Volume Three—Chapter Two.
The Stars at the Nadir.
“I will see him again, Mrs Alleyne, and try a little more persuasion; perhaps he will yield.”
“But are you sure you are right, Mr Oldroyd? I know my son’s constitution so well. Would it be better to go to some specialist?”
“My dear madam, I would advise you directly to persuade him to go up to town and see any of our magnates, but it would be so much money wasted.”
“But he seems so ill again!” sighed Mrs Alleyne.
“He does, indeed, but this illness is one of the simplest of ailments. It needs no doctor to tell you what it is. Really, Mrs Alleyne, if you will set maternal anxiety aside for one moment, and look at your son as you would at a stranger, you will see directly what is wrong. It is only an aggravated form of the complaint for which you consulted me before.”
“If I could only feel so,” sighed Mrs Alleyne.