low if he does not manage to hit the ball as
often as you do."

"I will gladly stop and play with Norman, and promise not to laugh at
him," answered Fanny, ever ready to forgive, though, as she moved her
arm, she felt much pain.

"Will you try again, Norman, and let me show you how you may hit the
ball?" she said gently.

Norman sulkily consented, and their mamma, thinking that he was
reconciled to his sister, returned to the house.

Fanny again set to work to show her brother how he ought to strike the
trap, and in a short time, by following her directions, he was able to
send the ball some distance. He now, highly delighted, kept her running
about in all directions. Her arm hurt her too much to enable her to
catch the ball, and though she might frequently have rolled it back
against the trap and put him out, seeing how much amused he was she
refrained from doing so.

"We will have another game by-and-by," he exclaimed, as they were
summoned to dinner, and he went in highly pleased with his performance,
and ready to boast about it, but he entirely forgot the injury he had
done to poor Fanny.

They had another game in the afternoon, though Fanny could with
difficulty play.

When she was putting on her frock in the evening to go down to dessert,
Susan observed that her shoulder was very black.

"What have you done to your shoulder, Miss Fanny?" she asked; "I must
put something to it."

Fanny had to confess that Norman had thrown the bat at her, but begged
Susan not to scold him.

"I cannot promise, Miss, not to do that," she answered, "I am so angry
with him. He is a regular little tyrant. Trusty knows it, if nobody
else does, for, from the day the young gentleman came into the house he
has kept away from him, and I think he ought to be whipped for many
other things besides telling stories."

Fanny again pleaded in her usual way for her young brother, though she
could not help confessing to herself that Susan was right.

At dessert Fanny sat next to her grandmamma, but her hurt shoulder was
turned away from her and was towards Norman, who saw the black mark and
remembering how it must have been caused, was in a great fright all the
time he was eating the dish of strawberries his papa gave him, lest some
one else would discover it. It might possibly have prevented him from
enjoying his dessert as much as he otherwise would have done. Their
mamma was sitting opposite, and saw the mark, but thought it