The New Magdalen

"That was Grace," said Lady Janet.

"And I was the war correspondent," added Horace.

"A few words more," said Julian, "and you will understand my object in

claiming your attention."

He returned to the letter for the last time, and concluded his extracts

from it as follows: "'Instead of attending at the hospital myself, I communicated by letter

the failure of my attempt to discover the missing nurse. For some little

time afterward I heard no more of the sick woman, whom I shall still

call Mercy Merrick. It was only yesterday that I received another

summons to visit the patient. She had by this time sufficiently

recovered to claim her discharge, and she had announced her intention of

returning forthwith to England. The head physician, feeling a sense of

responsibility, had sent for me. It was impossible to detain her on

the ground that she was not fit to be trusted by herself at large, in

consequence of the difference of opinion among the doctors on the case.

All that could be done was to give me due notice, and to leave the

matter in my hands. On seeing her for the second time, I found her

sullen and reserved. She openly attributed my inability to find the

nurse to want of zeal for her interests on my part. I had, on my side,

no authority whatever to detain her. I could only inquire whether she

had money enough to pay her traveling expenses. Her reply informed me

that the chaplain of the hospital had mentioned her forlorn situation in

the town, and that the English residents had subscribed a small sum

of money to enable her to return to her own country. Satisfied on this

head, I asked next if she had friends to go to in England. "I have one

friend," she answered, "who is a host in herself--Lady Janet Roy." You

may imagine my surprise when I heard this. I found it quite useless to

make any further inquiries as to how she came to know your aunt, whether

your aunt expected her, and so on. My questions evidently offended her;

they were received in sulky silence. Under these circumstances,

well knowing that I can trust implicitly to your humane sympathy for

misfortune, I have decided (after careful reflection) to insure the poor

creature's safety when she arrives in London by giving her a letter

to you. You will hear what she says, and you will be better able to

discover than I am whether she really has any claim on Lady Janet Roy.

One last word of information, which it may be necessary to add, and I

shall close this inordinately long letter. At my first interview with

her I abstained, as I have already told you, from irritating her by any

inquiries on the subject of her name. On this second occasion, however,

I decided on putting the question.'"