“Then why did you stay in an hospital?”
“It was more what we call an asylum in America,” explained Chris, who, as a permitted eavesdropper, felt at liberty to join in the conversation on occasion.
“It's a place,” explained Donald, “where children are cared for who haven't any particular fathers or mothers.”
“Oh!” said Marie-Celeste, but in a bewildered way, as though she could not quite take in the idea.
“It isn't very pleasant not knowing who you belong to, but it isn't such a bad place to stay. They keep things scrubbed up to the nines, and everything's as neat and well ordered as a ship. I think being trained that way was one thing that made me want to go to sea.”
It was easy to see, from the grave look on Marie-Celeste's face, that she was still pondering the sad predicament of “no particular father or mother,” but she asked, “Where was the hospital, Donald?”
“In London; and like as not if you go there you'll go out to see it. They always have lots of visitors on Sundays. They dress the girls up awful pretty in black dresses with short sleeves, and mitts that come way up over the elbow, like ladies' gloves at a party, and caps and kerchiefs folded crosswise round their shoulders, like this.”
“You've seen a picture of them singing out of a book, haven't you?” called Chris, by way of illustration.
“Why, so I have,” said Marie-Celeste; “we gave an artist-proof of it to our minister one Christmas.”
“I've seen it too,” continued Donald, wondering whether an artist-proof and a waterproof had anything in common; “but the girls aren't often so handsome as that; but I'll tell you when they do look pretty as a picture: that's on a clear Sunday morning, just about midway in the service, when the sun comes streaming through one of the choir windows in a great white shaft of light, I think they call it. It just goes slanting across the benches, and then the girls it happens to strike, no matter how homely they are, really look just beautiful, with their white caps and kerchiefs all lighted up in the sunshine. I used to think they put the girls on that side to show them off, for the boys just look pretty much as boys always do.”