“He must go down,” said the herdsman to his boy, “go with him right away, but take care that nothing happens to him and be good to him; the boy is to be pitied,” and he looked at Toni with sympathy, for the herdsman had a good heart and took delight in his own three big, healthy boys.  The one he had with him was a strong, sturdy fellow of sixteen years.  He went up to Toni and told him to stand up, but Toni did not move.  Then the lad took him under the arms, lifted him up, like a feather, then swung him on his back, held him firmly with both hands, and went with his light burden down the mountain.

When the Matten farmer saw Toni in such a sad condition, which remained just the same, he was alarmed, for he had not expected such a thing.  He did not know at all what to do with the boy.  His mother was far away, no relatives were there, and he himself did not want to keep Toni while in this condition.  He could take such a responsibility, but he did not want to do so.  Suddenly a good thought came to him, the same as the people there in every difficulty, in every need and every trouble, always have first of all: 

“Take him to the Pastor,” he said to the herdsman’s boy, “he will have some good advice to give, which will help.”

The lad immediately started off and went to the Pastor, who allowed the boy to tell him as much as he knew about the details of the case, how Toni came to be in this condition and how long it had lasted; but the lad knew very little about it all.  The Pastor first tried every means to make Toni speak, and asked him if he would like to go to his mother, but it was all in vain, Toni did not give the least sign of understanding or interest.

Then the pastor sat down, wrote a letter and said to the herdsman’s boy: 

“Go back to the Matten farm and tell the farmer to harness his little carriage and send it to me, and then I will see that Toni goes to-day to Bern.  He is very sick; say that to the farmer.”

The farmer harnessed immediately, glad that further responsibility was taken from him and he had only to carry Toni as far as the railway.  But the Pastor sent down to his sexton, an older, kindly man, who had given him a helping hand for years in many matters of responsibility.  He was commissioned to take Toni with all care to the great sanitarium in Bern and to give the letter to the doctor there, a good friend of the Pastor’s.  A half hour later, the open carriage with the high seat drove up in front of the Pastor’s house.  The sexton climbed up, placed the sick boy beside him, held him carefully but firmly and thus Toni drove out into the world, with a horse, for the first time in his life.  But he sat there with no sign of interest.  It was as if he were no longer conscious of the outer world.

CHAPTER FOURTH

IN THE SANITARIUM

The doctor of the sanitarium was sitting with his family around the family table, engaged in merry conversation on various subjects.  Even the lady from Geneva, who spent several hours a day with the family, seemed to-day a little infected by the children’s gayety.  She had never before taken so lively a part in the discussion, which the school-children carried on about different interests.