ng but speak. The sea-birds followed and fluttered here and there
in an erratic way, with now and then a peck at each other. All animated
nature seemed to be uneasy at this eclipse of their Hazel.

At last Tommy raised himself quite perpendicular, in a vain endeavor to
look into the boat, and invented a whine in the minor key, which tells on
dogs: it set Ponto off in a moment; he sat upon his tail, and delivered a
long and most deplorable howl.

"Everything loves him," thought Helen. With Ponto's music Hazel awoke and
found her watching him, with tears in her eyes; he said softly: "Miss
Rolleston! There is nothing the matter, I hope. Why am I not up getting
things for your breakfast?"

"Dear friend," said she, "why you are not doing things for me and
forgetting yourself is because you have been very ill. And I am your
nurse. Now tell me what I shall get you. Is there nothing you could
fancy?"

No; he had no appetite; she was not to trouble about him. And then he
tried to get up; but that gave him such a pain in his loins he was fain
to lie down again. So then he felt that he had got rheumatic fever. He
told her so; but, seeing her sweet anxious face, begged her not to be
alarmed--he knew what to take for it. Would she be kind enough to go to
his arsenal and fetch some specimens of bark she would find there, and
also the keg of rum?

She flew at the word, and soon made him an infusion of the barks in
boiling water; to which the rum was added.

His sweet nurse administered this from time to time. The barks used were
of the cassia tree, and a wild citron tree. Cinchona did not exist in
this island, unfortunately. Perhaps there was no soil for it at a
sufficient elevation above the sea.

Nevertheless with these inferior barks they held the fever in check. But
the pain was obstinate, and cost Helen many a sigh; for, if she came
softly, she could often hear him moan; and, the moment he heard her foot,
he set to and whistled, for a blind; with what success may be imagined.
She would have bought those pains, or a portion of them; ay, and paid a
heavy price for them.

But pain, like everything, intermits, and in those blessed intervals his
mind was more active than ever, and ran a great deal upon what he called
the Problem.

But she, who had set it him, gave him little encouragement now to puzzle
over it.

The following may serve as a specimen of their conversation on that head.

"The air of this island," said he,