"I like the grand doctor from London, because
he made them take the iron thing off," said
Mary at last. "Did he say you were going to
die?"

"No."

"What did he say?"

"He didn't whisper," Colin answered. "Perhaps
he knew I hated whispering. I heard him
say one thing quite aloud. He said, 'The lad
might live if he would make up his mind to it.
Put him in the humor.' It sounded as if he was
in a temper."

"I'll tell you who would put you in the humor,
perhaps," said Mary reflecting. She felt as if
she would like this thing to be settled one way
or the other. "I believe Dickon would. He's
always talking about live things. He never talks
about dead things or things that are ill. He's always
looking up in the sky to watch birds flying -- or
looking down at the earth to see something
growing. He has such round blue eyes and they
are so wide open with looking about. And he
laughs such a big laugh with his wide mouth -- and
his cheeks are as red -- as red as cherries."

She pulled her stool nearer to the sofa and her
expression quite changed at the remembrance of
the wide curving mouth and wide open eyes.

"See here," she said. "Don't let us talk about

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