him back. He was out, might be detained the
whole night. I remember saying, 'God help us all!' as I sate on my
horse, under the window, through which the apprentice's head had
appeared to answer my furious tugs at the night-bell. He was a
good-natured fellow. He said,--

'He may be home in half an hour, there's no knowing; but I daresay he
will. I'll send him out to the Hope Farm directly he comes in. It's
that good-looking young woman, Holman's daughter, that's ill, isn't it?'

'Yes.'

'It would be a pity if she was to go. She's an only child, isn't she?
I'll get up, and smoke a pipe in the surgery, ready for the governor's
coming home. I might go to sleep if I went to bed again.'

'Thank you, you're a good fellow!' and I rode back almost as quickly as
I came. It was a brain fever. The doctor said so, when he came in the
early summer morning. I believe we had come to know the nature of the
illness in the night-watches that had gone before. As to hope of
ultimate recovery, or even evil prophecy of the probable end, the
cautious doctor would be entrapped into neither. He gave his
directions, and promised to come again; so soon, that this one thing
showed his opinion of the gravity of the case.

By God's mercy she recovered, but it was a long, weary time first.
According to previously made plans, I was to have gone home at the
beginning of August. But all such ideas were put aside now, without a
word being spoken. I really think that I was necessary in the house,
and especially necessary to the minister at this time; my father was
the last man in the world, under such circumstances, to expect me home.

I say, I think I was necessary in the house. Every person (1 had almost
said every creature, for all the dumb beasts seemed to know and love
Phillis) about the place went grieving and sad, as though a cloud was
over the sun. They did their work, each striving to steer clear of the
temptation to eye-service, in fulfilment of the trust reposed in them
by the minister. For the day after Phillis had been taken ill, he had
called all the men employed on the farm into the empty barn; and there
he had entreated their prayers for his only child; and then and there
he had told them of his present incapacity for thought about any other
thing in this world but his little daughter, lying nigh unto death, and
he had asked them to go on with their daily labours as best they could,
without his direction. So, as I say, these honest