guess it did
her good. Anyhow, she stopped cryin' and laughin' and let me put her
to bed, and she went to sleep like a baby inside of half an hour. That
was more than poor Aunt Abby did. She lay awake all that night and I
stayed with her, though she tried not to have me; said she wa'n't sick
enough for watchers. But I stayed, and I made some good cornmeal gruel
and I fed her a teaspoon every little while all night long. It seemed
to me as if she was jest dyin' from bein' all wore out. In the mornin'
as soon as it was light I run over to the Bisbees and sent Johnny
Bisbee for the doctor. I told him to tell the doctor to hurry, and he
come pretty quick. Poor Aunt Abby didn't seem to know much of anythin'
when he got there. You couldn't hardly tell she breathed, she was so
used up. When the doctor had gone, Luella came into the room lookin'
like a baby in her ruffled nightgown. I can see her now. Her eyes
were as blue and her face all pink and white like a blossom, and she
looked at Aunt Abby in the bed sort of innocent and surprised. 'Why,'
says she, 'Aunt Abby ain't got up yet?'

"'No, she ain't,' says I, pretty short.

"'I thought I didn't smell the coffee,' says Luella.

"'Coffee,' says I. 'I guess if you have coffee this mornin' you'll
make it yourself.'

"'I never made the coffee in all my life,' says she, dreadful
astonished. 'Erastus always made the coffee as long as he lived, and
then Lily she made it, and then Aunt Abby made it. I don't believe I
CAN make the coffee, Miss Anderson.'

"'You can make it or go without, jest as you please,' says I.

"'Ain't Aunt Abby goin' to get up?' says she.

"'I guess she won't get up,' says I, 'sick as she is.' I was gettin'
madder and madder. There was somethin' about that little
pink-and-white thing standin' there and talkin' about coffee, when she
had killed so many better folks than she was, and had jest killed
another, that made me feel 'most as if I wished somebody would up and
kill her before she had a chance to do any more harm.

"'Is Aunt Abby sick?' says Luella, as if she was sort of aggrieved and
injured.

"'Yes,' says I, 'she's sick, and she's goin' to die, and then you'll be
left alone, and you'll have to do for yourself and wait on yourself, or
do without things.' I don't know but I was sort of hard, but it was
the truth, and if I was any harder than Luella Miller had been I'll
give up. I ain't never been sorry that I said it. Well,