A Girl in Ten Thousand

  CHAPTER XIV.

  In a week's time Effie found herself an inmate in the great hospitalwhich, for present purposes, we will call by the name of St. Joseph's.It was situated in the east of London. Dorothy had been trained here,and was now superintendent of one of the wards.

  Effie was to go up for a month's trial. At the end of that time shewould be paid at the rate of twelve pounds the first year, and twentypounds the second. Her training would take two years. A certain amountof her uniform would be also provided, and everything found for her withthe exception of washing.

  She did not soon forget the evening of her arrival. She had said good-byto her mother, had kissed the children, had given Agnes all finaldirections, and at last found herself in the cab which was to take herto St. Joseph's. It drew up presently outside one of the large entrancedoors.

  A lady, who was called the Home Sister, received Effie very kindly, andoffered her a friendly cup of tea. The hour of her arrival was aboutfour in the afternoon. She was then taken up to her own room, andinstructed how to put her cap on, and how to wear her new uniform in theneatest and most compact way. Her dress was a pretty lilac check, andshe wore a cap with a frill round it, and long tails at the back. Herapron bib was high to the collar in front, and fastened with strapswhich crossed at the back. Nothing could be neater and more serviceablethan the dress.

  The kind Sister, having seen that Effie was all right, gave her afriendly smile, and then led her along several dim passages, up and downmany stairs, until she finally found herself in a long, light ward,where from thirty to forty women were lying in bed. The Home Sisterintroduced Effie to the Sister of the ward, who went by the name ofSister Kate. Sister Kate nodded to her, said a word or two in a verybusy voice, and then Effie found herself practically on the thresholdof her new life. The Sister who had been kind to her during tea, who hadshown her to her room, and instructed her how to dress, had vanished.Sister Kate looked far too busy and anxious to be worried by questions;and Effie, capable and active as she always was, found herself, for thefirst time in her life, with nothing to do, and overcome by strangenervousness. She was too much embarrassed to be of real use. Her facewas burning with blushes. Sister Kate was tired with her long day'swork. There was a great deal to be done to put the ward straight for thenight, and she really had no time to devote to the probationer. Thewomen lying in their beds seemed to have eyes and ears for no one butEffie. Between sixty and seventy eyes turned on her wherever she moved,whatever she looked at, whatever she did. Some of the eyes in the paleand harassed faces looked kindly and interested, some of them merelyamused, some of them cross and discontented. Effie knew that these womenwould be querulous and even rude under the touch of strange anduntutored hands.

  At last the night nurses arrived, the bell rang, and Sister Kate cameforward to show the new probationer the way to the dining hall.

  Here were several long tables, where the nurses, all dressed exactlyalike, sat down to supper. Effie took her place, and quickly discoveredthat the others were far too tired and hungry to pay any attention toher. She felt too excited to eat, and sat watching the faces of thosearound her.

  Supper was immediately followed by prayers, and then came bed. Effie'sfirst evening as a probationer was over.

  She did not know whether to cry or to laugh as she laid her head on herpillow. The reality was so different from anything her fancy hadpainted. The practical character of the work, the absence of allsentiment, the real illness, the real burden of humanity, seemed topress down upon her.

  She had thought, a week ago, when Dorothy proposed that she should cometo St. Joseph's, of the delight of being in the same hospital with herfriend, but she now discovered that she was unlikely to see much ofDorothy even though she lived under the same roof. Dorothy was Sister ofa ward, and that ward was not the one where Effie was to serve herprobationership. She had the comfort of a very small room to herself,and was just closing her eyes in sleep, when the handle of the room doorwas softly turned, and Dorothy, looking beautiful in her Sister's dressof soft navy serge, came in.

  "So here you are, you poor little thing," said Dorothy, bending overEffie and kissing her. "I have just come in for one minute to say Godbless you. You have come, the ice is broken. You have a fine careerbefore you. Don't be discouraged by what you saw to-night."

  "Oh, I am so lonely!" said Effie, with a quiver in her voice. "I wassure when I came here that I should be in the ward with you, Dorothy."

  "No, my dear, that was not possible," replied Dorothy. "Of course Ishould have been very glad if it could have been arranged, but I had novoice in the matter. As it cannot be, dearest, try to believe that thisis just the best thing that could have happened to you, to be flung atonce, as it were, on your own feet. You will thus gain experiencewithout having a crutch like me to lean upon. I know the first night isvery bad, but you will soon learn your duties and become intenselyinterested in the life. You are with Sister Kate, are you not?"

