ed would illuminate
many dark places of the earth; and my tea and coffee seem just suited to
her taste." Then, after a pause, she said: "Well, the poor woman is
welcome to all she has had."

"Yes," said her husband, "they have a hard time."

To-day she came to get Mrs. Herne to read a letter she had received,
saying: "There are some parts that neither my husband or myself can make
out."

While Mrs. Herne was engaged in reading the letter, Mrs. Wentworth's
child, seeing the door leading from one room to another open, took the
opportunity of doing a little exploring. It was not long before he was
in the parlor. When he entered Stella just looked up from the paper she
was reading, to see who it was, and went on with her reading, which she
was absorbed in. She had seen the child about the house on other
occasions. Now, where Stella was sitting, there was another chair at the
back of Stella's chair, and this vacant one was against the wall. On the
wall just over the chair was a pretty shelf, with a fancy
bright-colored ball fringe all around it, which attracted the child's
attention. So he climbed up in the chair, and when he stood up on the
seat he saw on the shelf a small, fancy, cut-glass bottle, with a very
shining silver-like top to it; so he put his hand out and took it from
the shelf, after which he turned round and faced the back of Stella's
chair. In passing the bottle from one hand to the other, in order to
help himself down with his possessions, his faculty of weight not being
as yet well trained, he let go of the bottle before he had got a firm
hold of it with the other hand, and the result was that it fell on
Stella's shoulder. Fortunately the stopper did not come off till it
reached her lap, when she received the whole contents of a bottle of ink
on her wedding dress.

Just about that time Mrs. Wentworth said to Mrs. Herne: "I must go and
see what that child is doing;" and she arrived in the room just as the
bottle of ink fell into Stella's lap. Mrs. Wentworth took the situation
in at a glance and the hot blood instantly flew to her face, and hotter
words came from her mouth; and, among other things she said, was:

"My God! that brat of mine has spoiled your fine, white dress;" and she
took the boy, and was spanking him amidst hot words and the cries of the
child.

Stella said: "Please don't hurt the child; it's nothing, it's nothing,
Mrs. Wentworth." But the mother paid no attention to Stella's protests