at they despised, he often wished the hungry beggars had
some of his own hot dinner, which he would gladly have spared to them;
for Harry was really so generous, that he would have lived upon air, if
he might be of use to anybody. Time passed on, and Lady Harriet engaged
a master for some hours a-day to teach the children lessons, while even
Mrs. Crabtree found no other fault to Harry and Laura, except that in
respect to good behaviour their memories were like a sieve, which let
out every thing they were desired to keep in mind. They seemed always to
hope, somehow or other, when Mrs. Crabtree once turned her back, she
would never shew her face again; so their promises of better conduct
were all "wind without rain,"--very loud and plenty of them, but no good
effect to be seen afterwards.

Among her many other torments, Mrs. Crabtree rolled up Laura's hair
every night on all sides of her head, in large stiff curl-papers, till
they were as round and hard as walnuts, after which, she tied on a
night-cap, as tightly as possible above all, saying this would curl the
hair still better. Laura could not lay any part of her head on the
pillow, without suffering so much pain that, night after night, she sat
up in bed, after Mrs. Crabtree had bustled out of the room, and quietly
took the cruel papers out, though she was punished so severely for doing
so, that she obeyed orders at last and lay wide awake half the night
with torture; and it was but small comfort to Laura afterwards, that
Lady Harriet's visitors frequently admired the forest of long glossy
ringlets that adorned her head, and complimented Mrs. Crabtree on the
trouble it must cost her to keep that charming hair in order. Often did
Laura wish that it were ornamenting any wig-block, rather than her own
head; and one day Lady Harriet laughed heartily, when some strangers
admired her little grand-daughter's ringlets, and Laura asked, very
anxiously, if they would like to cut off a few of the longest, and keep
them for her sake.

"Your hair does curl like a cork-screw," said Frank, laughing. "If I
want to draw a cork out of a beer bottle any day, I shall borrow one of
those ringlets, Laura!"

"You may laugh, Frank, for it is fun to you and death to me," answered
poor Laura, gravely shaking her curls at him. "I wish we were all bald,
like uncle David! During the night, I cannot lie still on account of
those tiresome curls, and all day I dare not stir for fear of spoiling
t