I must walk by it, all the same. And my thought
went back now with great tenderness to mammy Theresa's
rheumatism, which wanted flannel; to Maria's hyacinths, which
were her great earthly interest, out of the things of religion;
to Darry's lonely cottage, where he had no lamp to read the
Bible o' nights, and no oil to burn in it. To Pete's solitary
hut, too, where he was struggling to learn to read well, and
where a hymn-book would be the greatest comfort to him. To the
old people, whose one solace of a cup of tea would be gone
unless I gave it them; to the boys who were learning to read,
who wanted testaments; to the bed-ridden and sick who wanted
blankets; to the young and well who wanted gowns (not indeed
for decency, but for the natural pleasure of looking neat and
smart) — and to Margaret, first and last, who was nearest to
me, and who, I began to think, might want some other trifles
besides a cloak. The girl came in at the minute.
"Margaret," I said, "I have got you a warm gown and a good
thick warm cloak, to-day.
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