ere in the world?"

Her face clouded over.

"Jesus said, 'The poor ye have always with you, and whensoever ye will
ye may do them good.'"

"But that is what I don't understand about," I said. "_How much_ ought
one to do, Miss Cardigan?"

There came a ray of infinite brightness over her features; I can
hardly describe it; it was warm with love, and bright with pleasure,
and I thought sparkled with a little amusement.

"Have you thought upon that?" she said.

"Yes," I said,--"very much."

"It is a great question!" she said, her face becoming grave again.

"I know," I said, "of course one ought to do all one can. But what I
want to know is, how much one _can_. How much ought one to spend, for
such things?"

"It's a great question," Miss Cardigan repeated, more gravely than
before. "For when the King comes, to take account of His servants, He
will want to know what we have done with every penny. Be sure, He
will."

"Then how can one tell?" said I, hoping earnestly that now I was going
to get some help in my troubles. "How can one know? It is very
difficult."

"I'll no say it's not difficult," said Miss Cardigan, whose thoughts
seemed to have gone into the recesses of her own mind. "Dear, its nigh
our tea-time. Let us go in."

I followed her, much disappointed, and feeling that if she passed the
subject by so, I could not bring it up again. We went through to the
inner room; the same from which the glass door opened to the flowers.
Here a small table was now spread. This room was cosy. I had hardly
seen it before. Low bookcases lined it on every side; and above the
bookcases hung maps; maps of the city and of various parts of the
world where missionary stations were established. Along with the maps,
a few engravings and fine photographs. I remember one of the
Colosseum, which I used to study; and a very beautiful engraving of
Jerusalem. But the one that fixed my eyes this first evening, perhaps
because Miss Cardigan placed me in front of it, was a picture of
another sort. It was a good photograph, and had beauty enough besides
to hold my eyes. It showed a group of three or four. A boy and girl in
front, handsome, careless, and well-to-do, passing along, with
wandering eyes. Behind them and disconnected from them by her dress
and expression, a tall woman in black robes with a baby on her breast.
The hand of the woman was stretched out with a coin which she was
about dropping into an iron-bound coffer which st