noon
Doctor Morrison had ordered water toast and weak tea for their breakfast , and when Betty went out to the kitchen to prepare two trays she found that Bob had pumped two pails of fresh water , cleared the table and stacked the dishes in the dishpan and was taking up ashes from the stove while he waited for the kettle of water which he had put on for them to heat . `` I thought you 'd need the teakettle yourself , '' observed this energetic young man , a streak of soot across his forehead in no way detracting from his engaging smile . `` I 'll have to put in an hour or so chopping wood this afternoon . The box will be empty by noon . '' Betty found that both her patients were too weak to feed themselves , so she had to handle one tray at a time . The meal was barely over when Doctor Morrison drove up . He found Bob washing dishes and Betty drying them .