ll.

Even when her mother came home in the evening Poppy's work was not
finished. Poor tired mother, she came slowly and wearily up the court,
and then sank down upon a chair just inside the door, almost too
exhausted to speak.

'Give me the babies, Poppy darling,' she would say.

But Poppy knew that her mother had been standing all the day at a
washing-tub, and that she was almost too tired to speak, and so she
would say, 'Oh, I'll keep them a bit, mother; get a cup of tea first.'

And so the evening wore away, and bedtime came; the time when most
little girls of Poppy's age get into soft, cosy beds, and sleep
peacefully till the sunbeams wake them gently in the morning. But even
at night Poppy's work was not over. One or other of the babies was
crying nearly all the night, and sometimes both were crying together.
Poppy used to see her poor mother pacing up and down, backwards and
forwards on the bedroom floor, trying to hush one of the fretful
children to sleep. And then she would creep out of bed and say, 'Give it
to me, mother, you are so tired and so cold.'

And then Poppy would take her turn in that constant tramp, tramp across
the floor, and at last, when the happy moment came, if it ever did come,
in which both babies were worn out with crying and were laid asleep
beside her mother, Poppy would creep cold and shivering into bed, and
the night would seem all too short for her.

Yet, in spite of all the work the babies gave her, Poppy was very proud
of her presents. And when her mother got out two white frocks which
Poppy had worn when she was a baby, and dressed the poor little twins in
them one Sunday afternoon, Poppy danced for joy.

'Don't they look lovely, mother?' she said.

'You must pray for them, Poppy, when we get to church,' said her mother.
'We are going to give them to God.'

'What will He do with them, mother?' said Poppy. 'He won't take them
away, will He?'

'No,' said her mother, 'He won't take them away just yet; but I want
them to belong to Him as long as they live, and then He'll take them
home by-and-by.'

Poppy was very attentive at church that day. How pretty her babies
looked as the clergyman took them in his arms! Her mother had been very
anxious that they should have Bible names, and after much searching, and
after many long talks with Poppy on the subject, she had fixed on Enoch
and Elijah as the names for the little brothers.

Poppy was very happy that Sunday as she walked