Two of the men carried Harvey, while his wife walked by his side.
"Yes, of course. I must go at once. Call John, if you please. I should like to speak to him. John does not know what is wrong with Mrs. Dalrymple, I suppose?"
"He does not precisely, ma'am." Slade's formal voice was lowered. "He believes it to be something internal—from what Mrs. Ogilvie said— but the doctor was in hopes."
"Poor dear Julia!" and Mrs. Trevor's eyes were filled with genuine tears. "Is John outside?"
She followed Slade to the door in her impatience. John appeared quickly, and he made some material additions to Slade's abstract. He described the accident more fully, with evident appreciation of his young mistress's courage, and he showed some natural gratification over his own foresight in having secured by the way three able-bodied men to go on with him to a possible scene of disaster.
Mr. Dalrymple had looked "terrible bad," John said, on their first arrival, and Mrs. Dalrymple, seated on Prince's head, not much better. Mrs. Dalrymple had, however, declared herself unhurt and all attention had been directed to Mr. Dalrymple and the horses. Emperor was found to be dying, nearly dead, and Prince also a good deal injured. Mr. Dalrymple appeared to suffer much from being moved, and having to be carried more than two miles on a hastily-improvised stretcher. One of the men stayed behind in charge of the horses, two of them carried Harvey, while his wife walked by his side, and John hastened on to give warning at the cottage of their approach. He was in hopes of bringing the pony-carriage to meet Mrs. Dalrymple, but Captain Woodthorpe had gone off for a drive, happily leaving Mrs. Ogilvie at home. She immediately despatched the gardener in quest of medical aid, and prepared for her visitors.
Ill as Mr. Dalrymple looked when he arrived, there could be no question that his wife looked much the worst of the two. Everybody had been startled by her appearance.
"The colour of a table-cloth, ma'am—only a sort of yaller too," John graphically explained. Yet she had kept up, resolutely refusing to be cared for, and bent upon doing everything for her husband. This lasted until the doctor came. An examination of Mr. Dalrymple resulted in the cheerful verdict, "Two ribs broken, but no danger!" and then in a moment, almost without warning, Julia failed. John could not tell particulars here. He only knew that Mr. and Mrs. Dalrymple were in different rooms, that Mrs. Ogilvie could not leave Mrs. Dalrymple, and that the doctor counted her state serious.
"Those horrible horses!" Mrs. Trevor reiterated, as a kind of vent for her own distress. "I always did think something dreadful would happen some day!" Then she inquired how she was to get to the cottage, shivered at the notion of the Captain's pony-carriage which had brought John, decided to put up at once small bag of requisites, and asked where was Miss Rivers.
Slade believed that Miss Rivers had not returned from the village.