Jurgis begs midwife Madame Haupt, a fat Dutchwoman, to help Ona. He doesn't have nearly enough money to hire her and she haggles with him relentlessly, torturing Jurgis who is only thinking of his dying wife. Finally she agrees to help Ona. When they arrive at the house, the women force Jurgis to leave. He goes to a nearby saloon where he is known and the barkeep gives him a free meal and a drink.
He spends the night there and when he returns to the house in the morning, he sees Madame Haupt coming down the stairs covered in blood. She tells Jurgis she'd done her best; the baby is dead and Ona is nearly dead. Jurgis runs upstairs to hold his wife. She dies in his arms, at 18 years old. "The word rang through him like the sound of a bell, echoing in the far depths of him, making forgotten chords to vibrate, old shadowy fears to stir-fears of the dark, fears of the void, fears of annihilation. She was dead! She was dead!" Chapter 19, pg. 227
