to work in his hay-field, and says if he
does well he may perhaps keep him as a farm-labourer?'

'And Mrs. Middleton told Mrs. Western that Bob was beginning to hold up
his head a bit, and that if he had only a decent jacket she really
thought he would go to church with her on Sundays,' said Willie.

'Honorius has an old jacket that is only fit for giving away,' said Mrs.
Campbell; 'don't you think we might make poor Bob a present of it, dear
Archibald?'

'Oh do, papa,' cried the boys unanimously.

Dr. Campbell had no objection; so Honorius ran into the house to fetch
the jacket, observing, 'I shall tell him to take himself off when I've
given it him; it's not manners to stare over at us in this way.' When he
returned, however, from his colloquy with the grinning Bob, he
explained, 'He doesn't mean to be rude, he says, but he's so pleased
that we've made the desert so trim, and that "madam," as he calls mamma,
is able to come out and see it. He's immensely pleased with the jacket,
but he doesn't want to go away till he's spoken to Johnnie and Willie.'

Willie ran off at once. Johnnie turned to go with equal haste, then
paused and glanced at his father: the forgiven fault had _not_ been
forgotten.

'Yes, go, my man,' said Dr. Campbell; 'and you may bring Bob in if you
like, just to take a turn round the garden; but don't encourage him to
stay.'

'Oh, and mayn't we give him Geroldinga's apple?' said Duncan; but the
Doctor answered, laughing, 'that that would be anything but a benevolent
present, and that Geroldinga's solitary fruit had better be allowed to
ripen.'

'I shan't take it,' said Archie, thus innocently revealing, what was
indeed the case, that he felt some temptation to do so.

'Nor baby won't,' said Georgie manfully.

'No, my little boys will not touch what is not their own,' said the
mother, glancing down tenderly at the two small faces; 'and some
summer, perhaps, we may find Gozmaringa and the rest covered with
apples, and then what apple dumplings we shall have!'

Archie's broad smile told that he relished the idea. Georgie, to whom
apple dumplings were as yet an unknown delicacy, looked grave and asked,
'Is appy dumpions nice?'

'Very,' said the laughing mamma. 'But see, here is Bob coming this way.
Well, Bob, what do you think of my sons' work?'

'It's fust-rate,' said Bob, pulling his rough forelock. 'I hopes you
finds yourself better, mum.'

'Much better, thank you, and very glad to be