that she would soon be well
again, for it seemed to him that she was past any hope of that.

"You have not read your letter," he said.

"No; I shall have that afterwards; and it is so long since I saw any one
that I ever saw before. Did Miss Gertrude like her school?"

"Yes; I think she liked it. She has grown, I think, and she is greatly
improved in many ways."

"She was always good to me," said Christie, softly.

"Well, I don't know. She told me she was often very cross and
unreasonable with you," said Mr Sherwood, smiling.

"Well, sometimes, perhaps. But I loved her. I sometimes wonder if I
shall ever see her again."

"As soon as she comes home you may be sure of seeing her, and that will
not be long now--unless, indeed, you are better, and should go home
before she comes," he forced himself to add.

Christie made no reply to that, but in a little while she asked about
the children; and though Mr Sherwood was surprised, he was not sorry
that she did not speak any more about herself till he rose to go away.

"Must you go?" she asked, wistfully. "When you hear from Miss Gertrude
again, perhaps you will come and tell me about her?"

"That I will," said Mr Sherwood, heartily; "and I would come before
that if I could do you any good I am sure I wish I could."

"Oh, you have done me good already. I shall have something to think
about all day--and my letter, besides. I thank you very much."

Just then her eyes fell on a flower in his button-hole. He took it out
and offered it to her.

"Oh, I thank you! I didn't mean to ask for it. It will be company for
me all day."

"Are you quite alone from morning till night? Poor child! No wonder
that the time seems long!"

"The nurse comes in as often as I need anything. But she thinks, they
all think, it would be better if I were to go into one of the wards. I
can work or read very little now, and the time would not seem so long
with faces to see, even if they are sad faces."

Mr Sherwood still lingered.

"Do your friends know that you are here? Do they know how ill you are?"
he asked.

"Oh, yes; they know I am in the hospital. I have been waiting till I
should be a little better, to write again to Effie. I must write soon.
She will be anxious about me, I'm afraid."

Her face looked very grave in the silence that followed. Mr Sherwood
would fain have spoken some hopeful words, but somehow they did not come
readily into his mind; and when the