y penny. "That's the reason I didn't want to go to the
meeting," she said. "I don't feel fit to 'sociate with good missionary
children. I'm so sorry and so ashamed. I wish I had let the penny stay
in the box and the chair stay in the store."

"We cannot undo what is done," said her mother gravely. "We can only
make all possible amends and try to do better in future. You can replace
the penny this evening, and this lesson you have had may teach you to
be more self-denying. You know you cannot spend all your money for
trifles and yet have some to give away. If you want to give you must
learn to do without some things. But, Marty, if it is going to be so
difficult to devote some of your money to missions, you had better just
give up the attempt and go back to your old way of doing."

"Oh, no, no!" exclaimed Marty earnestly. "Please let me try again. I
know I'll do better now, and I do want to help in missionary work."

"Well," said Mrs. Ashford, "just as you wish. I don't like to see you
beginning things and giving them up so soon, but at the same time I
don't think you need feel obliged to give to these things whether you
want to or not."

"Oh, but I do want to ever so much," Marty protested.

She felt better after telling her mother all about the matter, and now
was quite ready to brighten up and start afresh. The next morning
besides dropping in two pennies for tenths she put in another, which she
said was a "sorry" offering, but did not know the Bible name for it. She
would have liked to make amends by putting in the whole ten cents, but
her mother would not allow it.

"Things would soon be as bad as ever," were her warning words, "if
that's the way you are going to do. The next thing you will want to
take some of it out, as you did the penny for the chair."

"No, no, mamma! I don't b'lieve I ever _could_ be so mean again," Marty
declared.

"I don't believe either that you would do it again. But you will
certainly save yourself a great deal of worry, and will be likely to do
more good in the work you have begun, by following Mrs. Howell's advice
of having a plan of giving and keeping to it."

"Well, I'm going to try that way in real earnest now," said Marty; "but
I wish it was as easy for me to be steady about things as it is for
Edith. She never seems to get into trouble over her tenths."

A few days after this, when she was spending the afternoon with Edith,
Marty told Mrs. Howell what a time she had had,