Then she will be quite well again.'
She smoothed the bed and crossed to Howard, sitting on a chair still holding Sheila in his arms.
There, monsieur.
All is now ready.'
The old man looked up at her. 'I thank you,' he said courteously.
'One thing more.
If I put her to bed now, would you come back and stay with her while I go to get a doctor?'
The woman said: 'But certainly, monsieur.
The poor little one.'
She watched him as he began to undress Sheila on his lap; at the disturbance she began to cry again.
The Frenchwoman smiled broadly, and began a stream of motherly French chatter to the child, who gradually stopped crying.
In a minute or so Howard had surrendered Sheila to her, and was watching.
The bonne looked up at him.
'Go and look for your doctor, monsieur, if you wish.
I will stay with them for a little.'
He left them, and went down to the desk in the hall, and asked where he could find a doctor.
In the thronging crowd the girl paused for a moment.
'I do not know, m'sieur... yes. One of the officers dining in the restaurant - he is a medecin major.'
The old man pressed into the crowded restaurant.
Practically every table was taken by officers, for the most part glum and silent.
They seemed to the Englishman to be a fat, untidy-looking lot; about half of them were unshaven.
After some enquiry he found the medecin major just finishing his meal, and explained the position to him.
The man took up his red velvet cap and followed him upstairs.
Ten minutes later he said:
'Be easy, monsieur.
She must stay warm in bed tomorrow, and perhaps longer.
But tomorrow I think that there will be no fever any more.'
Howard asked: 'What has she got?'
The man shrugged his shoulders indifferently.
'She is not infectious.
Perhaps she has been hot, and playing in a current of air.
Children, you understand, get fever easily.
The temperature goes up quite high and very quickly. Then in a few hours, down again...'
He turned away.
'Keep her in bed, monsieur.
And light food only; I will tell Madame below.
No wine.'
'No,' said Howard.
He took out his note-case.
'Without doubt,' he said, 'there is a fee.'
A note passed.
The Frenchman folded it and put it in the breast pocket of his tunic.
He paused for a moment.
'You go to England?' he enquired.
Howard nodded.
'I shall take them to Paris as soon as she can travel, and then to England by St Malo.'
There was a momentary silence.
The fat, unshaven officer stood for a moment staring at the child in the bed.
At last he said:
'It may be necessary that you should go to Brest.