A nurse who had recently joined the Institute had been first engaged to
undertake the case, at the express request of the suffering person--who
was said to be distantly related to the young woman. On the morning
when she was about to proceed to the scene of her labours, news had
reached her of the dangerous illness of her mother. Mrs. Vimpany, who
was free at the time, and who felt a friendly interest in her young
colleague, volunteered to take her place. Upon this, a strange request
had been addressed to the matron, on behalf of the sick man. He desired
to be "informed of it, if the new nurse was an Irishwoman." Hearing
that she was an Englishwoman, he at once accepted her services, being
himself (as an additional element of mystery in the matter) an
Irishman!
The matron's English prejudices at once assumed that there had been
some discreditable event in the man's life, which might be made a
subject of scandalous exposure if he was attended by one of his own
countrypeople. She advised Mrs. Vimpany to have nothing to do with the
afflicted stranger. The nurse answered that she had promised to attend
on him--and she kept her promise.
Mountjoy left the Institute, after vainly attempting to obtain Mrs.
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