  "Yes," said Effie. "She scarcely spoke to me--I never felt so awkward inmy life, and I know that I was never half so clumsy."

  "Of course," said Dorothy, with a smile. "Don't I know the feeling well?It all passes over, my love, and far more quickly than you have theleast idea of. Remember you have got the power--those little hands arecapable, that head holds a steady and sensible brain. Why, Effie, youhave gone through far worse times than this without flinching. Surely,surely you are not going to break down now?"

  "Oh, I won't, I won't!" said Effie, with a sob; "but I felt lonely, verylonely, and it was so very kind of you to come to see me."

  "Of course I have come to see you--I am only too delighted to doanything in my power for you. I would have rushed down to share your cupof tea on your arrival, but a bad case was just being brought into theward, and I could not leave. Now, I must go to bed myself, or I shan'tbe fit for work to-morrow. Good-night, Effie. I have arranged that youare to spend every second Sunday at home."

  "Oh, how good you are--how thankful I am!" exclaimed Effie.

  Dorothy was leaving the room, when she turned back.

  "I forgot to tell you that you are very lucky to be under Sister Kate,"she said. "There is not a nurse in the whole hospital who trains as shedoes, and her probationers always get the best certificates at the endof the two years of training."

  "She looks so severe and hard," said Effie.

  "She is a little severe, and some people may call her hard, but she hasa tender heart under all that strict, somewhat cold manner, and thenshe is so just. My dear, when you know more of hospital life you will bethankful that you are with a just and patient Sister. Sister Kate isboth. She will soon recognize you, Effie, for what you are. Nowgood-night, my love."

  Dorothy went away, and soon afterward Effie fell asleep.

  The next morning she was awakened by a bell, at what seemed to hersomething like the middle of the night. She had to dress herselfquickly, and then go into the ward and begin her duties.

  She found, somewhat to her surprise, that she had to begin her nurse'slife as a sort of maid-of-all-work; she had to scrub floors, to cleangrates, to polish handles--it seemed to her that she never had a momentto herself from morning till night. Her feet felt very sore, her backached. Once or twice she felt so dreadfully fagged that she wondered ifshe could keep up. But through it all, growing greater and greater asthe days went on, there came a sense of full satisfaction, of somethingaccomplished, something done, of the feeling that she was being trainedthoroughly and efficiently, so that at the end of her time of probationshe might be able to say, "There's one thing which I can do _well_."

  When the first Sunday came she was glad to hurry home. She went backbrimful of news, and looked forward to the quiet time in her mother'slittle parlor with great delight.

  Mrs. Staunton was glad to see her. The children were all dressed intheir black frocks, and looked neat and comfortable. George was in theroom. It seemed to Effie as if she did not recognize his coat--shewondered if it could possibly be a n
ew one.

  She arrived at home a little before the midday dinner, and presently thelandlady came in to lay the cloth. This used to be Agnes' occupation.Effie did not say anything while the woman was in the room, but when shewent out she remarked on this change.

  "Oh, it's all right," said Mrs. Staunton. "I pay half a crown a weekextra, and the landlady now waits on us. It is much more comfortable, Iassure you, Effie, and worth the extra bit of money."

  Effie colored; she gave Agnes a reproachful glance, but did not sayanything.

  Agnes turned her back with a little sniff.

  "Why, Effie," she said suddenly, "How coarse your hands have got! Whatin the world have you been doing?"

  Effie laughed.

  "Polishing, cleaning, and scrubbing," she said. "In short, doing verymuch what Mrs. Robinson's little maid of all-work does down in thekitchen here."

  "Oh, dear, dear!" exclaimed Agnes; "if those are a nurse's duties, youwon't catch me going in for that sort of profession."

  "It's awfully interesting," said Effie. "I have, of course to begin atthe bottom, but I like it very much."

  While she was speaking, there came a knock at the door. George went toopen it, and a young man came in. George brought him up to introduce himto his mother.

  "This is my great friend, Fred Lawson, mother," he said. "Effie, let meintroduce you to Lawson--Lawson, this is my sister Effie."

  Effie bowed. She felt the color rushing all over her face. Lawson wasthe man whom George had wronged in some mysterious way. Lawson was theman for whom that dreadful L250 was required.