The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-02-20

ing himself siclzer for her, and she could not know what treatment was given him, nor how he was cared for, could not be by his bedside to sooth fortabEe, to be sure that all hiss little wants were attended to- And oh. how wild he must be to see her, and how frightened and hurt by the care of strangers, the dear. little tender mother baby that he was!
 But she tried to be brave and she kept as much of this inside as pos sible. Her throat ached, but she crowded back the tears and went with Baby's daddy down to the ferry land ing. and standing there, they looked broken heartedly- off at the island where their loved one had been ta- 1 ken, and where now on hospita' cot, they knew he was tossing with fever and crying his little heart out for The week that followed was an in terminable nightmare. When, after long ages, Friday morning came, and the hour for admitting visitors. Oli- | ver's parents took the ferry for the is- land. On landing, they were first co7- ducted to the office, and there they admitted to the hospita' until they | were vaccina ted. Both had been vac cinated, years before, and neither was willing to submit again to the opera
 their baby, that settled it. Hot blow
 shares could not have stopped them.
 They bared their arms and took their dose of virus. It was but another turn | Before coming they had talked it
 over and agreed that if they, could | take a peep at Baby and not let him
 see them. they would do It. They | would spare him the distress of an-
 other parting-if they could.
 So the door was opened, just a crack,
 into the two connecting wards where | twenty-five children were recovering from Cor dying of) the measles. But | Oliver must have been watching the
 door, for he had seen them before they
 could draw away.
 Old people weep for joy. So do ba- bies, when for seven long days all their memory of Mamma and Daddy has been one big ache, drowned in
 tears. On seeing his parents. the lit
 tie fellow cried as though his heart | would break Finally. safe in his moth
 CTS arms, his baby heart was at peace his griefs forgotten. Daddy was right
 there before him and all was well.
 But the hour passed quickly, and then
 how he clung to his father! How pit
 eously he cried! With aching hearts
 again they left him to strangers
 On the way back to the city his pa
 rents talked over the situation and
 got what comfort they could out of the ) fact that the child was, to their inex-
 pert eyes, doing reasonably well. To
 those twenty-five sick children ha
 hut a single nurse, with an as=istart ot
 helD her. How much watching Oliver must need to keep him in Ted and
 quiet. How little he must get. The nurse had said to them that he ap-
 peared to be a spoi' ed child and alro oSt } impossible to keep in bed, Perhaps
 that accounted for his hoarseness- But it was useless to speculste. How coul6 thev know what was done for the'I darling? He was just ore in big dren, under the care of a nurse +t
 whom they were all matter of more or less indifference. Of one thirs they were sure: Their baby was rot was entitled and there was TO way | to help it. The machine ground on 3 The next dav they went to an off ? cial said to have the power of re lease and quarantine over all those 5 unforturates in the hospital, and theI exrlained their case to him. They how they felt they could take care O
 their child without endangering any one. And he said: tweu if he seem! s to be getting on all right, T will re ] lease him so you can sail next Sat : urday. That will be two weeks il = the hospital
 4 So the mother spent the next fev = days in hope and eaeer anticipation I As the time approached she got his lit , tie garments all ready to dress him tt e sail across the water to SC his grand
 ma. Thursday she was happy until e A te'egram came Thursday evenirj q summopin,g them to their child's bed V l side. That meant, they knew. tha h he was dangerously i'll. They star.e' = at once for North Brother Island, bu
 learned at the ferry that it was to- t late in the day, ard that they woult e have to wait until Friday morning e There was no Seep that long night fo s the anxious mother. Next morning o s reaching their child they saw at one O that he was dying.
 The nurse explained that he seem | ed to be doing well, when she lief hPfOrp '' turned to the ward, she had founi S him in a relapse. She was astonishe6 $ know of no cause, etc, etc
 n He lived until Sunday.
 Among the things theSe parents hay e never been able to learn are:
 @ What killed their beautiful child?