tie had indeed
taken the fever, and was very ill in her own comfortable home. Dr. Bolen
had suggested her being removed to the temporary hospital, and being
cared for by the competent nurses there; but her mother would not hear
of it. She was always a very foolish woman, had been very much opposed
to her daughter's going into the mill, and now told her husband that
this fever was all the result of his obstinacy, and she hoped he enjoyed
having murdered his own child. Now, however, she meant to have her own
way. Her Bertie, who was every bit as good as the city young ladies, her
cousins, was not to go to an empty house and be nursed with a lot of
common mill-girls. If her mother couldn't take care of her, she should
like to know who could--which would have been unanswerable if Mrs.
Sanderson had known how to nurse anybody--a thing of which she was
profoundly ignorant. So poor Bertie had a hard time of it, and daily
grew worse instead of better; and as if this were not enough, Mrs.
Sanderson never thought of isolating the patient, or of keeping the
other children from her, and before long the third child, a boy of six
years old, was taken down with the fever also, and the incompetent
mother had her hands more than full with the care of her house, the two
patients, and two fretful, badly trained little children, with only
Nina, who had never been taught to do anything in the world, to help
her.

Matters were in this state on the evening when the girls called, and
poor Mrs. Sanderson, coming to the door, without an atom of prudence or
caution, insisted on dragging in Katie at least, because in her wild
delirium Bertie had been incessantly shouting her name. Katie was
impulsive, not very old or experienced, and had, moreover, been always
taught to obey grown people, so without a thought of possible danger to
herself, she followed the woman into the house, while Tessa waited for
her outside, and was soon standing by the bedside of her old
acquaintance.

She would never have known Bertie Sanderson. The long, disorderly hair,
as well as the disfiguring "bangs," had, by the doctor's orders, all
been shaved off; the round, rosy cheeks were pallid and sunken; the
solid frame was wasted almost to a skeleton, and there was a fierce,
wild look in the eyes alternated with an expression of intense fear.

Katie stood aghast, and even as she looked the wasted lips suddenly
shrieked out:--

"Katie, Katie Robertson! Send her here. I w