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Page 49
"If you please, I've brought some calf's-foot jelly for Mr.
Pendleton," smiled Pollyanna.
"Thank you," said the woman, reaching for the bowl in the little
girl's hand. "Who shall I say sent it? And it's calf's-foot
jelly?"
The doctor, coming into the hall at that moment, heard the
woman's words and saw the disappointed look on Pollyanna's face.
He stepped quickly forward.
"Ah! Some calf's-foot jelly?" he asked genially. "That will be
fine! Maybe you'd like to see our patient, eh?"
"Oh, yes, sir," beamed Pollyanna; and the woman, in obedience to
a nod from the doctor, led the way down the hall at once, though
plainly with vast surprise on her face.
Behind the doctor, a young man (a trained nurse from the nearest
city) gave a disturbed exclamation.
"But, Doctor, didn't Mr. Pendleton give orders not to admit--any
one?"
"Oh, yes," nodded the doctor, imperturbably. "But I'm giving
orders now. I'll take the risk." Then he added whimsically: "You
don't know, of course; but that little girl is better than a
six-quart bottle of tonic any day. If anything or anybody can
take the grouch out of Pendleton this afternoon, she can. That's
why I sent her in."
"Who is she?"
For one brief moment the doctor hesitated.
"She's the niece of one of our best known residents. Her name is
Pollyanna Whittier. I--I don't happen to enjoy a very extensive
personal acquaintance with the little lady as yet; but lots of my
patients do--I'm thankful to say!"
The nurse smiled.
"Indeed! And what are the special ingredients of this
wonder-working--tonic of hers?"
The doctor shook his head.
"I don't know. As near as I can find out it is an overwhelming,
unquenchable gladness for everything that has happened or is
going to happen. At any rate, her quaint speeches are constantly
being repeated to me, and, as near as I can make out, 'just being
glad' is the tenor of most of them. All is," he added, with
another whimsical smile, as he stepped out on to the porch, "I
wish I could prescribe her--and buy her--as I would a box of
pills;--though if there gets to be many of her in the world, you
and I might as well go to ribbon-selling and ditch-digging for
all the money we'd get out of nursing and doctoring," he laughed,
picking up the reins and stepping into the gig.
Pollyanna, meanwhile, in accordance with the doctor's orders, was
being escorted to John Pendleton's rooms.
Her way led through the great library at the end of the hall,
and, rapid as was her progress through it, Pollyanna saw at once
that great changes had taken place. The book-lined walls and the
crimson curtains were the same; but there was no litter on the
floor, no untidiness on the desk, and not so much as a grain of
dust in sight. The telephone card hung in its proper place, and
the brass andirons had been polished. One of the mysterious doors
was open, and it was toward this that the maid led the way. A
moment later Pollyanna found herself in a sumptuously furnished
bedroom while the maid was saying in a frightened voice:
"If you please, sir, here--here's a little girl with some jelly.
The doctor said I was to--to bring her in."
The next moment Pollyanna found herself alone with a very
cross-looking man lying flat on his back in bed.
"See here, didn't I say--" began an angry voice. "Oh, it's you!"
it broke off not very graciously, as Pollyanna advanced toward
the bed.
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