ly examined her simple lovely frock and hat and touched with shy
furtive fingers the blue ribbon that floated over the bench from her
girdle. Mrs. Beck was in the seventh heaven and begged her to come again,
and Ruth, equally charmed, promised to go every Sunday. For it appeared
that the wayward pianist was very irregular and had to be constantly
coaxed.

Ruth entered into the work with zest. She took the children's class which
formerly had been with the older ones, and gathering them about her told
them Bible stories till their young eyes bulged with wonder and their
little hearts almost burst with love of her. Love God? Of course they
would. Try to please Jesus? Certainly, if "Mrs. Ruth," as they called
her, said they should. They adored her.

She fell into the habit of going down during the week and slipping into
their homes with a big basket of bright flowers from her home garden
which she distributed to young and old. Even the men, when they happened
to be home from work, wanted the flowers, and touched them with eager
reverence. Somehow the little community of people so different from
herself filled her thoughts more and more. She began to be troubled that
some of the men drank and beat their wives and little children in
consequence. She set herself to devise ways to keep them from it. She
scraped acquaintance with one or two of the older boys in her own church
and enlisted them to help her, and bought a moving picture machine which
she took to the settlement. She spent hours attending moving picture
shows that she might find the right films for their use. Fortunately she
had money enough for all her schemes, and no one to hinder her good work,
although Aunt Rhoda did object strenuously at first on the ground that
she might "catch something." But Ruth only smiled and said: "That's just
what I'm out for, Auntie, dear! I want to catch them all, and try to make
them live better lives. Other people are going to France. I haven't got a
chance to go yet, but while I stay here I must do something. I can't be
an idler."

Aunt Rhoda looked at her quizzically. She wondered if Ruth was worried
about one of her men friends--and which one?

"If you'd only take up some nice work for the Government, dear, such as
the other girls are doing!" she sighed, "work that would bring you into
contact with nice people! You always have to do something queer. I'm sure
I don't know where you got your low tendencies!"

But Ruth would be