Year: 1877

"There Is none very near here Hal
said after moments reflection, and
added, from what the young men he
had just left would have deemed a most
Quixotic impulse, but am almost
physician myself; unless the case is
very serious, perhaps / can attend to
it,


" Oh please come quickly, then," re-
piled the girl as she led him the way
rapidly past several blocks Of stately
houses, to one of those poor neighbor-
hoods which are sometimes found
crouching at back doors of an aristocrat-
ic quarter.


"Who Is sick ?" Hal asked, as reach
ing q small house, she held open the
door for him to pass, and taking up Il
flickering candle lighted his way uptwo
flights of stairs.


my mother" she answered in
trembling voice.


" And was there no one in the house
you could call upon to help youY" he
asked.


"No; the people who live in the lower
rooms go away at night. l was Obliged
to leave her all alone"


On the bed In the room they entered,
lay woman apparently insensible, with
sickening marks of blood about her,
and crimson drops still oozing from her
lips. The girl hastened toward the bed
side in mute terror at what might
have happened during her absence, but
Halls practised eye saw that she had a
bad but not fatal hemorrhage and could
soon be restored to consciousness. With
a few consoling words to the daughter
which enabled her to assist him, he pro-
cumstances would permit, noting as he
did so that CHASTITY rs was the pallor of
the thin, care-worn face, it still showed
traces of former beauty and of unmis-
taxable refinement.


At last the sufferer opened her eyes,
with the vague, Indifferent look of COM
plete physical exhaustion, but closed
them again YEARLY.


"Do not speak to her, said Hal in u
whisper, 1" she must be kept perfectly
quiet but / think she will do we'll
now.n


AS he proceeded to give the. necessary
directions for further treatment his eyes
wandered round the room, which was
neat, though meagerly furnished, and
bore witness to that struggling destitu-
ton SO much more pitiable than thrift
less, squalid poverty.


Under lamp on table lay several
pieces Of fine needle work, in confn-
sion that showed how recently the labor
had been interrupted. Ostensibly
searching for something in his letter
case, Hal bent over the delicate EN-
broderies with a wondering pity for the
patient hand by which they were pro-
duced. The girl came toward him try
ing to express gratitude.


Have you no relatives or friends 7"
he asked.


She shook her head sadly.


Your father ?" 4-F


He died two years ago, just after we
came here to live. We have no money
Just now," she continued, inisunder-
standing the motive of his questions,
but shall get some as soon as this
work is finished, and if you give me
your address will


81 do not mean that, he.interrupted
hastily; but he did not add that he was
really thinking how soon she might be
alone in the world, for her mother was
evidently victim to quick consump-
tion.


am going to. Europe tomorrow,
he went on, so shall not be able to
call again but will leave a prescrip-
ton for your mother, which trust will
do some goodn


He wrote few lines on scrap OF
paper; then, availing himself of mo-
ment when he was unobserVed, he slip
ped the money he had recently won into
an envelope and left it on the table,
Fortunately, it was a considerable
amount, although he regretted that il
was not in his power to give something
beside money and left, thoughtful at the
contrast between prodigal, careless
pleasures, and anxious want which the
last few hours had forced upon him.


Amid the distractions of foreign
travel, however, the incident was soon
forgotten; but before year had passed
he was reminded of it by receiving 9
note from large Western city, and en-
closing draft for the amount he hat