cing the floor with the baby's head against her
shoulder and gently patting her. She did not scream now, but sobbed in
a very sleepy fashion.

"You see, we are to start on Saturday noon, and we shall not come back
until the middle of September. We thought it would be so nice for
Marilla, too, she'd kind of run down though she wasn't at all ill.
Bridget worried that she ate so little and she was growing thin."

"How long has she been with you?"

"I took her from an institution--the Bethany Home--about the middle of
October. She was just twelve, the Matron said. I think she was very
glad to come. She's had a good home and plenty to eat. And one funny
thing is that Bridget took such a fancy to her, and though Bridget's
good as gold, she has some queer streaks."

Mrs. Borden sat down and drew a long breath. Pansy had fallen asleep
at last.

"And we never let her lift the children or carry them up and down. I
think babies are sometimes injured for life that way in falling. They
used to sit on the rug and she'd tell them stories. I think she must
have made them out of her head--funny things and she'd act them off
and the babies would laugh and laugh--it was as good as a play. They
seemed to understand every word. Marilla was a born nurse girl. But
what can we do? We must have someone, and there's only such a little
time."

Miss Armitage was thinking.

"Perhaps I might help you out," she said kindly. "There is a young
girl with us who worked in a factory until she gave out. We sent her
to the Rest House in the country and she _did_ improve, but they
wouldn't take her back in the factory. She's a nice pleasant girl
about seventeen."

"Oh, how good of you to think of it! But I can't pay high wages, for
there'll be her board and it won't be hard. When the babies are well
they are as good as kittens though they can't scamper around so much.
And they're so fat they won't walk very soon. It'll just be sitting
round and amusing them and looking after their food. I couldn't give
more than three dollars a week--we are not at all rich," with a short
laugh of apology.

"I think Ellen would come for awhile."

"And I should want Marilla as soon as she was well enough. You see
she's bound-out to me, and we all like her so much. I don't see what
_could_ have happened to her. She has been out in the fresh air most
of the time and we always tell her to go slow with the babies, not
rush along in the heat. What did she say?"

"Oh