will disobey their parents the more for being
taught to fear God?" "I don't think any thing about it," said
Rebecca; "I sha'n't let her come, and there's the long and short of
the matter. Hester has other fish to fry; but you may have some of
these little ones if you will." "No," said Mrs. Jones, "I will not;
I have not set up a nursery, but a school. I am not at all this
expense to take crying babes out of the mother's way, but to
instruct reasonable beings in the road to eternal life: and it ought
to be a rule in all schools not to take the troublesome _young_
children unless the mother will try to spare the _elder_ ones, who
are capable of learning." "But," said Rebecca, "I have a young child
which Hester must nurse while I dress dinner. And she must iron the
rags, and scour the irons, and dig the potatoes, and fetch the water
to boil them." "As to nursing the child, that is indeed a necessary
duty, and Hester ought to stay at home part of the day to enable you
to go to church; and families should relieve each other in this way,
but as to all the rest, they are no reasons at all, for the irons
need not be scoured so often, and the rags should be ironed, and the
potatoes dug, and the water fetched on the Saturday; and I can tell
you that neither your minister here, nor your Judge hereafter, will
accept of any such excuse."

All this while Hester staid behind pale and trembling lest her
unkind mother should carry her point. She looked up at Mrs. Jones
with so much love and gratitude as to win her affection, and this
good lady went on trying to soften this harsh mother. At last
Rebecca condescended to say, "Well I don't know but I may let her
come now and then when I can spare her, provided I find you make it
worth her while." All this time she had never asked Mrs. Jones to
sit down, nor had once bid her young children be quiet, though they
were crying and squalling the whole time. Rebecca fancied this
rudeness was the only way she had of showing she thought herself to
be as good as her guest, but Mrs. Jones never lost her temper. The
moment she went out of the house, Rebecca called out loud enough for
her to hear, and ordered Hester to get the stone and a bit of sand
to scrub out the prints of that dirty woman's shoes. Hester in high
spirits cheerfully obeyed, and rubbed out the stains so neatly, that
her mother could not help lamenting that so handy a girl was going
to be spoiled, by being taught godliness, and lear