Page:Six months in Kansas.djvu/85

I drop away from them, to hurry him along. Wise men of the nation come in shoals to to the door, to say how important he is to them; and to express thanks for my taking him in charge. I had not the least idea that he was of more consequence than Davie, or any other person, when I took him home. But I see very plainly his temperament will make it hard work to get him up rapidly. I must devote myself to him. Here I sit, mother; the cooking stove is at my right hand, my poor invalid at my left; on the stove-hearth, stands the last of grand-father's coffee cups, which he fancied so much for their generous size, and standing in it the spoon, bearing your name at full length. I wonder how many times I read it every day, scan each letter, measure the whole word, knitting the while, often with my eyes closed, from a soreness gathering into them for the want of sleep. Now I see the lips of the sick man move. I lift the nice old spoon to moisten them, and return it again to the cup. Down before me is a tin wash-basin, full of ice-water, and a napkin old and soft. It seems to mesmerize the heated features, by its softness and