Again there was a silence before the reply came. He read something terrible in the mother’s manner, and he found himself trembling violently.
“I have brought back the child and the nurse,” said Madame Dupont.
“What! Is the little one sick?”
“Yes.”
“What’s the matter with her?”
“Nothing dangerous—for the moment, at least.”
“We must send and get the doctor!” cried George.
“I have just come from the doctor’s,” was the reply. “He said it was necessary to take our child from the nurse and bring her up on the bottle.”
Again there was a pause. George could hardly bring himself to ask the next question. Try as he would, he could not keep his voice from weakening. “Well, now, what is her trouble?”
The mother did not answer. She stood staring before her. At last she said, faintly, “I don’t know.”