g and not picturesque.
Just look at her!"

Mr. Carlisle did so, and the expression on his face was so
unsatisfactory that Mrs. Powle gave up the matter; laughed, and went
out of the room.

"I will be less striking," said Eleanor, "if you will excuse me." And
she left the room to change her dress. But when she came back an hour
after, Mr. Carlisle was still there.

"Eleanor," said he, coming and standing before her, "may I go with you
the next time you go to Field Lane?"

"No, I think not. You would not know what to do in such a place, Mr.
Carlisle."

"Do you think so?"

"They are a set of people whom you do not like; people who you think
ought to be fined--and imprisoned--and transported; and all that sort
of thing."

"And what do you think ought to be done with them?"

"I would try a different regimen."

"Pray what would it be?"

"I would tell them of the love of One who died for them. And I would
shew them that the servants of that One love them too."

She spoke quietly, but there was a light in her eye.

"How, for heaven's sake, Eleanor?"

"Mr. Carlisle, I would never condemn a man or boy very severely for
stealing, when I had left him no other way to live."

"So you would make the rest of the world responsible?"

"Are they not? These fellows never heard a word of right or of
truth--never had a word of kindness--never were brought under a good
influence,--until they found it in the Ragged school. What could you
expect? May I illustrate?"

"Pray do."

"There is a boy in a class neighbouring to mine in the room, whose
teacher I know. The boy is thirteen or fourteen years old now; he came
to the school first some four or five years ago, when he was a little
bit of a fellow. Then he had already one brother transported for
stealing, and another in prison for stealing--both only a little older
than he. They had often no other way of getting food but stealing it.
The father and mother were both of them drunkards and swallowed up
everything in liquor. This little fellow used to come to the morning
school, which was held every day, without any breakfast; many a time.
Barefooted, over the cold streets, and no breakfast to warm him. But
after what he heard at the school he promised he would never do as his
brothers had done; and he had some very hard times in keeping his
promise. At last he came to his teacher and asked him for a loan of
threepence; if he had a loan of threepence he thought he could make