’Do you doubt my word?’ said Ross indignantly.
’You’re a horribly ill-mannered, mercenary, money-grubbing, badly-behaved wretch, Ross; Nannie always said you should never ask for things you wanted.’
’I asked for things _you_ wanted,’ said Ross, with the air of a martyr. This was so unanswerable that I changed the conversation hurriedly, and, although I feel that his behaviour is most reprehensible, and I don’t know that he’s written at all, at the same time it would be exciting if any parcels did arrive.
And now I shall have to begin to think about furniture, if Michael decides to buy the cottage. It will be difficult to choose without him. I wish I had some of the old family things and bits of oak mother and daddy used to have, but everything was sold when he went out to be a missionary. There was a chest that used to stand in the hall at home. It had a lovely carved border, and there was a corner cupboard, too, that I specially loved because one side of it was longer than the other. And the ’chair of the nine devils.’ _How_ I would like that. It had eight little devils carved on it and the ninth was the person who sat in it!
I am afraid Ross has been doing too much. He has had a dreadful lot of pain since Charlie left. On Sunday I took the law into my own hands and sent for the doctor. I ’got rowed’ by my brother for doing it, and by his doctor for not doing it before. I think that life is very hard on women.
’No, he needn’t stay in bed,’ the doctor said, ’but something must be done about the nights. He has simply _got_ to get some natural sleep.’
So I informed the invalid that I was going to sit up with him, make tea, and read aloud, and perhaps the night would seem a little less long, and he’d get a nice sleep before the morning.
But my brother is not one of those people whose submissive patience is always apparent to the naked eye, and all he said was, quite politely, but _quite_ firmly,—
’You’re going to do nothing of the kind.’
So then there was a little gust of temper.
’Oh, _do_ stop fussing, Meg. You and Sam really are the limit. Anybody would think that I was "going to leave this mortal world of sin, and hatch myself a Cherubim," the way you both go on! When you hear me begin to chip the shell you can both sit up, but not before.’