"He is a rebel, I wonder if I ought to be good to him," thought Nelly,
watching the reptile writhe with pain. "Will said there were sick
rebels in his hospital, and one was very kind to him. It says, too, in
my little book, 'Love your enemies.' I think snakes are mine, but I
guess I'll try and love him because God made him. Some boy will kill
him if I leave him here, and then perhaps his mother will be very sad
about it. Come, poor worm, I wish to help you, so be patient, and
don't frighten me."

Then Nelly laid her little handkerchief on the ground, and with a stick
gently lifted the wounded snake upon it, and, folding it together, laid
it in the ambulance. She was thoughtful after that, and so busy
puzzling her young head about the duty of loving those who hate us, and
being kind to those who are disagreeable or unkind, that she went
through the rest of the wood quite forgetful of her work. A soft
"Queek, queek!" made her look up and listen. The sound came from the
long meadow-grass, and, bending it carefully back, she found a
half-fledged bird, with one wing trailing on the ground, and its eyes
dim with pain or hunger.

"You darling thing, did you fall out of your nest and hurt your wing?"
cried Nelly, looking up into the single tree that stood near by. No
nest was to be seen, no parent birds hovered overhead, and little Robin
could only tell its troubles in that mournful "Queek, queek, queek!"

Nelly ran to get both her chests, and, sitting down beside the bird,
tried to feed it. To her joy it ate crumb after crumb, as if it were
half starved, and soon fluttered nearer a confiding fearlessness that
made her very proud. Soon baby Robin seemed quite comfortable, his eye
brightened, he "queeked" no more, and but for the drooping wing would
have been himself again. With one of her bandages Nelly bound both
wings closely to his sides for fear he should hurt himself by trying to
fly; and though he seemed amazed at her proceedings, he behaved very
well, only staring at her, and ruffling up his few feathers in a funny
way that made her laugh. Then she had to discover some way of
accommodating her two larger patients so that neither should hurt nor
alarm the other. A bright thought came to her after much pondering.
Carefully lifting the handkerchief, she pinned the two ends to the roof
of the cart, and there swung little Forked-tongue, while Rob lay easily
below.

By this time, Nelly began to wonder how it happ