had died
followed their mother to her watery grave.

Charles at first tried to persuade his sisters that they were not called
upon to risk their health.

"Then why do you risk yours, brother?" asked Emily. "Your life, surely,
is as precious as ours. You would get on very well without us, but we
should be forlorn creatures indeed if left alone. I am sure we are but
doing our duty, and there is One above who will protect us."

"But I am more hardy than you are," argued Charles. "I can go aloft,
too, and get any germs of fever which I might have contracted blown
away."

"There is no wind to blow them away," said Emily, "and we are not more
likely to catch the fever than you are. Let us do our duty, and leave
the rest to God."

Still, though Charles was not thoroughly convinced, his sisters gained
their object. That very day they visited the hospital, nursed the poor
children, gave them their medicine and food, and rendered all the
assistance they could to the sick mothers. Charles used to look
anxiously at them every morning as they appeared at breakfast, fearful
of hearing them complain of illness; but the bloom of health still
glowed on their cheeks, and though grave, and sometimes sad when another
victim had been added to those already taken off by the disease, they
retained their spirits and courage.

"Really, Dicey, you are a brave fellow," said Jack Ivyleaf one day,
while Charles was taking his usual walk on deck for exercise. "I cannot
bring myself to go among those sick people as you do. It's all very
well to go forward and amuse them when they are in health, and inclined
to be jolly; but to go and sit in the hot, sweltering atmosphere
between-decks is quite another thing."

"Possibly, Mr Ivyleaf, you do not reflect that those poor sick people
have immortal souls like ourselves," observed Mr Paget, who had that
instant joined them. "If we profess to be Christians we should look
upon them as brothers in distress, and do our utmost for their souls as
well as their bodies."

"Ah, no, to be sure," said Jack, keeping his mouth agape, and gazing at
Mr Paget. "I should have thought that sort of work might be left to
the parson and doctor."

"But as we have no parson on board, and the doctor is overworked, does
it not strike you that the poor people have a right to our assistance?"
asked Mr Paget.

"Right! I don't see that they can have any right!" said Jack; "though
it's very kind in you and Dice