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Show ' DADDY'S k"H EVEHIHG Wm llFAlRYTAIllf.t Mary Graham Bonner THE KIND KEEPER "I feel so wretchedly," said Mrs. Deer. "I feel as though 1 were not going to live any longer. "And I want to live, for the world Is such n beautiful place. "The Nun shines, the rain cools It off, the snow looks soft and white and lovely when the winter Is here and the trees are almost always lovely. "In the spring they burst Into bloom. In the summer time they are full and given, In the autumn they are of various va-rious colors and In the winter they are often covered with soft blankets of white snow. "There are the trees of the forests, the dark pines and spruces nnd elms, "They are iihvays beautiful. "Oh, keeper, the world is n very beautiful place and I want to live so very much." Mrs. Doer was very nervous, for all of the deer family are extremely nervous nerv-ous and timid. They are naturally rather delicate, too, in most cases. "I nin afraid," said the keeper, as he saw Mrs. Deer limping about most painfully, "that you have sprained or strained your knee Joint or maybe jour ankle." Poor Mrs. Deer wanted to be made well and yet she was afraid to be captured by the keeper. Now the keeper did not want to frighten Mrs. Deer, and he understood just how she felt. She was certainly in a great deal of pain and yet she dreaded being attended at-tended to for she knew that often meant so much more pain. "I have to be patient," said the keeper," for If I hurry her and frighten fright-en her I will only make her worse. "Then she will have a terrible case of nervous fright in addition to the pain which is making her limp." Indeed, the keeper was very patient, ne waited a long, long time before the '-JTrs F' Mrs. Deer Was Very Nervous. deer would let him take her gently, not forcing her to come to him. "Well, Mrs. Deer, we must see what is the matter with you," the keeper said, and then the zoo doctor came along. The keeper had sent for him. He had been around several times before, but the keeper had sent him away, saying: "Stay around here, but not too near. We mustn't frighten Mrs. Deer, for she has enough pain without being made dreadfully nervous. "We must be patient." The zoo doctor had agreed with the keeper. Mrs. Deer turned her eyes upon the keeper, now that she was being stroked by him. The keeper stroked her and soothed her and said : "There, there, Mrs. Deer, you'll be all well soon. All well soon." Then the doctor looked at Mrs. Deer and he examined the place where the pain seemed to be. "Dear me," said the doctor, "you mustn't worry, Mrs. Deer. You have rheumatism which is making you stiff and sore, but there are no broken hones ,and no fractured joints." ' Mrs. Deer did not know Just what all these things were, but she knew from the doctor's voice that everything every-thing was going well and that she would soon be about again. "Yes," said the doctor, "you took cold add so got a slight attack of rheumatism rheu-matism which has pained. you a lot. "But you'll be all right' in a day or so. You simply need a little liniment lini-ment on your sore knee joint." So the deer had the liniment put "upon her knee Joint. She didn't know just what liniment was, but she knew that something warm and soothing and comforting was being put on her knee and it was being rubbed in. It was poured out of a bottle and too, it did make so much difference after it had been rubbed on her knee joint. "You're going to be as well as ever In a day or so," said the keeper joyfully. joy-fully. And Mrs. Deer, feeling so much better bet-ter already, looked at the keeper, with tears of joy in her big eyes, and said, in deer language: "Thank you, thank you so much, my kind, kind keeper." |
