l hand in hand
with Carrie, serene in the belief that all was well, and happy at her
unexpected behavior in regard to school.

"Well, I'm beat!" Aunt Maria exclaimed as the two girls skipped joyously
up the path and disappeared over the summit of the hill. "I thought sure
she'd raise a fuss, but she never said a word."

"She is so wrapped up in Carrie that she has forgotten all about her
name," answered Tom in his ignorance.

The aunt sighed, "Well, it's a shame she has to answer to it when she
despises it so; though I can't see that it is much worse than Maria. I
never paid much attention to my name that I remember. But if I'd had my
way about it, I should have called you Peter Augustus, and her Aurora
Isadena," (she pronounced them "A-roo-rie Isi-deen-ie") "but your pa had
different notions. Said he'd suffered torment all his days being called
Manx Cat and he was going to get even with folks for once; though I
can't see how naming innocent children such names would help him any in
his grouch against the world."

Neither could Tom, but it was seldom that Aunt Maria volunteered any
information of this sort, and he made the most of his opportunity by
asking, "Is Dad's other name Lynne?"

"Yes, but the boys plagued him when he was little calling him 'lean
cat,' so he took to going by his middle name, Maximilian, but folks
nicknamed that, too, and he got sulky." Then as if fearing she had said
too much, she added, "That assaying man will be looking for you if you
don't get up to the office pretty quick."

So though Tom had any quantity of questions he wanted to ask, he put on
his cap and left the house. The school-bell was ringing its final
summons when he reached the top of the hill, and he paused to look down
the steep slope into the yard where the children were marching in double
file into the building, smiling as he saw Tabitha's long, lean legs
keeping step behind the short, plump ones of little Carrie, and mentally
hoping that the day would go well with the little spitfire sister.

It did. A bright-faced woman stood at her desk and received the children
as they entered, shook hands with them and gave them their seats,
smiling all the while until Tabitha thought she had never seen anyone so
pretty, except Mrs. Carson.

"Now children, my name is Miss Brooks," the new teacher began with an
important air which would have told an older observer that this was her
first experience in teaching. "I shall expect you a