The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-03-13
The Rains
Came


never felt before or even suspect
ed. and curious satisfaction
the satisfaction. she knew sudden
". for winch she had been look
ing all her life. She had won
their respect
Then suddenly she remembered
her duty. that she must make A
round of the whole hospital once
every fifteen minutes until Miss
MacDaid came to relieve her. She
glanced al the battered old alarm
clock and saw that there was still
four minutes to pass before she
must go, carrying the enameled
pitcher of cold water from bed to
bed And at the same time she
vas aware that she was being
watched and her eyes met in the
light from the fire outside the win
dow those of a typhoid patient in
the narrower bed nearest the table.
At first, because the figure in
the bed was so small and thin, she
thought the patient was a child.
The eyes were enormous and black
and ageless. but they were sunk
in the head of the woman who
looked old and shrunken. The
dark skin, yellowed now by illness.
was drawn like paper over the fine
bones of the skull For a second
she stared fascinated by the deli
eacy of the face. and then, shud-
dering a little. it seemed TO her
that the face and head seemed
dead. Without hair it would have
been a bleached skull II was the
face of a woman who since she
was born had never had enough TO
eat. She thought, Death is coming
for her. r. S V. p. Repondez sill
vous plat" How many times in
that remote and immensely distant
world of London, she had written
those initials.
Then she was aware that the
purple lips were moving. She could
not hear what the woman was try
ing TO say. for no voice came from
the lips but only a dry whispering
sound like the rustling of dead
leaves. Then, feebly. skinny
hand, immensely old. stole up.
shaking as If with palsy. to the
purple lips in the gesture which all
peasants and workmen make the
world over to indicate hunger and
thirst. and she thought, The poor
woman wants water" and, rising
quickly, she lifted the filter paper
from the pitcher and poured the
glass on the table before her full
to the brim.
At the bedside she had to lift the
woman up with one hand while she
held the glass with the other. The
creature had no weight at all, not
even the solid weight of a child.
Through the swe t. dampened
white cotton sari she could feel the
burning heat of the fever. The
woman drank greedily. and when
she bad drained the glass she lay
back with her full weight on Lady
Eskeths arm. Opening her eyes,
she looked up at the English
woman and tried to smile. Even
in her illness there was something
and humble about the
look in the eyes which made Lady
Esketh want to cry suddenly, to
say You must not look at me like
that. am your sister. We are
both women. God made us both"
But she could not. she knew. make
the woman understand All she
could do was to smile at her.
Again the sound of rustling leaves
cam from the woman's lips and
she closed her eyes again and lay
back on the damp pillow, in peace.
Lady Esketh thought, The four
minutes must have passed" and
placing the glass back on the
table. she lifted one Of the stone
jars to the edge of the table and
held one of the enameled pitchers
beneath it. The jar was heavy
and it took all her strength to
manage it, to tilt it gently so that
she could control the flow of the
water. She was struggling with
the jar when she heard a voice
say, Wait, III do that for you"
and, turning. she saw the figure
Of the major. He was beside her
and one of his hands touched hers
as he lifted the jar from her grasp.
For second she felt a dizzy
sensation of happiness, and then,
leaning against the table, she re-
covered herself and said, THANK
you. II is heavy"
Then he said, smiling at her.
1T must be time TO make Your
first round. I'll go with you"
He filled the other pitcher and
picked them both up.
At each of the beds on the list
marked dying" he stopped for a
moment, to feel the pulse. TO Law
a hand on a burning head. But
all the time he took no notice Of
her at all. save once when he said.
as If in apology, Laying a hand
on their heads does no good ex-
cept to give them courage. You
see they know l am a Brahman.
and for centuries they have been
made 10 step aside lest their
fall on us and pollute US"
OF the list marked dead" three
were still alive, but the fourth. who
had gangrenous wounds. lay still
and rigid and she saw at once that
there was no need TO fill the cup
n his side He was a very black,
skinny man and his eyes were half
closed as they had been during the
coma produced by Miss MacDaid's
needle. II was odd how
you knew, as if by some extra
sense. that the man was dead.
There was perhaps something in
he peculiar tilt of the head. like
} flower uilted on its stem. and
n the way the feet stuck I'D at
-igid angle beneath the soiled
ihOti She had known at once.
Now she would always know.
When they returned to the table
n the corner of the main ward.
,e said, May l sit with you for
! moment :"
OF course, il you like. but you'd
leffef oct SnFHa Sfaap