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From Death Bed Visions – Sir William Barrett

Mrs. G., with her two little girls, Minnie and Ada, of the respective ages of eight and nine years, had been staying in the country on a visit to her sister-in-law, but having taken a house near London, she sent the two children with their nurse off by an early train, following herself by one a few hours later.

Towards the evening of the same day, one of the little girls walked into the room of the house which they had quitted in the morning, where a cousin to whom she was much attached was sitting at his studies, and said to him, 'I am come to say good-bye, Walter; I shall never see you again.'

Then kissing him she vanished from the room.

The young man was greatly startled and astonished, as he had himself seen both the little girls and their nurse off by the morning train.

At this very time of the evening both the children in London were taken suddenly ill, while playing in their new home, a few hours after they had arrived. The doctor called in pronounced their complaint to be small-pox of the most malignant kind. They both died within the week.

The youngest, Minnie, died first. The day after she was buried, the poor bereaved mother was anxiously watching the last hours of the one still left, for whom she well knew no chance life remained.

Suddenly the sick child woke up from a kind of stupor, and exclaimed, ‘Oh, look Mamma, look at the beautiful angels ! , pointing to the foot of the bed. Mrs. G. saw nothing but heard soft sweet music, which seemed to float in the air. Again the child exclaimed :  'Oh, dear Mamma, there is Minnie ! She has come for me’

She smiled and appeared greatly pleased. ……… The sick child smiled once again and died without a struggle