d, "Is it far you'll be
going?"

"Just to yonder tree," said I, pointing down the meadow; "but if you
think it will weary her to go, I will bring them to her myself."

"You can go with the lady," said the woman, giving her a look that the
child seemed to understand, "and I will just sit on the fence and look
afther ye."

"Is that your mother?" said I, stooping to pluck a daisy at the little
one's feet.

"Y-e-s," she said slowly, but without looking me in the face.

"_No she is not_," said I. "Don't be afraid of me; if you want to get
away from her I can help you. Didn't she steal you away?"

The child nodded her head, without speaking, and looked timidly over
her shoulder, to see if any one was near to hear me.

"Is your own mother alive?" I asked.

She nodded her head again, and her sweet little lip quivered.

"Hush!" said I, "don't cry. I'll get you away from her. Keep quiet.
Don't talk any more now. Just pick up the pears in your apron, that I
knock off this tree."

I climbed the pear tree and peeping over the fence, saw good honest
"Jim," the "man of all work" at the farm, sitting down in the shade to
rest, with old Bruno curled up at his feet.

I tossed a pear at his red head. Jim looked up. I put my finger on my
lip, saying, "Creep round by the fence, Jim, and get up to the house;
go in at the back door and wait till I come up. Don't say a word to
anybody. I'll tell you why when I get back."

Jim gave me a sagacious nod, and commenced going on all fours behind
the fence.

Little "Biddy," as her pretended mother called her, filled her apron
with the pears and we started across the field to where Bridget still
sat, perched upon the garden fence, with her hand organ unstrapped at
her feet.

I emptied the pears in her lap, and she thanked me in her uncouth way,
between the big mouthsful, and sat down on the grass with Biddy.

Presently I asked her if she would like some ginger beer; of course she
said yes, and of course I had to go into the kitchen to get it, and of
course I found Jim there, and telling him my story in a dozen words, he
brought his hand down with a thump on his waistband, exclaiming,

"Je-ru-sa-lem!"

When Jim said _that_ you might know he was going to do something
terrible!

Well, I went back with the beer, and just as Bridget was tipping the
glass up to her thick lips, Jim bounded behind her like a panther, and
held her arms tight while I took little Biddy and scampered into