The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1898-03-25

Utilities. poor al drew her
face up iu.0 g. 90 czz.on CT sincere
pain, for the feeL.> lite rcl.icksome
laugh had I.rp,ed down her neck to
the stitches liz her throat ard had
wrenched them tie miilionth part of an
inch, which was just enough to cause
them to hurt like red-hot irons. Mrs.
Marshalls eyes filed with tears, and
she whimpered for a moment, and Mrs.
johnson knelt beside her bedand kissed
her and petted her soothingly, and said
that if slccwould try to be patient she
would tell her all about everything, es-
.pecially the boy Of four who was going
to the kindergarten.
"In just IL minutes" observed Mrs
Teck, peering at a little gold watch, On
the case of which was engraved an
impossible buffalo with a nose like
species of ant-eater, gazing fixedly at
a castle which had the dimensions OF
height and width but no '--lckness
whatever, Sin just Al minutes Mrs.
johnson will be gone. I wish 1t were
my time to go"
"Have you been counting, too?' IN
uuired Miss Hough. $50 have l. And
oh, don't l wish it was me-"
1t developed that everybody had been
calculating upon the exact number OF
minutes which must elapse before the
emancipation of the graduating one.
There is so little to do in hospital
that discharge is an event which
q
the world-an admission. An admIs-
sion rises superior to discharge be-
cause they have such a broad latitude
over which to wander. You can specu-
late on the nature of the ailment and
wonder whether it is going to call for
an operation or yield to medicine. You
can guess at antecedents and circum-
stances and as to whether or not the
patient comes of a religious stock-of
the kind given over to murmuring of
hymns and sacred songs. And in
ward of course you will get to see her
visitors, and you have a most agreeable
time of it in figuring as to whether
the young man with the sad face is her
husband or her brother. a patient 60
ing away isn't nearly so interesting,
Of course. 1t is not to be expected.
Mrs. Johnson went upstairs and babe
the little spinal meningitis boy good-by
and fixed his pictures before him so
that he could see them all without hav-
ing to turn. The little boy was Of a
rueful sort, awaiting only the slightest
and most fragile Of excuses for melting
into tears, and when Mrs. johnson said
she was not going to come in any more
his eyes grew moist. Seeing this the
convalescent knew better than TO re-
peat the indiscreet statement to Win
fired, the brave siX-year-old, whose
right leg was trussed in the air with a
great weight holding it al a shipmast
angle. She told the child she was go
ing to see her own little girl that day.
HAS she got stiff Lego" asked Win
fired, and for fear CT hurting the child S
feelings, the woman said that her little
girl was afflicted as intimated.
Mrs. Johnson kissed them all and
told them CT the candy she was going
to send them, and then for the, last
of desire; Earl, the spinal-meningitis
boy, now recovered Of his tears and cry
ing shrilly a determination to be po-
liceman and ride in the patrol wagon;
W:Eifred to be nurse and wear a
white cap, and Guy sturdily content
to have shovel and dig a trench for
gaspipe.
The nurses passed in the Railways
with their basins and trays, but none Of
these paid any attention to the. con-
valescent, for none of them knew her
except in the most general way. Her
own attendant upstairs had already
smiled pleasantly and had congratu-
lated her on, the successful outcome
and had gone away to wait upon other
patients, especially the typhoid-fever
man. who rang his bell persistently.
Mrs. johnson went into the room
which she could no longer call hers and
threw on her cape and hat and waited
for the familiar step. Having already
sent her extra apparel, there was moth
ing to take away but herself. The books
should become the heritage of the next
conner. She wondered who she would
be and if she would like "The Pride
CT the World" or "Gladys Heming's
Atonement" the better. Somebody was
coming. She rose and hurried over to
the dresser to take a final look at her
hat, and her eyes for the last time rest
ed on the symptom sheet" wherein
the nurses had carefully noted the med
zeal story Of her case. She seized the
pencil and wrote good-b-, across the
bottom and turned to meet her brown
bearded husband, whose eyes were
bright with joy.
Two minutes later the rattle of the
wheels of the hack died out of the
street, and Mrs. johnson was gone
Chicago Record.