any noise."

"That's right. You are both going to be brave little people, I know, and
perhaps by and by you may like to go and make a little visit to some of
your friends, just until your mother gets stronger."

"We haven't any friends," said Betty; "we don't know any one at all,
except Mrs. Hamilton and Winifred."

The doctor looked surprised, and a little troubled.

"No friends?" he repeated; "no aunts or cousins?"

Betty shook her head.

"We have an uncle in England," she said, "but we've never seen him. We
haven't any relations in this country. Mother has her pupils, but we
don't know any of them."

The doctor said no more, and was turning to leave the room, when Jack
spoke for the first time since his entrance.

"Please, sir," he said tremulously, "would you mind telling us--is
mother going to be well again pretty soon?"

"Pretty soon I hope, my boy," said the doctor kindly, and coming over to
the sofa, he took the thin little hand in his and looked long and
earnestly into Jack's troubled face. "I shall do all I can to make her
well soon, you may be sure of that."

"Thank you, sir," said Jack gratefully. "I think you are a very kind
gentleman," he added in his quaint, old-fashioned little way.

The doctor smiled, gave the small hand a friendly shake and hurried
away, followed by Mrs. Hamilton.

That was about the longest afternoon Betty and Jack had ever known. Mrs.
Hamilton was very kind, but she was too busy to pay much attention to
them, and they were left pretty much to themselves. There was no use in
trying to read or to play games. They tried lotto, but it proved a
miserable failure. Then Betty tried reading aloud, but a big lump kept
rising in her throat and choking her, and they soon gave that up as
well. After all, the most comforting thing seemed to sit hand in hand,
talking in whispers, and listening to every sound from the sick-room.

At about four o'clock there was a ring at the bell, and Betty, hurrying
to admit the visitor, encountered in the hall a tall young woman, with a
bright, sensible face, who carried a traveling bag, and who Mrs.
Hamilton told her was the nurse Dr. Bell had promised to send. After
that there was a good deal of whispering and moving about, but no one
came near the children, and the time seemed very long indeed.

It was nearly dark when the doctor came again. The children heard his
voice in the hall, and after a little while he and Mrs. Hamilton came
into the s