Will you send for a lawyer?"
The lawyer came, and a codicil to Sir Thomas's will made the servants
comfortable for life. All that day and the following night we hung
around the sick bed, hoping for the favorable change that never came. On
the morning of the 17th it was evident that he would not live to see the
sun go down. We had kept all friends away from the sick chamber; but
now, at his request, Polly, Jane, and Laura were summoned, and they
came, with blanched faces and tearful eyes, to kiss the brow and hold
the hands of this dear man. He smiled with contentment on the group, and
said:--
"Me friends have made such a heaven of this earth that perhaps I have
had me full share."
"Sir Tom," said I, "shall I send for a priest?"
"A priest! What could I do with a priest? Me forebears were on the
Orange side of Boyne Water, and we have never changed color."
"Would you like to see a clergyman?"
"No, no; just the grip of a friend's hand and these angels around me.
Asking pardon is not me long suit, Williams, but perhaps the time has
come for me to play it.
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