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Florence Nightingale, the Angel of the Crimea
Florence Nightingale the Angel of the Crimea Author:Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. The Squire's Daughter. T soon became a recognized thing in Florence's own home and in all the neighborhood, that she was one of the Sisters... more » of Mercy. Nothing was too small, no creature too humble to awaken her sympathy and tenderness. When the stable cat had kittens, Florence was the first to visit them, to fondle the tiny creatures and soothe their mother's angry fear. When she walked along the pleasant wood roads of Lea Hurst, the squirrels expected nuts as a matter of course, and could hardly wait for her to give them. When anyone in the village or farm fell ill, it was Florence who was looked for to cheer and comfort. Mrs. Nightingale was a most kind and charitable lady, and delighted in sending delicacies to the sick. It was Florence's happy privilege to carry them, and whether she walked or rode therewas apt to be a basket on her arm or fastened to her saddlebow. If you think hard, you can see—at least I can— just how it would be. Old Goody Brown's rheumatism, let us say, was very bad one morning. You children who read this know little about rheumatism. Very likely you think it rather a funny word, and that it is just a thing that old people have, and that they make a good deal of fuss about. If it were a toothache, now, you say, or colic—but the truth is, no pain is in any way pleasant. If a red-hot sword were run into your back you would not like it? Well, sometimes rheumatism is like that. So old Goody Brown was suffering, and very cross, just as we might bej and nothing suited her, poor old soul; her tea was too hot, and her porridge too cold, and her pillow set askew, and—dear! dear! dear! she wished she was dead, so she did. Martha, her good patient daughter, was at her wits' ends. "Send to the 'All'!" said poor old Goody. " Send for Miss...« less