tting themselves about to serve you,
they almost make you feel that you're doing them a favour. Don't you
remember only last week when they came to see poor Jake's boy that was
nearly drowned, and insisted on sitting up with him all night--first one
and then the other taking her turn till daylight, because Mrs Jake was
dead-drunk and not able for anything."

"Remember it?" exclaimed Maggie, "I should think I does, and the awful
way Mrs Jake swore at them afore she rightly understood what was
wrong."

"Well, did you hear what Mrs Jake said in the afternoon of that same
day?"

"No--except that she was more civil to 'em, so I was told."

"Civil! yes, she was more civil indeed. She'd got quite sober by the
afternoon, and the neighbours told her how near the boy was to death,
and that the doctor said if it hadn't been for the wise and prompt
measures taken by the Miss Seawards before he arrived, he didn't believe
the boy would have lived--when they told her that, she said nothing.
When the Miss Seawards came back in the afternoon, they tapped so gently
at the door that you would have thought they were beggars who expected a
scolding, an' when Mrs Jake cried out gruffly in her man-like voice,
`Who's that?' they replied as softly as if they had been doing some
mischief, `May we come in?' `May you come in?' shouted Mrs Jake, so
that you might have heard her half way down the street, as she flung the
door wide open, `may angels from heaven come in? yes, you _may_ come
in!' an' with that she seized the younger one round the neck an' fairly
hugged her, for you see Mrs Jake has strong feelin's, an' is very fond
of her boy, an' then she went flop down on a chair, threw her apron over
her head, and howled. I can call it by no other name."

"The poor ladies were almost scared, and didn't seem rightly to know how
to take it, and Miss Kate--the younger one you know--had her pretty new
summer dress awfully crushed by the squeeze, as well as dirtied, for
Mrs Jake had been washin', besides cleaning up a bit just before they
arrived."

"Well, I never!" exclaimed Maggie in great admiration. "I always
thought there was a soft spot in Mrs Jake's heart, if only a body could
find it out."

"My dear," said Mrs Bright, impressively, "there's a soft spot I
believe in everybody's heart, though in some hearts it's pretty well
choked up an' overlaid--"

At that moment a bursting yell from the crib behind the door went
straight to the s