at's the matter with her?"

"Nothing dangerous--for the moment, at least."

"We must send and get the doctor!" cried George.

"I have just come from the doctor's," was the reply. "He said it was
necessary to take our child from the nurse and bring her up on the
bottle."

Again there was a pause. George could hardly bring himself to ask
the next question. Try as he would, he could not keep his voice from
weakening. "Well, now, what is her trouble?"

The mother did not answer. She stood staring before her. At last she
said, faintly, "I don't know."

"You didn't ask?"

"I asked. But it was not to our own doctor that I went."

"Ah!" whispered George. For nearly a minute neither one of them spoke.
"Why?" he inquired at last.

"Because--he--the nurse's doctor--had frightened me so--"

"Truly?"

"Yes. It is a disease--" again she stopped.

George cried, in a voice of agony, "and then?"

"Then I asked him if the matter was so grave that I could not be
satisfied with our ordinary doctor."

"And what did he answer?"

"He said that if we had the means it would really be better to consult a
specialist."

George looked at his mother again. He was able to do it, because she
was not looking at him. He clenched his hands and got himself together.
"And--where did he send you?"

His mother fumbled in her hand bag and drew out a visiting card. "Here,"
she said.

And George looked at the card. It was all he could do to keep himself
from tottering. It was the card of the doctor whom he had first
consulted about his trouble! The specialist in venereal diseases!

CHAPTER IV

It was all George could do to control his voice. "You--you went to see
him?" he stammered.

"Yes," said his mother. "You know him?"

"No, no," he answered. "Or--that is--I have met him, I think. I don't
know." And then to himself, "My God!"

There was a silence. "He is coming to talk to you," said the mother, at
last.

George was hardly able to speak. "Then he is very much disturbed?"

"No, but he wants to talk to you."

"To me?"

"Yes. When the doctor saw the nurse, he said, 'Madame, it is impossible
for me to continue to attend this child unless I have had this very day
a conversation with the father.' So I said 'Very well,' and he said he
would come at once."

George turned away, and put his hands to his forehead. "My poor little
daughter!" he whispered to himself.

"Yes," said the mother, her voice breaking, "she is, indeed