by the sudden, infantile CLEAN, so to
speak, Of nationality.
Mr.. Marling and the skipper were
at the table, and all our talk was
about the stranger. | told them
what | mad done, how had washed
her feet brushed her hair, and so
forth, and the captain, smothering a
laugh that rose purple to his face,
told me to mind my eye, for there
were the markings of a handsome
woman in her, and he fancied. he
could not satisfy himself that | was
not OF a highly romantic turn OF
mind.
pooh, said |, flushing up. "it's
hard that a man should not be able
to minister to poor helpless wo-
man in distress without standing to
lose his heart"
she's got a fine eye" said Mr..
Marling; lit seems to enter a mans
face ana come out the back of his
head; and | tell We what, Mr.. Fur
long. you MAJ bet all you're likely
to die worth, that the like of her
hair isn't to be matched in a week S
walk, starting from London town and
heading as you list.
"How about dressing her, cap
tain?" said ].
LET her get we'll first" he an
swered. "Supposing she die8?"
What's her clothes now?" said
Mr.. Marling.
"a dressing gown, said !, chastity
slipped over little under.linen.
"Let her get well, and we'll man
age" exclaimed the captain. well
rig her out in the ships number
The answering pennant IL do for a
scarf, and if she looks handsome in
dressing-gown, how will she show,
think We, in the glorifcation OF many
cOlOred bunting?"
Most of my time was devoted tc
the girl who was as yet nameless
amongst us. The chlnge from the
frizzling atmosphere of the stagnant
parallels to the fresh and pouring
sweetness of the southeast trade
gale helped her, as / was able tC
see. She was too weak to leave her
cabin. but the little room was filled
with the sweep Of the wind
through the open scuttle to
which her hair danced like fre-Aies,
and to which her bosom rose and
fell as though to an emotion of ex-
hilaration Yet she continued with.
out her mind; her eyes retaining
their startling glow of insanity, her