"Please don’t excite yourself, grandmother. I’m sure the doctor wouldn’t want you to." "Where’s that woman?" "You mean Mrs. Slawson? Gone home. She has a family to see to. She told you, didn’t she, she’s the wife of Mr. Ronald’s new superintendent?" "How much’ll she charge?" "Us, you mean? For what she did last night, and this morning?" "Uh-huh." "Nothing, grandmother." "Nonsense! Compel her to set price. If she won’t, it’s because she hopes you’ll pay more than’s the custom. I know the trick. Don’t be caught. Pay her regular price, and say she mustn’t come, ’less we send. Won’t pay, when we don’t send." Katherine felt herself flushing furiously from neck to forehead. "I wouldn’t dare offer Mrs. Slawson money, grandmother. I can’t imagine what she’d do, if I did. She came to help us out of pure friendliness. She did more than we could ever pay her for. She’s put me under deep obligation." "Pooh! Obligation! One in that class! When you’ve paid her, you’ve paid her." Katherine turned her face away. "Let’s not discuss it, grandmother. You oughtn’t to talk much, just yet. Let’s see! First, I’ll get a basin and warm water, and give you a lovely bath, and afterwards, you can have your breakfast. I’ll go down myself and prepare it, as soon as——" Madam Crewe gave vent to a sound Katherine was painfully familiar with—something between a sneer, a snort, and a groan of exasperation. "How many _lovely baths_ d’you calculate I can stand in twelve hours? One last night. Another five A.M. and, now, _you_ want to give me a third!" "Mrs. Slawson bathed you before she went?" Katherine demanded incredulously. "Yes, and what’s more, gave me breakfast. _Good_ breakfast! Better than _you_ can p’pare." "She couldn’t have slept a wink all night," the girl mused self-reproachfully. Madam Crewe made no rejoinder. Apparently, she did not consider it necessary for one in Mrs. Slawson’s class to sleep a wink all night.