The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-01-13

the city sense-meant business.
SWELL, Rebecca, nothing gone wrong,
I hope" I said cheerfully. "You look
all right"
Appearances are deceitful. sir, heav-
en- knows" she answered, with what
seemed for so trite proverb most
unnecessary significance. cts weak
ness SO that one cannot lift ones hand
to ones head and thirst so that one
wants bucketfuI and a cough that
seems to tear one inside out, and besides
that there's fever"
$50 bad as that, is it9"
made the usual examination. Her
pulse was all right, her tongue quite.a
pleasure to look at as compared with
most Of those organs submitted to my
inspection Especially that most com
mon variety, the drunken tongue). She
had not coughed at all throughout the
ordeal and there was not trace Of fever.
YOU'RE nervous about yourself, my
good woman" Isaid, (which in your
case surprises me. You're too hard a
worker to have such fanoies."
"Still, them are the symptoms, she
answered doggedly, land l want a pre-.
scription." And she held out her hand,
with 18 pence in it. Such is not the fee
in Wimpole street, but in the east end
we are less exacting, and we have the
came excuse for taking less as the bar
rister gave for taking half crown in
stead Of a guinea--it is often all our
clients have In the world.
II don't want your money, Rebecca,
any more than you want my prescrip-
tion," I said.
"For mercy's sake give 1t mer' she
cried imploringly. "It's not for me, sir;
it's for my sister"
"For your sister? did not know you
had sister. How is 1t possible for me
to prescribe for a patient / have never
seen2'
"she is i'll, sir, deadly ILL.," she
pleaded.
1.-THE more reasorspsnould see her"
"But abe will not see you; sir. She
made me promise that ] weuid not bring
you. She has seen noione but me for
years. She's an invalid"
well, Of course, and has an invalid's
fancies no doubt Come, take me to
her." And I took up my hat.
Then, to my amazement. the big,
strong woman burst into tears. "Oh,
sir, you don't underestimate she sobbed.
"She is not accustomed to DO seen like
this. You will break her heart. Z"
Pooh, pooh!" I said. "On the con.
trary. it is my business to mend it,"
Not that I had the least belief in
what she said, for, indeed, l began to
think that her sister might be lusus
nature, Of which I had seen more than
one in my east end practice-poor crea.
lures that were not good enough or bad
enough for show; two headed night
ingales who had just missed their
chance, as it were, by half head; ele-
plant men with imperfectly developed
trunk. When poverty goes hand in hand
with Disagreement, it cannot close door
and windows or hide i'll secluded
grounds, Z" but still it will shrink from
observation all it can, like some shy
creature on the seashore whose shell is
too small for it.
Seeing it was useless to argue with
me, Rebecca led the way to Star court.
Dry, dusty, airless and without sun
shine, because the tall black houses are
huddled too close together, it was in
deed cheerless spot for the sound, far
more for the sick, to dwell in. A few
ragged children were dancing in the
center of it round barrel organ, to the
superficial eye an example Of how hap
piness is found in every spot, but we'll I
knew that in more than one of these
abodes lay women and children down
with fever, to each of whom every motto
of the instrument was torture, but there
was no liveried footman there to warn
the unwelcome musician or policemen
to bid him "Move on" The police in
that neighborhood had their hands full
Of more serious matters. Up three
flights Of stairs we went, steep enough
to suggest the aid Of the banisters had
they been less grimy and Shiny, and
then into an attic with sloping roof.
AT the first glance thought sun.
beam had found its way there, but it
was only head Of golden hair upon
coarse pillow. Tho face was turned to
the wall, and Rebecca held her finger
up, stained with toll and rough with
work, to warn me that the invalid was
sleeping. Why noted the finger was
because of the contrast it exhibited to
the thin, white, delicate hand that lay
outside the blanket, for Counterpart
there was none. There was marriage
ring on the hand, and it was the only
article in the room which could have
fetched shilling at the pawnbroker's.
There was a chair, but it had no back,
and q deal table, one leg of which.
much shorter than the others, was sup
plemented by brick. Upon it stood
mug with wall flowers on it, the only
decoration the apartment could boast.
Yet all was scrupulously clean, down
to the bare boards unrelieved by shred
of carpet. l had seen hundreds of homes
before shorn Of every comfort. but never
one so cared for in its last extremity by
hand and eye. Even the brick on which
the table stood was washed and resem-
bled one from child's toy box.
"That is good sign, her sleeping, Is
it not, sir?" Whispered Rebecca eager
ly. We had entered very softly, and
doubtless the ear Of the invalid had
only caught the footstep she expected,
but when her sister spoke she answered
in faint, reproachful tones:
II am not asleep, and you have broken
your word, Rebecca.
1T was not my fault, my darling;
indeed it wasn't. Oh. did I not tell you,
doctor, how it would be?' And the
great, gaunt woman wrung her hands
distressfully.
ut was not your sisters fault that I
am here" interposed gjntly. "She
would have had me believe that she
came to consult me on her own account,
but I saw through her. It was my duty
to come, and it will BIZ pleasure to me
If l can do you any good"
I had caught sight for moment of
the face Of an angel, or rather, as it
seemed to me, of one that was about to
join the heavenly choir, but even while
I was snnakinp she had Dut mn both her