A Missionary Twig Part 10

When they reached the house and knocked at the door of the room Mrs.

Scott had directed them to, a weak but shrill voice cried out, "Come!"

They entered a neat but poorly furnished room, of which the only occupant was a pale, thin girl, lying in what appeared to be a very uncomfortable position in bed.

"I suppose you are Jennie," said Mrs. Ashford, with her pleasant smile.

"Yes, ma'am," answered the girl, staring.

"I am Mrs. Ashford. My little girl and I have come to see you."

Jennie probably had few visitors, and she certainly did not know how to treat them. She did not ask her present ones to be seated, and merely continued to stare at them as well as she could stare in the doubled-up way she was lying.

"Your mother is out to-day, is she?" said Mrs. Ashford.

"Yes, but she's only gone for half a day. She ought to be home now," and then the poor child broke into a whining cry, saying,

"I wish she'd come and fix me, for I'm all slid down, and give me some dinner."

It is very hard to be polite and pleasant when you are faint, sick, and generally miserable.

"Wont you let me fix you?" asked Mrs. Ashford. She put the basket on the table, and taking off her gloves, approached the bed.

"Now, Marty," she said, "as I raise Jennie, you beat up the pillows."

Marty beat them with a will, and the sick girl was soon comfortably placed. She appeared greatly relieved and sighed from satisfaction. Mrs.

Ashford, seeing a tin plate on the shelf, covered it with one of the napkins from her basket, and placing on it the small gla.s.s saucer of strawberries and a rusk, gave it to Marty to carry to Jennie. The wan face of the invalid flushed with pleasure when she saw the dainty food.

"For me!" she exclaimed.

"Of course it's for you," replied Marty, settling the plate on the bed.

Just then Mrs. Scott entered, almost breathless from her hurried walk, having been detained, and knowing Jennie would need her. She was exceedingly grateful when she found Mrs. Ashford and Marty ministering to her sick child.

"O mother!" cried the latter. "The lady lifted me up in bed; and see the strawberries! Some are for you."

"No, no," protested her mother, but Jennie persisted in forcing at least one upon her. When Marty saw how the berries were enjoyed she felt very well repaid for having been satisfied with a smaller portion herself.

Mrs. Ashford inquired what had been done for Jennie, and found she had had no doctor since coming to the city.

"I have no money to pay a doctor," said poor Mrs. Scott, wiping her eyes, "and I can't go to a stranger and ask him to attend her for nothing. I give her the medicine the doctor told me to get when she was first hurt, but it don't seem to do any good now."

Mrs. Ashford said she would speak to a doctor not far from there, with whom she was well acquainted, and she was sure he would be willing to come and see what could be done for the child.

"It is very hard that you have to be away from her so much, when she is sick, and almost helpless."

"It is hard, mem, but what can I do? I must work to pay the rent and get us bread, and glad enough I am to have the work. And she's not always so forlorn as you found her, for mostly she can move herself. She's a bit weak to-day. Then when I go for all day, I leave things handy on a chair by the bed, and the people in the house are real kind, coming in to see if she wants anything and to mend the fire."

In the meantime the children were not saying much, for Jennie, besides being somewhat shy, appeared tired and weak. She was greatly pleased with the book and cards, holding them tenderly in her hands. Marty sat in silence a while, and then asked,

"Have you a doll?"

"No," replied Jennie. "I never had one."

"Never in your whole life!" exclaimed Marty, extremely astonished.

"No," said Jennie quietly. "But wunst we lived next door to a girl who had one, and sometimes she let me hold it. It was the very beautifulest kind of a doll, _I_ think," she added with great animation: "had light curly hair and big blue eyes."

Marty was so overcome that she could do nothing but stand and gaze at the little girl who never had a doll, and nothing more was said until her mother was ready to go home.

CHAPTER X.

LAURA AMELIA.

On their way home Mrs. Ashford stopped at Dr. Fisher's, and finding him in his office, made her plea, and readily obtained his promise to see Jennie.

All the way Marty was unusually silent and appeared to be thinking intently. When they were nearly home she said impressively,

"Mamma, do you know, Jennie never had a doll--never in her whole life!"

"Indeed!"

"No, ma'am; and I've been thinking I'd like to give her one of mine."

"Do you think you could part with any of yours?"

"I love them all dearly, but I think I _could_ do it to make Jennie happy. I know she'd like to have a doll, and it would be a long time before I could save money enough to buy her one."

"Well," said Mrs. Ashford, "I'm sure she would be very happy with one of yours, but you had better take time to think it over well, and not do anything you would afterward regret."

Marty thought it over until the next evening, and then said she still wished to give Jennie the doll.

"Very well, then," said her mother, "I am willing you should do it.

Which doll do you think of giving her?"

"Laura Amelia."

"Why, she is your third largest and one of your prettiest! Why do you choose her?"

"Because Jennie would like a fair doll, and she's the only fair one I have except the one Grandma Brewster gave me, and I shouldn't like to give that away." And then she repeated what Jennie had said about the next-door girl's doll.

So it was settled that Laura Amelia was to leave home the next Sat.u.r.day.

Her clothes were put in good order, and Mrs. Ashford made her a travelling dress.

On Friday night when Marty, in her little wrapper and worsted slippers, made her appearance at the sitting-room door to say "Good-night," she had Laura Amelia clasped in her arms.