ot one," and then tell the story just as it was. They might not believe
her, and if they did it would be betraying Bertie, and that would not be
kind, particularly now that the latter was so ill. Or if she could have
told the young ladies and, with the help of Mr. James, made it all
straight with them, she could not go around to all the girls and explain
what to them were half-defined suspicions. Even if she told the story
of the fifty-dollar bill and her version of it were believed, they might
very naturally think that there was something else, and that Bertie
would scarcely have based her charge of theft on so slight and easily to
be explained a circumstance as that. What should she do? It was dreadful
to live under such a cloud; to have people consider you wicked when you
are desiring and trying with all your might to be good, and not be able
to right yourself at all. Again a feeling toward Bertie arose in the
girl's heart that would have been hatred but for her companion's present
condition, and which she felt to be wrong even as it was. For the
thought of Jesus and how he forgave his enemies made her feel ashamed of
herself, till she got out of bed and, kneeling down in the moonlight,
prayed to be made more like him and to be willing to suffer wrongfully,
if need be, with patience, rather than to feel wrong or to do anything
unkind. And then, as she got into bed again, the scripture words with
which she had commenced her factory life came back to her with new
force:--

"In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." And
then those others in the thirty-seventh Psalm: "Commit thy way unto the
Lord; trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass. He shall bring
forth thy righteousness as the light."

That was the safest way. She might leave it to God to take care of her
reputation. He could manage it though she could not, and some time
everybody would understand just how it was, and know she was not a
thief. Meantime she could afford to wait his time.

The next morning Mr. Sanderson promised to send word to the mill about
Katie's absence and its cause, and when he left for the bindery his wife
came downstairs to see to things, and she took her place in the
sick-room, while Nina went to sit with Alf. Mrs. Sanderson was surprised
to see how much Katie had managed to do before breakfast and in the
interim between, exciting in Nina quite an ambition to wash dishes and
"clean up." The little children