Prince" meant the village surgeon, Mr. Prince,
between whom and Miss Galindo there was war to the knife, as they often
met in the cottages, when there was illness, and she had her queer, odd
recipes, which he, with his grand pharmacopoeia, held in infinite
contempt, and the consequence of their squabbling had been, not long
before this very time, that he had established a kind of rule, that into
whatever sick-room Miss Galindo was admitted, there he refused to visit.
But Miss Galindo's prescriptions and visits cost nothing and were often
backed by kitchen-physic; so, though it was true that she never came but
she scolded about something or other, she was generally preferred as
medical attendant to Mr. Prince.

"Yes, the old donkey is obliged to tolerate me, and be civil to me; for,
you see, I got there first, and had possession, as it were, and yet my
lord the donkey likes the credit of attending the parson, and being in
consultation with so grand a county-town doctor as Doctor Trevor. And
Doctor Trevor is an old friend of mine" (she sighed a little, some time I
may tell you why), "and treats me with infinite bowing and respect; so
the donkey, not to be out of medical fashion, bows too, though it is
sadly against the grain; and he pulled a face as if he had heard a slate-
pencil gritting against a slate, when I told Doctor Trevor I meant to sit
up with the two lads, for I call Mr. Gray little more than a lad, and a
pretty conceited one, too, at times."

"But why should you sit up, Miss Galindo? It will tire you sadly."

"Not it. You see, there is Gregson's mother to keep quiet for she sits
by her lad, fretting and sobbing, so that I'm afraid of her disturbing
Mr. Gray; and there's Mr. Gray to keep quiet, for Doctor Trevor says his
life depends on it; and there is medicine to be given to the one, and
bandages to be attended to for the other; and the wild horde of gipsy
brothers and sisters to be turned out, and the father to be held in from
showing too much gratitude to Mr. Gray, who can't hear it,--and who is to
do it all but me? The only servant is old lame Betty, who once lived
with me, and _would_ leave me because she said I was always
bothering--(there was a good deal of truth in what she said, I grant, but
she need not have said it; a good deal of truth is best let alone at the
bottom of the well), and what can she do,--deaf as ever she can be, too?"

So Miss Galindo went her ways; but not the less was she a