Papa and Mama came into his room.

'Well, my boy,' his father exclaimed in an unusually cheerful tone, 'it
is quite settled now; Madeira is the place, and I hope you like the
plan.'

'Oh, Papa,' said Willy, 'is it really worth while?'

'Of course it is worth while, a hundred times over,' replied his father;
'and we will be off in the first ship.'

'The doctors strongly advise it, and we have all great hopes from it, my
dear Willy,' said his mother.

'Then so have I,' said Willy; 'and, indeed, I like it extremely, and I
am very grateful to you. The only thing I mind is, that you and my
father should have to leave home and make a long sea voyage, when you
do not like travelling, and Papa has so much to keep him in England.'

'Oh, never mind me,' said his mother; 'I shall like nothing so well as
travelling, if it does you good.'

'And never mind me,' said his father; 'there is nothing of so much
consequence to keep me in England, as your health to take me out of it.'

'Besides, my dear child,' said his mother, 'as the change of climate is
so strongly recommended for you, it becomes a duty as well as a pleasure
to try it.'

'So make your mind easy, my boy,' added his father; 'and I will go and
take our passage for Madeira.'

The father left the room, and the mother remained conversing with her
sick child, whose spirits were unusually excited. I scarcely knew him
again. He was generally slow and quiet, and rather desponding about
himself; but he now thought he should certainly get well, and was so
eager and anxious to start without delay, that his mother had some
difficulty in reconciling him to the idea that no ship would sail till
next month. She also took great pains to impress upon him the duty of
resignation, in case the attempt should fail, after all, in restoring
his health; and she finally left him, not less hopeful, but more calm
and contented with whatever might befall him.

And now began the preparations for the voyage. There was no time to
spare, considering all that had to be done. Every body was at work; and
though poor Willy himself could not do much to help, he thought of
nothing else. His common books and drawings were changed for maps and
voyages; the track to Madeira was looked up by him and Rose every day,
and sometimes two or three times in the day, and every book consulted
that contained the least reference to the Madeira Isles.

Edward was an indefatigable packer. He was not to be one of