Tom looked at it carefully. He knew pretty well the contents of it. The trust deed was of the usual character. The location of the land, on which stood one end of the big railroad bridge, was given in feet, chains, links, and by degrees—in the manner in which all descriptions of property are made, “beginning at a point,” and so on.
But, somehow now, the dull details took on a new interest for Tom. The draft of the deed recited how the land was not to be in the possession of Captain Hawkesbury and Mr. Doolittle, but was to be in their hands to insure a better settlement from the railroad. The proceeds were to be turned over to Mr. Taylor, or his heirs and assigns. At that time, of course, Tom’s father was in perfect health, but all deeds and such instruments recite that the property goes to a certain person, and his heirs and assigns.
“Now what gets me,” Tom mused as he lay there in bed, “is why the captain wanted this paper so badly after he threw it away. I feel sure he thought as I did, at the time I had the talk with him. He felt that it wasn’t worth bothering with and I did also. But I feel differently now.”
Tom folded the document and put it under his pillow. He felt better than at any time since having been brought to the hospital.
“I want to get up and do something!” Tom told himself. And that feeling did more toward hastening his recovery than all the doctor’s medicine.
“My! This is an improvement!” exclaimed the medical man, when Tom was found sitting up on the occasion of the first visit after Flack’s call. “You look a whole lot better!”
“And I feel a whole lot better!” Tom said, eagerly. “When may I get out of bed, Doctor?”
“Pretty soon now. I guess we’ve eliminated any possibility of an internal injury. You can get up and walk as soon as it doesn’t hurt you too much to move. I expect, though, that you’re going to be lame and stiff for some time yet.”
Tom was. It was agony to get out of bed for the first time, but he persisted, knowing that the sooner he began to use his muscles and joints the more quickly would they limber up, and lose their soreness and stiffness.
The time came when Tom could leave the hospital and walk about. His chums rejoiced with him. He was not wholly discharged, however, and still kept his hospital bed as his sleeping place.