unt a heroism that was not true. He supposed that she had
seen his selfishness of motive, and that it was her time now to let him
see that she had not much admiration for him, so that he might make his
choice without bias.

"It is true that I do not love the people, but I will pass the winter
here."

If the lady had had the hard thought of him that he attributed to her,
there was no further sign of it, for she thanked him now with a
gratitude so great that silent tears trembled in her eyes.

CHAPTER XI.

THE LADY'S HUSBAND.

It was impossible but that Caius should take a keen interest in his
medical work. It was the first time that he had stood alone to fight
disease, and the weight of the responsibility added zest to his care of
each particular case. It was, however, natural to him to be more
interested in the general weal than in the individual, more interested
in a theoretical problem than in its practical working. His mind was
concerned now as to where and how the contagion hid itself, reappearing
as it had done, again and again in unlikely places; for there could be
assuredly no home for it in air, or sea, or land. Nor could drains be at
fault, for there were none. Next to this, the subject most constantly in
his mind was the plan of the hospital.

Madame Le Maitre had said to him: "I have tried to persuade the people
to bring their sick to beds in my house, where we would nurse them, but
they will not. It is because they are angry to think that the sick from
different families would be put together and treated alike. They have
great notions of the differences between themselves, and they cannot
realize the danger, or believe that this plan would avert it; but now
that you have come, no doubt you will be able to explain to them more
clearly. Perhaps they will listen to you, because you are a man and a
doctor. Also, what I have said will have had time to work. You may reap
where I have sown."

She had looked upon him encouragingly, and Caius had felt encouraged;
but when he began to talk to the people, both courage and patience
quickly ebbed. He could not countenance the plan of bringing the sick
into the house where Madame Le Maitre and the young girls lived. He
wanted the men who were idle in the winter time to build a temporary
shed of pine-wood, which would have been easy enough, but the men
laughed at him. The only reason that Caius did not give them back scorn
for scorn and anger for their laz