II
My father lay stretched across the bed as still as if the hand of death had pushed him down, for a full hour and a half before he began to play upon the floor with the toe of that foot which hung over the bedside; my uncle TobyвАЩs heart was a pound lighter for it.вБ†вЄїIn a few moments, his left-hand, the knuckles of which had all the time reclined upon the handle of the chamberpot, came to its feelingвБ†вАФhe thrust it a little more within the valanceвБ†вАФdrew up his hand, when he had done, into his bosomвБ†вАФgave a hem! My good uncle Toby, with infinite pleasure, answered it; and full gladly would have ingrafted a sentence of consolation upon the opening it afforded: but having no talents, as I said, that way, and fearing moreover that he might set out with something which might make a bad matter worse, he contented himself with resting his chin placidly upon the cross of his crutch.
Now whether the compression shortened my uncle TobyвАЩs face into a more pleasurable ovalвБ†вАФor that the philanthropy of his heart, in seeing his brother beginning to emerge out of the sea of his afflictions, had braced up his musclesвБ†вЄЇвБ†so that the compression upon his chin only doubled the benignity which was there before, is not hard to decide.вБ†вЄЇвБ†My father, in turning his eyes, was struck with such a gleam of sunshine in his face, as melted down the sullenness of his grief in a moment.
He broke silence as follows.