He tried to make them all understand this; but Jessie said she would never get well if she did not stay at home, and help nurse her mother.
"I can tell Polly what to do, and we can manage to take care of mother between us," pleaded Jessie; and at last the doctor consented, and proceeded to dress and bandage the injured foot, and placed it as comfortable as the old couch would permit, telling her she must not try to move it, and must lie as still as possible, or he would be compelled to send her to the hospital. Mrs. Brown thought it was a pity the doctor did not insist upon the girl being taken there at once; but she did not dare to say so, for she could see that Collins would rather Jessie stayed at home. And so she held her peace for the present; but when the doctor had gone, she drew him into the passage.
"Mr. Collins, Jessie would have been better at the hospital," she whispered; "but as you have decided that she shall stay at home, couldn't you arrange for one of your wife's old friends to come and sleep in the house, and help the girls a bit in the daytime. I know Jessie was going to wash some clothes next week; but now you must have somebody else to do it," she added.
The man scratched his head in perplexity. "I must go and see if the foreman can let me come back here to work, and let somebody else go and do my job over there. What about your husband, Mrs. Brown?"
"I dare say he would be willing to go, if the managers liked to send him, as you are in such trouble just now," answered Mrs. Brown.
"Oh, never mind my trouble. I hate being under an obligation to anybody, specially my neighbours," said Collins, roughly. "If Brown likes to take my job, I'll speak for him, and it will be something to his advantage, I may tell you. I hear you have been kind to my wife the last few days, and I am thankful for it. Do you want me to say any more?" he demanded.
"I did not want you to thank me! I am always ready to help a neighbour at a pinch, and was glad to do what I could for Jessie," said Mrs. Brown, with a touch of pride and pain in her voice; and, saying a hasty good-bye to Jessie she went home, her eyes full of tears, which she dashed away before she knocked at her own door.
Jessie heard what had passed between her father and Mrs. Brown in the passage, and when he went back to the kitchen she said—
"Now, what are we going to do? You don't suppose Mrs. Brown'll come back and look after us as she has done all the week, after what you said to her to-night."
"What have I said? And what has she said of us? Didn't their girl tell you that you wasn't good enough to go with them. Do you think I've forgotten it?" demanded her father, angrily.