s. She's sorry now, but for
all that, I'm afraid she hasn't taken it so hard as this Elsie here, and
what's more--this is what I'm getting at: Elsie Moss can drop the name
she assumed falsely and, going elsewhere, resume her own as a matter of
course. But this Elsie, who has become well acquainted here and entered
into the life of the place, cannot suddenly change from Moss to Marley
without a great deal of pain to herself."

Quite true. No one had thought of that. It seemed appalling!

"Of course," Mrs. Moss went on rather doubtfully, "she could keep on with
the name. It's perfectly possible to have two Elsie Mosses in one
family. People would only take them for cousins."

"It's possible," the minister acknowledged, "but it wouldn't be right.
It wouldn't be honorable for Elsie to continue to use the name now."

"Ah, but Jack, it would be cruelly hard for her to change back to
Marley!" cried his wife; and he sadly agreed.

"Do you think you could go through it, dear?" he asked, turning to Elsie.

"I ought to bear something a great deal harder," cried Elsie suddenly.

"No, you ought not, my dear," rejoined Mrs. Middleton. "No, Jack, it
would be too hard on Elsie--on any young girl; and, besides, it would
hurt her influence at the library and with the schoolgirls. If people
could understand everything clearly, it would be another matter, but they
couldn't. Elsie's best friends know it. For my part, I don't believe
she deserves any punishment for doing wrong unconsciously--especially
since she's been such an angel of mercy to this house. But even if she
had, she's suffered enough already to atone--with plenary grace."

"She's got to go by some name," Miss Pritchard remarked palpably, but
that gave Mrs. Middleton a suggestion.

"I know," she cried. "Oh, Jack! Oh, Elsie!" and her face was quite
irradiated with love and good-will. "I know exactly what we'll do!
Elsie is just seventeen. We'll adopt her, Jack, for our own daughter,
and she shall wear our name henceforth. She shall be Elsie Middleton,
and Elsie Moss shall remain Elsie Moss, and they'll really be cousins."

She held out her arms, and Elsie nestled into them.

"My dearest Mildred!" cried her husband, going over to them in his
enthusiasm. "Isn't she wonderful?" he demanded, and almost in the same
breath asked Miss Pritchard's consent to legalize the adoption.

"Of course, only after suitable arrangements and provision were made,
Miss Pr