it seemed to tingle all through Flaxie, from her head to her feet. She
ran into the sitting-room, ready to scream. "Oh, auntie, I feel so bad;
I feel bad all over!"

Mrs. Allen did not know what she meant.

"Not _all_ over," said she, looking up pleasantly. "Isn't there a good
spot somewhere, dear? Perhaps there's a wee spot on your little finger
that's almost good."

But Flaxie could not smile.

"It's right in here, in my heart, that I feel the worst," moaned she;
"'cause I can't see my mamma, and haven't anything to kiss but her
picture!"

Then Aunt Charlotte was full of sympathy, for she knew the dreadful
suffering Flaxie spoke of was homesickness. It seemed strange that it
should have seized her so suddenly,--but Flaxie was sudden about
everything.

"Why, my precious one," said Mrs. Allen, taking the unhappy child in her
lap, "you know Milly is coming home next week, and in one week more Dr.
Papa will send for you to go home. Two weeks won't be long."

"Oh, yes'm, oh, very long! And they oughtn't to have lemme come; I'm too
yo-u-ng!"

"Hullo! Is she sick?" cried Freddy, bursting into the room with a great
clatter.

His mother shook her head at him.

"I think Flaxie and I will take a ride in the cars to-morrow," said she.
"I think we'll go to Chicopee to see Mrs. Adams, who has some
gold-fishes, and a parrot, and a canary. How would you like that,
Flaxie?"

"Wouldn't like it a tall, 'cause _she_ isn't my mamma," sobbed the poor
little girl. "And we couldn't go to-morrow, 'cause to-morrow is Sunday."

"Sunday? First _I_ ever heard of it," said Freddy. "To-day is Friday, I
suppose you know?"

"Oh, Freddy, Freddy, I can't bear that. It's Saturday," said Flaxie.

As she spoke, the tears poured down her cheeks in little streams, and
she squeezed her eyelids together so tight that Freddy laughed, for he
thought the day of the week was a funny thing to cry about.

"To-day isn't Saturday," said he. "If 'tis, what did I go to school for?
Tell me that."

"Oh, it _is_ Saturday, Freddy Allen! Don't I know what day I came here?
I came Friday. Didn't I hear Ninny and mamma talk about it, and don't I
_know_?" screamed the wretched child, hopping up and down, then falling,
face downward, on the rug. "Oh, I can't bear it; I _can't_ bear it!
There, don't anybody in this town know what day it is! Nobody knows it
but me!"

This was funny enough to Freddy, but very painful to his mother, who
knew the deep trouble