ere hustled off to bed, rather to their
own disgust, and then David, Grannie, and Alison sat gravely down, and
looked each at the other.

"Where's Harry?" said Grannie suddenly. "Why aint the boy to home?"

"I expect he's at the Boys' Club," said David. "He's very fond of
running round there in the evening."

"There's no harm in that, Grannie," said Alison. "Don't fret about
Harry. Now tell us your news, do. Did you see Mr. Williams, and can
he do anything?"

"I saw Mr. Williams," said Grannie. "He remembered me quite well. I
told him everything. It seems to me that he has put things straight.
I don't say that things aint sore--no, I don't go to pretend they
aint--but somehow they seem straightened out a bit, and I know wot to
do."

"And what's that, Grannie?" asked David, taking her left hand very
tenderly in his as he spoke.

Grannie had been leaning back in a sort of restless attitude. Now she
straightened herself up and looked keenly at the boy.

"It means, lad," she said, after a pause, "the sore part means this,
that we must give up the little bit of a home."

"We must give it up?" said David, in a blank sort of way. "Oh, wait a
while; you don't know about my five shillings a week."

"Dave has got a rise," interrupted Alison. "Mr. Watson thinks a sight
of him, and he's to go into the house as a clerk, and he's to have five
shillings a week and his meals. So he's provided for."

"But your five shillings a week won't keep up the home, Dave, so
there's no use thinking of it, from that p'int o' view."

"Go on, please, Grannie; what else have you and Mr. Williams arranged?"

"It's the Lord has arranged it, child," said Grannie, "it aint Mr.
Williams. It's that thought that makes me kind o' cheerful over it."

"But what is it, Grannie? We are to give up the home?"

"Well, the home gives us up," said Grannie, "for we can't keep the
rooms ef we can't pay the rent, and the children can't be fed without
money. To put it plain, as far as the home goes, we're broke. That's
plain English. It's this 'and that has done it, and I'll never believe
in eddication from this time forward; but there's no use goin' back on
that now. Thank the Lord, I has everything settled and clear in my
mind. I pay the last rent come Monday, and out we go."

"But where to?" said Alison. "There's a lot of us, and we must live
somewhere."

"It's all settled, and beautiful too," said Grannie. "Mr. Williams
knows a