Plentywood herald., 1930-06-19
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The shorter time they are under
the ether, the quicker they get we'll
the nurse returned placidly.
Marcia quivered, and Gordon
clenched his hands as Juniors screams
continued. sinking at last into pitiable
waing. Another nurse came, then
and gave him an injection of NOR
phlne. Presently his crying stopped
and he fixed his parents with large
staring eyes, saying, II want to see
you as long as 1 can see anything"
An old orderly with a benign face
slid stretcher into the room and
gently rolled Junior upon it.
Come on for a little ride, son." he
said, "and the next thing you know
you'll be WELL"
Marcia and Gordon walked beside
the stretcher. through the corridor and
| into the elevator. AS they rose to the
! operating room they could hear the
light shrill giggle of nurse. They
| stepped out into cleaning tiled room
A white shrouded doctor received the
stretcher, said few reassuring words,
and sent them downstairs. With fixed
eyes and blank faces they went back
into Juniors room. Marcia began a
brave sentence, but Gordon stopped
her.
Don't try to cheer me up, darling,
he said Talk, if you want to, but
say the multiplication tables. Some
thing we won't have to put our brains
on l know you'll fail when we come
TO thirteen times thirteen"
Together they said the tables, but
all the time Marcia's thought were in
the white room upstairs. Had Junior
been afraid to be alone with the doc
| tors? Had he dreaded the ether?
Suppose the surgeons hand slipped?
She thought Of horrors, and gripped
her husbands arm.
Hell get through" Gordon said,
but that nurse at the desk was right
| This is terrible climate for mastoid."
| If he did get through, if only he
did, then nothing else mattered. Mar
cia berated herself that she had been
so depressed all autumn. Perhaps her
J fear her diminished faith had invited
misfortune. What did it matter that
she had to work hard, that she could
not have the things other women had?
She had love; and if only she could
keep her beloved four in the same
world with her, she asked for nothing
else
The long hour was over at last and
Junior was wheeled back again into
his room, inert gray faced breathing
noisily, his head bandaged The sur
geon came, too. telling them that the
operation had gone splendidly. He
prophesied that Junior would make a
quick recovery. The day nurse en-
tered, crisp and white clad and reas-
suring Junior might not come wholly
out of the ether for two hours, she
told them. Mrs. Gordon should go
home and try to sleep.
There were the other children to
think Of. and Aida Conklin did not
know much about babies Junior
would be sufficiently content If his
father were with him when he woke.
Marcia went home, walking slowly
through the snow, weary but thank
full. 1t would be all right they would
manage At the end of three days
the nurses could be dismissed; she
would spend the NIGHTS at the hos
pital, taking care of Junior, and Cor
don would be there during the days
as much as he could.
The week went draggingly by. Junior
suffered intensely during the dressings.
His recovery was not going as smooth
ly as the surgeon had anticipated.
Often during the night the child was
feverish and Marcia would hold him
in her arms, singing SOFTLY praying
for calm and strength. One morning
she went home, thoroughly exhausted.
Gordon insisted on calling in woman
to look after the children and the
housekeeping for the day. Yielding,
she went to bed and fell into long
sleep. When she woke, late at night,
Gordon told her that Junior had had
another operation, and that the sur
geOn had sent to neighboring city
for a night nurse who was a specialist
in mastoid cases.
It was four days before Marcia was
able to go to the hospital to see Junior.
1t was three more days before the sur
geOn allowed the nurses to be dis
missed. But at the end Of that time
she could see that the child was really
mending. 1t was two weeks more, how
ever, before he was home again, pale
and important in the eyes Of awe
struck Mary.
The night of Juniors return, when
the children were in bed, the GOrdOnS
sat before their hearth. A high wind
was rattling the shutters and whirl-
ing snow across the window paneS.
They we're silent for a long time. Then
Gordon said, 1.-THE doctor THINKS Junior
should have couple of weeks at At
lantic City. I borrowed some money
at the bank today"
"Perhaps-perhaps he will get well as
quickly without sea air." said Marcia,
falteringly. "The cost-just what we
have paid out in hospital and nurses
bills must have taken all we had in
the bank. Then there are the doctor
and the surgeon and the anesthetist-"
There is no reason why you should
not go and take all three children.
wrote Uncle Max week ago that I'd
join him."
Marcia broke into tears, murmur-
ing, "Oh, your work here, your beloved
WorkW
But even as she spoke, she felt an
overwhelming relief. Never to have
to worry about money again! Always
to have the best for the children!
''Uncle Max has sent the contract"
Gordon said. 1T is a generous one"
Have you signed YETI" Marcia asked.
"NOt yet"
He had not signed yet? Then he
hoped that there might yet be turn
ing back. If only her faith were
strong enough, he could be persuaded