urprise.

"Gosh, no! I mean ist no," said the boy. "We always have it. We got
stacks this morning. Pa's come out of it now, and he's so sorry he got
more 'an ever we can eat. Have you had any before?"

"No," said Elnora, "I never did!"

The boy's eyes brightened and the girl moved restlessly.

"We thought maybe you hadn't," said the boy. "First you ever have, you
like it real well; but when you don't have anything else for a long
time, years an' years, you git so tired." He hitched at the string which
held his trousers and watched Elnora speculatively.

"I don't s'pose you'd trade what you got in that box for ist old bread
and bologna now, would you? Mebby you'd like it! And I know, I ist know,
what you got would taste like heaven to Jimmy and Belle. They never had
nothing like that! Not even Belle, and she's most ten! No, sir-ee, they
never tasted things like you got!"

It was in Elnora's heart to be thankful for even a taste in time, as
she knelt on the bridge, opened the box and divided her lunch into three
equal parts, the smaller boy getting most of the milk. Then she told
them it was school time and she must go.

"Why don't you put your bread and bologna in the nice box?" asked the
boy.

"Of course," said Elnora. "I didn't think."

When the box was arranged to the children's satisfaction all of them
accompanied Elnora to the corner where she turned toward the high
school.

"Billy," said Elnora, "I would like you much better if you were cleaner.
Surely, you have water! Can't you children get some soap and wash
yourselves? Gentlemen are never dirty. You want to be a gentleman, don't
you?"

"Is being clean all you have to do to be a gentleman?"

"No," said Elnora. "You must not say bad words, and you must be kind and
polite to your sister."

"Must Belle be kind and polite to me, else she ain't a lady?"

"Yes."

"Then Belle's no lady!" said Billy succinctly.

Elnora could say nothing more just then, and she bade them good-bye and
started them home.

"The poor little souls!" she mused. "I think the Almighty put them in
my way to show me real trouble. I won't be likely to spend much time
pitying myself while I can see them." She glanced at the lunchbox. "What
on earth do I carry this for? I never had anything that was so strictly
ornamental! One sure thing! I can't take this stuff to the high school.
You never seem to know exactly what is going to happen to you while you
are there."

As if to pr