or with her little green-checked shawl over her
head. I can see her now. 'Do come over here, Miss Anderson,' she sung
out, kind of gasping for breath. I didn't stop for anythin'. I put
over as fast as I could, and when I got there, there was Luella
laughin' and cryin' all together, and Aunt Abby trying to hush her, and
all the time she herself was white as a sheet and shakin' so she could
hardly stand. 'For the land sakes, Mrs. Mixter,' says I, 'you look
worse than she does. You ain't fit to be up out of your bed.'

"'Oh, there ain't anythin' the matter with me,' says she. Then she
went on talkin' to Luella. 'There, there, don't, don't, poor little
lamb,' says she. 'Aunt Abby is here. She ain't goin' away and leave
you. Don't, poor little lamb.'

"'Do leave her with me, Mrs. Mixter, and you get back to bed,' says I,
for Aunt Abby had been layin' down considerable lately, though somehow
she contrived to do the work.

"'I'm well enough,' says she. 'Don't you think she had better have the
doctor, Miss Anderson?'

"'The doctor,' says I, 'I think YOU had better have the doctor. I
think you need him much worse than some folks I could mention.' And I
looked right straight at Luella Miller laughin' and cryin' and goin' on
as if she was the centre of all creation. All the time she was actin'
so--seemed as if she was too sick to sense anythin'--she was keepin' a
sharp lookout as to how we took it out of the corner of one eye. I see
her. You could never cheat me about Luella Miller. Finally I got real
mad and I run home and I got a bottle of valerian I had, and I poured
some boilin' hot water on a handful of catnip, and I mixed up that
catnip tea with most half a wineglass of valerian, and I went with it
over to Luella's. I marched right up to Luella, a-holdin' out of that
cup, all smokin'. 'Now,' says I, 'Luella Miller, 'YOU SWALLER THIS!'

"'What is--what is it, oh, what is it?' she sort of screeches out. Then
she goes off a-laughin' enough to kill.

"'Poor lamb, poor little lamb,' says Aunt Abby, standin' over her, all
kind of tottery, and tryin' to bathe her head with camphor.

"'YOU SWALLER THIS RIGHT DOWN,' says I. And I didn't waste any
ceremony. I just took hold of Luella Miller's chin and I tipped her
head back, and I caught her mouth open with laughin', and I clapped
that cup to her lips, and I fairly hollered at her: 'Swaller, swaller,
swaller!' and she gulped it right down. She had to, and I