In the second place, for which, indeed, thou hast the same excuse, continued my uncle _Toby_,——when thou offeredst him whatever was in my house,——thou shouldst have offered him my house too:——A sick brother officer should have the best quarters, _Trim_, and if we had him with us,—we could tend and look to him:——Thou art an excellent nurse thyself, _Trim_,—and what with thy care of him, and the old woman’s and his boy’s, and mine together, we might recruit him again at once, and set him upon his legs.—— ——In a fortnight or three weeks, added my uncle _Toby_, smiling,——he might march.——He will never march; an’ please your honour, in this world, said the corporal:——He will march; said my uncle _Toby_, rising up from the side of the bed, with one shoe off:——An’ please your honour, said the corporal, he will never march but to his grave:——He shall march, cried my uncle _Toby_, marching the foot which had a shoe on, though without advancing an inch,—he shall march to his regiment.——He cannot stand it, said the corporal;——He shall be supported, said my uncle _Toby;_——He’ll drop at last, said the corporal, and what will become of his boy?——He shall not drop, said my uncle _Toby_, firmly.——A-well-o’day,—do what we can for him, said _Trim_, maintaining his point,—the poor soul will die:——He shall not die, by G—, cried my uncle _Toby._ —The ACCUSING SPIRIT, which flew up to heaven’s chancery with the oath, blush’d as he gave it in;—and the RECORDING ANGEL, as he wrote it down, dropp’d a tear upon the word, and blotted it out for ever. C H A P. LII ——MY uncle _Toby_ went to his bureau,—put his purse into his breeches pocket, and having ordered the corporal to go early in the morning for a physician,—he went to bed, and fell asleep. C H A P. LIII THE STORY OF LE FEVER CONTINUED THE sun looked bright the morning after, to every eye in the village but _Le Fever_’s and his afflicted son’s; the hand of death pressed heavy upon his eye-lids,——and hardly could the wheel at the cistern turn round its circle,—when my uncle _Toby_, who had rose up an hour before his wonted time, entered the lieutenant’s room, and without preface or apology, sat himself down upon the chair by the bed-side, and, independently of all modes and customs, opened the curtain in the manner an old friend and brother officer would have done it, and asked him how he did,—how he had rested in the night,—what was his complaint,—where was his pain,—and what he could do to help him:——and without giving him time to answer any one of the enquiries, went on, and told him of the little plan which he had been concerting with the corporal the night before for him.—— ——You shall go home directly, _Le Fever_, said my uncle _Toby_, to my house,—and we’ll send for a doctor to see what’s the matter,—and we’ll have an apothecary,—and the corporal shall be your nurse;——and I’ll be your servant, _Le Fever._