"Oh, Molly! What have you done to this angel?" asked the grandmother almost sternly.
"Nothing! I declare!"
"That"s jes" it! She ain"t done nuffin! That shows she hates me. Kizzie done say, "Who de Lord loveneth he chases," an" I done did the wussest thing I could do an" my muvver she ain"t so much as said: "Why, Mildred!" I wants to git spanked! I wants to git spanked!"
"Why, darling, what have you done?" asked Mrs. Brown, trying to control her risibles.
"I done shave-pated, number-eighted my little Haythen friend. Kizzie called Cho-Cho:
""Shave pate, number eight Hit yo" haid aginst the gate."
"It sho did hurt Cho-Cho"s feelings. And Cho-Cho, she slish-slashed my hair off so"s I"d look cute. n.o.body ain"t told us we look cute--and n.o.body ain"t spanked us nor nothin"--and n.o.body don"t love us." This tirade came out between sobs.
Kent and Judy roared with laughter but Molly and her mother tried to look sad and mournful.
"Molly, I"m astonished! Why don"t you spank your kid? I never heard of such an inhuman parent," teased Kent.
Molly was very happy indeed. The miracle had come! Her prayer was answered. She did not have to punish Mildred. Mildred was punished.
"You wouldn"t have treated yo" dear little children so mean, would you, Granny?"
"You bet she wouldn"t have," insisted Kent. "Why, if I had shave-pated, number-eighted my little Haythen friends, your granny would have torn me limb from limb and beaten me black and blue."
"Sho nuf?"
"Yes, indeed, and if my little Haythen friend had chopped off all my pretty curls, I am sure her mother would have thrown her in the fire and poked holes in her with a red hot poker."
"Jes" "cause they loved you so much?"
"Yes, just because they loved us so much."
"Me"n" Cho-Cho wisht we could git throwed in the fire," sighed the repentant Mildred. "But, Uncle Kent," and she got up and put her little mouth close to his ear, "don"t you think I made a mighty cunning little j.a.panese dolly out"n my Haythen friend?"
CHAPTER XIX
A DEATH
"Aunt Judy, my Poilu is tellible sick! He can"t open up his mouf mo"n "bout a minute far. Won"t you please, ma"m, punch it open wif the b.u.t.ton hook so"s I kin poke some breafkast down him?"
Mildred had the little puppy clasped in her arms and he did seem to be very miserable. His eyes were partly closed and his teeth were tightly clamped together.
"I weckon that big ol" dog what eated a piece out"n him done made him so sick."
"But, honey, that was a week ago, and if it had been going to make him sick it would surely have affected him long ago. It was nothing but a scratch, and don"t you remember Aunt Judy bound it up so tight it only bled a moment?"
Judy and Kent had remained at Wellington for a visit. Kent was so soon to join his regiment that he felt he could not tear himself away from his mother and sister, so they had lingered on after the other guests had departed. The bride and groom had also returned after a flying visit to Nance"s old home and were now with the McLeans, Nance declaring that Andy"s mother must have all she could of her son before he was to sail for France.
Judy took the puppy in her lap and smoothed his silky sides. The little fellow opened his eyes and gave her a grateful glance. Mildred did squeeze a little too tight when a fellow felt as sick as poor little Poilu did.
"Maybe we had better get the doctor for him," suggested Judy. "There come Andy and Aunt Nance now, across the campus! Call them, Mildred!
Andy is not too proud to doctor a dog."
Mildred delightedly ran to the door and waved her arms frantically. "Hi there, brideangroom! brideangroom! Somebody"s mighty sick in this here house. Better hurry up or they might go deaded!"
Andy and Nance quickened their pace and hastened into the house.
"Who is it?" they cried anxiously.
"It"s my littlest brudder!"
"Dodo! What is the matter with my little husband?" asked Nance anxiously.
""Tain"t Dodo! He ain"t my littlest brudder. I"se got anudder brudder.
Ain"t you knowed about him?"
Nance and Andy were much mystified, but they followed the amusing little creature into the library. Nance thought perhaps the big-hearted Molly had adopted a French orphan,--Molly was quite capable of doing it.
"There"s my brudder!" and Mildred pointed to the suffering puppy. "Ain"t it too bad he"s got a tail?"
Andy laughed as he lifted the poor little Poilu to his own knees.
"What is the matter with him, Andy?" was Judy"s anxious query.
"It looks like the last stages of teta.n.u.s." The patient was even then in a violent convulsion. Andy mercifully laid his handkerchief over the little fellow"s head, dreading that Mildred should see his suffering.
"I"d put him out of his misery but he will be gone in a moment anyhow,"
he said sadly. "Has he been hurt?"
"A week ago he got bitten by a dog, but it was a mere scratch and did not amount to a row of pins, so Molly and I decided."
"Did you put anything on the wound?"
"Nothing but a surgical dressing down at the war relief rooms. I remember it was one of the beautifully made dressings Madame Misel had just brought in----"
Andy sprang up, a wild light in his eye. The puppy had breathed its last so he handed it over to Judy without more ado.
"Where is Molly?"
"She has gone down in the village to pack supplies at the war relief rooms. There were lots of things to get off, so she went quite early. I am to follow a little later, just as soon as Kent finishes primping.
What is the matter?"
"There may be much the matter. You and Kent come as fast as you can,"
and Andy and Nance hurried off without any more explanation.
The news was broken to Mildred that her pet was no more and her bruised heart was much comforted with promises of a funeral later on when Kizzie got time to make arrangements. Kent and Judy caught up with Andy and Nance before they reached the old church where the war work was carried on.