| OCR Text |
Show '74 - ""'"""' G!U> llose ant> Silller ful or disagreeable in order to be healing," remarked the young man, thoughtfully. "Would you like to throw 'em all out of the window?" "I certainly would." "All right-that 'II be good business." He swung Allison's bed around so that his right arm rested easily on the window sill, requested the nurse to wheel the drug store within easy reach, and rapidly uncorked bottle after bottle with his own hands. "Now then, get busy." He sat by, smiling, while Allison poured the varying contents of the drug store on the ground below and listened for the sound of breaking glass when the bottle swiftly followed the last gurgling drop. When all had been disposed of, the nurse took out the table, and the young man smiled expansively at Allison. "Feel better?" "1-think so." "Good. Now, look here. How much does your hand mean to you? " "How much does it mean?" repeated Allison, pitifully. "It means life, career-everything." "Enough to make a fight for it then, I take it." Dull colour surged by waves into Allison's white face. "What do you mean?" he asked, in a broken voice. "Tell me what you mean!" lll11cr tbe llar '7 s But the young man was removing his coat. ll:bc "''• "Hot day," he was saying, "and the young JSic1"'nt lady won't mind my negligee as long as the braces don't show. Strange-how women hate nice new braces. Say," he said to the nurse as she returned, uget somebody to go up to the station and bring down my trunk, will you?" "Trunk?" echoed Allison. "Sure," smiled the young man. "My instructions were to stay if I saw any hope, so I brought along my trunk. I 'm always looking for a chance to hope, and I 've discovered that it's one of the very best ways to find it." The nurse had hastened away upon her errand. The new element in the atmosphere of the sick room had subtly affected her, also. "Don't fence," Allison was saying, huskily. "I've asked so much that I've quit asking." The young man nodded complete understanding. "I know. The moss-backs sit around and look wise, and expect to work miracles on a patient who doesn't know what they're doing and finally gets the impression that he isn't considered fit to know. Far be it from me to disparage the pioneers of our noble profession, but I 'm modest enough to admit that I need help, and the best help, every time, comes from the patient himself." He drew up his chair beside the bed and sat |
