ng at all. I have, therefore, nothing to receive
again."

She looked at him fixedly, evidently impressed by the fervor of his
denial.

"You sent me nothing to-night, sir?" she asked, doubtfully.

"Nothing at any time--nothing," he answered, firmly.

It would have been folly to have disbelieved the truthful look of his
wondering face, and she turned away in amazement and confusion. There
was a long pause.

"I hope, Mrs. Miller, you will not refuse any assistance I can render to
your child," he said, at length.

She started, and replied, tremblingly and confusedly, "No, sir; we shall
be grateful to you, if you can save her"--and went quickly, with a
strange abstraction on her white face, into the inner room. He followed
her at once, and, hardly glancing at Mrs. Flanagan, who sat there in
stupefaction, with her apron over her head and face, he laid his hat on
a table, went to the bedside of the little girl, and felt her head and
pulse. He soon satisfied himself that the little sufferer was in no
danger, under proper remedies, and now dashed down a prescription on a
leaf from his pocket-book. Mrs. Flanagan, who had come out from the
retirement of her apron, to stare stupidly at him during the
examination, suddenly bobbed up on her legs, with enlightened alacrity,
when he asked if there was any one that could go out to the
apothecary's, and said, "sure I wull!" He had a little trouble to make
her understand that the prescription, which she took by the corner,
holding it away from her, as if it were going to explode presently, and
staring at it upside down--was to be left--"_left_, mind you, Mrs.
Flanagan--with the apothecary--Mr. Flint--at the nearest corner--and he
will give you some things, which you are to bring here." But she had
shuffled off at last with a confident, "yis, sur--aw, I knoo," her head
nodding satisfied assent, and her big thumb covering the note on the
margin, "charge to Dr. C. Renton, Bowdoin street," (which _I_ know,
could not keep it from the eyes of the angels!) and he sat down to await
her return.

"Mrs. Miller," he said, kindly, "don't be alarmed about your child. She
is doing well; and, after you have given her the medicine Mrs. Flanagan
will bring, you'll find her much better, to-morrow. She must be kept
cool and quiet, you know, and she'll be all right soon."

"Oh! Dr. Renton, I am very grateful," was the tremulous reply; "and we
will follow all directions, sir. It is hard to keep her q