Chapter 24 Summary

September gives way to October as Mattie and Eliza make daily trips through the city to alleviate what suffering they can. Joseph recovers from yellow fever and begins to work again. Food is running so short in the city that some people begin to mix sawdust with their flour when baking bread. Medicines and money are also in very short supply. Mattie surprises Eliza because she works long hours without complaining.

One mid-October day after making long rounds in the city, Mattie and Eliza return home to discover Joseph weeping in a chair in the house - he informs them that Robert, William, and Nell have all become sick with yellow fever. Mattie and Eliza are alarmed and decide they must transport the children away from the heat and the river. Mattie suggests that the Cook Coffeehouse would be a suitable place to...