He saved papa beautifully, but he
was dreadfully hurt--his collar-bone was broken, and he was kicked, and
almost killed. He's at our house now, and papa's taking care of him."
At this information Aunt Margaret became very white, or rather
bloodless, in the face. She allowed the ear-trumpet to hang by its
silver chain from her neck, and, reaching out her hand to a recess in
the writing-table at which she sat, she drew forth a small ebony box,
set in silver, and carved all over with little figures in bass-relief.
Opening it, she took out a few grains of some dark substance which the
box contained, and slipped them eagerly into her large mouth, Cornelia
watched her out of the corner of her eyes, and, being a physician's
daughter, she drew her own conclusions.
"Ho, ho! that's where your sick-headaches, and yellow complexion, and
nervousness, and weak eyes, come from, is it? You'd better look out!
that's morphine, or opium, or some such thing, I know; and papa says
that old ladies like you, who use such drugs, are liable to get insane
after a while, and I shouldn't be a bit surprised if you were to become
insane, Aunt Margaret!"
This agreeable prophecy, being confined solely to Cornelia's thoughts,
was naturally inaudible to Mrs.
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