Part 10 (2/2)
After that he seemed to fall into one of his trances, and lay immovable an hour or e, sandy head and said:
”See that if you hadn't said 'Look at theher”
”But don't you ever look out of the ?”
The obstinatesilence in the ward to-night It was so cold that no one spoke It is a gloohts is so much too thick, and the fire smokes dreadfully The patients sat round the fire with their ”British warowns and the collars turned up
Through the two glass doors and over the landing you can see the TB's ures backwards and forwards across the lighted entrance
Suddenly--a hesitating touch--an ancient polka struck up, a tune remembered at children's parties Then a waltz, a very old one too The TB's were playing dance music
I crept to their door and looked Oneany notice, and he was the player; the others sat round coughing or staring at nothing in particular, and those in bed had their heads turned away froe has now e He allows hisopen: that way the bird will fly
What is there so rapturous about theat the top of the Christ, necklace or spoon, the thing the baby leans to catchthe pie in us
Mr Beecher is to be allowed to sleep till eight He sleeps so badly, he says He woke up crying this , for he has neurasthenia
That is what Sister says
He should have been in bed all yesterday, but instead he got up and through the door watched the dead TB ride away on his stretcher (for the bird flew in the night)
”How morbid of him!” Sister says
He has seen ree with him that to die of tuberculosis in the backwaters of the war isn't the saht how dreary it was as he lay awake in the night
But then he has neurasthenia
Pity is exhaustible What a terrible discovery! If one ceases for one instant to pity Mr Wicks he beco, I hear his grieving tenor voice all over the ward, his legendary tale of a wrong done him in his promotion The men are kind to him and say ”Old man,” but Mr Gray, who lies in the next bed to hination I heard him say yesterday, ”You told ht
There was a rumour at tea-time, and suddenly I came round a corner on an orderly full of such definite information as:
”There's thirty officers, nurse; an 'undred an' eighty men”
I flew back to the bunk with the news, and we sat down to our tea wondering and discussing how hty Sister from downstairs cah, and her rilea for a hot-water bottle that had been loaned to us: