smallest expense of fuel was to be attained. It was one of those
senseless acts that no one would have thought of forbidding; and though
the boy, on recovering his senses, owned that the last thing he
remembered was getting the matches and Mr. Yolland shouting to stop
him, there were many who never would believe anything but that it was
blundering of his, and that he was a dangerous and mischievous person
to have in the town.

Harold came home for a little while just as we were having breakfast,
to bring a report that his patient had had a much quieter night than he
expected, and to say that he had telegraphed for the brother and wanted
Eustace to meet him at the station. The landlady was sitting with the
patient now, and Harold had come home for ice, strawberries, and, above
all, to ask for help in nursing, for the landlady could not, and would
not, do much. I mentioned a motherly woman as, perhaps, likely to be
useful, but Harold said, "I could do best with Dora."

He had so far learnt that it was not the Bush as not to expect me to
offer, and was quite unprepared for the fire that Eustace and I opened
on him as to the impossibility of his request. "Miss Alison, _my_
sister," as Eustace said, "going down to a little, common, general
practitioner to wait on him;" while I confined myself to "It won't do
at all, Harold," and promised to hunt up the woman and to send her to
his aid. But when I had seen her, arranged my housekeeping affairs,
and called Dora to lessons, she was nowhere to be found.

"Then she has gone after Harold!" indignantly exclaimed Eustace. "It
is too bad! I declare I will put a stop to it! To have _my_ sister
demeaning herself to put herself in such a situation for a little Union
doctor!"

I laughed, and observed that no great harm was done with so small a
person, only I could not think what use Harold could make of her; at
which Eustace was no less surprised, for a girl of eight or nine was of
no small value in the Bush, and he said Dora had been most helpful in
the care of her father. But his dignity was so much outraged that he
talked big of going to bring her home--only he did not go. I was a
little wounded at Harold having taken her in the face of my opposition,
but I found that that had not been the case, for Eustace had walked to
the lodge with him, and she had rushed after and joined him after he
was in the town. And at luncheon Eustace fell on me with entreaties
that I would co