veteran, who was a little too liberal in the application of stimulants,
which led to a reappearance of fever, and necessitated his calling in
the aid of the ever-willing and kindly Honoria. Both the clergymen had
volunteered to sit up with him, whom they were proud to call their
friend, but it was not considered fair to impose upon them after the
labours of their hardest day.

The morning saw Miss Carmichael in the sick room again, putting things
to rights, purifying and beautifying it, as only a woman can, with the
romantic and tearful, Shakespeare loving Tryphosa in her train. Poor
little neglected Marjorie, who had performed for her young self an art
of heroic sacrifice in handing over her own Eugene to her unworthy
cousin, was allowed, a great and hitherto unheard of reward, to bring
the patient an armful of flowers from the garden, gathering any blossoms
she chose, to fill vases and slender button-hole glasses in every
corner. She was even permitted to kiss Eugene, although she protested
against the removal of that lovely moustache. She offered to bring
Felina to lick off the stubble on her friend's chin, but that friend, in
a wheezy whistling voice, begged that Maguffin might be substituted for
the cat, in case pussy might scratch him. Maguffin came with the
colonel's razors, and Marjorie looked on, while he gave the author of
his present fortunes a clean shave, and made ironical remarks about
moustache trimming. "Guess the man what trimmed yoh mustash fought he
was a bahbah, sah?" The patient smiled seraphically, and whistled in
his throat. "Never want to have a better, Maguffin."

"It's awful, Guff, isn't it?" asked Miss Thomas, and continued, "it
quite gives me the horrows!"

"Dey's bahbahs and dey's bahbahs," replied the coloured gentlemen, "and
I doan want ter blame a gennelum as cayn't help hisself."

The barbering completed, Marjorie junior was dismissed with her ally
Guff, and the senior lady of that name reigned supreme. The eyes of the
feeble invalid, whose heart had been hungering and thirsting for love
during a month that had seemed a lifetime, followed her all over the
room, and almost stopped beating when she went near the door. But she
came back, and held that hot fevered hand on which her modest ring
glistened, and cooled his brow, and made him take his sloppy food, and
answered back in soft but cheery tones his deprecating whispers. She had
him now safe, and would tyrannize over him, she said