tly not the conclusion of young
Talbot Forbes. I had never seen this boy in my life, nor his mother; but
I suppose my old friendship with his father, and my deep sympathy with
the latter, enabled the son to approach me soon after he had passed into
the next sphere.

Anyway, he made me conscious of his presence by my bedside during the
greater part of the night following my receipt of his father's letter.

Owing to my severe illness I was sleeping very little, and once or twice
in the night an attendant came in to make up my fire and keep the
temperature of the room even, so that I had ample opportunity for
realising the presence of my hitherto unknown visitor.

Those who know what "hearing with the inner ear" means will realise the
method through which the following conversation took place, so far as I
can now recall it:--

_TALBOT._--"_Yes, it is Talbot Forbes. I want to speak to you. Please
listen to me! I want to tell you, you must do more for them than
this--you have to help them about me._"

E. K. B.--"Who do you mean by '_them_'?"

_TALBOT._--"_My parents, of course. Don't you understand what I am
saying? You have to do more for them--you must make them know I am close
to them._"

Now I could only suppose that he wished me to write again to his father,
and explain more fully my own ideas on the subject of our departed
friends. As this would have involved a wearisome and almost certainly
_useless_ discussion on a topic which I had reason to know was very
distasteful to the boy's father, I said rather shortly, and I am afraid
with some of the petulance of an invalid:

"Oh, do be quiet, and leave me alone! I have done all I can, and there
is no more to be said about it. I am very sorry for you, but I really
can't help you in this. I don't know your mother or what her views about
it may be; and as for your father--well, I am not going to worry and
torment him about ideas that he dislikes and disapproves of, and just
now, too, when he is so miserable! No, I won't do it, not even if you
come and worry me about it every night."

I was feeling ill and weary, and longing for sleep, and hoped this would
be a quietus to my young friend. Not a bit of it! His next remark was:

"_What does it matter what_ YOU _think or what you mean to do or not to
do? You have to help them, not to think about your own feelings._"

This was frank at anyrate, but not altogether convincing. Soon
afterwards, tired out with the discuss