“Yes, right here, Mr. Dean.” David’s voice was scared; he could not understand what had happened.
“Give me your hand, David.” The master put out his own gropingly. “I can’t see, David. I’m blind.”
[“Oh!” cried David. He clasped Mr. Dean’s hand. “It—it can’t be serious.] It will pass off—”
[“OH!” CRIED DAVID. HE CLASPED MR. DEAN’S HAND. “IT—IT CAN’T BE SERIOUS”]
“No, I’ve known it would come.” Mr. Dean rose. “If you’ll take me home, David—”
Leading the helpless man along the corridor and down the stairs, David was too stunned and too full of pity to speak. He had not known before how much he cared for Mr. Dean, how affectionate was the feeling in his heart for him; to have him now clasping his arm dependently brought tears to his eyes.
They descended the stairs in silence; the boys of other classes were studying in the schoolroom or attending recitations; not until David led Mr. Dean outdoors did he see any one. Then in front of the study he found his classmates waiting in curious groups; they watched him with silent astonishment as he led Mr. Dean away. Monroe and Wallace and one or two others made signals expressive of their desire to know what was wrong, but David shook his head without speaking; Mr. Dean walked clinging to him, apparently unaware of their presence.
As the two made their way slowly up the path to the master’s cottage David looked about him, wondering what it must be to be suddenly and forever deprived of sight. And to be so stricken on such a day in spring, when the new grass shone like an emerald, and the elms were living fountains of green spray! The boy looked up at the man’s face with wonder and compassion—wonder for the expression of calmness that he saw, compassion for the sightless, spectacled eyes.
“It came upon me suddenly in the midst of the recitation,” Mr. Dean said. “A blur of the page, and then blackness. But I wasn’t unprepared for it. I have known that this was before me ever since last Christmas. For a long time I had been having trouble with my eyes that no glasses seemed to help. When I went to an oculist in Boston during the Christmas vacation he told me that some time I must expect to suffer total blindness.”