Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1907-11-02
MAN

| the weekly weighing OF each babe.
you can't stop the young rogues, "
she would cry. They'll grow in
spite of you?"
Then she would hobble off to make
the rest of her rounds, for she was as
faithful as any house doctor with her
morning calls. A carnation would
bloom from beneath her knit shawl
for the old deaf man in the end bed.
An orange would go to another old
woman.
"Tut, tut" she would say to stop
their thanks. 81 am giving all these
things because people know that
know how to distribute them better
than they do"
To a homesick girl she would
whisper: 1--WE a fine love story up
stairs that I'll bring down to you.
It'll make you forget yourself for a
few hours.
Poor young thing!" she would
murmer to herself. $50 young to
have the bloom of youth squeezed
out of herr"
None could give richer sympathy
to the suffering young than Aunt
Lie, for, indeed, her own youth
had been squeezed out with an in
jury that had bent her back and
made her limbs shriveled and useless.
But haven't l the two eyes of me
left and my two hands?" she would
demonstrate with those who attempt
ed to condole with her. "Fiddlesticks,
child! Give your sympathy to the
unfortunates who need it,"
Her visits must all be made by 10
o'clock, for then an orderly would
come to wheel her into an operating
room where for an hour she would
bear torments that are given few to
know. For the rest of the day she
would have to lie motlonless in her
bed, the blood gone from her wrinkled
cheeks and her eyes closed with pain.
However, by late afternoon the in
domitable spirit would conquer and
Aunt Lie would be at work, propped
up in bed. She mended socks for the
young internes.
"Poor young things!" she confided
to a visitor. Twas a pity to see
them all run down at the heels and
their mothers miles away. These
laundries do wear holes in things and
you wouldn't have to throw their
clothes away for the sake of a few
small holes-nVS when Aunt Lie
can mend them!"
SurreL titiously she was embroider-
ing a pair of cuffs for the probation
nurse on that floor. 1t was a char
acteristic of Aunt Lie that she
should spend her spare moments pre-
pairing a surprise gift for the one in
dividual in the hospital who ever
said sharp things to her.
So she went through the days,
cheering, encouraging, loving, moth
oring the whole institution. Even the
ambulance horses had neat straw
hats that she had made for hot sum-
mer days.
Finally the tin came when the
surgeons gid they had done all they
could for her and that she might go
home. Home" meant to her only
the one room in which she lived
among Ctrang no bit,
but alon:. Only then did her courage
fail. She had filled her place so COM
pletely in the hospital, she had been
So appreciated, that the thought OF
leaving it all and going back to her
former colorless existence was too
much for her.
"Oh, the little Ones" she moaned.
II could leave all but them! al
ways longed for one of my own,
though 1 knew it wasn't for such as
/! Sometimes I've thought If 1 only
had little more money-only little
more-Id take some mother IS
baby. But there's just enough for
one and 1 couldn't bring poverty on
helpless child"
A nurse repeated Aunt Lies
words to her surgeon. Whether he
carried them to the west suite or
whether they remained with him no
one knows. The next day a legal
looking envelop came for Miss Eliza
Bcown-our Aurt Lie. 1t an
nounced that a sum of money had
been deposited with the law firm
whose name headed the paper, to be
kept in trust and the income to be
paid monthly to her or her heirs "for-
ever" The name of the donor was
not given, but the paper said that this
was done as a email return for the
sunshine scattered by a heroine, not
of an hour, but Of every day, too gen.
uine to be conscious of her heroism.
Aunt Lie did not question the
document for a moment. She imme-
diately reached for her crutches and