The doctor drew her closer to him. "Don't say that, my darling. Little girls do not know how much good they may do in the world." "What good," asked Milly, curiously, "if they can't help people when they are ill?" "What makes you so anxious about this?" asked the doctor. "I want to help Bob and Jack, and then—then, you know, that would be like Jesus—who went about helping everybody He could." "Like Jesus?" repeated the doctor, musingly. "I dare not hope ever to be like Him; but if I could help these poor people a bit, would it not please Him? And if I could do that, it would be worth something—worth living for." This was said more to himself than to Milly; and as he spoke he put her off his knee, and turned to a medicine-chest that stood in the room, and began looking over its contents. "I think I will go down and see these children myself," he said, as he placed two or three bottles in his pocket. "Perhaps I may be able to save the boys from having the fever at all," he added as he left the room. Milly ran after him before he reached the street-door. "Let me go with you," she said. "Do let me go and see Bob. I haven't seen him for a long time." But the doctor shook his head. "I'm afraid you would catch this fever, and be ill too," he said. But Milly pleaded so hard to be allowed to accompany him part of the way, that the doctor yielded the point at last. And it was well he did, or otherwise he might not have gained so ready an admission into the cottage. Mrs. Ship was at the window, and saw the two coming across the green together, Milly holding the doctor's hand, and skipping and laughing as she trotted at his side. "Well, to be sure, there must be a change in that Dr. Mansfield, for a child to be no more afraid of him than that little Milly is," she said to Bob, who happened to enter the room at that moment to inquire after the children who were ill. "I've heard before that the doctor is almost cured of his madness, somehow," said Bob. "Well, cured or not, I shouldn't care to see him come into my house if I hadn't seen him with that child. I wonder where they are going," she added the next minute, as she saw the doctor stoop and kiss the little girl. "He's going to leave her to play on the green, I do believe, while he goes on by himself." The doctor had quickened his pace now, and was rapidly approaching the cottage. "I do believe he's coming here," said Mrs. Ship. "Bob, go and see what he wants, and tell him we've got the fever, so that he may not come inside the door. I dare say he's coming to see you about something." Bob went outside to meet the doctor, but returned in a minute or two. "He's come to see the children, Mrs. Ship," he said hurriedly, scarce able to get the words out for astonishment. Poor Mrs. Ship scarcely knew whether she stood on her head or on her feet, as the tall form of the doctor appeared in the doorway. She curtsied and stammered out something about the "poor place."