e ribbon, Alfredia wore was at least four inches wide and it was tied
in front at the roots of her kinky hair into a bow, the wings of which
stuck out on each side like a pair of elephant ears.

The little colored girl came in at the side gate, drawing the
wash-basket after her.

"How-do, Miss Ruthie--and Miss Aggie? How-do, Tessie and Dottie? You-all
gwine to school on Monday?"

"All of us are going, Alfredia," proclaimed Tess. "Are you going?"

"Mammy done said I could," said Alfredia, rolling her eyes. "But I dunno
fo' sho'."

"Why don't you know?" asked Agnes, the curious.

"Dunno as I got propah clo'es to wear, honey. Got ter look mighty
fetchin' ter go ter school--ya-as'm!"

"Is that why you've got that great bow on your head?" giggled Agnes. "To
make you look 'fetching'?"

"Naw'm. I put dat ol' red sash-bow up dar to 'tract 'tention."

"To attract attention?" repeated Ruth. "Why do you want to attract
attention?"

"I don't _wanter_, Miss Ruthie."

"Then why do you wear it?"

"So folkses will look at my haid."

Agnes and Neale were vastly amused, but Ruth pursued her inquiry. She
wished to get to the bottom of the mystery:

"Why do you want folks to look at your head, Alfredia?"

"So dey won't look at my feet. I done got holes in my shoes--an' dey is
Mammy's shoes, anyway. Do you 'spects I kin git by wid 'em on
Monday--for dey's de on'iest shoes I got ter wear?"

The Kenways laughed--they couldn't help it. But Ruth did not let the
colored girl go away without a pair of half-worn footwear of Agnes' that
came somewhere near fitting Alfredia.

"It's just so nice to have so many things that we can afford to give
some away," sighed Agnes. "My! my! but we ought to be four happy girls."

One of the Corner House girls was far from happy the next day. Dot came
down to breakfast with a most woebegone face, and tenderly caressing her
jaw. She had a toothache, and a plate of mush satisfied her completely
at the table.

"I--I can't che-e-e-ew!" she wailed, when she tried a bit of toast.

"I am ashamed of you, Dot," said Tess, earnestly. "That tooth is just a
little wabbly one, and you ought to have it pulled."

"Ow! don't you touch it!" shrieked Dot.

"I'm not going to," said Tess. "I was reaching for some more butter for
my toast--not for your tooth."

"We-ell!" confessed the smallest Kenway; "it just _jumps_ when anybody
comes toward it."

"Be a brave little girl and go with sister to the denti