eir dinners fixed right, and go out walking with them and
nurse; and if any company comes, you must go down and see them, and say
that mamma has gone to New York, will you?"

"Yes, mamma; I will be just as good as pie!" said Kitty, earnestly;
"Luly and Wawa will like to have me for a mother, I guess."

"Yes; you are their Little Mother for to-day," said her mamma. "I know
you love me, Kitty, and want to save me all the trouble you can; it
will be a great comfort to me, while I am away, to feel that I can trust
you perfectly;" and she kissed the little, rosy cheek, I'm sure I can't
tell how many times, and Kitty felt so proud and happy that she only
wished she had been trusted with a much larger family of little brothers
and sisters, instead of two; that she might show the more what an
excellent Little Mother she intended to be. You would wish so too,
wouldn't you! yes, of course!

Kitty May lived with her papa and mamma, Luly and Walter, Mary the
nurse, and Betty the cook, three brown horses, two red cows, a black
dog, and a white kitten, at a beautiful country seat up the Hudson
River. She was only eight years old, but her obedience to her parents,
and tender, loving care of her little brother and sister, were beautiful
to see, and a shining example to some little girls I know. On the day
that I am telling you about, her papa had gone to town, as usual, early
in the morning, and now here was mamma going too, and Kitty would be
left to play lady of the house as grand as anything.

Well, the carriage was brought to the door, and mamma got in, after
kissing her little family all round about twenty times. Everybody rushed
to the front piazza to bid her good-by in their own fashion. Trip, the
black dog, jumped and barked around the horses, until they nearly kicked
him, when he sprang away, snapping out, "No, you don't! no, you don't!"
Dody, the white kitten, so called by Walter for "Daisy," mewed as hard
as she could from Luly's arms. Walter crowed and chuckled, and said,
"Boo-bi!" meaning good-by; Luly lisped, "Dood-by, dear mamma, _div_ my
_yove_ to gan'ma;" and Kitty said, "Good-by, mamma; I'll be a famous
Little Mother--see if I'm not!" And so the carriage drove away.

When it was quite out of sight, the little girls skipped and climbed,
and wee Walter was carried by nurse up stairs into the nursery; and
Kitty said, "Now, Mary, you can just go on with your sewing; you needn't
mind us a bit. I'm going to take care of