heart was as large as her tongue was ready.
"Why, I do believe you're Cicely Johnson. You are so grown I didn't
know you at first--and yet you're no bigger than a mouse, as I told you.
Have you had any supper?"

"No, Mistress. Please, we don't have supper, only now and then. We
shall do very well, indeed, if we may stay for the preaching."

"You'll sit down there, and eat some bread and milk, before you're an
hour older. Poor little white-faced mortals as ever I did see! But
you've never carried that child all the way from Thorpe?--Doll didst
ever see such children?"

"They're proper peaked, Mistress," said Dorothy. [See note 1.]

"Oh no!" answered the truth-loving Cissy. "I only carried her from the
Gate. Neighbour Ursula, she bare her all the way."

"Thou'rt an honest lass," said Mrs Wade, patting Cissy on the head.
"There, eat that."

And she put a large slice of bread into the hand of both Will and Cissy,
setting a goodly bowl of milk on the table between them.

"That's good!" commented Will, attacking the milk-bowl immediately.

Cissy held him back, and looked up into Mrs Wade's kindly and capacious
face.

"But please we haven't got any money," she said anxiously.

"Marry come up! to think I'd take money from such bits of things as you!
I want no money, child. The good Lord, He pays such bills as yours.
And what set you coming to the preaching? Did your father bid you?"
[See Note 2.]

"Father likes us to come," said Cissy, when her thanks had been properly
expressed; "but he didn't bid us--not to-night. Mother, she said we
must always come if we could. I'm feared Baby won't understand much:
but Will and me, we'll try."

"I should think not!" replied Mrs Wade, laughing. "Why, if you and
Will can understand aught that'll be as much as need be looked for. How
much know you about it?"

"Please, we know about the Lord Jesus," said Cissy, putting her hands
together, as if she were going to say her prayers. "We know that He
died on the cross for us, so that we should not be punished for our
sins, and He sends the Holy Ghost to make us good, and the Bible, which
is God's Word, and we mustn't let anybody take it away from us."

"Well, if you know that much in your little hearts, you'll do," said the
landlady. "There's many a poor heathen doesn't know half as much as
that. Ay, child, you shall 'bide for the preaching if you want, but
you're too soon yet. You've come afore the parson. Eat