suppose they
were afraid I should do so, for Susan did not leave me a single moment
till I was washed and dressed. I then entered the room where they all
were, and presented myself before them, with the tears running down my
face.

'She is a genteel-looking child,' said Mrs. Sharpley; 'but what are you
crying for, simpleton? We shall not hurt you, and you need not steal
unless you like, so pray set your heart at ease.'

I did try to check my tears, for I considered that I could never be
happy at the cottage any more, though it grieved me to the heart to part
with people who had been so kind to me, especially Mr. Joseph, Mr.
Davis, and little Tommy, who was gone to town with his father; and these
I was obliged to leave, without so much as saying _good-bye_ to them. I
was not able to eat a morsel of dinner, and Mr. and Mrs. Sharpley having
finished theirs, we rose up to depart. I sobbed so that I could not
speak. Mrs. Davis and the girls seemed a little affected. They shook
hands with me, wished me well, and said they hoped I should grow wiser
in time; then, with a band-box before me, that was fastened by a strap
that went over my shoulders, I left the cottage, following my new master
and mistress.

Chapter VIII

Being thus turned out of the cottage, where I had once been so happy, I
followed the footsteps of Mr. and Mrs. Sharpley, frequently looking back
to see if I could discover Mr. Davis and his cart coming from town,
which, if I had, I should certainly have run back, told him what had
passed, and asked him to take me back to Mrs. Williams, instead of
sending me away with strangers. But no cart came in view, and a turning
in the road soon hid even the cottage from my sight. I then walked
pensively forward, meditating on my own unhappy fate, and comparing it
with that of other children who were blessed with parents and relations.
Mr. and Mrs. Sharpley had frequently looked back, as if to see that I
followed them, but--here the path became wider--they told me to come and
walk between them. I did so, and they then asked me a great many
questions respecting my story, all of which I was obliged to answer, so
that they soon knew every particular, excepting my having my father's
picture, which I took care not to give the least hint of. They then
asked me about my age, and, as I could not answer them exactly, they
calculated it as well as they could from circumstances. Supposing I was
five years old at the time of my m