"God bless you, my darling," she whispered to her as soon as they had done, and the poor fellow was lying still--a toss-up with him whether it should be death or life; and I saw Mrs Bantem take Miss Ross's soft white hand between her two great rough hard palms, and kiss it just once. "And I'd always been abusing and running her down for a fine madam, good for nothing but to squeal songs, and be looked at," Mrs Bantem said to me a little while after. "Why, Isaac Smith, we shall be having that little maid showing next that there's something in her." "And why not?" I said gruffly. "Ah, to be sure," says she, with a comical look out of one eye; "why not? But, Isaac, my lad," she said sadly, and looking at me very earnestly, "I'm afraid there's sore times coming, and if so, God in heaven help those poor bairns! O, if I'd been a man, and been there!" she cried, as she recollected what the trooper had told us; and she shook her fist fiercely in the air. "It's what I always did say: soldiers' wives have no business to have children; and it's rank cruelty to the poor little things to bring them into the world." Mrs Bantem then went off to see to her patient, while I walked into the court, wondering what would come next, and whether, in spite of all the little bitternesses and grumbling, everybody, now that the stern realities of life were coming upon us, would show up the bright side of his or her nature; and somehow I got very hopeful about it. I felt just then that I should have much liked to have a few words with Lizzy Green, but I had no chance, for it was a busy time with us. Captain Dyer felt strongly enough his responsibility, and not a minute did he lose in doing all he could for our defence; so that after an anxious day, with nothing more occurring, when I looked round at what had been done in barricading and so on, it seemed to me, speaking as a soldier, that, as far as I could judge, there was nothing more to be done, though still the feeling would come home to me that it was a great place for forty men to defend, if attacked by any number. Captain Dyer must have seen that, for he had arranged to have a sort of citadel at the north end by the gateway, and this was to be the last refuge, where all the ammunition and food and no end of chatties of water were stowed down in the great vault-place, which went under this part of the building and a good deal of the court. Then the watch was set, trebled this time, on roof and at window, and we waited impatiently for the morning.