at a
gallop along the road; they soon came along the gravel drive, were heard
to stop, and then in came quickly, but with a step soft as that of a
cat, that awe-inspiring personage--the Doctor. He saw at a glance what
had been done, and nodded his satisfaction, then examined the pupil of
poor Fred's eye, felt his pulse, and listened at his chest; and
afterwards, drawing off his coat and kneeling by the bedside, continued
the efforts that Mr Inglis had so well commenced.

An hour--a long, long hour--one with leaden seconds--slipped by during
which time not an effort was relaxed; though the faces of Mr and Mrs
Inglis betrayed the despair that had crept over them, while Harry and
Philip sobbed so that they had to be sent out of the room; when they
stifled the sobs as well as they could, and crept back to the door,
where they sat listening outside.

All this time the Doctor's face had been as solid as a block of marble,
not a trace of any emotion--hopeful or despairing--appeared; he kept on
giving order after order, and worked till the perspiration stood in
great drops upon his brow; and still no sign of life. The tears coursed
silently down Mrs Inglis's face, and it was only by a great effort that
she could keep from sobbing. Glad would she have been to have left the
room, but a sense of duty forbade her, and she stayed, lending all the
assistance that lay in her power.

All at once, the Doctor brightened up, and turning to the Squire said,
"Now, I'll have a glass of sherry and a biscuit."

Mr Inglis saw nothing to cause the cheerful way in which the Doctor
spoke, but felt that he must have a good reason for hope, or he would
not have spoken so lightly. So, ringing the bell for the refreshment,
he leaned over the poor boy, and, as he did so, a faint, a very faint,
sigh escaped from his chest, and then there was a slight twitching of
his eyelids.

"There," said the Doctor, wiping his forehead, and turning upon Mr and
Mrs Inglis with a delighted aspect,--"there, I don't believe another
medical man in the county would have persevered to that extent, and
saved the boy's life; but, there, all the credit belongs to Mr Inglis
for commencing the work so well."

"No; it's not due to me. If it had not been for that book on the
table," said he, pointing to the little pamphlet, "I should not have
known how to proceed."

"Ah, well," said the Doctor, "then we will say it was all due to the
Life Boat Institution."

But a