y to know of her existence. To
Nancy, however, it seemed absurd that Pennie should go every week to
Nearminster and bring back no news at all. She began to feel sure that
Pennie had not made good use of her opportunities.

"Do you mean to say you know nothing more about her at all?" she asked
with contempt. "Well, if I were you, I should have found out something
by this time, I know."

Pennie bore these reproofs meekly, for she felt their justice. Nancy
always did manage to find out things better than she did, but at the
same time she could not think of any way of getting information. At
last accident came to her aid.

One evening as they sat together after tea, Miss Unity winding wool and
Pennie holding the skein, the former rose to get something out of the
cupboard near the fireplace. As she reached to the back of it something
round and smooth rolled forward and fell on the floor.

It was the head of the poor mandarin.

"Ah!" said Miss Unity with a long-drawn sigh, as though she were in
sudden pain.

Pennie picked it up, and her godmother, replacing it gently, shut the
cupboard door and took up her wool again. Her face was very grave, and
the frown on her forehead had deepened, but Pennie knew by this time
that Miss Unity was not cross when she looked like that, but sad. So,
although there was something she wanted to say very much, she kept
silence for a little while. Her thoughts went back to the day when
Ethelwyn had broken the mandarin, and then to her plan for getting
another, and how it had failed. When she reached this point she
ventured to inquire gently:

"Where did the mandarin come from?"

"A long, long way off, my dear," replied Miss Unity, with a far-away
look in her eyes as though she saw the distant country herself.

"Could another be got?" continued Pennie.

Her godmother looked inquiringly at her eager face.

"Another!" she repeated. "I suppose so. But I could never care about
another."

"Not if it were just exactly the same?" persisted Pennie.

"It could not be the same to me," said Miss Unity; "but why do you ask,
my dear?"

"Because," said Pennie, "we wanted to get you another one for a
surprise--only--things happened--and we couldn't save enough money."

Miss Unity leant forward suddenly and kissed her little guest.

"I thank you quite as much for the thought, dear Pennie, as if you had
done it," she said. "But I am glad you did not. There were reasons
which made