"Mustard?" said Mrs. Leighton helplessly. "Do you know what’s been wrong with you all these weeks?" Elma moved her eyes curiously, there being not much else that she could move. It had never dawned on her till that moment to wonder what had been wrong with her. "No, mummy," she said, "I haven’t a notion." Mrs. Leighton looked for instructions to the nurse. "She’d better know now, Mrs. Leighton," she said, "now that she begins to ask for ham sandwiches." "You’ve had typhoid fever, Elma," said her mother. Elma sighed gently. "Dear me," she said, "how grand. But you don’t know how hungry I am or you would give me a ham sandwich. You ought to be rather glad that I’m so much better that I want to eat." Then an expression of great cunning came into her eyes. "I ought to be fed up if I’ve had a fever," she informed them. "We shall get the doctor to see to that," said the nurse. She came to her and held her hand firmly. "Do you know," she said, "you have been very ill and you are ever so much better, but nothing you’ve gone through will worry you so much as what you’ve got to do now. You’ve got to be starved for ten days, when you are longing to eat. You will lie dreaming of food--and----" "Ham sandwiches?" asked Elma. "And we shall not be allowed to give them to you," said Nurse. "Isn’t she nice, mummy, she’s quite sorry. And people say that nurses are hard-hearted," said Elma. "I’ve had typhoid myself," said Nurse briefly. Elma looked at her, her own eyelids heavy with sleep still to be made up. "Well, barring the sandwich, what about lemon cheese cakes," she asked. Mrs. Leighton let her hands fall. "Oh, Elma," she said, "what a thing to choose at this stage." "Or sausages," remarked Elma. "I’m simply longing for sausages." She endeavoured to throw an appealing look towards Nurse. "This isn’t humour on my part, mummy dear," she said. "I just can’t help it. I can’t get sausages out of my mind," she said. "If you would think of a little steamed fish or a soaked rusk, you’d be a little nearer it," said Nurse, "you’ll have that in ten days." Elma looked at her in a determined way. "I’ve always been told that a simple lunch, a very simple lunch might be made out of a ham sandwich. Why should it be denied to me now?" "Elma," said Mrs. Leighton, "I never knew you were so obstinate." "You know, mummy," said Elma, "I’m not dreaming now. I’m wide awake, and I’m awfully hungry. I’m sorry I ever thought of sausages, because ham sandwiches were just about as much as I could bear. Now I’ve both to think of, and Nurse won’t bring me either." "Don’t mind her, Mrs. Leighton," said the nurse. "It’s always the same, and, without nurses, generally a relapse to follow. You aren’t going to have a relapse," she said to Elma. She gave her some milk in a methodical manner, and the down-dropping of Elma’s eyelids continued till she fell asleep once more.