John here needed somebody to take care of him. Well, Mrs. Snow--she's
a--a--sort of relation of Jerry's"--just a suspicion of a smile
accompanied this assertion--"and she's done consid'rable nussin' in her
time. I've been talkin' the thing over with her and she's willin' to
look out for John till he gits better."

The physician adjusted his eyeglasses and looked the volunteer nurse
over keenly. The lady paid no attention to the scrutiny, but calmly
removed her bonnet and placed it on the bureau. The room was Captain
Eri's, and the general disarrangement of everything movable was only a
little less marked than in those of his companions. Mrs. Snow glanced
over the heap of odds and ends on the bureau and picked up a comb. There
were some teeth in it, but they were distant neighbors.

"I don't use that comb very much," said Captain Eri rather
apologetically. "I gin'rally use the one downstairs."

The new-found relative of Captain Jerry said nothing, but, laying down
the ruin, marched over to the extension-case, opened it, and took
out another comb--a whole one. With this she arranged the hair on her
forehead. It, the hair, was parted in the middle and drawn back smoothly
at the sides, and Captain Eri noticed that it was brown with a little
gray in it. When the last stray wisp was in place, she turned calmly to
the Doctor and said:

"Cap'n Baxter's in here, I s'pose. Shall I walk right in?"

The man of medicine seemed a little surprised at the lady's command of
the situation, but he said: