kie dismissed the subject for the moment, and turned her attention to
the little green barrow full of sticks which she had just wheeled into
the potting shed. There was a pleasant mingled scent of apples, earth,
and withered leaves there; from the low rafters hung strings of onions,
pieces of bass, and bunches of herbs, and in one corner there was a
broken-backed chair, and Andrew's dinner upon it tied up in a blue
checked handkerchief. Bending over his pots and mould by the window in
his tall black hat, and looking as brown and dried-up as everything
round him, was Andrew himself, and Dickie stood opposite, warmly muffled
up, but with a pink tinge on her small round nose from the frosty air.
She was always on good terms with Andrew, and could make him talk
sometimes when he was silent for everyone else; so, although she very
seldom understood his answers, they held frequent conversations, which
seemed quite satisfactory on both sides.

Her questions to-day about the circus had been called forth by the fact
that she had seen, when out walking with Nurse, a strange round white
house in a field near the village. On asking what it was, she had been
told that it was a tent. What for? A circus. And what was a circus?
A place where horses went round and round. What for? Little girls
should not ask so many questions. Dickie felt this to be
unsatisfactory, and she accordingly made further inquiries on the first
opportunity.

She laid her dry sticks neatly in the corner, and grasping the handles
of her barrow, stood facing Andrew silently, who did not raise his grave
long face from his work; he did not look encouraging, but she was quite
used to that.

"Did 'oo like it, Andoo?" she inquired presently with her head on one
side.

"Well, you see, missie," replied Andrew, "I lost the best thing I had
there, through being a fool."

"Tell Dickie all about it," said Dickie in a coaxing voice.

She turned her little barrow upside down as she spoke, sat down upon it,
and placed one mittened hand on each knee.

"Dickie kite yeddy. Begin," she said in a cheerful and determined
manner.

Andrew took off his hat, and feebly scratched his head; he looked
appealingly at the little figure on the barrow as though he would gladly
have been excused the task, but though placid, the round face was calmly
expectant.

"I dunno as I can call it to mind," he said apologetically; "you see,
missie, it wur a powerful time ago. A matte